The Sage's Vow

20.0 || Empathy

JOSH'S WORLD SPUN as he tried to process everything that had happened in the last few minutes. One moment he relished the coziness of Mara's sleeping form pressed against him, using that to ignore his insistent need to do something. The next, she was hostile toward someone he'd grown to consider a good friend, going so far as vanishing into a stormy night to escape his presence.

What was going on?

"Mara!" He rushed forward. Even if he understood nothing about the situation, he couldn't just watch her run off alone. Before he could breach the downpour, Cale's arm snapped out, catching him in the chest. He was too surprised to glare. "What are you doing?"

Cale stared out into the rain. His jaw flexed, but the rest of him had gone unnaturally still. When a few beats passed, Josh almost gave up and shoved past him, but Cale finally spoke. "I know you won't like this, but you need to stay here. We still don't know what's out there."

"Mara," Josh sniped, his glower settling in place as he tried to escape Cale's blockage. The other Paladin grabbed his arm instead. "Mara is out there, alone and... and I don't know what, but definitely not feeling great."

"Calm down and let me finish, Josh." Cale still didn't look at him. Instead, he glanced over his shoulder, lips pressed into a thin line. "Check in on things here, where it's safer. He trusts you more than me, and..." His jaw flexed. "And I may have an idea of what's going on with her. Let me find her and talk to her."

Almost thirty seconds had already passed. There was no time to argue, and Cale made a good point. Mara wasn't the only one who was a mess right now. The whole exchange had left Mateo looking like he'd been slapped across the face multiple times. But that squirming seed of jealousy wormed its way through Josh's gut. It should be him running to Mara's aid, not Cale.

"I'm fine—" Mateo began, but the attempt broke off when he couldn't even hide the waver in his voice.

Josh bit down the bitterness and jerked his head toward the forest. "Go."

Seeming to take that as a promise he'd stay back, Cale dropped his arm and took off in the same direction Mara had gone. The forest and rain swallowed him within seconds. Josh pursed his lips and stared in the spot he'd last seen them both, burying the mix of emotions stirring within him before turning to his friend.

I think you made the right choice, Boomer murmured.

You also like Mateo more, Josh shot back dryly, but there was little power behind the sarcasm. Too much confusion and damage control remained.

Mateo slouched against the back wall, one hand against his bent knee, the other buried in his hair. At Josh's approach, he attempted a smile. The edges quivered.

"You alright?" Mateo asked.

Josh almost scoffed. "Why are you the one asking me that?"

Mateo's eyes swept over Josh, sending the now familiar odd prickling feeling over his skin. All the things said before danced in Josh's head. Something about Mateo getting out of Mara's mind. Could he read thoughts? If he could, he didn't immediately answer the question as it appeared.

"You had quite the shock there," Mateo said. He straightened, but he kept part of his weight against the wall. "It's never easy to watch two people you care about not get along."

Josh sighed. He fixed his friend with what he hoped was a stern look. "Mateo, stop worrying about me. Yeah, that was all really weird, but I'm fine. You're the one who..." Not wanting to put words to how shaken up Mateo appeared, Josh simply gestured at him. "What's happening here, dude? What was Mara talking about?"