‘…A-Am I hallucinating?!’
He paused, cocking his head to the side.
Plink…
Another drip.
Plink…
Then another.
Faint, irregular, like a broken clock ticking somewhere far off.
‘Finally!’
His pace quickened, though he had to keep ducking and weaving through the narrowing tunnels.
The sound got louder, sharper, until the drips turned into a soft, steady plink-plink-plink.
He rounded a bend, and there it was—a corner of the cave where water dripped from the ceiling, one drop at a time, into a small, clear pool.
It wasn’t much to look at.
Just a shallow basin carved into the rock, maybe by time, maybe by some long-forgotten hand.
The water looked clean too, like it had been naturally filtered through layers of rocks.
It was so still and clear that it seemed fake.
‘Guess I’m not gone just yet.’
Relief washed over Malik, but it didn’t last long.
Guarding the water was a cluster of creatures that could’ve walked straight out of one of those tales he heard from his guardian.
They looked like humanoid lizards mixed with bats—skin leathery and stretched taut over their bones, eyes glowing faintly in the dark.
Their mouths were filled with jagged teeth that didn’t seem to fit their faces, and their claws scraped the cave floor with a grating, metallic sound.
‘Oh, come on!’
Malik crouched low.
‘Really? You guys need this more than I do?’
The monsters didn’t seem to notice him, too busy lapping at the water with long, forked tongues.
Malik waited, heart pounding, until they shuffled off to another corner, their strange screeches echoing softly.
Quiet as a shadow, he crept forward, keeping his breath shallow.
He dipped the broken gourd into the water and scooped it full.
Malik could feel the dryness in his own throat, the desperate burn for just a sip, but he ignored it.
Remaining a second longer in that exposed position wasn’t a risk he was willing to take.
Moreover, his mind was too focused on bringing back water to the kids that he had forgotten about himself.
Slowly, he backed away, every step slightly quicker than the last.
And, when he was far enough from the creatures, he bolted.
***
{Outside The Projection}
“What the fuck is he thinking?!”
“Drink a bit for yourself! Are you trying to die?!””
“Who’ll take care of them if you get knocked out?”
“Where did his smarts go?!”
Almost half the crowd was losing their collective minds, throwing out complaints like they were personally offended by Malik’s choices.
And the other half? Oh, they were just as loud, but for the opposite reason.
“Okay, hold up. Are you guys even thinking about how he feels right now?”
“Right?! It might not be the smartest move but look at it from his perspective for a second!”
“Exactly! You think it’s easy to fill your belly first when Lady Huda and her little brother are literally dying of thirst?”
“And he wasn’t being stupid! What if he’d stayed one second longer? Those Ahools might’ve ripped him to shreds! Then what? Huh?!”
It seemed that they really became comfortable with the situation, casually arguing about the dumbest things, with the kind of passion only armchair warriors could muster.
They weren’t even focused on the projection anymore.
“You’re just making excuses for him!”
“Yeah! Stop defending the bastard!”
“No, you stop acting like you’d have done any better!”
“He—”
“Quiet.”
But that appeared to be too chaotic for Noor’s liking.
Her one word quietened down the hall, displaying her influence as an emperor.
While that title fell short before the Sultan, she was still a big deal in her own right.
Rather, the biggest deal after him, at least regarding vassal power and influence.
“You might feel closer to the boy in front of you after seeing his highs and lows, but keep in mind…”
Her throne turned around to face the crowd and her eyes scanned their faces.
“He’s the Sultan. He’s not your friend. He’ll never be your friend. Even back then, hundreds of years ago, he was above you, so do treat him with respect.”
The hall turned a tad bit colder.
“I’m not telling you not to curse him; do that as much as you like. I’m sure I would, but…”
An invisible pressure was set upon them, forcing their heads down.
“Disrespecting him is tantamount to disrespecting me… is that understood?”
“…”
“…”
“…”
“…”
“…”
“…”
“…”
No one responded to her words.
It was not that they didn’t want to, but couldn’t.
The pressure she unleashed upon them rattled them from top to bottom, halting their muscles.
Those who weren’t as affected, which were most of the older Magi, didn’t reply either.
They knew better than to.
“If you’re all done screaming like a bunch of drunk Ahools, maybe watch the damn projection. Or is that too much to ask?”
Then, with a smile that didn’t reach her eyes—visible even behind her veil—she added:
“Didn’t think so.”
Noor turned the floating throne around to face the projection once more.
She didn’t actually care about the “disrespect” they showed.
What bothered her was them acting like there were only two options.
Malik could’ve used his other hand to drink while scooping up the water at the same time.
While it might risk the Ahool hearing a few extra droplets, the sound wasn’t distinct enough to get him caught.
‘…Is he just a hero wannabe like Zafar? Or did that idea not come to mind? That doesn’t make much sense, though. He’s shown himself to be incredibly smart, even back then, so I can’t see it.’
Noor could already guess the real reason, but she just couldn’t believe it to be true.
‘There’s no way someone can be that selfless, right?’
Noor’s fingers tightened slightly on the armrest of her throne as she watched the projection.
Her lips pressed into a thin line, and she let out a slow, almost imperceptible sigh.
She could already hear the arguments her advisors would throw at her later.
They’d call Malik reckless, naïve, or worse—accuse him of grandstanding.
And honestly? She’d agree with some of it.
But watching him in that moment, giving every ounce of his strength to save those kids, it didn’t strike her as an act of bravado or stupidity.
It struck her as real.
Noor leaned back, letting the faint tension bleed out of her shoulders.
‘He’s not just doing this for them… He’s doing this because he’s terrified of failing. Because somewhere in his head, he’s convinced himself that their safety is his responsibility alone. Even if it costs him everything.’
Her fingers relaxed and drummed lightly against the throne’s edge.
The pressure she’d unleashed on the crowd wasn’t just for their “disrespect;” it was also to quiet her own swirling thoughts.
‘Why didn’t he think about this? It’s obvious that he’s going to burn out at some point. A death will break him. What then? Did he ever think about that?’
For a moment, just a moment, her expression softened beneath the veil.
Then it hardened again.
“Damn fool.”
***
{Inside The Projection}
Malik went back through the twisting tunnels, back toward the faint light of the cave’s entrance.
By the time he reached Huda and Sinbad, he was gasping for air, his legs trembling beneath him.
He knelt beside Huda first, tilting the gourd to her cracked lips.
“Drink up, kid; you’re not dying today.”
She drank weakly, her small hands clutching at his like she thought he might take it away.
Malik didn’t pull back until a little more than half of it was gone, then moved to Sinbad, coaxing him to sip as well.
Only when they were both settled did he realize he hadn’t taken a single drop for himself.
He leaned back against the wall, staring at the gourd in his hands, a wry grin tugging at his lips.
“Guess I really am too kind for my own good…”
He laughed, his eyes slowly drooping until the cool air claimed him and he fell into sleep.