"Alright, kid," Cid said, giving him a pyful nudge. "I gotta admit, you’ve got quite the eye for this stuff. How ‘bout you e up with a design of your ow’s see what you do from scratch."

  Helios blinked, caught off guard. “What? No, no—I just made some tweaks to your design. It’s only because your blueprint was so solid that I could even mahat.”

  Cid burst out ughing, shaking his head. “Now, don’t go butterin’ me up, kid. Fttery’ll get ya nowhere.” He leaned over, tapping a few keys on the sole and opening a fresh design program, the bnk interface flickering to life. “Go on. Go a little crazy with it. Show me what you’re made of!”

  Helios felt the fai sense of apprehension. He hadly pnned on going this far with ship design—he’d only meant to help a bit and keep up his cover. But seeing the genuiement in Cid’s eyes, he realized he couldn’t back out now.

  With a small nod, he took a seat a his fingers glide over the trols. As he worked, ideas began to flow, fueled by both instind the thrill of creating something new. He hadn’t expected to enjoy designing so much, but he quickly lost himself in the process. Shapes and figurations started to take form as he sculpted the ship in his mind, and bit by bit, a unique Gummi Ship began to emerge.

  The ship took on a sleek, futuristic design with deep white, bck, and blue tones—his favorite colors. He liked the trast between the dark body aallic blue highlights, which gave the ship a crisp, dynamic appearahe cockpit acious, with room for four passengers and a transparent opy a full view of space, a decision inspired by memories of stargazing in Nightfall.

  As he tinued, Helios added aerodynamigs, extending them from either side and ating them with metallic blue edges. Twin engines led into the rear of the fusege promised stability and impressive speed, while maintaining a certain elegan their streamlined design. But he didn’t stop there. He wahe ship to have defensive capabilities, so he embedded small turrets and rockets along the sides and uhe wings, each positioo stay low-profile until needed.

  The final touch was a unique shield meism—a yered energy field that could protect against both physical and magical attacks. And to top it all off, he incorporated a drive that could allow it to jump between star systems with ease. He felt like a key element, something that would set this ship apart and make it a formidable presence.

  When he leaned back to examine his creation, he couldn’t help but feel a surge of pride. The ship looked striking, a perfect blend of power and elegance. For a moment, he imagined himself piloting it through the os, free to explore the endless worlds that y beyond Radiant Garden. With it, he wouldn’t o rely too heavily on the corridors of darkness.

  Cid let out a low whistle, his eyes wide with admiration. “Kid… that’s one helluva design. I mean, just look at it! You’re damn good at this. Ever thought about w in ship engineering full-time?”

  Helios gave a small ugh, rubbing the back of his neck. “I appreciate it, Cid, really. But… Merlin took me in when I had nowhere else to go. I owe him a lot, and I ’t just up and leave now.”

  Cid chuckled, giving him a good-natured sp on the back. “Ah, that old coot got lucky findin’ you first, didn’t he? Well, I won’t twist your arm, but if you ever ge your mind, you know where to find me. With talent like that, you’re wasted as an apprentice.”

  Helios managed a smile, though part of him couldn’t help but wonder what his life might have been like if things had been different. Maybe he would have ended up an engineer in Nightfall, building shipd and pnes for real, his parents proud to see his work. The thought brought a pang of sadness, and he quickly shook it off, fog instead on the here and now.

  Cid leaned over the sole, saving the design. “Tell you what—if I sge up enough Gummi Blocks, we’ll see if we make this beauty real. Wouldn’t that be somethin’?”

  Helios’s eyes brightened. “You’d really build it?”

  Cid gave him a hearty nod. “Hell yeah! ’t leave a ship like this sittin’ in blueprint limbo, now, we? I’ll keep ya posted, kid. Who knows—maybe one day, you’ll be takin’ her out for a spin.”

  They both shared a ugh, the camaraderie between them warm and easy, and for a moment, Helios felt the weight on his heart lighten. Cid’s enthusiasm was iious, and Helios found himself genuinely looking forward to the possibility of seeing his design brought to life.

  But then he g the clo the wall, realizing just how te it had gotten. The night had fallen fully, casting a peaceful silence over the workshop. Cid seemed to notice as well, stretg his arms and yawning.

  “Whew! Didn’t realize we got so caught up in it,” Cid remarked, chug. “Guess that’s what happens when you’re workin’ on somethin’ worth doin’. But you should get baerlin’s. Don’t want the old man thinkin’ I kept ya hostage here.”

  Helios nodded, feeling a mix of exhaustion and exhiration from the night’s work. “You’re right. Thanks for… all of this, Cid. It’s been… well, incredible.”

  Cid waved him off with a grin. “Don’t mention it. You keep workin’ on that talent of yours, kid. Something tells me yonna do big things.”

  As Helios stepped out into the cool night air, he couldn’t help but feel a strange mix of emotions. Part of him felt the pride of creation, the joy of eg with someone like Cid over a shared passion. But another part reminded him of his true purpose here, the dark path he’d itted to. He couldn’t waste time having fun designing ships. If he had time then he should be training his magid getting stronger.

  The streets of Radiant Garden were quiet, the city bathed in the gentle glow of mplight as he made his way baerlin’s cottage. He couldn’t help but wonder what his parents would think of him now, creating ships, w alongside Cid, finding small joys in a world that wasn’t his. He had thought that avenging and resurreg them was the only thing he’d ever want, the only thing that could drive him. A, here he was, taking pride in work, f bonds with people like Isa, Lea, and Cid.

  No, he reminded himself. These es… they’re temporary and unimportant. I’m here for a reason.

  As he he cottage, Kurai’s voice slipped into his thoughts, its tone filled with an almost mog satisfa. “So you made a little ship design, hmm? Perhaps you’re sidering a career ge after all.”

  Helios rolled his eyes but kept his response level. “It’s a skill, Kurai. Ohat may prove useful iure. Nothing more.”

  Kurai’s tone softened into something sly. “Ah, if that’s what you’d like to tell yourself, so be it. But remember, attats like these, even as you gain your so-called skills, bind you in ways you may not foresee. I’m simply reminding you.”

  Helios took a steadying breath, f himself to keep calm. “I know what I’m doing. This doesn’t ge anything.”

  Kurai’s chuckle was low, meical, and dark, a shadow on the edge of his mind. “For now, maybe. Just be sure that you don’t let your purpose waver. It seems my repeated warnings are not being taken seriously so ime I shall extract a price.”

  With that final, chilling warning, Kurai’s voice faded, leaving Helios aloh the weight of his own thoughts.

  As he slipped bato the cottage, he found the rooms dim and quiet, with only the faint glow of the moonlight filtering through the windows. Iillness of the night, he felt a creeping uainty, a small but persistent question he couldn’t quite banish.

  Was he truly strong enough to walk this dark path without promise?

  He shook the thought off, settling down on his bed and staring up at the ceiling. Attats were a risk. Kurai was right; bonds could be exploited, and turned into weaknesses.