No Happiness Guaranteed

Previously

…As they walked side-by-side, the trees seemed to hum a slightly different tune, a melody of shared purpose. Elias still held the compass, but its pull felt less like a desperate command and more like a gentle invitation. He glanced at Phetheni, her profile etched against the dappled sunlight, and for the first time, the emptiness within him felt a little less vast, a little less cold. The adventure, he realized, was just beginning, and he was no longer entirely alone.