The sea lay calm, morning light spilling across the ice. Chen Wuya stood where he was, his palm still pressed against that slab of frozen ice. He did not withdraw his hand at once, instead allowing the Misaligned Force to slowly flow back and sink into his dantian. The phantom words "your mother" still lingered in his sea of consciousness, but he asked no further questions. Some answers could not be found yet.
He turned and walked toward the shore.
Bai Zhi leaned against a reef, her face pale and her breathing faint. Mo Feng stood beside her on his cane, clutching a star chart glowing with blue light. When the two saw Chen Wuya approach, neither spoke. Their eyes merely brightened a little.
Chen Wuya crouched beside Bai Zhi and took her hand. His palm was warm as Misaligned Force flowed from his fingertips into her body, slowly traveling through her meridians. Bai Zhi drew in a soft breath, and her shoulders relaxed slightly.
"How do you feel?" he asked.
"I can still walk." After saying that, she braced herself against the reef and tried to rise, but her body swayed.
Chen Wuya caught her arm and pulled her up. Once Bai Zhi had steadied herself, she did not let go of his hand. Instead, she moved closer, gently resting her head against his shoulder.
"Are we... going home?" she asked softly.
"No." Chen Wuya shook his head. "We're setting out."
Mo Feng grinned when he heard that. He spread the star chart across his knees and pointed at a distorted region in the far north. The Big Dipper hung upside down, while the Southern Cross formed a ring. The entire chart looked as if someone had crumpled it up and then smoothed it flat again.
"This isn't a