Nikto ❤️ Fountain of Wishes

The fountain stood in the center of the base, an odd place for making wishes. The water fell with a constant murmur, oblivious to the weapons, the orders, the broken men who came and went with war tattooed on their backs.

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She would take a coin from her pocket, hold it between her fingers for a few seconds, and close her eyes. She wasn't asking for wealth, or luck. She was asking for something much more dangerous: to be seen, but not by just anyone. By him.

Nikto watched her from afar.

He had arrived in KorTac recently. His presence was silent, heavy, as if the air around him were tense. König and Horangi had grown accustomed to him, but no one ever quite got used to his gaze or the way he spoke, as if he were never truly alone inside his own head.

The hyena was always by his side.

The animal was the first to close the distance. Every time she approached the fountain, the hyena moved ahead, running toward her with almost absurd confidence. It sat beside her, brushed against her legs, and accepted her caresses as if they were a sacred ritual.

She was smiling. And that smile did something to Nikto. I watched her throw the coin. I could hear the metallic sound sinking into the water.

And he felt something inside him stirring, making him uncomfortable because he didn't understand the feeling.

One day, she took out three coins.

Nikto tensed up. Three was no coincidence.

The first chime fell. Then the second one. The third one sounded deeper.

Nikto took a step forward before he realized it. She opened her eyes and looked at him for the first time.

"You're always there," she said, without reproach. "I thought today... maybe..."

He didn't finish the sentence, because it wasn't necessary.

"We've been watching you," he said. "For a long time."

She didn't back down. That's what disarmed him the most.

"I've only come to make a wish," he replied. "Nothing dangerous."

Nikto shook his head slowly.

—Wishes are.