The scholar that had written the translation had either been incredibly pretentious or lived quite a long time ago, as about a quarter of the words used were now obsolete and considered archaic.

The traditional language was, in all honesty, pretty much a dead language anyway, but the words of this scroll proved to be a real challenge for Hani's usually good comprehension skills.

Hani mumbled and tripped over words as he put them into the modern language in his head, "light...passion...no that's not right...light, love."

Levi started humming the tune to old folk songs that contained the words Hani was murmuring out loud.

"Stop that," Hani snapped, finally able to take it no more, "this is hard enough to get right without you wailing horribly in the background."

"I was merely trying to help," Levi shrugged, "many people find accompanying music to be an aid with intellectual tasks."

"Music, perhaps," Hani replied haughtily. He still couldn’t understand what on Nagimiotani led Muna to believe that this unshaved, egocentric, ruffian criminal was someone worth putting her trust in. Hani wasn’t sure that Levi could find his way out of a bar, let alone across the desert to the ruins of a mythical city.

"It says something about Fakshir birds," Hani sighed, frowning intently down at the page in his hands, "but I don't even know what those are..."

"And you call me a ruffian?" Levi snorted. Hani flushed furiously, realising that he must have been voicing his critique of Levi out loud along with his attempted translation.

"Well?" Hani prompted after an agonizing ten seconds of Levi giving no further input. "Are you going to elaborate?"

"Oh, you want my help do you?" Levi kept his eyes closed where he was reclined back against the rock, but his full lips twitched in amusement.

"I thought you wanted me to get on board with this Alack nonsense?" Hani snapped impatiently. "I could just give up on translating this Alackai manuscript and just go my own way you know? Let's see how your Seprimo scars like that idea?"

It could have been Hani's imagination but he was sure he saw the flash of a wince pass across Levi's features.

"Well they're not damn birds for starters," Levi announced with wave of his hand. “They're clouds - and if you had the same 'criminal' background as me, you'd already know that."

Hani tried to give his best unimpressed and dour expression for when Levi cracked open an eye and stared across at him. "Cloud superstitions are very important for those in my trade," Levi elaborated before Hani rolled his eyes.

"Yes, I know. Okay fine, they're clouds - what kind of clouds?"

"The small sapphire blue ones you get after a storm," Levi replied, lazily flicking a desert fly off of his arm. "The myth goes that they're the reincarnated souls of those who died by magical means."

"I don't understand what that's got to do with anything," Hani frowned miserably down at the manuscript.

"It's a metaphor," Levi answered him, sitting up further against the rock and shielding his eyes with his hand as he looked over towards Hani, "basically a fancy ass way of saying 'reincarnation' or 'being given life."

Hani chewed on his lip, ignoring the rusted tang telling him he was bleeding as he scanned the words around that particular phrase.

"You're probably reading the scroll too literally," Levi sighed, causing Hani to flick his eyes up and see the other man stretching languidly his shirt riding up to reveal the hardened muscles of his abdomen. Hani gulped before affixing his eyes firmly once more to the page.

"Ancient scribes were ostentatious shitheads," Levi continued, thankfully ignoring Hani's current tomato red pallor. "They'd never write anything down straight forwardly if they could help it. You have to use your imagination when reading stuff like that."

"I'll try," Hani muttered sourly, running the pad of his index finger across the line of curling silver green ink.

"I think it's talking about the device," Hani said at last, his mind whirring with desperate curiosity. "If...if it exists, and it can turn people into a balance of light and dark - then, well that would be like a reincarnation of half of them no?"

"You're the little scholar," Levi replied with a yawn, causing Hani to click his tongue irritably.

Hani couldn’t let Levi know the truth, about how Muna had taken all of Hani's magic in order to triumph as a challenger. But...that exchange of magic...."we're still linked," Hani murmured in frozen wonder.

There might be a tiny chance I could bring Muna back.

"Fuck," Hani stated suddenly, lifting his head up from the scroll to see Levi squinting questioningly at him.

"I'll come," Hani said decisively, "I'll come with you to Alack."

Levi sat up, inhaling deeply before letting the breath out again. "So nice of you to acquiesce sweetheart, it's not like I would have died horribly if you didn't or anything."

It was now Hani's turn to roll his eyes at Levi being such a pouty drama queen. But he didn't care, he would put up with anyone for company if it meant a chance at getting Muna back.

"We should get going," Hani announced promptly, jumping up and frowning as Levi stretched to pull off his soiled shirt.

Hani tried to hide the small gasp he let out as his eyes fell on tanned skin stretched over rippling muscles covered in intricately inked tattoos.

"W-what are you doing?" Hani managed to stutter indignantly, although it perhaps came out a bit squeaky.

"It's hot," Levi replied with a look that suggested he didn't consider Hani to be very bright.

"I fucking know that," Hani snapped, "but you can't travel topless - the desert sun will burn you to ashes! You might as well just activate the Seprimo scars now."

"I've hiked across the desert before," Levi snorted, "I'll be fine." The older man paused before smirking up at Hani, "Why? It doesn't make you uncomfortable does it?

"Of course not," Hani bit back, "it's just stupid, that's all."

"Well, excuse my uneducated and ruffian ways my little pet," Levi replied, causing Hani's eyes to widen.

"P-pet?" Hani stammered. "That's worse than kitten!"

"But you've agreed to come with me," Levi grinned ferally with far too much teeth, "you're a tame desert cat now."

Hani swore under his breath before reaching for his pack and hoisting it up on his already sweating shoulders. The sun would be unforgiving and relentless today, but it was Levi's own fault if he burned or got sick.

Nothing more was said as Levi gathered up his own things, tying his shirt around his waist with a bemused flicker of a smile in Hani's direction. Hani pointedly ignored Levi until they were about ten minutes hike away from the camp, progressing ever more into sandy planes and leaving the dry bush and grass behind.

"So are we walking the whole way to Alack?" Hani huffed. "Because if it's not even that far then you could have probably just drawn my sister a map."

"Expecting a piggy back ride?" Levi quirked an eyebrow.

"No, I just thought it might be sensible to find some camels," Hani replied between gritted teeth, if he bit down any harder he would probably chip something.

"No camels," Levi said quickly, his expression changing into one of faint disgust. "Hate the fucking things."

"Well we can't ride horses across the inner desert!" Hani exclaimed. "They'll drop like flies within hours."

"No," Levi shook his head, looking uncharacteristically serious, "we'll get some sturdy ponies or something from the next town we come across. I know there's one about two hours walk from here."

"Are you insane?" Hani asked drily. "We need camels."

"Can't stand camels," Levi muttered under his breath before speeding up and pacing ahead before Hani could enquire any more on the subject.

"We could always get you an ostrich?" Hani called out after the older man, chuckling as he received a rude gesture in reply.