Leon ducked a swipe from a third beast, its claws grazing his pack, his breath ragged.

The creature was too close, too fast, its smoky form lunging.

"Shit—!" he yelped, stumbling.

A flash of silver—Zara's axe crushed the beast's skull, knocking it away from Leon, its body dissolving into the mist.

"Don't make me regret this," she muttered, her voice gruff, her curse marks flaring brighter, her arm trembling from the effort.

The remaining beasts hesitated, swaying, their coal eyes flickering, then melted back into the mist, their roars fading.

The forest whispered louder now, mocking, waiting, the trees' red veins pulsing in rhythm.

Leon collapsed to one knee, gasping, his wind magic spent, his dagger still clutched tightly.

Terya knelt beside him, brushing her hair back, her torn top barely holding, a wicked glint in her eye.

"You're not dead yet, hero," she said, nudging him with her elbow, her voice warm despite the chaos.

Zara sat against a tree, her axe across her lap, one hand pressed to a flaring curse mark, her breathing shallow but steady.

"Next time," she said flatly, her blue eyes flicking to Leon, "use more than a puff of wind."

Leon groaned, dropping to his back, his chest heaving. "Noted."

_________

The wind was gone.

Their breath hung in the crimson-tinged mist, thick and heavy, the forest's silence broken only by the hollow groans of blood-slick trees, their bark glistening under the moonlight.

The red mist swirled, curling around their camp like a living shroud, the air tasting of iron and decay.

Their meager campfire, fueled by Leon's struggling wind magic, crackled weakly, barely holding back the oppressive gloom.

Leon sat with his back against a gnarled root, knees drawn to his chest, hands trembling, his reforged dagger forgotten in the dirt beside him.

"I froze," he muttered, the thought pulsing louder than the mist, louder than the trees, louder than the dying echo of the shadow-beasts' retreat.

His heart raced—wild, frantic—not from the fight, not from adrenaline, but from failure.

When the beast lunged, he'd stood there, wide-eyed, a sloppy wind arc fizzing out at his fingertips.

Terya had saved him.

Zara had always saved him.

His palms clenched, the shame burning hotter than any curse.

What kind of hero does that?

Terya crouched beside him, her long legs folding under her, her green eyes meeting his, soft but steady.

Her leather top clung to her sweat-slicked curves, torn from the ambush, revealing a sliver of flushed skin.

"Hey," she said gently, her hand settling on his shoulder, warm and grounding. "Still breathing?"

"Barely," he said, his voice low, his gaze fixed on the dirt.

Her fingers squeezed his shoulder, her touch firm.

"You're not supposed to be perfect, Leon. You're learning. You didn't run away. That matters."

He huffed, ashamed, his hands clenching tighter. "I nearly got both of you killed."

"Nearly," she teased, her smile warm, her green eyes glinting. "Which means you didn't. That counts."

Zara leaned against a stump nearby, her massive axe across her lap, her silver hair tied messily, her curse marks glowing faintly through tattered bandages.

Her breathing was steady, but her blue eyes were sharp with pain.

"You're not the only one who's panicked in a fight," she said, her voice gruff but carrying a strange warmth. "My first job? I dropped my sword. Froze like a damn statue. Took a mace to the ribs."

Leon looked up, surprised, his shame easing slightly. "You?"

Zara grunted, shifting to reveal a jagged scar just under her ribs, pale against her bronze skin, glinting in the firelight. "Still have the scar," she said, her tone dry.

"This place doesn't make it easier. Vyrneth wasn't always like this. Long ago, it was a kingdom—beautiful, quiet. Until a Lysaran priestess tried to ascend using a blood ritual, wanted to become a goddess. All she made was the Veil. Now it feeds on fear. On weakness." She met Leon's gaze, her blue eyes piercing.

"So don't give it what it wants."

Terya moved to kneel in front of him, grabbing his hands, her fingers lacing with his, warm where his were calloused and shaky.

"Come on," she said, her voice soft, her touch steady.

"Let's try it together." She guided his hands through the wind arc motion, her leather top creaking, her torn sleeve revealing the curve of her shoulder.

"Smooth, like drawing a breath," she murmured.

"Not forced. Just flowing."

Her closeness grounded him, her scent—sweat, leather, and something sweet—cutting through the forest's rot.

"Focus on me," she said, her green eyes locked on his. "Not the fear."

Leon breathed in, her warmth steadying him, his wind magic stirring faintly through their bond.

He closed his eyes, picturing the air, letting it flow.

Wind spun from his palms—clean, sharp, slicing through a hanging branch nearby, the bark splintering as it fell with a crash.

Terya whooped, her grin wide, her breasts bouncing under her torn leather as she clapped his back, laughing.

"See? That's more like it!" She leaned in, planting a quick, warm kiss on his cheek, her lips lingering just long enough to make his face flush.

"Welcome back, hero," she said, her voice playful but sincere.

Leon's flush deepened, a grin breaking through his shame.

Zara gave a gruff nod, her blue eyes approving despite the wince as her curse marks throbbed.

"Not bad, kid," she said, standing slowly, her axe shifting. "You might live through this after all."

The mist swirled around them, the forest's whispers returning, but Leon's pulse had steadied. He wasn't fire anymore, not without Saria, but he had the wind, and he wasn't alone.

Leon sat on a moss-covered stone, his shoulders slumped, the strain of constant wind training catching up with him.

His tunic clung to his sweat-damp chest, his reforged dagger at his belt.

He could feel it—the slipping magic, the creeping drain.

His bond with Saria was a faint ember, his fire magic barely a memory.

His wind magic, tied to Terya, flickered restlessly but fragile, like breath trying to push back a storm.

"Ignis," he muttered, his hand trembling.

Nothing.

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