The mist rolled in before dawn, swallowing the trees in shifting white.
Kael brushed droplets from his gauntlets, eyes narrowing at the faint sound echoing through the fog — not footsteps, but laughter.
A faint laugh answered from above.
When they looked up, crimson eyes glowed through the haze.
Nakea stepped from the branches, her cloak torn, hair streaked red and black under the fading sun — the same dress they'd seen last time. The fabric was scorched at the hem, yet her poise hadn't changed at all.
"Still alive," she said, her voice soft, mocking. "You three are persistent. Most fall after the first lesson."
Kael straightened, sparks already crawling along his forearm. "Lesson? You almost killed us."
"That was the lesson." Her smile curved. "To see who'd stand again."
Elira's hand found her sword. "Then you'll see."
Nakea's form blurred; claws flashed. The ground tore open as Kael met her halfway, his fists flaring with lightning.
She dodged easily, spinning around his strike.
"Too slow."
Kael gritted his teeth, slammed his gauntlet into the earth, and shouted,
"Thunder Break!"
A sphere of lightning coalesced above his palm — bright, compressed, alive.
He hurled it down.
The blast cracked the clearing apart, blue arcs chaining outward in jagged bursts. The shockwave scorched tree trunks, scattering leaves into cinders.
Elira blinked, astonished. "Kael—what was that?"
He glanced at his smoking fist, breath heavy but grinning. "My Void. Finally woke up."
Mira raised her arms to shield against the sparks. "About time! Took you long enough."
But Nakea only laughed, hair whipping in the electric wind. "Impressive… but wild."
She vanished in an afterimage, reappearing behind him, one claw aimed for his chest—
Steel rang.
Elira stepped in front of him, sword blazing.
"Consencrate!"
A radiant field erupted outward, pure light cascading like a tidal wave.
The impact threw Nakea backward; the aura expanded in every direction, gold weaving with faint silver edges — light and shadow entwined.
The ground itself glowed, humming with energy that was alive, not summoned.
Nakea straightened slowly, brushing dust from her torn cloak. "So that's your answer? More power?"
Elira lowered her sword slightly, her eyes unwavering. "Not power. Resolve."
The words hung heavy. For the first time, Nakea's smirk faded.
She studied the three before her — Mira's firelit defiance, Kael's clenched grin, Elira's unwavering stance within the fading glow of Consencrate.
Elira spoke again, quieter.
"You followed my parents once, didn't you? Not for orders. Not for crowns. You said you wanted to see where their path would go."
Nakea froze.
"Then look again," Elira continued. "Look at what they left behind."
Mira added softly, "We're not them. But we're still walking that road."
Kael folded his arms, sparks still flickering faintly. "And we don't plan to stop halfway."
Silence.
Then, slowly, the crimson aura around Nakea's hands dissolved.
Her claws faded back to smooth, pale fingers.
"You sound like him," she murmured. "Annoying. Reckless. Always preaching hope to things that should've burned out long ago."
Elira smiled faintly. "Guess it runs in the family."
The mist thinned. Burnt ozone lingered where lightning had struck.
Nakea turned her gaze aside. "You're still weak. But…" — she sighed, rubbing her temple — "fine. I'll walk with you. Someone needs to make sure you don't die before the real fight begins."
Mira blinked. "You're joining us? Just like that?"
"I said walk with you, not obey you," Nakea replied sharply.
Kael grinned. "Close enough."
A faint chuckle escaped Haco from the edge of the clearing. "Didn't expect you to give in this fast."
Nakea's crimson eyes narrowed. "Don't flatter yourself, fox. I'm not doing this for you."
Their gazes met — sharp, old, and tired. For a second, the silence between them was louder than the fading thunder.
She looked away first. "You think this fixes anything between us?"
"No," Haco said softly. "But it gives you a place to start."
The fire crackled low again. The others slept near the ashes.
Only Haco and Nakea remained awake, the glow painting their faces in uneven amber.
Haco was cleaning his blade when he finally spoke.
"You didn't have to help them."
Nakea's tone was dry. "I didn't. I just couldn't stand watching them fail the same way."
"Is that all?"
She paused. The fire popped. "Maybe… I owed you that much. After how we left it."
Haco didn't look up. "You didn't owe me anything."
"That's the problem," she murmured. "You always make it sound that simple."
For a while, neither said another word.
When the fire died, Nakea stood and walked toward the dark edge of the camp.
Haco's voice followed, quiet but certain.
"You're here for another reason, aren't you?"
She stopped, her back to him. "…Maybe."
"Good," he said. "Then whatever that reason is — let it keep you with them a little longer."
Nakea didn't answer.
But when the dawn came, she was still there — sitting at the edge of camp, eyes half-closed, watching the sun rise through the fog.
And for the first time, she didn't look like their enemy.
She looked like someone who had finally decided to stop running.