ã€ŠFirakha - Of Monsters And Godsã€‹


 Chapter One - A New World

    PART ONE - THE GIRL THAT WAS BORN FROM A DYING STAR

    Chapter One -A New World

    Where...?

    The cave was wide and empty, nothing but bare walls and grey stone and the only colour in the room was the shape of a young girl curled up in its middle.

    Where is this? What...?

    She looked around, confused and unfamiliar to her surroundings. Hesitantly she sat up and her eyes followed the faint dark lines in the stone walls and finally landed on herself.

    Mesmerised, she raised her arm and looked at the pale pink flesh. Her mind told her it belonged to her but she was quite sure she had never seen it before.

    She had...never seen anything before.

    Slowly, she pushed her other arm before her eyes as well and began to trace her hands across her body. The sensation of her skin beneath her fingers, the ground on her skin, the slight wind caressing her, all was new to her. She didn¡¯t know it, didn¡¯t know anything like it.

    Her skin was bare, covering her body without any protection and each time the air swirled against her, shivers began to run down her spine.

    It was...cold.

    Her mind knew the sensation, put a word to it almost naturally, yet she couldn¡¯t help but twist the word around in her mind.

    Cold.

    Fascinated, she wondered what else might be hidden in her head but quickly got distracted when her exploring fingers found her legs. She could move them, she noticed, and slowly wiggled her toes and drew her feet beneath her.

    It was her instinct to push herself away from the ground and concentrate her weight on her feet, but the moment she tried, she began to stumble forwards, unable to find the balance necessary to stand.

    She bit her lips, frowning at her legs, wondering what else they might be made for if not walking.

    She didn¡¯t come up with anything.

    So she tried again, pushing herself up with the help of the wall next to her, this time managing a few wobbly steps until she crashed to the floor again.

    This is...

    A strange sensation filled her, swelling in her heart and shooting through her veins, filling her with boundless energy.

    ...fun.

    A grin split her face and her pale, amber eyes lit up with glee. Despite falling and feeling a faint pain in her knees, she didn¡¯t hesitate to stand again and try to find whatever was necessary for her to walk.

    It took her quite a long time of falling and getting up again until she managed to stand straight on her legs but the fire and curiosity that drove her to try it to begin with wouldn¡¯t allow her to give up.

    She wanted to stand. To walk.

    Her eyes fluttered to the narrow crevice between two walls of the cave, leading away from the room that was all that she knew. An exit.

    When she noticed it, her heart surged. She wanted to know what was out there. She had seen this cave, studied the lines of black and faint gold in the walls but she hadn¡¯t seen anything else.

    She needed to know what was out there.

    And so her eyes narrowed as she drew herself up for another try and finally managed to stand, holding herself upright with the help of the wall.

    Another bright smile lightened up her face.

    I made it! She celebrated, proud of her very first accomplishment. Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

    Now that she stood, she looked down on her body again, this time examining it in full length.

    There was a lot of hair, flowing from her head, hanging down to her hips, in a fiery, bright colour her mind identified as red.

    She was rather small, at least compared to the height of the cave, but the muscles running under her pink skin were smooth and all obeyed her commands as she tried to move them. She ran her hands over her skin, from her stomach to her legs and up towards her face.

    She reconizedher mouth and nose, the eyebrows above her eyes and the hair that fell to the sides of her head. There was also a pair of hard, curled horns on the sides of her head, with a texture not completely unlike the rough stone of the wall.

    She was fascinated.

    She had no idea what her body was, what she was, but feeling her own skin under her fingers left a deep impression in her, a curiosity that mere exploration couldn¡¯t quench.

    Instead she held on to the wall and turned around, tracing eerily glowing golden veins in the stone walls with her sensitive fingertips.

    They were of a rich amber colder and under her palm, they were warm and pulsating, as if they themselves were alive. Her eyes widened when she felt it and she quickly pressed her hands against one of the golden steaks.

    Feeling it, she couldn¡¯t help but be astonished.

    She didn¡¯t know this. She didn¡¯t know the feeling of skin on skin or of the stony walls or of the pulsating gold. She did not remember the red of her hair or the pink ofher skin and the more she thought about it, the weirder it seemed to her.

    Surely, she should know something?

    But no matter how much she concentrated, there was only a feeling of warmth in her chest and then, opening her eyes to this cave.

    She blinked and then looked down onto her now standing legs again. They were wobbly and weak but when she thought of the crevice that would lead her out of here, she knew it would be worth the try.

    Maybe she¡¯d remember something once she left this cave.

    Or maybe there would be something, anything out there that could tell her more about herself.

    She nodded to herself, determined to do something.

    So she raised her foot and placed it hesitantly on the ground in front of her, stepping away from the wall she¡¯d used for support. The small rocks stabbed into her feet, prickly and rough, yet not sharp enough to hurt her anymore than the fall earlier did.

    And then she walked.

    She was still uncertain, stumbling in wavy lines instead of straight ones, but she did her best not to fall again. And when she didn¡¯t, the wonderful, fulfilling sensation swelled in her heart again.

    It was exciting, to stand on her own feet and walk, even if she had to stretch out both of her arms to the sides to hold her balance.

    Let¡¯s do this! She thought to herself and slowly but surely walked towards to crevice.

    The golden veins pulsated under her fingers again as if they wanted to lead her and the dim light they provided did a little to light up the path in front of her.

    They got darker and darker the further she walked away from the cave she woke up in and it didn¡¯t take many of her uncertain walking until they grew so dark that she couldn¡¯t make out the way in front of her anymore.

    She frowned and stopped, staring into the darkness as if she expected something to jump at her any second. It was another instinct that told her to be wary of the dark and whatever could hide within and since her instincts were the only things she could trust, standing and hesitating was an easy decision.

    There could be danger ahead of her, she could feel it in the prickling of her neck.

    Danger wasn¡¯t something good, that much she knew. It came with pain and small awareness in the back of her head told her that there were sorts of pain could be far worse than the scraped knees she got while falling.

    She didn¡¯t want that.

    So she bit her lip and stood, steadily getting better and standing on one spot without her legs wanting to give in.

    If only there could be some light in here...

    Light...

    She knew light. Her body knew it at least and it wasn¡¯t just because the golden streaks in the wall had emitted it. It was familiar.

    Light...fire.

    The second word came so naturally, it felt like a piece falling into place, making everything clearer.

    Fire. She knew fire, she knew it more than she knew cold or curiosity, it was a part of her, a burning in her chest that told her what to do.

    And just like her legs were obviously made for walking, the burning in her chest was obviously for making fire.

    She stretched out her hand and let the burning seep into it, not the least bit surprised when a cluster of bright orange flames exploded around her skin. They raced up her arm, enshrouding it in flames and they felt warm, almost caressing on her bare body, lighting up the cave around her far more than dimly lit gold could.

    Pleased with herself, she smiled. The fire was a part of her, was her and it wasn¡¯t hard at all to let it out and make it form shapes that danced around her. She laughed as small flame balls circled around her and changed the world into a play of light and shadows, making everything seem mysterious and profound.

    She liked it, this fire, she decided.

    Thus, she led a few balls of fire to her head to illuminate the path in front of her and with but a thought, the flames on her arm extinguished as if they¡¯d never existed in the first place.

    Looking at the fires, she felt a little less strange about being anywhere without a memory to hold on to. She felt like she found a part of herself, the burning in her chest that was almost as powerful at the steady beat of her heart.

    And with that feeling, the young girl with flaming red hair and fire swirling around her stepped forwards, steadily beginning a new journey.

    At that moment, no one could¡¯ve predicted what would become of her or how this peculiar girl without a name or identity to herself would ultimately change the fate of worlds and destinies and her own most of all.

    That moment, she met a whole new world. And the world would soon enough meet her.

 Chapter Two - The First Companions

    Chapter Two -The First Companions

    The world she met was, all in all, not very exciting.

    It mostly consisted of tunnels and more caves, all connected by dimly glowing golden veins in the walls. From time to time, a cold wind would whistle through the empty caves, making her skin erupt into small bumps and fierce shivers ran down her back.

    Every time it happenedthough, she drew the fire closer to her and filled herself with the burning sensation inside of her and the shivers and bumps vanished as if the cold couldn¡¯t touch her anymore.

    She wandered, from one cave to another, following the pulse of the walls and the instinct in her heart, even though it didn¡¯t know where she should go either.

    While she walked, she began to play with her hair, still amazed by the vividly red colour of the long strands and, from time to time, she touched her chest, behind which she felt a steady burning.

    It was her heart or maybe her head that told her it was this burning that kept her alive, not the steady thumping of her heart or the continuous inflating of her lungs.

    When her fingers travelled to that spot, she felt as if she could feel something glowing within her, the core of herself that was more important than anything else.

    This too, was new to her per se, yet deeper, more automatic parts of her had known the feeling forever.

    She continued onwards, led by a desire to know if there was something else to the world than rocky walls and golden veins.

    An answer to that, though not in the form she wanted, came after quite a while of aimlessly walking.

    It began with sounds, hits on the rocky floor that didn¡¯t come from her feet making contact with the ground. Next came a sniffing, inhaling sound, breath that was not her own.

    She immediately stopped in her tracks and listened.

    Steps. Her mind put a word to the sound and it made her heart beat faster with anticipation.

    It was something new and incredibly exciting as she made the fire around her glow brighter and waited forthe source of the steps to come closer.

    It did eventually, in the form of a small, four legged creature covered in muddy fur.

    She stared at it curiously, feeling shaken and quite relieved that in the world there was something else but her that was able to move.

    It had eyes, amber coloured like hers but they were tired and empty as they met with hers. There was a horn on his head, not unlike the two she had, and a pair of furry ears that perked up when it saw her.

    She took its appearance in, studied it without the slightest hesitation, but soon noticed something far more interesting than the physical strangeness of the living being in front of her.

    She could see...more than just the outside.

    Inside the creature was a flame, in its chest next to its heart, not much different from where the burning in her own chest was located. And just like she burned inside, so did it and she could see...and feel it.

    Her mouth formed a round shape as she stared at the creature, sensing so much with a single glance.

    Its flame kept it alive, but it was dim. Whatever it was, it struggled to live and had an immense desire to do so. It was a savage creature, having slain his peers to survive, exploiting every chance that was given to him, all in order to continue thriving on this earth.

    Looking at the small glow, she understood it all.

    And in a weird way, she felt connected to it.

    Despite the physical and mental disparities she was well aware of, what was the difference between her and it? There was none.

    They both were nurtured by the fire of life in their chests and sensing what creature in front of her was, at its very core, made her feel sympathy for it.

    So she neared it, slowing her steps when it began to growl and bare its teeth against her. She didn¡¯t want the only living thing she encountered to be scared of her so she didn¡¯t approach further and instead sat down on the floor, crossing her legs in a relaxed posture.

    She stretched out her hand, slowly, and pushed the burning inside of her into her hand until it began to glow in a faint red light.

    The creature stopped baring his teeth and instead looked at her hand curiously. After a while, she could sense it had made up its mind that she wouldn¡¯t immediately harm it and stepped closer, slowly pushing its muzzle into her hand.

    A smile lit up her face.

    In that moment, she realized that she had felt a little...lonely...as she had walked through the tunnels all alone. Now, that feeling was gone.

    She felt connected, felt the fire of another life burning under her hand and gently, she began to stroke its greyish, dirty fur.

    It first eyed her suspiciously but after her burning seeped into it and their fires made the tiniest contact, it too understood her as she understood it. After that, it relaxed into her and stepped closer, putting its head on her shoulder as her hands made their way through the thick fur.

    She could sense its exhaustion and tried, as much as possible, to give it part of her energy, to rekindle the flame in its chest. It didn¡¯t work well, since its body rejected the energy it recognized as foreign, but she was quite satisfied to see it at least burn a little stronger than before.

    After a while of letting it rest on her body, she slowly stood up and decided to continue her path of discovery. There was no other option for her, she did not know the world, did not know where the creature next to her came from or where it wanted to go. She also did not know how to make its flame burn brighter again, but if there was a way, she was certain she wouldn¡¯t find it here. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

    So she sent her fire into his again, trying to somehow communicate her intentions to the only living being she knew besides herself.

    She understood that it was alone as well, could sense the exclusion in his core and the small longing for companionship, and was only too happy to offer hers. She also understood that it was a solitary creature and was prepared to let it go if it so choose.

    It seemed to receive her intentions and, as she rose, so did it, stepping close to her legs as its fur tickled her bare skin. She smiled at it and nodded.

    Then, they continued their path, trying to find a way to somewhere.

    In time, the creature¡¯s flame grew a little stronger, as if her mere presence ?as enough to give it whatever it lacked before. The girl felt relieved, knowing that she would lose her newfound companion once the flickering flame was reduced to nothing but ashes. She didn¡¯t want that.

    As they walked side by side, she kept her hand on its back, occasionally stroking through the coarse fur. Having nothing to do, she stole glances on its flame, reading what it was at its very core as time passed. She grew to understand it, further than the initial connection of being alive and the things she saw both amazed and saddened her.

    It was rather old, had seen a lot of the world, even though she could not see its memories, she could sense its experience and age. It also was a he, a male, different from her. In what way, other than the physical obviousness, she couldn¡¯t say, but she was aware that he took it as a difference.

    There was also something deep inside his flame that was not a feeling, not a concept she could sense but rather real words that were etched into his heart.

    Ichakh. The syllables drifted through her head, so foreign to her that her head wasn¡¯t able to translate it into a certain meaning.

    It was...a name.

    The concept was faint, vague and the only thing she could truly grasp of it was that she didn¡¯t have one. When she raised her hand to feel her own flame, there was her own curiosity, her desire to stand up and venture, but deep down, there was no etching, no word to fit herself.

    Seeing this emptiness made her feel a little desolate, saddened that she had nothing to call herself. But then again, she still was not sure whether any creature like her existed outside these caves, so it probably didn¡¯t matter.

    In time, they did meet other creatures, though quite a while after she had found Ichakh. They were similar to him, save for the fact that their flames were brighter, and they had more than one horn on their heads.

    Ichakh began to growl and fletch his teeth as they approached and she looked curiously between them. Not quite understanding, she imitated the gesture, baring her lips to show her not so sharp teeth, but the growling sound that came from them wouldn¡¯t quite escape her throat.

    Instead, her throat vibrated and produced a low hum that shocked her most of all.

    The other beings only looked at her queerly, their eyes flickering between her and her companion.

    They continued to growl and she thought she heard sounds similar to the...names fall but not matter what she did she couldn¡¯t reproduce them.

    Frustrated, she gave up and resigned herself to trying out the melodic hums her own throat could create.

    That was now very interesting and soon she found herself fitting tones and pitches together to formally a melody.

    Before she could try more though, Ichakh and his peers seemed to have finished their dispute and all of them save for one turned around to leave.

    The one who stayed was smaller, with golden fur and three horns on its head and when she looked at the bright flame she saw discord, a longing for harmony and loneliness.

    She smiled and stretched out her hand that was once again glowing red. The other creature neared, its ears perked up in a curious manner as it sniffed at her palm.

    As she got a closer look at the fire insideof it, she noticed similarities, a familiar concept of female that was mirrored in her own core. She also saw the potential to be great, to lead and to unite. She saw a friend. And never would she have thought to deny its request to be hers.

    She had a name as well. Ecchaik. It was the same guttural sound the girl couldn¡¯t reproduce, no matter how much she tried, there were only high and clear vibrations coming our of her mouth.

    Eventually she gave up on trying it.

    Together, they continued, strolling through the tunnels, now a group of three.

    Another quite long period of time passed that way, with little growling conversation between her two companions and most of all a silence that was harmonious and quite calming, despite growing more and more dull in time.

    She was about to believe that truly nothing existed beyond walls and veins, considering the time they spent wandering in it. But after a long time, something changed. The walls grew lighter, the golden veins dimmer and more sparse.

    Something else but the fire swirling around her and the gold in the rocks was illuminating the caves and as soon as she noticed it, she grew excited.

    And then, they finally found what they were looking for.

    The outside.

    When she realized it, she began to run, speeding up her feet without a single care for the stones digging into her soles. She didn¡¯t care about the pain or the bloody footprints on the floor, or the breath that whizzed out of her lungs.

    All she saw was light and she ran towards it, her eyes gleaming with joy and excitement.

    And she wasn¡¯t disappointed.

    Oh boy, she wasn¡¯t.

    Outside. It was a concept she hardly understood, not even when she hastily stepped out of the arc that formed the entrance to the caves she woke up in.

    What she did understand, was that it was there. And it was beautiful.

    She stood up high, a rocky platform in front of her fell steeply down, forming a cliff that let her overlook whatever valley she was in. There were...trees down on its floor, looking incredibly small from up high. There were mountains encircling her, even higher than where she stood and above them...was the sky.

    Her mouth fell open as she stared at it.

    Endless. Vast. Never ending blue.

    It reached up further and further, occasional white fluffs...clouds...specking it and amidst it all, a fire so hot and so big she could barely look at it.

    Sun, her brain put a word to it but she couldn¡¯t help but feel it lacking. She stared at it, not caring about the pain in her eyes and felt undescribable, soul filling awe.

    She could sense it, so so far away, burning with the same flames she held inside of her. Sun, star, it felt as if a small one was locked inside of her and it called to the big fire she could see shining high in the sky.

    A grin split on her face and she felt content, despite the calling and longing in her chest.

    This was where she felt good. Where she belonged, under the sun and the sky, not caught in caves and darkness. There was a star within her and it needed to walk beneath its kind and she knew, if she had to go back inside it would cry and long for this view.

    This was amazing.

    The grin on her face grew wider and wider so much that it hurt but she couldn¡¯t find it in her to care as she swirled and danced beneath the sun, balancing on the edge of the cliff. She wasn¡¯t afraid of falling even though she knew it was high. She knew she wouldn¡¯t be hurt.

    Her eyes roamed over the valley, the mountains, the meadows, the world to her feet.

    And suddenly she couldn¡¯t hold herself anymore.

    With a wild laugh and her red hair flaming behind her, she took one step back, then another.

    And then she jumped.

 Chapter Three - Wild

    Chapter Three -Wild

    Not soon after she had jumped and light footedly landed on the forest floor, she had seen so much she couldn¡¯t help but be stunned at any step.

    The way the sunlight filtered through the trees, the feeling of the leaves and the bark under her hands, the feeling of her feet on the soft mossy floor, of the wind on her skin and the birds fluttering around her, it all was new and it all was exciting.

    She began to count to flow of time by looking at the great fire in the sky, feeling it move across the infinite blue and slowly dying it in wonderful red and orange hues.

    She saw other fires, smaller and further away rising and presenting them to her, illuminating a black sky - stars.She saw three huge disks in the sky, reflecting the great fires and bringing new light to the world. Moons, her head called them.

    They showed her new paths, small plants glowing with brilliant violet light, as if the reflection of the great fire caused them to reflect their own light even more.

    Flowers, that¡¯s what they were, gleaming and turning with every gust of wind.

    But with the setting of the sun came a cold wind that made her bare skin shiver and shake and before long, her own long hair wasn¡¯t warm enough to wrap herself in.

    She was freezingat nightand before soon, the only thing she could do was cover herself in fire and make it hotter until it chased away the chill. It seemed to be her problem only as Ichakh and Ecchaik had warm fur growing on their skin to protect them, while she was bare.

    She wondered if others like her also wrapped themselves in fire like she did. Ichak seemed to be scared of it, a deep fear of getting...burned even though the fire in their hearts couldn¡¯t harm them at all.

    She didn¡¯t understand it.

    As time passed, she began to count to flow of time, not only by the great fire in the sun riding up and down but also by the moons that moved in synchrony, growing round and thin.

    There were quite a lot of times the great fire rose and set until the moons made a full circle from growing full to waning to growing full again.

    As she observed the moons¡¯ phases, the girl who had yet to be given a name learned a lot.

    She learned that her two companions would disappear at times to find something to quench a desire in their stomachs called...hunger. She herself did not have this sort of feeling, however she understood itto be painful.

    It was only a while after she noticed their disappearancesthat she understood that to satisfy their urges, they had to exterminate another living being¡¯s flame. At first she felt shocked at the fact that her closest companions would willingly exterminate lives but she gradually came to understand.

    In order to survive one has to do things one does not want to do.

    It took two circles of the moons until she realised that herself.

    It was by nightfall, the great starry fires in the sky she felt so connected to sparkled above her, and she rested against a tree, alone for once. Around her were a few smaller, winged creatures with small beaks and little claws on their feet that liked to sit on her shoulders once they felt that her fire harboured no ill intentions. Her mind seemed to be unable to put a name to them, but she enjoyed the company of their small, joyful flames.

    They seemed to love tranquillity and so, when they suddenly jumped up and flew hastily away, she knew something was wrong.

    She sat up, vigilant, and concentrated on her ears, trying to find the source of disharmony around her. It was there, very faint and if she hadn¡¯t listened she wouldn¡¯t have noticed the soft footsteps approaching her.

    She smiled, knowing it wasn¡¯t one of her companions, but always happy to meet other beings. But her joy soon enough faded when she sensed it wasn¡¯t curiosity or a desire for company that brought the other life form close to her.

    She saw it as soon as she spied its flame - and what she saw seeped deep into her bones. It was savage, wild and ferocious, as if its flame was ready to devour her.

    She jumped up and looked at it, a huge four legged creature that bared its teeth and looked at her with a malicious twinkle in its eyes.

    In that moment, a feeling befell her unlike anything else she ever felt before. Caution. She¡¯d never sensed it before, never felt her hair stand on end like they did now, never felt that distinctive wariness seep deeply into her heart.

    In the moment she knew that what was in front of her would never become her companion. She felt its past, saw its present and predicted its future in its flame and she knew what she had to do.

    The thought that came to her scared her, so much that she paused for a second, unable to move at all.

    The animal in front of her crouched, the savage glint growing stronger.

    She took a deep breath and understood one thing.

    Me, or him. Life...or death.

    Even though she had never been confronted with death so directly before, she could grasp the concept so completely that she knew what it meant.

    She also knew that she didn¡¯t want it. She had just come into this world, never caused harm, only longing to explore this strange place she came to. She didn¡¯t want to extinguish the flames of others, the divine fire that fuelled their lives. But it was undeniable that that was just what the creature in front of her longed for.

    And she didn¡¯t want to die.

    And so she had to kill.

    The creature in front of her jumped, growling, baring its teeth at her.

    She stretched out her hand and looked at its flame. It was easy, too easy. So easy it made her blood run cold and her heart stop for a second.

    It flew above her and a single thrust was enough for her fingers to grab it.

    And then she squeezed.

    Without a single muscle on her face moving, she pressed her hand to a fist and smashed the flame within.

    By the time her hand formed a fist, only a small ember was left. Then, nothing at all.

    Mid jump, the creature suddenly spasmed, quivered and then fell right onto her with a loud thud and an immense weight crushed her, nailing her to the floor.

    Her lips quivered as felt its body weight her down, still warm and she couldn¡¯t help but release a single tear that rolled down her cheek and seeped into the floor.

    It wasn¡¯t fair that for her to live another life must be extinguished. She felt regret, sadness at the fact that it had come to this. But she also understood that it had to be.

    In order to live, sometimes others must die.

    That day, she understood that one principle and it was precisely because of that understanding that she did not feel guilty about having killed for the first time.

    She pulled her hand from beneath the body and dropped it onto the head that hovered above her, gently closing its eyes.

    May your soul rest among the stars. Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    The words came naturally to her and she closed her eyes as wished safe passage for the soul she had just erased from this world. It was the least she could do.

    Then, she pushed her arms up and rolled out from underneath the beast, lifting it from her with ease. It looked incredibly heavy, huge fangs and fur and all but she found it surprisingly easy to drag it off her and throw it to the floor. Her arms held strength she did not even fathom.

    She then stood up and looked down on the carcass. Should she just leave it here? It seemed so wasteful to have killed it for survival and then let its body rot in the woods for nothing.

    She bit her lip and then shook her head. Its flesh could still be eaten by her companions, who depended on it for survival¡­

    I won¡¯t let your sacrifice be for nothing. The thought flashed through her head as she looked at its fur. Nodding to herself, she summoned a tiny, but hot flame to her finger and then began to cut along its body, slowly opening its skin. If it was its fur, she could still use it to keep her own body away from the cold air. After all it was precisely because of her lack of fur that she had to wrap herself in fire every night and that proved to be rather impractical.

    So she set to work and, with a tiny flame atop of her finger, she began to sever the connections between flesh and fur. It was gruesome work she did not enjoy but the thought of killing something just to let it rot felt even more wasteful. She would make most of her kill and afterwards return its bones to earth so its soul may be reborn among the stars.

    In that thought, the star in her chest burned a little brighter, making her acutely aware of its existence. It burned inside her chest, calling to its brothers and sisters on the sky.

    She closed her eyes for a second, revelling in the feeling. This time, she didn¡¯t feel like it was trapped inside of her, under this starry sky. It was her.

    Under the sky, she was one with it, one with the stars up above and the star inside of her, the star that was her. The thought of going back inside the caves was now, months after sleeping under the stars, unimaginable for her.

    The stars moved over her head and time passed while she finished her work and began to burn the last of blood that stuck to the fur away so it could dry up and allow her to wrap it around her.

    It came to her without thinking, as so many things did. By now, she obeyed her instinct, the knowledge inside her mind that came to her when needed, without the slightest hesitation.

    Soon after she was done, Ichakh and Ecchaik returned, pausing and staring wide eyes at the huge carcass in front of her. Ecchaik ran to her, in her eyes something like concern but when she did not smell her blood, she backed down and fell to her feet as if she would refuse to let anything near her.

    The girl smiled and dropped a hand on her companion¡¯s head, slowly petting her fur.

    Ichakh meanwhile walked over to inspect the skinned corpse, his mouth hanging open in desire as he saw its bountiful flesh. He looked to her and at her gentle nod, he began to rip off large chunks of it, satisfying his hunger.

    She did not feel urges to consume the flesh of the beast the killed, another distinctive difference between her and the two four legged creatures she called her companions. She wondered why they were different and if there were others like her out there, who walked on two legs and wrapped fire around them to keep them warm.

    Others whose hearts were stars that felt swollen and satisfied under the night sky, not requiring to thrive off other being¡¯s flesh to survive as long as they bathed in the light of the great fires above.

    When she thought about it, there was a longing inside of her heart and she wanted to look for them, to search those that were like her. But at the same time there was also fear and uncertainty. After all, what if they did not exist and she was alone? The only one of her kind?

    Or what if she found others and they weren¡¯t like her, searching for company and life, but rather like the beast that had attacked her, savage and aiming for her flame?

    She bit her lip as she thought about it and then looked at her companions, both of which currently were devouring her kill.

    In the end, she shrugged, since it wasn¡¯t something she could change. First and foremost, she was still happy to even be able to see this world and find living beings within and like that, it would be fine to continue travelling with Ichak and Ecchaik.

    And that she did.

    More time passed, the fires in the sky rose and set and another two times the moons became full again and the weather slowly but steadily grew even colder.

    With the icily cold wind the leaves of the forest they had travelled through began to turn red and orange and brown, colouring the world in an entirely different set of shades.

    Needless to say, the girl was immensely fascinated by it. A stranger to seasons, she could only observe as the winds grew colder and the woods turned colourful and each of her steps rustled through fallen and died leaves.

    In these two full moons, many things happened. Many other creatures crossed her path, some violent and vicious as the first beast she had slain ¨C and all of them rather quickly met the same fate. In time, she lost her initial hesitation in extinguishing a flame, mostly because she grew to treasure her own life more with each day.

    Other creatures however searched for her protection, especially as they saw that she could spend warmth and safety to those less able to protect themselves than her. So far, she had met no other creature that could summon fire to its will like she did and even for her it seemed natural that she should then provide shelter to those who lacked this ability.

    And so, her small group stopped being smalland those who spent time with her grew plentiful. There were the small feathered and winged creatures that liked to perch themselves on her shoulders and then there were other four legged creatures, both similar and completely different from her initial companions.

    Ichakh and Ecchaik banded together with others of their kind and seemed to grow into her very own protectors, by the time the leaves turned brown they already numbered six and made sure that at least two of them were always by her side.

    She found it quite endearing and revelled in their care, glad to be seen as important and worth of protection in their eyes.

    Then there were other predators, feline beasts with slitted eyes and long tails that stalked on the edges of their group, from time to time going away to hunt and provide prey for those unable to hunt for themselves.

    Before long, the girl grew to be a sort of leader for them, a protector and she viewed them as her friends, knowing each of their names and their flames and cherishing each as much as they cherished her. Soon enough, she became one of the undeniable rulers of the huge forest area they made their living in.

    She herself wasn¡¯t as aware of this as the forest itself was, but as she looked at the large troupe of companions she had found, she felt quite happy.

    They never stayed at one place for too long, mostly because the girl couldn¡¯t hold her curiosity.

    She had a need to see the world and she soaked up every new place, every new thing she saw and made sure to remember it. And there were constantly new things, especially as the cold winds increased and more and more waterthatfell from the sky was replaced by frozen little drops of¡­snow that were both incredibly beautiful and incredibly annoying.

    At first, she found it mesmerizing, the way the little flakes swirled and danced but the cold they brought was not to her taste at all. There was fire burning in her veins and her heart, she danced among flames and not amongst ice and as such, the cold around her was her opposite in every way.

    Most of her companions shared that dislike.Thanks to the girl¡¯s unique ability to summon fire out of nothing but her heart they didn¡¯t need to fear freezing but they did fear starvation, especially as their group grew even larger.

    The girl noticed it, noticed some flames growing dimmer and eventually went out to hunt herself, despite her heart wishing against it. She disliked killing those that had no aggression against her, but when it came to the decision of letting someone close to her die or not, she wasn¡¯t willing to let it happen.

    But even with her sacrifice, she could not save everyone.

    The first died two full moons after the first snow had fallen.

    It was an older four legged creature with short fur and hooves on its feet and two black eyes that seemed to be able to look into one''s soul. She had taken it in knowing its lifespan was not as long as most but when it broke down and its flame flickered, she still felt her heart break.

    She sunk onto her knees next to it when she fell and held its head throughout it all. Its¡­his name was Tha and she knew by the content shine of his flame that he had lived a satisfying life but all that didn¡¯t stop her from crying bitter tears when his flamefell into embers.

    May your soul rest among the stars.

    Tha¡¯s death was completely different from the predators and prey she had slain before. With him, she couldn¡¯t bring it over her to use his body for the nourishment of her companions.

    He was no sacrifice. He was a victim and his carcass was to be honoured, not to be used.

    And so she sent him off in a blaze of her flames, scattering his ashes onto the forest floor.

    He was not the only one to die.

    In the end, her heart broke four more times when one of Ichak¡¯s pack and three more companions fell to the lack of food. In these moons of cold, the girl learned what loss was.

    She felt guilty, a stone on her heart when she saw those she cared about fall, but when she looked at those that were left, she knew she had still done right.

    The fire in her heart, the curiosity, the love for the world was still there, even after the harsh moons.

    And soon enough, the winds grew warm again.

    The snow began to melt and underneath small flowers began to bloom. The great fire in the sky shone brighter and warmer and there was more food to be found and less cold to be endured.

    Her troupe grew stronger and so did she.

    By then, it had been seven times that the moons had grown full since she had left the caves.

    In her heart, there was the star that was her, burning ever so brightly and there was contentment and happiness whenever she looked at her companions and at the world.

    There was also longing for she had yet to find someone like her in this wonderful world.

    She had yet to find outwho she was to begin with and, no matter how many companions she gathered and no matter how many distances of woods they crossed, she never found someone like her and the void inside of her heart never quite vanished.

    They travelled through light woods and dark ones, across meadows and rivers and yet, nothing.

    She longed for knowledge and looking at the world hardly quenched that desire. Being together with those she had grown to hold dear made it bearable and staring at the stars at night made her forget for a while, but never for long.

    Little did she know that one evening,all of that would change.

 Chapter Four - Someone Like Her

    Chapter 4 -Someone Like Her

    They weren¡¯t a large group, only her, Ichakh and one of his kind, Akach, a female who seemed quite attracted to the former loner. The girl found this amusing, she could see the passion burning in Arkach¡¯s flame and she liked to watch it flare and burn brighter when Ichakh was close.

    It was a different passion from the compassion the girl held for her companions ¨C not a kind, caring one but one that demanded possession and gave loyalty far fiercer than mere companionship did.

    The girl did not know such feelings, but she was fascinated by it to no end.

    Together they were on the search for food, Ichakh was leading as he could easily detect the sound of movements and the remnants of scentson the new spring soil.

    They were following a trail unlike ever before,onethat didn¡¯t match any creature she had ever met.

    The trail lead them on until the sun had long disappeared below the horizon when they finally found what they were looking for. Itended right before a small clearing but just as the girl and her hunters crouched to start their attack, she froze in her tracks.

    Inside the small clearing was¡­fire.

    It flickered and whispered to her, so familiar she couldn¡¯t help but pause and stare at it. Fire! Like the flames she ignited with her will, there was a fire burning right in front of her!

    Seeing this, she couldn¡¯t help but cautiously edge closer. The others around her held back and surrounded her, as always ready to protect her if necessary.

    As she stepped forwards, her eyes grew wider.

    Around the fire sat a group of creatures, clad in things she had never seen before but they were¡­two legged. Without fur. They had hands, like her, and feet like her and a face with a small nose and a mouth like her.

    The girl touched her face and then looked at them with astonishment.

    Like me! They¡¯re just like me!

    Amazed, she studied them under the cover of darkness.

    They sat around the fire and appeared to eat meat that they had roasted with the heat of the flames that flickered between them. They wore far more on their skin than she did and it wasn¡¯t fur either but she could see on their faces and hands that they had the same light complexion as hers.

    They had hair like hers though not in the same vivid red but less vibrant shades like brown and black. They also had no horns atop of their heads but the similarities were nonetheless overwhelming.

    Almost unconsciously she stepped closer despite Ichakh¡¯s warning growl. Her movements made sounds, leaves rustling and dry branches breaking beneath her bare feet and both she and the creatures in front of her jerked at the sudden noise.

    ¡°Who¡¯s there?¡± a voice bellowed, one of the male creatures stood up, forming sounds with his mouth. The girl stared at him, mesmerized at the fact that she could understand him.

    She knew the principle of using sounds to communicate but so far she¡¯d always been unable to understand them or reproduce them. But this, she¡­understood! It was sounds that translated to meanings she could use, the same words that had always been in her head.

    A breathless laugh escaped her as she heard it, so great was the joy in her heart. She had found people like her!

    But just as she drowned in joy, suddenly her senses warned her. The man at the fire had disappeared in a flash and instinctively, she could sense danger approaching.

    Without thinking, she darted to the side, just in time to avoid a sharp, silver object jabbing at the place she stood earlier. Ichak and Akach growled, ready to fight and she herself crouched into a defensive posture, not thinking as she wrapped fire around her.

    Seeing this, the male figure hesitated.

    ¡°You¡­who are you? What clan do you belong to?¡± he asked with a deep voice and once again, she understood what he said.

    But despite being well aware that the question was being directed at her, she backed away, unable to answer. By now, the other beings had also stood up, edging closer to her with wary expressions.

    Her face twisted into a painful expression as she tried to figure out how to communicate. Could she¡­reproduce these sounds? If so, what should she say? She did not know what a clan was and neither did she have a satisfactory answer to the first question.

    ¡°A-ah,¡± she opened her mouth and tried to form the same sounds as he had but failed miserably. She could feel that she was able to do it, with practise, but the control over her voice was weak and she barely managed to form a single syllable.

    So she looked at the male in front of her who still held the sharp silver object in his firm grasp. She saw his flame just like she saw those of her companions but it was different from theirs. Brighter.

    She bit her lip and knew the only way to communicate was to reach out with her own flame but in order to do that, she had to touch him and she was very aware of the danger that silver object brought with it.

    A sigh slipped over her mouth as she slowly advanced the group of beings that looked so much like her.

    ¡°You¡­can¡¯t speak?¡± a female from the group asked and the girl¡¯s gaze shot to her. She had a warm face and short brown hair and her orange-golden eyes flickered in the fire. Her flame was gentle but firm, the girl could see that many experiences had shaped the view of her world. Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

    The girl met her gaze and slowly, but deliberately nodded. Then she looked at the male again, whose flame was so determinedly strong that she figured he would be the leader of their group.

    Ichakh and Akach edged closer to her as did one of her feathered companions.

    Slowly, the girl approached the male, the fire around her extinguished at her will and her hands were raised in a wary but open gesture. The male didn¡¯t move, his grasp on the silver object tight but he did not jerk away as she slowly placed two of her fingers on his forehead.

    Then, she took a deep breath and let her own flame¡¯s glow seep into those fingers and with it her very heart¡¯s intentions. The curiosity, the joy and the unwavering interest to get to know them, who were like her. She could only show him what was deep inside of her, her very core but she hoped it would be enough.

    After she¡¯d done that, she let her fingers fall and waited, signalling to Ichakh and Akach to wait for what was going to happen.

    One of the females of the group, not the one with the warm flame but rather one with a boastful, widespread flame, edged closer to their leader. Her finger was pointed at Ichakh and Akach.

    ¡°Those are horned direwolves, Neiro. They¡¯re at least as strong as a Sovereign, if not as an Ascendant!¡± She whispered but in the silence of the night, there was no one who hadn¡¯t heard her words.

    The girl didn¡¯t understand most of it, but she figured horned direwolves was some sort of classification for Ichak and Akach¡¯s kind. Neiro, as she looked closer she could see the name branded onto the leader¡¯s flame. A name. So they also had names, even though they were like her. She didn¡¯t have one.

    She also had no idea what Sovereign or Ascendantwas supposed to mean but the leader obviously did as his eyes grew wide and flickered to Ichakh, who began to growl fiercely.

    The girl placed a hand on her companion¡¯s head and slowly petted him, holding him back and silently telling him to wait. She knew he didn¡¯t like being submissive but these were the first beings like her she¡¯d ever met and she was quite unwilling to offend them.

    ¡°It¡¯s alright,¡± the leader finally said to his group, ¡°She doesn¡¯t seem hostile. I think¡­ she¡¯s a wildling.¡±

    The group looked quite astonished at his words.

    ¡°A wildling? I thought they were made up!¡± another male echoed and looked her up and down, his flame filled with curiosity and desire, for what, she couldn¡¯t tell.

    She frowned, again not familiar with their words.

    ¡°It¡¯s alright,¡± the leader said again, this time to her, ¡°We¡¯re a group of travellers. We¡¯re Immortals...like you. Do you remember anything? Do you know who you are?¡±

    His voice was softer now and the silver object was now loose in his hands instead of pointed at her. She could see gentleness in his flame and a genuine desire to know her. That alone made her want to communicate with him.

    ¡°¡­don¡¯t¡­,¡± she tried to speak again and this time actually succeeded in forming a word. His face scrunched up in confusion.

    ¡°That¡¯s weird. Usually we all have memories from before¡­,¡± he spoke, more to himself and some of his companions nodded, sharing his confusion. The girl shook her head and tried again.

    ¡°Woke¡­up¡­everything¡­new,¡± she forced her voice to obey and found it easier to speak after the first few words, ¡°¡­found¡­companions¡­but¡­don¡¯t know¡­much.¡±

    After that, she paused, quite exhausted from so many words. Nonetheless, she felt satisfied that she managed to bring them out. As she spoke, understanding dawned on the man¡¯s face and she had the desire to laugh, happy that she managed to somehow communicate.

    ¡°Do you remember some sort of feeling? Or is there something inside of you that feels trapped? Is that how you made me feel that earlier?¡± he asked softly and she smiled, slowly nodding again.

    There was no sense in keeping it hidden, she figured, they were like her. Well, maybe not really like her. Now that she thought about it, the star that was inside of her and that called to the night sky from time to time, that was just her. There was no star inside of them, else she was sure she would feel it, see it.

    Nonetheless, she decided to tell them. After all, they were the only ones of her kind she¡¯d ever met.

    So she pointed up in the sky and then to her chest. ¡°Star¡­in my heart¡­me. Fire¡­in you. Touch with fire¡­communicates.¡±

    By now, the words were getting easier, even though she didn¡¯t manage to form an entire sentence yet. Considering she had never spoken before, she was quite proud of her achievement.

    ¡°Star...¡± the leader mused and then a light lit up in his eyes.

    ¡°Firakha,¡± a voice whispered, belonging another male, ¡°She¡¯s one of them, that¡¯s why she doesn¡¯t remember. I heard they can read the soul in form of a flame and summon incredibly powerful fire at will.¡±

    The girl looked at him. Summon fire, she could. Did that mean they couldn¡¯t? By now she could see so many differences¡­so was she not like them after all? But she did understand them, that was something.

    ¡°Are you¡­like me?¡± she finally asked, unable to keep her curiosity in.

    The leader stared at her and then smiled.

    ¡°We¡¯re not exactly like you but we¡¯re considered to be of the same kind. We¡¯re all Immortals at least. If you want to, we can take you to a place where you can learn. How to speak, who you are, things about this world¡­we can teach you, if you want to.¡±

    His eyes were honest as was his flame and her first instinct was to jump right into his offer.

    To learn about this world, to see this world and to talk to others like her was her wish, her most innate desire. But that meant¡­going with them.

    And going with them meant leaving her companions.

    The thought alone was a thorn in her heart and it made her face scrunch up painfully.

    ¡°My¡­companions¡­can¡¯t leave them¡­alone,¡± she said with sadness in her heart. She wanted to learn, to talk to find others like her so badly but at the same time she was deeply connected to those she had taken under her wing. They had lived through a harsh winter, she had offered them her protection and to leave them now, to betray them that way¡­that wascruel.

    ¡°If it¡¯s just those three, you can take them with you,¡± the kind-flamed female said with a gentle smile but that only made the girl laugh.

    ¡°Not just¡­three,¡± she laughed again, thinking of her troupe. An astonished look slipped on the female¡¯s face and the leader turned to the girl again.

    ¡°You have more beasts under your command? How many?¡± he asked.

    ¡°Not¡­command,¡± she said with disgust. They weren¡¯t her slaves. ¡°Companions. Fifty two.¡±

    Ichakh growled as if to strengthen her words.

    ¡°Fifty two?¡± another male, with the adventurous, desire filled flame echoed, this time a hint of respect and surprise in his voice.

    ¡°Well you can¡¯t bring fifty two beasts with you, that¡¯s for sure,¡± the leader said with a laugh, ¡°I think you have a decision to make then. You can come with us or you can stay, we won¡¯t force you.¡±

    She hesitated at his words, torn.

    ¡°How about this, we¡¯ll wait here for one more day and you¡¯ll think about what to do,¡± the warm-flamed female offered, ¡°If you want to come with us, come, if you want to stay, we¡¯ll leave in a day¡¯s time.¡±

    The girl paused and then nodded.

    ¡°I¡­understand,¡± she said and then nodded once to the leader, ¡°Thank¡­you.¡±

    With that she nodded to her companions and shot off into the woods. There was much to think about and she had to consider the offer wisely and she didn¡¯t want to waste another second.

    On top of that, there was nonetheless prey to hunt and mouths to feed and a day was short in the woods.

 Chapter Five - Goodbyes And New Beginnings

    Chapter 5 -Goodbyes and New Beginnings

    It was early morning by the time the girl got to her troupe, enough prey with her to last for a few days. Unlike the other times she returned however, when she looked at those that had awaited her return, she felt heavy in her heart.

    It was a decision she had to make, no way around it. Stay... or leave.

    After distributing what she had hunted, she sat down next to a tree and smiled as immediately some of the smaller animals gathered around her. They liked to stay near her because they could sense her flame, basking in its bright glow.

    Thinking back to the...people, Immortals as they called themselves,she had met, she was aware that even they didn¡¯t have flames like hers. Theirs were fire, forged from ashes and dust, shining immensely bright¡­but they were no more than fire.

    Her flame was forged from a star and it was powerful, far more powerful than their fire forged flames. It made her feel a little lonely, to know that they weren¡¯t really like her after all.

    But then again, should she let them leave? The only people she had ever communicated with?

    They seemed to know what she was, they seemed to know about the world and wasn¡¯t knowledge about this world what she always wanted?

    She wanted to know. Who she was, what she was, what kind of life she was meant to lead after waking up in those caves.

    The desire to wander, to explore and find new meaning was strong in her, so strong it dared her to go and run at this very moment.

    But she also knew that her companions couldn¡¯t make this journey with her. They were too numerous and many of them too savage to doso. They needed her protection or wanted to followher strength and she knew every single of their names and hearts.

    Could she abandon them? Could she forsake her promise and leave them bare to the dangers she vowed to save them from?

    Then again, they had come to her. She had offered them safety but she had never offered them eternity. She couldn¡¯t protect them forever, one day she would have to leave or they would have to. She knew the concept of death very well, though she did not know if an age caused death was something she had to fear.

    She heaved a deep sigh and looked around.On her shoulders were her feathered companions, the others were mostly gathered to eat.

    Ichakh sat a bit away from her, watching her with eyes far too intelligent. She felt a little weak under his gaze, her first companion never failed to question her.

    He probably knew what she was pondering. She wished she could pacify him, tell him there was no way that she would ever leave his company but he belonged to the woods to the wild. And she?

    Did she, really?

    She felt at home in the woods and hunting brought her joy. But without having seen the world, how could she settle down? How could she live her life in uncertainty, never knowing what was out there, always regretting that she gave away the possibly only chance to venture out there?

    Thinking like that she sat for hours under the tree, even when the others around her had long since fallen asleep or stalked off on their own business.

    She shifted her gaze to the stars, her sisters and brothers, the guardians she needed to thrive and breathe every day and night. They were calling and their call was soothing, a song in the night that gave her power and strength.

    Then, she looked at her sleeping friends.

    They were dear to her, so very dear and she wanted to shield them from danger so badly. But they also were creatures of the wilderness and while she had granted them sanctuary, all of them knew that no Utopia could last forever.

    The stars knew it, and she knew it too, deep down.

    She belonged to the world.

    She couldn¡¯t cage herself in these woods for a promise, easily given, harder kept, and always wonder about what could¡¯ve been if she¡¯d taken this chance. She would protect them, for another winter, another ten maybe and then they would die or she would and her chances would be gone with the seasons changing.

    She needed to go.

    If the world had nothing to offer her, she would return to the woods that made her first home but in a world that seemed so vast and under a sky filled with so many stars, she knew she had to travel.

    She had to learn, to see, to touch the wonders of this world with her hands.

    Deep down, the decision was always clear. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

    Now she only had to come to terms with the guilt and the consequences such a choice brought with it.

    Her heart broke as her eyes swerved over all those she was going to leave behind.

    But her decision was made.

    I¡¯m sorry.

    In the morning, she said goodbye.

    She spoke to every single of her fifty two companions, showing them her heart and her truth. Most of them were enraged, turning around on the spot to leave or trying to attack her. Some, the smarter ones of those she¡¯d taken in, understood.

    It tore her heart once more, but she stood by her decision.

    She belonged to the world and she had to leave, no matter how much Ecchaik''s eyes were pleading with her.

    The most understanding of all, was Ichakh.

    The former loner had known her longest and had always been her most loyal companion. He was a true friend to her, but that was exactly why she needed him to stay.

    There were those under her protection who direly needed it, wounded and sick beasts and those too young to care for themselves.

    She needed Ecchaik and Ichakh to watch out for them in her stead. She knew they would do it, Ichak out of loyalty to her, Echhaik because she had the heart of a leader and had since long ago lead the group in the girl¡¯s absence.

    It took convincing, but in the end, they understood.

    Ichakh looked at her as she wrapped her arms around his fur, their flames in a melancholic synchrony. He was the first to be her friend and he had always stayed by her side until now.

    It was only one summer and one winter but to her, it felt longer than that. She stroked his fur and let her flame seep into her fingers, transmitting the last of her warmth she could give him. It was filled with all of her aching, her pain of leaving him behind and her promise not to forget.

    She would never forget.

    And then she left.

    Her heart mourned for those she left behind, but when she saw the great fire in the sky shining through the trees and felt the warm air on her skin, the joy was greater.

    There were wonders out there, she knew that. Wonders and joy and other companions and adventures she wanted to see so badly. She had to go.

    The girl¡¯s feet raced over the uneven floor, their soles still unprotected but by now so used to the terrain that they didn¡¯t hurt much when she stepped on stones and twigs. While in the beginning, she had been quite clumsy while running, now the danger of tripping and falling was close to zero.

    And so she reached the clearing where she¡¯d met the creatures like her before, a little out of breath after running quite far but not a bit less enthusiastic.

    They were still there, gathered around the glimmering remains of a fire, save for two of them. Their leader, Neiro was sharpening the long silver thing with a stone, an act the girl found fascinating but didn¡¯t quite understand.

    She studied them for a while, most of all their flames, just to make sure she knew who she would give her future company.

    Neiro had an honest flame, firm and quite stern but there was loyalty and a leader in him. She could see that he would be a loyal companion if she earned his trust.

    The two females sat together, the one with the short brown hair, and the gentle flame, Rize, as well as the boisterous, blonde one, Kassa, who seemed to harbour a deep distaste for the other and everything in general.

    The other two males, the silent and steady one as well as the adventurous fighting flamed one were bothgone.

    She had not studied their flames intently when they''d met before so she could not know their names, but she guessed she would, eventually.

    She paused at the edge of the clearing, as she¡¯d had before.

    Is this what I¡¯m supposed to do?

    Even though she could see their flames, they were not as easily read as her beastly companions¡¯. Their flames were different, deeper, only understood after careful observation and she knew by the flickering darkness in them that most of these beings harboured secrets.

    But all in all, she didn''t hesitate for long. The world called to her and she had to go.

    So she stepped towards them, making sounds with her feet on purpose so that they''d be alerted of her presence.

    Neiro''s head was the first that snapped up and when he saw her a smile filled his features.

    His body was older than hers, she noticed in the daylight, faint lines and wrinkles adorning his eyes and forehead. She wondered if she, too, would grow old with time.

    "You came!" Rize exclaimed with a smile and Kassa turned around as well, though her lips were curled in more a frown than a welcome.

    The girl nodded and smiled herself.

    "I¡­want to know¡­the world," the words came much easier now, especially since she''d practised a little last night. Speaking did come naturally to her, as walking did, but it was by far not as easy as it had been to call fire to her command.

    "We can take you to the next city. There are schools for people like you, you''ll be able to learn a lot there," Neiro said friendly.

    "Schools? People like me?" she echoed, feeling dumb but her lips curled into a frown all by themselves. She didn''t understand his words very well, but she would like to learn more about this world, that she was sure of.

    "Newborn fools, like you," Kassa supplied and began to poke the dying fire with a stick. The girl''s frown deepened.

    Seeing her expression, Neiro barked a laugh, no doubt finding her ignorance far more amusing than she did. She felt anger kindle inside of her, after all, it was not her fault that she had woken up without memories or a name to herself and she had tried to make the best of it, hadn''t she?

    "I did not come to be¡­insulted," she said angrily, though her statement was no doubt overshadowed by her still poor pronunciation abilities. Her voice had a different lilt than theirs, a harshness that she couldn''t change and her lacking fluency wasn''t making it any better.

    "Forgive me," Neiro said and stopped smiling, "I did not mean to insult you, I''m sure you must be confused. I''m glad that you decided to come with us."

    She nodded, controlling her anger. It would do no good to be cross with them, even though she didn¡¯t like the feeling of being looked down at.

    "Can you¡­explain things to me?" she asked, unable to hold her curiosity at bay. There were so many things they''d said she didn''t know. Schools, clans, newborns, wildlings, she didn''t know any of these but she wanted to, badly.

    "Well, what do you want to know?" Rize gave back.

    The girl''s eyes glittered as she turned to the female.

    "Everything."

 Chapter Six - Immortals, Gods And A Journey

    Chapter 6 -Immortals, Gods and a Journey

    An hour and a life''s worth of information later, the girl''s view of the world was completely turned upside down.

    Neiro and Rize explained many things to her, beginning with the most simplest of things. At the beginning and at the end of everything, stood Chaos. The primal disorder that created everything, both life and unliving and infinity and the world.

    This world was called the Plane of Gods, one world apparently, of uncountable many there were, but the only of its kind.

    There were the Planes of Mortals, infinitely many worlds and planets where mortals resided and then there was the Plane of Gods, home of Immortals.

    She hadn''t understood any of that at first, as she found it quite hard to imagine an entire world, much less infinitely many of them, but she figured she would have to adjust.

    Apparently, mortals only lived for a definite lifespan, much like her companions had, and then were reborn into another world. Immortals however only had one, indefinitely long life.

    "There are three ways to be born into this Plane of Gods, actually," Rize said, chuckling a little at the girl''s astonished and starstruck eyes, "The first is for a mortal to be chosen by Chaos and be reincarnated as an Immortal. That''s what makes up most of the people here, actually. Our souls are mortal but our bodies are forged from Chaos, that makes us Immortals. We also have the memories of our past, mortal life, so we never had problems like yours. On the other hand, like all Immortals, we also know we''ll never be reincarnated again. Our souls will crumble to dust when we die here."

    The girl grimaced at that, understanding quite quickly that she probably did not fall into that first category. She couldn''t remember anything before waking up, especially not of some other life.

    "The second possibility is for something that''s not sentient to be born here. It''s quite rare, but sometimes, Chaos takes inanimate or insentient things and forges souls out of them, on top of giving them a body. They are considered very special here, since Chaos-forged souls are naturally far stronger than mortal ones. On top of that, when a Chaos-forged Immortal dies, their soul returns to Chaos, instead of crumbling and scattering. So, it¡¯s not the total end for them."

    "We think that''s what you are," Neiro butted in at that, "The fact that you have no memories and that you feel like having a star inside of you isevidence enough, I wager. It''ll take someone trained in souls to determine, but we think that your soul was forged from a star. We call people like you Firakha, children of the great fires."

    Firakha. The words swirled around in her head, wrapping around her tongue and fitting, surprisingly well.Firakha, child of the great fires.

    Oh that she was. There was a fire burning inside of her, so much hotter and brighter than Neiro¡¯s or Rize¡¯s. There was a star in her chest and so she was a child of the stars that called to her from so far away.

    But then again¡­

    All of this, it meant that it wasn¡¯t just that she couldn¡¯t remember who she was. It was that she had never been anyone at all before she woke up in that cave. That she...was born in there.

    The thought shook her profoundly.

    She had always imagined she¡¯d only forgotten, her name, her purpose, her true companions, her life before the cave but if what they were saying was true, then there had never been a life before the caves for her.

    She was born there, born from Chaos, a concept that seemed as ingrained into her as the starfire inside of her. Chaos was everything and yet nothing, she recalledit faintly, a force of disorder and yet harmony shifting through her, engulfing her, creating her.

    She remembered it, almost. The burning, the flickering and the nothing until there was everything. Nothing she could put into words, but raw feelings, filling her up to the brim before she awoke back then.

    From that alone, she knew what they¡¯d said was true.

    ¡°It¡¯s something really special,¡± Rize said carefully after she¡¯d noticed her downcast expression, ¡°Having a soul forged by Chaos is already rare, but forged from a star...that¡¯s, like, once in a million years that someone like that is born."

    No doubt, the female wanted to cheer her up and the girl did her best to go along with it.

    It was confusing to her and while she was not shocked to the point of feeling saddened, she was certainly overwhelmed. Learning about a world that enticed her was one thing, but finding out something like that about herself was a bit more to stomach.

    ¡°So you can¡¯t...do this?¡± she asked, just to confirm and summoned fire to her palm, letting the crimson flames intertwine with her fingers. It felt so natural, but then again, if her soul had been forged from starfire, it was probably no surprise that controlling it came even easier to her than using her body.

    ¡°We¡¯re not all little freaks like you,¡± Kassa snorted with bile in her voice and the girl looked at her, eyes narrowing. She could see the envy and anger that was deeply rooted in the female¡¯s flame and knew that it was not particularly against her as a person, but more against the world in general.

    Nonetheless, she found once again that she did not like this feeling of being talked down to, especially by someone who had no right to judge her when they didn¡¯t know the last thing about her.

    ¡°Would you stop it, Kass? It¡¯s not her fault you¡¯re in a bad mood, again,¡± a new voice fell in and everyone turned to see that the two missing males had arrived, the boisterous and loud one up front and the grim-faced other behind him.

    Kassa only snorted at his words and turned away, poking the fire with a stick again.

    ¡°It¡¯s best to ignore her when she¡¯s like this,¡± the lively one said and sauntered over to her, a grin on his face, ¡°I¡¯m Lyndon, by the way, but you can call me Lyn. And this next to me is Murron," he pats his grim-faced companion on the shoulder, "It¡¯s a pleasure to meet you, Miss ...?¡±

    He paused in the end, obviously wanting to say her name, but she couldn¡¯t help him. She saw his name, etched deeply into his flame, but no matter how often she explored hers, she had never found one.

    So she shook her head with a smile and resigned, ¡°I¡¯m glad as well.¡±

    Knowing lit up in his eyes and he opened his mouth to say something, but a loud gasp from next to them interrupted him.

    ¡°Oh my!¡± Rize exclaimed, ¡°We completely forgot to introduce ourselves, Nei.¡±

    Her expression was so grave, the girl couldn¡¯t help but chuckle and bite down the information that she very well knew their names.

    ¡°I¡¯m Rize, but my clan name¡¯s R¨¢n Fenrir, I¡¯m a Sovereign of Water. Kassa, our endearing scout, is an Empress of Archery, her clan name¡¯s Ensa Fenrir. As you might¡¯ve noticed most of us are members of the Fenrir clan.¡±

    She spoke so naturally that the girl didn¡¯t dare interrupt her, but frankly, she¡¯d lost her at ¡®clan name¡¯. What was a clan? And why would they have different names than the ones in their flames?

    Her confusion must¡¯ve showed as Neiro heaved a sigh again.

    ¡°I¡¯m really sorry, I understand this must beoverwhelming,¡± he said to her and she smiled back at him, not offended but rather confused. Thankfully, Neiro offered an explanation without her having to prompt.

    ¡°Some of the more powerful Immortals found clans in order to gather followers and they train them and help them to become more powerful themselves. Most of us join one sooner or later, since they offer protection and help and a community. When we enter, we¡¯re given a name different from our original one, a clan name. The only one who¡¯s allowed to keep their true name is the clan leader.¡±

    She snorted at that, finding it quite audacious to take names away when they couldn¡¯t ever be erased. She didn¡¯t even have one and they were forced to have two? How ridiculous.

    ¡°What¡¯s a...Sovereign?¡± she was familiar with the word but not in the way Rize had used it, like a title she was proud of. Neiro nodded and scratched the stubble of hair on his cheeks while searching for an answer.

    ¡°In this Plane of Gods, we rank Immortals by their power. It¡¯s stupid if you ask me, but power means a lot here, so your title defines a lot about your standing. Newborns, without any training or awakened powers, are called Saints, as their bodies are already strong enough to be regarded more than mortal. Then it goes up in various steps: Emperor, Sovereign and Ascendant. Most living here are like Kassa and Lyndon here, at Emperor rank. Rize and Murron are both Sovereigns, counted amongst the stronger ones while I¡¯m an Ascendant, one on the rise to an even more powerful level.¡±

    ¡°An even more powerful level?¡± she echoed, frowning yet again. She could understand that they were ranked by strength but she hadn¡¯t fully comprehended why. Was strength this important? Surely, one¡¯s worth couldn¡¯t just be defined by how well you could thrash others?

    Then again, she could see Neiro¡¯s power fluctuating inside his flame, overbearing and overwhelmingly powerful. Only few of her companions - well, former companions - could measure up to him, if then only Ichakh or Ecchaik.

    Neiro nodded but it was Lyn who answered her question.

    ¡°There¡¯s a reason this is called the Plane of Gods. In the end, we Immortals are only small fry compared to the Gods. Ascendants can become Lesser Gods, but it¡¯s not easy, only a small percentageof all Ascendants manage it, because you actually need faith energy and not just pure strength. It¡¯s not easy to get Mortals to worship you.¡±

    Worship. Another strange idea. Why would someone want to be worshipped?

    If it was her, she¡¯d much rather have friends and companions than people looking up to her as if they were her lessers.

    ¡°There¡¯s actually a legend, that you can do it not only through faith but also through fear,¡± Rize whispered, despite the fact that they were alone in the middle of a forest, ¡°That if you have ten times as many people fear you as you¡¯d need to have faith in you, you can also become a Lesser God. It¡¯s impossible to become a High God through fear though - then again, it¡¯s almost impossible to become a High God anyways.¡±

    ¡°High Gods are the strongest beings that exist,¡± Neiro supplied, ¡°No one is actually sure how to ascend from Lesser to High God, since there are only veryfewHigh Gods and they like to keep secrets. It¡¯s near impossible, to be honest.¡±

    The girl listened to him with wide eyes, wondering where she was in this strength based system. Probably a Saint, since he¡¯d said all Newborns like her were Saints, but then again if she looked into herself...the power that fluctuated around her flame had never lost out to Ichakh¡¯s and it certainly didn¡¯t lose to Neiro¡¯s.

    ¡°Are all Newborns Saints?¡± she asked quietly, a little pleased that she¡¯d managed to form complete sentences, even if her pronunciation was still lacking.

    ¡°Yeah, mostly. It¡¯s really rare to be born with a natural understanding of something that would allow one to directly enter a higher rank.¡±

    The girl nodded at Lyn¡¯s answer and decided that she should probably keep her own power a secret, then. She didn¡¯t want to stand out any more than she already did, with her horns and her lack of knowledge and memories.

    After all, neither the animosity not the admiration she could get through showing prowess would be something that could help her.

    So instead she kept her mouth shut and let her eyes wander over to the one person who hadn¡¯t spoken yet. Lynhad called him Murron, but his flame said something quite different. It was a silent, suppressed flame, filled with somberness and a tinge of darkness that told her he¡¯d stared into an abyss deeper than she ever had. Nonetheless, it wasn¡¯t completely black, it still simmered and though its power seemed to be suppressed by the darkness, its quantity alone was far higher than Rize¡¯s. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

    The name etched into his flame was Zenon and if she looked at the true power locked inside of him, it was higher than Neiro¡¯s, andeven a stretch morethan her own.

    She wondered why he would have to hide his truth, but having as much darkness inside as he did, she knew he kept his secrets with reason. After all, deep down she saw softness and gentleness, not completely obliterated in him.

    When he noticed she was watching him, his gaze was icy, his flames more freezing than burning. She stared back at him, a strange feeling of not wanting to back down nestled into her heart.

    He may be a little stronger than her, but the thought of backing down or looking away didn¡¯t sit well with her at all. In fact, she somehow wanted to challenge him, to dare him to attack her and receive whatever he¡¯d throw at her.

    How weird.

    She was surprised at herself, not quite understanding where those feelings came from. But when she remembered the times she ran through the woods, stalking prey, or the times she was locked in combat with those that threatened her life, she found herself longing for the thrill of her heartbeat echoing in her ears.

    Her breathing accelerated as her legs tensed, ready to obey her instincts to fight if necessary, but the chance vanished when Zenon looked away. She saw the conflict in him and chided herself, reigning in the combative urges that overcame her.

    ¡°We should leave,¡± Neiro said after a while of silence, standing up and sheathing the silver object he¡¯d polished. The others nodded and the girl stood up as well, watching as they gathered their backpacks and weapons.

    ¡°What is that?¡± she asked Neiro and pointed to the silver object he¡¯d put on his back. It looked heavy but it also looked dangerous, especially coupled with the quantity of strength the man carried within him.

    ¡°Oh that¡¯s my sword. It¡¯s a heavy sword, and a Harvett, a special weapon for Ascendants.¡±

    She eyes it with wide eyes. So it was a sword, a weapon, her instincts were clear on that, a tool for hurting others.

    She was torn as she looked at it, both appalled and intrigued. The very thought of creating a tool for slaughtering didn¡¯t feel right at all, but then again, she had used her flames time and time again to do just that. If she didn¡¯t have death at her very fingertips, she would probably also resorted to substituting it with weapons as he did.

    On top of that, her fingers itched just when she was looking at it¡­

    ¡°Can I hold it?¡± she asked before she could stop herself, a familiar curiosity coursing through her. By now the others were ready and they were slowly beginning their march through the woods, but that didn¡¯t stop her from trailing alongside Neiro and eyeing his weapon with unveiled intrigue.

    He looked at her and then laughed when he saw her pleading expression.

    ¡°It¡¯s quite heavy¡­¡± he began but she snorted. She saw that it was heavy but she couldn¡¯t believe she was weaker than this guy, whose flame couldn¡¯t measure up to hers.

    Sure, he was broader¡­.and had more muscles...and seemed sturdier...but it couldn¡¯t be that bad could it?

    Neiro helplessly shrugged when he saw her stubborn face and soon drew the large sword. The silver glittered in the sun above and the girl was absolutely fascinated.

    She didn¡¯t quite understand what made her so curious about a weapon like this but when she looked at it, she couldn¡¯t help but gloat.

    It¡¯s so pretty, she gushed to herself and wrapped her fingers around the hilt as Neiro offered it to her.

    Unsurprisingly, it was heavy. Very much so.

    Surprised by the sudden weight, her arm dipped downwards but she was able to catch it before the sword crashed into the floor.

    She put her other hand on the hilt and pushed the blade up again, shuffling her feet until she could distribute the weight evenly onto her body. She could handle it, she found, but barely. And yet...

    Amazing.

    The feeling coursed through her, almost as great as the rush of a hunt as she began to swing the sword through the air. It felt amazing.

    Like her arms had found an extension, a carrier to transmit her strength to the outside. As she held it, she knew this was more than just a tool for slaughtering, this was...art.

    A form of beauty, no doubt unconventional, but she was immersed in it.

    Stepping away from the group, she closed her eyes, surrounded in sunlight and cherished the feeling of the rough hilt in her hands and the strain it put on her arms. No doubt did she look clumsy and awkward as she began to swing it through the empty air again, but she felt so happy right then, that she couldn¡¯t bring herself to care.

    Caught in her trance, she almost didn¡¯t notice that everyone had paused to stare at her until Lyndon let out a large whistle.

    ¡°Wow,¡± he commented with a both amused and incredulous expression.

    She slowly opened her eyes and grinned at him, unable to contain the joy inside of her.

    ¡°This is so cool,¡± she whispered and turned to Neiro, whose mouth stood a little open, ¡°Thank you so much.¡±

    Almost naturally, she spun the blade around and offered him the hilt, but he just stared at her. Looking at his stunned expression, her grin slowly faded away.

    Was he angry at her for swinging his blade? If so, he shouldn¡¯t have given it to her in the first place!

    She stared at him, then over to Rize, whose mouth was also open. Even Zenon looked a little stunned and only Kassa fell out of synch as she stared at her with uncovered hatred in her eyes.

    ¡°What did I do wrong?¡± she asked suspiciously and only at her words did Neiro get a grip on himself and took the sword once again from her hands.

    ¡°Nothing...it¡¯s nothing,¡± he said almost breathlessly, earning himself a laugh from Lyndon.

    ¡°Nothing? She just swung around the Harvett you needed five months to even lift and you say it¡¯s nothing? Stop lying, Nei.¡±

    The girl¡¯s eyes flickered between the two of them as she felt a little dejected. So she¡¯d done something weird again. It seemed she was not meant to fit in with them.

    Lyndon and Neiro continued to banter, none of them moving to explain just what it was that disturbed them so.

    So as they walked on, the girl fell in line with Rize and Zenon, who had thankfully recovered from their stun.

    ¡°What did I do?¡± she asked them, trying to understand.

    Rize smiled and ignored the audible scoff Kassa sent their way, ¡°It¡¯s nothing bad. It¡¯s just...a Harvett is a weapon that¡¯s forged in the core of a planet, a high grade weapon made for Ascendants. It¡¯s extremely heavy and has a semblance of will, meaning it only accepts those it favors. It took Neiro five months until he was even allowed to lift it and another two years to make it accept him enough to swing it like a real weapon. And you just took two seconds to accomplish that, that¡¯s why he¡¯s a little...hurt.¡±

    Zenon chuckled, the first time he made a different expression than a scowl.

    ¡°It¡¯s just his pride that¡¯s hurt, don¡¯t worry,¡± he said with a voice deep enough to fit his dark exterior.

    The girl nodded, feeling a little bad for showing off.

    She remembered feeling in synch with the weapon, as if it resonated with the star within her. Maybe the fact that it was forged in a planet¡¯s core and she was born from a star made them more in line than Neiro, with his ash and soil flame. Not that she would know though.

    They trod on in silence from then on, with Lyndon still teasing Neiro about what had happened and Neiro himself quite detached, as if he couldn¡¯t make up his mind whether to adore her or hate her.

    The forest around them stayed thick and dark, only occasional rays of sunlight filtering through the leaves. It was spring and getting warmer with each day, but the girl was still glad for the furs she could wrap around her.

    The others didn¡¯t wear fur like she did, their clothes were made of far thinner and more elaborate cloth than the crude skin she used.

    It was curious, how everything about them was so new to her.

    Then again, she¡¯d only been...born...one year ago.

    How weird, she couldn¡¯t help but think. She had no memories instead of vague feelings and it seemed natural to think she¡¯d only forgotten them.

    But...I¡¯ve been...born there. In those caves, amidst amber veins and cold stone.

    I was...born there.

    The thoughts wouldn¡¯t leave her. It made her a little sad, that all of the others here had memories, an identity to themselves, something to hold on to. She didn¡¯t have that.

    She didn¡¯t even have a name.

    A sigh escaped her but with the sigh, she strengthened her shoulders. It wouldn¡¯t do to be depressed about things she couldn¡¯t change. It was as it was and she was glad to live as she did.

    In the end, did it matter how or when she was born?

    I¡¯m alive now, aren¡¯t I?

    She smiled and nodded to herself. She was alive now and she planned to stay that way.

    ¡°Rize, where did you get your name from?¡± she asked as they wound their way through the woods she knew by hand.

    The woman¡¯s head snapped to her, obviously surprised that she spoke up after quite a while. Then, her eyes softened.

    ¡°My parents gave it to me, I guess,¡± she said hesitantly, ¡°Back when I was a mortal, born from mortals. It was quite normal for those who give birth to a child to give it a name.¡±

    Rize shrugged and the girl nodded, feeling a little frustrated. She had no parents, though she understood the concept from her beastly companions.

    She¡¯d been born from Chaos, apparently, and she couldn¡¯t very well ask it to give her a name.

    But she¡¯d like one.

    She saw how it was etched into the flames of every being she¡¯d met, and she couldn¡¯t help but be jealous.

    ¡°How can I get one?¡± she asked with determination, deciding that if things hadn¡¯t been given to her, she might as well fight to gain them.

    ¡°Why would you think you¡¯d deserve one?¡± Kassa, who was walking a few steps behind her, snarled, venom seeping deep into her voice.

    The girl paused her steps, irritation seeping into her. Deserve one? Everyone has one!

    Indignation flared inside of her as she couldn¡¯t understand just what she had done to this woman for her to snap at her at any possible opportunity.

    ¡°Kassa¡­¡± Rize said, trying to soothe situation, but Kassa¡¯s flame soared with spite as the three of them stopped to glare at each other.

    ¡°No, don¡¯t you see it, Rize? She waltzes in here, thinks she¡¯s hot shit and behaves like she¡¯s been one of us as if we haven¡¯t been together for years! I can¡¯t take it! Her stupid innocent act of being a ¡®newborn¡¯ just to get Neiro¡¯s attention, damn it, how can you take it? Her attitude pisses me off!¡±

    Kassa had raised her voice but by now, Zenon was the only one close enough to hear and he only paused to watch. Rize¡¯s lips flattened into a tight frown but before she could say anything, the girl herself stepped in.

    She¡¯d been watching long enough and by now, she had enough.

    Putting on an act?

    How dare she talk about her without knowing a single thing?

    ¡°Oh so you have a problem with my attitude?¡± she said with as much venom in her voice as Kassa had.¡°Well I have a problem with yours. Imagine knowing nothing about this world, about yourself, about anything at all, well, I wonder how you would act! I¡¯m trying my best to understand all of it and you have no right, at all, to write it off as an attempt to get anyone¡¯s attention. Don¡¯t push your insecurities on me.¡±

    The words came out harsher than intended, but as she saw the unreasonable bile in Kassa¡¯s flame, she couldn¡¯t help but lash out as well. She may be young and inexperienced but the world she did get to know the past year wasn¡¯t one that took insults with a smile. It taught her to fight back when someone struck her and she¡¯d be damned if she stood and ignoredit now.

    Kassa was speechless at her outburst but the girl turned to Rize and the others, even Neiro and Lyndon had by now stopped to track back and stare at them.

    ¡°I am grateful for you to take me in, but if you all think I¡¯m going to stand by and be insulted, you¡¯re wrong.¡±

    With that, she spun around and walked ahead, falling in line with Zenon, who only shot her an amused look. She raised an eyebrow at him, challenging.

    She was ready for a fight and even though she knew the man was stronger than her, she was still prepared to give him one. He didn¡¯t say anything though and instead walked besides her in silence, slowly gaining distance from the rest of the group.

    Behind them, Neiro and Lyndon had joined Rize in glaring at Kassa, who still seemed quite ruffled by the words that had been flung at her.

    ¡°You went too far, Kassa,¡± Rize softly said after a while, only to earn herself another deathly stare.

    ¡°Oh of course, you would think that,¡± Kassa gave back, directing her anger at the next available person.

    ¡°Kassa!¡± Neiro butted in, his voice tinged with anger, ¡°What did she do to you to make her antagonize her so? This is all new to her, it¡¯s obvious she isn¡¯t putting up an act! And we promised to help her, not make her a member of our team or anything.¡±

    ¡°So you defend her? Can¡¯t you see how she¡¯s been getting close to you, blinking her big golden eyes at you like the pretentious fool she is?¡±

    ¡°Now you¡¯re just being an idiot, Kass,¡± Lyndon rolled his eyes, ¡°Her, pretentious? This isn¡¯t even about her anymore, is it? This is about you and your ridiculous hate for everything related to those that didn¡¯t used to be mortals like us.¡±

    ¡°You have no idea, Lyndon,¡± she almost showed her teeth when the snarled at him.

    ¡°Oh I do,¡± he gave back, not missing a beat, ¡°You can¡¯t get over the fact that your lover left you for a Chaos-forged Immortal and now you act like all of them should pay for his idiocy.¡±

    She pressed her lips together, but didn¡¯t make a move to deny his statement.

    Rize¡¯s eyes softened as she looked at the woman whoshe had spent a lot of time with, but didn''t really know anything about.

    ¡°Stop looking at me like that,¡± Kassa snapped at her, ¡°I don¡¯t need your pity.¡±

    With that Kassa also stalked off, venturing right away from the path and into the woods. Neiro only shook his head and went after her, leaving Lyndon and Rize alone.

    The two of them only looked at each other and then smiled in similar exasperation.

    ¡°Well, I didn¡¯t think it would escalate that fast,¡± Lyndon said with a sigh and Rize shrugged, feeling both concerned and annoyed at Kassa¡¯s behaviour.

    ¡°Neither did I.¡±

    With that, they began to walk the trail again, hurrying to catch up with Murron and the girl, knowing that Neiro would manage to bring Kassa to a meeting point not too far ahead.

 Chapter Seven - Nightly Conversations

    Chapter 7 -Nightly Conversations

    The journey after that incident was mostly strained.

    Kassa and Neiro had met up with them on a meeting point the group had specified earlier on, but Kassa never breathed a single word of apology, so the girl refused to find a way to communicate with someone who had slighted her without the smallest reason. Neiro also seemed to stick to Kassa, so the distance between them grew involuntarily.

    Instead, she stuck to Zenon, who she weirdly liked, despite the fact that they hardly ever talked. She could sense his steady flame and though his quiet solitude did bore her after a while, it also gave her a sense of peace the others did not.

    From time to time, she talked to Rize and swarmed her with the questions that definitely didn¡¯t lessen. Quite the opposite, with each day they travelled, more and more question popped into her head, demanding to be answered.

    And so she learned about Clans, organizations for Immortals mostly founded by Lesser Gods. There were specified Clans for almost every profession, but also bigger, generalized ones, who only cared about the strength of its members. Being in a Clan apparently meant meeting many people and learning from those stronger and more experienced than oneself but it also meant binding yourself to their laws and their orders.

    The girl had crinkled her nose at that, disliking the idea of being bound to someone like that. If someone like Kassa were her superior and she¡¯d have to obey her orders, she was fairly sure she wouldn¡¯t.

    She also learned about the Plane of Gods in general, about the fact that there were so many different places and cultures in it that it was rumoured that so far there had been no one to ever see all of them.

    In fact, no one really seemed to know where the Plane of Gods ended or if it had any borders - sometimes if you travelled far enough, you¡¯d just end up on a completely different spot on a map without having any idea how you got there. Sometimes, you didn¡¯t and ended up making a circle.

    All of that made mapping quite arduous and being a cartographer, apparently, was a very popular job in this world. Especially as no one had ever managed to draw a complete map of the Plane of Gods and the one who could do so was promised apprenticeship by a High God in person - something that never happened before.

    All in all, the Plane of Gods was complicated.

    Rize told her that theywere in a rather rural place that was based on a world of fighting with swords, magic or living without technology like electricity and instead embracing the beauty of a simple, traditional life. It was mostly a refuge for the Immortals who had spent their mortal lives in a less developed world and did not wish to adapt to the more futuristic ones.

    The girl didn¡¯t really mind that. She understood the concept of electricity quite fast after Rize explained it to her and while she would like to see it one day, she was in no hurry. A world of swords and combat sounded fun in its own way and it wasn¡¯t as if she had a shortage of time on her hands.

    For now, though, they were headed towards the capital of the Fiftieth Eastern Province they were in, a city called Fall¡¯s End that was praised as the biggest in these parts of the Plane of Gods.

    Five sunsets - days, as Lyndon kept correcting her - after she had departed with Neiro and his group, they exited the forest that had seemed to stretch on forever.

    The girl had left the woods before, but only to stalk prey in the plains or cross from one edge to another. The woods had, after all, been much safer for her troupe of companions, many of which would¡¯ve been immensely vulnerable in an open field.

    Back in her excursions, though, she had never even seen the streets and houses that greeted her now.

    They¡¯d come to a small village on the edge of the forest named Lacta, where about six hundred houses had been built in a circle around a square. Rize told her it was small for a village but the girl already found it incredibly exciting.

    She was mesmerized by seeing other people like her - Immortals. The people they met on the streets of Lacta were far more diverse than Neiro¡¯s group. There were some with skin darker than a tree¡¯s bark and some with hair as colourful as flowers, she even saw someone who had horns similar to hers, which made her grin even brighter.

    So she wasn¡¯t that weird after all! If there was someone with horns like her in a small town like this, then surely it wasn¡¯t all that uncommon, which relieved her a lot. She didn¡¯t want to be too different.

    While they were in the town, they planned to spend the night in an inn - a house specifically opened for travellers, apparently.

    The girl furrowed her brows at that. Why would she need a house? So far she¡¯d always been fine without a roof over her head and she didn¡¯t see why she¡¯d need one now.

    ¡°But the beds are far more comfortable!¡± Rize exclaimed when she compained and dragged her by the hand. She did shoot Zenon a panicked look, but he only looked at her without a shred of pity and shrugged as if to say ¡®better go along or it¡¯ll get worse¡¯. She rolled her eyes at that, but complied.

    She regretted it the instant she stepped into the doors though.

    In that moment, she decided, that she didn¡¯t like houses. At all.

    They felt suffocating, the ceiling too low, almost as if crashing down on her, the walls to close, almost closing in on her. She felt as if she was a captive, in walls that didn¡¯t even allow her to look outside and, worst of all, she felt farther away from the stars than was comfortable for her.

    Not being able to see the stars was bearable, for a night or maybe two, but only if she couldn¡¯t change it. Like, when it rained or snowed or clouds covered the sky, she could live with that, as long as she could still feel the stars above her. If she didn¡¯t see them for a longer time, her skin began to twitch and feel uncomfortable and her stomach ached as if to scream at her that something was wrong.

    She had always needed the stars.

    And now, to have a ceiling of metal, wood and clay between her and those that called to her, it felt so plainly wrong that she couldn¡¯t stopthe shivers that wracked her body as soon as she stepped inside.

    Nonetheless, she tried to suppress her grimace and walked after Rize, who had bought a room for the two of them. Money had been another thing that had to be explained to her - but a currency used for trading seemed logical to her, so she did adapt to it quite was.

    Inside the room they had rented, there were two wooden constructs with feather-filled linen on top of them - beds, apparently, meant for sleeping.

    The girl stared down at them with a weird expression, but Rize looked at her quite expectantly, so the girl shot her a fake grin.

    ¡°Are you alright?¡± Rize asked, after she¡¯d dressed in more comfortable clothes and sat down on her bed, eyeing her with a comforting gaze, ¡°This must all be a lot for you, I¡¯m sure. I was also really scared and confused when was born here.¡±

    The girl looked at her, knowing it was the kindness of her flame that urged Rize to try and comfort her, even if she did not need that comfort.

    Sure, it was all confusing and a bit much, but scared? No, she wasn¡¯t scared. Excited, overwhelmed maybe but when she thought of all that happened and what might happen, there wasn¡¯t a shred of fear in her heart.

    ¡°I¡¯m alright,¡± she gave her answer with a smile, a real one this time, after all, she was grateful that Rize would concern herself over her.

    Rize looked at her with doubt in her eyes but seemed to settle for her words and moved to go to sleep. The girl also moved under the covers and put her head down on the soft pillow, acutely aware of every end of the feathers that she lay on.

    It was soft and comfortable, no doubt, but as she lay in it, eyes wide open she couldn¡¯t help but think of the forest floor she¡¯d lain on the past months.

    Travelling with the other Immortals made her aware of the differences between them and her, even though she¡¯d never mentioned them out loud. There were many, more than she liked.

    For one, they ate beasts.

    Just like her companions, they hunted each day, slayed those that they deemed lessers, and cooked them to sate their urges. She had always declined, still not familiar with the feeling of hunger itself and she didn¡¯t see the sense in killing and then eating a stranger that had never offended her in any way if she didn¡¯t need it to survive. They seemed to need it, so she refrained from judging them. If it were necessary for her, she wouldn¡¯t hesitate to kill. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    Aside from that, they seemed to need far more sleep than she did.

    While she had slept before, it was about once or twice in a moon cycle - month, as it was officially called - and even then only for half a day maybe and all energy she needed filled her body again.

    Rize, Lyndon and Kassa were different. They needed a few hours each night, sometimes even more. Even Neiro, their leader and the strongest - at least on the surface - needed sleep every other night.

    Again, she was an exception, along with Zenon, which didn¡¯t surprise her at all. Actually, she would¡¯ve been surprised if someone who was stronger than her had more limitations than she did.

    So there were many discrepancies between her and them.

    Was it all because she was Chaos-forged? Because she was Firakha?

    Or was it because of herself?

    She frowned as she thought of it, wide awake.

    There wasn¡¯t a shred of fatigue in her and, combined with her heart¡¯s faint call for the stars, she knew she would spend the rest of the night lying awake, pondering over things she couldn¡¯t change.

    ¡°Rize?¡± she whispered into the darkness, knowing from her breathing that the woman wasn¡¯t asleep yet.

    ¡°Yes?¡± came the muffled reply.

    ¡°Can you...give me a name?¡± She was hesitant to ask, since the topic was close to her heart, but she couldn¡¯t help it. She wanted one so badly, an identity, a word to identify herself with as she constantly doubted her own existence.

    Rize was silent for a long time.

    ¡°I could,¡± she finally said, ¡°but it wouldn¡¯t be a good idea.¡±

    The girl sat up and shuffled until she could see the lying figure of the other Immortal.

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°Because I already have a name. You probably don¡¯t know, but giving someone a name is an important matter here. It forges a connection. The first thing we do when we tame a beast is give it a name to bind it to us, and when we enter a Clan, we are also given a Clan-name that binds us to is. That¡¯s how important it is. My name was given to me by my parents, who have given birth to my soul, so the connection was already there and wasn¡¯t changed by the name-giving, as it was with most people here. But if I were to give you a name, I¡¯d basically force you under my command. And both you and I don¡¯t want that.¡±

    The girl¡¯s frown tightened, but no matter how much she disliked it, she couldn¡¯t disagree. She imagined what would¡¯ve happened to her companions if they were captured and had their true names rewritten by fake ones, forcing them to submit. The image itself made her feel repulsed.

    ¡°Then how can I ever get one? Can I give myself one?¡±

    ¡°Names can only be given as a gift and you can¡¯t gift yourself,¡± Rize shook her head softly, ¡°I don¡¯t know how other Chaos-forged Immortals do it, but if I were you I¡¯d wait until I¡¯d meet either someone you trust with your life or someone who also doesn¡¯t have a name. If two people without names would gift each other, the bonds would cancel each other out and you¡¯d be left with only a faint connection.¡±

    ¡°I understand,¡± the girl said softly in return. It would be hard to find someone else without a name but then again, the other possibility didn¡¯t sit well with her either.

    She had no one she¡¯d entrust her life with, andeven then, giving someone your life and giving them the power to control you were two completely different things.

    She was silent after that, staring at the ceiling even more awake than she¡¯d been before.

    In the dark, she was only too aware of her unbranded, untamed flame, burning inside of her with ferocity but also uncertainty. Would she never get a name as they had?

    Then again, did it matter if she didn¡¯t?

    I know who I am, don¡¯t I? Do I really need someone else to tell me?

    She frowned at her own thought and then shook her head. Thinking in circles would do her no good.

    As soon as she heard Rize¡¯s breathing go steady and slow with the weight of sleep, she slipped out from under the covers and stealthily opened the window.

    They were in the topmost floor and the roof of the inn wasn¡¯t too far away for her to grasp onto it and silently pull herself upwards. She¡¯d climbed many trees in the past moons - no, months - so swinging herself on a roof like this proved little trouble.

    Once up, she felt as if a weight had been lifted from her chest.

    Balancing on the edges of the tiles with her bare feet, she smiled as she tilted her head towards the sky. Her brothers and sisters shone with brilliance above her, only outshone by the moons that casted threefold shadows behind her. She felt the light seep into her, both the reflected starlight of the moons and the far-casted light from the other stars.

    She took a deep breath and then lay down on the roof, folding her hands beneath her head to watch the sky.

    Despite the uncertainty inside of her, she was looking forward to the next days. Fall¡¯s End was apparently a big city, where she would be able to enter a school and meet people who were new to this world like she was. Maybe she would even find someone who was new to everything, including life, like she was, that would be great.

    ¡°Couldn¡¯t sleep?¡± a voice came from the dark and the girl sat up, eyes warily darting through the half-dark of the night.

    On the other side of the roof was Zenon, his silhouette dark against the moons but his flame unmistakable.

    The girl smiled as he came closer and finally sat down next to her, but she remained tense. It wasn¡¯t as if she knew him all that well.

    ¡°I don¡¯t seem to need as much sleep as you do,¡± she said with a half shrug, unsure what else to say.

    Zenon looked at her curiously, but didn¡¯t seem to find her as weird as she thought she might be.

    ¡°It¡¯s not like we all sleep the same amount. We tend to need less the stronger we are,¡± he explained and then looked away from her into the night sky.

    She spied his flame again, finding the amount of power he carried still enough to match hers, if not surpass it. Was it because of her powers then, that she was able to stay awake as long as she did?

    Partially, she guessed.

    With the night sky above her, giving her enough starlight to feast on for months, how could she ever stay asleep?

    ¡°The stars are beautiful, aren¡¯t they?¡± he said after a while.

    Her head snapped towards him and she couldn¡¯t suppress a giggle herself.

    ¡°Are you calling me beautiful?¡± she couldn¡¯t hold the words back.

    Bewildered, Zenon looked to her and then suddenly realized what she meant. He laughed as well, mirth breaking through the usual somberness of his face.

    ¡°I was actually referring to your siblings up there, but I suppose you were one of them not too long ago, weren¡¯t you?¡± He said easily, looking from her to the stars.

    The girl also looked up, at the stars that now gave her life. Her siblings.

    What a nice way to put it.

    ¡°I guess I was. I can¡¯t remember it though,¡± she shrugged.

    Zenon didn¡¯t say anything else either, so they lay in silence for a long time.

    After another while, he stood up and stretched his arms and then turned to leave.

    ¡°Goodnight, girl without a name,¡± he said with a smile that she earnestly replied. He was a good person, she could see it in his steady flame, even if he had his secrets.

    ¡°Goodnight, Zenon,¡± she called after him.

    It was only when he abruptly turned around, any traces of smiles lost, that she noticed her blunder.

    Fury in his eyes, he walked back to her and grabbed the collar of her clothes, easily lifting her from the roof to hang in his grasp.

    ¡°How do you know that name?¡± he asked, his voice colder than ice. She pressed her lips together as his fingers sneaked around her throat, threatening to tighten, and her own eyes grew livid with rage.

    ¡°Let me go,¡± she hissed with the little air left in her mouth but with enough acid to burn his face.

    ¡°How do you know that name?¡± he repeated, this time his voice was loud and his fingers tightened.

    That was when something inside of her snapped.

    It was a mixture of anger and survival instinct but when his fingers around her throat took her air away, she couldn¡¯t help but act.

    She threw one of her dangling legs up and, with surprising agility, violently kicked at the arm that was holding her.

    A satisfying crunch echoed through the night as Zenon¡¯s arm fell and he involuntarily let go of her. She landed on her feet and swiftly retreated a few paces.

    She didn¡¯t think much as she drew fire around her, lighting the night with crimson glow, every bit ready to hurt.

    He may be stronger than her but she would be damned to go down without a fight.

    Zenon however stood almost frozen, staring at the arm she¡¯d just broken. She crouched down, legs tensed to run wherever it would become necessary.

    ¡°Tell me how you knew that name,¡± he said once more, this time a little less frantic. His eyes met hers again, dead serious. She stared back, still burning with rage.

    ¡°I can see it, okay?¡± she spat, accusing, ¡°I can see your flame and your true name is branded on it. It¡¯s not like I knew it was a secret.¡±

    The last words were a bit of a lie - she wasn¡¯t that dumb - but she couldn¡¯t help defending herself on this. She would¡¯ve told him that if he¡¯d asked her, but there was no way she wouldn¡¯t fight back when attacked.

    He was silent for a while, as if contemplating about her words, but finally nodded.

    When he looked at her again his eyes were filled with guilt.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry about that. I tend to get agitated when it comes to this,¡± he pressed his lips together, but that did little to appease her.

    ¡°Oh so you think saying ¡®sorry¡¯ makes me forget that you tried to strangle me instead of asking? Well, tough luck,¡± she snapped, no less angry than she¡¯d been before.

    On top of that, she was almost a little disappointed to see him back down so easily. Her hands itched for a fight and she knew he could give her one, but apparently, he wouldn¡¯t.

    So, instead of provoking him further, she turned around and made her way away from Zenon.

    ¡°Wait!¡± he called out to her after a while. She paused but didn''t turn around, unwilling to give him any more of her time.

    He looked uncertain for a while, but then his resolve hardened.

    ¡°If you ever tell someone my real name, I won¡¯t let you off,¡± he said, his voice low again.

    She stared him down, wondering if he really thought her that meek.

    ¡°More threats?¡± she half-laughed, not impressed, ¡°I¡¯m not scared of you, Zenon. You may be stronger than me, but not so much that I¡¯ll let you walk all over to me. Maybe next time you''llask when you want something from me instead of demanding it.¡±

    With that, she left him there, quickly jumping down from the roof and sprinting off into the forest. What she needed right now was to get the anger out of her system, or else she¡¯d probably try to do more than break his arm.

 Chapter Eight - The City Of Falléˆ¥æªš End

    Chapter 8 -The City of Fall¡¯s End

    The days after that werea lot less eventful.

    They¡¯d left Lacta in the morning, but not before Rize had bought proper clothes for the girl, who still wandered around in her furs, and actual clothes were something she came to appreciate very quickly.

    They were simple, but the fact that they didn¡¯t smell like a dead animal was already enough for her to be happy.

    Seeing her mesmerized look, Lyn had also bought her a cheap sword, which she now wore proudly on her hip. It felt good to have her own weapon, even if she didn¡¯t exactly need it to prevail over her enemies. It was also immensely fun to swing it around in the evenings and familiarize herself to the feeling of a weapon in her hands.

    During the rest of the journey, she hardly spoke to anyone besides Lyndon and Rize. Neiro stuck to Kassa, whose eyes were still fire pits when they fell on her, and Zenon did his very best to avoid her after their fight before.

    She still hadn¡¯t forgiven him for trying to harm her like that when she hadn¡¯t done anything wrong, and he didn¡¯t apologize again, so the tranquil companionship they¡¯d had was now virtually nonexistent.

    It didn¡¯t faze her too much though.

    Sure she knew he was deep down a nice fellow, but she hadn¡¯t even known him long enough to consider him a friend and found it too bothersome to mend a relationship she didn¡¯t destroy.

    So instead, she took to talking to Rize and Lyn, who were both easy enough to be friends with.

    Two weeks after they¡¯d left the forest and all in all five weeks after she¡¯d joined their group, they finally reached their destination.

    It was safe to say, she wasn¡¯t disappointed.

    The City of Fall¡¯s End was mesmerising.

    It was large, far larger than she could ever imagine a city to be, especially since she was standing on a hill when she first saw it and was still unable to see from one end to another. It was built on a smaller mountain, the streets winding circularly around it until they converged on a huge building that was mainly built out of glass, gold and white stone so that it glittered once the sun fell on it.

    It was safe to say, the girl was stunned.

    The entire city was very green and pink, trees lining almost every street, growing between and on most of the houses. According to Rize, the city got its name from the fact that all of these trees turned into a stunning array of gold, red, yellow and orange at the end of fall, making the city more colourful than any other.

    ¡°I think I made the same expression when I first saw it,¡± Neiro said next to her, a faint smile on his lips. She grinned back and nodded.

    ¡°It¡¯s so beautiful,¡± she said, feeling like she lacked words to describe her feelings.

    Rize next to her also smiled and they let her savor the view for another while before she herself got to impatient and they walked the short way to the end of their journey.

    They got through the city gates without a problem once the others showed the guards their identification as members of the Fenrir clan, which didn¡¯t seem to be so special here.

    She grinned, feeling both giddy and happy when the gates opened and she saw the streets.

    They were lined with stalls with the most astonishing range of goods, from fruits she hadn¡¯t even imagined to fine silks and second-rate pottery, there were swords and bows as well as dried and fried meat and all scents mixed into the lively feeling of a city.

    ¡°Better close your mouth or something¡¯ll fly in,¡± Lyndon said and bumped into her but she only turned to him with glittering eyes.

    ¡°This is sooo amazing!¡± She yelled and couldn¡¯t resist running ahead.

    She jumped out of the way of carriages drawn by horses and other creatures and ran to the stalls, eyeing the merchandise one after another.

    There were apples - those she knew, she¡¯d gathered some for her companions before - but also cherries and pears and different nuts and colourful vegetables she had never seen before.

    ¡°What is that?¡± She asked and pointed at a rainbow-coloured, pear shaped fruit that smelled both gross and delicious at the same time.

    The lady behind the stall, a middle-aged woman with huge and pointy ears and skin the colour of an olive looked at her and gave her a smile once she saw the giddy expression on her face.

    ¡°That¡¯s an opha jelly, they grow further in the south of here. Some say it¡¯s either the best or worst thing you¡¯ll ever eat in your life,¡± the woman laughed and the girl stared the fruit down. She¡¯d never eaten something before and it certainly wasn¡¯t as if she was hungry, but for the first time in her life she actually wanted to taste something just for the sake of knowing what it would be like.

    ¡°You want to try some?¡± The woman asked after a while and the girl¡¯s head whipped to her.

    She nodded unconsciously at first but stopped and began to shake her head when she remembered she couldn¡¯t.

    ¡°I don¡¯t have any money,¡± she said dejectedly, her head hanging low. This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.

    The woman looked right and left and then handed one of the fruits to her with a wink.

    ¡°I¡¯ll take it as a favour,¡± she laughed, leaving the girl speechless, then grinning again.

    ¡°Thank you so much!¡± she wentinto hyperdrive again as she hugged the woman over the counter and then left with her new treasure.

    ¡°You¡¯re welcome,¡± the woman giggled when she saw the young girl so happy with just a piece of fruit in her hands.

    The girl deliberated a while and then took a huge bite out of the rainbow opha-jelly.

    Taste exploded into her mouth, flooding and taking over and exploding on her tongue.

    This is¡­

    Her face slowly twisted.

    ...so gross.

    Shaking her head, she spit out the piece she¡¯d just bidden and proceeded to wipe her tongue with her fingers, trying to get the taste of her.

    It seemed as if every flavourhad been concentrated into that fruit, making it too bitter and too salty and too sweet at the same time.

    She spat on the floor and then burned the rest of what she held in her hand without a second thought.

    ¡°Worst, definitely the worst!¡± She said to herself, feeling cheated, especially when Lyndon behind her broke into a hysterical laughter.

    ¡°That is just how I reacted when I first tried one,¡± he breathed between laughs and even Rize couldn''t hold in a giggle.

    The girl found it kinda funny as well and ended up laughing just as loud as Lyn.

    ¡°Come on guys,¡± Neiro finally butted in, his face stiff, ¡°Let¡¯s get going to Redhall.¡±

    With that, they went on and the girl restrained herself from running around and inspecting her surroundings in wonder yet again. Only once she and Lyn had calmed down did she notice that she didn¡¯t have the faintest idea where they were going.

    ¡°So, what is this Redhall thing?¡± she asked Lyn, poking him in his side since he was still wearing a teasing smile.

    ¡°It¡¯s a school of sorts,¡± he explained, ¡°There¡¯s one in every major city, the only institution that isn¡¯t monitored by a Clan but directly by the High Gods, or so they say. No one has ever seen them before, though.¡±

    ¡°We all went there, before we joined a Clan, when we had no idea about this world. It takes every Newborn Immortal that wants to learn, so we think it¡¯s the right place for you,¡± Rize said as they made their way through the streets, moving upwards to the higher areas of the city.

    The girl nodded, her excitement only growing.

    It¡¯ll be nice to meet someone like me, she mused with a smile, someone without a clue about anything.

    ¡°Actually, Murron¡¯s an instructor at Redhall. He helps us from the Fenrir Clan out for our missions from time to time, but he¡¯s actually not a member. Come to think of it, where is he?¡± Rize looked around, but couldn¡¯t find him.

    The girl wasn¡¯t very surprised, after all, he had done his best to avoid her until now and he would likely continue to do so.

    As they walked upwards, the city gradually changed a little. The stalls to the sides of the street disappeared, as did the wooden and brick-coloured houses, instead, they were replaced by shiny white buildings. The street was also more even here and far more tidy, even if there were still a lot of leaves and petals from the trees fluttering through the air.

    Redhall itself, though, was, despite its name, not red at all.

    It wasn¡¯t white either, but more of a dark brownish colour, that might¡¯ve had a tinge of crimson, once, but not anymore. Nonetheless, it was quite impressive.

    It came into view from a bit further, locked behind gates that seemed as old as the buildingitselfand completely didn¡¯t fit into the tidy and white surroundings. It was a large building with huge glass fronts that seemed to stretch up to five stories high and yet managed to seem quite comely and small. The foremost building seemed surprisingly small for an institution, but the spacious fence that encircled its property gave reason to suspect a larger area behind it.

    The girl found, from its outside, she liked it more than she did the neatness around her, that, despite its prettiness and shine, made her feel out of place more than anything.

    She only knew the woods, knew how to hunt and climb trees, so these people, who wore clothes not to keep warm but to look special,seemed mostly strange to her.

    ¡°Ah this is so nostalgic,¡± Lyn said as they neared the rusty gates, a warm and unfocused look in his eyes.

    ¡°Right, you went to school here, didn¡¯t you?,¡± Rize said with a smile and then eyes the school in front of her as well, ¡°I went in Inza, to Lakehall. Inza¡¯s the next large city to the north,¡± she explained when the girl threw her a weird look again.

    ¡°Is it different from here?,¡± she asked curiously, now that she¡¯d been overwhelmed by one city it was quite hard to imagine another.

    ¡°Yes and no,¡± Rize laughed but before she could elaborate, the gates in front of them swung open.

    They stopped talking, a hushed silence descending over them by itself as they entered the path before them. There were trees all over, in green and pink, forming a pattern of light and shadow on the ground that could only be described as breathtaking.

    The silence was natural, as if they were in a place where no sounds should be made and even their steps were muffled as they crossed and entered the school through wooden gates and only once they were inside could they breathe and walk normally again.

    ¡°Hi there!,¡± they were greeted by a middle aged man that passed them, ¡°Hey, aren¡¯t you those adventurers from Fenrir¡¯s?¡± He stopped walking and eyed them over, his eyes lingering on her for a second longer.

    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s us,¡± Neiro said, shaking the man¡¯s hand, something the girl found really weird, ¡°We picked up a girl, a Newborn in the woods and figured we¡¯d bring her here. She was a wilding for little over a year, I think.¡±

    The man¡¯s eyes grew wide at Neiro¡¯s words and immediately landed on her again. His flame flickered with an excitement he seemed to have for many things and she could see curiosity, the desire to learn. She smiled at him, even if her eyebrow twitched at being looked at like a rare specimen.

    ¡°Wow, never heard of someone out there for so long. Glad to have you here then,¡± he smiled at her and she nodded in return, still a little irritated.

    ¡°Well, I guess it¡¯s goodbye for us then,¡± Rize said and took ahold of her hands. The girl turned to her, frowning.

    ¡°Am I not going to be able to see you once I stay here?¡± she asked, her eyes darting between the man and the woman who had become her friend in the last weeks.

    ¡°Oh no, you can come to visit, sure, but I guess you¡¯ll be busy and we¡¯ll go on another mission, so it might be a while until we see each other again.¡±

    The girl let out a relieved sigh.

    ¡°Then, that¡¯s fine. We¡¯ll definitely meet again!¡± She proclaimed to Lyn and Rize, those she had become the closest to, with a small grin to Neiro, who was standing a little off center with Kassa, who still hadn¡¯t overcome her unreasoned resentment.

    ¡°Of course we will!¡± Lyn grinned and ruffled her hair, making her poke him in the sides again, grinning wildly as well.

    ¡°I¡¯ll miss you guys.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll miss you too, no-name.¡±

    With that, Lyn gave her a light kiss on the forehead, Rize squeezed her hands and Neiro nodded and their group turned around and left through the door they¡¯d come in a few minutes ago.

    The girl stared after the only friends of her species she¡¯d made for a while and then shook her head to disperse the sadness inside of her.

    And then, she turned around to the waiting man, eyes narrowing in determination.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get going, shall we?¡±

 Chapter Nine - Evaluation

    Chapter 9 -Evaluation

    The man led her through the corridors, leaving her to gape at the structures, the high walls, the old wood, all of which she found exceedingly pretty. The best thing, though, was that the ceilings over the corridors were made of glass, letting the sun fall in and light the hallways.

    The sun on her skin made the feeling of being removed from the stars far less suffocating, and even though it still felt more stifling than the open sky, she didn¡¯t feel as trapped or miserable.

    They finally came to a door that looked quite like all the others they¡¯d passed, with the exception of a sign with unfamiliar scribbles on it. Letters, her brain called them, but the mysterious knowledge in her head couldn¡¯t make any sense of them.

    ¡°What is this?¡± she asked in wonder when they¡¯d stopped in front of it, her fingers reaching up to feel the incisions carved into the wooden sign.

    ¡°It¡¯s a...sign?¡± the man next to her asked with furrowed brows.

    ¡°I know, duh, but it¡¯s saying something, right? These are...words, right?¡± she traced the incisions, feeling quite proud of the deduction she made.

    The man only looked at her dubiously, as if she was stupid. Which she wasn¡¯t- at least, she liked to believe that.

    ¡°Of course it does. It says ¡®Principal¡¯ because this is the principal¡¯s office, I brought you here to meet with her, like every new student,¡± his tone was irritated, as if it was supposed to be obvious, ¡°Don¡¯t tell me, you can¡¯t even read?¡±

    His condescending tone made her irritated andshe pressed her lips together.

    ¡°No I can¡¯t do this...reading thing. But I came here to learn about things like that, didn¡¯t I?¡± she gave back, her voice hard.

    ¡°Ah, well, I¡¯ve never met anyone who couldn¡¯t even read before, so¡­,¡± he smiled in a way that was supposed to be apologetic but all it did was rile her up more, ¡°But you can count, right?¡±

    She whipped around to him, the mirth in her eyes replaced with sharpness.

    ¡°Why, yes, I can count, but if my lack of knowledge is amusing you, please by all means go on and make fun of me,¡± she hissed. She looked at his flame again, it was curious and probing and also a bit arrogant and superficial, and she found she didn¡¯t like this kind of flame at all. She didn¡¯t even look deeper to find his name, too pissed to find out more about this kind of person.

    ¡°Well, I¡¯m supposed to be meeting this principal person, right?¡± she snapped when he didn¡¯t say anything.

    ¡°Yes, of course, yes,¡± he said, his face a bit paler than before, as he pushed open the door and motioned her to go inside.

    The inside was very similar in design to the hallways, wooden walls and floor, high walls, even though the ceiling was wooden instead of see-through. However, the outer wall was completely glazed, giving a view of the trees around the school and the city beyond them.

    At the far end, there was a desk, large and heavy, behind which sat a woman, physically not much older than her, reading over a document in front of her with a strange apparatus on her nose. Glasses. How weird.

    ¡°Hello?¡± the girl asked once she entered and still got no attention.

    ¡°Oh, hello,¡± the woman looked up and smiled, ¡°Excuse me, who are you?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m a new student, I¡¯m supposed to talk to you.¡±

    The woman eyed her over the rim of her glasses, motioning her to come closer.

    ¡°Ah, of course,¡± she said as the girl sat down in a chair in front of the desk, ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡±

    Name.... Bitterness swept through her mouth.

    ¡°I don¡¯t have one,¡± she said, her chin raised defiantly, even though her face muscles twitched. That got the woman¡¯s full attention.

    ¡°You¡¯re a Chaos-forged Immortal?¡±

    The girl nodded, ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯ve been told. Apparently, we don¡¯t get things like names easily.¡±

    The woman put down the documents she¡¯d been holding and took off her glasses before looking at her with far more interest than before. The girl looked back at her, finding herself quite welcomed by the gentle golden eyes that examined her.

    She took a look at the flame of the person in front of her and found it stern and disciplined, but also gentle and kind, hidden deep inside. Leesha, that was her name, swirling at the bottom of a flame that seemed transparent, not hiding anything. It didn¡¯t even hide the incredibly rich aura that swirled around it, apower that was both in quantity and quality completely different from anything the girl knew.

    But the more she looked at the flame, the more strangethings she found and it wasn¡¯t just the aura. That kind of flame, clear and sharp, see-through, yet unfathomably deep, it wasn¡¯t like the other flames she knew.

    The girl¡¯s eyes grew wide.

    The woman smiled.

    ¡°I know that very well,¡± she laughed.

    ¡°You are¡­¡±

    ¡°Chaos-forged, yes. I¡¯m like you.¡±

    There was sympathy and amusement in her eyes as the girl felt excitement rise in her. So that was why the flame seemed different! She¡¯d never met a Chaos-forged Immortal like her, so she hadn¡¯t recognized it at first-glance, but looking at it now, it was obvious. This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.

    ¡°My name is Leesha, but you can call me Principal, like everyone else does,¡± the woman stretched out her hand over the table, making the girl stare at it blankly until she redacted it again. Weird.

    ¡°Anyways, my soul was forged from a Stellar River, a stream that flows between the worlds and connects some of them. That¡¯s why I understand you, probably better than the people who brought you here.¡±

    The girl¡¯s lips formed an O as she listened to the Principal¡¯s words. A Stellar River? That explained the clearness and the cutting edge on her flame, a flame that wasn¡¯t fire at all, but the purest, clearest of water that gave the woman life force and nourished her.

    ¡°My soul was forged from a star,¡± she told her, glad to talk to someone who would probably understand, ¡°Or so the others said. I only remember fire and heat and that feeling of...I don¡¯t know, life?¡±

    It was hard to put it in words, the overwhelming memories she had before she woke up, but the Principal¡¯s eyes glittered as she spoke.

    ¡°I know how you feel. So you are Firakha, huh. They call those like me Zeikha, children of the River. I was also born without a name, even though it didn¡¯t bother me until I stumbled upon a village, two weeks after I was born. I suppose you knew it earlier, with your ability to see other¡¯s souls, no?¡±

    The girl nodded.

    ¡°I made companions, out in the woods. I¡¯ve always been able to see their names, so¡­¡±

    ¡°How long did you live out there?¡± The Principal¡¯s voice sounded genuinely curious and the clear flame once again made it hard not to reply her opennessin kind.

    ¡°A year, more or less.¡±

    ¡°Wow, that¡¯s long.¡±

    The girl shrugged at that, not really knowing what to say. It hadn¡¯t felt long, even now, especially since she''d had no idea that other beings like her lived in this world.

    The Principal smiled softly and pushed a strand of long black hair behind her ears, which were, to the girl¡¯s surprise, slightly pointed.

    ¡°How did you get your name?¡± The girl finally asked, when the silence began to stretch uncomfortably.

    ¡°A friend gave it to me,¡± the principal answered without missing a beat, ¡°About a year after I was born. He didn¡¯t have a name either, so we exchanged. I¡¯m sure something like that will happen to you as well,¡± she smiled gently, ¡°In fact, I might know someone. In the newbie class, here at Redhall, there¡¯s a young Immortal. She got her name stolen when she was a mortal and had problems getting a new one since. Maybe you could reach out to her.¡±

    A smile made its way on the girl¡¯s lips. So there¡¯s someone with a similar problem here? The thought alone made her giddy, finally meeting someone who could give her her name!

    If she¡¯s willing, I can have a name!

    She grinned involuntarily. A name, and maybe a new friend!

    ¡°So there¡¯s no problem with me going to school here?¡± She asked, after all, that was why she was here, talking to Leesha.

    The principal shook her head.

    ¡°No of course not. You can live here as well, there¡¯s dorms on the grounds for students who haven¡¯t found accommodations in the city yet. Actually, I¡¯m glad there¡¯s a Chaos-forged Immortal here,¡± she flashed a relieved, almost girly smile that made her look a lot younger, ¡°There hasn¡¯t been anyone since me.¡±

    The girl smiled back and motioned to stand up.

    ¡°Ah, there¡¯s one more thing though,¡± the principal flicked her forehead with an apologetic smile, ¡°When we administer new students, we record their current level. Most of them are Saints without having chosen path to take in the future yet, but it¡¯s common procedure. Besides, Chaos-forged like us are mostly a bit different. I was an Empress of Water when I was born and I rose to be a Lesser Goddess far faster than my peers.¡±

    Lesser Goddess. So that was the rich quality of energy she¡¯d seen earlier in her flame. The flame and power of a Goddess, it wasn¡¯t something she could measure up to¡­.at all.

    The girl nodded. She already knew she had more power than others, so it might as well be recorded. She didn¡¯t intend to keep it secret.

    ¡°I am a Lesser Goddess of Rivers and Hidden Truths and becoming a Goddess, I¡¯ve acquired the ability to see into people¡¯s souls with a touch. It¡¯s not as accurate as the ability of you Firakha, the children of the stars are considered onethe most powerful Chaos-forged for a reason, but I can determine your current level. You just have to stay still and let me into your heart.¡±

    ¡°Alright,¡± the girl agreed, trusting in the kindness of the Principal''s flame.

    The Principal stood up and walked around the table towards the still standing girl and slowly put four fingers on her forehead. The girl could see that she moved a part of her flame into her fingers, the steady water streaming from her soul to her body, just like her own flame did when she communicated or ignited fire.

    She kept still as the Principal¡¯s cold water flowed from those fingers into her own body, swiftly making its way to her flame. Her instincts told her to burn the foreign power invading her but she didn¡¯t move, only observed as the water swirled around her flame.

    The Principal could¡¯ve tried to harm her at this point but she didn¡¯t. That part of her soul only watched and, after a while, retreated back into the fingers on her forehead, flowing back to the flame it originally came from.

    The woman¡¯s fingers fell down as she opened her eyes and stared at the girl, her expression shocked.

    ¡°What is it? Is there something wrong with me?¡± The girl questioned. a little anxious.

    The principal shook her head absently as if to clear her thoughts.

    ¡°No...well, not really, but¡­¡±

    Her eyes were still filled with astonishment and a vague hint of...fear? Respect?

    ¡°You¡¯re not a Saint,¡± she said with a breathless laugh.

    Well, I knew that already. But judging by Leesha¡¯s expression, it was something more than that.

    ¡°I thought you weren¡¯t a Saint either?¡± She questioned, a little confused as to what was so shocking.

    The Principal shook her head again and pushed her fingers against her temples.

    ¡°You probably don¡¯t know about this, but usually, Immortals rise to higher stages through two things: absorption of Chaos energy and an understanding of the fundamentals of the universe, or parts of it. In some rare cases, Immortals with naturally large amounts of Chaos energy are born but they¡¯re still Saints, because they lack true understanding. Now, Chaos-forged like us usually have an innate understanding, because we literally are part of the universe, by first degree. That¡¯s why I was born an Empress of Rivers. But even for us, being at a higher stage than Emperor at birth? Nearly impossible.¡±

    She sighed again.

    The girl vaguely understood the concept but she still didn¡¯t understand the problem.

    ¡°So, I¡¯m an Empress, then?¡± She asked, even though something told her that wasn¡¯t the case.

    ¡°No, you¡¯re not an Empress. You¡¯re an Ascendant. A powerful one at that, you lack only little Chaos energy and mortal faith to become a Lesser Goddess.¡±

    There was silence after that and the grave look on the principal¡¯s face didn¡¯t make it any less heavy.

    Ascendant? Isn¡¯t that...one of the highest levels there are?

    The girl blinked, quite bewildered.

    ¡°That¡¯s...something big isn¡¯t it?¡± She asked, even though she already knew. If even the principal had thought it impossible before¡­

    Ah, I¡¯m really not normal, aren¡¯t I? She sighed a little in her heart.

    ¡°Yes, yes it is. But then again, it might be ordinary for Firakha. There hasn¡¯t been a new child of the stars for a long time, so I wouldn¡¯t know,¡± the principal shrugged, and then flashed her a smile, ¡°Well, this is something good though. In this world, the stronger you are the better. And the stronger my students, the better it is for me.¡±

    Her grin was cheeky and once again made her heaps younger. The girl smiled back, still a little gobsmacked.

    ¡°For now, just go to class. Everything will happen as it should,¡± Leesha chuckled, ¡°And if there¡¯s anything you want to talk about, just come to me.¡±

    ¡°I will,¡± the girl grinned and then excused herself, walking out of the room with her back straight and her head held high.

 Chapter Ten - Two Without A Name

    Chapter Ten -Two without a name

    In the last row of a classroom at Redhall, a young woman without a name was staring out of the window.

    The pen in her hand twirled around her fingers, once, twice before falling down on the desk with an audible thud. The heads of a few others around her whipped over to her, sending mocking glances before turning back to the Immortal that was lecturing in front of the class.

    The young womanwithout a name sighed, her gaze wandering back to the window.

    She had been here for a long time, long enough to find boredom in the always repeating topics of each lecture, but not long enough to graduate since she¡¯d nevermanaged to meet thenecessary requirements to advance or had ever been offered a position outside of Redhall.

    The teachers already gave her pitying glances, saying she had ¡®bad luck¡¯ to not be chosen by any clan recruiters that came to Redhall once in a while.

    Bad luck. These words followed her, had followed her from her past life to the Plane of Gods, as if unwilling to let her be free.

    It had been a little over three years since she¡¯d woken up in a small town in the Plane of Gods, finding out that even after she ended her life, she wasn¡¯t done with living. At first, she was happy.

    Her past life hadn¡¯t been a joyful one, from losing her parents over losing her tribe to losing her name, everything that had forced her to end her existence as a mortal, but she figured, as an Immortal she might have a shot at a better life.

    As it turned out, that too, was a fluke.

    After being scammed and then robbed and finally crawling her way to Fall¡¯s End, before she knew it, her misfortune had become official: within three months, she had ascended from being a Saint to being an Empress of Misfortune, now not only unlucky herself, but also bringing misfortune for others around her.

    She sighed as she thought of her desolate history, feeling trapped in a classroom filled with newborn Saints who had quickly caught onto her little problem and took to either avoiding her or mocking her.

    For a second, she imagined standing up and leaving.

    She¡¯d just march out of the door and not look back, finally free.

    But where would she go?

    What could she do?

    Even though she needed to eat less than a mortal, she still needed food.

    And with her bad luck following her like overhanging clouds, she doubted she¡¯d get that.

    I¡¯d never make it far anyways, she resigned with a sigh.

    In the end, she didn¡¯t have the guts to run away, or maybe she was too smart to be impulsive like that. Instead, she pinched her cheeks and pushed her self-pity into a dark corner of her mind.

    In that moment, the doors of the classroom opened.

    In came a middle-aged man the young woman recognized as the teacher of the advanced class - a class she¡¯d never been able to get into because of her bad luck every time she tried to take the test to be promoted.

    Behind him was a girl, looking around nineteen or twenty years old in mortal years, and the moment she enters the room, every hushed whisper died.

    The young woman also looked up, gave the newcomer a once-over and found her gaze lingering with a bitter taste in her mouth.

    The girl had an exotic look, long red hair, a pair of horns, a sword strapped to her belt and the golden eyes every Immortal had, roaming curiously over the class.

    All in all, she looked quite tribal, her hair frizzy and unkempt, her eyes wild and that was what made the woman¡¯s heart sink for a moment. The entire get-up, from the wildness of her look to the unrestraint freedom in her eyes, it reminded her so much of her past life and of every single thing that she lost back then.

    Arette...the name came to her in a flurry of emotions, a stab to the heart. But she couldn¡¯t help it, the girl in front of the class and the girl she called her sister in her past life looked just too similar.

    Then, the advanced class teacher got up and left and their lecturer spoke up.

    ¡°So we¡¯re going to have a new student, everyone!¡± She smiled at the class and motioned the new girl to step up, ¡°She is a chaos-forged Immortal and she¡¯ll be joining you for your lectures,¡± she turned to the girl, ¡°Could you introduce yourself?¡±

    ¡°Uh, okay,¡± the girl said hesitantly and then grinned, ¡°Uhm, hello.¡± She gave an awkward nod to the class that earned her a chuckles but instead of discouraging her, they only made her grin brighter.

    ¡°So, I¡¯ve never introduced myself before, but here I am. I...guess I¡¯m around one year old, I don¡¯t have a name and I¡¯m glad to be here,¡± she nodded again, the excited smile still on her face, and turned to the lecturer, who gave her a funny look.

    ¡°I guess that also works. You can sit down in the back,¡± she said.

    The girl strode towards an empty seat in the far end of the class, stood in front of the chair with a puzzled look in her eyes and then sat down with stiff and slow movements as if she¡¯d never sat on a chair before. Some Immortals in the class stared after her with smiles on their faces but within a few minutes everyone¡¯s gazes had returned to the front.

    Except for the young woman¡¯s. She couldn¡¯t help it, staring at her. She just looked so much like the person she¡¯d once valued the most, it was almost as if she were back here.

    After a while, the new girl¡¯s gaze snapped to her, as if she¡¯d noticed the way she¡¯d been stared at the entire time. Flustered, the young woman meant to turn her head away, but once their eyes met, the world froze up for a second.

    The girl gave her a curious, but open look and after a moment, her eyes softened and she smiled at her. The young woman hesitated, and then showed a small smile in return.

    She wasn¡¯t used to being given attention like this, usually, people tended to stay away on their own.

    Then, she remembered something the girl had just said. This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

    ¡®I don¡¯t have a name¡­¡¯

    ...no name? She¡¯s...like me?

    The thought made hope blossom in her, sweet and forbidden and with the force of an avalanche.

    A name. Oh how long had she longed for one.

    The one her parents gave her had been taken from her in her last life, the last push that sent her over the edge, and ever since she¡¯d felt so aimless, like she was truly no one.

    But this girl, the girl that looked so much like her former sister, she also didn¡¯t have a name.

    Could she¡­? Could...I?

    Thoughts rushed through her but with them came a wave of resignation.

    As if. She¡¯ll probably turn the other direction when everyone else tells her about me.

    And that would happen. It tended to happen, every time she had the hope of making friends with someone new, they stayed away from her, avoiding her as if she were contagious. Maybe she was, in a sense.

    With those thoughts, she turned to the window again and sighed, dejection crawling in. She shouldn¡¯t even think of being lucky for once. It wouldn¡¯t happen anyways.

    A few hours later, all lectures for the day were done and a certain other girl without a name happily strolled through Redhall.

    She was quite happy, even if she¡¯d only been able to visit two lectures today and didn¡¯t understand most of it since she wasn¡¯t able to read the notes the teacher wrote on the square wall that was apparently called a ¡®blackboard¡¯.

    When she told the teacher that much, she said she¡¯d give an introductory lesson just to her next thing in the morning and the girl happily agreed and was quite looking forwards to tomorrow.

    The calculating middle aged man that had guided her from the Principal¡¯s office to the classroom had given her the key to a room on the top floor of Redhall that she could use until she was able to live on her own in Fall¡¯s End but after she¡¯d checked it out and noticed its ceiling wasn¡¯t made of glass and the window was quite small, she decided that she¡¯d rather stay outside for the time being.

    Now, it was nearing evening and the red light of the setting sun shone onto her face as she sat outside.

    The garden of Redhall had its own magic, one she quickly fell in love with after she strolled through it. The pink and green trees rustled softly in the wind, but other than that, the silence was thick and calming. Even though there were other students outside, standing in small groups here and there, it was as if the garden muffled the sounds to small background noises that hardly disturbed the serenity.

    For a moment, she sat in the sun and enjoyed the light on her face.

    Then, amidst impending boredom and the lack of fatigue she was used to having, she decided she might as well do something interesting.

    Like, search the other woman without a name and ask her to be her friend. And, maybe, give her a name as well, on a side note.

    She¡¯d recognized her quickly, as the young woman with long brown hair by the windows in class, since she¡¯d been on the lookout for someone without a name ever since the Principal had told her there¡¯d be someone like that here.

    She¡¯d also been quite shocked by the intensity of her flame, the rich darkness that swarmed around it like moths, filled with depression and sadness and a power as unique as she¡¯d never seen it in her short life. Seeing this, she knew that the other woman longed for a name as much as she did, if not more, but she also knew that she longed for a friend even more than that, so much that the longing itself was inscribed on her flame like a perpetual companion.

    And so, she decided searching for her might not be a bad idea.

    Before, she¡¯d already talked to some of her new classmates, and was quite happy to meet others who were young, like her, but they didn¡¯t have much time to chat with her, so she ended up being on her own again.

    While she was strolling through the gardens, though, she met someone she¡¯d rather have not met again.

    ¡°Ze- ah, no, Murron, what a surprise,¡± she said as he appeared in front of her, looking just as surprised as she was.

    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s you,¡± he mumbled and avoided her eyes, obviously still feeling uncomfortable about what happened.

    She was also still somewhat pissed at him, but the weeks that had passed since the incident had lessened her anger to mild annoyance.

    When he didn¡¯t make a move to say something to her, she figured to pass him and continue her search until she realized that meeting him here might¡¯ve been a good thing after all.

    ¡°So you¡¯re a teacher here, right?¡± she asked him, turning around.

    He raised his head in surprise and then looked at her with a frown.

    ¡°Yes?¡± He answered, but it sounded more like a question.

    Her expression cleared up, ¡°Can you help me find someone? She¡¯s someone without a name like me, a young woman with brown hair. She¡¯s in my class.¡±

    She was aware that he had no obligation to help her, but the worst he could do was reject her, and then she could still search on her own.

    His eyes opened even wider as he heard her request. Then, his eyebrows dropped into a frown.

    ¡°Oh you mean her,¡± he mumbled with his lips pressed together, ¡°You probably shouldn¡¯t associate yourself with her, she¡¯s...dangerous.¡±

    His voice wasn¡¯t loud, even more muffled by the garden¡¯s silence, but not so low that she couldn¡¯t pick it up. Her eyebrows snapped up in surprise.

    ¡°Says the guy who threatened to kill me if I didn¡¯t do what he said,¡± she snapped, now annoyance clear in her voice. She had seen the woman in question¡¯s flame, the loneliness and the sadness of being all alone and a growing hate for the world, but despite all the negativity, she hadn¡¯t seen malice.

    Zenon of all people shouldn¡¯t be one to judge so easily.

    He didn¡¯t answer, still avoiding her eyes.

    She sighed in exasperation and then decided he wasn¡¯t worth getting upset over. It was a nice day and she was actually in a mood too good to let Zenon ruin it, so she brushed past him to continue her search on her own.

    ¡°Wait.¡±

    His voice called after her and she stilled her steps. The silence weighed heavily between them, only interrupted by the occasional rustle of the trees that surrounded them on all sides.

    ¡°Look, I¡¯m sorry. I reacted impulsively back then, I shouldn¡¯t have threatened you.¡±

    The sincerity in his voice was what made her turn around, though her eyes were still sceptical.

    He looked genuinely awkward, as if he¡¯d never been in a situation like this before, where it was his turn to apologize and take blame onto himself.

    ¡°Well then, why did you?¡± she raised an eyebrow at him.

    ¡°Ah, well, that is¡­it¡¯s a sensitive issue for me.¡±

    He dodged the question, a battle evident in his gaze that finally met hers. She stared back and then all tension left her as a chuckle slipped over her lips.

    The Zenon that stood in front of her wasn¡¯t really the intimidating persona she got angry with, so the only explanations for his behavior were that he was either crazy or sincerely sorry.

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t really matter, does it? I accept your apology,¡± it was too much of a bother to stay angry when nothing had happened after all. With that, she flashed a smile at him. ¡°I don¡¯t have too much experience at being mad anyways.¡±

    He looked startled at first and then a relieved smile crossed his face.

    ¡°I would hope you don¡¯t make too much experience with that,¡± he gave back with a lot less tension in his words.

    She grinned, ¡°Well as long as you don¡¯t try to kill me again, I¡¯d say it¡¯s possible.¡±

    They smiled at each other for a moment until Zenon returned to his stoic, steady self.

    ¡°So you¡¯re looking for the nameless,¡± he stated.

    She nodded, not even trying to hide her confusion at the nickname.

    ¡°I don¡¯t really know her well, but I¡¯ve seen her in the library a couple of times. It¡¯s on the second floor, just ask someone for directions there.¡±

    ¡°Thanks!¡±

    She turned around and waved him goodbye, making her way back towards the building without many more words. She¡¯d see him plenty now that she was studying here, especially since she didn¡¯t have to be mad at him anymore. Truth to be told, being mad was kinda annoying after a while.

    Now, maybe she could try being friends with Zenon. He did seem like a nice enough guy when he wasn¡¯t trying to kill or threaten her and having friends was always a good thing in her eyes.

    That would be good, she nodded to herself.

    But for now, there was another person she wanted to make friends with and as of yet she had no idea how.

    Oh well, might as well improvise a little. It was what she''d done since she was born after all.

 Chapter Eleven - A Name And A Friend

    Chapter Eleven -A name, and a friend

    After getting lost twice and having to ask about five people where to go, she finally found the library. It spanned across half of the second floor of Redhall, so large that it was a miracle she didn¡¯t find it sooner, but it seemed her orientation was a lot better out in the woods than here in the cramped hallways of manmade structures.

    When she found it, she had to admit she liked what she saw.

    The entire western side of the floor was made ofglass, opening a wonderful view over the colorful gardens of Redhall and the city of Fall¡¯s End behind it.

    She had to stop and stare for a moment, taking in the bustling on the streets, the small dots that were people and the innumerably many houses that stretched on for quite the distance.

    Then, she turned and combed through the shelves, looking for the distinct flame she¡¯d seen before all while trying not the get distracted by the scenery around her.

    The shelves were high, spanning from the floor to the ceiling that was at least twice her height, if not more, and they were stacked with books, so many it would take years to count them.

    Silently, she was in awe of the people who sat down to read, flipping through the pages in silence, mostly because she couldn¡¯t really understand the serene look on their faces.

    If someone told her to sit silently at a desk, staring at pages and words, when in reality she could be outside, the sun on her face, the world beneath her feet, she wouldn¡¯t last long.

    After all, even though she¡¯d only been here for a few minutes, she already longed for the sky.

    That was also why she was kinda happy when she found the other woman behind the next shelf she checked.

    ¡°Ah, hi there!¡± she grinned when she saw her, huddled in a corner with a book on her lap.

    Her brown hair was messy and her eyes slightly red and the dim glow of her flame spoke of the cloud of sadness that hung over her.

    Not thinking much about it, the girl edged closer to her.

    ¡°Eh? Ah, uh¡­.hello,¡± the young woman gave back, clearly started by her arrival.

    ¡°I wanted to talk to you,¡± she told her straight out. Seeing her again, the girl¡¯s desire to be her friend grew. She didn¡¯t really know why, but the young woman reminded her of her companions more than any other Immortal did - the silent steadiness, the sadness, the cry for help, it reminded her of the dozens of times she found an injured beast in the woods and couldn¡¯t help but take themin.

    ¡°You?¡± the young woman was even more surprised, then slowly stood up and put the book in her hands back into the shelf. For a second, a gleam fluttered across her face, but it was soon replaced by bitterness, ¡°That¡¯s probably not a good idea.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡± the girl cocked her head, a frown on her lips.

    ¡°Haven¡¯t you heard? I¡¯m an Empress of Misfortune. I...bring ill luck to everyone around me. You should stay away.¡± her voice was cold, almost a whisper but the scream behind it echoed.

    The frown on the girl¡¯s lips grew tighter.

    She did see it, the glum, the negativity that wound itself around the woman¡¯s flame, reaching out with tendrils to touch everyone around her.

    But it wasn¡¯t as if it was volatile or hideous. It was a longing kind of darkness, one that tried to reach out to everyone around it - it was just unaware of the fact that that touch caused more harm than help.

    The girl didn¡¯t really mind it. The misfortune it brought was burned by her flames the moment it aimed to affix itself to her and what remained was nothing more than the touch of someone¡¯s soul. It was a gentle touch.

    ¡°Your power is very gentle,¡± she told her with a smile, ¡°I won¡¯t stay away because of it.¡±

    Now, disbelief seeped into the young woman¡¯s expression.

    ¡°Gentle? There¡¯s nothing gentle about it,¡± she scoffed, the hesitation on her face completely morphed into bitterness, ¡°Don¡¯t you get it? You¡¯ll get hurt if you stay near me and before you blame me for it, get out of my way.¡±

    Her words were venomous and the girl¡¯s first instinct was to lash back, or maybe to leave her be if she wanted to be alone so much, but this time, it was her who hesitated.

    Along with the woman¡¯s lashing words, her flame seemed to sink into itself, forming an armour around her, but at the same time, those tendrils of her power still wouldn¡¯t withdraw.

    They still stretched out, wanting to touch, to reach someone with so much tenderness, the girl couldn¡¯t help but be moved. Against someone who didn¡¯t carry a shred of malice in her heart, she couldn¡¯t respond with harshness.

    ¡°You don¡¯t understand,¡± the girl softly shook her head, then she walked the few steps of distance between them to grab the woman¡¯s hands, ¡°Your powers can¡¯t affect me. For one, I¡¯m a lot stronger than you, so you couldn¡¯t hurt me if you tried, but even if I weren¡¯t, you don¡¯t really want to cause someone misfortune, do you?¡±

    The woman¡¯s eyes grew wide as she spoke and the girl¡¯s smile intensified.

    ¡°I can see it, you know? You¡¯re lonely and you want to have friends more than anyone else, I can feel you reaching out. But if you want to, you don¡¯t have to be lonely anymore. I¡¯d like to be your friend.¡±

    The young woman couldn¡¯t help but be shocked.

    It was a deep, sinking kind of shock, one that ate through her heart down to her bones, like an earthquake.

    Gentle.

    No one had ever used such words to describe her, not even speaking of her powers. No one had ever talked to her like this, with a kind smile on her lips and no ulterior motives of pushing her down or taking advantage of her.

    No one, but this girl.

    This girl who was so, so much like the sister she¡¯d lost.

    She¡¯d only seen her once before, dismissed any possibility of being friends with her so thoroughly that it never came to her she might be sought out. And now just that girl stood in front of her, looking at her with eyes that were like molten pools of amber, speaking only truth. It scared her so much that she¡¯d tried to push her away, but now that she wasn¡¯t gone...

    She¡¯d been seen through.

    All the loneliness, the pain, the despair, in this girl¡¯s eyes they seemed to be reflected. The young woman felt bare.

    But she also felt like this might be the only chance at acceptance she could get.

    So she repeated, stupidly, foolishly. Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

    ¡°You...you won¡¯t be hurt if you stay near me?¡± her voice wavered and the hope she¡¯d forbidden herself to have came back with the force of a landslide.

    ¡°Yup,¡± the girl across her nodded cheerfully.

    She won¡¯t be hurt. I won¡¯t...hurt her.

    She could be around someone. Someone wanted to be around her.

    The thoughts brought tears to her eyes, especially when she looked down to her hands that were still held by the girl. Someone would dare to touch her, wouldn¡¯t shy away from her like she was a monster.

    ¡°You...want to be my friend?¡± the words were more of a whisper, but with so much longing that she didn¡¯t dare look up.

    ¡°I do,¡± the girl said, still smiling so bright, ¡°I don¡¯t really have many friends and I have honestly no idea how to make them, but I¡¯d like to be yours.¡±

    She said it so easily, as if it wasn¡¯t a big thing, but to the young woman, it was. It seemed almost too good to be true.

    It meant that someone would be around her. She wouldn¡¯t have to spend her days alone anymore, at least not all of them. She would be able to talk to someone, maybe even laugh.

    ¡°I¡¯d also like to be your friend,¡± she said with as much courage as she could muster and then she suddenly felt a lot lighter. As if she¡¯d lost some weight, she felt relieved, and, maybe just a little bit, happy.

    ¡°Oh I¡¯m glad,¡± the girl grinned from ear to ear now, ¡°Ever since I saw you in class today, I kinda wanted to talk to you. Your power is so different from everyone else¡¯s after all.¡±

    ¡°My...power?¡± only now did she notice how bizarre everything was. How could this girl, who was, by her own words, only one year old know anything about her powers?

    But the girl nodded again.

    ¡°I can see it, your flame. Everyone¡¯s actually. It¡¯s because I was born from a star, or at least, my soul was. Apparently all people like me can see them.¡±

    She said it matter of factly, as if there wasn¡¯t something big hidden inside her words. But the young woman, who had dedicated herself to reading about this world for three years, gaped involuntarily.

    ¡°Firakha? You¡¯re Firakha?¡±

    Her voice must¡¯ve shown her awe, because a frown slipped on the girl¡¯s face as she nodded. But this was...shocking, somewhat.

    Firakha were a legend, even amongst chaos-forged Immortals. If those were considered rare, then the children of the stars were nearly non-existent. One was born roughly one in a million years and each of them that didn¡¯t die prematurely grew to be a major figure in the Plane of Gods, some still were. If one believed the stories, even one of the High Gods was a born Firakha.

    To meet one here, in a rather unremarkable city, just like that, was far against all odds.

    Even more so considering that one wanted to be her friend - or rather, already was.

    ¡°Is it that of a big thing?¡± the girl asked when she still hadn¡¯t closed her mouth after a while.

    The young woman only nodded.

    Something bitter flashed across the girl¡¯s face.

    ¡°So I¡¯m never going to be like you all, will I?¡± she muttered, more to herself than to her opposite.

    ¡°Ah, but it¡¯s not a bad thing! If anything, it¡¯s really amazing! I never thought I¡¯d be able to meet a child of the stars, but they are all really amazing!¡±

    She spoke quickly, more excited than she¡¯d been for a long, long time, but she really didn¡¯t want to cause a friction between them just because of her awe for a living legend.

    Seeing her frantic attempts to make it good, the frown melted away form the girl¡¯s face.

    ¡°I get it,¡± she chuckled, ¡°I¡¯ll strive not to disappoint you!¡±

    Her uptight act forced a laugh out of the young woman too and the girl finally released her hands.

    ¡°So,¡± the girl began, fidgeting a little, ¡°I want to ask you something.¡±

    ¡°What is it?¡± she replied immediately, ready to accept anything.

    ¡°Er, well, I heard -saw - that you don¡¯t have a name. And I don¡¯t have one either. So I thought - hoped - maybe we could...give each other names...?¡± She sounded really nervous as she spoke, clearly it was important to her.

    The woman¡¯s heart sank into her guts, then gained wings and fluttered into the skies.

    This was her dream.

    A name. I can really have one again? I?

    Hope, happiness, spread through her, burst into fireworks. Ever since she lost her last one, she¡¯d mourned for it, every single day. But she had never been able to sell herself for one, refusing to give away that last shred of dignity.

    But this wasn¡¯t an offer for slavery. This was an offer for friendship. For a bond. From a girl who seemed to genuinely want to be her friend, to be bound to her.

    ¡°Are you sure you want to?¡± With me? She couldn¡¯t help but ask.

    ¡°Yes! I meant it when I said I want to be your friend. I also don¡¯t want to be friends just to have a name. I just thought, if you want one as much as I do¡­¡±

    She believed her. Maybe it was foolish of her to trust a stranger. But this was a crossroads for her.

    She could say no and continue to spend her days in gloom and darkness.

    But frankly, she found no reasons to do that.

    There were risks, but not many. She could be betrayed, but she also could find a friend.

    And isn¡¯t that what I always wanted? No, I can¡¯t be that stupid.

    I won¡¯t say no this time.

    ¡°I want to! I want to exchange names,¡± she said before she could back out.

    ¡°You can''t believe how much I hoped you would say that,¡± the girl grinned, her face glowing, ¡°So, how do we do it? I have no idea how it works.¡±

    She laugheddespite her ignorance and the young woman was once again immensely glad she¡¯d been so fixated about reading all this time.

    ¡°I know it, I¡¯ve read about it once. In a mutual name-giving, both participants draw a circle with their own blood on the other¡¯s forehead and gives them a name. It didn¡¯t say anything else about it, actually.¡±

    ¡°That sounds simple,¡± the girl nodded, ¡°Come on, let¡¯s go outside.¡±

    She grabbed her hands again and dragged her out of the library. The young woman didn¡¯t struggle against her hold, only followed her even though she had no idea why they should go out instead of just staying in the library.

    A few minutes and only one wrong turn later, they stood in the gardens, surrounded by silence and colourful leaves.

    ¡°Sorry, I don¡¯t like to be inside for too long. It¡¯s so stuffy,¡± the girl admitted and even though the young woman didn¡¯t really understand it, she didn''t say anything, fearful of jeopardizing her newfound friendship.Instead, she tried to snuff the nervous mumble in her stomach.

    This was what she¡¯d longed for for a long time. Finally.

    Finally she could regain a little of what she¡¯d lost before.

    A friend, a name.

    It was a beginning and so much more she¡¯d dared to dream of.

    Without much ado, the girl pulled a sword from a sheath she¡¯d attached to her belt and held out to her.

    ¡°Let¡¯s do this?¡± she asked once more, anticipation in her voice.

    ¡°Y-yeah.¡±

    The young woman took the sword and drew it across her finger, knowing the wound would close within a few minutes anyways.

    She took a deep breath and looked at the girl once more.

    In that moment, she knew the name she¡¯d give her. There was never another possibility. It might come to haunt her later that she used this opportunity to stuff one of her old wounds, but she couldn¡¯t find any better choice.

    So she drew a circle across the girl¡¯s forehead, the red of her blood glowing against the red strands of hair that fluttered around it.

    ¡°With this token of my blood, I give you the name Arette.¡±

    She said it in one breath, unable to add anything. She felt a little guilty for using her sister¡¯s name like this, but it seemed so appropriate. She was also sure her sister would¡¯ve appreciated her attempt to keep at least a small part of her with her.

    It was selfish.

    Nonetheless, the girl¡¯s, no, Arette¡¯s eyes lit up brightly.

    ¡°Thank you. This means a lot to me,¡± she said sincerely. Then, without further ado, she took the sword from her and drew the blade across her own finger.

    The smile stayed on her face as she drew the blood over her forehead.

    The young woman swallowed nervously as the warm finger touched her skin.

    ¡°I¡¯m not good at finding names, but I think this one fits you. So with this blood, I name you Liz. I hope we¡¯ll stay friends.¡±

    The blood seeped into her skin, leaving a faint tingling.

    Liz.

    It wasn¡¯t the name of her past life, nor was it one she¡¯d have given herself, but she didn¡¯t dislike it.

    It didn¡¯t feel wrong.

    Liz.

    She had a name now.

    She could feel the connection between her and the girl, a faint pull that wasn¡¯t much more than awareness. It wasn¡¯t much at all, but it was enough to make her heart feel giddy. It was a bit like she¡¯d regained some of the family she¡¯d lost.

    It was a bit like feeling at home.

    ¡°Thank you so much,¡± she whispered, tears swimming in her eyes.

    Arette turned to her and the glow in her eyes could¡¯ve made the sun look bland.

    In that moment, Liz thought she wouldn¡¯t mind to much to look at that glow for the rest of her life.

    END OF PART ONE - THE GIRL THAT WAS BORN FROM A DYING STAR

 Chapter Twelve - Affinity

    PART TWO - STARLIGHT NIGHTS AND RISING STARS

    Chapter Twelve -Affinity

    ¡°Arette.¡±

    The name was whispered into the night, almost reverently, said so softly as if she feared the word would break on her tongue and disperse into fragments.

    Shestill couldn¡¯t really believe it.

    She wasn¡¯t some nameless girl anymore, she was...someone. A person. Arette.

    I am Arette.

    The thought fluttered through her mind in wonder, even now that a few hours had passed ever since she and Liz gave each other names. It had been magical.

    To feel a power so old and ancient that she was sure it came from Chaos itself seep into her through the blood circle Liz had drawn on her forehead, to feel it run through her veins to finally settle inside her flame, where it drew letters that were not letters and branded a name on her.

    Arette.

    It was written inside of her so clearly that no one could ever doubt that she was, in fact, a genuine person. That alone made her grin like an idiot.

    On top of that, she¡¯d made a friend. A real friend, that didn¡¯t want to be around her out of necessity, but one that could stay by her side. A companion, like those she¡¯d made in the woods, just one that could speak with her and walk next to her.

    She was glad to have asked the young woman, not just for her name.

    They had talked, after the name giving, about their lives and the world. Liz had told her about her powers and her misfortune, and Arette had told her about her life in the woods and the life she¡¯d let up until now.

    It was the first time that she told someone everything, from the moment she woke up until now. It was also the first time someone had asked her to tell it.

    It connected the two of them, somehow, even if Liz¡¯s story had left both of them in tears.

    They talked for hours on end, until Liz almost fell asleep and Arette remembered that others didn¡¯t exactly share her ability to stay awake for months. Thus, Liz returned to her own room in the top floor of Redhall, leaving Arette to her own devices.

    She however hadn¡¯t felt inclined to return to a room with a ceiling and no stars, especially since the night was clear, and instead returned to the gardens.

    Climbing one of the trees to its crown, she balanced on a few thin branches and stared up at the stars, her eyes gleaming.

    A lot had happened today, but there wasn¡¯t one thing she was unhappy about.

    She¡¯d joined a school where she would learn, had made a friend and got a name.

    Looking up at the stars, she felt their light filter into her, nourishing her, filling her up until she was sated and happy.

    Then, she closed her eyes and waited for the sunrise.

    The next day, Arette returned to the classroom to meet up with the teacher who had promised to give her a special lesson, only to find Liz sitting behind her desk with no one else in sight.

    ¡°Liz?¡± Arette called her.

    Liz looked up, startled but with a hesitant smile when she saw her.

    ¡°Good morning, Arette,¡± she said brightly.

    ¡°What are you doing here? I thought I was getting a special lesson!¡±

    ¡°Oh, that,¡± Liz chuckled, ¡°Our teacher saw us talking yesterday and said since I¡¯ve been in her class for so long that I know almost as much as her and seem to get along with you, I could as well teach you the basics so that she didn¡¯t have to waste her time.¡±

    Liz¡¯s eyes glowed as she spoke and Arette noticed just how much better her complexion looked compared to the day before.

    Arette nodded and then gave a small shrug, ¡°Oh, well then I¡¯ll have to annoy you after all!¡± She grinned and hopped onto the window sill, where she could lean into the sun and let her legs dangle in the air.

    ¡°You won¡¯t annoy me,¡± Liz whispered with a coy smile.

    ¡°We¡¯ll see,¡± she snickered but didn¡¯t say much more.

    ¡°So...what do you want to know? Please, ask anything you need.¡±

    ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Arette¡¯s legs dangled forth and back and the multitude of questions that swirled in her head made it quite hard to choose which one to ask first, ¡°Right, this strength system thing. I don¡¯t really get it. I mean, I do get that you turn from a Saint into something-or-other when you get stronger, but...it¡¯s something big isn¡¯t it?

    Ever since Neiro had explained it to her, she¡¯d tried to wrap her head around it but found it difficult. After all, what was strength? How did one change from one into the other?

    She, apparently, was a freak in that department as well, so she probably should try to understand what separated her from others.

    Liz nodded and a soft glow lit up her eyes.

    ¡°It is. It¡¯s a principle of this world actually, though no one really knows why. But what you said isn¡¯t entirely correct. It¡¯s not always about strength. It¡¯s more about...affinity.¡±

    ¡°Affinity?¡± She barely had an idea what the word meant!

    Liz frowned, clearly trying hard to put her knowledge into words.

    ¡°The general belief is that while this universe was born from Chaos, it is not completely random. It follows laws and paths that remain a firm principle, even if they can sometimes be broken or bent.

    ¡°We believe there are underlying principles to everything, from the structure of a single blade of grass to the structure of life itself. And by understanding some of those principles, we increase our affinity and with increasing affinity, we begin to assert control over the principle. And with increasing control comes increasing strength and that process is what makes you change from a Saint to an Emperor and so forth. Of course, it is different when one attempts to ascend to become a Lesser God, but I¡¯m not too sure about that myself.¡±

    While she spoke, wonder sparked in Liz eyes, a happy glow that showed how much she loved talking about the things she learned by herself for these last years. Arette, however, was stumped.

    Understanding principles...structures...paths¡­

    They were abstract concepts, making things more rather than less confusing, but something about Liz¡¯s words resonated within her. A part of her felt stirred, as if somehow, she knew what her friend was talking about. As if she was already supposed to know it without being told. The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    ¡°I¡¯m not making myself clear, am I?¡± Liz sighed dejectedly but didn¡¯t give up, ¡°I¡¯ll try again. Me, for example, I¡¯m an Empress of Misfortune. I was a Saint when I was born here, and like any other Saint I did not have a determined path yet, only an affinity. Most Saints have some sort of direction when they are born, but technically, we can follow every path we like. Originally, I wanted to walk the path of wisdom, of books, and tried to amass knowledge into my brain. Only, I already had an affinity for misfortune,¡± a shadow fluttered across her eyes again and the darkness around her flame drew tight around her, still thick, though not as thick as the day before, ¡°And I just have a lot of bad luck. I trip, I fall, I make a fool out of myself, and sooner or later it became a part of me. This misfortune, as much as I hate it, grew onto me and before I knew it, I was an Empress instead of a Saint.¡±

    The bitterness swam around her again, making Arette a little angry when she saw how quickly Liz fell into her sadness again.

    ¡°That misfortune, as you call it, is it really so much of a bad thing? In your flame, it looks very tranquil and gentle, like you. Didn¡¯t you say it was possible to control it?¡± Arette said firmly, still unwilling to believe her new friend¡¯s powers were as much of a curse as she put them to be.

    Her words only made Liz sigh, though.

    ¡°Technically, I should be able to control it. But...I don¡¯t know how,¡± her words trailed off into a whisper, almost ashamed.

    ¡°So what?¡± Arette said, determined, ¡°I don¡¯t really know much about anything either. But if I can learn, so can you. We¡¯ll just have to learn it together, right?¡±

    Liz¡¯s eyes teared up a little at her words, but her mouth pulled into a smile.

    ¡°I suppose we will. I¡¯d like that,¡± she glowed again, ¡°But you should be careful about which path you choose. Once you become an Empress in one path, it¡¯s hard to start a completely new one from the beginning. I mean, it¡¯s possible to morph or merge your path, but a new one -¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not a Saint,¡± Arette cut her off, deciding to be honest. It wasn¡¯t as if it was a secret to begin with.

    ¡°...what?¡± Liz frowned at her, as if expecting a joke.

    ¡°I¡¯m not a Saint. The Principal tested me before I joined the class. Apparently, I¡¯m already an Ascendant,¡± she shrugged, trying to pass it off, but Liz froze the second the words left her mouth.

    Her friend stared at her, mouth hanging open.

    ¡°That¡¯s impossible,¡± she blurted, her expression caught between laughing and plain ridicule.

    ¡°It¡¯s not like I asked for it. I don¡¯t really get it either. I¡¯ve always been like this,¡± Arette said defensively, a spark of indignation in her heart. She knew that Liz didn¡¯t mean harm but being told that her reality was impossible stirred her fighting spirit.

    ¡°But¡­¡± Liz still didn¡¯t believe her.

    ¡°I¡¯d prove it to you, but I still have no idea what being an Ascendant means,¡± she shrugged, ¡°I know I¡¯m stronger than those around here, except for Ze- Murron. He¡¯s a bit stronger than me.¡±

    ¡°Murron?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s a teacher here. He was one of the people that found me, back in the woods. Black hair, tall, moody.¡±

    ¡°Oh him! He usually gives the advanced courses I never qualified for, but I hear he¡¯s really amazing!¡± Liz¡¯s eyes sparkled but then turned conflicted again, ¡°Look, it¡¯s not like I don¡¯t want to believe you. It¡¯s just...I¡¯ve never heard of someone being born higher than an Emperor for a really, really long time!¡±

    Her voice grew higher and higher and Arette felt only more estranged. She didn¡¯t really understand it, why they had a strength system like that and why she fell out of it. Was it because she was Firakha? Was she a freak, then?

    But Liz words held a small flicker of hope.

    ¡°A really long time? So it did happen before?¡±

    Liz looked a little torn, but nodded.

    ¡°In one scripture, it¡¯s described that long, long ago, it wasn¡¯t weird for Chaos-forged Immortals to be born stronger than a Saint. There were even some born Lesser Gods and Goddesses, and, if you believe the legends, one of the oldest High Gods was born a High God as well. That was literally billions of years ago, though and I¡¯m not sure if it¡¯s not just stories¡­¡±

    ¡°But if it was possible years ago, then it''s not too impossible for me to be an Ascendant now, right?¡± Arette said strongly, struggling to prove that her existence wasn''t as weird as it seemed.

    ¡°I suppose so¡­,¡± Liz said, but the frown didn''t slip from her face.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know if this is proof, but¡­,¡± Arette pursed her lips and then finally thought of something to do.

    She jumped from the window sill and stood in front of Liz, raising her hands.

    Then, with but a thought, she ignited the flames under her skin on her hands, watching as the air expanded and burst into flames.

    With a smile on her face, she let the flames wist around her hands and sneak up her arms, keeping them just enough above her clothes to not burn them.

    The fire danced around her like a snake, and as always, it didn¡¯t really feel like something she controlled, not like a sword in her hands. More like an extra limb, one she didn¡¯t have to force or beckon, one she just moved.

    Surrounded by fire, she understood a little of what Liz had tried to tell her before.

    Affinity. Understanding the path.

    She had never really thought about it, but she did understand fire, on a most instinctuallevel. She was a part of it, in some way and it didn¡¯t take more than a wish from her to let thousands of smaller flames ignite all through the classroom.

    The smaller flame wisps danced and cast myriads of shadows around the room, their flickering casting a pattern of light and dark across Liz¡¯s skin.

    Liz just stood there with her mouth hanging open.

    Arette shot her a grin and then softly blew out the flames on her hand. With it, she extinguished all others throughout the room and it return to its half-lit state.

    ¡°Shortly after I woke up - well after I was born, I actually had to put effort into learning how to walk, or speak. Just this, calling fire, was always natural. Like breathing. I never even thought about not doing it. From what the Principal told me, I guess that¡¯s not something any Saint can do¡­¡±

    She tried to explain, but it was hard to find words for the deep connection she felt to the dancing flames inside of her.

    After a while, Liz finally closed her mouth again.

    ¡°I believe you. Of course I do,¡± she whispered, her voice hushed, then suddenly louder, ¡°That, that was amazing! I¡¯ve been in the element control class for years, but I¡¯ve never managed much more than a spark...such fine control, it¡¯s indeed something no ordinary Sovereign even could do¡­¡±

    She lowered her head then, ¡°I¡¯m sorry for doubting you.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t sweat it,¡± Arette said lightly, not really angry, ¡°I kinda understand. I never really understood why I¡¯m the way I am, either.¡±

    ¡°Maybe we¡¯ll find out one day.¡±

    ¡°Yeah...I¡¯d like that.¡±

    They were silent for a while, then, but the silence didn¡¯t seem heavy.

    ¡°Oh, right!¡± Liz suddenly said and flicked her forehead, ¡°I totally forgot. You need to choose your classes. We all have to join at least two extra classes, depending on what direction we want to pursue. You¡¯ll need to pick, but you can also do more than two.¡±

    ¡°Oh?¡± Arette raised an eyebrow, interested, ¡°What classes are there?¡± She did come here to learn, after all.

    ¡°Well, there are quite a few. There¡¯s Martial and Weapon Arts, then History of the Plane of Gods, Element Control, Music and Dancing, Beast Taming, Medicine and Healing, Crafting and Agriculture, Transfiguration, Literature and Culture and...that¡¯s about it, I guess? I think there¡¯s special classes for higher grades than ours, but I don¡¯t know about these.¡±

    ¡°Wow,¡± Arette whistled, ¡°That¡¯s a lot.¡±

    ¡°I know, right?¡± Liz sighed, but with a smile in her eyes, ¡°I chose three, Element Control, History and Literature and Culture. They¡¯re all pretty fun, mostly...well Element Control is a little hard since I don¡¯t have much talent and no one likes to hang out with me.¡± She tried to shrug casually but failed.

    ¡°Well, that¡¯s going to change now,¡± Arette smiled and patted her on the shoulder, ¡°I think Element Control sounds fine for me? No one can say I¡¯m not good at fire, at least. As for the others...I don¡¯t think I can join you there, sorry.¡±

    Her face drew into a frown as soon as she even thought about sitting down and learning about literature for hours.

    ¡°Oh? Why?¡± Liz schooled herself into a neutral expression, but there was a little sadness in her words.

    Arette grimaced.

    ¡°Well, there is the tiny, little matter than I can¡¯t read¡­¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Liz laughed, but soon froze when she realized that she¡¯d been serious, ¡°At all?¡±

    ¡°Err, no,¡± Arette rubbed her neck awkwardly, but refused to feel bad for something she¡¯d never been able to influence.

    ¡°Oh, well, that¡¯s a problem. But it¡¯s gonna be fine. I can teach you, if you want to.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡± Arette¡¯s eyes lit up, even if she disliked the thought of having to learn something so tedious.

    ¡°Sure. But still, I don¡¯t think you¡¯d like History or Literature all that much,¡± Liz chuckled.

    ¡°Ehh, that could be true.¡±

    ¡°So, Element Control. And since you carry a sword, maybe Martial and Weapon Arts?¡±

    Arette nodded at that, ¡°Sounds good. I do like swords,¡± she grinned, thinking of the way Neiro¡¯s weapon had felt into her hand, humming.

    If she could learn how to make it dance, she could only imagine it¡¯d be fun.

    ¡°Okay,¡± Liz shrugged and then smiled, ¡°That should be fine, then.¡±

    ¡°Great!¡±

    With that, they steered towards other topics. Arette was actually quite looking forwards to her classes - even though it dawned on her that learning might not be all that pleasant as she imagined it when she was still living in the woods...

 Chapter Thirteen - An Unexpected Outcome

    Chapter Thirteen -An unexpected outcome

    A week later, Arette felt like she was slowly getting used to living at Redhall.

    For the first time in a while, she found that she was creating a routine for herself and for now, it was more comforting than it was boring.

    She started going to the extra classes, quite excited to actually do something, only to receive notice from two of the three instructors that it was custom for a new student to just sit by and observe the others for a week or two, to get a hang of the class itself before joining in.

    Needless to say, she absolutely detested it.

    Sitting around and waiting was not one of her fortes, to say the least, it made her painfully restless.

    It was like a buzzing inside of her, pushing her to move, to run, to fight, anything but sit around and do nothing.

    The reading lessons with Liz were the worst.

    While she really liked her new friend, she could say safely that she absolutely detested reading. Honestly, who even needed that?

    It was tedious and boring and not just once had she snapped at her friend, even though she always made sure to apologize the next morning.

    But today, she had finally managed to persuade her Martial and Weapon Arts instructor, a Sovereign of Combat, to let her participate. Finally!

    Even if it was a hundred practice swings, she¡¯d do anything!

    Martial and Weapon Arts was no frontal class, like most others. It was taught in a small meadow in the forest around Redhall, where dozens of practice weapons, training dummies and obstacles for running were propped up.

    It seemed a little out of place in the serene pink and green forest, but Arette liked it a lot better that most other places inside the buildings.

    Today, she walked onto the clearing with a smile.

    So far, she hadn¡¯t made many friends other than Liz, but she got along well with the instructor, Nex, a girl who looked even younger than her but had a voice that easily carried across a crowded room. Well, she hoped they got along, seeing as Nex hardly spoke a word to her. Or anyone, for that matter.

    Nex was already there when she arrived, as always ignoring her even when she sat down right next to her.

    ¡°Thanks for agreeing to let me participate today,¡± Arette said with a gleam in her eyes.

    Nex gave a detached ¡®hmph¡¯ and concentrated herself fully on sharpening her sword.

    ¡°Can you teach me what you did last time?¡± she asked, unperturbed, ¡°Those steps, they looked like you were dancing.¡±

    The picture of Nex demonstrating a movement art was still burned behind her lips. She looked so light, as if her feet didn''t touch the ground and Arette could only imagine how it would feel to be able to fight like that.

    ¡°No,¡± Nex said coldly and finally looked at her, ¡°That¡¯s not something a rookie could learn.¡±

    Arette frowned at her, but could hardly refute her words. Nex sighed once she saw her disgruntled look.

    ¡°Fine. Stand up and show me what you can do. If you¡¯re good enough, I¡¯ll teach you.¡±

    The instructor stood up and Arette jumped, fire licking in her veins at the thought of going all out.

    ¡°Swords or fists?¡± Nex asked dispassionately, as if none if it concerned her.

    Arette didn¡¯t mind and beamed at her, not hesitating for even a second.

    ¡°Swords,¡± she said resolutely, remembering the light and welcome feeling of Neiro¡¯s weapon in her hands.

    Nex only nodded and grabbed a small blade for herself while Arette drew her own.

    ¡°If you can land three blows on me, you win,¡± her instructor stated, looking strangely relaxed. Arette gaped.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    Three blows? Surely, she could do that at least.

    She frowned, thinking it a bit too easy, but Nex¡¯ smirk discouraged her from arguing.

    Nex¡¯ flame was a curious thing, it was filled to the brim with greyish darkness, not unlike Liz¡¯. But hers didn¡¯t feel like a swirling, dancing kind of darkness, it was...deep. Unfathomably so.

    It was the darkness that would hide monsters and swallow innocents and it wasn¡¯t a gentle one but one with fangs and claws, ready to rip its enemies to shreds.

    Nonetheless, it wasn¡¯t a savage flame. It wasn¡¯t as if she disliked Nex, either, more so, she respected the girl for the fighting power and internal strength she carried.

    In terms of willpower, Arette didn¡¯t think herself her equal, even if her fire filled flame was stronger than the dark one.

    They both got into position, Arette holding her sword tight, filled with the instincts she knew would guide her.

    Excitement boiled in her, urging her to take the first step.

    So she did.

    As fast as she could, she ran towards Nex, her sword raised in a chop directly towards her throat. Her eyes were focused, her steps lithe and she held nothing back, the thrill coaxing every of her reserve out.

    She sprinted, then twirled around, ready to strike -

    and next she knew, it was her body that flew threw the air, directly crashing into a tree.

    Pain exploded in her back as she smashed into the hard trunk, a tremendous shiver running through her body.

    She could only blink.

    What in all hells just happened?

    That was the only coherent thought she could make through the pain and the confusion.

    She coughed hardly, wincing at the pain in her body.

    Her eyes sought Nex, who stood just as she had before, as if she hadn¡¯t moved at all. The instructor¡¯s eyes were trained on her.

    Arette gulped.

    It wasn¡¯t as if she¡¯d expected to win against her, but this¡­it didn¡¯t even take a second.

    A shiver ran through her.

    If this hadn¡¯t been training, if Nex were an enemy....she¡¯d already be dead.

    ¡°You fight with your heart, not your head,¡± Nex suddenly said, her voice a little gentler than before, ¡°Technically, that¡¯s not a bad thing. But your heart is ignorant. You underestimate your opponent, and you overestimate yourself.¡±

    Arette looked at her with a frown.

    She didn¡¯t like to think of herself as ignorant or stupid.

    In fact, a part of her wanted to rush up and demand another bout, fighting for her pride. But her loss was not by a small margin.

    The difference between her and Nex was gigantic.

    She closed her eyes.

    No, another fight wouldn¡¯t help her. And as much as she wanted to, wallowing in shock and pity wouldn¡¯t do either.

    And so, she took a deep breath and opened her eyes again.

    ¡°Teach me,¡± she said, with far more conviction than before.

    She couldn¡¯t read Nex like she could others, the black abyss in her flame was too deep for her to understand, and under her gaze, for the first time it felt like she was the one that was being read.

    Nonetheless, she didn¡¯t turn away.

    It might be stupid to indirectly challenge a person that had just beat her into the ground, but it wasn¡¯t in her to flinch.

    Instead, she remained steady, holding against the pressure of Nex¡¯ eyes.

    Finally, her instructor nodded.

    ¡°Yes. I will teach you. But only if you can accept that it might take decades for you to reach my level, if you ever manage to do so,¡± her voice was grave and harsh and Arette stood up to mach her gaze.

    The giddiness was gone from her system, flushed out by reality and a determination that was settling in her bones.

    ¡°I do. But I will reach it,¡± her words held promise, so fierce that Nex could not dare to ridicule her, ¡°I will reach it and I will surpass you, even if it takes centuries.¡±

    In that moment, Nex felt a shiver run down her spine for the first time in centuries. Her new student had seemed like a giddy, naive girl earlier on, but now, there was no innocence around her.

    Nex didn¡¯t quite understand why one loss would cause such determination to appear in her eyes, but she did know that she couldn¡¯t afford to look down on this girl.

    After all, the pressure of the flaming aura around her bore down on her and, no matter how much she tried to use her own powers to suppress it, she found herself unable to.

    That alone could attest to the fact that the girl in front of her was no joke, even if her sword fighting ability was subpar.

    Arette, oblivious to Nex¡¯ change in attitude, trained her gaze on her a little longer, then finally looked away.

    She truly hadn¡¯t expected to lose this easily.

    In a way, today was her first loss, the first of her life, and she knew it wouldn¡¯t be the last.

    Honestly, she hated it. Hated that she was weak, so much weaker than Nex, hated knowing that killing her would¡¯ve been easy, had Nex wanted to.

    But that hatred was what gave her the feeling that she had to improve.

    She had to get stronger.

    Not just to fight like she wanted to - free and unrestrained - but also to ensure her safety. After all, she could not protect herself, or Liz, or any friend she would make, when she was weak.

    ¡°Start with running,¡± Nex ordered, disregarding the other students that watched them with curiosity, ¡°Fifty laps around the clearing, every fifth over the obstacles.¡±

    Arette gave a sharp nodand began to run, not questioning her instructor¡¯s orders.

    She knew that Nex¡¯ promise to teach her was sincere and her desire to get stronger was fiercer than her instinct to resist against such a blatant order, and she knew her pride was not worth risking a change of mind from Nex¡¯ side.

    And so she ran.

 Chapter Fourteen - A Calamity Of A Thousand Flames

    Chapter Fourteen -A calamity of thousand flames

    Five hours later - three longer than her class should¡¯ve taken - Arette felt like shit.

    She looked like shit too - Nex¡¯ training had included crawling under and climbing over various obstacles, leaving her dirty from head to toe. Not to mention the bruises she got from sparring practice, half of which constituted of letting herself get hit to gain endurance.

    Doubtlessly, these were the worst wounds she¡¯d ever received.

    Nonetheless, not a word of complaint had come over her lips.

    Even when aches and cramps made every step an ordeal, somehow, she felt better than she did in months. Not happier, not the excited state she¡¯d spent her time in when everything was new - but she felt like she had accomplished something.

    If she was sure of one thing, it was thatshe would be returning tomorrow.

    The three hour delay though made her quite late for her next elemental control class, so late that she did not dare take time for a bath.

    And so she turned up in the ruins on the further reach of Redhall for Elemental Control, looking like hell - and smelling worse, probably, considering the mix of dried sweat and mud that caked her skin and clothes.

    ¡°Arette?¡± Liz whispered as she strolled up to her, looking quite shocked, ¡°What happened to you?¡±

    Arette shot her a quick grin, trying a shrug, but failing with the sharp pain that raced through her shoulders - courtesy to running around with bricks stacked on them.

    ¡°I got special training,¡± she said lightly, both proud and a little bitter.

    ¡°This looks more like torture than special training!¡± Liz exclaimed.

    Arette laughed, through the pain in her body.

    ¡°Maybe. But it was also kinda fun,¡± she glowed and Liz shook her head in exasperation, no doubt thinking what kind of freak she was friends with. It only made Arette¡¯s grin broader.

    ¡°Well, I¡¯m glad you¡¯re here anyways,¡± Liz said quietly, a sweet smile hanging on her lips.

    ¡°Why, of course,¡± Arette chuckled, ¡°At least here I won¡¯t be defeated in five seconds.¡±

    That was kind of the reason she was looking forwards to this.

    She might have overestimated her fighting abilities, but when it came to fire, her confidence was still strong. Flames licked in her veins, burned stronger in her than in anyone else.

    Just then, a loud voice boomed over the area.

    ¡°Good day, everyone,¡± a tall man that was standing in front of the class, next to a red-skinned, small woman, addressed them, ¡°Welcome to another class of elemental control. You know the thrill, split into your groups.¡±

    A consenting murmur ran through the crowd as the students began to group together.

    ¡°Arette.¡±

    Hearing her name, Arette turned, seeing that the red-skinned woman approached her. From observing the class for quite a while, Arette knew her as the instructor for fire and earth control, Merin, while her companion - and lover - Jharek took the groups for water and wind. There were other instructors too, for the non-standard elements, but they only dropped by once a week.

    Merin was one of the fewer Immortals whose skin was neither black nor white, but instead a deep red, contrasting with her blonde hair. She was also slightly older than most people Arette knew, her body in its forties, her real age in the six hundreds.

    ¡°Yeah?¡± Arette greeted her happily, acting as if she wasn¡¯t covered in bruises and filth.

    ¡°I see you joined Nex¡¯ class today. If you feel up to it, you can participate in mine, too,¡± she said friendly, but her smile seemed strained.

    ¡°Sure I can!¡± Arette nodded, following her to the corner of the ruins where the other fire and earth orientated students were waiting. Liz followed, even though she was usually in the water group, obviously unwilling to part from her friend.

    Arette trained her eyes on Merin. The instructor was friendly enough - but Arette knew she disliked her. Not as strongly as Kassa had, but Merin was a person who was steadfast and calm - and preferred people with a similar disposition.

    All that made Arette on guard while she dealt with her, especially since Merin¡¯s strength wasn¡¯t too far from hers. She was an Ascendant of Clairvoyance, and on top of that very accomplished in fire and earth control, and was firmly in the middle of the Ascending state, while Arette only scaped on the higher levels.

    ¡°Last time, we worked on everyone finding spells to find better concentration and connection to your element. Everyone, please step forwards and show the others your spell.¡±

    A murmur went through the other Immortals as Merin spoke but soon enough a middle aged looking man stepped forwards. He closed his eyes and stretched his hands out, then began to speak.

    ¡°Oh flames, gather in my hands,¡± he said and on his words, a small fire lit up in his palms. Arette could feel the reluctance of the flames, not quite coaxed into staying, and indeed, only a second later they puffed and vanished.

    Frowning, Arette turned to Liz.

    ¡°What is he trying to do with that ridiculous speech?¡±

    As if flames would listen to you more if you commanded them stupidly like that. Moron.

    Liz looked at her with a troubled expression.

    ¡°For those of us who don¡¯t have an innate talent, spells help us concentrate. And if we concentrate better, it¡¯s easier to interact with the elements.¡±The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡°Huh.¡±

    Arette wasn¡¯t impressed. It still seemed stupid to her.

    Still, one after another stepped forwards, spoke some spell and managed to get a small flame to ignite in his hands, or move a small part of earth around his feet.

    One girl who looked no more than fifteen or sixteen years old actually managed to let plants grow all around her, turning half of the ruins into a lush garden, which impressed Merin more than anyone before.

    Soon enough, it was Liz¡¯ turn.

    Arette gave her an encouraging pat as her friend slowly crept to the front.

    Liz took a deep breath, then stretched out her hands like the others before her.

    ¡°A thousand flames, a thousand stars, oh fires, I beseech you, lend me your shine,¡± she whispered, her voice so low it was hard to hear her.

    Arette watched, feeling the desire to just ignite flames on her palms, but she knew it wouldn¡¯t mean anything if she helped Liz cheat. So instead, she observed keenly.

    But she didn¡¯t find any flames gathering around Liz. She didn¡¯t even see the slightest fire element in Liz¡¯s flame, instead, the shadows in her began to move. With her concentration, they stretched out again until they clouded the area around her.

    Arette¡¯s frown deepened. She knew Liz didn¡¯t want to harm anyone, but those shadows of hers still were misfortune and doubtlessly would cause just that, should they touch someone else.

    ¡°Liz, stop!¡± she called out, hoping to avoid the worst.

    Merin threw her an acidic gaze, but Liz¡¯ eyes shot open and soon fixed on her, then on her palm. Disappointment and hurt flickered over her face when she saw no flame condensed.

    Then, she trudged back next to Arette.

    ¡°Why did you stop me?¡± she asked bitterly, ¡°Were you too ashamed of me being a good-for-nothing that you couldn¡¯t even watch anymore?¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡± Arette turned, ¡°What are you talking about?¡±

    ¡°You stopped me because you knew I¡¯d never make it, didn¡¯t you?¡± Her voice was sour as her eyes refuses to meet Arette¡¯s.

    ¡°I stopped you because you were about to give someone quite a severe bout of misfortune and I thought you wouldn¡¯t be too happy if someone got hurt. But if you think so little of me, fine, I¡¯ll not move a finger next time,¡± Arette¡¯s words were laced with her own anger.

    The bitterness bled out of Liz in an instant and her shoulders slumped in sadness.

    ¡°Oh,¡± Liz said quietly, ¡°I- I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    Arette looked to her and then sighed.

    ¡°It¡¯ll be fine. You¡¯ll learn to control it, I¡¯m sure.¡±

    Liz didn¡¯t believe her, she could see it in her eyes, but before Arette could say more, it was her turn to step in front of the others.

    ¡°Arette, as you¡¯re new, I imagine you haven¡¯t found a suitable spell yet?¡± Merin asked her as she went forwards. Merin¡¯s eyes were scrutinizing, making Arette itchy to snap at her.

    ¡°I haven¡¯t,¡± she said coldly, her eyes challenging the instructor to fault her.

    ¡°Then, please try to imagine a spell now, and use it to control a small part of earth around you.¡±

    ¡°Earth?¡± Arette echoed, ridicule in her voice. Why in all hells should she try to control earth when all of her was fire?

    But there was a challenge in Merin¡¯s eyes.

    She should probably just say she didn¡¯t know what to do. She had no idea about earth control, after all.

    Alas, should wasn¡¯t quite her favorite word.

    ¡°Fine,¡± she said stubbornly, raising her hand with only a slight wince at the pain tearing in her shoulder.

    Then, she closed her eyes and tried to find earth around her like she did with fire.

    Concentrate, Arette, she told herself, itcan¡¯t be that hard, can it?

    Frown lines etched themselves onto her face.

    Fire. There was fire around her, in her, blazing away. Only fire, not a shred of earth - even if she could feel the soil beneath with her feet, she couldn¡¯t seem to sense it, at all.

    Oh come on! She bit her teeth together. Maybe she needed to say something ridiculous after all?

    ¡°Oh Earth,¡± she began. This was ridiculous. ¡°Move.¡±

    If she¡¯d had a connection to earth, she could¡¯ve probably heard it laugh.

    Nope, not even the slightest shred of connection. Not earth, not water, not air - in her was only fire.

    ¡°Arrgh,¡± she opened her eyes and stared frustrated at the ground.

    Then she turned to Merin, her furious eyes daring her to be smug. Luckily for her, her expression remained neutral.

    ¡°I can¡¯t do it,¡± she admitted unwillingly.

    Merin nodded, as if she¡¯d expected just that. It only made Arette angrier and even firmer in her belief that Merin knew very well that she was an Ascendant of Fire, not any other element, and humiliated her on purpose.

    ¡°Try fire, then,¡± her instructor said and it was Arette¡¯s turn to scoff.

    ¡°I don¡¯t need to try,¡± she snapped and let her hands fall.

    Much like she did for Liz a week ago, she didn¡¯t even put much effort in. With a single blink, dozens of small wisps ignited in the air around her, filling the ruins with a glowing, warm light.

    At her command, they danced around, flickering on and off, growing stronger and weaker.

    Just for the effect, she waved her hand upwards and let all the flames shoot towards the sky, where they merged into a single flame.

    Then, she flicked her fingers and the fire fell apart into a thousand tiny sparks that slowly faded to ash.

    The other Immortals in front of her stared at her with an open mouth.

    Arette couldn¡¯t prevent it, a smug smile lit up on her face.

    Quite triumphant, she turned to Merin, expecting to see at least the slightest respect for her abilities on her instructor¡¯s face.

    But respect was not what she found.

    Instead, terror was etched into her face.

    Then, a shrill scream exploded from Merin¡¯s mouth.

    ¡°Monster!¡± she yelled, her eyes hazy, almost milky, but trained directly at Arette, ¡°How can you be here? How- how -¡±

    Her voice rose, stuttered as if not quite there but every words was precise. Arette took a step back, every hair on her neck standing on end.

    ¡°Calamity, a thousand flames. Thousand flames, a world¡¯s calamity. Monster! Murderer! Calamity!¡±

    Her words made no sense but the insults she whirled at her were clear. Arette frowned. She was no murderer. In fact, she¡¯d never harmed any being that didn¡¯t harm her first.

    ¡°Calamity of a thousand flames, murderer of millions. Go away! You¡¯re not welcome here! Leave!¡±

    The last word was a scream again, making Arette retreat even further.

    Jharek, alerted by his lover¡¯s screams, came running, shooting Arette an accusing glance as he hurried towards Merin.

    Merin, however still stared at Arette, panting, as the whitish haze slowly bled from her eyes.

    Fear was what remained, a terror so deep that Merin¡¯s entire body was shaking.

    ¡°Go away,¡± she said hoarsely to Arette, ¡°I will not teach a monster. Leave and never come near me again.¡±

    This time her words were slow and conscious.

    Arette, still quite shocked by the events, didn¡¯t really know what to do.

    But then again, there was little she could do, considering she was just thrown out of the class, except leave. She couldn¡¯t summon any anger either - too deep was the confusion at being screamed at like that.

    So instead she glared at the pair of instructors and then abruptly turned around to leave.

    Everyone stared at her, then at Merin who looked after her with disgust, hate and fear marring her face.

    In the silence, every one of Arette¡¯s steps resounded like a hit.

    Once she passed Liz, her friend hurried to fall in line with her, quietly leaving the grounds together. Neither of them knew quite what to say.

    As soon as they were out of sight and earshot, they turned to each other, the same question etched into their eyes.

 Chapter Fifteen - Prophecy And Modesty

    Chapter Fifteen -Prophecy and Modesty

    ¡°What the heck just happened?¡± Arette blurted it out first.

    Liz shook her head, ¡°I don¡¯t know...I¡¯ve never seen her like that before.¡±

    ¡°Huh.¡±

    For the first time, Arette didn¡¯t know what to do. She had never been feared like that before, never been looked at with such terror and disgust - as far as she was aware she hadn¡¯t done anything to warrant it.

    It wasn¡¯t a problem that could be solved by a fight either.

    ¡°I think she had a vision,¡± Liz said in a low voice, ¡°She¡¯s an Ascendant of Clairvoyance after all. Maybe she saw something in the future that disturbed her.¡±

    Arette pressed her lips together. Not exactly the most comforting thought.

    ¡°So I¡¯m going to become a monster? A murderer like she screamed?¡± she said darkly.

    She did have a love for fighting and she sure wouldn¡¯t hesitate to hit back when struck, but she didn¡¯t want to be a monster. Or a cold blooded murderer, for that matter.

    The thought that it might happen sent a chill down her neck.

    ¡°No!¡± Liz looked at her, speaking adamantly, ¡°I don¡¯t believe you could ever become something like that! And on top of that, the future is never written in stone. If she saw something, it was only a possibility, never a certainty.¡±

    She spoke with enough conviction to make it convincing, while Arette looked at her, trying to find her reassurance.

    What if I really become a monster? A murderer?

    The thoughts were like flies, buzzing in her head.

    No.

    I¡¯m my own person.

    I decide the future.

    I decide my path.

    She gritted her teeth and pushed the negativity down. Whether she¡¯d become a murderer or a saint, that was her decision alone.

    Not Merin''s, not fate¡¯s, only hers.

    Besides, she had no real idea what Merin saw and after that display, she surely wouldn¡¯t tell her. It wouldn¡¯t do to dwell on it.

    She nodded to herself.

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. Today is today and tomorrow is my decision,¡± she said more to herself than to Liz but her friend gave a firm nod as well.

    Arette let go of the breath she¡¯d unknowingly held.

    ¡°Well,¡± she looked down at her filthy and battered self, ¡°I¡¯m going to find some lake to wash up. I must smell horrible.¡±

    She drew her nose up and Liz giggled.

    ¡°You do smell a bit...strong.¡±

    ¡°I know,¡± she groaned and then marched off into another part of the forest behind Redhall. Despite the fact that the school was in the middle of the city, the forest seemed to exist in a far bigger place than was physically possible. There were always new parts popping up and other parts disappearing.

    Sometimes, Arette walked in a straight line in the forest for hours, only to land at a place close to where she started.

    But that too was a particularity of the Plane of Gods and by now it wasn¡¯t hard to accept it anymore.

    Liz followed her and together they managed to find a small lake that Arette had used before.

    Even though most Immortals liked to bathe inside in either a tub or in something called a shower, Arette felt more comfortable under the sky. Having arrived, Arette took off her clothes without hesitation, not noticing Liz¡¯s scrunched up face.

    ¡°What are you doing?¡± Liz hissed, her eyes wide.

    ¡°Uh, I¡¯m undressing?¡± Arette said confused. What was there not to understand?

    ¡°Here?¡± Liz almost screeched, ¡°What if someone sees you?¡±

    ¡°So what?¡±

    ¡°Someone could come here and see you. Naked! Not to mention that I can see you, it¡¯s weird!¡± Liz¡¯ voice was low as if she was scared that someone could hear.

    Arette didn¡¯t get it. Yes, indeed, without clothes she would be naked. But so was everyone else?

    ¡°What¡¯s weird about that? It¡¯s not as if I¡¯ve got anything you don¡¯t?¡±

    ¡°But it¡¯s not modest!¡± Liz seemed really insistent on this. But why was this so important? She wore clothes to keep warm and if they got wet, she¡¯d be cold. So she took them off before bathing. Wasn¡¯t it obvious?

    ¡°Modest? What¡¯s that supposed to be?¡± She¡¯d heard the word before, but not in this constellation.Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s not proper to be seen naked! How can you not know that? Being naked is something reserved for...for...you know¡­¡± Liz turned beet red and mumbled the last part of the sentence to quietly that Arette couldn¡¯t hear.

    ¡°For what?¡± By now she felt kinda stupid, but she still didn¡¯t get it.

    ¡°You know, when a man and a woman...or a woman and a woman¡­.or a man and a man, I guess...well it¡¯s when they¡­¡± she blushed even harder.

    ¡°When they have sex you mean?¡± Arette blinked, trying to make sense of it. She knew the basics about that, both from observation in her life in the woods and from an instinctual knowledge, but she didn¡¯t find anything in it that would make her blush like Liz did.

    Of course, to sleep with someone required a loss of clothes but a loss of clothes didn¡¯t quite require intimacy, did it?

    ¡°Well...yes,¡± Liz still hadn¡¯t found her composure, ¡°Anyways, it¡¯s just not done.¡±

    ¡°How weird,¡± Arette remarked and then shrugged, ¡°Well I¡¯m not asking you to get naked, but I don¡¯t really have a problem with it, so I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll start wearing clothes when bathing any time soon.¡±

    With those words she jumped into the water, letting herself drift across the surface.

    Liz gave an exasperated sigh and then sat down next to the edge of the water, obviously giving up trying to change her mind.

    ¡°So you¡¯re not coming in? It¡¯s kinda nice, at least, as nice as water can be,¡± she scrunched up her face. While she wasn¡¯t scared of water, she couldn¡¯t swim well either and she just didn¡¯t feel right in an element so far removed from hers. Nonetheless, bathes were a necessity.

    ¡°No, I¡¯d rather not,¡± Liz¡¯s tone was cold and a little sulking.

    ¡°Oh come on! It¡¯s nice in here, Lizzy!¡± She drew the name out in a pleading tone.

    ¡°No, I¡¯d really rather not,¡± Liz remained stern but Arette saw the sparkle in her eyes.

    ¡°Okay then¡­¡±

    Arette grinned and with a swift move, she grabbed Liz and threw her into the water.

    ¡°Ahh!¡± Liz screamed out as she hit the surface, sinking in until all of her body was soaked.

    Arette began to laugh at her enraged, pouting face and began to splash water at her friend.

    ¡°How dare you!¡± Liz yelled back and began to throw water back to Arette and soon enough both of them here head to toe soaked and giggling like there was no tomorrow.

    Chasing each other through the water, both of them forgot Merin¡¯s ominous words.

    They should¡¯ve remembered them.

    Merin, meanwhile, was suspended into a state of shock.

    Usually, she was a steady person, always friendly, stern when needed. But the moment that girl entered her class, she had a bad feeling.

    It made her usual friendliness a hundred times harder, lying like a stone in her stomach, always present. Even Jharek found her behavior strange - he seemed to find the new girl nice enough.

    But she couldn¡¯t find her nice, no matter what she did.

    It was also with reluctance that she let her participate in class today, but with even Nex - ever stubborn and taciturn - allowing her to do her training/torture, she had little reason to deny it.

    The girl herself looked quite elated, but it only made her more irritated. When she interacted with her, it was as if she couldn¡¯t control herself anymore.

    She could clearly see the overwhelming fire aura around her, but still she made her try control earth - even though she knew that any earth element would be completely overpowered by the fire inside of her.

    She didn¡¯t even know why she was being mean. It was this immense dislike, without reason, that welled up in her as soon as she saw the fiery red hair and those piercing golden eyes.

    The reason, she finally understood when she asked Arette to control fire.

    Without a doubt, her fire control was superb. It was even better than Merin¡¯s who had trained for centuries to reach hers, but jealousy or respect were far from her in that moment.

    Instead, she felt the familiar flickering of the world she always got when she had a vision.

    As an Ascendant of Clairvoyance, an ability she carried over from her last life, she knew those flickerings and the visions that came after it, but none ever came with such dread.

    Then, flames. Screams, men, women, children, screaming as flames devoured them alive.

    Houses, woods, mountains falling, crumbling to cinders as the world went down in flames. A calamity of a thousand flames, raining down ash and brimstone, costing hundreds, thousands, no, millions of lives.

    Amidst it all, golden eyes. Lifeless and dull, they took one life after another, slaying again and again and again. Red hair, stained crimson, fluttering among the flames.

    Blood dripping from a curled pair of horns as souls were devoured by the flames.

    Monster.

    She would become a monster.

    Even when Merin woke up from her vision induced daze, she couldn¡¯t think about anything than the screams she had heard, the deaths she had seen.

    She could only scream at the monster that would kill so many, push her away. She couldn¡¯t confront her anymore, not now.

    Yet, the girl may be innocent.

    But she won¡¯t be for long.

    The next day, Leesha herself came to apologize to Arette.

    ¡°Look, I¡¯m sorry about Merin,¡± she told her after having drawn her aside in the hallway, ¡°She has these visions sometimes and she can¡¯t control herself during them¡­¡±

    Arette looked at the principal for a while and then spoke.

    ¡°I don¡¯t care about what she said. I¡¯m not going to be a monster.¡±

    Leesha stared back for a while and then gave her a nod.

    ¡°Yes, I would hope so. Merin can only see parts of the future, fragmented pieces she tries to put together. Yesterday, she interpreted that you were going to cause a huge calamity, but it might also mean that you¡¯re going to caught up in one. Or that you¡¯ll be connected to one. Or maybe that calamity is only a small one and she overimagined it. Prophecies are weird like that.¡±

    Leesha clearly tried to calm her, but Arette wasn¡¯t all that riled up to begin with.

    ¡°I get it. It¡¯s not like I can¡¯t change the future. I¡¯m not going to be able to visit elemental control anymore though?¡±

    Leesha made a face and then shook her head.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Merin insisted you stay away from her. But with your situation, I imagine you won¡¯t need a class in fire control either?¡± The principal grinned.

    Arette smiled back and shrugged sheepishly.

    ¡°No, not really.¡±

    ¡°Take your time to choose another class. We¡¯ve got a wide range of them, I imagine your new friend told you all about it already.¡±

    Arette nodded, ¡°Yes, Liz did. I¡¯m Arette now, by the way.¡± She grinned when she introduced herself for the first time.

    ¡°Arette,¡± Leesha smiled, ¡°I like it.¡±

    With that Leesha said goodbye and Arette was left to head to another bout of Nex¡¯ training from hell.

    That was one thing Merin¡¯s ominous warning certainly couldn¡¯t influence.

 Chapter Sixteen - Old Friends

    Chapter Sixteen -Old Friends

    ¡°Oh you didn¡¯t actually do that, did you?¡±

    Raw, almost throaty laughter echoed through the street, not quite melodious, but peculiar enough that a few people turned their heads to stare at its owner.

    Arette didn¡¯t notice them, though - she was too busy laughing at Lyndon, who sat across her.

    ¡°No, no, I did it! Shaved every single hair from my body just because he said I needed to do it to enter the temple. It was an important quest, so...well, the priests only laughed at me in the end though. I swear if I ever meet that brat again¡­¡±

    Lyn glowered, but the sparkle in his eyes spoke of different emotions. Arette laughed again, hard pressed to imagine Lyn¡¯s voluminous light brown hair replaced by a bald heard, yet she was sure it must have looked ridiculous.

    ¡°Did you complete the quest in the end?¡± Liz asked, sitting a little to the side, body turned to Arette, even when her eyes followed Lyn¡¯s every move. He turned to her, his happy grin not skipping a beat.

    ¡°Yeah, I did. Even though the rewards sucked bad,¡± he shrugged and Liz nodded, still a little shy around someone who was basically a stranger.

    Arette had more or less dragged her out into the city when she heard that Lyndon, Rize and Neiro were back in Fall¡¯s End and willing to meet up with her. Even though it had only been little over a week, she did miss the group that were the first real Immortals she¡¯d ever met.

    They had met up on one of the bigger streets of Fall¡¯s End, one where the stalls at the sides of the road almost all sold some kind of food. Rize turned out to be somewhat addicted to all the different flavours they offered and even Arette had to admit that some of the snacks tasted good - at least better than that abominable fruit she ate on her first day in the city.

    Rize and Lyndon had immediately run towards her and greeted her happily, obviously just as glad to meet again as she was. Neiro was a little more reserved, but his smile was steady and friendly.

    They were now talking for over three hours and as of yet, they weren¡¯t running out of things to tell.

    ¡°Ah, and there was that one time when Rize here had a crush on a guy and -¡±

    ¡°You are going to shut up right now!¡± Rize yelled through the food she stuffed into her mouth and hit Lyn over the back of his head, ¡°You¡¯ve been pestering her with all your stupid stories the entire time anyways!¡±

    Arette laughed and even Liz let out a small chuckle. Liz¡¯ darkness had been swirling tightly around her ever since they left Redhall and there had been quite a few mishaps in the time they¡¯d spent with Lyn and the rest, but by now, she relaxed enough to not cause a big danger anymore.

    ¡°Oh, I¡¯ve been meaning to ask you guys something,¡± Arette spoke up, suddenly remembering something that had always bugged her, ¡°What did you do in the woods when you picked me up? I mean, I was pretty far out there and I didn¡¯t meet anyone before you, for over a year.¡±

    ¡°Wait, we didn¡¯t tell you?¡± Rize gaped and laughed, ¡°Then again, it isn¡¯t as if it was that important. We were out on a quest.¡±

    Lyn bobbed his head, wrestling with Rize for the last piece of food they stacked on a plate in front of them. She shot him a deadly glare as she hogged it, so Lyn moved to talk to Arette instead.

    ¡°You know how Kassa can be a little...difficult at times? She used to be together with some dude, who dumped her for another girl, but she¡¯s still all over him. Can¡¯t let go or something. So when he issued a quest to get him some sort of plant, she jumped right on it. But his pay was good, so we decided to take it anyways,¡± he gave a shrug and Arette thought back to Kassa and her intense dislike for her.

    She was only too glad that the woman hadn¡¯t accompanied her teammates to the meet up today - now that Arette had been mingling with other people for a while, she wasn¡¯t sure she¡¯d be as forgiving towards someone¡¯s deadly glares and snarls all the time.

    ¡°It was a herb called Galmor Leaf. I don¡¯t really know what it¡¯s used for, but it¡¯s very rare and only grows deep in woods that aren¡¯t touched by civilisation. That¡¯s why we asked Murron to accompany us - it¡¯s dangerous deep in the woods, at least for weaker Immortals like us,¡± Rize added with a side look towards Liz, who made an astonished gasp halfway through her explanation.

    ¡°Galmor Leaf? You actually found it?¡± Liz gaped.

    ¡°What, it¡¯s something special?¡± Arette¡¯s eyes flickered confused between Liz and the others, but Rize and Lyn only gave a small shrug. Neiro¡¯s eyes were cast away from the group, more absent than actually there.

    ¡°Of course it is!¡± Liz¡¯s eyes were still wide, ¡°It¡¯s said that it only grows at one place at a time, in the entire Plane of Gods, maybe even in the entirety of all worlds. There¡¯s only ever a single one growing anywhere to replace the old one if it dies! In the entire Plane!¡±

    Her voice lost all shyness as she spoke, eyes sparkling radiantly. For the first time, Arette saw a glimpse of her new friend¡¯s passion, a passion that rivalled her own passion for fighting in kind.

    Lyn and Rize were impressed and even Neiro turned his head to look at her, who shyly edged backwards under all the attention.

    ¡°Wait, so if it¡¯s that rare, isn¡¯t it really valuable?¡± Lyn asked her, his voice loud.

    Liz shrank into herself under his intense gaze, but answered nonetheless with a tiny nod.

    ¡°Y-yes, it should be. I¡¯d be surprised if it was worth less than a few million gold coins. If you were to trade in paper money, it¡¯d be even more.¡±

    ¡°WHAAT?¡± Rize and Lyn shouted at the same time while Neiro coughed as his food got stuck in his throat.

    ¡°We had something so precious in our hands and we gave it to him for a couple of gold coins! The high gods be damned¡­¡± Lyn cursed.

    Arette pursed her lips, trying not to grin at their outburst. She found it kind of funny, how dependent all of them were on money. While she did understand the concept and its necessity, she couldn¡¯t really understand why some people were so greedy to have it - she had survived until now quite well without earning a single copper.

    ¡°This is quite troublesome. Liz, do you know the use of that leaf?¡± Neiro suddenly asked, speaking up for the first time ever since he greeted Arette when they met up.

    Liz frowned and then shook her head. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. The book I read only spoke of its rarity and the peculiarity of its growth. I¡¯m fairly sure that, on its own, it doesn¡¯t have any other effect than nourishment, but as for interactive reactions, I¡¯m really sorry.¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s fine. It¡¯s not our business anyways. We¡¯re members of a guild and we do missions for the guild - that¡¯s all it is, what happens afterwards doesn¡¯t concern us,¡± he said with a sharp look towards Lyn, who was still cursing over a missed opportunity.

    He rolled his eyes and Rize chuckled, but the depressed atmosphere quickly dispersed. There wasn¡¯t anything they could do about it anyways.

    ¡°I do think it¡¯s getting late,¡± Neiro spoke up again, ¡°It was nice meeting you again, Arette. You as well, Liz. But I think I will need to take my leave now.¡±

    He bowed before the two of them and Arette gave him a quick hug before the other Immortal left their group, hastily walking away from the still busy street.

    ¡°Oh well, I guess we¡¯re gonna go as well. We have to leave early tomorrow morning and I¡¯d like to catch some sleep,¡± Lyn stood up and stretched his arms with a yawn. Rize nodded in agreement and both Liz and Arette got up to bid them goodbye.

    ¡°Good luck on your next quest,¡± Arette said with a smile as she hugged Rize. Just like she did when she left them before entering Redhall, she felt a tinge of sadness as she bid farewell to one of the few Immortals she could consider a friend.

    ¡°I wish you the best of luck as well. I don¡¯t know how long we¡¯ll be gone this time, but I¡¯m sure we¡¯ll meet again sometime.¡±

    They smiled at each other and then Lyn tackled Arette in a bear hugt.

    ¡°I¡¯ll miss you, no name. Or rather, Arette. Did I mention your name is kind of weird?¡± Lyn laughed as he patted her back and Arette laughed out loud. This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

    ¡°No, you didn¡¯t. But you¡¯ll have to live with it, I guess,¡± she winked at him and boxed him in the shoulder playfully, a smug grin on her face as he yelled out in pain.

    ¡°You¡¯re harsh, Ari,¡± he whined, ¡°But you¡¯re still my favorite wildling.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good to know. Goodbye, Lyndon.¡± She raised her fist to bump it against his.

    And with that, they parted again, neither of them knowing just how many years it would take before they met again.

    That evening, Arette made her way back into the garden-forest of Redhall, deciding to attend the Beast Taming class as her other extra course. Since Elemental Control was out of the picture and she didn¡¯t see herself doing something like Dancing, she figured that her time in the woods had honed her enough to consider strengthening her bond with other creatures of the wild.

    The beast taming instructor was, to say the least, different from the other instructors.

    That wasn''t saying a lot, seeing as Arette only knew three of the others, but something told her that she would still think him different if she knew every other instructor in Redhall.

    Orien, as he introduced himself, was...not quite human.

    Well, technically none of them were, but most of the Immortals Arette had met had the same body stature - one Liz had described to her as ''humanoid''.

    Liz also said that is was a common thing for Immortals to be ''humanoid'' and there were only few who didn''t meet that standard. One of the few was, apparently, Orien.

    His entire body was covered in fur, brown like the trees he stood in front of and his two eyeteeth had extended to form frighteningly long canines.

    His golden eyes were closer to yellow, pupils more slits than orbs, and on the top of his head sat two big, furry ears.

    Arette was a little startled, as she was already used to humanoid Immortals, but as soon as she saw his flame, any reservation disappeared.

    His flame was probably the most gentle flame she''d ever seen.

    Steady, calm and filled with so much affection for the world, that she couldn''t help but want to be his friend. She couldn''t believe he would ever plan to hurt her - or anyone, for that matter.

    He was also quite a deal weaker than her - barely scraping on the edge of being a Sovereign, of what she couldn''t quite say. There was wilderness in his flames, the woods, the earth and the peaceful calm of a stormless night.

    "I''m sorry for my absence," he started, his voice quiet, almost too much so, he sounded as if he was lost in his own world.

    The students around remained quiet as well and Arette used that moment to steal glances at the people around her. All of them had brought a beast companion - most of them wolves, bears, or birds. One had a horse. Another had a creature Arette had never seen before - a mixture between a butterfly and a hawk that sat perched on his shoulder, watching everyone with glittering eyes.

    Arette felt a little lost without a companion at her side, somewhat wishing for Ichack¡¯s solitary presence by her side.

    "I''m sure you worked hard to gain the trust of your companion in the meantime," Orien smiled a toothy smile that would''ve been scary if he wasn''t just so...nice. "Today, let''s spend the day just deepening your bonds. Remember, your beast is not your slave nor is it your servant. You tame it, it tames you until you are on the same level. A partnership on mutual benefit, that''s what you should pursue. Anything less than that is less than either of you deserves."

    He smiled again, his eyes dreamy and his flame was filled with dreams and stars. Not the stars that burned in Arette''s at the moment, bright and overwhelming in brilliance, but the stars that are unreachably far on the night sky, inspiring countless dreams.

    Arette found his speech a little long winded, but she agreed with the sentiment. No beast should be a slave - her companions had never been anything but and she had never wished it any other way.

    After Orien spoke his few, quite vague instructions, he turned away from the students, towards a huge bear that came strolling out of the forest. It wasn''t quite as intelligent as an Immortal, but by the affection Arette saw in its flame, she knew it was Orien''s beast.

    Both of them shared a good natured, calm disposition, so Arette didn''t think long before approaching them

    "Hello," she said, smiling brightly. Orien turned around to her with a smile.

    "My name is Arette. I''m a new student. I don¡¯t have a beast companion currently, but I used to be friends with a few of them a while ago, so I decided to join your class.¡±

    "Oh, a new one? Welcome, welcome," he nodded friendly and offered her one of his paw-like hands. Arette stared at it in confusion, until she remembered how Liz told her it was a custom to shake hands when meeting. Hastily, she shook his hand with hers, trying to overplay her awkwardness at the unusual gesture.

    "Friends, you say?" he seemed pleased, "That¡¯s a good thing. Far too many misunderstand a beast bond these times.¡±

    ¡°You mean, they enslave their companions?¡± Arette asked, remembering how Neiro had assumed her to be a commander of beasts when they¡¯d first met. Orien looked at her pensively for a moment and then nodded.

    ¡°Indeed. Just look at them,¡± he pointed towards a group of students at the far end of the class, who had their beast companions on leashes next to them, ¡°I¡¯ve tried to teach them, but they won¡¯t listen. They don¡¯t understand the way it works.¡±

    Arette stared at them, finding not only a physical leash, but also one between the flames of the Immortals and their beasts. Yet, it was a one sided bond, instead of the reciprocative one she saw between Orien and his bear companion.

    Anger sparked in her chest as she stared at them and she gritted her teeth.

    ¡°Why do you allow them into your class to begin with? What they¡¯re doing, it¡¯s not right,¡± she snarled, feeling the intense desire to burn their leashes and heads off all in one go.

    ¡°Because it¡¯s not my place to tell them how to live. Their companions are not treated cruelly, merely unfairly, and as such, it¡¯s not my place to interfere. But let¡¯s not talk about it. Tell me about those friends of yours.¡±

    Arette blinked at him, trying to disperse her anger at the students back there and her teacher¡¯s indecisiveness, but the burning knot in her chest wouldn¡¯t leave. Nonetheless, she answered.

    ¡°I lived in the woods for about a year after I was born. How do you call it? Right. I was a wildling,¡± she began, the word coming over her lips with difficulty.

    Orien looked at her with a surprised smile.

    ¡°Ah, that¡¯s why you felt so familiar. There aren¡¯t many who carry the wild in their hearts like you do.¡±

    She peered into his eyes, yellow and slitted, and she couldn¡¯t read them, but the soothing calm of his flame was reassuring enough. It wanted to affect her, embrace her, as well, but the annoyance and anger was still rooted in her heart.

    In response to Orien¡¯s words, she gave a nod.

    ¡°It¡¯s different there. Easier. This place here, it¡¯s filled with so many rules, so many -¡±

    Her words were cut off when suddenly a shrill yelp reached her ears. She tensed and snapped around, finding the direction of the sound pinpointing to the group of Immortals that had pissed her off the entire time.

    One of their beasts, a small wolf like creature, not unlike a smaller version of Ichack, was lying on the floor, sent there by a kick from the person considering himself to be its ¡®tamer¡¯.

    Red tinged Arette¡¯s version as she watched it.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to interfere?¡± she asked Orien, her teeth gritted.

    Orien sighed and shook his head, ¡°Not yet.¡±

    She turned to him, furious and disbelieving. ¡°Fine. But if you won¡¯t, then I will.¡±

    She pressed her lips together and stomped over to them, where the young Immortal was about to deliver another kick to the wolf that was already on the floor.

    ¡°Dumb beast,¡± he was muttering, disdain and arrogance oozing from his small flame. It was a flame weaker than any she¡¯d ever seen - a Saint, not older than a year or two. He might be her age, but their strengths were wider apart than heaven and earth.

    And her anger was high as the clouds as well.

    ¡°What do you think you¡¯re doing?¡± she hissed, heart aching at the despair she saw in the small wolf¡¯s flame.

    The young Immortal looked up at her, first with annoyance, but then wariness, as he saw the pressure that came from her sheer quantity in power.

    ¡°I-I¡¯m taming my beast. That¡¯s what I¡¯m supposed to be doing, is it not?¡± he shot a wavering gaze from her to Orien, who was still silently observing.

    She hissed and didn¡¯t have the patience to talk to someone like him anymore. Instead, she balled her hand into a fist and delivered it straight onto his face - the crack that echoed back to her told her of a broken jaw, probably a nose as well.

    ¡°What the -¡± one of the friends standing around gasped and ordered his own beast to attack Arette in retaliation, but not even the tiger that was perched next to him would dare to attack someone far stronger than him and so refused the order with a growl.

    Arette meanwhile put her foot on the chest of the man she¡¯d just sent to the floor.

    Her bare toes touched his chest and she swiftly sent her flame into her foot, then down towards the flame of the young man. It was the same as she did when she communicated with people, only this time, it wasn¡¯t to talk.

    Instead, she swiftly sent her flames against the connection between the Immortals and the small wolf, severing their ties with a violent tug.

    ¡°I won¡¯t stand by and watch when you treat someone else with such cruelty,¡± she snarled and then took her foot off him, too repulsed to touch him any longer.

    Instead, she walked towards the small wolf and tried to strengthen him by giving him some of her life energy. It was just like when she¡¯d first met Ichack and she felt strangely connected to the creature for that fact alone.

    She missed her old friend. He¡¯d been by her side for so long and even though it had only been a few weeks since they¡¯d separated, she found herself longing for him.

    Maybe that was why she bent down and pushed her flame towards the small wolves. She pushed all of her memories of the woods into it, of her troupe and all the beings she¡¯d brought together, as well as the way it would need to travel to reach them.

    The small wolf would be safe with them - at least far safer than with the young Immortal here.

    It looked up as she gave him her strength and then slowly stood up, seemingly not injured too heavily. It blinked at her and then gave her a friendly nudge, before taking off into the woods of Redhall.

    Arette didn¡¯t know if it would follow her advice to join Ichack and the rest of her former family, but she did feel like she did something good, something right.

    And yet, Orien and most of the other Immortals in the class stared at her with conflicted looks, some of them with outright fear.

    Arette frowned and began to withdraw, not really wanting to return to Orien when the look he was giving her was one of reproval.

    In the end, she didn¡¯t go to Beast Taming class again. She wasn¡¯t entirely sure what it was she did wrong - she did save something innocent, gave it a life that was taken from it cruelly - but she still had the nagging feeling that she did something that met the other¡¯s disapproval.

    The next day, she visited History of the Plane of Gods with Liz. It was probably the most boring thing she¡¯d ever had to sit through, but still no one called her a murderer or looked at her as if she¡¯d done something horribly wrong - that would have to do, for the beginning.

 Chapter Seventeen - Trial And Error

    Chapter Seventeen -Trial and Error

    ¡°No.¡±

    The word was almost a growl.

    ¡°Oh come on, try again, it¡¯s not that hard!¡±

    ¡°No!¡±

    ¡°Just that one line, try it once again and we¡¯ll stop for today.¡±

    ¡°When I said no, I meant no, Lizzy, and you can damn well stop trying to convince me otherwise!¡± Arette stood up in rage, palms flat on the table.

    Liz stared back at her, her gaze troubled but calm, weathering the storm that raged across her. But even if it meant yelling at her best friend, Arette hardly cared about anything but the frustration inside of her.

    ¡°Who even needs this idiocy? I don¡¯t see why I should learn something as stupid as this!¡±

    ¡°Arette, you need to be able to read. It¡¯s important. Everyone can read,¡± Liz spoke to her as if she spoke to a child and it only thew oil to the fire that was Arette.

    ¡°Well I can¡¯t!¡± she threw her arms in the air, completely exasperated. She and Liz had practised this reading thing for over a month now, but she barely managed to distinguish the letters yet.

    ¡°Then sit down and let me teach you,¡± Liz said firmly. In the weeks that had passed, she¡¯d gained a lot of confidence, enough to order Arette around, much to her dismay.

    Arette gritted her teeth and sat back down again.

    ¡°Now, try this one again,¡± Liz instructed.

    Arette narrowed her eyes and stared at the characters. They looked like pictures to her, tiny, pretty pictures but they didn¡¯t make any more sense than a landscape translated to words.

    ¡°In the...darkness,¡± she began, ¡°This is darkness, right?¡± She pointed to a small character that looked like an upside down hook. Liz nodded with a bright grin.

    ¡°There is...no, am I. A being of the dark. I...now what¡¯s that supposed to be?¡± Irritated, she looked at the series of characters that left her dumbfounded. She already wanted to give up again.

    ¡°It¡¯s devour. I devour those who live in the light.¡± Liz butted in, tracing the characters with her fingers.

    ¡°Huh, that sounds stupid.¡±

    ¡°Arette¡­¡±

    ¡°Okay, okay, I¡¯ll continue. I devour those who live in the light. And yet...the light blinds I - me. The souls of the¡­..people I...devoured haunt me.¡± If she concentrated as hard as she could, the characters made a little more sense. Three circles made ¡®people¡¯, two crossed lines made ¡®I¡¯ or ¡®me¡¯. That much she understood.

    ¡°I am caught in a...a circle of regret. Please don¡¯t...no, do remember...me...I, who lives in the darkness.¡±

    At the end she let out a deep breath, a grin of triumph flashing over her face.

    ¡°You did it!¡± Liz cheered, seeming proud of the little she was able of now.

    ¡°Finally! But honestly, what¡¯s this supposed to be?¡± she gestured towards the words she had read just now. It seemed like random babble to her.

    ¡°It¡¯s a poem!¡± Liz protested, ¡°It¡¯s about regret and sadness and hope¡­¡± a blush crept on her face.

    ¡°Wait, you wrote this?¡± Arette suddenly realized, guilt welling up when Liz nodded sheepishly.

    ¡°I mean, it¡¯s very...uh, pretty,¡± she hastily added, not sure what else to say, ¡°Very...imaginative?¡±

    Liz laughed at her attempt to find suitable compliments.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine, you don¡¯t have to like it. I only scribbled it to help you learn reading.¡±

    ¡°Oh thank you,¡± she breathed a sigh of relief, ¡°I don¡¯t think I like this poetry thing.¡±

    ¡°Pff, I can see that,¡± Liz laughed and despite the fact that her own work was just pushed aside, mirth sparkled in her eyes. Arette was glad enough about that - it wasn¡¯t as if she''d wanted to offend her work.

    Everything that was written in anything but plain words could go to the blazes, if you asked her.

    ¡°Why can¡¯t you just teach me something, you know, by telling me? Why do I need to put up with this?¡±

    ¡°Um, because this is meant to teach you how to read?¡±

    ¡°Oh Lizzy,¡± Arette groaned, really unwilling to continue, ¡°Just tell me about something else, would you?¡±

    Her best friend sighed, but her eyes were narrowing into a glare.

    ¡°Arette¡­¡±

    "No, I don''t want to, Lizzy. I''m sick of this," she threw her hands in the air, about to throw a chair or two right after it. Yet, when she saw Liz'' despairing expression, she paused in her rage. Liz started one last try.

    ¡°Come on, let¡¯s try reading again. That¡¯s more important than bonds anyways. This one is easier than the ones before,¡± Liz said cautiously and put a thick bound leather book on the table.

    Arette groaned, dreading the hundreds of pages that lay in front of her.

    ¡°This is about Phara, the adventurer who later founded the Renegade Clans. She wrote down her memoirs back when she was still an Ascendant. She was - well, is - a great fighter, I imagine this will be interesting for you,¡± Liz tried really hard to appease her.

    Sadly enough, it wasn¡¯t working.

    Arette couldn¡¯t have cared less whether it was the memoirs of some warrior or the key to world domination, as long as she had to read it, it made sourness rise in her throat.

    ¡°Fine,¡± she grumbled, even though she longed to stand up and walk away. Even if she had to do Nex¡¯ training twice as hard as usual, she would¡¯ve preferred it to this. Fighting, running, pushing her body to its limits was fulfilling, fun even. It made her feel elated, even if every part of her was aching.

    But this was frustration, undiluted and harsh. She hated every second of it. If Liz hadn¡¯t grown to be such an important friend to her in the last five weeks, she probably would¡¯ve never put up with it.

    Liz grinned happily when she heard her consent and opened up the book.

    ¡°I¡¯ll help with anything you don¡¯t know, so just try.¡±

    ¡°You give me no choice, do you?¡± despite her whining, she bent over she book and tried to begin to read.

    ¡°This is a date right?¡± she asked, pointing to a series of weirdly symmetric signs on the top left corner. At Liz¡¯ nod, her frown grew a little lighter.

    Numbers were better than word-signs or letter-signs. They were more structured, at least.

    ¡°24th day of the 5th month, 203 - no, 303.870th year,¡± she said with some confidence, only to deflate when Liz slowly shook her head, grimacing.

    ¡°Look again,¡± she said patiently and Arette sighed, but did as asked. Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡°It¡¯s the 9th month, isn¡¯t it?¡± She always confused 5 and 9, they were too darn similar!

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Liz nodded and even though she tried to, she couldn¡¯t really hide her frustration as Arette had made this mistake at least fifty times by now.

    Before she could say anything else though, another voice interrupted them.

    ¡°What are you doing here?¡± Zenon was leaning in the doorway, looking amused.

    Arette¡¯s eyes snapped to him as if he was her salvation, eyes brimming with sudden flames.

    ¡°Zenon!¡± she exclaimed, fixating him with such intensity that he shifted on his feet, ¡°Save me.¡±

    A frown crept on his face at what was almost an order.

    ¡°What from? Your best friend?¡± He sounded skeptical enough, but still amused. By now he probably knew enough of Arette¡¯s antics, who was well aware of it.

    She¡¯d gotten along well with Zenon in the weeks she¡¯d been there. Once he got over the fact that she knew more about him than she should and she managed to forgive him for trying to kill her, they quickly reverted to the pleasant companionship they¡¯d had before the incident.

    He also got along better with Liz now, despite his initial scorn.

    ¡°Yes!¡± she yelled, shooting a fiery gaze at Liz, who was taken aback, ¡°Well, not from her per se. Only from her stupid attempts to teach me how to read. Who even needs that?¡±

    Now, it was Zenon¡¯s turn to sigh.

    ¡°Arette, you need to be able to read.¡±

    ¡°Oh not you too! Why don¡¯t you two sit somewhere and do your stupid reading together while I do something actually interesting!¡± she stood up and half wanted to march out of the room, but decided against it at the last second.

    Then, she sighed, turning to Liz again, who was watching her with uncertainty.

    ¡°Look, I hate this reading thing. Can¡¯t we continue tomorrow?¡±

    ¡°Sure,¡± Liz¡¯ relief was tangible, ¡°Tomorrow is fine. As long as you aren¡¯t going to quit.¡±

    Arette mumbled her dissent under her breath, but decided to let it go.

    She wasn¡¯t going to quit, she knew that very well. Not when Liz and Zenon were convinced she had to learn. But that didn¡¯t mean she would enjoy it, not at all.

    She was about to turn around and leave when Zenon called out her name.

    ¡°Arette, wait a moment,¡± he said and jogged to catch up with her. Liz hurriedly packed her books together and followed as well.

    ¡°What¡¯s up?¡± Arette tilted her head and looked at him curiously. Still, she didn¡¯t stop moving, her feet almost automatically drawing her towards the exit of the building. Staying away from the sun for too long still didn¡¯t sit well with her.

    ¡°I...can I speak to you? In private that is?¡± he asked quietly, shooting a furtive glance at Liz.

    Arette¡¯s eyes narrowed.

    ¡°Lizzy is my best friend. There¡¯s nothing you can say I wouldn¡¯t tell her,¡± she said sharply. Even though she considered Zenon a friend by now, Liz still ranked higher on her loyalty scale.

    After all, in the last month, they¡¯d almost spent every waking hour together. And she liked Liz, liked the easy way they spent time together and the soft calm that tended to contrast her impulsiveness.

    Not just once had Liz stopped her from doing something stupid - and had never faulted her for getting angry when she didn¡¯t immediately comply.

    So Zenon would have to deal with Liz if he wanted to deal with her.

    Zenon¡¯s eyes hardened and she could feel power in him rising, as if he wanted to suppress her. She could see his flame rearing up in anger and his power spread into his body.

    She didn¡¯t hesitate to answer in kind and soon her flame flowed into her veins, the pressure of her power making the air heavy. Zenon¡¯s power was richer in majesty but every advantage he had over her in terms of quantity, she made it up the the fierce ferocity of her fires.

    His glare grew uncertain and within seconds, he retreated his pressure.

    ¡°You grew stronger¡± he frowned but then quickly smoothes his features, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. That was wrong of me¡±.

    Arette reluctantly drew back her own powers. If he wanted a fight, she would give it. In fact, she¡¯d really, gladly give it! But alas, he didn¡¯t seem to share the itch in her limbs.

    The three of them reached the gardens while they talked, settling to sit on the edge of a fountain that was near deserted in the evening hours at the moment.

    Liz look majorly uncomfortable, so Arette shot her a quick grin, but that didn¡¯t seem to help much.

    ¡°So what is it that you want from me that is so important that you¡¯re willing to attack me for it?¡± she raised an eyebrow, her voice still sharp.

    Zenon looked uncomfortable enough, but after her question, his posture grew straight and focused.

    ¡°You can see souls, right?¡± his voice was cautious.

    Arette nodded, ¡°Yeah, at least I¡¯ve been told that your flame is equal to your soul, so, yeah.¡±

    ¡°Can you see...feelings, too? Like, emotions?¡±

    Arette frowned, wondering how the steady Zenon she¡¯d known over the last month could be so...cautious. As if he was scared of her answer.

    She contemplated a moment before answering.

    ¡°Not...exactly. Well, kinda. It¡¯s hard to explain,¡± she began, fishing for words, ¡°I can¡¯t really differentiate between smaller or weak emotions. I mean, I can¡¯t tell if you¡¯re pissed or annoyed or happy being with me. But I can see those that consume you. An overwhelming anger, intense happiness, love, those are things you can¡¯t keep away from your soul.¡±

    Her eyes narrowed in on Zenon¡¯s flame. Silent and gentle as it was before - and still filled with darker secrets.

    ¡°I know you¡¯re in love with someone,¡± she announced, seeing the deep affection that almost scarred his flame, ¡°I also know you¡¯re hurting. Before, your flame was raging, so I suppose you were angry, then, but I couldn¡¯t exactly read it. It¡¯s complicated.¡±

    She pressed her lips together, unable to find anything more to say. She had always been able to see flames of people, she knew how to interpret them by instinct, but explaining it to someone else was near impossible.

    Zenon looked at her with a baffled expression, one of the few times she¡¯d ever really seen him surprised...or anything other than expressionless.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t think you could see that much,¡± he said quietly. Arette could only shrug. He didn¡¯t add anything more.Then, his hand went to his pocket and he pulled out a small, rectangular black thing.

    It was too flat to be a box, yet too narrow to be some strange kind of...parchment.

    Arette looked at it in interest, eyes growing wide as Zenon pressed a button and suddenly the black surface of the gadget turned white.

    ¡°What is this?¡± she asked, surprised. Liz next to her leaned forwards, also unable to repress her awe.

    ¡°This is a communication device,¡± Zenon explained, pressing the surface and more and more colours appeared, forming into shapes and words, much to Arette¡¯s dismay. ¡°It¡¯s from a different province, quite a bit away. It¡¯s a place with much more advanced technology than ours.¡±

    ¡°You mean, like, electricity?¡± Arette asked with big eyes. Rize had told her about that, but until now she had yet to see it with her own eyes. Zenon laughed, surprising her again with so much emotion.

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s based on electricity, but it¡¯s a lot more advanced than that. But that doesn¡¯t really matter now. What matters is that you can record things with this. Make pictures and record scenes so you can watch them later on.¡±

    ¡°Wow.¡± Arette and Liz spoke simultaneously, sharing a wondrous look. Neither of them could imagine something like that, but then again, Arette was so used to new things that she wasn¡¯t exactly shocked. More like amazed.

    Zenon pushed a few more colourful buttons and suddenly, the black surface of the gadget turned into a scene. Amidst trees and flowers a man and a woman were shown, the man on his knees, the woman bent over him.

    ¡°Can you see their souls, in the picture?¡±Zenon asked, tense.

    Arette squinted, moving closer to the gadget. Then, she nodded.

    ¡°Yeah, I can see them.¡± The woman had a soul filled with pure, unadulterated light, like the full moon or brightness of a sunrise. The man next to her was darker, twisted, rough. She couldn¡¯t see any positivity inside of it.

    Zenon nodded and pushed another button. Suddenly, the scene on the gadget began to move.

    ¡°Would you like to be my companion?¡± a voice, manly suddenly asks. Arette started, but quickly realized it must be part of the¡­¡¯recording¡¯.

    The woman looked to him, tears in her eyes. Arette looked deeper into her flame, that seemed to be wrapped up in tendrils of shadows.

    She nodded, slowly, with a smile on her face.

    Then, the scene froze again and Arette looked away from the gadget to Zenon. His face had twisted from neutral into angry. His flame was in tumult again, the scars of the love that were etched into it seemed much more prominent now.

    ¡°Is she happy?¡± he asked, his voice quiet and restrained, ¡°Is she happy with him?¡±

    Arette looked from him back to the scene on the device. The woman¡¯s flame was cheerful, but that wasn¡¯t an emotion but its nature. She couldn¡¯t say whether she was happy at that moment - but she wasn¡¯t happy in principle.

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure. I can¡¯t tell whether she¡¯s happy or not - but happiness doesn¡¯t overpower her, I would see that. There¡¯s something else in her flame - darkness. Like something is bothering her, something that is wound tightly around her flame, almost choking her. She has problems, severe ones that have affected even her soul.¡±

    Arette pressed her lips together, but couldn¡¯t find anything more. The flame on the device was hard to analyse, mostly because she couldn¡¯t see it move or flicker in front of her. She could read so much less out of a static print.

    When she looked up to Zenon again, his face had grown pale.

    ¡°Shit,¡± he cursed and stood up, kicking with his food against the fountain. The darkness in his flame quelled over, no longer suppressed and hidden as it was before. Arette stared for a moment, surprised by his outburst.

    ¡°What is it?¡± she questioned in curiosity, not really scared of his anger of his darkness. He was still stronger than her - but the distance had lessened with her growing under Nex¡¯ training.

    Zenon kicked the fountain again, this time making a dent in the stone base.

    Arette stood up and walked closer to him.

    ¡°What is it?¡± she asked again, this time with more insistence.

    Zenon¡¯s eyes flashed at her, filled with dark rage.

    ¡°She agreed to be his companion! His companion, of all things!¡± he growled. Now he had long shaken off the somber self he¡¯d been for the time she knew it.

    Arette was starting to think this might be his real self.

    But with the darkness in his heart and the scars in his flame, even she was able to put the pieces together.

    ¡°You love her, don¡¯t you?¡± she questioned, her voice firm.

    Zenon stopped kicking and stood motionless, staring at her. Then, he faltered, the anger replaced by despair, darkness growing tighter in his flame.

    ¡°She¡¯s my soul companion.¡±

 Chapter Eighteen - Soul Companion

    Chapter Eighteen -Soul Companion

    ¡°Your what?¡± Arette questioned the moment Liz gasped loudly and jumped up.

    ¡°She¡¯s your soul companion?¡± Liz questioned, her eyes filled with both awe and a torn expression.

    Zenon looked from Arette to Liz, slowly nodding.

    His anger had gone to be replaced by hopelessness.

    ¡°But how...why is she bonding with another?¡± Liz¡¯ mouth stood open as she questioned him.

    Arette was only confused.

    Hearing Liz so shocked, it must be a big deal, but she for one had no idea what they¡¯re talking about.

    ¡°I...I screwed up,¡± Zenon looked down, hands formed into fists, ¡°If only she were happy, it¡¯d be fine, but¡­¡±

    ¡°Fine?¡± Liz was almost screetching, ¡°How can it be fine? She¡¯s the only one you will ever be able to have that kind of bond with! For eternity!¡±

    Arette blinked. What the heck?

    ¡°Do you think I don¡¯t know that?¡± Zenon roared, taking a step towards Liz. His darkness grew violent, meshing with his powers and immediately, fear sunk into Liz¡¯s tendrils. Her misfortune reached out, probably instinctively and that was when Arette intervened.

    She stepped between the two, swatting Liz¡¯s tendrils away, and used her own pressure to contrast Zenon¡¯s - again.

    ¡°What the heck is going on here?¡± she snapped, turning from Liz to Zenon and back again.

    Liz took a step back, head hanging as she was aware of the disaster she¡¯d almost caused. Zenon, meanwhile, stood motionless, his expression frozen between pain and anger.

    For the longest time, neither of them said anything.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Arette questioned again, this time towards Liz, who was more partial to give her an answer. Liz tugged nervously on her hair and when she spoke up, her voice was wavering.

    "A- a soul companion is something very special," she explained quietly, eyes darting to avoid Zenon, "It''s a bond two Immortals can only enter if they love each other more than anything else. It...it can''t be broken. That''s why it''s so rare - not many are prepared to face this kind of commitment, because the bond also knits your emotions together so tightly that you will never be able to enter another bond of comparable depth. It also means that if one partner dies, the other soon follows. That¡¯s why I don¡¯t understand how Sir Murron can just so easily let go of his soul companion, the one person that he swore to love and be true to for eternity.¡±

    Her voice grew stronger at the end, laced with conviction. Arette could clearly see Liz¡¯ own longing for a bond like that.

    While she could hardly imagine something like that happening to her, it still sounded pretty neat to her ears. It seemed like something to be cherished, not to be so easily dismissed.

    Her eyes narrowed at Zenon.

    ¡°If that woman is your...soul companion, was it?...Then why aren¡¯t you, like together with her now?¡± She furrowed her brows, not quite understanding.

    Some parts of it made sense, seeing as now, she could understand what made Zenon so sombre and silent most of the time - it was the pain that scarred his heart, that doubtlessly stemmed from his relation with the woman from the recording.

    Now, for the first time since she¡¯d met Zenon, she had the feeling that he wasn¡¯t like she had thought at first. He wasn¡¯t really mysterious or quiet - he was trying to deal with something that hurt him a lot. But that wasn¡¯t who he was in his essence.

    Having realized as much, she saw it in his flame. She saw, deep down, the man he¡¯d buried, the kind, quite friendly and open soul that he locked so deep that even her flame-scouring eyes hadn¡¯t discovered it.

    ¡°I screwed up, I...I made a mistake, okay? I lost her. I don¡¯t have the right to be with her anymore,¡± he rubbed his neck and turned away from Arette and Liz, kicking the ground again.

    He emanated a despair so strong, Arette could almost smell it tinging the air.

    Seeing him mope around like that, anger grew in her chest.

    ¡°What ¡®right¡¯, what¡¯s that supposed to mean?¡± she growled, ¡°Since when do people need some ¡®right¡¯ to be with each other? I¡¯ve never been given the ¡®right¡¯ to be Liz¡¯ friend, but I sure as hell am.¡±

    Confusion and annoyance laced her words, but they only seemed to amplify Zenon¡¯s irritation.

    ¡°I destroyed her life!¡± he yelled, his molten golden eyes drilling into Arette¡¯s. Gold clashing with gold, anger and despair against annoyance and determination. ¡°How am I supposed to be with her after all that I did to her?¡±

    ¡°Maybe, if you actually told us what happened, I could give you an answer to that!¡± Arette snapped, irritation boiling over. With his snippets of self blame and despair, she couldn¡¯t form a story and it was annoying her immensely.

    How was she supposed to help him - and he had asked for help after all - when she barely had an idea what was going on to begin with?

    Zenon groaned and stalked up and down again.

    ¡°Zenon,¡± Arette began, but his angry eyes stopped her halfway.

    ¡°I told you to never say that name again!¡± he exploded and his pressure bore down on her again. She still didn¡¯t know what kind of Ascendant he was, but his power was rippling with a certain richness. A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

    An Ascendant of Strength, maybe? Or maybe an Ascendant of Combat. She couldn¡¯t quite tell.

    But neither of that mattered because his strength was merely on part with her. Not stronger.

    And she just about had enough of his volatile antics.

    With a growl, she pushed her own flame into her body, her fiery energy propulsing out of her body to bear down on him.

    ¡°And I¡¯m telling you right now to stop whining and tell us what¡¯s wrong!¡± she yelled back and on her arms, her flames ignited, burning her clothes away until there was only bare skin left.

    Their pressures clashed as Arette got ready to whirl her fires at him and burn him a little until he regained his senses but the outcome was quite obvious from their clash as well.

    Arette was, and not necessarily by a small margin, stronger than Zenon.

    He took a step back, withdrawing his pressure, but this time, Arette didn¡¯t draw her own powers back. Instead, she stepped forwards and glared down on the man she had come to consider a friend, more than a little pissed.

    ¡°I get that you¡¯re hurt, but if you want my help, our help, then you need to get your shit together and tell us what happened to begin with,¡± she said slowly.

    Zenon gulped, visibly pale when confronted with the extent of Arette¡¯s powers.

    A moment passed of her staring him down and him looking at her with a rather pleading expression, but after what seemed like an eternity, Zenon nodded.

    ¡°Fine,¡± he grumbled and walked towards the fountain to sit down.

    Arette remained standing, tapping her foot impatiently.

    ¡°As you already know, my name isn¡¯t Murron. It¡¯s Zenon. My clan name used to be Leptyn Pharan, of the Renegade Clans, Ascendant of Power and Strength,¡± he let his head fall onto his hands, not looking the part of someone who had walked the path of Strength at all.

    Arette frowned, unfamiliar with half of the names he¡¯d presented. She looked to Liz, who stood gaping at him.

    ¡°Like Leptyn, the betrayer?¡± Liz asked, baffled. Zenon looked at her harshly, before he deflated and stared down to the ground again.

    ¡°The very same,¡± he laughed bitterly. Arette raised an eyebrow at Liz, who thankfully launched into an explanation.

    ¡°The Renegade are a congregation of clans that form one of the oldest and most influential Clans in huge parts of the Plane of Gods. They don¡¯t accept many members and those they accept are all exceptional in combat power. I told you about them just before, Phara, the adventurer, was their founder, that¡¯s why each clan member bears her name as their last name.

    ¡°But a few years ago, before I was born, there was the story of a terrible battle - Leptyn, the betrayer, told the Hundred Souls Clan, a sworn enemy of the Renegade Clans, secret information about their bases and the headquarters of the Renegade Clans was ambushed. Many died back then and their homes were completely wrecked. Leptyn was banished from the clan and no one knew what became of him¡­¡±

    Her eyes darted to Zenon, both pity and distaste swimming inside of them. Arette gave her a grateful nod. Then, she turned back to Zenon.

    He looked up at her, his golden orbs filled with self loathing and bitterness.

    ¡°Go on, call me a betrayer. A murderer. I know I deserve it,¡± he murmured the last, but didn¡¯t look away from her. Arette rolled her eyes.

    ¡°Now, why would I do that before you tell me the story you promised?¡± She raised an eyebrow and tapped with her foot again, impatiently waiting for him to present his kind of view. She might not be the smartest person, but she wasn''t dumb enough to judge him before hearing his side of things.

    He stared at her with wide eyes.

    ¡°You are¡­¡± he said, baffled, but then shook his head, ¡°I shouldn¡¯t be surprised. You¡¯re similar after all,¡± he smiled and then promptly continued where he left off before.

    ¡°Six years ago, I was clanless. I was already an Ascendant of Power and Strength back then, had made my path through picking fights and adventuring for a couple of hundred years. That¡¯s when I met her. Elea. Her clan name is Ilika Pharan, Sovereign of the Hunt. We fell in love pretty soon after. It took us years to form a deep connection, but there came a day when I just couldn''t imagine ever living a second of my life without her¡­¡±

    His eyes were staring into nothing, lost in memories. Arette¡¯s expression softened with his words.

    ¡°I joined the Renegade Clans for her, wanted to be with her and with me walking the path of Strength, Phara didn¡¯t have much of a problem with admitting me. We decided to establish the soul companion bond after a few more years...we were happy, back then. But then I got a message from the Hundred Souls, saying they kidnapped her. If I ever wanted to see her again, I¡¯d need to give them information on the secrets of our clan. I searched for her everywhere, but she was gone.¡±

    His hands formed into fists as he spoke and finally he looked up to find Arette¡¯s eyes again.

    ¡°You must believe me, I never wanted to betray them. I was such a fool. But I would¡¯ve done anything for her. I was blind. I gave them what they asked for. Two days later, I found out that Elea was never gone...she just had to go out for a secret mission for Phara which she couldn¡¯t tell me anything about. But then, it was already too late.

    ¡°They killed so many. People I considered friends. People Elea considered friends - even her adoptive parents and brothers died. She was devastated. How could I still be with her after my foolish mistake had cost her her friends, her home, everything? How? Phara was nice in kicking me out of the Clans. She should¡¯ve killed me and be done with it, right then. But she didn¡¯t.¡±

    He stood up then, but his eyes kept ahold of Arette¡¯s.

    Arette¡¯s features smoothed and she looked at him with sympathy, with understanding. She couldn¡¯t truly comprehend the love that drove him to do be so foolish, but if she¡¯d been connected so truly to another person, she would¡¯ve probably done the same.

    So she understood. But she also understood why he blamed himself - and she couldn¡¯t take that from him. Couldn¡¯t tell him that it was not his fault...because it was. It was his mistake.

    ¡°I thought I¡¯d be fine, staying away from her. I thought she¡¯d be happy...an old friend of mine sent me the recording. At first I was devastated...then I thought it would be good if she can find happiness without me...but I had to know if she truly found happiness. And now you say she¡¯s troubled. She doesn¡¯t love him - I know it, I can feel it. She¡¯s not happy.¡±

    He ran his hand through his hair, clearly more agitated now.

    ¡°What am I supposed to do now? I can¡¯t let her bond with another when she¡¯s not happy...she deserves to be happy, gods be damned,¡± he kicked the fountain again at that.

    Liz had tears swimming in her eyes at his story, clearly moved enough to remove any distaste that lay in her gaze before.

    Arette could see the pain that was consuming Zenon. She felt with him, could see how the darkness of his grief was tearing him apart.

    But she didn¡¯t quite see why the most obvious decision was bothering him so much.

    ¡°But isn¡¯t it obvious, what you¡¯re supposed to do?¡± she asked with a little confusion. It seemed quite clear to her.

    Zenon only looked bewildered.

    Arette laughed a little, grinning at her friend as a plan began to form in her mind.

    ¡°I don¡¯t like that expression of yours,¡± Zenon said cautiously, taking a step away from her.

    Her grin only deepened.

    ¡°You¡¯re going to her. Now. Then you¡¯re going to tell her how you feel. If she¡¯s really your soul whatever, she¡¯ll understand what you did. If she doesn¡¯t, it can¡¯t be that true love thing you say you had. It¡¯s easy, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    ¡°Arette¡­¡± his tone was warningly, but she didn¡¯t falter.

    ¡°Pack your things, Zenon. We¡¯ll leave tomorrow at dawn!¡± She gave him a cheeky grin and then turned around to leave, not letting any discussion arise.

    ¡°Wait, ¡®we¡¯?¡± Zenon called after her.

    She stopped to turn again, flashing him a bright grin.

    ¡°What, did you think I¡¯d miss out on that? Not a chance!¡±

 Chapter Nineteen - On The Road (Part One)

    Chapter Nineteen -On the road (Part One)

    ¡°This is not a good idea.¡±

    ¡°Seriously, if I got a punch in the face for every time you said that already, I¡¯d be dead by now. And I can take a lot of punches, just ask Nex.¡±

    Arette rolled her eyes at Zenon, who was fidgeting far too much.

    They were only on the second day of their two week journey and Arette already wanted to wreck something. Zenon¡¯s mouth, preferably.

    ¡°Besides, we sure as hell won¡¯t turn around now, just because you got cold feet,¡± she snorted.

    ¡°Cold feet?¡± Zenon echoed with disbelief, ¡°I never wanted to do this to begin with! You were the one who decided it would be a good idea!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s because it was the only way to get you out of your sorry moping. Besides, if your don¡¯t talk to her, you¡¯ll never know if she really hates you as much as you think she does. Come on, Lizzy, you agree with me, don''t you?¡± she beckoned her best friend, who had fallen behind a little.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Lizzy looked up, surprised, ¡°Oh, I agree with you.¡±

    Arette giggled.

    ¡°You don¡¯t even know what we¡¯re talking about, do you?¡±

    ¡°Uhm...err¡­¡± Lizzy blushed, looking down guiltily, ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    Arette laughed and Zenon showed a rare smile as well, even though he was mostly gloomy. He tried to spread his gloom over all of them, but Arette determinedly pushed against it.

    This was an adventure and she was quite happy to get out of Redhall, even though she¡¯d only been there for a month.

    Travelling under the sun, sleeping under the stars, that was a life she enjoyed far more than studying in cramped halls in an even more cramped city.

    Leaving Redhall was, surprisingly, not much of a problem. Leesha turned out to be quite the big admirerof soul companionship. Sheswooned and found it incredibly sweet of Arette to be so helpful in trying to bring two soul companions back together.

    Needless to say, she immediately agreed to give her a few weeks¡¯ leave from her classes.After meeting up with Rize and Lyndon, Lyneven offered to lend them his travelling carriage, one of the kind that could move on its own as long as someone supplied it with a certain type of crystals. The crystals were provided by Rize, who also found their endeavour ''sooo romantic'' that she wanted to be a part of it as well.

    Arette had been more than thankful - jumping to hug every of them - but Rize and Leesha didn¡¯t even want a favor in return except for an invitation to the bonding ceremony of Zenon and Elea. Lynonly shrugged and said she could repay him alter on.

    Leesha, Lyndon and Rizewere very optimistic about the success of their journey.

    So were Arette and Liz. Liz knew enough about soul companionship that she could trust the fact that they would recognize each other and forgive each other and Arette thought that if this Elea girl was someone Zenon loved so much, then she would surely find it in her to forgive him.

    The only one who wasn¡¯t optimistic at all was - no surprise there - Zenon himself.

    He was firmly convinced that Elea hated his guts and wanted nothing to do with him and he used every possible opportunity to voice said conviction. So often that Arette was already annoyed and it was only the second day. The high gods knew what would happen when they neared the end of their journey.

    Right now, Zenon and Arette were sitting on the front of the cart, watching the road. Zenon was currently driving, since Arette''s cart-steering skills had turned out to be quite nonexistent.

    Liz sat in the back of the cart, her nose in one of the books she brought with her. How she could do something so tedious while the world opened up around her was beyond Arette, but that was Liz¡¯ choice.

    Seeing that Zenon was about to say something - no doubt to convince her to turn around and forget this her plan - Arette gave out a loud yawn and stretched herself.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be going to exercise for a few hours. Don¡¯t wait up for me!¡± she said and jumped off the cart. When she had told Nex that she was about to leave for four weeks or longer, her martial arts instructor hadn¡¯t exactly been pleased. After a lot of begging and promising from Arette, she caved in, but not before thoroughly instructing and threatening her. Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡®A hundred squats, a hundred push ups, every day. And at least six miles worth of running. If possible, more than that. And weapon practise, every evening. If I find out that you slacked out on even one of those, you can forget about me teaching you anything for the rest of your immortal life, you got me?¡¯

    Arette had grinned and nodded and Nex sent her on her way. She wasn¡¯t planning on skipping any of it, not when she had noticed that most of her practise was helping her body.

    After a month of Nex¡¯ training, she felt a lot more agile and powerful than she did before.

    So, letting the carriage get ahead of her, she started with the body training.

    Later on, she¡¯d have to sprint to catch up to the others, who would be at leave five or six miles ahead of her then - perfect for her running practise.

    There was something about physical exercise that calmed her.

    It made her focus on her body that began to ache soon enough, but the pain pulsated with her flame and brought her into a state where there was only her and her body, pushing against her limits.

    Nex¡¯ training may be harsh, but she wouldn¡¯t have wanted it any other way.

    So she didn¡¯t even count when she started her squats. She liked to push herself towards her limit, fighting not until she reached a number, but until she couldn¡¯t move anymore.

    It took quite a while until her breaths grew laboured, but from then on out, every movement felt like agony. Still she continued.

    Breathing in, breathing out. Forcing her knees to lower, then stand back up.

    Another breath.

    Her knees started shaking, yet she continued.

    I¡¯m too weak. I need to get stronger.

    Another one, then another, then another - and then her legs gave in. With a loud thump, she collapsed onto the ground, catching her breath and trying to ignore the pain in her muscles.

    Sweat was pearling down her forehead, but she hardly cared as she wiped it away.

    Too weak.

    With the sun filtering into her, the pain didn¡¯t take long to dissipate under her flames that pulsated within her.

    Immortals tended to heal fast - at least Liz told her that mortals did so considerably slower - but under the sun, her healing speed was apparently top notch.

    In the rain, without stars or the sun or the moon giving her the light she lived off, a wound took far longer to heal, a few days instead of a few minutes. Right now, the cramping pain in her legs disappeared after a few moments, enabling her to continue with her training immediately.

    Even though she felt a little worn out, she didn¡¯t waste time as she started with her push ups. These were easier, at least in the beginning, when she hardly felt strain or aching.

    The more she did the harder it got though and soon, she felt the ache creeping into her again.

    Now, she could already do a lot more exercise before breaking down compared to a month ago, when she¡¯d first arrived her. Still, it wasn¡¯t enough, by far.

    Compared to Nex, she was an amateur. Nex told her she hadn¡¯t even reached the limits of a mortal yet and the limits of an Immortal body such as hers were much higher.

    An Immortal body was, after all, directly forged from Chaos. If it didn¡¯t have a capacity far higher than a mortal¡¯s, the name ¡®Immortal¡¯ was hardly fitting.

    And so, Arette pushed herself.

    Up, down, up, down, another breath, one more and then another.

    I need to get stronger. I want to get stronger.

    It took longer this time to collapse, but eventually, she did.

    She sat down and breathed heavily, waiting until she caught her breath.

    Then, she did the entire thing again, until she doubled over from pain and figured it would be enough for today. If her body wasn¡¯t soaked in sunlight, she would¡¯ve probably seriously hurt herself with this kind of training.

    After a few moments of catching breath, she stood up and began to run on the road they had taken when she¡¯d jumped off the cart.

    She didn¡¯t know herself what it was that made her so determined to get stronger. On the one hand, it was enthusiasm, surely, and she couldn¡¯t deny that she found a lot of fun in the exercise. She also loved fighting practise, but that wasn¡¯t all.

    It was like there was a voice inside of her, telling her that she needed the strength.

    As is something terrible would happen if she didn¡¯t get strong now.

    She didn¡¯t know why, but the feeling was always there, urging her legs on even when they threatened to spasm and break down under her body.

    It was also that very feeling that spurred her on, made her press her body to go faster, faster, until the road flew by under her and the wind that hit her face lashed like a whip.

    Not fast enough.

    She was never fast enough to outrun the nagging feeling inside of her.

    In record time, she reached the cart where Zenon and Liz were still perched on, looking all relaxed. Arette meanwhile, was drenched in sweat, face redder than her hair, but she had a broad grin on her face as she jumped up next to Liz and collapsed onto the wood.

    Liz looked at her with a mix of disbelief and concern, but Arette could only smile.

    It didn¡¯t matter if her friend didn¡¯t understand. She didn¡¯t need to.

    Arette didn¡¯t really understand either.

    But with the sun on her face and the world around her, she wouldn¡¯t have wanted it any other way.

    ¡°Arette, I really think this is a bad idea, what we¡¯re doing here¡­¡±

    ¡°Oh shut up, Zenon.¡±

 Chapter Twenty - On The Road (Part Two)

    Chapter Twenty -On the Road (Part Two)

    Two weeks later, Arette¡¯s nerves were surprisingly alright.

    Zenon had continued to nag her for four more days after the beginning of their journey, driving her absolutely crazy, but after she¡¯d almost knocked his teeth out, he was quiet.

    It wasn¡¯t as if Arette didn¡¯t understand him at all.

    He was nervous and scared of rejection, she got that, but she didn¡¯t think that turning around and runng away like a kicked puppy would solve anything.

    Better be rejected and be done with it than agonizing over what could¡¯ve been if only he¡¯d done something. She¡¯d told him that quite often over the last days and by now, on the last day of their journey, he even seemed to believe it.

    Honestly, she always thought that Zenon was quite cool and manly, but those last days of anxiousness had made him worse than a whiny little girl.

    He still fought like a pro though.

    Every night, Arette had insisted on a sparring match between the two of them, with Nex¡¯ warning of her daily needed dose of sword practise. Even though Zenon was an Ascendant of Strength and more used to hand to hand combat, his skill with a sword was still leagues better than Arette¡¯s.

    Every night, she was miserably defeated.

    Their first battle had lasted for two glorious seconds - one longer than her initial bout with Nex, at least - before Arette had been flat on her back with Zenon¡¯s sword pressed into her throat.

    Their second battle lasted a whole of a minute before his foot pressed her into the dirt.

    She was pretty sure he took his frustrations out on her, which was fine with her, since she was both the cause of them and because it prevented him going easy on her.

    Even though every defeat was a blow to her pride, it also served to fuel the determination in her heart. It made her run faster, push harder and fight better and so she welcomed every defeat with a bitter grin.

    By now, two weeks¡¯ worth of practise later, she could hold her own against Zenon for all of ten minutes. She¡¯d observed him in their matches and adapted herself to his strategy, which was the only reason she was able to stall him now. Her biggest problem was her body.

    Even after her training, it was still painfully...mortal, at least as mortal as an Immortal could be. Compared to Zenon¡¯s century-honed muscles, she was a child that could only weakly swing her sword through the air. She hated it - hated her own weakness more than anything.

    But she still hadn¡¯t lost hope.

    One day, she would be strong. Stronger than Zenon, than Nex, than Leesha. Strong enough that she wouldn¡¯t have to fear the world, strong enough that she could avert any disaster that waited for her in the future.

    In her head, Merin¡¯s words were still present. Murderer. Monster.

    No, she wouldn¡¯t become a monster. She would become strong, strong enough to stay true to herself, to weather the storm that was going to come. She had to, a part of her knew that very well.

    Last evening had probably been the last time she¡¯d been sparring with Zenon.

    If everything went according to plan - a plan she hadn¡¯t yet devised, but she hoped for divine intervention in the last second - Zenon would be happily together with his true soul companion soon enough.

    She was a bit sad that she was going to lose a friend, but if he was going to find happiness, it would be worth it.

    At the moment, they were approaching a huge city by the name of Gera, one of the largest cities of the Province they had entered, the fifty-fourth Province of the Plane of Gods.

    They¡¯d left the fiftieth Province, of which Fall¡¯s End was the capital, on the fifth day of their travel, briefly crossed the forty-eighth and were now in the fifty-fourth, a slightly more advanced province than the one Arette and Liz were used to.

    Mining was apparently a big thing here and unlike the rural atmosphere of the fiftieth Province, the life of the fifty-fourth was concentrated into big cities.

    That much was obvious as soon as they entered Gera.

    For one, the city was multiple times larger than Fall¡¯s End. That did mean something, considering Fall¡¯s End stretched on for miles and miles - Gera topped that easily.

    When they approached the city, Arette wasn¡¯t able to see the end of the houses that were sitting tightly, pressed against each other with only narrow streets in between.

    The houses were different from what she was used to, as well. Instead of wood and stone, they were built from red brick, some of them spewing smoke out of little rectangular things on their tops - chimneys, as Zenon called them. Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

    Arette didn¡¯t really like it.

    There was a pungent smell of smoke and dirt in the air and even though Fall¡¯s End didn¡¯t exactly smell like roses, it was still a different, penetrating kind of stench that Arette found completely off-putting.

    Thankfully enough, Gera was not their final destination. They were only passing through, aiming for a mountain range not far from the city where, according to Zenon, the current residence of his true soul companion was located.

    Entering the city was easy as they didn¡¯t exactly bother with controls, but making their way through took more time than Arette would¡¯ve thought.

    The combination of narrows streets and lots of people was...annoying, to say the least. They had left the carriage at an Inn, whose owner happened to be an acquaintance of Zenon¡¯s, and were now clawing their way through crowds of Immortals.

    Zenon seemed like he¡¯d done this hundreds of times, but Arette and Liz had more trouble. Arette was far too distracted by everything around her - she had to stare at people, at the small shops in the houses, the carriages that sometimes whooshed past, some of them levitating above their heads.

    It was all too miraculous for her, who had never seen anything like this before, and her lack of focus caused her to easily be pushed off track.

    Liz meanwhile looked downright terrified. She kept trying to dart out of other people¡¯s ways, but ended up crashing against more than she would¡¯ve otherwise. By the time the three of them managed to reach a wider place that looked like a central square, Liz was in tears.

    But before Arette could say anything, she was yet again distracted by the view in front of her.

    In the middle of the square was a huge door. At least Arette suspected it was one - she couldn¡¯t be sure. Easily five meters tall and two broad, a strong metal frame like that of a door was erected. Yet, she wasn¡¯t sure whether it was supposed to be open or closed.

    Because the empty space inside the frame was...not quite translucent. It was shining, gleaming with a multitude of colours that fell down like a veil. They blurred and twisted, sometimes fading, sometimes multiplying. Arette couldn¡¯t take her eyes off it.

    Suddenly, a person walked straight inside the door...and disappeared. Arette¡¯s eyes bulged as she watched it. The person certainly didn¡¯t come out on the other side! What the¡­

    Gaping, she tugged on Zenon¡¯s clothes, without turning her eyes away.

    ¡°Zenon, what is that?¡± she gasped and Zenon turned to her, first a little annoyed, but then amused by her enthusiasm.

    ¡°That¡¯s a teleportation gate. Every bigger city has one. You just step through it and announce your destination and it directly takes you there. It feel pretty weird though,¡± he shrugged as he explained it like it was common knowledge. Liz didn¡¯t seem surprised either.

    Arette turned around and stared at her companions with disbelief.

    ¡°Now, can either of you tell me, why by all blazes we just travelled two weeks on a freaking cart when we could¡¯ve just teleported here?¡± she exclaimed, glaring at the two of them.

    Zenon and Liz looked at each other, both smiling uncomfortably.

    ¡°Well, you looked so excited about travelling...I didn¡¯t want to mention it¡­¡± Liz said and blushed, head hanging down. Arette rolled her eyes, then turned to Zenon, who looked equally troubled.

    ¡°Uhm, I kind of hoped if I nagged you for a while, we¡¯d be able to turn around and you¡¯d stop this entire madness¡­¡± he grinned awkwardly.

    Arette groaned loudly and threw her arms in the air.

    ¡°You¡¯re useless! Both of you!¡± she exclaimed, ¡°We¡¯re so teleporting back, just so you know!¡±

    She glared them down and they both nodded like obedient little lambs, making her smile smugly.

    She wasn¡¯t really angry - travelling had been fun after all and she did enjoy it a lot.

    But honestly, teleportation gates! That is so cool.

    After another wistful glance at the colour-swirling door, she sighed and motioned to the others to continue their journey.

    Three hour later, they reached a small town halfway up the mountains that was, according to Zenon, the current home of his true soul companion.

    Zenon had grown even more nervous the closer they got.

    For the first time in days, he¡¯d tried to get her to turn around, but Arette remained hard. As if they¡¯d turn around now.

    Liz had told her a lot about soul companions on the way - honestly, Liz was like a walking library at this point - and the knowledge only made Arette more hopeful about the ending of this plan.

    Speaking of a plan - they still didn¡¯t really have one.

    For now, Arette was counting all on the surprise factor. Everyone loved surprises, don¡¯t they?

    At least...she could hope. Well neither Liz or Zenon had much of a better plan, so they were just barging in there head first. It couldn¡¯t be too bad.

    Wandering through the rows of houses that were a weird mix between the houses at Fall¡¯s End and the ones at Gera, they finally arrived on the other end of the town, where a small cottage was bordering on the woods.

    Zenon shrank behind Arette, eyes darting around in panic. Arette sighed and walked straight to the door.

    She swiftly knocked, without a shred of hesitation, boosted by the need to be proactive when both of her companions were whimpering and trying to hide behind her.

    After her third knock, the door opened to reveal a petite woman with a head full of golden curls and a sweet smile. She was at least a head shorter than Arette, but she didn¡¯t cower in front of her, even though, as a Sovereign, she was naturally intimidated in the presence of an Ascendant.

    ¡°Are you Elea?¡± Arette asked friendly, a smile playing on her lips. Now seeing it in real life, she took a liking towards the woman¡¯s flame. It was filled with light and joy, but also contained a determined ferocity that she couldn¡¯t help but admire.

    The darkness though was still there, slithering tendrils of doubt, self loathing and hatred winding themselves around her happiness. Arete didn¡¯t like it, at all.

    The woman frowned at her question.

    ¡°I am...but no one has called me like that for years. How do you know that name?¡± Suspicion flashed over her face, but Arette was glad enough that there wasn¡¯t an attack on her life that followed that question. It did happen before, after all.

    ¡°Well, there¡¯s someone here to talk to you. He grew a bit shy, but I assure you, he¡¯s all here for you,¡± she laughed and stepped aside, giving Zenon a strong push into Elea¡¯s direction.

    Elea¡¯s eyes widened enormously when she saw him, mouth standing open.

    ¡°Zenon?¡±

 Chapter Twenty-One - Elea

    Chapter Twenty-One - Elea

    ¡°You bastard!¡± the petite woman yelled and raised her hand to deliver a sound slap to Zenon¡¯s face.

    Zenon stumbled backwards, his eyes trained on Elea.

    She was still beautiful. After all these years he hadn¡¯t seen her - she hadn¡¯t lost any of her splendor. For a moment, he could just stare at her, not even feeling the sting of her slap.

    She still was the woman he loved more than anything.

    ¡°How dare you show up here like that?¡± she screamed and hit him in the chest, even though she didn¡¯t actually hurt him, ¡°How dare you come after five years and show your face here?¡±

    Her words sunk into his brain and the pain he kept repressed for so long flooded over.

    ¡°Elea, I¡­¡± he tried to say something, anything, but words deserted him.

    He wanted to tell her about everything, how sorry he was, how much he loved her, but in her presence, all of the flimsy reasons he had made up in the last days of travel ran away from his tongue the moment he opened his mouth.

    ¡°What? You can¡¯t even say something?¡± her voice reached a higher octave as she glared up at him, tears swimming in her eyes. He could feel them rising in his, too.

    Even when she was furious at him, she was still the most beautiful person he¡¯d ever seen. By all high gods, how had he ever managed to leave her?

    Oh, right. By killing her family and her friends.

    ¡°Elea, I...I¡¯m sorry,¡± his voice broke as he spoke the words that had been weighing down his chest for five years. He looked straight into her molten gold eyes, the colour of asunrise, even though right now, they could''ve been a supernova as well.

    ¡°Oh you¡¯re sorry. You¡¯re sorry, after five effing years of not showing up, of not showing your face, of making me thing you were dead, now you¡¯re sorry? No, Zenon, it doesn¡¯t work like that,¡± she shook her head and even though tears were running down her cheeks, she was blazing.

    ¡°You know what?¡± she continued, not leaving him an opportunity to answer, ¡°Just leave. You left five years ago, so you can sure as hell leave now!¡±

    Her words tore into his heart, ripping it to shreds. But he knew they were all truth. He left her - he left her because he thought she would hate him and now she hated him because he left. No matter how he looked at it, it was all his fault.

    All because he had been so damn stupid those five years ago.

    Why was he even here?

    Damn Arette for bringing him here. The girl had become his friend, sure enough, but he shouldn¡¯t have let her bring hope in his heart. It was clear as day that Elea still despised him.

    Nonetheless, when he looked at her, all he could feel was love and guilt at causing her such pain. Five years hadn¡¯t diminished his feelings even by the smallest margin.

    ¡°I know, I screwed up. I know it¡¯s my fault. It¡¯s all my fault,¡± he confessed, his head hanging in shame, but at the end he forced himself to look up to her. She was shining, like the goddess she¡¯d always been to him, not the Sovereign she was.

    ¡°Five years ago...I made a mistake. It¡¯s my fault they died. I know. I know you hate me for that...you have every right to. I hate myself too.¡±

    He choked on the words as he remembered that day, five years ago, when their happiness went up in flames and screams. All his fault. They all died because of him.

    How could he face her after that? After causing something so atrocious?

    Yes, how could he have given up on her so easily? Was what he did right?

    The moment he had seen that video of Elea and the other guy...he¡¯d suddenly questioned everything. And now she stood in front of him and he could say nothing but empty words.

    ¡°Zenon, I don¡¯t hate you for what happened five years ago,¡± her voice, now a little softer, chimed like music through the air, ¡°I don¡¯t even blame you. But you left. You left without saying a word, leaving me behind. I was supposed to be your companion! Your soul companion! I would¡¯ve followed you, despite everything that happened. But you left. You left me.¡±

    Her voice quivered and broke and the end. Zenon¡¯s head snapped up and met the raw pain in her expression and felt like someone had rammed a sword into his chest.

    Breathing suddenly seemed harder as he choked on his feelings, his guilt, the unimaginable guilt.

    There it was, the answer.

    What he did was the opposite of right. Leaving had ruined everything instead of saving it. He had hoped to save what little was left of him by not confronting her rejection, but his cowardly move might have cost him everything.

    Regret like he never felt before rushed through him.

    ¡°Why did you come back, Zenon?¡± Elea asked with a tiny voice, tears shining in her eyes, ¡°Why? Why now? Is it because I want to bond with someone else? Is that it?¡±

    A low, animalistic growl vibrated in his chest as he heard her speaking of someone else. Jealousy, one he had no right to possess, flooded into him. Despite everything, a part of him considered Elea to be his, his alone. Just as he was still hers and had never been any other¡¯s in the last five years.

    ¡°Does he make you happy?¡± he asked with a rough voice. If she said yes, he¡¯d leave. He¡¯d let her break his heart into tiny little fragments and walk back with them stabbing into his flesh for the rest of his potentially unlimited life. If she said yes, none of that would matter.

    But she didn¡¯t say yes.

    Instead, she darted away from his gaze.

    ¡°Does he make you happy?¡± he asked again, this time with more insistence, eyes firmly fixed on her, ¡°Does he make you as happy as we were back then?¡±

    ¡°Of course he doesn¡¯t!¡± Elea screamed and then clasped her hand in front of her mouth. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have said that.¡±

    She paled and took a step back. Away from him. It still stung, this little, unconscious rejection, it stung more than her slap to his face. Zenon stared at her, hope eating like flames into his guts.

    ¡°Yes you should have said that!¡± he protested and couldn¡¯t help but stretch his hand out to her. When he realized what he¡¯d done, he let it fall again, even though he wanted nothing more than to hold her close.

    ¡°No, I shouldn¡¯t,¡± her voice was cold, though still quivering, ¡°This is none of your business. Who I am bonding with and why is no longer any of your concern. You lost that right when you left me five years ago!¡±

    She was in defensive mode, one Zenon knew very well from when they had fought before. It was a point where none of his words could reach her and she wouldn¡¯t let anything touch her, an iron armour around her heart. In the past, he would¡¯ve known what to do to coax her out of it...but now¡­

    This was far more than just a fight. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    It was a war, he feared, and one he might have already lost.

    ¡°Elea, please¡­¡± What he was begging of her, he didn¡¯t know. One last chance?

    He was ready to fall to his knees and beg for her forgiveness, but he knew that she wouldn¡¯t appreciate that any more than his apologies. Instead, he hung onto her eyes like a dying man onto a cliff, praying she wouldn¡¯t push him off.

    He could see the hesitation in her eyes, the pain that tore her apart as it tore at him. Like she wanted to give into him, but couldn¡¯t. Was truly something holding her back?

    She said the guy didn¡¯t make her happy. Was he one that made her sad then? Did he have some hold over her that forced her hand?

    The longer she held his gaze, the more his tentative hope grew.

    And the more it hurt when she smashed it apart.

    ¡°I can¡¯t, Zenon. You left me when I needed you the most. You can¡¯t just come back when it¡¯s convenient for you or when, gods forbid, I actually move on. Leave, Zenon. I don¡¯t want to see you again. Ever.¡±

    Her gaze turned rock hard and he could almost hear his hold slip and his heart plunge into an infinite chasm. That was it. The rejection he wanted to avoid five years ago.

    He now knew why he was so scared of it.

    It hurt more than any wound he¡¯d ever received combined.

    It hurt so much that he wanted to bawl like a little girl, but despite everything, he still had his pride. He gave her one last pleading glance, filled with all the pain her words had caused him, but she only shook her head.

    ¡°Alright,¡± he rasped, his voice nearly breathless, ¡°I¡¯ll leave you alone.¡±

    The words were bricks on his tongue, tearing everything apart as he spoke them and Elea didn¡¯t look happy at all as he forced them out. In fact, she looked just as heartbroken as he felt.

    He couldn¡¯t help but say one last thing.

    ¡°Elea...I¡¯ve never stopped loving you. I love you. I¡¯ll always love you. Just...remember that,¡± he said and then turned on his heel and walk away, lest he really start crying.

    With every step, though, the grief bled out of his feet.

    What remained was an all consuming emptiness in the place his heart had been.

    Well, he guessed, he would have to get used to that from now on.

    Damn Arette for bringing him here.

    Arette, meanwhile, was firmly held back by Liz, whose grip on her arm was tight enough to cause bruises. She¡¯d wanted to interfere into the fight the entire time - mostly to bash Elea¡¯s head into a rock - but Liz had bravely held her back, insisting that the two of them had to sort it out on their own.

    Arette understood that - but it didn¡¯t make it any easier to sit still.

    Now, Zenon had left and she was about to spew insults at Elea, but before she could do anything, the young woman suddenly broke down on her knees and began to sob violently.

    As if a storm she¡¯d held in suddenly broke free, Elea began to cry out loud, tears streaking over her face in angry trails. Arette was stunned, gaping at the woman that had just cold-heartedly sent Zenon away.

    Seeing her like this, Arette couldn¡¯t find it in her to hold onto her anger.

    Elea¡¯s light filled flame was surrounded by darkness and scars, just as deep as Zenons, if not deeper. Gingerly, Arette stepped close to her, wanting to comfort her, to say something, anything, but once again, her intentions were interrupted.

    This time, by the sound of footsteps.

    All three of them jerked up and turned in the direction, seeing three silhouettes making their way to Elea¡¯s little cottage. Zenon¡¯s soul companion panicked, eyes darting around and falling onto Arette and Liz, who were just standing there without really an idea what to do.

    ¡°You need to hide,¡± Elea hissed and hastily wiped her tears from her face. She shooed them towards the trees, into bushes high enough to hide the two of them.

    Arette frowned and was about to refuse - she still needed to yell at Elea after all - but Liz had already grabbed her sleeve and pulled her behind them before she could say anything.

    ¡°What? Why do we need to hide?¡± she hissed towards Liz.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you see her earlier?¡± Liz gave back quietly, ¡°It¡¯s not just that she¡¯s angry at Zenon. There¡¯s something else and I think we¡¯re about to witness it firsthand.¡±

    Arette blinked and looked at her best friend, clearly stunned. She wouldn¡¯t have thought that far...but then again, Liz was a lot smarter than her to begin with.

    So they held their breaths and watched as three men approached Elea. Two of them looked brutish and by their flames, Arette knew them to be hardened and seasoned fighters, both of their souls kept in a tightly curled ball that let no feelings in or out.

    The third, smallest man of the group was different.

    She immediately recognized him as the man from the recording Zenon had showed them, the man who wanted to bond Elea. Yet, when he approached the young woman, there was no love in his eyes nor his flame.

    There was only greed in his expression and lust and his flame was permanently hungry because of both. Arette sneered at she saw him, immediately disliking him.

    He approached Elea and even though the woman stiffed and retreated a small step, he drew her against him and pressed a kiss on her lips. Aretteangrily watchedthe darkness tighten its hold around Elea¡¯s light filled flame.

    Liz was right. This wasn¡¯t just anger at Zenon - this was fear and resignation, mixed in the worst way possible. Again, she wanted to jump up, but this time held herself back. They needed to know more before she acted.

    The man finally released Elea after three or four excruciating seconds and she looked only incredibly disgusted instead of madly in love.

    ¡°I see you remembered what I told you last time,¡± the man drawled and petted Elea¡¯s cheek, who unconsciously took another step back. He clicked his tongue in disapproval.

    ¡°Ah-ah, don¡¯t you dare reject me now. Or do you want your brother to have another unfortunate...incident?¡±

    He grinned as Elea paled and hastily shook her head.

    ¡°Good girl. Now get ready for tomorrow. I put up a great effort to stage it as if you were becoming truly my lover,¡± he laughed as if the very notion was ridiculous. Arette pressed her hands into firsts, already calculating where to land her first blow. In his face, probably. Yeah, face was a good idea.

    ¡°Please don¡¯t hurt my brother,¡± Elea pleaded, tears swimming in her eyes. The dark tendrils around her flame squeezed, as if wanting to put out the fire that burned inside of her.

    ¡°Oh don¡¯t worry. If you become mine tomorrow and are obedient, the cripple won¡¯t be harmed. As for you...I can¡¯t exactly say the same,¡± he snickered and looked at her with lust leering in his eyes, then abruptly turned around to stalk off. His goons glared at Elea for another second, then turned around to accompany their master as well.

    As soon as they were out of sight, Arette jumped out of the bushes and walked over to Elea, who was shivering like a leaf by now. Softly, she put a hand on the young woman¡¯s shoulder, who looked up to her with panic and shame.

    ¡°Who- who are you?¡± Elea asked weakly, not pushing her hand away. By now, Liz had also walked out to stand by Arette, her expression one of pity and hesitation.

    ¡°My name is Arette. I¡¯m a friend of Zenon¡¯s, I actually convinced him to get his ass here to talk to you,¡± she grinned awkwardly as she introduced herself.

    As soon as she spoke Zenon¡¯s name, Elea dissolved into tears again.

    ¡°You love him, don¡¯t you? Despite what you said?¡± Arette questioned even though she already knew the answer. The devotion and deep love was buried under Elea¡¯s scars, but it was part of her very core, not something that could be erased with time.

    Hesitating, Elea looked up at her, but in her already drained state, she didn¡¯t work up anger anymore. Instead, she gave her a small, almost not visible nod.

    ¡°Of course I do,¡± she whispered, clutching her shirt right over her heart with a trembling hand, ¡°I¡¯m so angry at him for leaving but...but...I always wished for him to come back. I always waited, every day, waited for this day. And now that he¡¯s here...I can¡¯t¡­¡±

    Her voice broke and Arette was overcome with sympathy for a stranger, a girl she didn¡¯t even know but felt connected to, mostly because she was the true love of someone she cared about.

    ¡°Your brother?¡± she asked softly, trying not to startle Elea with the anger that bubbled up inside of her, the audacity of the thought that someone would threaten such a fragile, yet brave young woman.

    Elea nodded again, trying to wipe her tears but new ones kept coming.

    ¡°He was wounded in the raid five years ago...he hasn¡¯t been able to walk ever since. I used totake care ofhim, but¡­¡± she stopped to take a deep breath, then continued, ¡°Harker always wanted me. He made his advances shortly after Zenon left, but I always rejected him until a few months ago, he found out about my brother. He....he took him away from me. He wants me to accept a bond of slavery, poses it as if he was bonding with me out of love, saying that otherwise...well, you heard it.¡±

    Elea buried her face in her hands and Arette turned away to kick against the trunk of a nearby tree.

    ¡°Fucking shit,¡± she cursed, overcome by anger for the man who had driven such a lovely girl so far.

    But as she thought about it, an idea entered her mind.

    ¡°So, if your brother was free, you wouldn¡¯t bond with this Harker guy and instead give Zenon another chance?¡± she asked, eyes gleaming with a forming plan.

    Elea was visibly confused, but then gave a bitter smile.

    ¡°Zenon is my soul companion. Of course I¡¯d give him another chance,¡± she whispered, ¡°If he still wanted me after what I just did.¡±

    Arette grinned.

    ¡°Oh don¡¯t you worry about that,¡± she chuckled and patted Elea on the shoulder, ¡°I¡¯ll handle it. As long as you don¡¯t reject him again, everything will be fine.¡±

    ¡°What? Nothing will be fine!¡± Elea exclaimed, but Arette dismissed her with a simple wave.

    ¡°I¡¯ll handle it,¡± she assured again and then turned to Liz.

    Her best friend looked like she already knew what was coming and was resigned.

    ¡°You¡¯re thinking what I think you¡¯re thinking, aren¡¯t you?¡± Liz asked with a sigh and Arette grinned even brighter.

    ¡°You¡¯re damn right.¡±

 Chapter Twenty-Two - The Rescue

    <u>Chapter Twenty-Two -The Rescue</u>

    Trailing the trio had been surprisingly easy for Arette.

    For someone who had lived overahalf year in the forest, staying hidden was a prerequisite for a successful hunt and hopping over rooftops was far easier than climbing trees, so that was that.

    Shortly after she had left a bewildered Elea and a weary Liz, she had sprinted to catch up with Harker and his goons and had found them not at all far.

    They walked slowly, throwing their weight on everyone they met like the disgusting pigs they were, so Arette had no problem keeping up with them.

    She stuck to the roofs and followed them out of the village, through the forest and back to the city of Gera, where the side alleys and crowds gave her an even better cover than the trees.

    Finally, she observed them entering an abandoned looking building. If she¡¯d followed them in, she wouldn¡¯t have been able to stay covered and as much as she wanted to, a battle in there was risky.

    Harker himself was nothing much to worry about - an Emperor wasn¡¯t someone she feared. And even though his goons were also only Sovereigns, she couldn¡¯t read their paths in their hardened flames and if she¡¯d learned anything from Nex, it was that she shouldn¡¯t barge into a fight if she didn¡¯t know her enemies strengths.

    And so, she observed them a while longer through the windows and even got a glimpse of a tied up man in a corner of the room - Elea¡¯s brother, she guessed.

    Memorizing the way to the hideout, she withdrew and walked back to Elea¡¯s village, trying to formulate a plan other than barging in and kicking ass.

    She didn¡¯t come up with anything.

    Oh well, Liz would think of something. Liz was smart after all.

    It was well in the night when she reached the inn that Liz had told her to meet at. She hadn¡¯t met up with Zenon before following the trio, mostly because she knew he¡¯d want to leave right away.

    With her gone, she¡¯d forced him to find something to stay the night, remaining in the village until morning, just as she wanted him to.

    Instead, Liz had returned to find Zenon to tell him about what they found out about Elea.

    Now, they¡¯d agreed to meet again and Liz was already pacing up and down in front of the inn when Arette arrived.

    ¡°How did it go?¡± her best friend all but assaulted her once she¡¯d come close enough.

    ¡°Good, I think,¡± she shrugged and told Liz about what she¡¯d found, ¡°How was your end?¡±

    Liz¡¯s face fight brightened with her good news, then scrunched up.

    ¡°He didn¡¯t listen to me at all. Just brushed me off. I had no chance to explain anything at all.¡±

    Arette groaned - damn Zenon was almost as stubborn as herself.

    ¡°Then what should we do? We need to prevent the ceremony that starts in...how late is it?¡±

    Arette shot a quizzical look at Liz, who had recently purchased something called a ¡®pocket watch¡¯ that was able to count time. Liz took the round thing out of her pocket and frowned.

    ¡°It¡¯s almost two a.m.¡± she said grimly.

    ¡°What? That late?¡± she¡¯d left the city when the sun had just set, but apparently the sun had set later than she¡¯d thought, ¡°The ceremony stats at seven. I need two hours if I run to the city, at least one hour to free the brother and if I have to carry him, three hours to be back. And that¡¯s if I leave now with a plan on how to free him - that¡¯s not enough, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    She was better at calculating than at writing and Liz¡¯s dark expression confirmed her estimate.

    ¡°No¡­¡± Liz said and began to pace again.

    ¡°What should we do?¡± Arette asked, after all, Liz was the planner of them. Liz paused, then paced again, then stopped in her tracks.

    ¡°We need to stop the ceremony whatever it takes. But I can¡¯t do that, so either you do it or Zenon. The other has to go and free Elea¡¯s brother. But to free the brother, you¡¯d need to leave now...and persuading Zenon won¡¯t be a matter of just a few minutes, I fear¡­¡±

    Liz bit her lip and then finally turned to Arette with determination in her eyes.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s do it like this. You go now and go back to their hideout. By the time you get there, Harker and at least one of his bodyguards should be gone, on the way here. Get in as fast as you can and take the brother. Only fight if you have to. I¡¯ll try to persuade Zenon to get his ass up and stop the ceremony.¡±

    Arette pondered about it for a moment, but hardly found a better solution. In fact, barging in and kicking ass sounded just fine for her. She grinned.

    ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll free the brother, don¡¯t worry. Will you manage?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll have to.¡±

    They gave each other a serious nod and Arette took off in the direction she¡¯d come from. Finally, her training paid off - running for two hours straight wasn¡¯t much of a strain anymore, thankfully.

    Now, she pushed herself harder than ever before.

    And honestly?

    She loved every second of it.

    Two hours later, she was hiding in a small street next to the hall in Gera again. She¡¯d met Harker and one of his goons on the way, just as Liz predicted.

    The other one, as she could see through one of the windows, was guarding their prisoner, while two more guards were stationed throughout the room.

    The guards were Emperors, both seeming to be the elemental type. The fire one wouldn¡¯t be a problem - no flame in her vicinity would dare to attack her, not if it was controlled by someone weaker than her. The wind one could become a problem - but the one she was most worried about was the other of Harker¡¯s bodyguards, a Sovereign she couldn¡¯t see through at all.

    But still, she wasn¡¯t exactly afraid. The opposite, actually.

    Thrill was bubbling in her stomach, making her tense with excitement rather than worry or fear.

    Her fingers itched as she climbed up the wall to an already opened window in the first floor.

    There seemed to be ordinary rooms above the abandoned hall and she figured entering from within and having surprise on her side would help her cause.

    She hadn¡¯t scaled many houses before but with the red brick under her fingers being uneven, she didn¡¯t have much difficulty finding little nooks and ledges she could use to climb.

    In a few swift motions, she had propelled herself through the opened window and into a room that looked empty.

    By the amount of dust and spiders that lived in it, there hadn¡¯t been anyone here in years. Not that Arette cared much - if anything, it was to her advantage.

    With light steps, she snuck out of the room and down a staircase in the hallways behind it. She was halfway down and could already see the backs of the two guards when her next step caused a loud creaking sound to echo through the room.

    Immediately, three pairs of eyes shot towards her.

    ¡°Who are you? How did you get in here?¡± The leader goon questioned, stepping closer to her. She could feel his aura seeping from his hardened flame into his body, then his surroundings. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    Her fingers itched as she grabbed the sword she¡¯d strapped to her belt earlier on.

    ¡°I would say I¡¯m not here to fight...but that would be a lie,¡± she grinned and drew her blade. The goon¡¯s eyes narrowed and his aura flashed out, no doubt aiming to subdue her without even making a move.

    But she swatted his outreach away with a single sweep of her flames before releasing her own fire into her surroundings. The two weaker guards immediately paled and retreated, while the head goon¡¯s expression darkened.

    Without warning, Arette made the first move.

    Not unlike she¡¯d attacked Nex a month prior, she ran towards him, but this time, she kept her senses aware to her surroundings. That was one of the first things her instructor had taught her - always be aware of what¡¯s around you.

    She ran towards the head goon, taking a small step left before swinging her blade at his shoulder. He darted away, avoiding the blow and immediately drew his own weapons, two smaller daggers strapped to his legs.

    Arette retreated in a single motion, then jumped to deliver a kick to his side. This time, she succeeded, her foot slammed into his ribs, rewarding her with a satisfying crunch.

    She grinned, but he didn¡¯t fall as she hoped.

    Instead, he grabbed ahold of her leg and used her own momentum to smash her against the wall.

    All air left her lungs as she smashed against the concrete and slumped for a second.

    But the pain was insubstantial with the adrenaline in her veins and when she heard the sizzling in the air, she immediately darted out of the way to avoid the throwing knives that he¡¯d aimed at her.

    She grabbed her sword tighter and ran at him again.

    If she used her flames, she¡¯d have him defeated within seconds. She knew it because she knew how much stronger she was compared to him, but at the same time, she didn¡¯t want to.

    Because in that moment, with her raising her sword to deliver a blow to his throat, being blocked by his daggers and thrown back, then retreating to attack again, she felt so incredibly alive.

    She felt like she did what she was born to do.

    She hadn¡¯t felt like this ever since she¡¯d left the woods. Because this wasn¡¯t a training fight - this was survival. Her or him. Life or death.

    And she loved it.

    A grin was spreading on her face as her blows started to land, slicing open his arms, then his stomach. He hit her as well, but failed to drive his blades in deep enough to slow her down.

    She swirled and ran, using her smaller physique and higher speed to evade his stronger attacks, backflipping over him to cut his shoulders and back, but he always managed to dodge the life threatening blows in the last second.

    Still, it was only a matter of time.

    She was faster, had more endurance and her innate powers gave her overall more power. The only thing he could combat her with was more experience, but with raising fatigue, that too wouldn¡¯t protect him forever.

    So Arette played a game of endurance that she knew she would win. She danced around him, her sword darting forwards when he didn¡¯t expect it, breaking through his defense again and again, while the wounds he managed to inflict on her remained superficial.

    And all the while, the buzz of life in her spurred her to go past her limits.

    Finally, she saw it. An opening, an arm raised a little too high, leaving his side completely vulnerable. She pounced, thrusting her sword forwards and accurately hitting his side.

    He groaned and stumbled backwards, but he didn¡¯t fall, even with her blade stuck in his side. Arette frowned and suddenly, he turned around to her and smashed his fist in her face.

    She recoiled, falling down from the force of the punch and felt blood rise in her mouth.

    For a second, her defense was failing.

    That was all it took for his aura to envelop her.

    And suddenly, the world dissolved into agony.

    Pain rushed through her, filling her entire body, from her head to her shoulders to her legs, everything was filled with pain. A scream tore through her mouth as she curled up, unable to comprehend what was happening.

    Everything hurt. She coughed and felt more blood spluttering out of her mouth as the pain in her head increased to an impossible level. She screamed again.

    ¡°Silly girl. I¡¯ve been walking the path of pain for a hundred years, it¡¯s inevitable,¡± the head goon drawled, clearly happy with himself, even if her sword was embedded in his body.

    It¡¯s inevitable.

    For him to beat her? Like hell.

    She growled and pushed her eyes open past the pain, glaring at him. That was when she realized it - she wasn¡¯t actually wounded. The pain was...his ability. His path, just like her fire.

    It overpowered her, but it couldn¡¯t conquer her. She wouldn¡¯t let it.

    Drawing from her flame, she pushed her soul outwards, spreading it into her body and outwards again. With explosive force, she propelled it outwards and incinerated the head goon¡¯s aura.

    The pain disappeared in a flash as she struggled to stand up and glared at him.

    The excitement had now vanished to make way for boiling, vengeful anger.

    ¡°Oh so you¡¯re playing dirty, huh?¡± she snarled, seeing red, ¡°Well, I can play dirty too.¡±

    She incinerated the air around her, letting flames blaze over her body. The heat of the fire ran through her as she pushed her inner power forwards and let the fires burn as hot as she could.

    The head goon paled and stumbled backwards, but his feet couldn¡¯t carry him far.

    He might not be perturbed by the sword in his side, but his body sure as hell was.

    Well, it wasn¡¯t as if he¡¯d have a body for much longer.

    With a low growl, she set her flames on him, burning his oxygen before setting his skin on fire. His screams echoed through the night.

    Still furious, she darted forwards, pulled her blade out of his side and pushed it straight through his heart. His screams died as he sunk to the floor.

    Within moments, his body was reduced to ashes.

    Panting, Arette stared down on him.

    For a moment, the world seemed to stop and there was only her and the awareness of the fact that she just killed someone. And it wasn¡¯t just an animal to ensure survival - it was another person and she was the instigator of the attack.

    But what shocked her the most was the fact that she didn¡¯t really feel anything.

    Not satisfaction. Not guilt.

    She hadn¡¯t wanted to kill him, only intended to knock him out, but the heat of the battle had gotten to her head and she hadn¡¯t even thought about anything else than winning.

    If he hadn¡¯t pulled the pain thing on her, she wouldn¡¯t have killed him. But he did and now he was dead and there was no shred of remorse in her.

    He¡¯d been Elea¡¯s enemy and Elea¡¯s enemies were Zenon¡¯s and Zenon¡¯s were hers. And she had no mercy for enemies.

    She took another deep breath and pushed her blade back into the sheath.

    The other two guards had long fled the building - good for them. If they wouldn¡¯t stand in her way, she didn¡¯t need to consider them enemies.

    Brushing her hair out of her face, she walked over to the captive, who was staring at her with wide, fearful eyes. His body looked younger than hers and not like Elea at all with black skin and red hair, but family was rarely defined by blood in the Plane of Gods.

    She pulled the gag from his mouth and burned off the shackles they¡¯d chained him with.

    ¡°What- who are you?¡± he questioned as soon as he could speak again.

    ¡°Are you Elea¡¯s brother?¡±

    ¡°Elea? She hasn¡¯t used that name for a long time...but yes, she¡¯s my sister,¡± he nodded, now completely confused, ¡°Are you here because of her?¡±

    Arette nodded and met his dark golden eyes with her pale ones.

    ¡°You could say that. Her soul companion Zenon is a friend of mine. But that doesn¡¯t matter right now. The man who captured you, Harker, apparently wants to force your sister to be his slave with your life as leverage in...a few hours. I don¡¯t want that to happen.¡±

    The brother raised his eyebrows, looking first baffled, then angry, then determined.

    ¡°Bastard,¡± he cursed and then nodded at her, ¡°I knew this was more than just bullying us. We have to stop him.¡±

    ¡°I know,¡± Arette cast a look at his legs, ¡°Elea told me you can¡¯t walk.¡±

    He looked down, face filled with shame and bitterness. ¡°Yeah. I¡¯m basically useless...you should probably leave me here and save her on your own.¡± He sighed in frustration.

    Arette rolled her eyes and squatted in front of him without asking.

    ¡°Idiot,¡± she chided, ¡°No one¡¯s useless. And your sister is doing this for you so you should be damn well present when we save her ass. Now get onto my back. I¡¯ll carry you.¡±

    There was silence for a while and she couldn¡¯t see his expression, but she guessed he was fighting with himself. She impatiently waited, trying to channel Liz and her ever present steadiness.

    Just when she was about to jump and yell something, his arms finally wrapped around her neck.

    She took his legs and hoisted him onto her back, wasting no time in getting out of the hall.

    ¡°Why are you doing this? You probably just saved my life,¡± he stated once they were out of the city and Arette began to sprint towards the forest and the village beyond it.

    ¡°I told you, Zenon is my friend. I want him to be happy and the best shot at that is with Elea. And Elea can¡¯t be with him unless you¡¯re safe, so...here I am,¡± she tried to shrug, which was kind of hard with a person on her back.

    ¡°Zenon? That bastard dares to show his face again after what he did to her?¡± the man on her back growled, his fingers around her neck tightening. Arette pursed her lips.

    ¡°He loves her. That should be more important than anything else, no?¡± she gave back curtly. If Elea¡¯s brother wanted to get into an argument, she¡¯d be on Zenon¡¯s side - after all, it had been her who wanted to come here.

    ¡°You don¡¯t know how much she went through after he left her,¡± he grumbled.

    ¡°You don¡¯t know how much he went through after he left. More than that, you don¡¯t even know why he left,¡± she snapped and he kept quiet after that.

    It was only after a while that he spoke up again and Arette tensed, ready to argue again.

    ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± he asked, leaving her baffled. A smile returned to her face as they went back to easier topics.

    ¡°Arette,¡± she said lightly, all while still darting through the forest they¡¯d reached by now. If all went well, she¡¯d reach the village just in time to give Elea proof of her brother¡¯s safety.

    ¡°I¡¯m Floric. I used to be Er¨¦ Pharan, but I left the clan after I was injured. Now I¡¯m just Floric.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s nice to meet you, just Floric,¡± she smiled to herself, feeling quite happy to have made another acquaintance - she didn¡¯t have many after all.

    Sure, she¡¯d stayed at Redhall for a month, but most people there avoided her, whyever. To have someone she didn¡¯t know talk to her normally made her quite happy already.

    ¡°Yeah, me too. Thanks for saving my life again.¡±

    ¡°Thank me after we save your sister¡¯s as well.¡±

 Chapter Twenty-Three - A Ceremony And A Bond

    Chapter Twenty-Three - A Ceremony And A Bond

    "Zenon you have to listen to me, now!"

    Liz''s voice was a scream by now as she stood in front of his door. It was half past six, Elea''s bonding ceremony being only half an hour away and so far, Zenon had shut her off. She stood in front of the door of his room now, screaming her lungs out for the past four hours, but so far nothing had been able to coax him out.

    This was why she had been reluctant to send Arette away! If Arette had been here, she''d just kick the door in and drag Zenon out, but Liz neither had her best friend''s courage nor her strength.

    So here she was, begging.

    "Zenon, please¡­I know you never liked me and I know that you''re angry at us, but you don''t understand! Elea didn''t reject you because she was angry or because she hates you! You have to believe me!"

    "STOP LYING!" he thundered out of his room, voice coarse and harsh. There was a slight quiver as well as if he''d been crying. Liz''s heart clenched for this man, who had suffered so much.

    Before Arette, she''d never had much contact with Zenon - or Murron, as he called himself. As a teacher of an advanced class she never got into, he was far removed from her.

    After that, she always knew that he harbored dislike for her. Maybe it was her own sense of bad things that made her so keenly aware of his disregard, but then again, most people happened to dislike her and he just was another addition to that.

    But the last two weeks had changed that.

    Hearing his story, there was no way she couldn''t feel for him. Traveling with him for two weeks made her unable to dislike him, who shared a silent and steady disposition with her - and by now, she wanted to see him as happy as Arette did.

    And the fact that he had just denied that there was still hope for his love life for about nine hours straight brought her close to her limits. So when she knocked on the door for the millionth time that night, her face was covered in tears and she was close to giving up.

    It was then that the door finally opened.

    Zenon stood behind it, eyes red from either crying or not sleeping, looking about as horrible as Liz felt. Startled, Liz fell to her knees and stared up at him hastily wiping her tears away.

    "Liz, what are you doing?" he asked with a shake of his head as he took in her distressed form.

    "Zenon¡­" she sobbed, now that he was standing across her, she somehow had problems talking. Go figure. Another reason why she had wanted Arette here - she never had problems with speaking up.

    "What, you''ve been yelling at me for nine hours and now you can''t even speak up?" he asked wearily, a bitter smile playing on the corners of his lips.

    Liz took a deep, trembling breath and then stood up, trying to stand straight and confident as she''d seen Arette do.

    "Elea doesn''t hate you. She''s being threatened and she''s going to bond with the guy who has been blackmailing her for months and it''s not going to be a lover''s bond," she spoke as fast as she could, wanting to get it out as quick as possible, "He wants to force her into a slave bond by threatening to kill her brother, who was crippled in the attack five years ago. That''s why she rejected you - because she knew you would stop her from bonding with him and that would put her brother''s life in danger."

    She gasped for breath at the end of her hurried speech as relief flooded over her. Finally, she''d been able to tell him. After so much screaming, she''d almost already given up on ever convincing him.

    Zenon looked at her with doubt in his eyes, clearly not ready to believe her. She understood it, somehow - he''d just been hurt horribly and was trying to shield himself from it.

    "Liz, don''t lie to me to make me interrupt the ceremony or whatever crazy plan Arette has hatched now. Please, don''t lie to me," he slumped against the door, completely drained.

    She pressed her lips together, frowning at him.

    "Do you really think we would lie about something so important? Elea said that she would be willing to give you another chance if she didn''t have to worry about her brother. So Arette is in Gera right now, saving him. She probably won''t make it back in time, though, so we have to stop the ceremony. Which is happening in twenty minutes, by the way. If you don''t do this, Elea will be enslaved to this guy for the rest of her life. I can''t save her on my own. Please, we need to go."

    He looked visibly shaken by her words, but not yet completely convinced. Liz felt impatience and nervous panic building in her stomach with every second they wasted.

    "Besides, what do you have to lose?" she challenged, urgency now overruling her usual hesitation, "She already rejected you - she can''t do anything more than do it again. And if you don''t go and what I say is true then you''ll lose the woman you love forever. Can you really risk that?"

    His eyes were softening as he realized how frantic she was.

    "But¡­" he put up resistance again, but Liz just about had it with his moping.

    "Zenon, I am not lying. Now hurry up or she''ll be bonded to him and you''ll be alone for the rest of your life!"

    That got him into motion, finally. He nodded and grabbed the sword he''d leaned against his door.

    "Alright, I''m going to believe you. Even if she hates me, I can''t just let her become a slave. Not her. Never her," he seethed and grit his teeth, ready to act.

    Liz breathed a sigh of relief and tugged on his sleeve. Together, they ran as fast as they could, out of the inn and towards the central square of the small village where such ceremonies were usually held.

    Liz had talked to Elea for a bit after Arette had left and found out that the Harker guy wanted to appear righteous, so he staged it as if they were lovers, but in reality had been pissed off by her numerous rejections that he was now using her brother to push her into a slave bond.

    He was a despicable man. Liz rarely felt hate for someone, tried to push it down because negative feelings usually made her cause a disaster of some kind, but now she couldn''t help it.

    Promptly, Zenon next to her tripped over a stone and fell to the floor, scraping open his knee. He cursed as he stood back up and the wound almost immediately healed, but Liz felt bad nonetheless.

    "I''m so sorry," she fumbled for words all while still dragging them towards the square.

    "No worries," Zenon grumbled, "I''m already surprised we actually made it here with your power problems."

    Liz gulped at that and looked at the floor, unable to rebuke. She''d been a lot better ever since she was friends with Arette, mostly because Arette always pointed out to her when she was about to cause misfortune and so far, she''d even got a slight feeling of her own power.This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.

    Nonetheless, she was still a disaster on two legs.

    But alas, none of that mattered right now. Elea mattered.

    They arrived when the ceremony had only just begun. There were Harker and Elea, standing right in front of the fountain, surrounded by a ring of flowers and, with only a narrow path left free, the entirety of villagers gushing around them.

    Zenon stopped dead in his tracks and stared at his soul companion with wide eyes. Liz tugged at his sleeve, urging him on, but he stood there like a stone.

    Liz sighed and walked right in front of him, looking up at him as well as she could.

    With a slight smile, she tugged him down to her height and ruffled his hair up a bit.

    "What the-" he started, but stopped when he saw her lips curving upwards.

    "You need to look dashing for your big entrance, don''t you?" she laughed and pinched his cheeks in a futile try to make him look a little less ghastly.

    He gave her a tight-lipped smile and then looked away to Elea again. His jaw tensed as the determination grew stronger in his eyes.

    "Arette has saved her brother, you say?" he reassured himself in a low voice.

    Liz affirmed, "There should at most be a Sovereign guarding him. She''ll manage, don''t worry about her end."

    Zenon gave her only a blink as acknowledgment and then finally a decisive nod.

    "Now go," Liz urged and pushed him into the direction of the congregation.

    He cleared his throat and stepped forwards.

    If Zenon thought he was nervous before, he''d had no idea. It was one thing to meet the person you love after five years without knowing their reaction and entirely another to go up to a person that just broke your heart into pieces and tell her something you had no right to be telling her.

    But Liz wouldn''t lie to him about this. And, even if he didn''t like to admit it with his anger still going strong, neither would Arette. And he couldn''t let Elea be bonded - into a slave bond at that - to a man she didn''t love.

    So he straightened his back and summoned all his courage as an Ascendant of Power and walked onto the town square, straight through the masses and to the flower-surrounded couple. The asshole that wanted to put a claim to his soul companion was speaking.

    "With all love and respect, I hereby pronounce you my companion," he said while holding Elea''s hand up. Zenon walked faster but they hadn''t seen him yet. "As it is my honor, I am hereby giving you a name. Your new name shall be- "

    "Her name is Elea you bastard!"

    He screamed at them as he finally reached the couple. Both of them turned around to him, Elea with fear and Harker with fury. Well, his fury would never match Zenon''s. "What do you think you''re doing¡­?" the asshole began but was swiftly cut off by Zenon''s advance.

    "No, what do you think you''re doing? I wouldn''t care if you loved her but if you try to force my soul companion into a slave bond, I''ll tell you, that won''t happen in your lifetime!"

    He almost growled at him, voice deadly low and it took all he got to hold himself back from strangling the guy on the spot. Red flooded his vision.

    Harker paled as he heard the words ¡®soul companion'' but quickly recovered with a guffaw.

    "Slave bond? I''m obviously only initiating a lover''s bond and you have no business interfering. Or is there something you didn''t tell me, my love?" Harker hissed the last bit at Elea, whose panicking eyes darted between Harker and Zenon.

    "N-no, of course not," she stuttered and turned to Zenon, her lip trembling as it always did when she was afraid.

    He balled his hands into fists, ready to pounce at the guy at any opportunity. But Elea didn''t say the words he wanted to hear.

    "Zenon, you need to leave. You can''t be here now," she whispered, but he saw the tears in her eyes.

    His vision turned even hazier with rage.

    That bastard was the cause of her tears. He wouldn''t let him hurt Elea - not in this world or any other. He might''ve screwed up in protecting her once, but this time he wouldn''t fail.

    "You heard what my lover said. With you putting up this act, I''m worried about my dear lover''s brother, whose constitution is so frail, he surely won''t be able to put up with it. Unless you want to worsen this, I suggest you scam."

    Harker''s eyes never left Zenon''s, filled with spite and disgust. His words made Elea recoil, now trembling all over, and they were just what pushed Zenon over the edge.

    "Bastard," he growled and stepped forward to deliver a sound punch to his face.

    Harker stumbled backward, spitting out blood with a baffled expression.

    "You dare¡­" he began and spread his aura outwards. But all he could do was make Zenon laugh as the weak pressure of an Emperor tried to intimidate him.

    He scoffed and spread out his own soul, the power of an Ascendant immediately assaulting him with all the force Zenon found in him. Harker stumbled back another step, coughing and wheezing under the pressure.

    "No, Zenon, you need to stop, if you hurt him, my brother will¡­" Elea tugged on his arm and stared up at him with light like golden eyes, so incredibly beautiful.

    He turned to her and was lost in her orbs again, unable to tear away.

    "Your brother is safe. Arette freed him, you don''t need to worry anymore. You don''t owe this worm anything." He spat at Harker, who had managed to get up by now, which was quite the impressive feat considering the power he was pressured by.

    "Your underling will fail," Harker gave a sinister laugh just as Elea leaned into him and wanted to say something, "Her brother is guarded by a Sovereign of Pain with over a century of battle experience. A mere girl couldn''t defeat him."

    Harker laughed as if he had already won. Elea flinched and began to tremble again, visibly in fear for her brother again.

    But Zenon only chuckled.

    "Mere girl? You have no idea," he said, thinking about Arette. That spitfire would never be defeated by a mere Sovereign. He was about to turn back to Elea to reassure her when the voice of the very person sounded through the square.

    "You can say that again!" Arette shouted and he could already hear the grin in her voice.

    Shortly after the exclaim, the tall horned girl entered the circle, carrying a dark skinned, red haired man on her shoulders that he identified as Floric, one of Elea''s brothers.

    He''d always thought all her family died back then...but even if Floric looked at him with disdain, he couldn''t be gladder to see that Liz had been right and one of them had survived.

    "Flo!" Elea shouted as soon as she saw her brother and ran away from Zenon and Harker towards her brother.

    Arette laughed and put the guy down, holding him upright while his distraught sister fell into his arms. Zenon sighed in relief to see both Arette and Elea''s brother safe.

    "Lea," Floric said with a bright grin and hugged her, even though Arette still held his shoulders to ensure he wouldn''t fall with his legs unable to hold his weight.

    Zenon smiled at the tearful reunion of the siblings, feeling incredibly glad that things had worked out.

    "Sorry we''re late," Arette said with a grin, "We actually got lost in the woods, else we would''ve been here earlier."

    "You''re right on time," Zenon assured before turning to Harker, who was clearly outnumbered and outplayed here. He had tried to flee but hadn''t gotten far with Zenon still pressuring him.

    "Now to you," he said with a grim smile and approached the man who tried to hurt his true soul companion, "Don''t you dare think I''ll let you get away with this, greedy bastard."

    He snarled at him and delivered a kick to his chest to bring him on his knees. Anger boiled through every of his limbs, demanding death and torture and so much pain for this man who had hurt the woman he loved.

    He delivered a few kicks to his stomach and was only getting started when Elea''s voice interrupted him.

    "No, don''t. He''s not worth dirtying your hands," she said softly, before shooting Harker a dirty look of her own.

    Then, without warning, she took Zenon''s sword from his sheath and pushed it straight into Harker''s heart.

    A gasp ran through the congregated crowd as Harker''s body trembled and then stilled within seconds. Zenon looked from the corpse to his love and back again before snorting.

    Yes, his Elea was no pushover. It hadn''t been a coincidence that Phara had trusted given her a high position in the Renegade Clans back then - Elea might be quick to show feelings, but she wasn''t one to show mercy to her enemies either. It was something they shared and something he loved about her.

    It was something they shared and something he loved about her.

    She turned around to him, apprehension in her eyes, but once she saw his reassuring smile, she gave him a hesitant one of her own.

    For a moment, they only stared at him, the events from just now and her words from the last evening hanging between them heavily.

    But before he could say something, Elea flung herself into his arms and began to cry.

    And he just held her like that, feeling like the luckiest man in the Plane of Gods to be able to hold this woman in his arms again.

    "I''m sorry for what I said yesterday," Elea murmured once her sobs had stopped, "I never stopped loving you."

    Her words were like kisses to his heart, healing all the wounds that she had slashed into it yesterday with a single sentence. He took a small step back to look at her and couldn''t resist placing a soft kiss on her mouth.

    She leaned into him and for that moment, the world was complete. It was only then that he realized just how much he had missed her back then - more than he had ever missed anything else.

    "I love you," he whispered into her ear, lacing every single letter with all the devotion he had.

    Elea beamed up at him, now tears of happiness in her eyes.

    "I''m still mad at you for leaving, though," she chided with a playfully scolding expression.

    "I''m ready to spend my life making it up to you," he gave back but with nothing playful in his voice. He meant every single word.

    "Thank you for coming back," she said almost inaudibly.

    He smiled and pressed another kiss to her lips, swearing to himself that he would never again leave her - he was a fool for doing so, to begin with.

 Chapter Twenty-Four - Accomplishment

    Chapter Twenty-Four -Accomplishment

    ¡°Do you really have to leave already?¡± Elea looked at Arette and Liz, who had packed their things and were ready to return to Redhall.

    Elea and Zenon had more or less made up after their rescue at last second - it had involved more than a handful of squabbles and things being thrown around, but eventually, their love was too strong to be overshadowed by anger.

    Arette and Liz were quite proud of themselves, even though Zenon was still pissed at Arette for meddling so much.

    They had stayed with the once again madly in love couple for two weeks now, more out of courtesy than anything else, but eventually, Arette had about enough of the sugary sweetness that oozed from them.

    Right now, they stood together in front of the teleportation gate of Gera, ready to return to the lives they¡¯d interrupted with this journey.

    ¡°Yeah we do,¡± Arette blurted out before Elea managed to talk Liz into staying again - she¡¯d done that twice before, ¡°We¡¯ve already overextended our leave from school and I really need to get back to my training.¡±

    Liz nodded hastily to agree with her and Elea gave a defeated sigh. The three women had grown quite close in the last week, mostly because Elea was an amazing person and both Arette and Liz had found themselves quickly gaining a new friend in Zenon¡¯s true soul companion.

    But they couldn¡¯t stay in a backwater village forever. At least, Arette couldn¡¯t and Liz didn¡¯t want to leave her, so that was that.

    ¡°Alright,¡± Elea said with a sad smile and moved to gather both of them in a tight hug, ¡°Thank you so much for doing this for us. Without you, I would be Harker¡¯s slave by now and Zenon would still be moping around at Redhall.¡±

    She grinned and hit her lover playfully in the side, who only gave a disgruntled murmur as a return.

    Yet, when Zenon¡¯s eyes fell on Arette, he softened as well.

    With a swift move, he drew her into a hug.

    ¡°She¡¯s right. I owe you a lot, Arette. Thank you,¡± he said with a smile as he released her and she bumped her first against his shoulder softly.

    ¡°We¡¯re friends and this is what friends do, don¡¯t they? You also helped me out a lot, so let¡¯s just consider it even.¡±

    She grinned and he accepted it with a chuckle before pulling Liz into an equally warm hug. He said something to her as well, which made her blush, then he retreated back to the side of his lover.

    ¡°You need to visit us!¡± Elea insisted.

    ¡°Of course." Both of them gave their most reassuring nods.

    ¡°Goodbye.¡±

    They gave the couple another wink and then, before either of them got a spell of weakness and gave in to Elea¡¯s offer to stay for another while, they stepped right through the giant teleportation gate in the middle of Gera¡¯s central marketplace.

    ¡°Redhall, Fall¡¯s End,¡± Liz shouted.

    That was the last thing Arette heard before the world dissolved into colours and dizziness.

    She came to in her bed in Redhall, feeling dizzy and sick.

    Sitting up, she pushed down the urge to throw up and grabbed for a glass of water that someone knowingly had placed on her drawer.

    She downed the entire thing and then took a few breaths before the world stopped spinning and felt halfway normal again.

    ¡°Feeling better?¡± Liz¡¯s voice reached her and she looked up to see the young woman sitting in a chair huddled into the other corner of her small room.

    ¡°Yeah¡­¡± she groaned and held her head, but at least the world had stopped spinning, ¡°What happened?¡±

    Liz gave a sympathetic smile, ¡°I forgot it was your first time teleporting. The first time, everyone gets knocked out by the process. It¡¯ll get better after a few times.¡±

    ¡°Urgh, I¡¯m not sure if I ever want to do that again,¡± she blurted.

    Liz chuckled and shrugged, ¡°Well you don¡¯t have to. But by now, I manage it with only throwing up once, so I can assure you it does get better!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not really reassuring,¡± Arette threw her a withering gaze. Liz chuckled again.

    ¡°I know.¡±

    They both laughed when suddenly a booming voice entered the room.

    ¡°You¡¯re up, I see.¡±

    Throwing the door back with a loud bang, Nex strolled in. Despite the fact that she was small compared to even Liz, not even speaking aboutArette, her presence instantly made silence descend into the room.

    Arette jumped up and saluted her.

    ¡°Yes, sir!¡± she yelled but grinned at her instructor. Nex gave her a scathing glare, but Arette saw the mirth sparkling behind the sternness.

    ¡°Well, if you¡¯re fine enough to joke, you¡¯re fine enough to train. I expect you to be in the forest in five minutes. And if I find out you¡¯ve been slacking off on your little vacation¡­¡±

    She didn¡¯t need to finish the threat to sound imposing.

    ¡°Aye, aye sir!¡± she yelled after Nex with another grin. She¡¯d picked up the wording from another student in her martial arts class who used to be a soldier in his past life and couldn¡¯t get rid of talking like that after she found out that it pissed Nex off like nothing else.

    She was probably the only one in class who dared to tease their instructor like that, but then again, she was also the only one who enjoyed the extra training that Nex dished out as punishment.

    ¡°I really don¡¯t know how you put up with that,¡± Liz said with a sigh, staring after Nex with visible wariness.

    Arette just shrugged and changed from her travelling clothes into fighting gear and grabbed her sword.

    ¡°Well, I¡¯m off to torture!¡± she laughed and waved before sauntering out of the room. Liz gave her a wave back and just like that, they quickly returned to the routine they had developed in the previous month.

    And just like that, time passed.

    Spring soon turned into summer and summer passed into autumn as Fall¡¯s End bloomed in all the colours that it was famous for.

    Both Arette and Liz were mesmerized by the city¡¯s beauty, even though Liz had seen it quite a few times before. They wandered the autumn streets of the city for days on end, admiring the reds and oranges and golds of the trees that were fluttering through the air until Nex discovered Arette¡¯s slacking and dragged her back for training and Liz begrudgingly returned to the library.

    After that, the weather got colder and Arette finally moved from the garden into her room, even though she still insisted on spending her most time under the stars.

    By the time that snow fell onto Fall¡¯s End, both Arette¡¯s and Liz¡¯ knowledge had increased in lots of ways. Liz had almost memorized all of the books in Redhall, spoke now three dialects of the Plane of Gods fluently and most of all, had gained a minimum control over her powers.

    As long as she didn¡¯t delve into negativity again, she at least didn¡¯t harm anyone in her vicinity, something that both her and Arette considered great progress.

    Arette meanwhile had long ascended to the top of her class. With the relentless training from Nex and her own will to improve, the talent for weaponry that she showed back when Neiro had offered her his sword to hold unfurled and transformed her into a fighter that could hold her own against most.

    By late summer, she had managed to surpass the strength of a mortal and by the end of autumn, her body had the capacity of a trained Sovereign of Combat. At the end of winter, she was already scraping at an Ascendant¡¯s strength, but as of yet, her physique hadn¡¯t quite caught up with the rank her amount of power put her in. The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    The one thing she still struggled with was reading, but after she was able to decipher the most basic signs, Liz finally left her alone with the constant bickering and they reduced their sessions to once a week instead of once a day, something Arette was endlessly glad for.

    Winter soon abated and the snow melted and the day approached and passed that marked the one year anniversary of Arette and Liz'' friendship.

    It was shortly before the end of spring, which marked the beginning of a new year in the fiftieth province, that their days at Redhall were nearing a close.

    In fact, Liz had long been ready to leave the school. She knew more than the teachers and with her power under a minimum level of control, she had no real reason to continue hiding at a school meant for freshling Immortals that couldn¡¯t yet survive on their own.

    Arette had by now also gained a basic understanding of the Plane of Gods and with her strength being higher than most of the teachers to begin with, both of them knew that their stay would soon come to an end.

    The catalyst finally came on New Year¡¯s Eve.

    Arette and Nex were sparring, as they always did in the evenings, but a lot of things had changed since they first began fighting. Arette had long grown too powerful to be matched with other students and so the fights between the top disciple and the instructor had become an attraction for many residents of Redhall.

    But today was different from their usual fights.

    Because for the first time, Nex, Ascendant of Physics, was actually at a disadvantage.

    Not many people knew it, but Nex had actually kept an ability from her past life called ¡®Intuitive Physics¡¯ that allowed her to walk the path of Physics far easier than a normal Immortal could. The ability gave her an innate understanding for relations in nature. Be it formulas or abstract theories, it took Nex one look to understand them.

    In battle, her ability enabled her to read every vector of a movement within the fraction of a second it was initiated. That was how she stayed unbeaten for so long - her accuracy of guessing the next move of her opponent was nearing one hundred percent and the efficiency of her own attacks was deadly close to perfection.

    But today, she was at a disadvantage.

    It wasn¡¯t because her power failed or because she wasn¡¯t in top form. It was because her opponent, her very own student, had finally managed to scrape at her potential.

    And Arette¡¯s true potential was frightening.

    Even though Nex knew where the next blow was coming, she couldn¡¯t avoid it. Arette¡¯s sword arts were sharper than hers, even though she¡¯d taught them to her and Arette¡¯s speed topped hers with ease.

    So the moment she saw that Arette had aimed for her left, she barely managed to swerve away before the weapon scratched her skin, almost hitting her. Nex grit her teeth and darted around, using every bit of experience she had from this life and her former.

    But she couldn¡¯t find an opening.

    Arette¡¯s eyes gleamed with excitement and thrill as she pounced into another attack and Nex could only defend against her with all she had. There was no way to switch into offense and defending against attacks so fast that even her instincts had trouble keeping up was wearing her out quicker than ever before.

    They¡¯d been at it for over half an hour, only breaking apart for seconds to catch breath. In the beginning, Nex had had the advantage, but today, Arette had been more focused than usual and she quickly used every trick she had against her instructor.

    Now, Nex was scratching at her limits and Arette knew it.

    The crowd around them cheered, half for her, half for Arette, but the noise faded to background yelling as she tried to gather her wits for a final attack.

    But before she could do anything, her brain suddenly screamed at her in warning.

    In the last second, she stepped backwards and the blade aimed for her throat swung through air, hitting her sword instead.

    The force of the blow knocked her weapon from her hand and before she knew it, it was Nex who had a blade pointed at her throat.

    ¡°I concede,¡± she yelled and Arette lowered her sword, face glowing with happiness and accomplishment.

    And instead of feeling disappointed or frustrated, all Nex could feel was pride.

    The first time she¡¯d fought against her, she¡¯d have never thought that this girl would be able to beat her within the next ten, twenty years. But now, little over a year later, she had to admit defeat against the very same person.

    And it didn¡¯t even surprise her. Arette¡¯s talent was far, far greater than her own. If it hadn¡¯t been for her intuitive physics, she would¡¯ve lost far earlier. But it wasn¡¯t just talent - it had also been Arette¡¯s determination. None of her students had ever trained that hard.

    Without ever complaining, Arette had completed a training she wouldn¡¯t have been able to do herself and she did it every single day, continuously striving to improve herself and her techniques.

    All of that combined was what had led to her loss today.

    She couldn¡¯t have been more proud of her student. She had never told Arette about the fact that she thought she was incredibly talented, knowing that such things could easily go to the head and hinder the amazing dedication the girl had towards swordplay.

    But today, she would make an exception.

    ¡°Well done, Arette,¡± she said with an acknowledging smile.

    Arette¡¯s face lit up like a shooting star, a wide grin illuminating her features.

    ¡°Thank you, sir!¡± she quipped, still teasing her with the military talk as she¡¯d done right from the beginning. Nex scowled at her, but had already grown so used to it that she didn¡¯t even feel angry at being addressed like a man. After all, it wasn¡¯t as if she was very womanly either.

    ¡°Arette, you have talent and I¡¯m not good enough to teach you anything more than I already have. Don¡¯t waste it. Hone your talent. Get better. Get stronger. I will do the same.¡±

    Nex raised her chin and found her own determination again.

    She might have lost today, but she would never lose without demanding a rematch.

    Arette¡¯s eyes gleamed when she saw the challenge in her.

    ¡°Let¡¯s meet again in twenty years. We¡¯ll see who is stronger then,¡± Nex proposed, her face hardened into a serious expression, but inside, her desire to fight burned as strong as the fire in Arette¡¯s face.

    ¡°Agreed,¡± Arette shook her hand to confirm and for a moment, the two of them stared at each other.

    Then, each gave a nod and they walked into opposite directions.

    At that point of time, neither had any idea about how much time would really pass until they¡¯d meet again.

    ¡°Let¡¯s travel.¡±

    Arette¡¯s voice ripped Liz from the book she¡¯d just been holding in her hands. Startled, she looked up at her best friend who was standing over her with a vivid grin.

    ¡°What?¡± she echoed, not following.

    ¡°Let¡¯s travel. Let¡¯s get out of this place,¡± Arette repeated, eyes glowing with new ideas.

    Liz put her book away and looked at her queerly.

    ¡°What, like, visiting a few cities or what?¡± She still didn¡¯t quite understand it, even though part of her already dreaded what might be the answer.

    ¡°No, not like that,¡± Arette shook her head, ¡°Let¡¯s leave Redhall. I mean, Liz you can recite almost every single book of this library word by word and just today, I beat Nex and she told me she couldn¡¯t teach me anything more and -¡±

    ¡°Wait, stop. You beat Nex?¡± Liz gaped, thinking about the overbearing martial arts instructor. She didn¡¯t know of a single precedent - had never heard of a single time one of her students managed to beat her and certainly not after only a year!

    ¡°Yup!¡± Arette grinned happily, ¡°With swords only, though, she¡¯d probably still kick my ass with any other weapon. But I don¡¯t really want to fight with anything other than swords, actually. So...yeah, I don¡¯t really have a reason to stay here anymore.¡±

    Liz had to gulp at that, once more being reminded of how monstrous her best friend was. Arette might suck at making plans or at learning how to read - the last year had been a disaster in that aspect - but her talent at swordfighting was immeasurable.

    If you added to that the fact that she could control fire like it was a part of her, Arette was on her way to becoming invincible. Sometimes, it scared Liz how far away Arette was from her.

    She¡¯d never be able to reach her, not in this aspect.

    ¡°But Ari, what about your studies? Your other class?¡±

    Arette had joined her in History of the Plane of Gods after Elemental Control was impossible, but had always hated it. The teacher knew it, Liz knew it and she also knew that her argument was weak.

    ¡°Oh come on Lizzy, you know more than that teacher. If there¡¯s anything I need to know, you can tell me. Don¡¯t you feel stuck in here?¡±

    Arette began to pace up and down, agitation in every of her steps.

    ¡°I never wanted to stay here for longer than necessary. And now I¡¯ve learned all I wanted to learn. I know enough to survive out there - and I don¡¯t want to be stuck in here for another year! I want to see the world, see different places and meet different people and just...get to know the world. Don¡¯t you?¡±

    Her eyes were so hopeful, filled with so much yearning that Liz couldn¡¯t say anything.

    She didn¡¯t exactly feel the same way. Sure, seeing the world sounded amazing, but she always preferred safety over adventure. And travelling through a world without any truly defined laws or any international punishment seemed like walking straight into death for her.

    But Arette was burning with desire.

    ¡°Ari¡­¡± she sighed the nickname she¡¯d found for her friend over the last year and earned herself another pleading glance.

    ¡°Come on, Lizzy, you can¡¯t be happy being stuck in this place either! There¡¯s a world out there for us to see!¡±

    Yeah, a world for them to see and be devoured by. And Liz had no wish to die after she¡¯d only found her will to live a year ago.

    But looking at Arette, she knew that her friend would leave, with or without her. It was Arette¡¯s nature to wander, to go out on an adventure. Even in the last year, Arette had never managed to sit still for long, always off exploring or training, always doing one thing or another.

    Liz wasn¡¯t like that. She liked books and libraries and the quiet solitude of a ceiling above her head and walls around her.

    But Liz also liked Arette.

    Arette had pulled her out of her deepest darkness. When she thought she was all alone, without something to live for, Arette had offered her a hand to free her from all the loneliness.

    She owed her so much.

    And she really didn¡¯t want to be apart from her and sink back into her depressive routine.

    She didn¡¯t want that at all.

    So Liz made a decision that would change her life forever.

    ¡°Alright. Alright, let¡¯s travel. We need to take on quests for money, but you can fight and I have a lot of knowledge, so we should manage. Let¡¯s do it.¡±

    Arette¡¯s eyes lit up as if she¡¯d just given her the world.

    ¡°You¡¯re the best, Lizzy,¡± she squealed and drew her into a tight hug.

    Liz felt herself blush with the sudden contact but also felt incredibly happy in that moment. Arette would be worth it - her company, her friendship would be worth doing things she didn¡¯t like.

    A week later, they left Redhall for good.

    Leesha saw them off with a proud smile on her lips and a promise to meet again, while Liz tried to hide the fact that she¡¯d stolen not a few books from the library.

    Arette didn¡¯t have much to pack - she was only filled with incredibly excitement towards her new adventure. As of yet, she had no idea about what was to come.

    But then again, no one really did.

    END OFPART TWO - STARLIGHT NIGHTS AND RISING STARS

 Chapter Twenty-Five - The Pride...

    PART THREE - UNDER A STARRY SKY

    Chapter Twenty-Five -The Pride...

    Ten years later

    ¡°Ari, are you sure we should be here? You know what this place is...don¡¯t you?¡±

    A small, brown haired girl moved nervously on her feet, holding a small dagger in her hand that she seemed entirely unfit to weild. Her eyes were trained on her companion.

    The woman next to her was almost her complete opposite. Fiery bright red hair burned around her head, only interrupted by two curling horns on the sides of her head. Unlike her companion, the big sword on her back suited her perfectly, completing the savage aura she carried around her.

    Both of them looked to be in their mid to late twenties, but physical age meant little in the Plane of Gods.

    ¡°What? Why?¡± Arette blinked and stopped looking into the distance, instead focusing her eyes on Liz, whose expression was a mixture between annoyance and fear.

    ¡°You don¡¯t remember? Again?¡± she asked in exasperation, clearly having said this way too often.

    Arette felt a little bad, since she did tend to forget things that didn¡¯t seem so important to her and especially asLiz had the uncanny ability to remember every single thing.

    Rubbing her neck with an awkward smile, she thought out loud.

    ¡°Umm, was this the place where we got kicked out of a bar after I started a fight?¡± she asked with a giggle but Liz wasn¡¯t amused.

    ¡°No! That was back in the forty-seventh province. And you didn¡¯t ¡®start a fight¡¯ you threw yourself into a brawl and burned down half of the village,¡± Liz admonished darkly.

    Arette ¡®hmmd¡¯ a bit more as she looked around trying to remember where she had seen this scenery before. Lots of mountains and hills, a few forests here and there...basically the same as everywhere in these areas. It didn¡¯t exactly ring a bell.

    ¡°Was this where we tried to catch some criminal and instead walked on that guy cheating on his wife?¡± she tried again. That had indeed been awkward, especially since the wife had been alerted by the ruckus they¡¯d made and they had to bear the brunt of her wrath - whyever, Arette would¡¯ve unleashed fury unto the husband first. But then again, she didn¡¯t know too much about love.

    ¡°No!¡± Liz half yelled, throwing her hands in the air as if surrendering, ¡°This was where you decided to get wasted and broke into the headquarters of the Lavender Clan and burned the lyrics of some song into its walls before scattering half of their secret documents all over the city. The entire territory in front of us is controlled by the Lavender - and I¡¯m pretty sure they still have orders to attack us on sight.¡±

    Liz¡¯s voice was a half growl, clearly annoyed by Arette¡¯s countless antics.

    ¡°Oh,¡± Arette deadpanned.

    Liz was kind of right to be angry - she had gotten them hated by a lot of people over the years. But there were other territories and clans who worshipped them for helping them - so that was that?

    Maybe she did go overboard at times...that was mostly why she liked travelling with Liz. Liz prevented her from going completely out of control.

    Anyways, nothing big had ever gone wrong. They were still alive and kicking, after ten years of living like this. So Arette shrugged.

    ¡°Nah, I don¡¯t think that they¡¯ll do anything. That was ages ago anyways.¡±

    ¡°Ari, it wasn¡¯t ages, it was three months!¡±

    ¡°Pah, they can¡¯t do anything to us anyways. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll protect you, Lizzy,¡± she grinned and gave a thumbs up, not really worried.

    If they did try to do something, she was confident in her capabilities to defend against them.

    Ten years of living as a bounty hunter had honed her capabilities. While her fire control had remained at roughly the same level - frankly, she saw no way to improve something she could already do as easily as breathing - her sword arts had grown substantially fiercer.

    There was hardly anyone below the level of lesser gods that could beat her as it was - so her confidence wasn¡¯t unfounded.

    Liz knew that too and, with another sceptical look, acquiesced to her persuasion.

    ¡°So who are we searching for?¡± her best friend asked with a sigh. Arette¡¯s grin grew brighter.

    ¡°Thief, stole over a million gold coins from the Brackenbone Clan. The clan¡¯s members already found his hideout and retrieved the money, but he managed to flee. They want revenge of course - so we should probably bring him in alive.¡±

    ¡°Probably?¡± Liz gaped, giving her an incredulous stare, ¡°Of course we¡¯ll get him alive. We won¡¯t kill him!¡±

    Arette rolled her eyes but gave a nod. While Liz was quitepacifist - she had even refused Arette¡¯s offer to go hunt for beasts for her to eat when they were camping out in the woods - Arette had little such qualms about killing others.

    It was the law of the jungle in the Plane of Gods - the stronger survived, the weaker perished. While Arette refused to kill innocent people and become an assassin that killed without regard, she did kill those who did something wrong without mercy. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

    Her ability to see their flames made it easy to convict them and that was quite enough for her. It wasn¡¯t for Liz though and this was the part where Arette gave in.

    ¡°Fine, let¡¯s go,¡± she said and entered the territory of a Clan that wanted her dead without hesitation.

    Liz sighed and followed after her, praying that this wasn¡¯t the day her best friend got them both killed.

    ¡°So this is who they sent after me? Two girls?¡±

    The man in front of them scoffed, but the sweat pearling on his forehead revealed his fear.

    They had found his traces quite soon in the form of an abandoned, but still warm fireplace, and for Arette, who had never forgotten her early beginnings in the woods, following his trail had been easy.

    They hadn¡¯t met anyone else on their chase, thankfully enough, and now they had their bounty cornered against a stone wall with no chance of escape in either direction - at least none that Arette couldn¡¯t cut off.

    At his taunting, Arette grinned.

    ¡°You can underestimate us all you want, but believe me, you can¡¯t fight against us and win. Or escape. The only difference is the degree of your wounds in the end. So, how about surrendering?¡±

    She raised an eyebrow, hoping inwardly he would say no. They almost always said no and she liked it - she did this job for the fighting anyways.

    The more powerful her opponents were the better.

    She looked at the man¡¯s flame. Filled with greed and guilt, but his strength was quite alright. A Sovereign - of what, she couldn¡¯t say.

    If it had been another bounty hunter instead of her who found him today, he might¡¯ve gotten away.

    The man rolled his eyes at her question, looking at her as if she might be stupid.

    ¡°Surrender so you can drag me back to people who want to kill me? I¡¯m not that much of an imbecile,¡± he spat, eyes gleaming with a final effort to fight for his life.

    ¡°Fine with me,¡± Arette shrugged and drew the greatsword she kept strapped to her back. Over the time, she had changed swords many times and found herself most at ease with this one, ithad already accompanied her for over three years now.

    The man in front of her stood bare handed as she charged.

    As always, adrenaline rushed through her and she grinned as the rush filled her veins. This what what she lived for - for this moment of breath filling her lungs to the fullest.

    The thief took his stance, but right before she reached him, she darted towards the left and swung her sword towards his knee.

    He dodged by swerving away from her, a small twitch revealing daggers in his hands. He was fast - maybe as fast as her. But speed wasn¡¯t her strongest suit.

    Turning her blade around she swung it towards his neck, confident he would be able to block. Her feet shifted, stepping further apart to put strength behind her arms.

    Aching anticipation ran through her muscles as she tensed and her sword hit the daggers her opponent had crossed hurriedly to block her stride.

    They were good daggers - not sentient ones, but strong enough to hold her for a second. She used that to twirl around and deliver a kick to his ribs that made a smaller crunching sound and hurled him backwards.

    He stumbled to catch his footing and she darted after him and knocked his daggers out of his hand with a punch on his arms. She could¡¯ve driven the sword through his chest at that and it sang in her hands, ready for blood, but she wasn¡¯t, not yet. Killing wasn¡¯t what she wanted.

    She wanted more of the thrill. She wanted his daggers at herthroat, only a hair¡¯s width away from cutting her veins and ending her life, and the thrill of having escaped death would run through her and make her feel alive - that was the feeling she longed for.

    And so she grinned down on the man she was hunting and waited until he grabbed onto the blades again and fought up, even with pain tearing his face apart.

    ¡°Ari¡­¡± Liz¡¯ voice reached her from far away, cautious, afraid.

    What was she afraid of? Arette clearly had the upper hand, there was no need for Liz to be scared.

    ¡°Stand back, Lizzy. I¡¯ve got this,¡± she grinned and hardened her stance.

    Liz didn¡¯t answer and she quickly blocked out the noises she didn¡¯t need to hear in favor of zoning in on the thief in front of her.

    He glared at her, breath wheezing, but surprised her yet again when he attacked her with surprising speed. For a moment, she was stunned and couldn¡¯t react quick enough.

    His blade skimmed her arm as she threw herself to the ground and flicked her feet to crash into his shin, making both of them tumble to the floor.

    The pain didn¡¯t register for a while, but with it came the dull swelling of having hit the floor with her shoulder and dirt in her wound. It didn¡¯t faze her too much as she jumped up again.

    The thief wasn¡¯t finished yet either. He coughed up a clot of blood and ran at her again, but this time, she was ready.

    She threw her sword aside, finding her long weapon quite disadvantageous in a close range fight, and rushed up, not caring about the flesh the daggers cut when she parried his kicks and punches.

    Her feet hit his arms, his fist her hand and her blood boiled.

    All the while, Arette grinned.

    This was what she was living for. Fighting, using her body to its limits, feeling excitement rushing through her veins. She didn¡¯t even feel the wounds.

    At least not until an excruciating pain knocked all breath out of her.

    Force slammed into her back and she staggered forwards, running straight into her opponent¡¯s dagger that nudged itself nearly into her side.

    A cry escaped her as her left shoulder flamed up and she fell back, even though the thief she was fighting until now looked just as baffled as she was. She raised her right hand to her throbbing back, finding and arrow lodged under her shoulder blade, stuck deep inside her flesh.

    A hiss escaped her as she turned around, eyes scanning the trees for the shooter.

    She didn¡¯t have to search for long.

    One after another, Immortals stepped out of the treeline, until ten men and women half surrounded her. A quick scan of their flames revealed a rather grim outlook - four Ascendants, one near her own strength, three Sovereigns, three Emperors, all hostile. Against her.

    It wasn¡¯t hard to guess why either - the Lavender sigil on their shoulders made their affiliation clear.

    Arette gritted her teeth, feeling warm blood run down her side and back. The thief behind her left her mind in favor of focussing on these new opponents.

    ¡°Arette, bounty hunter, no known affiliation to any clan. Our clan leader has searched you for long,¡± one of the Immortals, a woman with green tinged skin and horns not unlike Arette¡¯s stepped forwards - the one of the group whose strength could rival hers.

    ¡°Look, I¡¯m sorry about what happened before. Can¡¯t we just leave it at that and each go about our own business?¡± she pushed the pain down and spoke with a light grin, knowing it wouldn¡¯t be that easy. The woman laughed into her face.

    ¡°Our clan leader wants your head - with or without your body attached. If you decide against cooperating, I don¡¯t mind delivering them separately,¡± she flashed her teeth, a row of sharp canines that made her look more feline than humanoid.

    Arette stared at her and despite everything, even with her wounds and the pain and the blood she was losing at an alarming rate, excitement spread through her belly. This was a challenge - maybe the challenge she¡¯d been seeking for a long time.

    Stepping sideways, she picked up her sword from where she threw it, tightening her grip on the familiar handle.

    ¡°Liz, step back. I¡¯ll handle this,¡± she called to her friend, who was standing uncertainly around the edge of the clearing.

    ¡°Ari¡­¡±

    ¡°Trust me.¡±

 Chapter Twenty-Six - ...And The Fall

    Chapter Twenty-Six - ...And The Fall

    The green skinned leader didn¡¯t give her the luxury of battling one after another - instead she just gave a single whistle and her ten underlings spread out.

    Arette grinned as she looked at them, eyes scanning for a weakness she could exploit.

    She fought on instincts she¡¯d honed in the past ten years - as soon as they came close, she rushed in, not giving them any chance to surround her.

    Her sword slashed neatly against the first she¡¯d darted towards and the man staggered backwards, a bloody gash appearing on his chest. Without waiting, Arette jumped and twirled towards her left, delivering a kick to the head of a woman planning to ambush her.

    As soon as the woman was down though, another blazing pain lodged itself into her side. Another dagger - thrown by a young looking boy behind her.

    She snarled and ran backwards, getting space between her and the others, unwilling to let them gain an advantage. Her eyes zoned onto the leader - the green skinned woman stood back, but her posture was ready to attack at any second.

    If Arette could take her out, the group would be a lot less stable. A grin crept on her face again as she ran towards the leader, jump kicking one of the underlings as she ran.

    Exhilaration flooded her veins as the wind whistled in her ears and she used the shoulder of one of the goons to propel herself close to the green skinned woman.

    Optimally, she needed to take her out quickly - before the others had a chance to react to her advance and attack her.

    Whirling around, she flung a decisive slash against the woman¡¯s throat, but was swiftly blocked by the twin swords her new opponent flashed. Arette darted away, aiming at the abdomen with a kick and the head with the sword, but her enemy was even more nibmle than herself.

    The woman threw herself to the floor and rolled under her, kicking against her knees so that Arette fell instead of landing.

    That lapse of judgement was enough to turn the situation around.

    A kick against her wrist let her sword sail away from her, another kick onto her ribs made her stay down instead of jumping upwards immediately.

    A hiss escaped her and by now, it wasn¡¯t just the leader that was lording over her - the six other people she hadn¡¯t taken down yet had arrived as well.

    One of them stabbed his sword towards her heart and she rolled out of the way, but she didn¡¯t get far. A kick threw her back into the makeshift circle they caged her in and the sword grazed her arm, leaving a long and bloody gash behind.

    Her breath wheezed past her lungs as another blow caused a sickening crack in her ribcage.

    Arette stared upwards at seven sneering faces and every trace of a grin bled out of her face.

    Shit.

    The word stood out among the blur of her thoughts, an understatement if there ever was one. The adrenaline was still pumping through her veins, yet the excitement of being alive swiftly left her.

    Another kick crunched her shoulder blade and she only barely managed to dodge the slash at her throat by curling into herself.

    Pain blossomed over her back as the Immortals started kicking whatever parts of her body she gave them and she couldn¡¯t even feel angry about the fact that they were toying with her when they could finish her off easily. Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.

    Instead, she felt something she hadn¡¯t felt before. Not like this.

    It was chilling and cool, a dousing of water over her fire of life and it settled herself in her guts like a stone that sunk deeper and deeper with every breath.

    Fear.

    For the first time in her life, Arette was afraid.

    Her eyes snapped open as she stared upwards and a sword drove into her leg, piercing her flesh as if trying to skewer her alive. The faces above her blurred into nameless demons and every bit of fun faded away from her.

    This wasn¡¯t exciting. It wasn¡¯t fun or making her feel alive.

    Fighting had always been fun, even when she¡¯d been losing, even when she was beaten, but this, this wasn¡¯t fighting. This was a cat playing with a mouse before chewingits head off.

    In that moment, Arette didn¡¯t feel like playing games anymore.

    With a loud cry she pushed the fire usually contained within her heart outwards, over her skin and the ground until it reached the feet of the people still kicking at her defenseless body.

    Her flames were hungry. They flared up and ate flesh more than cloth as her anger and fear fuelled them into life. The flames bled out of her and took her over, burning her clothes to crisps, but she couldn¡¯t have cared less about a lack of modesty at the moment.

    As screams echoed over the clearing, agonizing and anguished and the kicks at her decreased, Arette fought herself to her knees, pushing the pain down in favor of anger and fear for her life and a general instinct of survival that was spurning her on.

    The five weaker underlings went down easy and the sixth didn¡¯t last longer than a minute either. The only one that remained standing under the blazes that possessed the entire surroundings was the green skinned leader - with a strength on par with Arette, even Starfire couldn¡¯t take her down so easily.

    Arette stared her down and growled, blood running down her body from various wounds. Her ribcage throbbed and her back, side and shoulder were severely battered - but none of that mattered right now. Now that the fun and excitement had left her, she knew she had to end this fight - now, before the fear in her took over and made her run as fast as she could.

    It was still there - the cold, harrowing sensation of fear lodged inside of her. She was still scared, scared of that feeling of powerlessness.

    So scared that she wasn¡¯t sure she could move one more step.

    But somehow, she made her feet move forwards towards the green skinned woman, who was still using her own pressure to try and contain the hungry flames that wanted to devour her.

    Without hesitation, Arette punched her fist into her face, satisfaction settling in her as she heard the crunch of jaw breaking. Fire was engulfing her body, heating herself up until every punch, every touch came with severe burns.

    But the woman wasn¡¯t giving in easily - every punch of Arette¡¯s was countered with a wound from the twin swords that she still held and soon enough, Arette¡¯s blood was draining out of her so fast, she could feel exhaustion coax her into unconsciousness in the edges of her vision.

    Their battle dragged on - each wound met with a punch, each punch with a slash. Their movements grew slower but both of them were trained fighters and neither wanted to give in.

    But with every wound, every more drop of blood draining out of Arette, the fear inside of her grew stronger.

    Run, it yelled at her, wanted her to throw her pride aside, to ignore her instincts and save her life at every cost. And with every new wound, she wanted to give into it more.

    She¡¯d never felt like this before. Fighting had always been fun for her and she¡¯d never been scared of death in her entire life.

    But she¡¯d never been this close to it either.

    And then, suddenly, a loud bang echoed over the clearing.

    The green skinned woman had positioned her blade towards her stomach and before the noise, Arette was about to dodge, but hearing the sound, she whirled around.

    For a moment, the world seemed to stand still.

    She could see the gun directed towards her, in the trembling hands of the thief she¡¯d forgotten a while ago.

    She could hear her heartbeat, overwhelmingly loud in her ears.

    She could feel the fear blossoming, taking over as she realized - she was going to die.

    The gun was aimed at her heart and behind her was a blade and she wasn¡¯t fast enough to dodge.

    I don¡¯t want to die.

    She held her breath as the thought lodged itself into her brain and she was scared, so scared because she was going to die and there was nothing she could do about it.

    Her eyes were wide and open.

    She was going to die - just like this.

    And then the world resumed and the bullet hit her chest just as the sword drove itself into her back and the world erupted into pain.

    I don¡¯t want to die.

    Everything faded to black.

 Chapter Twenty-Seven - An Uncomfortable Truth

    Chapter Twenty-Seven -An Uncomfortable Truth

    ¡°Ari? Ari are you awake?¡±

    Arette blinked as she heard a voice from far away, getting clearer and clearer with more time passing. A groan slipped out of her lips as she became aware of the sharp pain between her ribs and the difficulty it took to inhale.

    Nonetheless, she opened her eyes and was met with Liz¡¯s soft, concerned golden orbs.

    ¡°Ari? Can you hear me?¡± her best friend almost shouted, making her cringe again.

    ¡°Yeah, please, tone it down,¡± she rasped, her voice as drained as she felt. She tried to sit up, but didn¡¯t manage more than a few inches before the pain grew too strong.

    Damn it, what in all blazes happened?

    ¡°Oh I¡¯m so glad,¡± Liz sighed and took a step back, sitting down in a chair near the bed instead of hovering over her. She could see traces of tears on Liz¡¯s face.

    ¡°What happened?¡± she asked, pushing herself to speak even though her lungs were refusing to collaborate as much as she¡¯d wanted them to.

    ¡°You don¡¯t remember?¡± Liz frowned, now worried again, ¡°You were fighting the Lavender Clan and you almost won against the leader of their group, when the thief we were hunting shot you. You almost died, Ari. I...I held you in my arms as you bled and¡­¡±

    Her voice quivered and died and Arette could see her shaking. She pressed her lips together as the memories slowly came back from the drowsiness she had buried them in.

    ¡°Yeah, I remember...I thought guns were forbidden around here¡­¡± she frowned, trying to piece the scenery together, to remember how she could¡¯ve been so careless.

    Currently, they were acting as bounty hunters and part time assassins in the fifty-seventh province, a province not too far from the one they¡¯d started in. It also shared a lot of things with the fiftieth province, such as a culture of swords and martial arts instead of advanced weapons like guns, rifles, radiation technology and whatever else there was. All weaponry more advanced than a crossbow was prohibited in these kinds of provinces as people liked to have the illusion that their world was still following its own rules and not the rules of others.

    ¡°Ari, he was a criminal and he knew he¡¯d die if you killed the Lavender members. He hardly had a reason to care about the law,¡± Liz admonished her softly and Arette had to agree.

    But that didn¡¯t mean she¡¯d like it.

    She¡¯d grown careless.

    Ten years ago, right out from her drill training with Nex, she would¡¯ve never made such a mistake. But with her power being as high as one could get as an Ascendant, she tended to underestimate her opponents. So far, she¡¯d always prevailed, but this time...first she underestimated the Lavender woman and let herself get surrounded, then she underestimated the thief in believing he wouldn¡¯t interfere with the battle afterwards.

    ¡°Damn it,¡± she cursed out loud, both because of the intense pain between her ribs and her own stinging disappointment in herself.

    ¡°How do you feel?¡± Liz asked carefully, her expression torn.

    ¡°Been better,¡± Arette shrugged and immediately regretted it afterwards, ¡°I¡¯ll be fine. Don¡¯t worry.¡±

    ¡°Of course I¡¯ll worry!¡± Liz exclaimed and jumped up with exasperation in her eyes, ¡°You got shot and stabbed in front of my eyes! If I hadn¡¯t managed to knock them unconscious with my misfortune and if a healer hadn¡¯t been close by, you would be dead right now!¡±

    Liz¡¯s voice increased during her speech, painfully pressing against Arette¡¯s stained eardrums, but suddenly she felt a lot worse than just uncomfortable.

    Seeing Liz so worried made her feel guilty like nothing else. Even more than that, the fear that had overpowered her in the last seconds before the bullet had hit her was still there, firmly inside her guts.

    She loved fighting.

    Had loved it from the second Nex taught her how to do it, no even from the second she had her first survival battles back in the woods. She was addicted to the thrill running through her veins, the one that drove her to become stronger, to challenge herself as well as others and rise above every enemy she defeated.

    When she fought, she never thought about dying. It just wasn¡¯t an option.

    But right now, love wasn''t on the forefront of her mind. Instead, she was scared - scared that it would happen again, that once again her survival would only depend on luck instead of her ability...a revelation she¡¯d avoided for all of the last ten years.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± she said quietly, feeling like she had to give Liz at least that. Liz had saved her life - and not for the first time.

    Even though she¡¯d never been as close to death before, never had a wound so serious, it wasn¡¯t the first time that Liz had dragged her away from situations that she would¡¯ve challenged and likely paid for with her life.

    Liz looked at her with a complicated expression swimming in her eyes.

    ¡°Ari, I¡­¡± she began but swallowed the words as if she¡¯d caught herself doing something wrong.

    Arette forced herself up and stared at her best friend.

    Usually, Liz would be relieved and hug her and then cry a little and then leave her alone to heal. It had become almost a routine in the last years, whenever Arette had thrown herself too far into the frontline and ended up wounded in some infirmary or other.

    But today, Liz didn¡¯t cry or fall into her arms.

    Instead, she took a deep breath and spoke words that would change everything.

    ¡°Ari, I don¡¯t think I can do this anymore.¡±

    She spoke fast, akin to ripping an arrow out of a flesh wound with a swift stroke. Arette¡¯s head snapped towards her and she felt strangely afraid of what was coming next.

    ¡°You can¡¯t do what anymore?¡± she questioned, her voice harsher than intended. Liz flinched, but held her ground.

    ¡°This,¡± she gestured towards Arette¡¯s wounds, red seeping through pristinely white bandages, ¡°Seeing you throwing your life away for whatever it is you get out of being so reckless. I¡¯m sick of it, Ari.¡±

    Liz¡¯ voice wavered as tears seeped into her eyes.

    ¡°I¡¯m sick of seeing you getting wounded and almost dying. I¡¯m sick of worrying about you day and night. Heck, I¡¯m sick of fighting. You know I never liked it, I never liked hurting others or taking the risk of them hurting me. It¡¯s been ten years of this Ari, I just can¡¯t do it anymore.¡±

    She sobbed at the end as the words she must¡¯ve repressed for a long time came streaming out of her.

    Arette just gaped at her.

    Liz...didn¡¯t like fighting? She¡¯d...never thought about that before. When she¡¯d suggested they¡¯d travel the world as bounty and quest hunters, Liz had agreed and so the decision had been made for her. She¡¯d never stopped to think if something might have changed during those years.

    The fires knew she¡¯d loved it.

    Loved the thrill of the hunt, of the fights and the chases, the occasional wars and chaoses. But Liz...apparently didn¡¯t.

    ¡°What do you want to do then?¡± she asked, careful to not let any of the indignation she felt in her heart ooze into her voice. She didn¡¯t want to fight against Liz even if her instincts urged her to, not when Liz was crying in front of her.

    Liz looked up, hope shining through her curtain of tears.

    ¡°I want to do what we did five years ago. Do you remember? Settling down in the ninety-eighth province, getting jobs, just living without having a risk of dying. I want to do that again.¡±

    Her best friend spoke with so much hope and anticipation that Arette couldn¡¯t immediately rebuke her. Nonetheless, sourness rose in her throat.

    She did remember. If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    Five years ago, they¡¯d settled for half a year from their vagabond lifestyle. The capital of the ninety-eighth province, New Iride, was head of a technologically more advanced province. It was a huge city with residents swaying between thirty and forty million, with cars and subways, skyscrapers and other advanced technologies. It had taken a while to get used to, but both Arette and Liz had been so mesmerized by the advantages of running water and television and electricity that they¡¯d decided to stay for a while.

    In the beginning it had been wonderful.

    Liz had taken a job as a librarian while Arette lived on the money they¡¯d saved in the previous five years. Arette had discovered nightclubs and alcohol and fell in love with the dancing and the blissful oblivion for a while.

    And for six months, both of them were perfectly happy.

    But after a while, Arette got bored. Dancing and drinking didn¡¯t make her as happy as it did in the beginning and going to a gym didn¡¯t give her the thrill she had found in battles before.

    Eventually, she couldn¡¯t take it anymore and begged Liz to go back to their former lifestyles.

    Liz had agreed and so the last four and a half years had been fine for Arette again. But apparently, she¡¯d been the only one thinking like that.

    Thinking back, she couldn¡¯t help but scrunch her face up.

    She didn¡¯t want to go back to that. The clubs were the only thing she¡¯d liked about the city but even in those few hours in the night that she could feel alive, there was always something painfully missing. Something that didn¡¯t satisfy her enough as a weapon in her hand did.

    When she thought of leading that kind of life for the next, what, hundred years? Thousand years?

    No, she didn¡¯t want it even for a single day.

    ¡°What do you say?¡± Liz hesitantly asked when she¡¯d been silent for too long. Arette raised her eyes to look at her all too hopeful friend, feeling horrible again.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think I can do that again, Lizzy,¡± she admitted, unable to lie, ¡°I wouldn¡¯t last longer than a few months in a world like that.¡±

    She spoke open and honest, but Liz recoiled with her words, hurt cracking on her face.

    ¡°So you can¡¯t even do that much for me?¡± her best friend stood up and glared down at her, tears again in her eyes, ¡°You can¡¯t even try? Do you know how much I did for you? Do you know how much I sacrificed so that you could lead the life you wanted?¡±

    She pressed her hand to her chest, but that didn¡¯t stop her quivering, trembling fingers.

    Arette jerked and the stone in her stomach tore through and left a gaping hole inside of her. She¡¯d never thought about it like that...never considered this¡­

    She gulped.

    ¡°Lizzy, I¡¯m sorry,¡± she said the only thing she could think of, ¡°I didn¡¯t realize.¡±

    ¡°You didn¡¯t realize,¡± Liz repeated while shaking her head, now crying all out, ¡°I know. I know you didn¡¯t realize. I never told you either. But Ari, I don¡¯t want to lose you. I don¡¯t want to live in fear for your life anymore, always thinking that the next day could be our last.¡±

    Her anger had turned to pleading and Arette didn¡¯t know what she prefered. Both hurt quite a lot because both made her aware of the horrible person she¡¯d been.

    She¡¯d always been so sure of her ability to protect Liz, to fight her way through every situation. But if today, Liz had been close and the criminal had had another shot - both of them would be dead.

    That was scarier than she¡¯d thought it could be.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± she repeated, this time sincerely, ¡°I didn¡¯t think.¡±

    ¡°I know,¡± Liz¡¯s voice was soft again as she touched her hand gingerly, ¡°I don¡¯t blame you, Ari. But I just can¡¯t continue like this. Please, come with me. To any city, I don¡¯t care. Just let us settle down and stop fighting.¡±

    For a moment, Arette considered it.

    She thought about what it would be like to agree with Liz and move with her to one city or another, get a mundane job and live a mundane life. None of it sounded appealing - she¡¯d only do it to make Liz happy. But Liz was her best friend - the thought of being separated from her was harsh.

    On the other hand, she was an Ascendant of Fire. She had amassed enough power and fighting experience to battle against a weaker Lesser God with the confidence to survive. If she were to settle down, that would be her limit. She wouldn¡¯t be challenged to be better anymore, wouldn¡¯t rise above others, wouldn¡¯t prevail. She¡¯d be stuck.

    Just as she¡¯d been stuck in that forest over ten years ago.

    The conviction she¡¯d found back then came back to her.

    I belong to the world.

    ¡°Lizzy, I can¡¯t. I can¡¯t just stand still and stop doing what makes me feel alive. I don¡¯t want to live my life half here half there, living an easy life just to survive. I can¡¯t.¡±

    Her own voice was pained because she knew how much she¡¯d hurt Liz with this. She didn¡¯t want to hurt her, didn¡¯t want to be the one to destroy her hope, but at the same time, she knew she couldn¡¯t give up her own happiness for Liz¡¯s.

    Was she a horrible person because of that? Most likely. But this was nonetheless her conviction.

    Liz blinked her tears away as she tried to suppress her own disappointment, but Arette could see the darkness in her flame grow thicker and tendrils of misfortune leaking out as they hadn¡¯t done for at least three years now.

    Liz sniffed and seemed to notice that and quickly reigned her powers in, but the sadness didn¡¯t leave her eyes.

    ¡°I understand,¡± she whispered, a bitter smile spreading on her lips, ¡°I think I knew that. I knew you wouldn¡¯t do that. But Ari, I have to. I have to stop this kind of life for a while, even if I have to do it alone.¡± Her voice broke at the end.

    A part of Arette broke as well. She didn¡¯t want to separate from the young woman she had called her closest friend for ages. They hadn¡¯t been apart for more than a few days for the last ten years - ever since they¡¯d met, actually.

    To think that she¡¯d leave her side now was...overwhelming.

    It made Arette feel like there was a pit in her stomach, always hanging at the back of her throat.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± she said again, this time quiet and wavering.

    ¡°I am too,¡± Liz squeezed her hand and wiped her tears again, ¡°I think I¡¯ll go back to Fall¡¯s End for a while. Visit Zenon and Elea or something.¡±

    Arette bit on her lip and nodded even though she didn¡¯t really want to.

    ¡°Okay,¡± she whispered, ¡°If you...if you really have to. But...you¡¯ll come back, right?¡±

    The thought of being apart from the one constant in her life for the past ten years was something she didn¡¯t want to consider. Liz had always been there for her, had always thought for her when she was too stupid to realize it, had saved her life more often than she could count.

    ¡°Of course,¡± Liz gave back with a shaky smile. Then, as if she''d just remembered something, she rummaged through her pockets and took out a delicate looking necklace, with a sphere shaped crystal hanging from the end.

    "This is a communicationcrystal. It''s only a cheap one, so it can only send up to three messages, but if you ever need to tell me something..."

    She stuffed the necklace into Arette''s bandaged hand, eyes darting around without meeting her best friend''s.

    "Thank you"

    Arette heaved a sigh of relief knowing that she hadn¡¯t just completely lost her best friend. Liz stared at her for another while and then turned around and walked away.

    ¡°Goodbye,¡± she whispered once she¡¯d reached the doorstep and then quickly left the room.

    As the door fell shut and loneliness seeped into Arette¡¯s heart as it had never done before.

    And the fear inside her stomach, that intangible, irrevocable fear of dying was still there, sinking deep inside of her. It was despair, left as an aftertaste on her tongue after her brush with death and for a moment, Arette could only stare at the ceiling and swallow the cry that built itself in her throat.

    She was alone and she had just possibly lost the only two things that made her feel alive - her best friend, and the thrill of a fight.

    For the first time since she was born, Arette had no idea what to do.

    And it wasn¡¯t a good feeling.

    ¡°Goodbye.¡±

    The word fell from Liz¡¯s lips harder than any other word had ever before. It tore her insides apart as she spoke it, willed her to take it back on the spot.

    Trying not to waver, she quickly walked out of the door and shut it behind her, closing the last barrier that now lay between her and Arette.

    She didn¡¯t make it more than a few steps until she broke down against the wall.

    She¡¯d done it.

    After ten years of agony, of every day fearing for Arette¡¯s life more than for her own, she¡¯d finally gathered the courage to gain distance from it, to take a shot at her own happiness instead of conforming to Arette¡¯s.

    But then why did it feel like she¡¯d just made the biggest mistake in her life?

    A sob wracked her as she leaned her head against the wall, trying to stuff something into the hole that parting from her best friend had left her with. Her hands fisted around the necklace she wore, the counterpart to the one she just gave away. She didn¡¯t want to be apart from Arette.

    But she also didn¡¯t want to fight anymore. She¡¯d never wanted it and she didn¡¯t want it now.

    Even so, isn¡¯t it worth it, for her?

    The thought hung in her head and try as she may, she couldn¡¯t deny that her heart screamed yes.

    But there was another reason, a reason she hadn¡¯t told Arette, a reason she¡¯d never tell anyone if only it lay in her power to keep it a secret forever.

    It wasn¡¯t something she was proud of, it was something she felt horrible for, something that violated the sacred friendship that formed between them in all those years.

    Because ever since nine or so years ago, Liz didn¡¯t want to be just friends with Arette.

    She didn¡¯t know when it happened. Maybe it had been that way all along - and she only realized it one day. All she knew was that one day she woke up and looked at Arette, sleeping deeply next to her and she knew she didn¡¯t want to be friends with her.

    She wanted to kiss her. To get closer to her, to be more than just her friend, to be her lover and love her she did. She loved Arette.

    Had loved her probably ever since the very beginning. How could she not love her? Arette had saved her.

    And ever since then, every time she looked at her, her heart began to race. It was worse in the beginning, until she got used to it after a few months of hiding it, but even after all these years, every time Arette¡¯s eyes met hers, her heart stuttered and sped up.

    But Arette had never looked at her that way.

    Not even once.

    Even when both of them had been dead drunk and others had pushed them into a dare to kiss, Arette had refused her, giving her only the slightest peck before retreating. For three long years, Liz had hoped. Hoped that Arette might one day wake up and see her too, look at her the way she looked at her every single day, feel the same desire she had hidden for so long.

    But that day never came.

    And now, nine years and some after her revelation, she couldn¡¯t take it anymore. She just couldn¡¯t take the fact that the woman she¡¯d loved for so long couldn¡¯t love her back.

    There was only so much of an unreciprocated love she could take. And she couldn¡¯t, anymore.

    So she had to leave. At least for a while.

    Maybe distance could extinguish the painful feelings she harboured for her best friend.

    Now, if only she could get herself to believe that as well.

 Chapter Twenty-Eight- Infuriation

    <u>Chapter Twenty-Eight - Infuriation</u>

    ¡°Fuck this!¡± Arette spat a glob of blood to the floor as if that could get her some release, but it didn¡¯t. Nothing did. Nothing could make the fact that she had seemingly forgotten how to fight sting less.

    ¡°Again!¡± she called and stared at her opponent, whose expression was a mixture of sympathy and pity, neither of which were things she wanted directed at her.

    He looked at her for a moment, probably wondering what to say this time to get her to finally stop, but she only flashed her teeth at him in anger.

    ¡°Again,¡± she repeated and he finally caved in and motioned for one of his students to take his place.

    Arette shifted her sword in her hands and tightened her grip, even though her hand was sweaty and she didn¡¯t feel confident at all. To be honest, she knew she would lose the second she looked into her opponent¡¯s eyes, steady and calm in contrast to her flaming orbs.

    He didn¡¯t give her any warnings. He charged and darted from right to left, using the ring they fought in to its fullest.

    She steadied herself, her head telling her she could take this and she could - sheknewthat she could - but once again, as so often until now, her feet wouldn¡¯t move when she told them to.

    She knew his attack would come from the left. She needed to dodge around him and could use an opening between his ribs afterwards.

    But the moment she saw his blade descend onto her, the fear in her guts flared up, a snake lying in wait and she couldn¡¯t move.

    Her breath hitched as she remembered the bullet speeding at her, hitting her and a sword impaling her and pure, unadulterated fear coursed through her. She couldn¡¯t lose. She didn¡¯t want to die. She had to do something.

    She didn¡¯t think further than that - and so she didn¡¯t dodge as she should have.

    Instead, she charged.

    With a shrill cry, she ran into his sword and raised her own to meet his, needing to be proactive, to fight instead of darting around her opponent, to save her life in any way possible.

    Unfortunately, she couldn¡¯t.

    The blade pressed against hers and easily overpowered hers, flung her sword away and not even seconds after the fight started, a sword was pressed against her throat, leaving a thin red line on her tan skin.

    The fear faded as she calmed down and realized that her opponent wouldn¡¯t kill her and replacing it was hot, white shame and anger at herself.

    Arette growled, but she couldn¡¯t deny it. She was useless. She had become useless.

    Her opponent stepped back, looked down on her with silent pity and she could only snarl at him and at herself for her own uselessness.

    After her loss, the bullet and Liz¡¯s goodbye, everything had taken a turn for the worst.

    At first, she¡¯d been optimistic. Being alone gave her more freedom and she looked forwards to enjoying it, and she did, at least until her first fight.

    She¡¯d been hunting some low-class burglar, an easy hunt for her, but when she had cornered him and was about to fight, suddenly her heart overpowered all the instincts she had learned over the years.

    Even though it should¡¯ve been an easy fight, in her mind, she found herself in that place again, surrounded, helpless, weak. And she didn¡¯t want to be weak,wasn¡¯tweak and couldn¡¯t ever be and something inside her snapped at the very thought of her life being in danger again.

    That feeling, that irrationalfearof dying, made her reckless. It made her ignore all she had learned, ignore all of her own thoughts of rationality and ever since then, she hadn¡¯t won a single fight.

    Sometimes, even her ability to control fire spiraled out of her control, the one thing that she had always been perfect at.

    Six weeks had passed ever since Liz had left and Arette had never felt worse.If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    Fighting was her talent. She loved it, loved the thrill, but she didn¡¯t feel any thrill nowadays. Instead, she felt fear, fear of loss and defeat, of being overpowered and dying.

    She had hoped to cure her problem by fighting as much as possible, but it didn¡¯t work.

    For four weeks, she¡¯d stayed at the Bear¡¯s Den, a Clan whose members had all a connection to bears and were known for their great combat strength. She¡¯d helped them out six years ago and called in her debt by demanding fights against their strongest warriors, but by now, they only looked down on her.

    Heck, she could understand them. She was little more than a joke.

    She didn¡¯t know why it happened. She¡¯d lost before - against Nex, who had taught her how to fight. Ever since then, she¡¯d always won, but honestly, how could one loss affect her so much?

    She should just train more and use her mind instead of her heart to fight, it wasn¡¯t as if she lost her instincts or her experience.

    She¡¯d told herself that over and over again, but it didn¡¯t help. Her confidence had been smashed to pieces and she couldn¡¯t seem to rebuild it.

    ¡°Arette, you should stop this,¡± Ulric, Clan Leader of the Bear¡¯s Den, stepped towards her, trying to be kind, but Arette was too frustrated to reply similarly.

    ¡°Stop what? Fighting? Fighting is what Iam,¡± she growled back.

    ¡°Maybe it¡¯s that kind of thinking that stops you from being at your best. Take a break. Meditate. Sort your thoughts.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s bullshit. I¡¯m not a meditating person and I¡¯mnotgoing to stop trying just because I¡¯ve developed some weird fear of death that I definitely shouldn¡¯t have!¡±

    He opened his mouth to argue, but she cut him off.

    ¡°We¡¯ll continue later,¡± she growled and stalked away from their fighting ring and out into the woods. The Bear¡¯s Den headquarters were deep in the mountains, giving her plenty of room to run and hunt as she did before she even learned to fight, but that didn¡¯t make her happy.

    She didn¡¯t want to hunt or to run.

    She wanted to feel that thrill again, the one she only got when she was fighting.

    ¡°Shit,¡± she cursed to no one, herself, the woods, whatever. Frustration bubbled inside of her like it never had before.

    She shouldn¡¯t be like this. She was a fighter, it was in her blood, she couldn¡¯t justnot fight!

    Her foot hit some tree or other and sent it swinging with the force behind her kick, but strength meant nothing if it couldn¡¯t be used.

    Fire burned under her skin, like ants crawling through her veins and together with the ever-constant pressure of uselessness that wrung her guts out, she felt more miserable than the one time she got poisoned a couple of years ago.

    The flames licked over her arms without her command and even now, she had difficulties getting them to move as she told them to. They were one with her heart and they reacted to the turmoil inside of her instead of dancing to what her mind told them to be.

    It was infuriating.

    She stalked through the woods, needing to move, kicked stones and trees and everything in reach, anything to reduce the pressure that was weighing down on her.

    But she couldn¡¯t get rid of it - the voice, inside of her heart that hissed darkly.

    You¡¯re useless.

    And she was - compared to the person she¡¯d been before those dunces almost killed her, the current her was basically trash. A Firakha who couldn¡¯t control her fire, she must be the first.

    A snort escaped her and the flames danced, devouring bits of her clothes and the trees around her, dangerously close to getting out of control and spreading beyond what Arette could tame.

    Just when she was about to snap at some inanimate object again, a voice rang out next to her.

    ¡°What is it you¡¯re trying to accomplish?¡±

    She snapped around, the fire around her hissing loudly as if to emphasize her surprise.

    Next to her stood a man, physically not much older than her, but even she wasn¡¯t stupid enough to judge a person¡¯s age by their appearance.

    His skin was several shades darker than hers and coupled with longer black hair, a pair of glasses on his nose and a slender frame, a less sensible person would¡¯ve thought him harmless.

    But he wasn¡¯t.

    The moment Arette saw him, every hair on her skin stood on end. She had felt the pressure of power before - her own, Zenon¡¯s in many of their squabbles, her enemies¡¯, some of which were stronger than her - but she had never felt anything like this.

    It was as if the air got somehow heavier, pressing down on her, surrounding her skin with tension that made her want to fall to her knees and bow instinctively. And he didn¡¯t look like he was even trying.

    She blinked as she stared at him and fought against the pressure, not even really registering the question he had asked her.

    All of her was focused on trying not to prostrate herself in front of him like he was some sort of omniscient being she ought to worship.

    He looked onto her with a slight smile that she would¡¯ve sincerely liked to scratch of his face.

    Her eyes wandered from his face over his body - and another shock seeped into her.

    From the moment she had been born she¡¯d been able to see flames - souls, of living beings. No matter whether they were weaker than her or stronger, she¡¯d always, without fail, been able to see them.

    Until now.

    Whoever this man was - she couldn¡¯t see his soul.

    She gaped at him, her mouth hanging open and in her surprise almost gave in to the pressure weighing down on her. She caught herself before she fell to the ground and steadied herself by holding onto one of the trees she¡¯d kicked earlier on.

    Slowly, her shock morphed into apprehension.

    She didn¡¯t dare to openly snarl at him, not with the power he possessed over her body by just looking at her, but her gaze was scalding.

    Somehow, this seemed to amuse him quite a bit, as he started to chuckle.

    ¡°Not bad,¡± he said, more to himself than to her it seemed, but a gleam appeared in his eyes.

    Then, all of a sudden the pressure was gone.

    Arette let go of a breath of relief and sagged, tension leaving her as she stood straight again.

    ¡°Who the heck are you?¡± she half snarled, voice still strained.

    He smiled at her and rubbed at his neck as if he was the one feeling awkward and misplaced.

    ¡°My name is Unos. I¡¯ve been looking forwards to meeting you, child of the stars.¡±

 Chapter Twenty-Nine - The Coldest Fear

    Chapter Twenty-Nine - The ColdestFear

    ¡°Cut the crap,¡± Arette hissed, her mood too low to banter, ¡°What do you want from me?¡±

    The fear in her guts was coiled tightly, ever present, especially since this man in front of her gave off more warning signs than she¡¯d ever come across.

    Yet, she hadn¡¯t completely abandoned her pride and so she was glaring instead of submissively backing down, even if that might have been the smarter choice.

    ¡°I¡¯ve been observing you for quite a while,¡± Unos stated, seemingly not deterred by her less than polite tone, ¡°You do fascinate me. Natural born fighter, born powerful, a Sovereign, maybe even an Ascendant at birth? Not that rare for your kind, but exceptional nonetheless.¡±

    He smiled at his own words and looked at her with eyes that would¡¯ve been kind, if only the remnants of his presence didn¡¯t linger on her skin.

    Arette frowned and backed away, not trusting him at all. Her eyes kept wandering to his chest that seemed so glaringly empty, so void of a soul that should have been there, it was a disturbing sight.

    ¡°Yet you struggle with fighting and your heart is in turmoil. Why is that?¡± his eyes were golden, like any Immortal¡¯s, yet they had a strangely purple shimmer to them, something outlandish and weird that made his piercing gaze seem like it could look straight to the bottom of her soul.

    She didn¡¯t answer, the mixture of frustration and caution sewed her mouth shut.

    After a moment, Unos sighed and his features softened to what might be a kind expression.

    ¡°You don¡¯t need to be scared of me, I mean you no harm.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not scared,¡± she hissed, but the fear that had never left her for the last weeks laughed at her blatant lie.

    Unos frowned at that, his disturbing eyes still looking at her, as if he was expecting to find something.

    ¡°Yes, you are,¡± he insisted, seeming so sure and he was right, but the pride that was built on years of self-confidence wouldn¡¯t allow her to back down so easily.

    ¡°I am not scared!¡± she yelled and fire exploded out of her with an audible crash, cloaking her surroundings in a fiery inferno.

    She growled as she tried to get them back under control, but with her heart yelling and screaming in frustration, so were her flames and they refused to be caged back under skin.

    ¡°I see,¡± Unos¡¯ calm voice was surprisingly clear over the raging over the fire.

    She snapped around at him and glared him down, but he just met her gaze with astounding serenity.

    Then, he waved his hands and suddenly, all of her flames were gone and the woods were left as they had been before, if only a little more charred.

    ¡°What-¡± she exclaimed as she felt her starfire scatter into the wind as if it wasn¡¯t attached to her or controlled by her at all, but rather just a mirage that was easily scattered.

    Yet, before she could say something else, Unos stepped closer to her.

    ¡°I can help you,¡± he said with a mild smile, ¡°If you want to.¡±

    ¡°Help me?¡± she echoed, not really following anymore. The fact that she couldn¡¯t read his flame coupled with the fear that wanted her to run away as fast as she could made her more than a little uneasy and completely blind in regards to his motives. ¡°Why?¡±

    He shrugged. ¡°Let¡¯s just say I find pleasure in helping people find what they are looking for. Life does get awfully boring after a couple of centuries. What is it that you want to achieve, star child?¡±

    Arette flattened her lips, mind swirling with the snippets of the puzzle that was the man in front of her.

    ¡°What in all blazes are you?¡± she asked, still disturbed by his apparent lack of a soul.

    He seemed baffled at her question, but soon turned his surprise into a laugh.

    ¡°You haven¡¯t guessed yet? Well you are young yet, I wouldn¡¯t expect you to know. It¡¯s not as if there are many people like me. But it¡¯s not important. All you need to know is that I have the ability to help you and that I am offering you my help. So, what is it you want to achieve?¡±

    She didn¡¯t doubt his abilities - not after the show of power that had nearly brought her to her knees with little effort from him. And yet, she couldn¡¯t really grasp what was happening.

    He was stronger than her by lengths and miles, and yet he was offering to help her without wanting anything in return, without even knowing what kind of help she needed.If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

    And did she need help?

    Well, the answer was obvious as soon as she posed the question.

    She looked into Unos¡¯ violet-golden eyes, wondering what to do. It was a shady bargain he was offering, one she couldn¡¯t see through, but if she declined, then what?

    Should she continue fighting in a desperate bid to return to her former self? Well that hadn¡¯t worked out so well for until now.

    And honestly, what could she lose? She had no riches, no treasures, no companions she needed to look out for, not after Liz had left. She only had her life and if Unos wanted to take that, she would¡¯ve already returned to Chaos.

    What do you want to achieve?

    The question was easy and so was the answer. It was the same answer that made her fight with Nex, the same answer that had always spurred her into training for the last ten years. It was the same feeling that was constantly nagging at her, the desire that had been born along with her and never could be extinguished.

    She stared Unos down as she formed her conviction. It didn¡¯t matter who he was or what he wanted - this was a chance for her that she couldn¡¯t pass up.

    What do you want to achieve?

    ¡°I want to be strong.¡±

    ¡°And you would do whatever I deem necessary if I promise you that you will achieve said result?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Good.¡± He offered her his hand. She hesitated for a second, but then grasped onto it firmly.

    ¡°It¡¯s a deal, Arette of the Stars.¡±

    The moment he said those words, the entire world seemed to shift.

    Arette blinked, a sudden sense of dizziness assaulting her senses. Everything seemed wobbly, as if reality was changing around her and nothing seemed stable, nothing except for Unos¡¯ hand she was holding.

    Not daring to open her eyes, her grip on his hand tightened, tight enough that she would¡¯ve crushed the hand of any weaker Immortal. Yet, he only held onto her without a single noise of discontent.

    It took a few minutes before the overwhelming sense of dizziness passed. Instead, it was replaced by a biting, freezing cold that assaulted all of her senses.

    Then, she felt the ground under her feet again and finally dared to open her eyes.

    She almost immediately wished she hadn¡¯t.

    Instead of being firmly on the forest floor with only trees around her, she suddenly found herself standing on a ledge.

    A very, very small ledge.

    To her right, her left and behind her was an abyss, meters and meters deep before she could faintly make out the surface of a black ocean beneath. The ground under her feet was barely a few centimeters wide and made of solid, though dangerously slippery ice.

    And her only way off the precarious position was blocked by the very man who had brought her here.

    Unos was still calmly smiling, even as Arette¡¯s heart dared to jump out of her chest.

    The fear that had paralyzed her was there again, returning in full force.

    Even the slightest movement could cause her fall - thousands of meters down before hitting the water¡¯s surface, which would be harder than solid ground at that point. And that in these freezing temperatures - even if she was her normal self, surviving would be hard.

    But as she was now, instable and with volatile fire control - she was standing on the edge of death and she could almost feel it breath onto her neck.

    Shit.

    Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit.

    The word repeated in her head along with every colourful curse she could come up with, but none of them thwarted the ice cold fear that gripped her heart again.

    I don¡¯t want to die.

    The bullet, speeding at her. The sword stabbing her. Her body, falling down and down and down.

    I¡¯m scared.

    The fear battled for control and just like in all these fights before, it took over her rationality. So, instead of thinking, running, jumping, anything that could actually do something, she bared her teeth against Unos and snarled.

    ¡°What the heck are you doing? Are you trying to kill me?¡± her voice was a hiss as she desperately tried to hide the shiver that got ahold of her entire body.

    Her short tunic did nothing to keep out the cold and it seeped into her pores and soon, she began to tremble violently. Usually, she would¡¯ve clad herself in fire and pushed her flame into her body to keep her warm, but as it was¡­

    The fear choked down her heart and squeezed as her breaths grew shorter.

    Unos only smiled.

    She wanted to scratch his damned smile off his face, but her fear was too great to move even a little and risk the flimsy foothold she already head.

    Breathless, she peered down. Miles and miles down.

    Shit. I don¡¯t want to die. I¡¯m scared.

    Pathetic, pathetic thoughts, but she couldn¡¯t keep them out, not when her heart was beating in her throat rather than her chest.

    ¡°I¡¯m helping you,¡± Unos said calmly and she looked up at him with crazed eyes.

    ¡°What, do you think death is going to help me?¡± she screeched.

    He chuckled, as if she was still facing him in peaceful woods rather than dangling on the edge of death.

    ¡°No, but facing your fear is. You¡¯re a strong woman, Arette, but that strength is becoming your weakness. You¡¯ve never been anything but strong - and so you never knew fear.¡±

    His violet-golden eyes drilled into hers and she wanted to snarl at him for giving her a psych evaluation when she was trying her best not to die, but then again, he did have a point.

    ¡°Ordinary people stumble and fail while they become strong, so they know what it¡¯s like to be weak - or at least weaker than others. You never knew that and so you were overpowered by that very fear the first time you felt it. And there¡¯s only two ways to get rid of fear.¡±

    ¡°If you say that dying is one of them, I¡¯m going to punch you in your face.¡±

    This time, he laughed outright.

    ¡°No, no it¡¯s not dying. Well, you can either spend many, many years meditating and finding your center until no fear affects you anymore.¡±

    Arette scrunched up her face even thinking about it. For a second, she didn¡¯t think about the fact that she stood dangling over an abyss - until she swayed a little, almost lost her footing and had to stretch out her arms wide to keep her balance.

    She gasped as the fear choked her again, heart accelerating until she could hear it pounding loudly.

    Shit.

    ¡°That¡¯s what I thought,¡± Unos remarked dryly, seeing through her as if he was the one who could read souls, ¡°You need to face your fear, Arette. I would train you and give you all the knowledge I know, but all of that will be useless if you don¡¯t manage to win against yourself.¡±

    She inhaled deeply, almost not hearing what he said over the noise of her heartbeat.

    He smirked again and then touched his hand to the floor.

    The minute his fingers touched the ice, it began to melt. First slow, then faster, then rapidly until suddenly, Arette¡¯s only escape was melted away.

    Her ledge had turned into a pillar and her feet barely fit onto the ice. Her heels were already dangling over the abyss.

    She screamed, shrill and high as dizziness assaulted her again, the fear of falling greater than ever before.

    ¡°Overcome your fear, Arette.¡±

    Unos¡¯ voice reached her and then the man was gone.

 Hiatus

    Hey guys and gals,

    so I''ll make if official: this story is on hiatus. I haven''t gotten any writing done in months and I doubt I will for another while, so I won''t give you false hope by saying I''ll update soon. I won''t completely drop this story, if inspiration strikes I''ll write again, but until then, I''ll leave it on indefinite hold.I hope you can somehow understand it but this story just isn¡¯t in my heart anymore. It feels wrong to continue forcing something out that will have inferior quality and just go nowhere because I owe you and I owe this story more than that.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.

    Thank you for all your support

    Hugs and kisses

    Imber