FENRER

Violet, amber, and azure colours tangled off the three incense sticks in the silver holder which floated on the small essence pool at the feet of Ojain's paws. Fenrer reached forward to take the fourth into his palm. With its aspen tip between his index and middle fingers, he leaned his head forward. Take this piece, and use it to hold the gate closed.

One soft motion of emerald magick to ignite the material, it sparked to life with jade. Green smoke danced with the air whispering through the open window above his head as he placed it in the floating bowl, carrying life on the breeze. Joined with its brethren, a silver mirage glowed from the essence. On his knees in front of the shrine, he cupped his hand with the other, and leaned forward into the protective shadow. Ojain. Evyriaz. Ivara. Pyvansomiir. Those who tread the echoes—

Ice hushed into the room. An aura; intense in its goal and against time itself, it grew to overpower the slow silence of the world around him. Fenrer kept his attention on the shrine while the maelstrom of power crawled closer. Inch by inch, the aura swallowed the calm, but he kept his senses unfettered. To use all that I have, the gifts you've given to me, I will guard this realm while you shield us from afar.

His forearm burned against the black band clasped around it, where the sigil of an Aurus seared into his mind. Opalescent flames etched into the fabric, glowing with the light of the essence basin.

This, in the eyes of the Ancients—

A bell clinked behind him.

"Hello, Yuven." He raised his hands to his brow again. "I'm almost done." Hands on his knees, he breathed in the sweet flower smell simmering in the room. "Thank you for not phasing through the door this time."

"You are an Aurus. It matters not what I do." The wind carried the melodic accent while his friend's shape came into his view. Yuven's lips pursed, and the tingle of annoyance sharpened the mist in his aura, while his distinctive Avaerilian feathers shivered when a breeze flowed from the circle window. The grey edges tangled with his snow-white hair, to which he raised his hand to brush them. "Wished to talk before you got here, but we missed each other. You avoid me, Molvisaliz?"

"Not on purpose." Fenrer lifted himself up to face Yuven, whose violet gaze swept over him once before switching to the shrine. "You could stand to take a moment if you're going to barge in." He swung his hand to the shrine while Yuven considered him.

Heat shimmered in disgruntled waves, but Yuven no less took a step closer to the silver cup. One breath, into two. Fenrer leaped forward when Yuven broke into a coughing fit to assuage the sudden burst of painful, cracked pearls overtaking his aura, but he pushed him away with a scoff. "See? The smoke holds no enjoyment for me. Talk outside after you are ready, yes?"

Fenrer sighed when the space around Yuven shifted, and he phased through the door without a second glance back. Gone like the ghost he claimed to be.

You're not dead yet, and I pray for Maria to succeed where so many others have failed — have given up on you and others. He twisted back to Ojain, lifting his hands over his eyes to block his immediate sight. Guide those who were lost, and never found. Ever come the time that I must open the echoes, no balanced soul shall fear obscurity. For I cannot lose more to the flames.

With one last gentle caress of the myriad of colours to chase away the ashen torment, he turned his back on the shrine to catch up to Yuven. Silver lamps lit up the dark wood of the temple, where tiny bells hung on the bottoms to chime along with the wind blowing through the sanctum. Giant mesas towered over the horizon through the curved windows, where Azahama and the current seat of the Elder Conclave hid between the giant hills. Archways led into personal prayer rooms, where most of them laid empty until evening light.

Several wooden leviathans in representative of Pyvansomiir coiled around the ceiling beams in the main prayer hall, holding within his maw the parchment wishes of the world to carry to Ojain, who had been trapped in the Echo Obscura. Scrolls and books lined the diamond shelves held behind glass behind the speckled basin. Auro Nien was nowhere to be found, though from the quiet creaks in the upper levels alerted him to the Auro's presence. He sighed, and bustled through the painted doorway to catch up to Yuven.

Outside, the noonday sun pierced the fluffy clouds of Dyrin, which scattered shadows across the distant, golden plains. He could almost see all the way to the Aethejin Mountain range, which separated the northern lands of Naveera from the rest of the continent. I'm sure the Avaerili people have a proper name for it, though Yuven hasn't deigned to try and teach me how to pronounce it. As he moved down the dark oak steps, he came to a stop underneath the phoenix gate, glowing with the sun's movements as the bells passed it by. He stood in silence while the obsidian bird cast shadows underneath him.

Fenrer kept up his brisk pace, where Yuven leaned on one of the warding lamps which pulsed out magick to keep any stray Derelicts away from the temple, and the nearby town of Fallholt. Arms folded, Yuven appeared particularly ruffled today. He moved to his side with a smile. "Are you going to tell me what is bothering you?"

"You spent a long time getting ready. I had to talk to Captain Ineha myself." Yuven reached into a flap against his grey leather armour, between the straps which held phials of medicine. "Look." Air almost escaped him when Yuven smashed his fist between Fenrer's rib cage, a paper with the seal of Euros crinkled in his hands. "Read for yourself, Molvisaliz." Fenrer unfurled the paper, but glanced up when Yuven waved his hand down the cobbled road. "Read and walk, Fenrer. Ineha has other things to talk about, and you waste too much time."

"I didn't take any more time than I usually do." All the same, he broke the seal to read over the contents while he followed Yuven down the path, away from the phoenix gate. Citadel confirms a confluence echo of— He came to a sudden stop at the next words, causing Yuven to raise an eyebrow and turn to him. "An Anima?" Yet, they haven't determined where it came from, and the Elder Conclave wants Euros to send out Storm Wardens to hunt for them.

Yuven observed with a dry tone, "Hundred Turns since last one was wiped out, and they cower in their boots at the mere mention of Anima."

Fenrer kept Yuven's pace. "Not our greatest moment of history." No more born in the time, there was no less shame in the place of time forgotten. Storm Wardens were meant to protect, to shield the innocent. And yet what did they do but bring terror on the innocent because of a rotten few? He twisted his head to the temple on the rocks. 'Anima broke apart the plane to unleash the Obscura on all,' and it leaves a bad taste in my mouth to read texts on it, like something is yet missing, but with no one left to disprove it, others are content with what is shown to them at face-value. Hundreds of Turns, and history was never kind. Ours seems to fade the farther we explore behind those times of darkness. He read over the last parts of the paper. "Is that what Captain Ineha wanted to talk to you about?"

"Syu, and it's going to be all people talk about once Elder Conclave comes up with the smart idea to let everyone know about this," Yuven said with an ambivalent shrug. "Commander Faehariel will talk them down until then. We do not need extra panic so close to the Summit." His icy aura pinched in annoyance as he gave a small huff. "Monarchs... you wait, if it slips out, they will be ones causing most of the problems."

"We'll have to trust Commander Faehariel for news and movements," Fenrer said as they walked into the heart of Fallholt, where larger ward lamps lit up the stone square. Dyrenji children played with bell-sticks, which chimed every time they took a whack at their friends with giggly words.

"They haven't found where the Anima convergence came from."

"That won't last." Yuven led him to the Storm Warden Hall at the very edges of town. "I can already tell how this will play out," he remarked with a sly smile. "They find the source using the Cardinal Auro Priests, and then send us to do the dirty work."

Agitation curled his fingers. He tucked the paper into his pocket. "It'll take the Cardinals some time. Days of essence preparations and tapping into the echoes for a fleeting glimpse. It's not—" Fenrer took in a deep breath before raising his hands. "It's not something that can be done on a whim."

"Anima level magick would be hard to miss, yes?"

I can't argue with him.

A spicy scent blanketed the hall. Storm Wardens, both green and experienced, sat at the rounded tables spread throughout the main dome. Jarbin, an older Storm Warden, regaled the Trainees with tales of Storm Wardens long past, to which they listened with a solemn ear. At the back, a corridor led deeper into the officer quarters, and the barracks at the very back, attached by a small catwalk which stepped down into the training fields.

Quiet voices and fluttering auras caught his attention in the corner of the field. Some Trainees leaned on the fence, crescent blades shimmering with gold at their sides. Yuven folded his arms, raising his hand for him to stop. In contrast with the relaxed states of the flowing auras, his icy one spread further out. It took a moment of silence to mute his auric senses before Yuven opened his mouth.

"Look."

"At?"

"I could've sworn I told them to work on their form," Yuven hissed. "They'll be inducted soon enough once their temporary posting is over with. Derelicts will not wait around for them to get ready." He stopped, and then a devious gleam entered the violets, and his feathers shivered with the breeze.

"Yuven, what are you doing?" Fenrer frowned when his Oathbound raised his hands, and icy wisps came to life in his aura, to collect in physical form over his palm.

"Remember what Trainer Joftin told us?" Before Fenrer could answer, Yuven blew into the mist with a wry smile, where it hushed past the Trainees, to come to full physical form of a Derelict-esque figure. "Best experience comes from where you least expect it. Always ready." He snapped his fingers, and the ice breathed in the moisture in the air. "Derelicts hunger, and when unpreparedness finds you, you're dead."

One of the Trainees screeched out a half-warning when the ice beast barreled through the undergrowth to nip at their heels. Alarmed by the sudden development, instead of reaching for their weapons, they scrambled away. Snow carried on the wind with every move the created beast made. Yuven chortled while the Trainees made more effort to bolt away. "Don't they know you could take one swing and it'd dissipate?" Yuven observed.

In the heat of danger, it was hard to think straight. Fenrer sighed as Yuven continued into the officer's building, leaving his shard of magick to torment the unsuspecting Trainees. "Give them enough of work out," Yuven chittered with unrestrained mischievous glee. "Come."

Dyrin paper art unfurled down the hall to Captain Ineha's section, as the head of the Fallholt Warden Hall, she delegated tasks to anyone under her. Yuven knocked on the door — for once — and stepped through without opening it — as usual. Fenrer smiled, then rolled the knob to enter himself. Captain Ineha's aura shifted with deliberation as they approached.

"Good, you're here," she said, her Dyrin accent shining through like the wind sowing through wheat. Several tied scrolls hung in the carrier on the side of her desk. Different coloured ribbons made it easier to deduce which held the most importance. From the emergency crimson ones, to the standard grey. Ineha reached for a grey one, then passed it to Yuven. "Take a look at this."

Yuven grasped it and unfurled it with a frown. His gaze crossed the inked lines of information, and he scowled. "Another lost pet? I've told people to set up rune fences last time we had an influx of missing pets." He rolled it up, but sighed. "Where this time?"

Captain Ineha's deep brown eyes crossed with thought, and Fenrer pulled farther away from her aura. Calm in the face of adversity — that being Yuven Traye and a head full of slight grievances, from the way ice drove into his own skull. Pearled thoughts danced behind his violet-sprayed gaze, but he focused on the outside paddy fields. He jumped when the ice rippled back into melted water, and the sun glimmered beneath its surface.

Maria's on his mind.

"Down the road of Fallholt. I know you've been anticipating a call from Euros, Traye."

Yuven grunted, the report crinkling in his palm. Agitation spiked the maelstrom, but fluttered into an eerie calm when he switched his attention back to their captain. "Down the road, you said?"

"Yes."

Fenrer eyed Yuven when the calm sparked into purple deviousness. Every pearl clicked against each other to bring to life ideas, or make trouble. "Yuven, the whole point is to find the pet," he said, forcing a smile on his face. "Not to demonstrate whatever point you're thinking of making."

"Find pet in whatever condition it's been left in," Yuven corrected. "Too optimistic, Fenrer. We both know how cases end up most of the time." He folded the paper and tucked it into his carrying strap. "I'll check it out. You come with?"

Fenrer raised a hand up to his brow. His stomach churned and threatened to bring up his morning meal at the thought of stumbling upon a sad pile of bones; where nothing had been left but bundles of fur. Or if luck permitted, a bloodied rune collar. Fear laced the echo of the plane, digging into his heart with the animal's last moment in the maw of a shadowed beast, and a young girl's tears as he gave her back what remained of her beloved animal, unable to do much but explain the truth. In a haze of her ripped heart, Konyiiu, his Aeonir, tugged him out of the clutches of the pained aura.

What else could I do?

"I'll take your silence as no." Yuven rolled his shoulders. Fenrer glanced at the line of medicinal phials along his carrying strap, tucked against his grey leather armour.

I need to get the alchemist to make him some more. He moved forward to poke Yuven's spine, causing his friend to peer at him with a questioning pout. No sudden trembles alerted him to an incoming coughing fit. Better than expulsion flashes, where the trembles turned into convulsions — lasting minutes into Yuven's life.

"Shortened life," Yuven's own repetitive words haunted him. "Never forget, Molvisaliz. This medicine? Borrowed time."

Fenrer inhaled his own storm of emotions, releasing it back into puddles of nothing. I shall have faith, for in the end... The bloody collar hung in his hand. That is all I have.

"If that's the case," Captain Ineha interrupted their unspoken conversation. "There is something I need you to do, Pyren." She reached forward into the crimson pile. "Auro Nien came to me yesterday about a disturbance in the hills that has the neighbouring town in a bit of a stir. I'd talk to the outpost on the way for their thoughts, but..."

"Derelict?"

Ineha blinked. "Most likely, but the townsfolk believe it's an Aurus' doing."

Another wave of nothing swept down his throat as he placed a hand against his beating heart. "I see. I'll head over to discuss it with Auro Nien and stop by the outpost. I'll see what's going on and set it straight."

Yuven gave him a side-eye, his ear twitching.

"That is all. You're both dismissed," Ineha said as she tucked her hands behind her back. "Captain Traye, if I receive any messages from the Azahama lodge, I'll let you know."

Yuven gave an affirmative nod, and led them out of the Dyrin Captain's office. Long, painted corridors spun up the staircase, where wooden doors slid open to the upper barracks for the Storm Wardens. Down another hallway, the posting's personal forge, smithy and armoury.

In the main food hall, the Trainees Yuven had previously tormented, sat at tables, ate and chortled about the day's events and the strange ice beast set upon them. A surprising Derelict on their patrols; or else full of uneventful evenings. Until they come face to face with the truth... Fenrer clutched the wyvern shielding the star with its wings around his neck. One becomes two. Two becomes more. Endless and endless...

Townsfolk milled about the storefronts, while the navy spire of the Elder Conclave took over the distant horizon. Auras danced in the air, pulling and tugging at his senses.

One breath and heartbeat, and they fluttered into the edges of his view.

It slithered out of the way, where the world returned to a semblance of normality.