FENRER

Emotions swirled in the flow of the air as he walked in pace with Yuven as they led Adara farther away from Azahama's largest square, where the navy spire cloaked them in its shadow. He rubbed the bridge of his nose as they passed lamps and the bright auras of people in content. Curiosity flickered silver embers with Adara's every motion. Yuven folded his arms and scoffed but said nothing until they were out of the grasp of the city proper and into the small forest paths to Fallholt and Adara's curiosity shifted to unease at the silence.

"What if we get attacked on the road?"

"Doubtful," Yuven grunted as he knocked his fist on a passing lamp, and runes shuddered up the metal. "Don't insult us. We're not the ones who rejected what protection magick can give us against Derelicts."

His icy maelstrom battled with the fires of silver as Adara scowled back at him. Fenrer stopped in a break in the path to face the two, but almost stumbled at Yuven's irritated ice smashing into his face with the force of a flurry. "Let's not argue here," he pointed out, fighting his exhaustion. "While there is a measure of protection so long as someone patrols this route, it's not uncommon for Derelicts to attack the unprepared." He gazed at Yuven, who pursed his lips. "Nor do we need a repeat of what happened a few suns prior, Yuv."

Adara tipped her head. "What happened?"

"Let's keep walking." Yuven ignored her question to take the lead, leaning closer to Fenrer. "You have said nothing about what happened at the tower, Molvisaliz."

"What is there to say?"

Yuven sent a quick glare Adara's way, who shrunk into her crimson shawl. "You have to be careful," he pointed out. "You can only take so much of others' darkness before it overwhelms you."

Fenrer smiled at Yuven's visible worry. "In theory, yes, but you must remember every Aurus' tolerance is different on a case by case basis." He tipped his head to urge Yuven to keep walking down the darkened path, lit only by the fiery ward lamps along the edges of the undergrowth. "I'm fine."

"Can you stop glaring at me?" Adara huffed.

"I think you should apologise and thank Fenrer for what he did." Yuven snapped to a stop. "If that had went any other way, there wasn't any guarantee we'd be even leaving the city without major resistance." He pointed at her, his feathers flicking in clear annoyance with his icy maelstrom.

"Weren't you the one who seemed raring to have a go?" Adara bit back.

"She has no need to apologise, or thank me," Fenrer added, causing Yuven to peer at him. "It's fine, Yuven. Let's just get somewhere safe and then we can discuss the next steps." He turned his back on the two and headed deeper into the darkness, senses alert for any hint of Derelicts. They passed by the junction where the Warden patrols found the ravaged body of a reckless traveller. Yuven stopped at another break in the path, staring down it with a thoughtful frown. Blankets of old mourning laced the air, but Fenrer pushed on.

The dawn must always come.

Fenrer timed his heartbeats with every word and pushed past the despair with his own mind as the source. Exhaustion coiled around his temples, but he had nowhere to go but forward into the unknown. Yuven caught up to him with ease, overtaking him without his hidden struggle. Crimson lightning sparked in the deepest parts of the flurry, but Yuven never showed any wavering strength. Fenrer checked on Adara, who lagged behind with her own confused expression as they came into view of Fallholt. Compared to the bustling of Azahama, Fallholt proved quiet and full of retrospection. Storm Wardens kept guard at the gates, waving them down as they approached.

Though we seek life beyond the ocean's horizon... we must keep to the tailwind. Fenrer raised his hand in greeting to one of the guards before following Yuven deeper into the small town.

Adara turned on her heel as she walked. Her gaze settled on the tavern, where warm familiarity swept through the silver grove. "Is this Fallholt?"

"Where else would we be?" Yuven asked with a scoff, and her smile of wanderlust turned into a frown of unease. "Come. We don't waste time. Captain Ineha will need our report." They rushed down the path, with Adara hesitating at each building, where the silver flames brightened up with the first rays of moonlit hope. Back in the warmth of the outpost, some Wardens sat at tables, eating food and sharing their stories of the day or their past excursions. Senior Wardens regaled the young newblood of daring escapes and near misses, but behind their fluttering auras, was the constant weight of the shadows behind their words.

"I feel like it's been forever since I had something to eat..." Adara mumbled as they passed the cooking stations, but Yuven pushed onward, never resting and never giving quarter to the flow's whims. Fenrer frowned at his back, but never tried to slow his Oathbound down off his course.

Down the corridor, they faced Ineha's office door. Yuven knocked on it — much to his surprise, and opened the door without waiting for Ineha's acceptance.

Well he's getting better at that.

Captain Ineha sat at her windowsil, tilting her head to them as they entered. Adara hugged the wall, while Fenrer closed the door and leaned against it to spread a protective barrier of silence around the room. Every whisper of the wood rang through his ears, but he focused on his own heartbeat.

"You two are back," Captain Ineha said, then rested her gaze on Adara, who sank deeper into the shadows. "Is this the Anima?"

Yuven nodded. "Yes, we've retrieved her." He leaned his hands on her desk, where papers tucked into clean piles as he glared at the Dyrin captain. "There is a lot to report on what happened in Tebora."

Captain Ineha relaxed her arms against her sides and stood up from the windowsill. "Is it as Commander Faehariel feared then?"

"Worse."

Captain Ineha's dark eyes widened. "If you are saying it, it must be dire... but that can wait." Silver flames of Adara's aura wrapped around the shawl as Captain Ineha turned to her with a gentle smile. "Allow me to introduce myself, I am Captain Ineha. I run the Warden hall of Fallholt and all connected outposts from here up to the gorge. What is your name?"

Fenrer blinked when she sent a pleading glance his way before facing Ineha. "I'm... I'm Adara," she said, voice and aura shaking with uncertainty. "I am the Anima... whatever that means specifically," she muttered under her breath, then hugged the crimson shawl. "Still trying to figure that out."

"Well, I hope in time it will become clearer for you," Ineha said with her hands on her knees, dipping low. "Take your ease. You are safe here." She twisted back to Yuven. "I am to presume that the meeting with the Conclave went about as expected?" At Yuven's nod, she sighed. "Well, I suppose it's a relief in that case, that you two were able to retrieve Adara and come back without further issues — though I will want to hear more of what happened at Tebora."

"What of the Summit?" Fenrer mused, and Yuven scowled. "Has the..." He tried to tug out words for 'leader' from his basic vocabulary of the Dyrenji language. "Heiisnta?" It fluttered off his tongue, and didn't sound right to him. I may be mixing something from Hanekan... "Have they figured out the celebrations?

"Keinta, Pyren," Ineha corrected. "And yes, Hirishi-Keinta has settled matters over there. All that is left is to set up our defenses, which I've already sent word to the nearby outposts in the Fields of Light to be ready for a massive gathering. Elemental wards should be set up by then and should be able to cover the presence of the amount of magickae we're expecting."

"Two monarchs and their contingents," Yuven muttered with venom.

Ineha grinned at Yuven. "Well, I'm about to make your day, Captain Traye. Commander Faehariel wanted you to act in her stead, as she's busy in Euros."

"Joy." Yuven groaned but shrugged.

Adara lowered her hands to her stomach with a cringe, facing away from them. Hunger's vice fluttered the silver, and Fenrer poked Yuven's shoulder, who huffed in acknowledgement. "Yuven, tell Captain Ineha what happened in Tebora. I'm going to take Adara to show her where to get food, and... most likely head back to the shrine for the rest of the eve." He bowed back to Captain Ineha when Yuven sent him an understanding nod, and led Adara out of the Dyrin office.

"That wasn't what I was expecting," Adara admitted behind him.

"What were you expecting?" Fenrer waited for her.

"Someone with... your friend's charming attitude."

"Yuven?"

Adara nodded.

Fenrer chuckled. "As I said, give each other a chance. He may surprise you." He grabbed his moonwatch, which adjusted for the time they found themselves in. "Well, if you've got questions, I'll be happy to answer them."

Light burst through the silver with its wanderlust. "I have several." It doused back into the weary rain. "But, first... are you sure you're okay? Yuven wouldn't stop glaring at me the whole walk here."

Fenrer brushed the back of his neck and avoided the touch of silver aura. "I appreciate your concern, Adara, but I'm fine," he insisted. "Nothing a good night's sleep won't give me." He waved his hand out into the hall, where the previous crowd of Storm Wardens dispersed deeper into the building. "Here, you sit down and I'll grab something." He waited while she headed for a table nearest the marble fireplace before heading up to the counter where a cook set aside the day's meal. He grabbed the plate with a quick nod to them before heading back to her. He set it down in front of her before settling himself in the other seat.

"Are you not having anything?" Adara asked, but dug in without another word.

"I'm not hungry as of yet," Fenrer said and watched the door and the auras twisting in the air, before closing them off from his senses when she stared at him. "What did you think of Azahama?"

Adara nodded vigorously as she ate her food, Fenrer clasped his hands on the table as she finished her mouthful. "It was... more than I could ever imagine," she admitted. "Is every magickae city like that? There were so many colours, I wasn't sure where to look first." Her smile thinned into nervousness, but no small amount of excitement. "In Tebora, we were told that the magickae lands were fraught with mire and plague." She settled her hands into her lap. "I... I hate that I believed a part of it."

"It's all you heard," Fenrer pointed out. "But if you think Azahama is wondrous, wait until you see Euros citadel." He tried to pick up another word. "Neven, mine and Yuven's Guardian, says it is based on the Naveeran word Eyrusha. Rose of the sky." He clicked his tongue to test the word again, and nodded. "It is quite the sight. A castle of alabaster marble, rising out of the peaks like blooming flowers with stalks of stone." Homesickness struck his heart, but the silver wanderlust went from the calm moon to the fiery sun as Adara kept her attention rapt on him. "It is where the Storm Wardens have made their home, on one of the small archipelagos off the coast of Haneka. It is said that the past king of Haneka gave that little island to the start of the Order to combat the Derelicts, and that is where we have stayed for thousands of Turns."

"Since the birth of your order?" Adara mused.

"Yes." Fenrer nodded.

Adara pressed against the table. "Who started the Order?"

He hesitated, and tried to think back through all the books he read and the studies he went through as a Trainee. "We are... uncertain," he admitted. "Due to the nature of the Echo Obscura a lot of our past has been lost to us for reasons unknown. The texts which have it are fickle and can drive even the most learned magickae into the dark." He pursed his lips as Adara relaxed. "Though, there is a tome within the Storm Warden Annex believed to have belonged to the first Warden Commander, though very few get to read it."

"Like... a forbidden book." Adara grinned.

"Yes, I suppose, though it's not really forbidden persay, I just have never gotten to read it." Fenrer smiled at her fluttering excitement. "Are you feeling better?"

Adara blinked, and then leaned back. "I... Yeah, a little bit." Her hand rested on her heart. "I-It's just so much to take in." She rested it on the table and gazed at him. "Thank you, Fenrer. If I caused you trouble, I'm sorry." Adara gripped the lace of her crimson shawl. "And I'm sorry for what I did."

Fenrer sighed, causing her to look back up. "As I said already, there is no need to apologize. You didn't know, and the blame is on me for not taking proper precautions due to being under a time limit." He pinched his chin, then asked, "Why don't we play a game?"

"A game?"

Fenrer shuffled through his belt then pulled out his auric deck. "Yes, though it's safer to say that this will help sort out whatever is in your head. It's more a game of reflection than a game of odds," he explained as Adara took the deck into her hands.

"The cards are blank." Adara tipped her head and held out one card. Fenrer smiled when silver gems grew around the edges as she pressed her hand against it, and she leaped back when the dawn rose with the leashes of light as she let out a gasp of surprise.

Fenrer gazed at it. "The Silver Dawn." He grabbed onto it. "Hope. Faith. Belief." He passed it back to her. "'Though the future is unknown, the turn of fate passes on'. As are the words of Ojain, the Echonic gatekeeper."

"Is that good?"

"It is what you perceive it to be. Whether that is good or bad is up to you, but always remember that light and dark are of the same coin. The same world." Fenrer held onto another blank card, and observed as she sorted through the blank cards.

An icy maelstrom whispered over his shoulder, but when he turned back, it disappeared. In his hands, the blank card turned into Space and Time, the never-ending spiral of white flames into the center of the void.

Constants.

The path forward, and the way back.

Yuven...