The smell of ash was still ripe in the air. And with it came the memories of masked faces and white fire. Toppled trees and broken branches littered the mountainside clearing, and small clouds of ashes puffed up from the ground with every step.

Aldeheid picked through the wreckage to the pillar that marked it as a thin space. Its markings were smudged with black soot, but by the humming emanating from it, he knew the wards were still intact.

Lady Hiroh crouched by a pile of ash and sifted through it with her fingers. "This is giving me horrible flashbacks. When Leandyr and I had to chase a group of them from the thin space near the Opal Isles, they left behind a similar scene." She exhaled a sigh and dusted her hands off. "One step forward, two steps back."

"Fukami might know something about them," Jayer said. He brushed some debris away to examine some symbols on a fallen tree. "He's agreed to come to the summit."

Aldeheid distracted himself by examining his sword so he wouldn't have to listen to Jayer prattle on. There was nothing of value that could come out of that snake's mouth. He traced his fingers along the pommel sticking his thumb into the lion's empty eye socket.

For the first time in a while he wondered where Mellidius was or what he was up to. Aldeheid had resolved to look for his mentor when he'd been kicked out of his old home at the Etheria Bastion. But after joining Kitaya and her colleagues, he'd lost sight of that goal. Perhaps it wasn't too late...

"We should get on," Kitaya said, cutting into his thoughts. "Aldeheid and I will go through first. If the way is clear, we'll toss a stone through.

Everyone nodded their ascent, and Aldeheid was more than happy to get away from Jayer, even if it was just for a moment.

Passing through the thin space was like walking underwater. For a moment when he stood on the threshold that separated earth from Magika, his movements seemed to slow. An unseen forced tugged at him, as though holding him back and a weight settled in his chest, making breathing a chore.

The most jarring part was emerging on the other side. Gone was the thick humidity of the jungle, only to be replaced by a cool breeze. Lush greenery surrounded him -- grass that came up to his waist along with trees that seemed to stretch up forever. He craned his neck and caught sight of a bird as it dove into the leaves, sending a shower of them fluttering to the ground.

"Watch my back, angel eyes." Kitaya pushed through the grass and climbed up one of the trees.

Aldeheid dropped his bag, drew his sword and scanned the area. It was so quiet, with only the rustle of the grass dancing in the wind cutting through the silence. The ocean of greenery seemed to stretch on forever, over rises and through stands of trees, touching every edge of the horizon.

He wouldn't be surprised if there were predators lurking in the grass, ready to pounce and devour him whole. The thought made his hand drift toward his pouch of ether stones.

Kitaya dropped down from the treetops, making him jump. "Throw a stone through, angel eyes."

When he did as she said, the others materialized through the thin space. Aldeheid tucked his sword into its sheath and shouldered his bag.

Kitaya led the way as they waded through the sea of grass. "It's good to be in familiar territory. You'll love Kon, angel eyes."

Aldeheid smiled and fell into step with her. "I heard everyone does."

They'd had this trip planned for months now, and it served a dual purpose. First, their bonding ceremony, which made his stomach sink a little every time he thought about it. Then there was to be a summit, with several nations sending representatives to discuss matters concerning the thin spaces.

"Are you nervous for the bonding ceremony?" Lady Hiroh asked.

Kitaya snorted. "No."

"Yes," Aldeheid said at the same time.

"Never thought I'd see the day when Kitaya decided to take a magician." Ayzel smiled ruefully. "I'm excited though. Leandyr and I haven't been to a bonding ceremony since our own."

Leandyr chuckled. "Oh, that was quite the day, but I'm never letting Enver plan any of my celebrations again. I don't love him any less, but he had us running around like headless chickens." He put on a mocking voice before continuing. "Are these flowers alright? What about this drapery? What kind of drinks should I get?"

"He was only trying to make our day special."

"I told him a hundred times that literally anything he picked would've been fine."

"Well, Eriani and Kemah are handling ours." Kitaya said, then glanced over her shoulder. "What about you, Jayer? How did you and Jetei's bonding ceremony go?"

Jayer grumbled something under his breath.

"We had to have our bonding ceremony in secret," Jetei explained. "Jayer's altori didn't exactly... approve of me."

Aldeheid almost snorted. That was quite the understatement. If he got a gold coin for every time Baldavin had called Jetei worthless, he'd be able to buy Castle Wylerra.

Kitaya winced. "Sorry, I shouldn't have brought it up considering..." She coughed. "Well, we should probably talk less and pay attention more. It'll be a few hours before we get to a safe spot to set up camp." With that, they continued their trek across the savanna in silence.

The sun was on the cusp of the horizon when they made it to their camp site – a small clearing in between two stands of trees that would, hopefully, buffer them from the elements. A river stood to the east, its gurgling water splashing over small rapids as it rushed to the south. They broke formation and got to setting up their tents and placing wards around the site to deter any predators.

After hammering the last stake into his tent, Aldeheid sat down with a small mirror and tried to cut his hair. Since his body had elected to take a nap before their trip, he'd had no time to do it before they'd left. He took a chunk of the black curls between his fingers and shaved it off with Kitaya's dagger.

The mirror fell from the perch on his leg, and he swore as it disappeared into the grass.

"Let me help you." Lady Hiroh took the dagger and began trimming his hair before he could decline. "Why are you so adamant about keeping it short?"

"Old habits die hard," Jayer said from across the camp.

Silence descended over the clearing, and Aldeheid bit the inside of his cheek to prevent himself from saying something nasty.

"Just ignore him. How short do you want it?"

"Short enough to lie flat. Can you neaten the edges too?"

Lady Hiroh worked quickly and quietly, shearing the nest of curls atop his head. The trimmings rained over his shoulders and fell into the grass.

"Hurry up with that, I want to spar." Leandyr unsheathed his sword and began cutting at the air, the blade glinting in setting sun.

Aldeheid took a breath and focused on the sound of his hair being clipped away. It reminded him of when he was a boy in Wylerra. The queen would clip his hair every other day, because Baldavin insisted on it.

"Cut his hair, it's disgusting," he'd say. It didn't help that Aldeheid's hair grew faster than weeds. Before long he'd learned to do it himself, and made it a habit to keep his unruly curls in order.

"All done," Ayzel announced. She fished the mirror from the grass and held it up. "How's that?"

Aldeheid examined his reflection, turning his head left and right. "It's perfect. Thank you, Lady Hiroh."

"Let's go," Leandyr said. "While we still have daylight."

Aldeheid groaned and reluctantly met Leandyr at the center of the camp site before drawing his sword. He didn't mind a bit of swordplay here and there, but, unfortunately, Leandyr's idea of sparring involved kicking Aldeheid around like a child's toy. The Swordmaster always seemed to have a lot of pent up frustration he needed to get out. Or maybe he just needed to feel superior to everyone. Despite all that, Leandyr was the ideal teacher, even more ideal than Mellidius.

They circled each other, as they always did. Leandyr held his sword in a lazy one handed grip, but Aldeheid knew better than to underestimate him. The Swordmaster's first strike came out of nowhere. One moment he was in front of Aldeheid, the next he was at his right side, sword flashing with blinding speed.

Aldeheid barely got his own sword up in time to block the blow. The shock from the clash crawled through his arms and sunk into his muscles. He spun away and launched his own attack.

Leandyr sidestepped, eyeing the blade as though it were a buzzing pestilence. "Predictable." A flurry of strikes followed his taunt. 

And Aldeheid was force to absorb  each one with his blade. He didn't have Leandyr's speed or Kitaya's intuition, so, with every exchange of blows, he was forced to to be reactive instead of proactive.

Over and over their blades crashed together, the song of steel carrying over the savanna. Leandyr grinned like a giddy child, his sword moving like lightning; meanwhile Aldeheid was doing his best to keep up. With every swing of the Swordmaster's blade, he lost more ground, more strength, more resolve. He was like a block of wood being chipped away at, and soon there would be nothing left.

"It's a sword, Aldeheid. Not the barbaric club your ancestors used to chase away predators," Leandyr scolded, as he deflected another attack. His follow-up strike sent Aldeheid skidding back, arms falling limp.

Aldeheid leaned heavily on his sword and took greedy gulps of air. Sweat dripped from his face to wet the tall, swaying grass. The exertion, along with the savanna heat was beginning to take a toll on him.

Smudges of grass stained his gear like a woeful motif of inadequacy, and a shallow cut marred his hand where he'd been accidentally nicked. But he needed the help, so he dared not complain.

"You can do better than this," Leandyr said, planting the tip of his sword in the ground. "Pretend I'm Jayer."

"Leandyr..." Kitaya warned. She was seated atop the box with a map in her hands, the look of disapproval on her face akin to that of a disappointed parent.

"What? Don't you remember what happened back at Aiisha. I want more of that. Not..." He gestured towards Aldeheid. "...whatever this is. Or better yet, let them settle this centuries old feud with a fight to the death."

"No one is fighting," Jetei chimed in. "We've had enough of that."

Leandyr held his hands up. "T'was only a suggestion. We're done for now Aldeheid."

Aldeheid nodded and sheathed his sword before going to the river. Splashing the cool water on his face and arms helped to clear his head a bit. His arms were still tingling as though there were ants crawling under his skin, and his burnt hand was throbbing under the bandages. 

"Want to grab some dinner?" Kitaya asked, joining him by the river. She had a loaded crossbow in one hand which she aimed at the water. An abundance of fish and shellfish were skirting along the bottom against the flow of the river. "Watch and learn, angel eyes." Her first shot missed, and the fish scattered. "I'm a bit rusty."

He dried his hands on his pants. "Perhaps I can try something?"

"You don't have to ask for my permission all the time." She shoved the crossbow in his face, but he politely declined.

"Bad habit, I suppose." He turned his attention to the river, but in the back of his mind, his focus was still on Kitaya. He reached out to her with his will while reciting a spell, and the familiar tickle of magic caressed his hands.

The water crested and rose, pulling the fish along with it. It separated from the river, and he weaved his magic over its surface to form it into a ball. His floating aquarium drifted towards him and hovered in place at his command.

Kitaya blew out a long, low whistle. "Angel eyes, you are in fine form."

Heat crept into his cheek. "Thank you." They walked side by side back to the camp site, the orb of water floating between them.

"Nice catch," Jetei said. He had an arm full of dry wood and tinder. He dumped them on the growing pile he and Jayer were gathering.

Aldeheid didn't answer or even look at him. He had no real grudge with Jetei, but with him being Jayer's cape, he had to take the one with the other. He turned to the floating aquarium and stuck his hand in to grab a fish. But instead a shellfish grabbed him by his smallest finger. "Argh!" He yanked his hand out and waved it around, but the little bastard refused to let go.

Leandyr fell over, roaring with laughter.

He scowled and broke the pincer that held him hostage before holding his tiny attacker at arm's length. Warm blood dripped from his finger to speckle the grass at his feet.

"Let me take that." Kitaya plucked the creature from his hands and shooed him away. "Go deal with your hand."

Aldeheid went to the box, leering at Leandyr, who was still tittering like a drunken fool. He remembered a time when he thought the box was a messy pile of junk, but after spending so much time with Kitaya, it looked more organized in its chaos. He knew where everything he needed was, the bandages, the healing balms and the elixirs.

As he turned around, he came face to face with Jayer.

"We need to talk, Aldeheid." His grey eyes bore into Aldeheid.

"Get out of my face." If his hands weren't full, he probably would've throttled him. He tried to step around Jayer but Jayer mirrored his movements and blocked him. "Move." The word sounded more like a growl.

"Do it for the cause, not for me. If we ever have to work together, this bad blood will only make that harder."

Jetei placed a hand on his magician's shoulder. "Just leave him be. Now is not the time."

Aldeheid glanced back and forth between the two of them. "You should listen to your cape." He tried to walk around them, and again Jayer blocked his path.

"What happened in Wylerra wasn't as black and white—"

He pushed passed Jayer and headed for the river. Just keep walking, he told himself. Block out his presence.

"Hating me isn't going to bring Wenry back, you know."

Aldeheid, stopped in his tracks, letting the healing items fall from his hands. Jayer's words were like the dagger sinking into his back all over again. His vision turned red around the edges as he spun.

"Yes, round two!" Leandyr cheered.

Lady Hiroh was on her feet in an instant, hands held out in a placating gesture. "Aldeheid, please, there's no need for us to be fighting. It's not worth it." She slowly placed herself between him and Jayer. "We can resolve this with words. Save the bloodshed for those who deserve it."

"He deserves it," Aldeheid said, not recognizing the rage-laced voice that came from his own mouth.

Ayzel drew her sword. "Jayer, get out of here."

"No." Leandyr rose and drew his sword. "Let me take care of this." He stepped beside Lady Hiroh. "Aldeheid, if you can get past me, Jayer is all yours."

"Enough of this nonsense," Kitaya cut in, crossing from her spot by the fire to take Aldeheid by the arm. "We're going for a walk. Jayer, I'd suggest you do the same." She tried to pull him away from the would-be fight, but he didn't budge. "Aldeheid."

He looked past Lady Hiroh and Leandyr at Jayer clenched and unclenched his fists, willing his anger to subside. Only because he didn't want to hurt or upset Kitaya, he backed down, allowing her to pull him away.

She led him towards the river, only stopping to collect the healing items he'd dropped.

"Why are you protecting him?" Aldeheid asked in a tone that held more malice than Kitaya deserved.

She stayed quiet and pulled him to the rocky side of the bank. There they sat in silence while she tore away the bandages from his hand to tend to his wounds. A brisk breeze shook the tall grass around them and tossed her braids in front of her face. Her eyes didn't hold any anger, but there was a hit of annoyance in the set of her jaw and tightness of her lips

Aldeheid wondered if getting the help she'd offered would make him less inclined to kill Jayer on sight. Probably not. He toyed with the pommel of his sword to distract himself from his anger. The flames of his rage were gone, but the ashes left behind still smoked and smoldered like the dying dregs of a campfire.

"You know, that blind rage makes your eyes a little less angelic." Kitaya tied off his bandages before standing and stretching.

"There was nothing angelic about me to begin with, kitten." Angels were dainty yet powerful creatures that served the gods. He was everything but.

"I beg to differ." She turned towards the sunset, and its light made her dark skin glow. "I don't blame you for holding a grudge with Jayer. I've been known to hold a few myself. So for the sake of this trip I'll try to keep you both separate."

"Please do," he grumbled.

"But. I also understand where Jayer is coming from. If we run into trouble and you two have to work together, your bickering will only get in the way. In that event, can I trust you to keep a level head? To put the safety of everyone first and your grudges second?"

Aldeheid nodded. "As you wish."

"Thank you. And I will have words with Jayer as well." With that, she turned on her heel and started back towards the camp.

He looked down at his sword, then at her retreating back. "Kitten?"

"Hm?" She stopped and looked over her shoulder.

"I know you don't care much for him, but... Do you think it's possible for us to go look for Mellidius?" He fully expected her to say no, that she didn't care for that fool, that he could rot in whatever place he'd ran off to.

Kitaya stayed quiet for a moment, her eyes gaining a faraway look. "We can."

His jaw nearly fell. "Truly? I mean... you don't mind?"

"He's important to you, and family to me." She gave a lazy shrug. "Also, I want to knock him upside his head for running away and abandoning everyone."

Aldeheid smiled. "I won't stop you."

[A/N]: Do you guys think I should've allowed Jayer and Aldeheid to fight? Also, here's another random Magika factoid. Leandyr's style of sword fighting is based on Adrian Tepes aka Alucard from Castlevania. He's the blonde guy in the gif below.