The air itself seemed to hum, trembling faintly with every impact. The ground was cracked and scarred where the fight had struck it again and again.
The tree of corpses still loomed nearby, limbs twisted through its branches, as if waiting for new additions to its grim display.
At the edge of his vision, Rakreim saw it—
A fist.
An inch from his face.
Ria still stood several paces away.
CRUNCH.
Faelan's fist connected with Rakreim's jaw, bone grinding under the force.
To Faelan, only a moment had passed since Rakreim's earlier smile—the one that had promised how quickly this could all end.
But—
I hit him?
The thought flashed through his mind, brief and stunned.
Then his eyes met Rakreim's.
The Azryx had barely moved.
Rakreim didn't move—at least not at first.
He looked at Faelan, long and quiet, the expression on his face closer to disappointment than anger. His eyes drifted down, noting the knuckle-duster wrapped around Faelan's hand.
Faelan tried to step back.
BOOM.
Rakreim's fist drove forward—
—and crashed into something.
No. Someone.
Ria had moved.
She caught the strike just in time, the force of it shuddering through her frame as the jungle rang with the impact.
Faelan didn't hesitate.
He twisted sharply and drove his elbow into Rakreim's torso.
CRUNCH.
The impact shot pain through his arm like lightning.
Faelan staggered back, his elbow screaming—nearly broken from the strike.
Rakreim… flinched.
Only slightly.
But Ria saw it.
She moved instantly, knocking his arm aside and driving an uppercut into his jaw.
For a moment his head snapped back—
Then he recovered.
His other hand shot forward.
Ria caught the strike—barely. The force alone shoved her backward.
Rakreim didn't stop.
His leg drove forward.
The kick slammed into her torso and sent her flying back across the clearing.
Ria pushed herself back to her feet.
"Let's hit him again—"
She moved before she saw it.
Blood.
Pooling at Faelan's feet.
He stood there, staring down in stunned confusion, as if the wound had only just appeared—though it hadn't.
His abdomen hung open, viscera spilling free as his body slowly folded to the ground.
Ria froze.
Rakreim moved behind her before she could react.
He wrapped an arm around her in something almost resembling an embrace.
Then he spoke—this time in a language she understood.
"Next time… I suggest you crawl back into whatever damned hole you came out of."
His hand settled on the top of her head.
Then he pulled.
There was a wet tear.
Blood sprayed across the clearing as her head tumbled free, rolling across the ground—until it came to rest beside Faelan's fallen body.
***
Faelan opened his eyes.
Darkness.
For a moment he thought he was underwater. Everything felt heavy, slow.
He tried to move his hands.
They weren't there.
But the pain was.
It pulsed through him as he struggled to stand.
Then the smell reached him.
Iron.
Blood.
He looked down. He was standing in it.
The surface rippled—and hands burst from below, grabbing at him, dragging him down.
Faces followed.
People he knew.
People from his hometown.
The ones the loboans had torn apart.
Friends. Neighbors. Family.
They clawed at him, pulling him deeper into the red.
Then he saw her.
A woman stood at the edge of it all, just beyond the grasping hands. She reached toward him, as if she wanted to help.
BANG.
BANG.
Her body jerked—then collapsed to the floor.
The man behind her lowered the smoking gun.
Slowly… he turned it toward Faelan.
The barrel pointed straight at his head.
The shot rang out.
Just before his body hit the ground, Faelan saw something else—
A hand.
Reaching down from above.
Warmth.
He struggled to open his eyes.
Sunlight cut through the haze, settling on him.
He was lying down, head resting in someone's lap.
He couldn't make out the face at first—then he blinked.
It was Ria.
They were… back at the bank? The place where they first saw the carved rock?
How… was that a dream? he thought, confusion clawing at him.
Ria's fingers moved through his hair, slow, absent-minded, her gaze fixed somewhere far away.
Her neck was visible, and it was scarred.
Something about it made him pause—an echo of dread he couldn't place.
"What happened?" he asked.
"I don't know… I woke up here too," she said, still stroking his hair.
Faelan's eyes drifted to the rock. The carving had changed—it seemed… purposeful now.
"I thought we—"
"Died?" she finished for him.
"Yes," he said quietly.
"We should probably get moving," she murmured, her fingers still tangled in his hair.
"Why are you doing that?" he asked, a mild edge in his voice.
"I find it… comforting," she replied, almost to herself.
Faelan stared at his hands. They were different. The knuckle dusters—made from orthdra scales—had fused with his skin.
"Ria… are you seeing this too, or is it just because I'm hungry?" he asked.
"I see it," she said, still stroking his hair. "But I'm hungry too, so maybe…"
He dropped his head. His arms felt lighter, like he'd lost weight overnight.
They lingered, silent, unmoving.
"Are you going to stop?" he asked.
"In a moment," she replied, eyes distant, fingers still tracing his scalp.
A soft breeze stirred through the trees, carrying the faint hum of the forest around them.
***
Rakreim moved through the jungle, clutching a large avian creature. Feathers fell in a silent shower as he tore them away, methodical and precise, before sinking his teeth into the flesh.
The air shifted. Unnaturally still. Another Azryx had emerged behind him.
"To what do I owe the pleasure?" Rakreim inquired, turning slowly, his voice calm, unsettling.
"Ihadafeelingthat youbrokeoneofourlaws," the first Azryx said, pausing, his voice measured. "Somethinghappenednearby—it seemed… impactful."
"Adriedbloodpool wasfoundaswell," another Azryx added, perched on a branch above, eyes fixed on Rakreim.
Rakreim's gaze sharpened. He knew exactly what they meant—the clearing where he had fought Faelan and his companion. The memory lingered like a pulse in the air.
"Iassureyouthatwhathappened wasmerelya reunionbetweenoldfriends," Rakreim said, his voice calm, measured. "…Although thingsdid takeaninteresting turn when an unexpected organism appeared."
"Organism... Whataboutthisorganism?" the Azryx in the tree inquired.
Rakreim's eyes flicked toward the canopy. "Itwouldseem humans havegottentheirhandson something… disgustingly interesting."
"Andwhathappenedto this organism?" the Azryx in front of him asked.
"Itescaped," Rakreim said smoothly, letting the word hang. "…Otherthanthat, there's nothingelsethat wardens suchasyourselves would needtocareabout."
They stood in silence for a moment.
"Escaped…" the Azryx in front of him repeated, as though savoring the word.
"Somethingthatwouldescape from you is rather intriguing," he said, eyes locking on Rakreim with daggers.
"Isthatreallyallthattranspired?" the Azryx in the tree probed. "…I'm sure you are aware of whatwouldhappenif somethingelsetookplace."
"Indeed," Rakreim answered, bold and unflinching.
The Azryx in front of him moved closer in an instant, stopping mere inches from Rakreim.
"We'llbetakingourleavenow," he said, then stepped past him.
He and the Azryx in the tree vanished as unnervingly as they had appeared.
Rakreim walked in the opposite direction, moving as if he had somewhere important to go.
***
Faelan and Ria made their way toward the settlement that had once stood there, but found nothing remained. Across the large clearing, the jungle persisted—the same place where they had almost… no, had lost their lives.
"Let's go back," Faelan suggested.
Ria nodded, and they retraced their steps to decipher the carving on the rock.