"Clean it up."
It wasn't loud.
It didn't need to be.
Movement started instantly.
Seiferus's squad moved first—
but even the outpost survivors followed without hesitation.
Wounded were lifted.
Supplies gathered.
The field shifted from chaos—
to order.
Aetherwyn blinked.
"…They're not even his people."
Filo crossed her arms.
"They are right now."
Seiferus turned slightly.
"Filo."
She glanced over.
"…Yeah?"
"Step aside."
A brief pause—
then she pushed off the ground and walked past Aetherwyn.
"Don't wander," she muttered.
"Or die. Either works."
"…Comforting."
They stopped a short distance away.
Close enough to see.
Not close enough to hear everything clearly.
Seiferus didn't waste time.
"…How did it happen?"
Filo's expression shifted.
Subtle—
but sharper.
"Rift distortion," she said.
"But not normal."
He waited.
"Weaker monsters started disappearing," she continued.
"Then stronger ones moved in. Aether levels spiked—fast."
A pause.
"And then that thing showed up."
Seiferus's eyes narrowed.
"…A Rift Surge."
Filo nodded once.
"Yeah. But stronger than usual."
His gaze lifted briefly—
toward where the Rift had been.
"…It shouldn't have escalated that quickly."
"No," Filo said quietly.
"…It shouldn't have."
Silence settled between them.
Then—
"…It's been a while."
Filo raised an eyebrow.
"…Since what?"
"Since we've crossed paths like this."
She exhaled softly.
"…Yeah."
"…It has."
Seiferus's gaze shifted.
Toward Aetherwyn.
Measured.
"…We should see the others."
Filo didn't answer immediately.
"…Maybe."
A beat.
Then—
"Not important right now."
The shift was small—
but intentional.
Seiferus noticed.
He didn't press it.
"…You'll need to come back with me."
Filo's eyes narrowed slightly.
"…For what?"
"A report."
A glance toward the ruined outpost.
"This wasn't isolated."
A pause.
"…And it won't be the last."
Filo exhaled slowly.
"…Yeah."
"I figured."
She tilted her head slightly.
"…And him?"
Seiferus's gaze flicked back to Aetherwyn.
Brief.
But deliberate.
"…He comes too."
Filo smirked faintly.
"…Thought you'd say that."
---
Aetherwyn looked back.
At the battlefield.
The fallen wyvern.
The shattered outpost.
And the line carved into the earth—
A perfect scar.
A reminder.
_That wasn't a fight._
_That was power._
Everything felt different now.
Bigger.
Heavier.
More real.
Ahead—
Seiferus and his squad were already moving.
Filo didn't wait.
"Come on," she said, glancing back once.
"Try to keep up, beginner."
Aetherwyn tightened his grip on his wand.
Just slightly.
Then stepped forward.
Leaving behind the ruins of his first battle—
And walking toward something far greater.
---
High above—
unseen—
A faint fracture shimmered.
Just for a moment.
Then vanished.
**Their path led to Nolvaris.**
**And nothing about it would be simple.**