Once more I sat outside the cave, staring into the distance.

“They’re still not here.”

Homura’s voice came from besides me. She sat down beside me, her gaze just like mine as she looked into the distance.

“It was that mountain over there, right?”

“Yeah.”

It was nothing more than a blur as the distance didn’t allow us to see that far.

“They will be all right.” Like a spell I continued these words, in hope to convince myself of it. But even then this anxiety didn’t seem to lessen any bit.

“They can do it.” Somehow in these hours that passed since she awoke our positions changed, and where she was the one that wanted to storm off towards them, now she held me back from doing so. But when I saw the sun slowly sinking behind the horizon once more, I felt my remaining will to stay become faint. And just like me I could feel my black flames urging me to search for them.

“Someone’s coming near!” A shout came from above, where one of the archers took a stand, their higher perception allowing them to look farther than we could.

I jumped upwards, taking a few steps until I stood in front of a cliff. But even when I strained my eyes, I couldn’t see more than the remaining snow and the now freed earth underneath.

“It’s them!”

Before I even knew it, my feet pushed off the rock beneath me, towards the direction they should come from.

 

Little by little silhouettes appeared in the distance, making me raise my speed once more. But when I saw the state they were in my run broke into a full out sprint. Shattered shield, dented armor, a few of the warriors limping. But even now I couldn’t see the one I searched for.

“Narva!”

At my shout the warriors flinched before they hesitantly looked backwards. Without caring further about them I rushed past them before I finally saw her. Her once white dress was now discolored by blood. Her body laden with wounds as she held onto another to stay afoot.

She scratched her cheeks as she began to speak. “Sorry for taking so…”

 

---

 

“… long.” I could barely finish my words when I was nearly swept of my feet.

“Are you all right? Where did you get those wounds?” Agni asked hurriedly, his tone a mixture of worry and concern. But his emotions only made happy for being the one to receive them.

“I’m fine.” I could see him wanting to press on, but I stopped him for now. “Let’s get back inside for now. We brought quite the haul with us.”

 

When we stepped into the mountain most were visibly thrown into shock, before we announced the success of our mission. And after relief settled in it soon turned into curiosity. And this led to someone telling the story of our fight, though not without embellishing it.

“She fought gallantly against the wyvern, trying her best as she wounded it again and again, while we dragged its attention towards us. But then this malicious beast struck her with a hidden attack, leaving her nearly unable to fight.

We tried to save her, but the beast unleashed its fearsome breath. Opposed to a last dodge however she forced her body forwards, diving straight into it while the winds around her cut through it. And before the wyvern had a chance to react the winds rushed onwards into its mouth, piercing into the unprotected flesh, and ended its life once and for all.

Her body was left in a wreck when we came near her again, only the healing provided by her leveling left her able to even walk towards here.”

Eyes of admiration, awe and incredulity were directed towards me. But one particular set of eyes looked at me admonishing. And as the narrator came to the point where we had another wyvern to dissect, making us late in coming back, a sigh came from the one next to me.

“What were you even thinking when you did this?” His voice sounded tired after he heard the whole story.

“I had everything under control. The level I gained while fighting with you were enough to allow me to damage it, and my new spell made me even much faster than it.”

“Then why did you end up like?” He pointed towards dress, sullied in mine and its blood, before pointing at my leg where the flesh was still visible without regrowing new scales.

“That was,” I pondered for a moment as I searched for a word that would let me get out of this situation, “a lapse.”

“A lapse that nearly costed you your life and made you dive straight towards it.”

“Hey, it’s not like you didn’t do the same. I only thought of it because I heard about you doing it!”

At my words he sunk his head, resting his forehand on his hand. With closed eyes he spoke. “That was a monster at least fifty times bigger than me. If that wyvern had reacted in time it would’ve bit you in two.” Saying this he fell silent for a moment. “I’m just glad you’re alright.”

He silently stayed like this. But through the time I spent with him I knew by now, that even though he may seem calm, he wasn’t, as his flames flickered in turmoil. Gently I leaned my shoulder against him.

“I’m back. Sorry for worrying you.”

He didn’t answer, but his flames calmed down as they softly crackled.

 

---

 

Another few days passed. Just like Homura had to, Narva focused on her recovery. With the new food reserves a happy atmosphere surrounded the whole group, as we no longer faced a death through starvation.

The last battle however showed something else. While a few had the ability to take on the bigger monsters those that couldn’t were far from it, even being more of a liability as an unlucky hit would quickly finish them off.

And if the warriors already had problems keeping up with them what about those without the power to fight? They would need others to protect them, limiting the already few fighters even further. In the end, it wouldn’t remain by a few casualties if we had to protect them while fighting.

In face of the only viable solution for this stage however Homura stood steadfast against it.

“I won’t just leave them behind like this.”

“We’re not leaving them behind, we’re keeping them away from the danger that awaits us.”

“You just word it differently. It’s the same as we would leave them inside this cave without anyone to protect them.”

“If we keep them with us, we will only endanger them even more.”

“I know, but…” she fell silent.

“I understand that you don’t like it, but we can’t just hope that time will solve this. While we may have enough food for now, we don’t know how long this continues.”

“What if I stay here to protect them?” She asked uneasily.

I couldn’t say anything anymore, any thought I had to convince her already spoken. In my stead however another voice rose.

“You should go.” Charr spoke.

“Not you too.”

“If you three go together you should be able to beat this stage. We will stay here and protect those that cannot go on.”

“What if a wyvern appeared here? Or something worse? I should…”

“Then you would only die alongside us. The faster we get out of this stage the better. And for that we all need you to go along with them.”

Unease spread at his words, but the others still nodded at his words.

“I,” she shot upwards, “need some time to think about this.” As soon as she finished her words she walked out of the cave.