Far away. In the mist, unconscious Halcyon.
Ontop a high mountain strong and soft winds, brushing across some elegant spires and curved rooftops of a compound nestled between peaks. Crystal-clear streams wove between carved stone bridges, and cherry blossoms floated above polished wood walkways.
Inside a room adorned with drapes and intricate carvings, the scent of sandalwood and mountain rain lingered in the air. The space was divided cleanly, one half rugged and minimal, marked by training gear and a polished blade on the wall, the other half soft and refined, with velvet cushions, delicate perfume bottles, and a mirror framed in silver vines.
A girl stood in front of that mirror, fastening the final clasp of her battle garb. Her sea blue hair shimmered, cascading down her back. As she lifted a pair of obsidian earrings, her head suddenly snapped to the side, pupils dilating.
A sharp, unseen current of energy had sliced through the air.
She smirked.
"So... you finally found it."
Her reflection grinned back, one eye glowing faintly as the mountain wind stirred the curtains behind her.
...
As the sun rose up, casting golden light through the dense forest. Birds chirped in harmony, but all thing inside were, huddled behind trees.
Just beyond, the Shattered Rest. The mist that the was during the night was no longer out. From the outside, it looked as if nothing had happened... As if time itself had stopped.
A figure burst through the shattered archway, sprinting despite the weight in their arms and the weariness etched deep into their bones… They used their remaining energy to keep moving.
In their arms, Halcyon layed limp.
He felt her skin burned against his, feverish and pale… like her soul was slipping. Her breathing was shallow… too shallow.
Cold sweat trailing down the back. As he could hear it... the ticking of a clock winding down.
He hated himself right now, after thinkkng about it. He knew, the scent of iron and salt indicated energy corrosion… A sign that this relic site had been corrupted or emptied long before their arrived.
This is my fault.
He'd warned her. Again and again, he told her not to push herself. But Halcyon had always danced too close to the edge, and Lucian had always let her.
Maybe because deep down down… I admired it, while still feared it.
Somewhere in the haze of pain, Halcyon floated, in her mind.
She felt heat… cold… pressure. She heard Lucian's heartbeat like a war drum in the distance. She had to prove she could stand beside him, not behind him. Lucian was always the shadow cutting through the storm...
All I wanted, was go just be your equal. Not like now, another's life yor carry on your back.
"Ekk!"
Overhead, a swarm of bats, broke through the clouds with grey-glowing eyes and shrieking loudly, they spiraled, erratic and vicious, wings slicing the air like blades.
He frowned as they descended onto him. And, he ducked, twisted… one bat managed to clip his shoulder, tearing through his cloak and drawing blood into the air.
He grunted, but didn't slow down.
Another dove. Lucian slid down a wet stone slope, clutching Halcyon to his chest as its leathery razor sharp wings cut passed.
He remembered something, as a memory forced forward.
...
Halcyon was stood in front of a burned-down building, smirking beneath cracked goggles, as a flame-scorched wood groaned behind her.
"Just this once, Noct. I need to see what's in there. I can handle myself."
Lucian had crossed his arms, his expression serious. "You say that every time. And every time I end up carrying you back."
Halcyon grinned. "Then maybe I like being carried by you."
He'd sighed… Though inside, their closeness sent shivers across his skin. Every heartbeat began louder, that it echoed in his ears.
The thing between, them was It seemed that she wanted to save him from the darkness he carried. While, she's also trying to save herself, from becoming like him.
That night, the mission had gone to hell… cursed spirits, unstable terrain, one wrong step.
He remembered her scream.
Collapsed into his arms. Blood on her lips, as he ran, just like now. A heavy pressure in his chest.
Ran through that forest, boots pounding dirt and regret… this was a couple week after she came back from solo mission he warned her about… Often takes reckless solo missions against Lucian's warnings. But, no during there missions together.
What compels Halcyon to keep diving into danger… curiosity, courage, or the need to prove something?
He even doubted weather it was himself, that the crown relic wasn't there. Every relic leaves a mark on its wielder, whether physical, mental, or spiritual… Lucian may already bear his.
"Ekk!
A screech pulled him back... As a bat lunged.
Lucian pivoted, holding Halcyon with one arm and launching a dagger with the other. His blade found its mark… the bat shrieked and spiraled into the trees.
He was gasping for breath, his heart pounding like a war drum.
He looked down at Halcyon's pale, sweat-soaked face.
"You always wanted to run into hell with me…" he whispered. "But you never learned how to walk away."
As he gritted his teeth and did a final push of strength.
He broke through the treeline…
"Ahh!"
He collided with something… no, someone just beyond the fog. The impact sent them both tumbling back. Lucian instinctively twisted mid-fall, protecting Halcyon from the ground slam.
When he looked up, a cloaked figure stood over them, they looked stunned.
The stranger had has black hair, medium-length and spiked, angular in all directions. His face was sharp, defined, framed by faint scars… a prominent one cut across his left eyebrow like a lightning bolt frozen in his flesh.
His body was lean, athletic under acloak-jacket and high-collared, a matte black steel threaded leather hints of silver trims and sigils stitches onto the sleeves. His jacket had one shoulder pauldron, sleek and jagged. He had one fingerless gloves, his were heavy, dust-worn.
His storm-gray eyes widened as they locked onto Lucian... He had instense, sadness but reminiscent buildings inside.
"T-Teacher…?"
Lucian froze, his ear perked up…That voice, the way he was called, a name resurfaced in his mind…
His stomach twisted. It was someone he didn't want to encounter nor should know he's here.
He looked up slowly. "…Asher?"
The younger man about twenty two, Asher dropped to one knee, eyes wide with disbelief and awe.
"They said you were gone. That Lazarus… but you're here. You're alive."
Lucian's expression darkened, his brows furrowed, his jaws clenched briefly.
"Well, here I am," he said, voice low and grim. "But now's not the time for reunions."
His gaze lowered down.
Asher's eyes followed… his breath caught in his throat. He could see she wasn't in good shape.
"Aunty Halcyon! What… What happened to her?"
"No time. She's dying."
Lucian rose, he stepped passed Asher. Tightening his grip on her fragile body to his chest.
"Wait…"
Asher suddenly grabbed back, he didn't react be looked back, usually he won't even have that happen but he don't have time also its Asher.
"… do have somewhere to rest. I might be able to help."
"No. I can't involve you in this too. It's not your fight."
Asher brows furrowed slightly. "What do you mean? Involve me in what? What's going on? You're not making any sense." Lucian words sounded right, but felt wrong.
Lucian stared at him for a long moment, a dull ache behind his eyes. He didn't want Asher involved. Not in this. Not again.
But he had no choice.
Halcyon needed to live… even if it meant reopening doors Lucian had long since closed… Once a revered teacher, now a fugitive or presumed dead.
Even if Lucian didn't want him involved, even if ghosts from the past clawed at his back, Asher wouldn't walk away. Not now. Not when the two people who had shaped his life stood on the edge of death and silence.
If Lucian is so willing to risk himself for others, why does he avoid emotional closeness?