Driving her bright pink car, Alexia cruises down the streets of Ohio City with the windows rolled down, the wind tugging at her hair.

  In the back seat, Demono raises an eyebrow, arms crossed. “Okay, kid, what’s the point of the car? We could’ve just, I don’t know — teleported?”

  Alexia grins, one arm dangling out the window, fingers slicing through the breeze. “We have to ride in style. Besides… there’s someone I promised to meet up with while I’m back in town.”

  She slows the car in front of a plain brick house nestled between two trimmed hedges. A small patch of grass out front is freshly mowed, and a green garden hose is curled up near the porch. A faded wind chime dangles by the door, clinking softly in the breeze.

  “This is the place,” Alexia says, throwing the car into park.

  Demono leans forward between the seats, squinting. “Wait… this is it?”

  Alexia nods. “Yep.”

  “Looks like someone’s uncle lives here. Are we picking up a warrior or a substitute math teacher?”

  “This is where we’re picking up my boyfriend.”

  “Ohhh, I see. You must’ve saved him from a castle or something. Was there an evil turtle involved?”

  Before Alexia can fire back, the front door swings open — and there stands Sid, wearing a wrinkled T-shirt, faded jeans, and a lazy half-smile.

  “Hiya,” Sid says as he slides into the car, glancing at Demono. “You’re that demon from TV.”

  “That’s right,” Demono says with a smirk. “The one who killed a twenty-foot ox with my bare hands.”

  Sid leans back and nods. “Alexia really does know everyone.”

  “So, everyone — this is Sid, my boyfriend,” Alexia says with a grin. “He goes to the dojo and fights. Isn’t that cool?”

  Sid rubs the back of his neck. “No need to oversell it. I just do sports.”

  Lemres glances at Sid’s arm. “Hey… how long has your arm been that color?”

  He studies the deep red tone of Sid’s hand more closely.

  “Oh, I thought that was a glove,” Alexia says, blinking in surprise.

  Sid shrugs. “I don’t know. It’s just been like that. Since forever, I guess.”

  “You don’t know?” Lemres raises an eyebrow.

  Sid gives him a flat look. “That’s what I said.”

  Before Lemres can press further, Alexia steers the car into a restaurant parking lot, pulling into a spot near the front. She tosses the keys into the cupholder with a grin. “We’re here.”

  Inside, dim amber lighting washes over polished wood floors and velvet-lined booths. Chandeliers hang low from the ceiling, their crystals swaying gently with the hum of the air conditioning. Waiters in crisp white shirts move between tables with practiced grace, carrying trays of steaming dishes — roasted garlic, seared meats, and rich herbs perfuming the air.

  In the corner, a pianist plays something soft and slow, each note drifting upward like fog through the clinking of silverware and the faint clatter from the kitchen. The whole place feels warm, expensive, and faintly surreal — like stepping into a dream that hasn’t quite settled.

  “Oh wow… I’ve never seen anything like this place before,” Alexia says, eyes wide as she takes it in.

  “My parents take me here on my birthday,” Sid says casually, slipping his hands into his pockets.

  “When you’ve got access to interplanetary travel,” Lemres says with a smirk as he slides into a nearby booth, “money stops being a problem. We’re eating the best tonight.”

  As the others join him, Lemres adds, “It’s a shame Markus couldn’t join us. He’s really taken a liking to that demon girl.”

  “Oh yeah,” Alexia says. “You rarely see one without the other these days.” She adds her food to the order, then hesitates, her tone softening.

  “Hey… I’m sorry for the way he acted after the Morgi Ox died.” Her gaze drifts toward the storm clouds outside. “He talks tough, but… the boy’s not a fighter. Not really.”

  Demono laughs, leaning back in her seat. “Yeah, the boy seems like a big softie.”

  Lemres leans forward, his voice calm but certain. “Let me remind you… the Life-Giving Blade isn’t looking for a warrior in the traditional sense. It’s looking for a peacekeeper — someone willing to walk into the fire. Someone who would become the fire to save someone else.”

  Demono snorts. “That’s definitely not you,” she says, pointing at Alexia. “You’d have burned alive in that school fire if softie-boy hadn’t dragged you out.”

  Alexia’s expression darkens. “Oh yeah? And who started that fire?” she snaps. “Who’s the one setting fires everywhere they go?”

  The table goes still. Even the distant piano music feels like it pauses.

  Demono’s voice drops, sharp as glass. “And you’re so heroic? How many people have you trapped and killed? You talk like you’re innocent — like you’re some kind of hero.”

  Before Alexia can fire back, a server approaches, placing plates on the table with a polite smile — oblivious to the storm sitting right in front of them.

  “Here you are. Enjoy your meal.”

  No one says anything.

  Except Sid. He nods without looking up. “Thanks.”

  His voice is flat. Quiet. Like he’s acknowledging the server while trying not to step into the tension boiling over at the table.

  Alexia’s voice comes next — low, bitter. “I’ve done my best to protect Earth from demons like you.”

  Demono leans forward, eyes narrowing. “By pointing and shooting? No regard for the damage left behind? Tell me, Alexia — have you ever actually saved someone? Or was that Morgi Rat rescue all Markus, carrying that kid to safety while you played soldier?”

  The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

  “Stop!” Lemres snaps, his voice cracking through the air like thunder. “This is pointless. And it’s destructive.”

  Demono stands, her chair scraping hard against the floor. Her voice cuts through the silence like a lightning strike.

  “You wanna go?!”

  Alexia doesn’t flinch. She rises slowly, tossing her napkin onto the table. “Yeah. Let’s settle this.”

  They turn and walk toward the front entrance — heads high, shoulders squared, the air between them humming with heat.

  The door swings shut behind them, leaving Sid and Lemres in stunned silence. Forks untouched. Plates cooling.

  The storm outside isn’t the only one rolling in.

  In the narrow patch of grass beside the restaurant parking lot, the tension finally snaps.

  Alexia steps forward, hand at her side. Her Mahoishi flickers to life in a soft green glow, sparks of light trailing as she draws her staff into a ready stance. She plants one foot back, steadying herself, eyes locked on Demono.

  “Come on,” she says through clenched teeth. “I know you want to.”

  Demono doesn’t hesitate. Flames coil around her fists like eager serpents, flickering and snapping in the cool night air. The grass under her feet starts to smoke.

  No more words.

  Just the sound of their breathing—

  —and the storm gathering overhead.

  Then Demono charges.

  Demono strikes first, a jet of flame snapping from her hand like a whip. Alexia sidesteps, the fire singing the edge of her coat as she spins, swinging her staff upward in a defensive arc.

  Crack!

  The staff collides with Demono’s forearm, forcing her back a step — but her free hand swings around, a burst of heat slamming into Alexia’s chest and knocking her off balance.

  Alexia hits the grass hard, rolls, and springs back to her feet, panting. “Still using brute force. Shocking.”

  “Still hiding behind that stick,” Demono snaps, flames licking up her arms.

  Alexia’s Mahoishi pulses again. She darts in, quick and low, sweeping Demono’s leg out from under her. Demono hits the ground but catches herself with a burst of fire, using the explosion to launch back into the air.

  They collide midair — fire crashing against green light, their bodies lit in a split-second flash of lightning overhead.

  They slam into the ground together, tumbling through the wet grass. Demono lands a punch that splits Alexia’s lip; Alexia drives her staff hard into Demono’s side, knocking the breath from her lungs.

  “I always knew you wanted to kill me!” Demono shouts, throwing a wild punch Alexia barely blocks. “Even after I risked my hide — after I killed that damn ox — you still can’t see me as anything but a demon!”

  Alexia shoves her back, her voice cracking. “You almost killed me! You put Markus in a coma!”

  Demono’s eyes flare with rage. “I didn’t ask to be thrown into your world! I didn’t ask to be hunted!”

  “You nearly burned a school down! You burned so many things down!”

  “I was dying! I couldn’t even control it!” Demono roars — then surges forward and dropkicks Alexia flat to the ground.

  Rain splashes up from the grass as Alexia hits hard, coughing. Demono stands over her, chest heaving, her fists burning faintly in the downpour.

  “I was sent here to train — to learn how to control my powers,” Demono snarls. “But all I was ever given… was a reason to lose it.”

  Alexia pushes to her feet, soaked and seething. She levels her staff, green light pulsing at the tip.

  “My father said people like you leave nothing behind but ash.”

  Demono’s lip curls. “Yeah? That so?” She takes a step forward, eyes burning with something deeper than fire.

  The words hang between them like smoke.

  Neither of them moves.

  Alexia lowers her staff slightly, fingers trembling.

  Demono’s voice drops — not soft, but heavy.

  “Would you have killed Markus’s girlfriend too? She’s one of us.”

  Alexia freezes. The glow from her Mahoishi dims, then fades completely as she shuts it off.

  She can’t answer.

  Not because she has nothing to say —

  but because part of her already knows Demono is right.

  “There have always been people I wanted to protect,” Alexia says quietly. “Ever since I was a kid, the idea of being a superhero — helping those in need — it’s always been a dream. I used to wonder if that’s why the Mahoishi gave me healing powers.”

  She looks down at her hands.

  “My time in the Alien Department… I thought I was doing the right thing. I wanted to be doing the right thing. But I see now I wasn’t always helping. And…”

  She hesitates, then meets Demono’s gaze.

  “I’m sorry. I never meant to cause more harm.”

  “Ugh, please don’t tell me I have to be all huggy-wuggy now,” Demono says, rolling her eyes with a short laugh. “I’d rather just kill you.”

  She pauses, then smirks.

  “Look — we don’t have to like each other. We just need to work together long enough to kill a dragon. Once that’s done, I’ll go back to Hehl, and you’ll never have to see me again.”

  Back inside the restaurant, things settle into a strange kind of normal.

  The plates are cold, the candles have burned low, and the rain taps softly against the windows. Lemres sits quietly, dabbing his mouth with a napkin as if none of the shouting and fire-throwing outside ever happened.

  “Wanna trade some of my steak for your crab?” Demono asks.

  Lemres raises an eyebrow, then gives a tired nod. “Sure. That was the other thing I was eyeing anyway.”

  They swap plates like two coworkers on a lunch break, the soft patter of rain filling the space between them.

  A moment later, the door swings open. Alexia and Demono step back inside — soaked, bruised, and silent.

  Sid glances up. “So… who won?”

  Lemres doesn’t even look up. “Judging by the fact that no one’s dead, I’m assuming you two sorted it out.”

  Both women give the faintest nods as they sit back down, resuming their meals as if nothing happened.

  Lemres wipes his mouth and leans back in his chair. “Well… with the Morgi-Ox dead, I’m heading out soon to keep searching for the sword.”

  “There’s no way I’m letting you go alone,” Demono says, mouth half-full of mashed potatoes.

  Lemres raises an eyebrow. “You’re coming with me?”

  “Yes. Just… give me a second.”

  He glances at her plate. “Whose fault is it that you haven’t eaten yet?”

  “Yours — for not letting me finish!” she snaps, shoveling another bite in.

  Lemres stands to pay the bill while Demono scrapes the last of her plate clean, chewing triumphantly. With a nod to Sid and Alexia, the two step outside — and in a flash of light, vanish.

  The restaurant quiets again, leaving Sid and Alexia alone at the table.

  Alexia pushes her empty plate aside and sighs. “Sorry I ruined our date.”

  Sid shrugs with a small smile. “We can always do another one.”

  Alexia glances at him, brushing damp hair behind her ear. “Wanna come to my place?”

  The car ride is silent, but Alexia’s thoughts aren’t. Every red light gives her too much time to think — about the fire, the fight, and the girl she almost struck down. She keeps seeing Demono’s face, not angry but… hurt. It’s the same look Liddle had when she flinched. Alexia doesn’t know what scares her more — how close she came to killing someone, or how easy it had felt in the moment.

  She tries to shove the thought aside as they pull into her driveway. Not now. Not tonight.

  Then she sees the shattered glass glinting on her front porch.

  “Oh no,” she mutters, throwing the car into park and jumping out. She runs to the broken window, her heart sinking. “That’s right… I haven’t been home since the raid.”

  Sid steps out behind her. “Need help? Got anything to cover it up?”

  “No,” Alexia says with a sigh. “And the store’s probably closed by now.”

  Sid shrugs, his voice calm. “How about we crash at my place instead?”

  Alexia pauses, then smiles — tired, grateful. “Sounds great.”

  They get back in the car. The drive to Sid’s is short and quiet, this time with no tension between them — just the soft sound of rain on the roof.

  When they pull into his driveway, Sid moves to open his door — but Alexia leans over first, catching his sleeve.

  Just once. Gentle, warm. Not rushed.

  When she pulls back, her voice is barely above a whisper. “Thanks… for not saying anything when I needed to think. And for saying something when I needed to hear it.”

  Sid blinks, then gives her a soft smile. “Anytime.”

  They step out of the car together, the night still and quiet at last. The rain has slowed to a mist, clinging to the air in a cool haze. Streetlights cast pale halos on the wet pavement, their reflections shimmering like pools of gold.

  Sid unlocks the door and pushes it open, the warm scent of cedar and faint incense greeting them. Alexia lingers in the doorway for a second, shaking the rain from her hair, the tension in her shoulders easing for the first time all night.

  Sid gestures toward the living room. “Make yourself at home.”

  She smiles faintly, stepping inside. For now, there are no questions, no fights, no dragons. Just the quiet hum of the heater, the soft creak of the floorboards, and the simple comfort of knowing she isn’t alone.