Elianna hummed happily as she ate the syrup-covered pancake. Placing her fork down, she leaned back and looked around the table as everyone else finished their breakfast. Freya and Josephine were locked in a content conversation, which Nicholas chimed in on periodically. Celine, however, had been shooting Nicholas death glares throughout their breakfast, which gained a mental chuckle from Elianna.

  "You must've been hungry," Freya smiled, looking at Elianna.

  Elianna peered down at her syrup-covered empty plate before she swallowed her final piece.

  "Nah, she's always like that," Nicholas jested, before eyeing Elianna with a grin. "She's like a sponge when it comes to food. She soaks it all in, and it's gone in an instant."

  Elianna's cheeks burned, "I am not!" She playfully jabbed him in the side, gaining a laugh from him.

  "At least she's not a messy eater," Celine pointed out. She pointed her fork at Nicholas, "You always manage to get something on your shirt."

  Nicholas slowly looked down, noting he had indeed gotten a few drops of syrup on his shirt.

  Elianna smiled and giggled, earning a wink from Celine.

  Celine looked back at Nicholas and gave him a feral grin, "But, I can help wash the syrup off." She raised her hand, and water magic swirled in her palm. "Like how you helped wake me up."

  Nicholas' throat bobbed, and he looked around, like he was trying to map out his avenue of escape.

  "Not at the kitchen table," Freya stated, pointing her fork at her daughter.

  Celine dismissed her water magic and lowered her hand. But the look she gave Nicholas was enough to let everyone know she was going to get him back.

  Josephine placed her fork down as she finished her food. "So, what are your plans for the day?"

  Elianna looked at Josephine, seeing that she was looking at her, Celine, and Nicholas.

  Nicholas shrugged, "I don't know." He looked out the window, "I was thinking of maybe going surfing."

  "Again?" Celine said, raising a brow. "But we went surfing almost all day yesterday."

  Nicholas shrugged, "Yeah, but I don't really get to do it all that often."

  Celine leaned back in her chair, "Well, I think I might relax for a bit. Maybe I'll read in one of the deck lounge chairs."

  Nichols looked at Elianna and smiled, "What about you? Want to come surfing with me?"

  Elianna hummed as she thought about it, "Actually, I might join Celine." She looked at Celine, "Relaxing and reading does sound nice."

  Celine smiled, "Nice, we can have some girl time." Celine looked at Freya and Josephine, "Will you join us?"

  Freya smiled, "Sure, that sounds nice."

  Josephine nodded. She then placed her silverware onto her plate, "First things first, let's clean up."

  Everyone gathered their empty plates and glasses and brought them over to the kitchen sink.

  Josephine turned on the faucet, "You all go ahead, I'll take care of the dishes."

  "Are you sure?" Celine asked.

  Josephine nodded, "I'm sure."

  Freya smiled, "Let me help, at least."

  Josephine smiled and nodded, "Alright. But I prefer doing this the mundane way." She looked at Nicholas, Celine, and Elianna, "You three go ahead."

  The three of them nodded before they began to make their way to the stairs. Once they reached the second floor, Elianna asked Nicholas, "You sure you don't want to hang with us?"

  Nicholas nodded, "Yeah. Lying in the sun doing nothing but reading sounds boring."

  "It's relaxing, not boring," Celine countered.

  "Whatever you say," Nicholas shrugged.

  Celine rolled her eyes before looking at Elianna. "I'll meet you downstairs after you get ready."

  Elianna smiled and nodded, watching as Celine entered her room. She walked to her room and told Nicholas she would see him later, before going into her room. She quickly got ready and changed into her bathing suit before leaving her room and making her way downstairs. She looked around, seeing that the kitchen and couches were empty. She made her way to the door, where she observed Celine and Nicholas outside. They were positioning the lounge chairs, while Nicholas placed umbrella stands beside them.

  Celine looked in Elianna's direction, hearing her open the door, "Hey. We're just setting up the chairs."

  Elianna nodded, then looked at Nicholas, "Decided to join us after all?"

  Nicholas looked at her, his eyes glancing Elianna up and down, before he shook his head, "Nah. I'm just helping Celine set up."

  Elianna nodded, watching as Nicholas opened the umbrella, which shaded the chair beside it.

  "There," Nicholas said, then looked at Celine. "Anything else you need help with?"

  Celine looked around, "Um, no, I don't think so."

  "Cool," Nicholas said, before he started to walk backwards toward the stairs. He waved at Celine and Elianna, "I'll see ya'll later."

  Elianna offered Nicholas a smile and a wave. She watched as he turned, making his way to the stairs.

  Celine stepped forward and raised her arm, "Oh, wait, Nick!"

  Nicholas stopped and turned, "Ye—"

  Nicholas was cut off as a sudden beam of water hit him in the face, knocking him to the floor.

  Elianna covered her mouth and laughed.

  Celine grinned, dismissed her water magic, and lowered her hand, "Have fun."

  Nicholas lay there for a moment, blinking, before he sighed and got to his feet. He wiped the water from her face before shooting Celine a glare.

  "Don't give her that look, Nick," Elianna giggled. "You did deserve that."

  Nicholas grumbled before nodding and turning around.

  Elianna and Celine both laughed, watching as Nicholas disappeared down the stairs.

  "I told him I would get him back," Celine laughed, as she lay down in the lounge chair. "He should've known better than to mess with me."

  "He'll do it again," Elianna said as she took the chair beside Celine.

  "Oh, I'm sure," Celine said as she pulled out her book from her spatial ring.

  Elianna looked at Celine, watching as she fell silent while reading her book. She looked around for a moment before she leaned her head back and closed her eyes. Her soft-looking lips curled as she felt the gentle breeze caress her ivory skin and heard the ocean waves in the distance. She took a deep breath, enjoying the peaceful ambiance, when her entire body tensed.

  Elianna shot up, her eyes wide, as she looked toward the forest area, feeling that familiar pull.

  Celine's head snapped toward Elianna at the sudden movement, "Elle? You okay?"

  Elianna sat there for a moment, staring into the dense forest area. Her brows were furrowed, and her lips were partially agape, as the pull subsided.

  "Elle?"

  Elianna's head whirled to Celine, her brows raised, "Huh?"

  Celine tilted her head slightly, "I asked if you were okay."

  Elianna blinked, then nodded and smiled. "Oh, yeah, I'm fine." She leaned back into the chair, thinking.

  Seeing Elianna's contemplative expression, Celine asked, "You sure?"

  Elianna looked at her, "Yeah, why?"

  Celine shrugged, "You just look like you were thinking about something."

  Elianna smiled, "Just thinking how nice this place is."

  "That it is," Josephine said, as she approached.

  Elianna and Celine looked at Josephine, seeing her wearing a long sun dress, followed by Freya, who was wearing a lounge shirt and shorts.

  Josephine took her seat, while Freya walked over to the outside bar.

  "Does anyone want anything to drink?" Freya asked.

  "I'll take a water," Josephine said.

  "Same," Elianna stated.

  "Can you make me an orange smoothie?" Celine asked.

  Freya smiled and nodded, "Sure."

  Josephine looked at Elianna and Celine, "So, what were you guys talking about before I came out here?"

  Celine shook her head, "Nothing. We were just mostly relaxing." She raised the book she was holding, "And reading."

  Josephine nodded, then looked at Elianna, "Did you not bring a book?"

  Elianna pulled her book out of her spatial ring and held it up, "I did."

  Celine blinked as she observed the book Elianna was holding, before she grinned, "Up'd the spice level, have we?"

  Elianna blushed as she lowered her book, "I don't know what you mean."

  "Oh, please, I've read that book before."

  Elianna looked to the side, her blush deepening, "I like the story."

  "Yeah, I'm sure you do," Celine chuckled.

  "Oh, leave her alone," Freya said from behind the bar. "She's sixteen, she can read what she wants."

  Elianna opened her book and buried her face into its pages, trying to ignore Celine's knowing grin. She read a few pages before she looked up as Freya returned, while levitating the drinks around her.

  "Here you all go," Freya said, as the glasses floated to each person.

  "Thanks, Mom," Celine said as she grabbed her smoothie.

  "You're welcome," Freya said as she took her seat. She leaned her head back and smiled, "This is nice."

  "Agreed," Josephine said as she placed her glass of water on the small table beside her. Josephine looked at Elianna, "You know, Elianna, I have yet to hear how you and Nicholas met."

  Elianna looked at Josephine and blinked, "Oh, uh, we just met at the garrison." She looked to the side, thinking, "I was actually watching a duel between two knights when we met." She smiled, "He was drawing at the time, if I recall."

  Freya chuckled and looked at Josephine, "Oh, you should've seen Nicholas' face that day. He was so happy and excited to tell me how he met a girl who loved his drawings."

  Josephine smiled warmly, "He always has been a fantastic artist." Her eyes fell slightly, "He gets that from his mother." Josephine was silent for a moment before looking back at Elianna. "So, did Nicholas join your friend group shortly after you met?"

  Elianna's smile faded, and her eyes fell. "I, uh, didn't really have any friends."

  Josephine frowned, and her brows furrowed.

  "The kids Elianna used to hang out with were mean to her, growing up," Celine said, shaking her head. "They didn't understand how special she was and basically shunned her."

  Elianna looked at Celine, and they shared a smile.

  Josephine looked confused. "Why would they do such a thing?"

  Elianna sighed and leaned her head back. "They listened to their parents, who were afraid of me, because I awakened earlier than others."

  Josephine tilted her head slightly, "How early?"

  Elianna shrugged, "Four."

  Josephine blinked, looking genuinely surprised. She looked at Freya, who nodded in confirmation. "That's..." She shook her head, "That's amazing."

  "If you think that's amazing, get this," Celine began, and sat up. "While Nicholas was a two-star, he and Elianna channeled each other and performed a sixth-level spell."

  "What?" Josephine exclaimed, her brows raising high enough to meet her hairline. "But that's impossible."

  The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  Celine shrugged, "Well, it happened."

  Josephine looked at Elianna, her eyes traveling up and down her frame, "That's... extraordinary." She tilted her head slightly, "I also heard about your spar with the other knights, and how you displayed a boost of magical power."

  Elianna shrugged, "Yeah."

  Celine chuckled, "Just goes to show how amazing she is." She grinned, "Probably one of the reasons Nicholas... admires her."

  Elianna's face warmed.

  Josephine matched Celine's grin, "Indeed. He seems to... admire her a lot."

  Elianna buried her face in her book again.

  "Oh, stop teasing her," Freya chuckled.

  "Fine," Celine sighed, as she opened her book and began to read.

  Elianna lowered her book slightly and looked at the others, seeing Celine and Josepine read, while Freya leaned her head back and closed her eyes. Elianna took a breath, trying to calm her warm face, before she went back to reading.

  ***

  The afternoon sun was now well overhead by the time Josephine exited the beachhouse, carrying two trays of sandwiches. She placed one of the trays between Celine and Elianna, "There you go, you two."

  Celine smiled and closed her book, "Thank you."

  Josephine returned her smile, "Of course." She walked back over to her seat and sat down while placing the second tray between her and Freya. Freya thanked Josephine before grabbing half a sandwich and going back to relaxing.

  Celine grabbed a sandwich and took a bite out of it. She hummed and smiled, savoring the burst of flavor from the egg salad sandwich. She looked at Elianna and stopped mid-chew as she noticed Elianna's eyes were intently locked on the page she was reading, and her cheeks had a rosy tint.

  Celine grinned, "Good chapter, Elle?"

  Elianna started, before she looked at Celine with a widened gaze. Her eyes flicked to the book, then back to Celine, before she closed the book and smiled. "Y-yeah." She stored the book in her ring and grabbed a sandwich half. She hummed contentedly as she bit into it, "This is delicious."

  Celine nodded in agreement, when she looked to the side, catching movement. She smiled, seeing Nicholas climbing the steps, "Done surfing?"

  Elianna, Josephine, and Freya looked to the steps, seeing Nicholas approaching.

  Nicholas nodded, hand brushing his hair to the side. "Yeah." He eyed the sandwiches, "Those look good."

  Josephine chuckled, "You came back just in time. I just made them, help yourself."

  "Don't mind if I do," Nicholas said, approaching the tray between Elianna and Celine.

  Elianna smiled at Nicholas as he approached, "How was surfing?"

  "It was good," Nicholas said, picking up a sandwich. He gestured around the area, "How was being up here?"

  "It was nice and relaxing," Celine shrugged. She jestfully smiled, "Mostly because we didn't have to hear your annoying voice."

  Nicholas rolled his eyes as he took a bite of his sandwich.

  Freya narrowed her eyes, "Nicholas. You didn't put sunscreen on your back, did you?"

  Nicholas froze, before he looked over his shoulder, like he could see his back, "Why? Is it red?"

  Freya let out a long sigh, "Yes."

  Nicholas turned, and Elianna's eyes widened, and she giggled, seeing he was as red as a lobster.

  "Man," Celine said as she stood up from her seat. "That looks painful."

  Nicholas shrugged, "Not rea—"

  Nicholas yelled as Celine slapped his red back.

  Elianna winced, "Ouch."

  Nicholas whirled at Celine, "What the heck!"

  Celine laughed and shrugged, "Just reminding you to use sunscreen."

  Nicholas grumbled as Celine walked back to her lounge chair and sat down. "Not my fault. Elianna usually does my back for me."

  "Wow, way to blame me," Elianna jested.

  Nicholas' cheeks reddened, "No.. that's not what I meant... I..."

  Celine and Elianna laughed at Nicholas becoming flustered.

  Nicholas rolled his eyes, "Whatever."

  Freya stood up and walked over to Nicholas, "Here."

  Freya raised her hands, hovering her palms over his bare back. An emerald energy flowed out from her hands, washing over Nicholas' back. Slowly, the redness washed away, leaving Nicholas' body nicely tanned.

  "There," Freya smiled. "That's better."

  Elianna's eyes traveled up and down Nicholas' back, admiring how muscular it was. Her eyes flicked to Celine, noticing she was grinning at her. Elianna looked away, her cheeks reddening.

  Nicholas turned and smiled at his aunt, "Thanks."

  "You're welcome," Freya said, before looking at Nicholas sternly. "If you're going to be going back into the water, put sunscreen on your back."

  "I'm probably not," Nicholas said, shaking his head.

  Elianna looked at Nicholas curiously, "Whatcha gonna do? Relax with us?"

  "Nah," Nicholas said, before he looked at Elianna inquisitively. "But, I thought it might be fun to play volleyball. Wanna play?"

  Elianna hummed, thinking, before she smiled, "Sure."

  Nicholas looked at Celine, "What about you?"

  Celine shrugged, "Nah. I'm good."

  Nicholas shrugged, "Yeah, I wouldn't want to play either, if I sucked as much as you did."

  Celine froze before narrowing her eyes at Nicholas. "Fine. I'll play."

  Nicholas grinned and clapped his hands, "Nice." He looked at Freya and Josephine, "Will you two join us?"

  Freya looked at Josephine, "Want to?"

  Josephine shrugged, "We can watch."

  Nicholas nodded, "Alright." He looked at Celine and Elianna, "Let's go."

  Josephine and Freya folded their chairs, and all of them made their way to the sandy first floor. Nicholas went into the beach house to get the volleyball, while Freya and Josephine set up their chairs to the side and sat down.

  Nicholas walked out of the beach house, juggling the ball in his hand. "So, we're going to play one-on-one, then switch."

  Celine shrugged, "We can play teams."

  Nicholas raised a brow, then looked at Freya and Josephine, "Are you playing?"

  Josephine shook her head, and Freya said, "Just watching."

  Nicholas looked at Celine, "So... one on one?"

  Celine smiled and shook her head, "We'll do teams."

  Nicholas and Elianna shared a confused gaze. But before they could ask, they watched as Celine raised her hand. Earth and nature magic began to swirl around each other, forming a sand humanoid with an emerald hue.

  Nicholas blinked, "You're using a construct?"

  Celine shrugged, "Yep."

  Elianna nodded, "Huh. Clever."

  Celine grinned, "I know, right!"

  "Alright," Nicholas said, and walked onto the sandy volleyball area. "Then let's get started."

  Elianna walked onto the same side as Nicholas and stood closer to the net. Celine stepped onto her side, with her construct standing behind her, while she stood closer to the net.

  "Everyone ready?" Nicholas asked.

  Elianna and Celine nodded.

  "Here we go!" Nicholas called out, tossing the volleyball into the air.

  Nicholas hit the ball over the net, towards the end of the other side. He smirked, thinking the construct wasn't going to help Celine that well. But his smirk was wiped away as the construct arm extended out and hit the ball back over the net.

  "That's cheating!" Nicholas exclaimed.

  "Should've thought of that before!" Celine laughed

  Elianna quickly ran after the ball and hit it back over the net. But Celine jumped up and quickly spiked the ball down.

  Nicholas leaped forward to try to hit the ball, but fell short as the ball hit the sandy beach.

  Celine landed and raised her arms into the air, "Ha! Point!" She turned and faced her construct, who extended their arm and gave Celine a high five.

  Elianna blinked before she looked at Nicholas, who was lying on the ground, staring at the ball before him. Nicholas looked at Elianna, and they shared a narrowed gaze.

  Freya chuckled from the side, and Josephine looked at her and asked, "What?"

  Freya shook her head, watching as Nicholas and Elianna took their positions, looking intent. "Nothing. It's just funny how competitive Nick and Elianna can get."

  Josephine hummed and watched Nicholas and Elianna. She smiled as the game progressed, watching as they became more competitive as Celine continued to rack up points. Then, when Celine won, they both said they wanted a rematch almost instantly and simultaneously.

  Elianna breathed heavily as Celine tossed the ball over the net to her, and she caught it. She held the ball in her hand as she wiped the sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand.

  "Alright, Lia," Nicholas said as he approached her. "If we make this, we win."

  Elianna nodded, her eyes falling to his chest, seeing the beads of sweat along his skin. She looked back into his eyes, seeing how intent he looked.

  Elianna cleared her throat and grinned, "We got this."

  Nicholas returned her grin, "Yeah, we do."

  "Come on!" Celine called out from her side, her arms crossed. "Are we gonna play or what?!"

  Nicholas nodded to Elianna before he turned and walked toward the net. "No, we're gonna win."

  Celine narrowed her eyes as she got into a ready stance, "We'll see."

  The three of them got into their ready stances, while Celine's construct stood idly by, waiting for the ball.

  Taking a deep breath, Elianna concentrated as she tossed the ball up and hit it across the net. The ball went flying, aiming toward the back left of Celine's side.

  The construct acted quickly, as it extended its arm and swiftly hit the ball back.

  The ball flew over the net and was too high for Nicholas to jump up and get it. Nicholas whirled around and yelled, "Hit it!"

  Elianna quickly dashed to her left and hit the ball up as it descended.

  Nicholas ran to the center of their area, as that was where the ball was going to land. As the ball descended, Nicholas braced himself before he hit the ball with both hands locked together, sending it back over to Celine's side.

  Celine was swift, however, as she moved to where the ball would be going over the net. She quickly jumped up, spiking the ball just above the net.

  Nicholas went wide-eyed and quickly dived, barely hitting the ball up before it hit the sand. Nicholas rolled on the sand and looked up, seeing the ball beginning to descend onto their side.

  Elianna ran up as quickly as possible, jumped up, and hit the ball back over to Celine's side.

  "Nice!" Nicholas yelled as he got to his feet.

  The construct moved simply as it extended its arms and swatted the ball back over to Elianna and Nicholas' side.

  "Nick!" Elianna yelled, running up to him. "Boost me!"

  Nicholas knelt and fell to one knee, interlocking his fingers together with his palms up. Elianna ran up to him, jumped onto him, and placed her foot into the palms of his hands. Nicholas let out a grunt as he mustered his way up and threw Elianna up into the air.

  Gaining some good altitude, Elianna raised her hand into the air, pushed mana into her arm, and spiked the ball as hard as she could.

  Celine went wide-eyed, and quickly dived to the side to get the ball, but just missed it as it flew past her and hit the sand. Celine hit the soft sand and rolled onto her back, letting out a sigh.

  Elianna landed on her feet, her face filled with glee, seeing that she had gotten the winning point. She and Nicholas raised their arms into the air and let out a loud cheer. She didn't hesitate to turn and run up to Nicholas and jump into his arms. Nicholas wrapped his arms around her waist, picked her up, and twirled her around.

  Josephine smiled warmly, watching as Nicholas held and twirled Elianna, "I just don't get it. How aren't they together yet?"

  Freya let out a long sigh, "I think it's because they are comfortable with each other. They don't want to risk the relationship they have."

  Josephine shook their head, but continued to smile as she watched Nicholas and Elianna.

  "We won!" Elianna chirped as Nicholas swung her around.

  "Yeah, we did!" Nicholas cheered. He stopped spinning Elianna and placed her feet on the ground, his hands remaining on her hips. "You did great!"

  "You too!" Elianna smiled.

  But, as Elianna stood there, she slowly began to become conscious of how close she and Nicholas were. She could feel his body heat radiating onto her, and her hands began to feel hot on her hips. Elianna's lips slowly went agape as she continued to look into Nicholas' eyes, and when her gaze flicked to his lips, she noticed how his face started to redden. Slowly, she began to raise her hands, suddenly wanting to place them against his chest and—

  "Well played, you three!"

  Elianna and Nicholas quickly backed away, with Elianna tucking a few strands of her hair behind her ear. They cleared their throats before they looked at Freya and Josephine, who approached with their folded chairs in hand.

  "Go ahead," Celine said as she walked under the net. "You can brag."

  "Technically, you both won a game," Freya pointed out. "So, in order to brag, you'd need to play another round."

  Elianna grinned and looked at Nicholas.

  "But it's beginning to get late, and we need to start dinner," Josephine said.

  "So, why don't you three go wash up, while Josephine and I prepare dinner?" Freya said.

  Celine nodded, "That sounds good." She looked at her construct, waved her hand, and dismissed it. The next moment, the construct fell into a pile of sand.

  "Maybe we can play some more tomorrow," Elianna suggested.

  Celine smiled and nodded, "Sure."

  Elianna looked at Nicholas, noticing his face was still a little red. "Nick?"

  Nicholas met her gaze, smiled, and nodded, "Yeah, sounds good." He walked over and picked up the ball. "You guys head up, I'll put the ball away."

  "Alright," Freya said, before looking at Celine and Elianna, "Let's go."

  Celine and Elianna nodded before following Josephine and Freya up the stairs and into the beach house. While Freya and Josephine made their way to the kitchen, Elianna and Celine made their way upstairs.

  "Nice game," Celine smiled at Elianna.

  Elianna returned her smile, "Likewise."

  Celine reached her door and shot Elianna a smirk, "You and Nicholas looked cute playing together."

  Elianna's cheeks reddened, and she was about to speak, but Celine had already gone into her room. Elianna's eyes fell, her face feeling warm, as she made her way to her room. She quickly discarded her bathing suit and took a shower.

  While the water ran over her, she couldn't help but remember how it felt to be held in Nicholas' embrace, with their skin to skin, feeling hot. Elianna's face grew molten at the thought, and she quickly shook her head as she finished her shower.

  Exiting the shower, she dried herself off and got dressed in simple loungewear before she exited her room. Her nostrils flared as the smell of dinner filled the hallway, and she made her way downstairs. She noticed everyone was already downstairs, with Celine and Nicholas setting up the table, while Josephine and Freya finished dinner.

  Josephine pulled out a tray of garlic bread from the oven and placed them onto a safe mat. "Bread's done."

  "So is the pasta," Freya said as she poured in the sauce.

  "Just in time," Nicholas called out to Elianna, noticing her enter the second floor.

  Freya smiled at Elianna, "Go ahead and take your seat."

  Elianna smiled and nodded as she approached the table. She smiled at Nicholas as he pulled out her seat for her, "Thanks."

  "No problem," Nicholas said as he took his seat beside her.

  "I don't know about you two," Celine said, stretching her arms. "But I'm beat from those two games."

  Elianna chuckled and nodded, "Yeah, same."

  "You should go rest up after dinner," Freya said as she walked over with the giant bowl of pasta. She placed the bowl in the center of the table, and Josephine put the bread beside it. Freya took her seat and smiled at everyone, "Alright, let's eat."

  ***

  Elianna felt exhausted by the time she made her way back to her room and closed her door. Her stomach was pleasantly full, and she was content with how well the day was going.

  Making her way to her bed, she stripped off her pants and bra before she climbed into bed. Closing her eyes, she felt the heavy weight of her eyelids as the sweet caress of sleep came for her.

  *Boom*

  A giant explosion erupted from in front of her, and Elianna was no longer in her bed, but inside what looked like a cave. Bodies of slain magic beasts lay scattered along the rocky floor, obviously recently slain.

  "Be on your guard, you said," Veanor sighed, resting his boody battle axe on his shoulder. "We can run into anything, you said." He shot Kaliope a look, "You didn't say we'd run into a pack of beasts."

  "I did say I didn't clear the cave," Senrick pointed out.

  "We're all fine," Chadar said, washing his golden blade off with water magic. "That's what matters."

  "Silence," Kaliope warned, her voice wary. "Something is approaching."

  "What is it?" Haldein asked, stepping forward, his sword and shield at the ready.

  Kaliope shivered, "I don't know. But... it feels... ominous."

  The five of them fell silent, staring into the darkness ahead. Slowly, they heard the sound of footfalls and growling.

  Senrick looked at Kaliope, "Brighten your spell."

  Kaliope raised her staff, and the ball of light above them shone brighter, illuminating the area. The next moment, the five of them flinched.

  Before them, walking into the light, was a rat-like creature. The creature was just as tall as they were, with parts of its skin ripped open, showing the muscle underneath. Its eyes were pure black, almost like a pool of darkness, and with a dark aura surrounding them.

  "I-Impossible," Chadar stuttered, shaking his head.

  "A Fallen?" Senrick said, almost disbelievingly. "But how? They were wiped out during the Great War."

  "It seems this one survived," Haldein stated firmly, raising his shield.

  "Great," Veanor sighed, precisely what I wanted to deal with.

  "Focus, Veanor," Kaliope scolded. "It's a Fallen."

  Veanor nodded, his voice more serious as he said, "I know."

  The creature released a giant screech, which shook the walls of the cave. Black flames filled its mouth before it fired a beam of black fire at them.

  Kaliope slammed her staff into the ground, forming a dome of mana around the five of them. The beam of black flame struck the dome, and Kaliope grunted as the dome cracked.

  "As soon as the fire subsides, we move!" Haldein yelled, and the others nodded.

  The flames slowly died down as more cracks formed in the dome, and when the rat-like creature was in sight, Haldein yelled, "Now, Kaliope!"

  Kaliope raised her staff, and the mana dome broke apart into several spears of mana. A second later, she coated the spear in fire magic.

  Waving her staff down, Kaliope shot the spears forward, as Veanor, Haldein, Senrick, and Chadar charged.

  The rat screeched, and black fire erupted from it, consuming the spears as they got near. Chadar and Veanor moved to the creatures left, while Senrick moved to its right.

  Haldein raised his shield, lava magic beginning to coat it, as he charged straight at the rat.

  The rat screeched and was about to charge Haldein.

  However, Kaliope slammed her staff into the ground, and an earth spike erupted from beneath the rat. The rat let out a pained screech as the earth spike lifted it up and slammed it against the roof of the cave. The rat squeeled and flailed, trying to get free. The rat's head snapped to Kaliope, and black flames once again filled its mouth.

  Haldein acted quickly, as he stomped his foot on the ground and swung his shield, shooting off a blast of lava. The lava flew forward, striking the rat straight in the face.

  Senrick and Chadar both pushed mana into their legs and jumped up, stabbing the rat on both sides. Black flames erupted from the rat, moving to consume both of them. However, as the black flames surrounded them, a golden light suddenly enveloped Chadar and Senrick, dispelling the black flames. Using their arms and abdominal strength, they slashed their blades along the rat's frame, cutting deep gashes into its body.

  At the same time, Veanor jumped into the air and raised his battle axe. The black flames moved to consume him as well, but another golden light enveloped him, protecting him from the flames. In one swift move, Veanor swung his axe down, cutting off the rat's head.

  The sound of the rat's head and the boots of the knights hitting the ground sounded through the cave before everything fell silent.

  "Well," Veanor said, leaning against his battle axe. "That was easy."

  "Only because it was us," Haldein said, staring at the rat's severed head. "If it were anyone else, they would be dead."

  "Just be glad we found it, then," Chadar said, then looked at Kaliope. "You okay?"

  Kaliope nodded, "Yes. Thank you." She looked at Senrick, "On you, Sen."

  Senrick nodded, then looked at his fellow warriors, "Let's go and finish this."

  Elianna's eyes flew open, her breathing ragged. Her brows furrowed at the dream, feeling that same pull. As she lay there in bed, staring at the ceiling, feeling the pull slowly subside, she couldn't help but wonder what was happening, if these were dreams... or something more.