group
Saul and Farah exchanged a complicated look before they followed suit. As they walked, Farah's eyes turned silver-blue. She heard in detail every crunching leaf their boots tread on. She could hear birds flitting in the branches above their heads and the breathing of both Saul and Aiki. She took a deep breath herself and focused on tuning in to listen for the sounds of Burned Ones.
Aiki kept a steady pace through the trees, stepping lightly so that his footsteps were nearly silent. They looked around as they walked, their ears swiveling to catch any small noises around them. He kept entirely silent, which was a strange contrast from his near constant talking usually.
group
Saul reached back behind his head, ready to draw his sword and fight at the first sign of danger.
Farah's narrowed eyes moved constantly, shifting from one gap in the trees to the next. Every muscle in her body felt tight, tense, and ready.
Aiki kept walking, ignoring the fatigue beginning to set in again. They sighed softly, running their hands across their forehead. At a sudden sound to his right, he jumped to alertness and faced it, changing his stance to a defensive one as his flames flickered around his shoulders.
group
Farah heard the noise a split second after Aiki did. She too jumped into a fighting stance, and her doing so cause Saul to draw his sword effortlessly and grip it tightly.
A vicious snarl echoed between the trees.
"That's it," Saul murmured instantly.
Aiki crouched down a bit, turning his ears back and snarling back at the creature, although he couldn't quite see it yet. "I smell it now…" They growled, their sharp teeth now visible as they bared them to appear more threatening. The hair on the back of his neck and his tail bristled, and the flames around him grew stronger. They didn't really stop to think if flames would be effective against the Burned One or not.
group
Farah's eyes widened suddenly as she caught sight of the Burned One. It stalked through the forest, snarling and growling as it went. As much as her body told her to panic, she forced herself calm. Remember to keep your emotions in check. Runaway fear leads to runaway magic. Maintain readiness, she told herself. As every muscle in her body became tense, she felt something brush against her wrist. Her normal reaction would be to jerk her head towards whatever was touching her, but she knew movement like that would attract the Burned One in their direction. So, instead, she slowly tilted her head to the side to catch a glimpse of Saul's side profile as his fingers slipped through hers. Suddenly, she felt stronger. And knowing he needed the support as much as her, she gave his hand a reassuring squeeze back.
Aiki could feel a sense of dread growing in their chest and stomach, and they swallowed nervously, but kept the steely expression on their face. He glanced up at Farah and Saul, not entirely sure what to do. He planned to follow their lead since, after all, they had fought one of these things and he definitely had not.
They slowly stood, their flames still burning around them, and turned their attention back to the horrifying creature. A 'Burned One'… this thing can't possibly be fun or simple to deal with.
group
"I don't know how much control you have over your fire," Farah murmured very quietly to Aiki, "but Burned Ones have a core called a cinder that can be incinerated. Saul and I will fight it, and you try to get a clear shot at its chest, alright?"
"Alright… I can try…" Aiki murmured in reply, keeping his eyes firmly on the creature. A core that can be incinerated… I can work with that. They shifted a bit closer to Farah and Saul, planning to move in unison with the two of them so they had a better chance of success.
group
Farah looked down at their hands, which were still tightly interlocked, and back up at Saul. "Are you ready?" she whispered.
"To fight with you?" He smirked knowingly. "Always." A smile dawned on her lips as well, and reluctantly, they let go.
After she was released, Farah stepped into clear sight of the Burned One. Her eyes turned silver-blue, and she used her telekinetic abilities to shove the Burned One back into a tree, just as she'd done with Saul earlier, except this time it was much more forceful. Then Saul, wielding his sword, charged at the creature from the left as Farah darted around its opposite side.
Aiki watched the two of them closely, darting forward at the same moment they did. He kept out of the way while Farah was using her magic, not wanting to be caught in the crossfire. This thing wasn't really anything like anything they had fought before, and this whole experience was very different than training. He ran closer to the Burned One, almost gliding with how light he was on his feet.
Once they were close enough, they adjusted their stance to one suitable for a possible need for evasion. He converged his multiple small flames into one, condensed point and trained it towards the Burned One's chest, hoping it would do enough damage.
group
The Burned One was struck in the chest by the flames, and it howled.
"Nice shot!" Saul complimented Aiki. The blast wasn't enough damage to take it down completely, however the Burned One was knocked off-balance by the blast enough for Saul to advance.
"Could you make it at least a bit stronger?" Farah asked, unleashing a barrage of telekinetic blasts that pushed the monster even more off-balance. "It shouldn't take much more than that."
Saul saw his opportunity and lunged forward, thrusting his sword toward the Burned One's chest. Saul was an extremely skilled swordsman, but the Burned One's claw lashed out at him mid-motion, causing the young man to stumble backwards.
Aiki already looked exhausted from how much these flames were draining his energy, but he complied nonetheless and made the flames stronger and hotter. There was practically a small pillar of fire bursting forth from them, twisting and eating at the Burned One.
Aiki looked like they were very dizzy by now, and they were staggering as they struggled to stay on their feet. He fought the feeling, gritting his teeth and turning all his focus onto the Burned One in hopes that it would be enough to keep him awake.
group
The Burned One advanced toward Aiki, and fear again struck Farah. Quickly, she used her magic to pull the Burned One towards her and away from both Saul and Aiki. The creature snarled viciously and reached out toward her, the entire time being surrounded by Aiki's fire. She narrowed her eyes and prepared to shove it away again and into a position where Aiki could have a clear shot at its chest to destroy it. The Burned One advanced toward her, causing her to back up, and her heel made unexpected contact with a tree root. She shrieked, a noise she'd never quite made before in her life, and fell back against the cool earth.
Saul called out her name in a gut-wrenching yell. "Farah!"
The Burned One slashed at her, and without thinking, she put her arms up in defense. Its claw tore her jacket sleeve and scratched open the skin on her right forearm. The daze from the shock caused her magic to turn erratic, and she pushed the Burned One back against a tree with more force than she ever had before and held it there, its chest exposed for Aiki to make the killing shot.
Aiki stumbled backwards when the Burned One advanced towards him, his heart pounding hard in his chest. When Farah drew it towards herself instead, they took a moment to cease the fire and have a few seconds of rest.
As soon as things went a bit south and the Burned One was slammed back into the tree, he formed the fire again and shot it into the creature's chest with as much force as he could muster. Their vision was slowly being invaded by black, and their head was foggy and throbbing. He clearly couldn't keep this up much longer.
Even in this condition, they stole a glance over to Farah to make sure she was doing alright, but the trees obscured their view of her. So, he glanced to Saul before turning all of his attention back to the Burned One.
group
This time, the fire was enough. The Burned One's chest glowed, and the creature snarled violently before it fell limp to the ground. Farah's magic let it release, and it fell to the ground and didn't move.
The second the Burned One was killed, Saul dropped his sword and sprinted over to Farah. She was still lying on the ground, holding her injured arm to her chest. Her face was contorted in pain, but she managed to sit up when Saul knelt beside her. "Excellent work, Aiki," she stated proudly.
"Are you alright?" Saul asked urgently, surveying her wound, which was already starting to heal at the death of the Burned One.
"The jacket may be difficult to explain to Rosalind," she murmured, picking at the frayed fabric.
Saul shook his head. "Just think of yourself for one [expletive] minute, Farah. Are you okay?"
"Yes," she sighed. "I'm alright."
As soon as the Burned One fell to the ground, Aiki released his fire and staggered, breathing heavily. They looked over at Farah and Saul, their vision faltering and starting to fade. "Mmnh… good… g-good job, everyone…" He murmured, smiling softly as a reassurance.
Their heart jolted as the world seemed to start spinning, and they could hardly see at all anymore as they fought to stay conscious. His efforts were in vain, however, and he only managed to take a few slow, heavy steps towards Farah and Saul before he crumpled to the ground. They were laying completely still on their side, their hair and clothes disheveled and their whole body entirely limp. The fight had just taken too much out of him.
group
Farah looked up in time to see Aiki's eyes roll back into his head and his body collapse. "Damn it," Farah hissed, rising to her feet with Saul's aid and rushing to Aiki's side with Saul following just a step behind her. She knelt beside them. "Aiki?"
Aiki didn't reply when he was spoken to; he only stirred a bit on the ground. Their ears were twitching lightly, and their shallow breathing at least confirmed that they were still alive. He coughed weakly, trying to open his eyes but unable to.
group
Farah closed her eyes and winced as she used her abilities to transfer some of her energy into Aiki, hoping it would help them to wake up, or at least become more responsive in some way.
Saul could only watch. He was concerned, but he didn't stop her.
Aiki stirred when Farah transferred some of her energy. After a few seconds, he whined softly and his hands clenched into trembling fists. Eventually, they managed to open their eyes and push themself up onto their hands and feet, although they were still shaking quite a bit.
group
Farah gasped softly and cut off the majority of the energy transfer after Aiki regained consciousness. "No, no, don't get up yet," she protested. "You need rest. How are you feeling?"
"Mmnhh…" Aiki fell back onto his side after a few seconds and stayed there, although he seemed to at least still be conscious. "Really… empty. I'm exhausted… my head hurts…" They mumbled, curling up a bit more. "Did we… did we kill it…?"
group
“Well, you drew on a great deal of magic. You’re bound to feel drained,” Farah replied softly. "But yes, it's dead."
Saul watched Farah's gentle side show, and he smiled subtly. "You did excellent work," he added.
Aiki looked up at Farah and Saul weakly from the ground, his vision still pretty blurry. "Mmnh… yaaay…" He laughed tiredly, closing his eyes again. "Well, at least I can do something right, yeah? Now I've…" They trailed off, seeming to forget what they were trying to say for a few seconds, "…I-I've got… um… a story to tell Eiji when I get back."
group
Aiki's words reminded Farah of their new goal after the Burned One was killed. They had to find the barn to get back to the Otherworld where Rosalind waited. "Saul, the barn," Farah murmured.
Saul stood and surveyed the surrounding area. A dark shape stood out, but it was too far way for him to be able to tell what it was. But it was their best lead so far. "There," he said. "In the distance. Do you see it?"
Farah looked up, and her eyes lit up at the promising sight. "Yes."
"Mmmnh… do you think this Rosalind lady can help me get back home?" Aiki asked softly, trying to sit up again and managing it this time. He still felt heavy and fuzzy and exhausted, and his heart was pounding. "You guys are nice and all, but they've probably noticed that I'm gone by now and I don't want them to be too worried about me, you know?"
group
Farah chuckled quietly. "Yes, I understand. Rosalind is the most powerful fairy in the Otherworld, so if anyone could help you, it would be her." Her hand hovered behind Aiki's back as an aid or just in case. "We'll stay here until you're ready to head out. And don't lie. I want you to be able to make it without feeling too tired."
"Okay… I guess we're setting up camp here for a bit, then." Aiki laughed weakly and lay back down on the ground, looking exhausted. His breathing was labored and he was pretty limp. They definitely wouldn't be able to make it very far if they were to get up and go at the moment. "When are we gonna start losing daylight?"
