There was a long pause between them before Argo stood up, “I should probably leave before the rest wake up.”

“Alright.”

He gingerly picked up the nephilim girl in his arms, “I’ll take her to Shiira’s tent. Thank you for everything you’ve done.”

“Oh, can I come with?”

Argo tilted his head, “Why would you want to do that?”

“Cuz I wanna know more about you.”

“Why?”

“Cuz we’re friends!”

“What about the others? Don’t you want to be here when they wake up?”

Kaara looked back at the group, “I think they’ll be fine without me. Plus, I would rather keep petting Ezo.” She said, hugging into the drake’s fluffy mane.

“I see, then come along if you like. I know Ezo appreciates your company.”

“What are the scars on its body?”

“Oh, those? A couple years ago when I first met him, he was being abused by a few boys out in the woods near Punuuk.”

“Hard to believe this big guy was getting abused by three boys.”

“He was a lot smaller back then. He’s grown up quite a bit. I used to be able to carry him pretty comfortably in my arms.”

Kaara thumbed her lip, “How big was he two years ago?”

The noxa made a gesture with his arms, “About this big.”

“Sounds like this drake isn’t too old, then. If that’s the case, he might actually be an Ingen drake.”

“Ingen drake?”

“Bat drakes who roost along Ingen trees. They’re a lot bigger than normal bat drakes, but they’re also pretty rare. Some adults can even fly, but either way they’re really good climbers. Helps them get to the Ingen fruits they love to eat.”

“Ezo’s a bit of a klutz, though. I can only imagine him trying to fly.”

“Probably because he’s been growing so fast. I can only imagine how much of a klutz I’d be if my legs were longer than they were yesterday.”

“Makes me wonder how he ended up near Punuuk if he’s from an Ingen tree.”

“Poachers will sometimes steal eggs so they can train it when it hatches. Although I dunno if three young boys could do something like that. Maybe he escaped when he hatched or something?”

“I guess we can only speculate, right?”

Another pause, the cold winter air bringing a tranquil silence to the night where only the crunch of snow beneath their boots could be heard.

“What’s your mother like?” Kaara asked.

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

“What? Why do you want to know about my mother?”

She giggled, “Sorry, it’s a weird question. She rescued the two of us back in Yvian. She’s really cool! She had this fire wolf armor, and a halberd and…” Kaara twiddled her fingers, “Well let’s just say I’ve been a fan since I first saw her.”

“My mother is my hero too,” Argo admitted, “She had to raise me on her own for most of my life, and since she’s a Venator Knight she had to rejoin the battlefield. That’s how I met my master, and I’ve been training under him ever since. She’s tough on me, but she never gave me anything I couldn’t handle. Even on her worst days she made sure I knew I was loved. She never liked to tell me about her days working as a knight, but whenever she had to fight in front of me it was always to protect someone.”

“She sounds like a wonderful person. I think my dad’s kinda the same way. And well, my mom’s sorta that way too, but I don’t always get along with her.”

“How so?”

“I guess I make her worried. I tend to do a lot of daring things. I don’t blame her when she lectures me or anything, I just don’t feel like it helps me y’know?”

“People care in different ways.”

“Yeah? How do you know that?”

“The girl I'm holding in my arms likes to yell at people when she’s worried about them.”

“What are the two of you doing all the way out here anyway?”

“We’re here to participate in the Siren Ceremony.”

Kaara’s heart sank, “Oh.”

“What is it?”

“You know you can opt out at any time, right? I mean, your soul might get taken by Malaki.”

Argo nodded, “I’m aware. We know the risks.”

Kaara gnawed the inside of her cheek. Should she tell him about her curse? “Why are you participating?”

“It’s something my master sent us to do. I think it’s another test.”

“Quite the brutal test.”

“Aren’t you participating in it as well?”

Kaara nodded, “It’s my duty as a future huntress. I guess you could call this ceremony a rite of passage for anyone who wants to hunt Malaki.”

“From what my master told me, it has more to do with Ux than anything else.”

“How do you mean?”

“Tragedy is the easiest way to awaken Ux. The souls of the fallen can also act as power for the ones who remain. The power and limit of your Ux can be increased by absorbing Ux from those who have passed away. Sometimes by eating whatever killed them, or defeating someone in a duel.”

Kaara looked up at the sky, “Why do I feel like I already know that?”

“The scroll I read off puts that knowledge in your head somehow. You must have passed the test it gave you.”

Kaara tried to recall. She had a vague recollection of being stranded without food and surrounded by enemies. Their weapons had worn away and broken. Neither starvation nor their enemy was as big of a threat as the possibility of betrayal, though.

She remembered treating them how she always treated people. Late night telling stories to one another, and listening to their fears.

“I’m not surprised you passed, though.” Argo said, “The answer requires that you are willing to understand a traitor’s point of view and convince them to lower their daggers so you can all make it out together.”

“I do remember a situation like that. It’s all fuzzy, though.”

“It’s strange. It feels so real in the moment, but whenever I wake up I can only remember it like it was a dream.”

Argo nodded, “The more I learn, the more it’s clear that this Siren Ceremony is how most unlock their Ux from an early age.”

“So how did you get yours?”

“I’m not sure. My master said it was rare to unlock Ux without tragedy. It’s probably a combination of near death experiences, meditation, and luck.”

“So nearly dying can unlock Ux too. That does explain a lot for me at least. Deka told us a bit about that whole Ux thing, but he didn’t bother to explain it as much as he could have. I wonder why we can’t just try to unlock it like you did.”

“My master said I’m a rare case, and I don’t really know why.”

“Perhaps you’re actually an Ingen xio.”

“Ingen xio? What’s that?”

“A legendary xiozian of prophecy said to be the harbinger of a new age! One who can master all seven elements and bring an end to the Malaki once and for all!”

“I’ve never heard of that before.”

“That’s probably because I made it up. Sounds cool, though, huh?”

“It definitely does. I could only wish to be born that special,” Argo chuckled, “I am fine with being a noxa, though.”