The Cold left as Aria’s voice cried out, her scream carrying through the forest trees. Winter’s chill remained, but compared to the biting frost that she’d felt before it was as if a blanket had been draped over her. Newly formed tears washed over the ones frozen to her cheeks, the warmth from them comforting as her sobbing continued. It was not despair that fueled her weeping, however, but rather the rush of… everything that she felt since crying out. Anger, sadness, fear, happiness, determination burned within her, and she had no other outlet, no other way to process it other than the tears that poured from her eyes and the scream that escaped her lips. Through her blurred vision she could see the moons peeking through the canopy of trees above, their glow adding to the comfort that steadily began to take hold.

What felt like an eternity passed before her cries dwindled to reflexive wimpers. Her throat was hoarse, and her body may as well have been made of stone, but there was a lightness to her chest now that made her feel like she was floating. It was only after the rush passed through her that she could fully feel Helbram’s hands on her shoulders, his grip firm, but comforting. He released one of his hands from her and, after shaking off his broken gauntlet, wiped the tears from her face. His hand was roughed and callused, but radiated a warmth that brought color back to Aria’s cheeks. A gentle smile was spread across his face, overtaking the blood that trailed down his face and the frost that clutched at his skin. His blue eyes flared under the moonlight, and for a moment she thought she saw a glint of green wash over them.

Before their light started to fade.

Helbram was still smiling as his hands dropped to his sides, eyes still looking ahead as he collapsed to the ground. Blood dripped from the sword impaled through him, and through the layer of frost that coated his body, his skin started to grow pale. Relief escaped Aria as she looked at him and horror took its place. She fell to her knees in front of him, hands trembling as they reached out to his.

He did not respond.

“Helbram?” A voice said from behind her, its tone weak but alarmed. It was followed by a rush of footsteps as Jahora ran to his side, “Helbram!”

The Mage looked around in a panic, eyes eventually stopping as they fell upon something that was behind Aria. Jahora ran to it, and as the girl’s eyes followed her she saw that the woman pulled Ren from the ground.

“Wake up!” she pleaded, “we don’t have time!”

The Cleric’s eyes fluttered, threatening to close again, but they snapped open in response to the panic in Jahora’s voice. He held himself upright and shook his head, eyes falling upon Helbram as he did so. Any fatigue that may have held Ren down appeared to vanish momentarily as he rushed to Helbram’s side, the symbol on his forehead filled with a golden light as he gripped the sword that was impaled through Helbram’s stomach. The Cleric took in a deep breath and, bracing himself, pulled the sword from Helbram and tossed it to the side. He shifted the unconscious man onto his back and placed his hands on the wound, channeling his golden Aether into it. Jahora joined him soon after.

“I need more Aether,” Ren said through gritted teeth.

The Mage nodded and closed her eyes. Her jaw clenched, and as her body trembled three rings of Aether formed around her head. She placed her hand on the Cleric’s shoulder, channeling a bluish aura onto the Cleric that bled into Ren’s own golden glow. His hands flared with a brighter gilded light, its brilliance enough to push back the panic and shock that had overtaken Aria’s mind.

It only lasted for a moment.

The rings around Jahora’s head flickered before dying out, with Ren’s symbol doing the same. The glow in the Cleric’s hands started to fade, reducing to a dull sheen over his ashen hands.

“No, not now,” Jahora despaired. She clenched her hands so tight and closed her eyes, shaking as a growl slipped through her lips. Her Aetheric rings blinked, sparking to life only to collapse a moment later. The effort drained the Mage even further, and she barely caught herself before yelling in frustration.

“Elly,” she said, a twinge of hope growing in her voice, “Elly!”

Jahora tried to push herself to her feet as she cried out, but failed to find the strength to stand as she collapsed back to the ground.

“ELLY!” she screamed, tears filling her eyes as she started to crawl.

Aria stood still, feeling a chill start to crawl over her. Except… it was not The Cold this time, but instead the bite of fear that nipped at her skin. Fear not for herself, but for Helbram, whose eyes grew more hollow with each passing second. All while she stood there, watching him slowly fade away.

She heard a rustle in the leaves off to the side, but did not take her eyes off of Helbram. Hurried footsteps drummed into her ears, a precursor to Elly’s appearance out of the corner of her vision. The Weaver slid to Helbram’s side and placed one hand on Ren’s shoulder. With the other, she held Helbram’s hand, the one used to wipe away Aria’s tears. Rings of light appeared around Elly’s wrist and ankle, and like Jahora had done before the caster started to channel a soft blue aura into the Cleric. The symbol on Ren’s forehead regained its steady glow, and the light in his hands grew brighter, but he still shook his head.

“This will only keep him stable,” Ren looked at Elly with a grim expression, “And I know you are at your limits as well.”

“I’m fine,” the Weaver asserted. Her grip on Helbram’s hand tightened, “More than fine.”

As if fate were calling her bluff, the rings around her limbs started to fade.

Elly grit her teeth and closed her eyes. Sweat beaded on her brow as she shook, willing her Aetheric Rings to glow brighter as the tide of energy that flowed to Ren grew. Hope took hold of Aria as the light in the Cleric’s hands started to glow.

She knew it was fleeting.

The light was already dimming even as Elly pushed herself, and the desperation on Jahora’s face told Aria what was soon to happen. Helbram was going to die.

And there was nothing she could do about it.

In her despair, the desire to sink back into the Cold reared its head once again. The need to escape the growing pain in her chest grew with each passing moment, but that ethereal chill did not answer her desires. Aria had made her choice, and now she must suffer its consequences. Tears pooled in her eyes once again..

Tears that Helbram would never be able to wipe away again.

The girl fell to her knees as she looked on, all sound around her muting as she looked at the fallen man. Jahora’s screams, Elly’s yells, and Ren’s urging faded, and time itself felt as if it slowed, locking Aria in this torturous moment for what may as well have been an eternity. Her breath stopped at her throat, a barrier to the cries that wanted to escape, and she could feel the dull ache in her chest flare into a dagger that dug into her heart. All she could feel was the pain, the sorrow, the agony as she watched on, the last of the light in Helbram’s eyes draining away.

Through the pain, something prodded the back of her mind. A chill, but not like the one that the Cold possessed. It was… comforting, like a cool breeze in the midst of Summer’s heat. Aria expected a voice to follow its presence, but no words rang through her mind. Instead, the chill traveled through her, flowing throughout her entirety. Frost followed, its misty form pouring from Aria like an aura.

An aura of Aether.

Ren, Elly, and Jahora looked at her with shock, but that soon faded as Elly released Helbram’s hand and held out her own towards Aria.

Ren looked at the Weaver in alarm, “You don’t know wh-”

“I don’t care,” Elly interrupted. She looked at the girl with gentle eyes, ones that failed to hide the desperation behind them, “take my hand.”

Aria raised her hand, clutching onto the Weaver’s with a strength that she did not know she possessed. As their hands locked, she felt a pull. Not physical, but rather at the frost that gathered around her. As it flowed from her and into Elly, Aria felt a hollowness in her chest and a dull ache start to form in her head. That was pushed to the side, however, as she saw frost build up across Elly’s arm. Panic stopped the flow of energy between her and Elly.

“It’s alright,” the Weaver said, “we can save him.”

As she spoke, Aria felt another hand on her shoulder. It was Jahora, who grabbed the girl’s free hand.

“Together,” she said, her voice filled with the same comforting tone she held the night they first met.

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Aria met Jahora’s gaze, and, pushing aside the fear that gripped her, gave a firm nod. Panic released its grip over her, allowing her frosty aura to flow into both casters as they placed their hands onto Ren’s shoulders. The hands that gripped Aria’s own were coated in ice, but as the girl’s energy flowed through them it shifted into a deeper blue that let Ren’s golden light regain its brilliance. The Cleric pressed his hands firmer against Helbram’s wound, driving the energy into it. Aria could not tell if Ren’s spell was working, but as she looked upon the determined looks of both Jahora and Elly, she let any questions in her mind fade. Helbram needed her all, and she would give it. As if it sensed her will, the chill at the back of her mind grew, and her aura flared with a soft pale light.

It was the last thing she saw before her vision went white.

___

Helbram looked up into the endless expanse of the void. Nothing but blackness greeted his vision, but there was an odd sort of serenity to it all that let him lie still. Even if he possessed the drive to move, he knew it would be an impossible task. Even within the recesses of his own mind did he feel like he was made of lead.

He tried not to think about what that meant for his actual body.

Out of the corner of his sight sat himself, the him who possessed eyes of green. He leaned back in a simple wooden chair, dressed in simple clothes. His gaze drifted upwards, just like Helbam’s had, and he had an empty, almost vacant look on his face.

“Odd, is it not?” his mental self said, “After all that you have been through, the only thing that greets you is the endless space above us.”

Helbram snorted, “Had you not spoken, I would have assumed that I had returned to the Cycle.”

“If this is what awaits us in the Cycle, then death truly would be a fate most foul,” the green-eyed version of him stood up, “but we have not escaped such an outcome, not yet at least,” he sighed.

Helbram tried to move, but his limbs did not respond.

“I suspected as much,” he admitted, “it is not easy to escape death when a sword is driven through your gut.”

“It would be impossible,” his mirror said, “for those without the gifts of an Awoken or spellcaster.”

“Ren must have performed a miracle then… though I imagine things are much more complicated than that.”

The footsteps of his other self thundered around him as he walked right next to Helbram’s head, kneeling down as the echo of himself peered down at him.

“You cannot continue on like this,” he said.

“I know,” Helbram replied.

“If you continue to push yourself to this point, you will break.”

“This is true.”

“...you would do it again.”

“That I would.”

Helbram met the green eyes of his other self, their stares unmoving, “I know you would too.”

His mirror clicked his teeth and looked away, “Without hesitation.”

Helbram snorted, “Then the only thing that we can do is carry on.”

His other self sighed and walked out of his sight, “I suppose so…your companions are going to give us hell for this.”

“Of that I have no doubt. I expect I will be seeing you soon after I wake up.”

The both of them laughed.

“Then we should best get ourselves some rest,” his mirror said. As he spoke, his voice started to sound more distant, and Helbram could feel a heaviness to his eyes.

“I suppose you are right…”

“I shall be here when you need me. Rest well, you did good today.”

“We did good today.”

“Heh… I suppose we did.”

As his other self’s voice faded, sleep took Helbram one again.

___

Leaf sat at the corner of the room, taking in the gathering in front of him. It had been nearly a week since they’d gone after Aria, and though all of them were beaten and broken they had managed to make their way back to Redhaven. The fearful eyes of the townsfolk followed them as they made their way back to The Wandering Fowl, and apparently the image they cut was enough to keep them from disturbing the group as they licked their wounds. Tried as the party did to refuse Ren’s aid, the Cleric was insistent in treating them no matter how much it wore on him. This, paired with Leaf’s natural recovery as an Awoken, meant that he was at least functional after a few days of rest.

Elly and Jahora, however, were not so fortunate.

Both casters sat on a bed on one side of the room, free from wounds but with a hollowness to their features as fatigue continued to wear on them. Aether Sickness, from pushing themselves far beyond their limits. Ren, who sat on the bed opposite to them, suffered from the same, though the seriousness in all three of the casters’ expressions somehow broke through their clearly haggard states. At the far side of the room, directly within Leaf’s line of sight, were the ones that were bound. Cora and Erik had their wrists bound behind their backs by Sealing Cuffs, and their legs were tied together by rope. Neither of the Shade’s were awake, having fallen into a slumber after the battle. Though their wounds were treated by Ren before he felt the effects of Aether Sickness, their unconscious states were no doubt due to the same strain that everyone in the room most likely felt, and with their abilities dampened that only meant their recovery would be slower.

At their side was Leon, whose wrists were constricted with rope, though his arms hung in front of him and his legs were unbound. The Black Cloak was awake and without his armor, but his eyes were downcast to the wooden floor, and were it not for the slight heave of his chest as he breathed Leaf would have suspected the man to be dead. The man had been unconscious for several days after the battle, and though Ren refused to restrain his companion at the party’s urging, the Black Cloak himself bound his wrists and fell into silence upon waking up. For an Awoken of his caliber, the ropes meant little, but Leon had moved little since restricting himself.

It was the least he should have done, given the state of the one not in this room.

“Are you certain about this?” Ren asked.

Jahora gave a firm nod, “Yes. Given how things are… we cannot in good conscience let Aria go with you.”

“If you mean to go against us on this, know that we will be unmoving,” Elly’s eyes narrowed, “Uncompromising, just as your companion was.”

Ren opened his mouth to reply, but as he looked over to Leon, his shoulders slumped and he sighed, “Of that I have no doubt…”

“Do not be mistaken,” Jahora said, “We are beyond grateful for your aid, and we are in debt to your kindness for the past few days, but we can’t trust you with her.”

“Please, you owe me nothing,” Ren said, “Without your assistance we would not have prevailed against these two,” he motioned to Cora and Erik, “and I shudder to think what would have happened had you not stopped Leon.”

He looked up and smiled, “So with this let’s call it square, shall we?” He stood up and stretched, letting out a satisfied groan, “Our mission was the pursuit of these two anyhow, and transporting two Shades is a handful enough as is.”

Leaf let go of a breath that he did not know he was holding. From the sag in their shoulders, his companions no doubt felt the same.

“But we cannot keep her existence hidden,” the Cleric said in a serious tone, “not for long, anyway. I’ve seen many a Shade, and by raw power alone Aria is within a league of her own, and that is something that should not be hidden from my order.”

He sighed, “And yet, though it will certainly earn me quite the lecture, we cannot remove a child from their guardians by force,” he chuckled, “and I would say there are none that fit the description of ‘guardians’ more than you lot.”

Leaf looked to Leon, who did not react to his companion’s words.

“We thank you,” Jahora said, “I know this is not a decision you make lightly.”

“Nor was your decision to take care of her,” Ren said, “And from what I have witnessed she will be in good hands indeed.”

The Cleric clapped his hands, “But I believe that is enough serious discussion for today. Go on, I know you wish to check on Helbram.”

Elly and Jahora both nodded and stood up, making their way to the door. Leaf followed after them, but stopped as he stood in at the doorway. He looked back at Leon and, as if the Black Cloak could feel his gaze, met his eyes.

“Know this,” Leaf said, anger bleeding into his voice “If you try anything, I will not miss the next time.”

Before Leon could respond, he left the room, closing the door behind him as he walked into the hallway of the tavern’s upper floor. He saw Jahora and Elly enter a room further down, near the stairs, and followed after them. He was halted at the doorway by the two women, who had stopped just in front of the room’s entrance. He’d expected to see the sight he’d always seen for the past few days. Helbram would be laying in one bed, his body more bandage than man and Aria would be in the other, the girl having exhausted herself so much that she too fell into a deep slumber for days.

Except, now only one bed was occupied. Helbram remained asleep, but at his side was Aria, the girl having decided to take a seat next to the unconscious man’s bed after having apparently woken up. A state of consciousness that must not have lasted long, for the girl had fallen back to sleep, her hand clutched to Helbrams as she leaned against his bed. Gentle breaths exuded from both, and were it not for Helbram’s wounded state it would be easy to imagine that both were taking an afternoon nap together.

Jahora approached them first, adjusting the girl’s position to a more comfortable one and fixing her hair, but letting their hands stay entwined. Elly followed after the Mage, her attention focused on Helbram as she looked him over. She placed a hand on his forehead, her touch lingering as she closed her eyes and took in a deep breath.

Not noticing Helbram’s own eyes fluttering open.

“Your hand…” he said, “is surprisingly warm.”

Elly’s eyes snapped open as Jahora’s gaze turned to the newly awakened man.

“Really? That’s the first thing you say?” her hand didn’t leave his forehead, and there was clear relief in her voice.

“What else did you expect?” Helbram said in a soft tone. He looked down at his hand, and at Aria, who still held onto it. He gave the girl’s hand a squeeze and looked towards Jahora. The Mage’s eyes glistened with tears, ones that brought a sheen to Leaf’s own eyes. As Helbram looked at him, he looked away and wiped the tears away and cleared his throat.

“You are all safe,” Helbram said, “that is good.”

He looked at the window, the pale light of winter’s sun pouring over him, “I must have been asleep for sometime.

“You’re godsdamned right,” Leaf barked, voice cracking as he made his way across the room, “You bloody bastard.”

Helbram did not have time to respond before they all embraced him.