"Alright all right. Boys over there, girls over here." Lily said, her hands swiping through the air before a wall of flames charred the sand on the beach, drawing a black line, "Eat, then we will figure out our afternoon activities."

"Ok..?" Wu said, as Shin, Braka, and Matty headed towards him and Augen as Lera stood up from beside him, Ver fell back into a whirlpool, and Fatera high jumped over the wall of flames. Why can't anyone but Lera in his squad act...normal?

"So...what do you think of surfing?" Matty asked, taking Lera's place next to Wu

"Similar to surfing that I know, but not the same..." Wu admitted, "Not quite."

"I bet it feels good with Lera there though," Augen remarked as Matty and Braka both laughed and Wu looked down at the plate of food instead.

"Well...same for you with Yuna, I presume?" Wu retorted as Matty and Braka glanced at one another before bursting out laughing.

"Yuna with us? Ha! No way! She's way too free a spirit!"

As the boys talked about the girls, the girls talked about the boys too. Sitting around in a circle, gossiping under the sun, it was as if Wu was teleported back to his teenage years when neither the existential dread of being an adult nor the battle for survival had been on his mind.

This truly was one of those few moments in his life when everything slowed down, and he cherished the moment, laying back onto the warm sand and closing his eyes as the sounds of chatter coming from all around him. Then, he heard the sand crunching before Augen also lied down beside him and let out a long sigh.

"So...is this the future you foresee?" Wu asked, his voice quiet as Shin, Matty, and Braka laughed about something Yuna did that morning.

"Is this going to be a recurring joke?" Augen asked, and Wu smiled before nodding, "...The only future I have access to is the flashes of future I saw...and yes, this is one of those peaceful days. One of the last peaceful days, if anything..."

"Before the PORA took over?" Wu asked, looking over to Augen who nodded quietly, the smile on his face slowly fading away as the memories of the future filled his mind, "Perhaps the future will be different now. If what you saw was a possible future out of your previous situations, then by changing the situation, we should be changing the future."

"Maybe..." Augen said, when suddenly, he jolted up and looked up as a massive ball of Wave was tossed over the wall of flames as it landed in the sand and rolled towards Shin.

"We figured out the game!" Yuna said, jumping up and down as her face periodically appeared over the flames, "We are playing a game of battleship!"

The game was simple, and the boys and girls both laid down in various set locations within a grid as they threw a massive Wave ball back and forth. It was terrifying certainly when the orb flew through the air without anything body knowing where they land, but it is also immediately clear when its on track as the girls screamed and boys yelled as the ball was about to completely crush them on the sand.

In the end, it was Fatera VS Braka, and neither moved out of the way even as the orbs slammed into their body. Both are too stubborn to quit, and the group ended up calling it a draw despite their protests, just cause they are simply throwing the ball back and forth at each other.

With the groups reemerging from the other side of the flames with fully bruised up bodies, they were all bent over with laughter, particularly when Fatera with her bruised face and Braka with big black eye shook hands.

"It was a good match." Braka said.

"Just so ya know, I didn't use my Wave armor at all." Fatera said as Braka laughed and shook his head.

The night soon came, and the group of ten had totally exhausted all of their energy after a day of playing around. Shin and Ver combined to cook up a special meal with spiced roasted fish, mixed fruit salad, and a soft alcoholic coconut drink that had been prepared since the first day of their arrival. Then, they feasted.

The big group sat in a circle under the setting sun as stars above started showing their faces. The warmth of the day lingered as the cool of night approached.

"You had fun?" Wu asked as Lera took a seat next to him, and she smiled and nodded at him.

"Did you?"

"Yeah...the surfing part in particular..." Wu said, stuffing the soft fish meat into his mouth, "I never learned it back in my world, so it's really nice to be able to..."

"I am glad." Lera said, her face lit with the warm light of the campfire as Wu took a good look at her, "What...what are you looking at?"

"Nothing." Wu said, turning his head away quickly, "Have you been sleeping well...? You looked a little...tired."

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"Doing my best..." Lera responded, forcing a smile and fixing her hair behind her ear, "Doing the best I can, as always."

"I see." Wu looked up at the sky, "That's all I would ever need then."

Lera glanced towards him, and her heart ached. She wanted to move in close, and she wanted to feel his body pressed against hers. But it was as if her hips were glued to the ground, and she couldn't bring herself to move by even an inch.

After the dinner, Fatera made a quick exit into the bushes before Augen also excused himself. Wu went for a much-needed shower as Yuna dragged Matty, Shin, and Lily into a drinking game with the not so alcoholic beverages.

"Hyuh! Huh!" Fatera grunted, her body spinning around before she coated herself in the dark red Wave of Hard mode before darkening into the Killa mode even further. Then, with a shockwave from underneath her feet, she launched herself into the air and started bouncing around like a pinball.

That was when she sensed Augen's approach, and she slammed down on the sand in front of him, her fist planting hard on the ground as the blast of air blew a storm of sand in his face. Fortunately, he has no eyes to get sand stuck in.

"Feeling energetic?" Augen asked, as Fatera nodded and sat down with him, "Things still felt off?"

"Yep." Fatera replied quickly, looking down at her hands and feet, "Even in my Killa mode...I felt so much weaker and slower than I was without my...packages..."

"So...you want to continue in the meditation practice?" Augen asked.

When Fatera was still trying to rediscover her reason for fighting during her three days journey of self-discovery, Augen found herself alone in the darkness trying to reconnect with her own existence. That's when Augen approached and brought forward a practice of meditation with her.

Fatera, being the way she is, obviously scoffed at the idea. So to convince her, Augen put her under his Winter Bark cast, riding along with Fatera as she took a trip down memory lane. That was when she finally confronted the memories of her past, the actions and words of her father, and the reason why she was left behind.

"You do know it all along, don't you?" Augen asked as Fatera sat still like a statue and allowed her tears to flood down after their first joint meditation, "You know you have to get stronger, and you know you have to keep winning...but from now on, you can finally do it for yourself."

"That wasn't enough." Fatera said, looking at Augen, "I don't know why...but I always felt so much stronger fighting for something other than myself..."

"Then don't." Augen said, "Fight for us. That's what Wu asked of you, right?"

"Yeah..." Fatera pinched her eyes together before opening them up wide, "So...what are you doing here?"

"I was going to ask the same about you." Augen said, sitting down in the cooling sand, "Isn't today supposed to be a rest day?"

"Ha! Ya think I will be lonely?" Fatera turned and walked towards the beach, "I have always been alone. I am used to it."

Augen didn't say a word, and he simply sat there.

Fatera walked until the seawater covered up to her ankles, and she looked up at the sky full of stars, her voice slightly muffled by the crashing waves.

"I am used to it...I...I am used to it...I am too strong to be alone..." Fatera murmured, rubbing something off her eyes. Then, she heard the sound of Augen walking through water before he stood silently next to her.

"You are no longer alone, Fatera." Augen said, "I am here. We are here. All of us..."

"Ya said you could see the future, right?" Fatera asked, turning to look at him, "Could you see whether my father was alive or not?"

Augen reached his hand forward, and he felt for the vibrations from Fatera's Wave. She was shaking, her eyes filled with tears, and all she wanted is closure.

"Is that what you really want?" Augen asked, and Fatera gripped onto his hand tightly. With a sigh, Augen reached into his pocket, taking out a shiny silvery card with the painting of fully transparent windows with countless cracks over it.

Then, he held onto Fatera's hand, using her as a trigger before releasing the card from his fingers. It glowed as Augen guided his Wave through the Cast, a pulse of chilling cold spreading out from them and freezing up the sea beside them.

"Forbidden Winter: Window of Cold Time..." Augen said, his mind thrown into the future as his body started to burn due to the kickback of the forbidden Cast.

Then, he saw into her future, the very near, chaotic, bombastic future that was instore for her. And he saw an old man entering her life, turning everything upside down once again. All of the progress made here thrown into disarray, all because of that one man.

The man that should have died...the man that should have never been a part of Fatera's life...He was still alive, and he had planned to come for her, especially as he learned of her existence after the public display of the Winter Wars. Augen ground his teeth together and instinctively gripped Fatera's hands tightly in his own.

He will not allow him to ruin her again. It was selfish, illogical, and insane. He had come to accept that the future is immutable, that nothing can be done...but is that really true? Is what Wu saying really going to work?

If that's true, then Augen will fight to protect Fatera, no matter what. Even without looking, Augen knew that Fatera can be so much more than what she is right now. She cannot be held back by the lingering pasts of her father any longer.

As the flashes of future slowly faded away from around him, Augen dropped to his knees, his body covered in sweat as Fatera also knelt beside him, the ice slowly melting around their feet.

"What did you see?" Fatera asked, helping Augen up as he looked even paler than before.

"...He is gone." Augen said, facing Fatera as she let out a sigh of relief, "He will no longer...bother you again. You are free."

Fatera stood still, and tears started welling up within her eyes. Then, she slowly nodded and let go of Augen's hand.

"Could...could I be alone for a bit?"

"I will be back at the house." Augen said quietly, and Fatera nodded as he walked away.

"...Thank you."