Next day

The next morning, Nyx woke up and got ready for the day.

She took a refreshing bath, then ate some fruit and milk while the others began playing with her hair. Suli and Nabi were having a great time twirling her silver locks together.

Suli grinned, “Look at these braids! We did a great job!”

Nabi nodded in agreement, “They look amazing. I’m so happy with how they turned out.”

Drac watched them with a silent but impressed look. Nyx touched each braid, smiling at how her hair had turned out.

Len gave her a little kiss on the nose and chuckled, “You look very pretty, Nyx.”

Nyx blushed and stretched after finishing her meal. The others gathered around, asking if she was ready to go.

“Ready when you are,” Ryu said.

“Let’s do this!” Suli added enthusiastically.

Nabi and Guerim nodded in agreement.

Drac reminded her, “Be careful out there.”

Len, Ryu, Suli, Nabi, and Guerim all perched somewhere on her body, with Len on her head.

Nyx responded confidently, “I’ll be fine, don’t worry.”

She turned to the others. “Are you ready?”

They all agreed, with varying levels of enthusiasm.

As she pondered, Nyx wondered aloud, “Since I can use teleportation magic, could I teleport us all to the Griffin’s cave?”

With a hand on her chin, she shrugged, “It’s worth a try.”

She told the others to hold on and brace themselves. The Aetherlings, except for Len, looked at each other in confusion. Nyx then used her teleportation magic, and in an instant, they were at the Griffin’s cave.

Ryu’s eyes widened, “Whoa, you have teleportation magic?”

Suli nodded, “I had no idea!”

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

Nabi was equally impressed, “That’s amazing!”

Guerim added, “I didn’t know you could do that!”

Nyx smiled, “Griff gave me the skill.”

The excitement was so loud it woke Griff.

“Why are you all so loud so early?” Griff asked grumpily, his voice thick with sleep.

The group quieted down and apologized for waking him. Nyx approached Griff, asking if he was okay. Griff looked at her hair and complimented it.

“Your hair looks nice, Nyx,” Griff said. “But why weren’t you here yesterday?”

Nyx’s gaze dropped to the floor, feeling a bit ashamed. The others busied themselves with various activities, leaving Nyx to explain.

“I went to the Snake’s territory to see if I could convince him to help me with my eyes, but it didn’t work out,” Nyx said sheepishly.

Griff was bewildered. “Why would you do that? Didn’t you understand the warnings I gave you?”

Nyx sighed, “He said he wouldn’t help and got angry. He even wrapped himself around me and tried to suffocate me, but the Tiger stopped him in time. Then Drac arrived, and they fought. But I’m okay now.”

“That’s not something to be proud of,” Griff scoffed. The others silently agreed, sweat visibly beading on their foreheads at Nyx’s enthusiasm.

Griff continued, “Although you could’ve died, I’m glad the Tiger was there to stop him.” He yawned, adding, “I’m going to sleep. Now that you’re better, come and groom me. I have some loose feathers causing me discomfort.”

Nyx sighed and climbed onto Griff’s nest with his help. She was always impressed by how soft and pretty his white and brown feathers were, which seemed to glow silver. She wished she could see his feathers up close.

With a resigned sigh, she began her grooming duties. Griff felt comfortable and soon drifted off to sleep. Throughout the time, the others took turns fetching snacks for Nyx from the Griffin’s territory, though there wasn’t much to find, even though the Griffin didn’t eat.

Later that day

The morning finally wrapped up, and evening fell over the cave. The others were lounging around, animatedly chatting about their day.

“Can you believe how many feathers Griff has?” Suli said, shaking her head. “It’s like he’s always shedding.”

Nabi laughed. “I know, right? And it’s such a hassle to clean them up.”

Ryu shrugged. “It’s a small price to pay for having such a cool Griffin as a friend.”

Meanwhile, Nyx was finishing up with her grooming. She glanced around at the pile of loose feathers and wondered aloud, “Why does Griff have so many loose feathers? I wonder if there’s anything useful I could do with them.”

Len noticed her pondering and offered a gentle nudge. “Maybe you can make something with them. A pillow, perhaps?”

Nyx smiled, her curiosity piqued. “That’s a good idea. I’ll think about it.”

As she slid off Griff’s back, Len rushed over to help her down. Once she was safely on the ground, Nyx thanked him with a warm smile. “Thanks, Len.”

She turned to the others. “Are you all ready to head out?”

“Yep, we’re all set,” Ryu replied.

Suli and Nabi nodded in agreement, with Nabi adding, “We’ve got your back.”

One by one, the Aetherlings took their places on different parts of her body, getting comfortable for the journey ahead. Just as Nyx was about to leave, Griff stirred awake.

“Where are you going?” he rumbled groggily.

Nyx flinched slightly, caught off guard. “I’m heading to Tiger's territory.”

Griff sat up, suddenly alert and intrigued. “And why’s that?”

“Well since he helped me get back to Drac yesterday,” Nyx explained. “The Tiger said I need to visit him every two days and keep him company. Not sure why, though.”

Griff’s curiosity was clearly piqued. “Interesting. I wonder what his game is.”

Nyx continued, “He also mentioned he’d teach me a new skill.”

Griff raised an eyebrow. “Really? That’s something.”

“Yep!” Nyx said excitedly. “I can’t wait to see what it is.”

Griff nodded. “Well, good luck with that. Be on your way now.”

“Thanks, Griff,” Nyx said with a smile. She turned to the others, giving a polite nod. “Let’s go.”

With that, she activated her teleportation magic and, with the others in tow, they vanished and reappeared in the Tiger’s territory, ready for whatever awaited them.