Zack lies motionless as Heraon and Azu rush to his side. Heraon plants himself with his shield before him while Azu grabs his head and puts it in her lap.

"Zack, wake up. I swear to god, wake up." Tears stream down her face as the Fairy flies onto a nearby roof, watching. I rush over, falling to my knees beside the unconscious Zack.

I look at Azu, expecting an answer to what has happened, but she's barely holding it together, so I turn to Hearon. His face is pale as he glances at me, a look of deep worry creasing his face.

"What happened?"

He slowly turns his attention to the now-sitting Fairy. "Relife scales," he says, as if that explains anything. I nudge him for more answers. He sighs heavily as Azu cries quietly behind us.

"It is an extremely rare mutation that only a few Fairies have access to. It surrounds the target, dousing them in a sort of hallucination dust. This dust makes one relive their entire life in their head. Start to finish. To us, it is only a few hours, maybe a few days, but to the target, it is years. And worse of all, they have to view it as an outsider, unable to change the outcome even as they experience it."

The gravity of the situation weighs on me as I understand, "They have to relive all their trauma, with no hope of helping." Hearon nods. I can't help but shudder. A fate worse than death.

"If one is lucky, they have lived a regret-free life, filled with happiness, but Zack..." Hearons lower lip trembles. "I would not wish what he has experienced on my worst enemies." I stare at him, a feeling of rage and pity swelling up. That should be me lying there. I should be the one to suffer. I'm the unimportant one. Suddenly, the disputes I've had with him seem pitiful and stupid. I acted like a child while this man sacrificed everything to keep me alive.

"Why?" I whisper to him. Why do all this for me?

Hearon sees my confusion and puts a hand on my shoulder, one eye still on the Fairy. "He has his reasons."

A spark of anger lit in me as I looked him in the eye, "If you knew the Fairy had this ability, why didn't you say something?"

He looks away, "It should not have it. The only documented Faireis with it have actual scales on their wings. This is just a hairy, fleshy monster. It should not have the capabilities to create scales." He mumbles to himself some more before it is broken by the scream of the Fairy. Seems it has had enough waiting. I reignite Nebula as Hearon tenses.

He taps my shoulder, "You should be dead, Silen. That monster looked you straight in the eyes." I nod. I should be, but I'm not. "You must have a resistance to mind manipulation. That must be why the Fairy used its scales. A rare talent." I say nothing. Maybe it has something to do with the core. "Distract it. If you see flashes of any kind, move. We need to kill it before it drops its hold over time. Every moment it releases its hold, the Fairy grows slightly faster and stronger." I don't reply, but raise Nebula straight up, flames licking the blade.

Hearon turns to Azu, saying something, but I hear nothing but the blood in my ears. Anger fills my body, and adrenaline surges through me. Zack. I won't let his sacrifice be in vain. I won't let another person die on my behalf. With a scream that I can't hear but can feel rip through my body, I hurdle Hearon's shield, racing toward the flying monster. It screams in reply, diving towards me, its claws outstretched.

Our gaze meets for just a moment, and I'm bombarded with smells so foul and pain so intense I want to roll over and cry. Blades tear through my stomach and rip me from the inside out. It's just an illusion, Silen. I scream and bite my lip so hard it splits. Real pain coursing through my mouth, erasing the phantoms. The Fairy cries in frustration as it swipes at me, but I see it coming a mile away. I might not be experienced in fighting monsters, but I am in humans. Thankfully, this creature is very similar to one, so it has all the same muscles and habits.

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I duck its swipe, bringing my sword up in an arc, but the Fairy has already flown above, my weapon grazing one of its toes, shearing it off. I start to relax, transferring into my next stance when its tail comes flying at me, and Hearon steps in front, deflecting the barbed tail. He grunts as he skids back, his shield slightly dented. I swallow hard. Not even a metal spike moving at the speed of sound could dent his shield. If this creature hits me, I'm dead. No ifs, ands, or buts about it.

Hearon steps behind me as the Shell prepares to dive again. I need to hit its wings. If I don't, this fight won't last long. As it dives, I tense, prepared to meet it head-on, but just as it hits top speed, an arrow pierces one of its wings, causing it to wobble slightly. I take this chance given to me by the tear-streaked Azu, dashing forward and swinging my sword downwards. The Fairy has no time to react as its own momentum is its enemy. It manages to move slightly to my right, but not enough to save a wing as my super-heated sword slices through it like butter.

It screams, and a clawed hand flashes out as it passes, tearing through my breastplate and causing a massive gash to bleed heavily. I gasp as the prickling pain attacks my chest, developing into a raging fire. Blood pours down my now sliced breastplate, but I wave off Hearon as he runs to my aid. The Fairy is now downed, struggling to stand, the massive right wing that is still intact, acting as a weight. I prepare to attack when I hear a clang behind me as Hearon collapses.

I want to turn to help him, but a prime opportunity has presented itself. The Fairy is stunned. With a deep breath, I ignored Hearon and move into a throwing motion. The Fairy sees this and starts to hobble away, but it's too late. I step forward, throwing the sword with all the strength I have. It streaks through the air, a trail of fire in its wake. The Fairy moves quicker than I expected. No, my throw is going to miss. I grit my teeth, clutching my chest. No, no, no, no. Don't miss, please. Almost as if the sword understood me, it changes course. Only slightly, but enough to pierce the Fairy in its throat, causing it to skid as it grips the weapon.

The blade slams into a nearby wall. The Fairy pulls at the sword frantically, trying to free itself, but it is already gone. The super-heated blade starts to melt its neck, and I watch in horror as the Fairy slowly slides down the blade, its neck slipping until the edge of the blade meets its chin, which also slowly slides down until the blade has cleared its head completely, the two sides flopping onto each side of its body.

I hobble over to the dead creature, red blood pooling around its body. By the time I reach my sword, I'm heaving as pain tears through my chest. I grab my sword, which is still glowing red from the heat. I stare at the red blade and then down at my chest. Surely it can't hurt more? I rip off my useless armor, biting my lip as the jolting motion causes waves of searing pain to rack my body.

I slump against my weapon, the monster's blood smearing my pants and boots. Was my vision always so dark? I fall, my sword slipping out of its molten holding. I can't breathe. I can't. Panic sizes me, and black dots blot my vision. I'm losing too much blood. The wound isn't deep, but it's close enough to my heart to gush blood. It's now or never.

I grab my heated blade and, with shaky hands, press it against my wound. A scream tears through me. I can feel the blood boiling and smell the skin melting. My vision wavers. Pain. Indescribable pain. It destroys any train of thought as I can feel my body convulse, but there is so much heat. Just as the fire burned me, a cooling sensation replaces it. My body still screams as my muscles cramp, but now my vision is clear, and it shows an astonished Azu and Heron staring down at me.

"You are insane," Hearon comments. Azu says nothing as they help me up. Hearon keeps his hand on my chest, and the pain fades, replaced by a feeling I can only describe as divinely cool.

I cough and almost scream at the sudden influx of pain but manage to squeak out a few words, "Kept me alive, though." Hearon has no reply to that. I notice a small cut on his shoulder, and the metal shoulder guard is no longer there. Glancing over at Zack, I see a small bottle emptied. He must have used the liquid stuff that boosts his abilities.

They help me limp over to Zack. Now that the pain is gone, weakness settles in. I plop down beside him. Hearon and Azu start talking, but it fades out as I stare at the ruins around me. The place has completely changed. Moss covers the buildings, and most of the spires have crumbled or fallen. The beautiful ivory white is now streaked with wear and tear, at least the ones not covered in moss. The floor has dozens of holes in it, some small and some as big as buildings. No longer does this place look like a fairy tale. Now, it looks like the remains of a warzone.

The only building untouched by time is the central one. The dome still flares its beam of light into the trees, and not a single piece of moss or streak of mold scar its walls. I come back to reality as Hearon's hand touches my chest, Azu nowhere to be seen.

I try to ask where she went but nothing but a wheeze escapes my lips. Hearon puts a finger on his lips, "Quite, Silen. Your throat is damaged thanks to that stunt you pulled with the sword. The heat and screaming busted your vocal cords." I stop trying to talk.

Azu returns a few minutes later with a black box a few feet wide and tall. A small silver button decorates the center, and a core the size of an apple decorates the back.

She nods to me, opening the box, "Silen was right. The branch was the relic." Inside lays a beautiful white crystal branch. It's only a foot or so tall, but it has a multitude of smaller branches radiating out. It glows with an ethereal light. She closes the box, double-tapping the button. I watch in amazement as the box shrinks to no larger than a matchbox. Above us, the beam flickers a few times but remains stable.

"We need to leave," Hearon says, his hand still cooling my body.

"Right," Azu replies. Hearon gently lifts me into his arms, princess-style, as Azu flicks on her light. She tosses Zack over her shoulder and grunts with effort as she hefts his spear. We take one last look at the dead Fairy, its blood sparkling in the artificial light. I burn that sight into my brain. We got lucky. I can never forget that. I am not strong.