"Hahaha!"
"Look at this scar! It looks amazing!"
Ravion flexed his muscles proudly, showing off the marks he'd earned from the fight with the Death-bringer.
"Never thought I'd end up with a scar like this. At least my eye's still intact."
"That actually makes you look more charismatic,"
he said with a grin.
Both of them were standing in front of the mirror, admiring themselves. Ravion chuckled, flashing a smug grin.
"If I hadn't faked my death, you'd never look this cool!"
She smacked his shoulder, but her laughter broke free anyway.
"Ah!"
It had been so long,she'd lost track of time. After days confined to bed, standing again felt like a small battle.
"Are you gonna cut your hair?"
Ravion asked suddenly.
I paused. Right… men usually cut their hair short, didn't they?
"Man, you've been in bed so long you lost all that muscle! Look at you, even you looks shorter! You've shrunk, seriously!"
She didn't know why, but lately it felt like she woke up in a different body every morning ,smaller, weaker.
So it wasn't just her imagination after all.
"Wow, thanks for the encouragement,"
she said with a sarcastic grin, though laughter still escaped her.
"I'll grow my hair out."
"Like the Nyxarises?"
"Nyxarises?"
"The Death-bringers."
"No, not like that, I mean do they even grow theirs out? I thought.. I dont know that Nyxaris guy had short hair."
"Eh,don't worry about that...Darkov's waiting downstairs."
She followed him to the bar.
They'd taken good care of her while she recovered,Ravion had practically saved her life.
If not for him, I might've died just staring at that boring ceiling. Somehow, we had grown close.
"Cassira, let's hope we don't puke,"
Ravion joked, gesturing at the plates. Looking at her grinning.
Cassira glared, ready to snap.
"I think it looks nice,"
Shesaid softly,
She might be really upset , no matter it's funny or something, trying to offer comfort with a warm smile.
"Hey! You were supposed to back me up, not flirt with her!"
"I-I'm not!"
The warmth on her cheek made her freeze; she realized too late that Cassira had just kissed her.
"Haha! You're blushing!"
She didn't even know how to react.
How was a man supposed to react to that? My brain giving error.
She forced a smile.
"If Cassira kissed me, I would rip apart my cheek!"
Ravion barked out laughing.
Cassira hurled a plate straight at his head.
"Agh!"
"Stop the morning circus already, you've got work to do!"
Darkov's cold voice silenced them all.
For a brief second, his eyes met hers. He didn't flinch, didn't even blink, and sat down calmly at the table.
"Not you,"
he said flatly.
Was he… talking to me? He was looking right at me.
"Me?"
"Let's just eat,"
he said, ending it there.
This man could kill my appetite in any situation. It was the first time I'd eaten with all of them together . Until yesterday, they'd brought meals up to my room.
For once, she wanted to eat in peace.
The table was full of Olgardian specialties, rich with meats from creatures of this world.
Echo-benders needed strong bodies and high energy, after all. Cassira, though, ate less to maintain the flexible figure that made her dancing so graceful.
What meat was this, anyway?
It tasted like a strange mix between turkey and lamb.
"Come with me,"
Darkov said abruptly.
She nearly choked on her food at his sudden tone.
When did he even finish eating!?
"Dude, breathe!"
Ravion said, slapping her back hard enough to bruise.
Finally, the bite went down,but straight onto Ravion's plate. Could I be any more embarrassed?
Ravion nonchalantly picked it up and popped it into his mouth. He pointed at her plate.
"You gonna finish that?"
"Eww, you're grows"
Cassira groaned, her face twisting in disgust.
Yeah it was definitely gross, still I couldn't help but laugh, he was such a weirdo, but somehow he made me feel more at ease.
Darkov said nothing, simply walked toward the other room, his steps silent but commanding.
She hurried after him, nearly tripping.
He stopped suddenly in front of a wooden plank on the floor, one she'd cleaned before but never noticed.
Was he looking for something? Wait-was that… a door? I wish.
He tapped on the plank twice. Pat, pat.
She crouched beside him out of curiosity.
Then, without warning, Darkov gently took her wrist and placed her hand flat on the center of the plank.
His eyes closed, and he began to project a Luceris Echo.
A glow spread beneath her palm, a light so pure, so white, that it was unlike anything she'd ever seen.
Not harsh. Not blinding.
It was divine.
A warmth pulsed beneath her hand like a heartbeat, syncing with her own.
It wasn't pain, it was serenity, something so close to peace that it made me want to weep.
When she looked up, Darkov opened his eyes. His irises had cracked, light spilling from within. It didn't look terrifying,it was mesmerizing. Her skin prickled with goosebumps.
As the light faded, everything returned to normal within seconds. But she felt hollow, as though the light had taken a piece of her with it. That void in her chest,it was the same feeling as when she faced her own existential pain in her world.
Darkov pressed his palm against the plank again, and the wood began to change shape, like it had softened under his touch. He tore it apart with his bare hands.
She couldn't believe what she was seeing. The light had altered matter itself.
"Holy-"
she whispered.
As the wood split, she saw bright, glowing green vines below, shimmering like veins of another world.
Was it a hidden dimension? Another realm?
Darkov glanced at her, his voice calm and absolute.
"Jump."