Alphonse stared at the gray blanket obscuring the sky. He was able to discern its movement, but the shifting of the clouds appeared awkward. They didn't drift at a consistent, even pace. It was as if they were being pulled in short spurts over a rough surface.

He felt the cold water sloshing around him. It was no longer the congealed fluid mixed with mud. The water had risen enough that his arms drifted out to his side and his head floated amidst the undulating surface. His underclothes clung to his body near his abdomen where an open wound exuded a steady trickle of blood.

Alphonse shifted his eyes and observed the curling crimson on the swelling water. At times, it seemed to grow more distant, like a length of string being pulled from his body.

Not dead, he thought.

He realized that the unnatural movement in the sky was actually because of him. There was a pull under his arms. His head hit solid ground after a while, and he observed the rushing water that obscured the entirety of the road. He saw the body of the ogre with its head half-submerged. Its one remaining, lifeless eye was still visible above the rising flood and seemed to watch his departure.

Alphonse heard a muffled voice say, “We can't do it here.” It seemed distant, yet close at the same time – as if water had been trapped in his ears.

Another voice spoke, this one with a bit more clarity, “This place will be underwater soon too.”

The remaining words were inaudible as a rush of rain collapsed upon them. Alphonse's head lolled to one side as he tried to discern where the voices originated. He guessed wrong. There was nobody to his left, but he didn't have the strength to turn in the other direction.

“I can't carry him like this,” someone said. “Shit, that bone is really sticking out.”

He recognized this one. Kirie. He remembered now that she was alright. She'd joined them in the battle against the ogre.

Everyone had fought. Nobody stood by. Nobody abandoned the party. That was why they were still alive.

Stay conscious, Alphonse thought. Don't you fucking pass out.

He released an extended breath of air and glanced down along his body. His mutilated leg immediately seized his attention. A sharp bone stuck out of his shin a few inches below the knee. The knee itself was swelled and a sizable chunk of flesh had been torn out. He knew that some tendons and ligaments were almost completely severed. The bloated area was a nasty purple where fluid released under the skin around where the patella fractured. The soft flesh had grown to the size of a small plum. On his thigh were holes that had stopped bleeding but were connected by strands of irritated flesh that threatened to separate.

“Oh-oh god...” Alphonse breathed.

He felt a tingling chill along his body. His sense of touch started to fully register again, and he fell into a bout of hysteria as pain slowly intensified from everywhere. He hissed a few breaths through his gritted teeth. His chest rose and fell, which only irritated the jagged cut along his stomach.

Another stream of air escaped from him in a high-pitched whimper. He felt the blood crawling from his mouth as he bit down on his lip.

...Oh god... he repeated it over and over. Alphonse's upper body seized back and forth as his panic escalated to a feverish delirium. He blinked rapidly and tears crawled down his face.

He saw someone kneel down next to him and looked up to observe the individual's face. The panic-stricken eyes of Kirie were the first things he noticed. Her soaked hair fell over her face, and mud caked one side all the way down to her exposed shoulder.

She briefly looked away from him and shouted, “He's awake!”

Alphonse saw Ash appear next to her, followed by Asa and the siblings, Liam and Emily, who stood off to the other side.

Ash scrutinized his battered leg for a moment before crouching down and rummaging through one of her pouches.

“I'm guessing we don't have enough mana to heal everything,” she said.

Emily took up a position next to her. She shrugged off her healers robe that was now far too heavy thanks to being overly-saturated from the rain. Her cotton undershirt and pants were almost instantly soaked thanks to the continuous downpour.

She thrust the robe towards Liam. “Shield us with this,” she said. Her brother fumbled with the outfit, clearly taken aback by his sister's sudden initiative. He lifted it up high and draped it over to shield them from the rain somewhat.

A mana potion appeared in Emily's hand, and she bit off the cork.

Ash grabbed her wrist before she was able to bring the vial to her lips. “You've already used too many. You could permanently damage your body.”

Emily gave the fox woman a look that Alphonse could only interpret as pure vehemence as she jerked her wrist away. “Evan sacrificed his body for us. I can do the same.”

Without hesitation, the young spellcaster downed the vial's contents and began preparations for her healing spell.

The rushing water continued to rise from the road and threatened to invade what slight elevation the party once claimed.

“Healing can only do so much,” Ash said. She procured a roll of bandages from her pack and rested the scabbard of her sword next to Alphonse. He blearily watched as Ash rested a gentle hand on his chest and leaned towards him. “I'm sorry,” she whispered. “I have to stabilize it. This is going to hurt. You might want to bite down on your scarf.”

Alphonse caught on to what she was saying. He tore his gaze away from his leg and took a few deep breaths through his nose. His chest heaved sporadically and he dug his nails into the soft dirt to brace himself. He took her advice and bit down on the soft cloth of his scarf. The motion didn't last long as he watched Ash rest the scabbard against his leg and unwound the bandages. He punched a fist into the ground a few times and nearly arched his back when a twinge of pain threatened something worse, but he felt Kirie's trembling hands firmly press him flat to the ground before he could make too much sudden movement.

Ash started wrapping the bandages around the scabbard that braced his leg. Alphonse braced himself for the inevitable tightening.

Kirie pressed against him and held his head in her arms. He closed his eyes and let the brief comforting sensation take him.

“It's okay,” Kirie whispered. “You got this. You got this.”

It seemed Ash had taken advantage of Kirie's distraction. Flashes of white crossed Alphonse's vision and he heard a sickening crack. He let out a muffled scream through his scarf and went back to rapidly punching the ground. It felt as if he was suffocating, but he continued biting down on the scarf through pure instinct.

Healing magic was supposed to be soothing with a wash of relief, but even a mending spell couldn't mask the pain of a bone shifting back into place. Ash used the bandages around his leg and the scabbard to fashion a makeshift splint that pushed the bone close to its proper position. Some of Emily's healing magic assisted to align the broken ends of the bone.

Alphonse went limp after what seemed like an eternity of pain. He muttered a number of expletives under his breath when he didn't have enough air to scream. He would have lifted his head and slammed it against the ground if Kirie hadn't held him in place.

It was unlike any agony he ever experienced. He'd fractured his wrist before, and his vision had flashed back then too. A dislocated shoulder was pretty awful, but the pain was short-lived when his father aptly relocated the humerus under the shoulder blade. Broken fingers seemed like a mere annoyance in comparison. He remembered tearing his meniscus on a hunting trip out in the woods. Many other injuries rushed back to him. But this...this was something else entirely.

More white flashed across his vision. He clenched his eyelids tight and tinges of foggy blackness encircled his vision when he opened them again. The world around him entered an indistinct, fuzzy quality.

His mind started to drift. He started to randomly think that the torn ligaments and tendons hurt even more than the bone itself. They probably did. Another crack sounded from his leg and he dismissed the random theory.

After a while, the pain finally abated.

Alphonse didn't pass out. Instead, he felt like he was floating as the world tilted, dipped and turned. He eventually realized that he was now looking at the ground instead of the sky. He felt his body bump up a bit and his arms swayed along a hard, cold surface.

It felt like the air was trapped in his lungs as his mid-section pressed into the shoulder of whoever was carrying him. His first guess was Kirie.

“The rendezvous is just ahead,” he heard Ash say.

Alphonse saw Kirie lose her footing as a sudden quake coursed through the ground. His half-healed, splinted leg shifted to the side a bit, and he let out a sharp gasp as a stinging sensation traveled up his shin and around his knee.

The rain had died down a bit, but something else was happening that forced his party to quicken their pace. He lifted his head with what meager will he was able to muster and saw a sharp spear of rock burst from the ground behind them. A cluster of trees rose with a mound of earth forcing the roots free. Another spike exploded in a geyser of dirt only a few yards off to the side.

Alphonse swallowed hard. The scene was too familiar. His thoughts immediately thought back to the active skills used by the ogre. He didn't believe it was possible. The ogre must've been dead, so something else was the source. Another catastrophe had been thrust upon them.

Why? What's happening? he thought.

“We're almost there!” Asa shouted.

Alphonse focused and attempted to ascertain where they resided in the forest. Judging by the dense trees, the interrupted rain from the canopy and what he could only describe as a monumental earthquake, he guessed they were headed to that place for shelter.

He'd established a number of meeting points around the forest if they needed to regroup. It turned out that his precautions were now suitable for another purpose. He hadn't taken the weather into account, but he was glad for his preparations all the same. Things just sometimes worked out that way.

The grass was soon replaced by dirt and smooth rock. Alphonse also realized that the ground held a darker tone. The muted colors were created by shadows, meaning that they had reached their destination. The rain fell against the overhang of rock above them that was held in place by a squat plateau. The area was similar to a small cave, but only the ceiling was comprised of stone with the walls formed by packed earth.

Alphonse saw Asa standing at the entrance to their shelter with her staff pointed forward. A protection spell emerged and sealed the opening. She also extended the spell along the ground underneath them. The shape was imperfect and slightly broken in spots since the ground was not completely flat, but it might provide enough safety from whatever was causing the devastation outside.

Alphonse didn't know how much time passed when they were seeking shelter, but he prayed that the necessary mana for her spell wasn't from a potion. The spellcasters were already risking their bodies enough by pushing their mana regeneration to the limit.

“Set him down here,” Ash said. “That's right, prop him up just like that.”

Alphonse didn't even realize he'd been set down in a seated position until his head rested against the rock wall propping him up. He glanced to the side and saw Kirie kneeling next to him. She raised a hand and caressed his cheek. She gave him a forced smile.

No, don't do that, Kirie, Alphonse thought.

“Fucking hells, the wound reopened,” Ash muttered. He heard her somewhere in front of him, but he didn't take his eyes off Kirie's tear-stained face.

“I can seal it,” Emily assured her.

The warm sensation massaged Alphonse somewhere near his abdomen. He'd nearly forgotten that some of the broken bone from the ogre's jaw had traced a deep laceration. The blood loss must have been significant. He also recalled that his wrist that had dug into the ogre's eye socket was sliced in multiple spots from the shattered bones.

“It's mana!” Asa shouted from the entrance. The struggle in her voice was palpable as she attempted to maintain the protection spell. “S-some sort of surge outside.”

Alphonse glanced away from Kirie and noticed Emily fall to her knees in front of him. Her staff was clenched tight in both hands as it rested on her lap. She hunched forward as if some weight was pressing down on her.

When he ran his gaze over everyone else, he noticed that they all shared the same posture and strained expressions. He couldn't comprehend what was happening. Everyone seemed unable to move against the unseen weight. He wondered if his senses were still muddled enough that he was unable to register it.

“I think I can heal the rest,” Emily eventually said through some fitful gasps. She stood as the force seemed to abate. “Some of this - ambient mana filled my stores a bit.”

“Whatever that was,” Ash said, “It may have been a blessing. Something to think about later. We need all the extra mana we can get. Just don't overdue it.”

Alphonse licked his dry lips as he interpreted their conversation. He was going to feel the pain again. He tried to let his mind wander, but everything around him appeared clearer than it should have. Perhaps it was his enhanced perception. He didn't know. What he did know was that he just wanted to sleep for a long while.

Ash crouched next to Emily and held a bottle holding some clear fluid over the reopened wound in his abdomen. A stinging sensation enveloped Alphonse's stomach, and he realized that the fox woman had poured alcohol to disinfect the wound. He guessed what it was based on the lack of color.

“I'm never – drinking vodka again,” Alphonse gasped. A humorless grin splayed over his face.

Ash returned his look with a bit of mirth as she produced a curved needle and a roll of surgical thread from a small wooden case. She promptly sterilized them and threaded the needle on her first try. She lowered herself and straddled his extended, healthy leg to get in a better position to stitch the gaping laceration.

Alphonse winced as the separated flesh pinched together from Ash's careful fingers when she determined the deepness of the wound. The needle entered his skin and angled out to the other side. She clearly had experience with suturing, since she proceeded with the single continuous thread.

Thankfully, the bone of Alphonse's leg still remained in place, and the lukewarm feeling of the healing spell from Emily wasn't interrupted by any of the catastrophic, mind-numbing pain from earlier. He felt the tissue mend and wrap around his knee as the healing sped up his body's own process. There was no pain from the tendons and ligaments, which meant that Emily had already completed most of the procedure.

Alphonse observed Ash's face as she leaned forward to examine her handiwork. Her lips were clamped tight in a thin line, and there was the almost imperceptible twitch of her eye as she readjusted her position again. Her arm injured by the ogre hung at her side, and she was forced to bend her wrist upwards in order to keep the other side of the incision closed. Each stitch needed to remain straight, and it was clear she was having difficulties with only one arm functioning properly.

“Ash, your arm...” Alphonse trailed off when she gave him a warning glare.

Her expression softened a bit when she saw his genuine concern, and she focused back on his wound.

“It's fine,” she said. “If we didn't heal your leg first, your adventuring days probably would have been over. My arm will heal with time.”

She finished suturing and deftly cut off the remaining thread with the flick of a dagger.

They were also starting to run low on bandages as they tended to everyone else's wounds. Kirie's shoulder managed to seal decently enough with only a few splotches of red breaching the dressings. Her armor had mostly protected her from any major internal damage, but the wound in her shoulder was deep, and she had received a nasty blow to the head when she hit the ground. Liam's surface injuries were mild with a few bruises and cuts. The majority of the damage had been internal and was healed during the fight against the ogre. Emily's injuries consisted of a few shallow cuts along her thigh and a puncture a few inches deep on her opposite hip from a spear. Both were only flesh wounds. Asa miraculously made it through the battle practically unscathed. Her awareness of the battlefield, use of careful protection spells and the swift work the entire party committed during the fight contributed to this result.

Alphonse and Ash received injuries that would leave more lasting detrimental effects. The fox woman had done a solid job of hiding the deep cut trailing from shoulder to hip along her back. A couple centimeters deeper would have damaged her spine. Alphonse also noticed that she had lied about her injured shoulder. The shoulder itself had been pierced straight through and carved upwards, shredding her rotator cuff. They would need to stabilize it and stimulate the blood flow.

Magic could only do so much. If Emily hadn't tended to it as soon as possible, then it would've proven more difficult to heal the wound. Healing magic potency relied on treating injuries before the body underwent the process on its own for too long. Alphonse had suffered a compound fracture, along with tendons and ligaments practically shredding rather than just more common tears. Recovery on Earth would have easily taken eight weeks for the bone, and that was with professional treatment. Without expert aid would take considerably longer. The ligament tears were actually worse. A meniscus tear could take around the same time, but the ogre had made sure that it was beyond just a tear or even shredding. Radial and degenerative tears were fairly common, so Alphonse wouldn't have been surprised if it took half a year or more before he reached even a semblance of full strength. But thanks to the healing, it would be more along the line of a couple weeks.

The body began its own mending process on bones after a few hours following the injury, but Emily had deemed it necessary that they not take any chances since the damage was so severe.

“Thank you, Emily,” Alphonse said. He looked to the young spellcaster. Her eyes were rimmed with a light red color, and her complexion was so white it almost appeared ethereal in the growing dark.

Emily shook her head and clutched her staff to her chest. “No, I should be thanking you, mister McCarthy. What you did...I don't think most people could have. Thank you so much.” She bowed from her seated position and flinched when her brother sat next to her. He embraced her and let her face rest against his chest.

He nodded to Alphonse before averting his eyes. “You saved us. I'm sorry we couldn't do more.”

Ash interrupted Alphonse before he had a chance to respond, “Nonsense.” The single word was firm and held a bit of an edge.

Alphonse looked to her with a bit of perplexity. He realized that her tone was thanks to her shoulder not receiving enough healing in time. It clearly still pained her when left unchecked.

“If even a single one of us left,” Ash said, “I'm certain the rest of the party would have surely perished.”

Alphonse shifted himself into a straighter position against the rock wall that drew everyone's attention to him. He gave each of them a serious look as his position as leader warranted.

“Everyone played a crucial role in this battle. Ash is absolutely right – whether it was against the deirgu, the troll or the ogre, everyone contributed to ensure that the rest of the group could play their part.” He bowed to everyone. All of them now sat down and formed a tight semicircle around him. “From the bottom of my heart,” Alphonse finished, “Thank you all so much for what you've done. Thank you for your courage and sacrifices. We're all alive because of it.”

He looked up and first noticed Asa who sat wearily at the center of their group. A broad smile crossed her features, despite her tired eyes suggesting that she might collapse at any moment.

“Well said, leader.”

Kirie tilted her head a bit and leaned towards him. Her grin was plainly more rueful than her sister's. “Not a bad speech for someone ready to pass out again.”

Alphonse laughed and winced a bit as his abdomen throbbed. “And thank you for not princess carrying me. I would've never lived it down.”

Kirie slapped a hand against her forehead and let out a groan. “Dammit! I totally should've! Then again, that would've been so bad for your leg.”

Alphonse rolled his eyes. “I'll make sure I'm the one carrying you next time.”

Ash stared at the ceiling and seemed to conjure the image in her head. “Yes, that would be rather embarrassing. But perhaps painfully adorable. Evan being carried like a princess...”

“Can we change the topic?” Alphonse said.

Emily rested both her hands over her mouth and giggled. “Oh no, I'm so sorry. That would be so precious.”

“Poor you,” Liam said. “I'd rather die.”

They all laughed as they described each of them being carried like pretty princesses from a fairy tale. Alphonse didn't know how it was possible to have such a warm atmosphere, but he was certain their exhaustion was a contributing factor. They had survived. It should have been impossible against such overwhelming odds, but everyone had made it. There was an absolute need for levity and merrymaking. When they returned to Forgedalk, he swore that he'd buy each of them a drink and throw some sort of party. Maybe Ash would be willing to close her tea shop early for their small gathering.

When the revelry waned and the their fatigue fully settled in, Alphonse let the rest of the party choose who would take the first watch. A full night of rest was necessary for the spellcasters to regenerate their mana as fast as possible, but both were adamant and refused any special treatment just because of their role. By the time they finished a full rest, their healing magic would be of little help for what injuries they didn't manage to mend due to the lack of mana. They also wanted to make sure someone was ready in case of another mysterious mana surge. It was more than just a curiosity, but investigating further was even more foolish until they recovered somewhat.

Asa and Liam took first watch since they received the least amount of damage from the fight.

Alphonse remained awake as the rest of the party settled down and fell into a deep sleep. Everyone save for Ash, who propped herself up next to him. He noticed that she continued to show signs of discomfort. She had fashioned a sling out of her bandanna and some torn bits of cloth, but it was insufficient for a shoulder injury. She chose not to use what little remained of their bandages in case someone else's wound reopened. The arm was stabilized for the most part, but Alphonse knew that something strong and tight needed to be wrapped around her waist as well, or it would only continue to aggravate.

Ash noticed him analyzing her and made a poor show of hiding her displeasure as she failed to find a decent position to sleep.

Alphonse reached for his scarf and hesitated for only a brief second before lowering it from his mouth. He slowly unfurled the layers with one hand until two long lengths hung freely over his chest.

He glanced at Ash when he felt her gaze on him. Her lips were parted slightly in plain surprise as he held the scarf out to her.

“Use this for around your shoulder,” Alphonse said calmly. “The bandanna is better suited for around your waist.”

She stared at the scarf in his hand and made no indication of accepting it.

“Don't worry. I didn't bleed too much on it,” Alphonse joked.

She raised an eyebrow at him and rested her hand tentatively on the scarf. The strong, soft thread was the only thing that separated them.

“This is important to you,” she said simply.

Alphonse gave her the strongest look of conviction he could muster. He understood the multiple meanings behind her statement. “Yeah, it is.”

She continued to stare at him for a short while before finally inclining her head. She let him assist her with tying the bandanna around her waist. One side of the scarf was passed over to him and he secured the knot. There was enough of the scarf to wrap over her shoulder twice so that there was plenty of room for her arm.

Ash stared at the white stitching of the crossed axe and staff symbol that folded along her wrist. Alphonse could tell by her expression that she didn't forget what it referred to.

“Thank you,” she said.

Alphonse leaned back against the rock wall and stared at the entrance where Asa ad Liam stood watch. “Not a problem.”

He found it even more difficult to sleep. Something about her calm presence and the methodical motions gave him pause. Despite being injured, she remained vigilant and concealed herself behind walls of raw emotion.

He finally understood that his perception of her had drastically changed. He admired her more than anything. He wanted to become someone like her – a person who had clearly molded herself through hardship. What experiences, training and other methods she took were still unknown, but if he could get even a little bit closer to her for just an inkling...

Ash interrupted his ruminations as she shifted closer to him until their shoulders touched. He jerked back a bit on instinct before collecting himself to position himself straight again.

He frowned at her as she locked eyes with him. There was an uncomfortable pause as she didn't respond to his questioning look.

“I'm sorry,” she said. “I don't mean to be a burden, but I can't lie down properly.” She shifted awkwardly and motioned to her slung arm. “Hells, I can't even slump forward with this thing. Would you lend me your shoulder?”

Alphonse returned her look and allowed himself a few seconds of silence as well. He barely managed to contain his surprise when her question fully registered. It was hard to believe she would willingly ask for something like this, especially from a human. They'd been through a lot together in a short time, but it was still quite a shock.

“Sure.” It was the only word he managed to get out.

“Thank you.”

Alphonse felt Ash press up against him, and she rested her head on his shoulder. She let out a quiet sigh as she turned towards him slightly. The soft breath tickled Alphonse's ear and made him go rigid. He pressed his arms into his side as he straightened even further.

Shit, what am I thinking? This is nothing, Alphonse thought. He took a deep breath to calm himself and attempted to will himself to sleep.

It was difficult before; but now, it was impossible. He felt the tiredness begin to take over, but the presence of the stern, yet beautiful fox woman had his full attention.

His eyelids fluttered and he tilted his head to the side. He felt Ash's hair and the fur of her fox ears brush against his cheek. He almost pulled away, but it was too much of a comforting sensation that he was unwilling to let go.

He adjusted himself more to make sure Ash didn't roll over in her sleep. It would be an issue if she moved and accidentally positioned her arm awkwardly.

“You need to work on your breathing,” Ash said.

Alphonse swallowed hard when he realized that the fox woman hadn't fallen asleep yet.

“Are you really giving me a lesson right now?” he asked.

“Yes,” she answered in her usual placid tone. Then she added, “And your heartbeat. Work on that too.”

Shit, Alphonse thought.

Ash leaned into him more until Alphonse's arm was pinned tight to his body from their close contact. He found himself forced to lift his arm behind her awkwardly. His mind raced in a blur, and he didn't realize until a few seconds later that his hand was forced to rest on her hip. She'd manipulated him subtly through her own movement so he wasn't sitting uncomfortably. It was definitely more relaxing, and it would keep her in a position that wouldn't allow her to shift her arm too much.

The fox woman nuzzled against him a bit as if it was the most common thing to do in that moment. After all, she was a fox demihuman, Alphonse thought. It was only natural even for someone of her hard temperament.

He glanced at the rest of his party. Kirie and Emily slept next to each other – the former sprawled out and muttering something, while the latter took quiet, even breaths. Asa and Liam were visible at the entrance speaking to each other in hushed voices.

Alphonse fixated on each one in turn and smiled inwardly.

This is...kind of nice...huh...

With that last thought, sleep finally took him.