Fenix and Aria were sitting inside a cargo truck containing boxes of goods and supplies that appeared to be canned goods, pickled and preserved vegetables and fruits, and boxes of snacks like potato chips and juice packets. The two were looking at each other from opposite sides, sitting on cardboard boxes of cans.

Aria was giving Fenix an uncomforting smile, her hand on her lap as she remained stagnant in this position throughout the whole trip. So far as reaching the climate border of the Capital’s to the intense heat of Regalia’s desert. The young woman's eyes looked through as though staring out of a window.

“How long has she been smiling?” Fenix thought, more in awe and impressed by Aria’s fortitude and patience than the natural reaction of feeling uncomfortable. He was used to more fidgety traveling companions. “So...Aria. Would you like to tell me about yourself?” Fenix managed to breathe out.

“Hmm?” Aria blinked, lightly tilting her head with her smile faltering a bit and her hand touching her chin. “Me? I assumed you have talked to people about me to prevent such an outcome like this.”

“About that…” He tried to. But all he got were cold shoulders for attempting to do the thing that all of them wanted to do with Aria; pair up with The Black Butterfly. “Nobody really wanted to talk to me after I asked you to team up.”

“Hmm…pay no mind to them.” She waved her hand dismissively. “Jealousy is a normal response when someone is envious of something. Though, I am confused as to why they should be.” Aria readjusted her head, her gaze unmoving. “After all, I am not worth the effort to be envious of.”

Fenix grew somewhat curious at her words. “Not worth it?”

“Indeed. I am not worth the effort to be fawned over. I do not want to be idolized but instead, be treated like everyone else.” Her gaze on him finally broke when her eyes lowered to the side. “...However, I do not want to reject them.”

“Why is that?”

Aria pushed her fingers together, looking rather bashful and timid. “I would feel guilty...and if I reject them, it’s no better than insulting them!”

“You’re more worried about them being rejected than considering your own emotions?”

“I-Indeed.” Aria stuttered. “The worst thing for a person to experience is the feeling of rejection. It gnaws against your skin, making you feel uncomfortable from within while having an itch inside your body that you cannot scratch with your fingers.”

“I see…”

“A-anyway! Enough about me, I would like to know more about you, Fenix.” Aria cleared her throat, putting her hands back on her lap, returning her gaze to him. “I would like to know things about my guildmates.”

“I don’t think I’m all that impressive compared to you....” Fenix responded with a hint of sadness and acceptance in his voice.

“Perish the thought!” She quickly waved him off. “The only thing I know of you is that you are a new member. I insist you tell me more if you and I partner up again in the near future.”

Fenix scratched the back of his head. “Well...alright, sure.” He said awkwardly, clearing his throat. “Ahem...My name is Fenix Lytle. I’m eighteen and since I turned eleven, and some time before, I’ve spent all my time training with my Grandfather in preparation for joining the guild.”

“My, that’s impressive. What was your training like?” Aria asked with curiosity in her voice and genuine interest in Fenix.

“It was.. well, pretty rough.” He looked down, remembering what he had to do to not only improve but survive too. “I was kicked around by my Grandpa everywhere we went, when he was around at least.”

“Sounds cruel...but most training is cruel if you want to improve your strength.” She smiled at him. “Your grandfather must be proud you endured such abuse from him.”

“That’s...one way to look at it. You got uhhh...other questions you want to ask?” He pulled a weak smile at her.

“Hmm...do you have any relatives in the guild?”

“Just a brother—But I don’t want to talk about it.” he looked away.

“How come? Do you have tensions with your brother?”

“It’s not that! I respect my brother—Quite a lot. I just...don’t want to talk about him.”

“Mmm...You made me curious, but I respect your decision to not answer. How about you ask something about me?”

“Okay,” He looked back at Aria. “What’s your training li—” He was cut off suddenly from a sudden crash at the side of the truck. The truck tumbled down as Fenix was jolted from his seat, slipping and nearly tumbling over before being caught by Aria. She jumped out of her seat the moment the truck fell sideways, catching Fenix halfway.

“I got you!” She pulled out her staff, suddenly protruding a blade as it turned into a staff. Aria swung her scythe consecutively, leaving four slashes that connected to make a square. She pushed the metal sheet to make a hole.

“What in...!” Fenix was in a bit of awe, he barely processed what happened in that swift moment. She caught him mid-fall from the truck, pulled out her scythe, and cut a hole for them to get out. He expected a rough fall, yet her descent was gentle, slow...like wings being spread out in descent.

“Are you all right, Fenix?” Aria asked him, she gently let go of him once they touched the cracked ground. He nodded back silently as they both looked at the fallen truck. “Hold on…” Aria leaped and quickly went to the driver’s seat, breaking through the entire door by slicing the bolts to pull it out so she could grab the driver who was unconscious from the impact.

She leaped back to Fenix, gently letting the driver lay down on the ground. “There, there…” She touched the chin of the driver, looking at his head. She had a look of genuine and sincere worry when she inspected the man. “Phew—” She sighed in relief. “...Nothing severe, but he’s out cold from the crash…” She had a momentary smile as she lifted the man with one arm.

“What happened…?” Fenix looked around, looking at the truck, looking bent from something that rammed through the truck. He looked at the other side of the road to see a large, deep hole. “That...couldn’t be—”

“It is.” Aria looked ahead to see the other trucks, already a distance away from them. “We have to catch up to them.”

“But how?” Fenix asked. “We don’t have anything to go faster than a speeding truck.”

“Think again, Fenix.” She gently smiled at him before she held her hand out to him. “Please hold my hand tightly…”

“Alright..” He nodded as he grabbed her hand. “What are you gonna do?” He asked her, prepared now as his training kicked in without a moment to feel flustered at their touch.

“First seal released.” Aria chanted. Behind her back formed ethereal wings on her back, it had crystalline veins, beautifully structured like cracked crystals. They looked similar to—

“Butterfly wings…” Fenix half-smiled. “I see why you’re called the Black Butterfly.”

“I-It’s a name given to me by the guild!” Aria flustered as she grabbed his hand firmly. “Hold on!” Her wings fluttered as she flew off of the ground, carrying an unconscious man on one arm, and holding onto Fenix’s hand.

“Fast!” He almost felt his hand disconnect from his arm from the sudden pull. They were easily caught up to the next truck, Aria flew to the other side of the truck where the passenger seat was, knocking on the door. “Open the door!”

The other driver opened the truck door as Aria gently dropped the unconscious driver into the passenger seat and closed the door. “Thank you!” She flew up to land on top of the truck as she let go of Fenix’s hand. “Are you okay, Fenix?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.” He said as they landed, flicking his wrist and maintaining his balance. “Were on top of the truck, you’re planning on protecting them from the Sand Wyrm?”

Aria nodded. “Mh...however, we must also stop it from pursuing the trucks by agitating it to focus on us…”

“If only the ground was sand rather than cracked soil...I could have glassed the area in that case.” They were in the desert of Regalia, but it wasn’t the sandy dunes of it; instead the more manageable dry road of cracked earth. “We have to predict where it will strike next, I’ll cover your back! I’m not quick enough with my ability to attack it on sight so I’ll point out if it’s attacking at my side.”

“You’re taking the lead despite only being a new member. How bold!” She smiled at him, though that comment made Fenix feel a bit disheartened.

“Sorry...I didn’t mean to take the lead—Ah!” He winced a bit from a sharp yet playful smack on his back.

“Do not apologize, Fenix. I am quite alright with being told what to do. I am better at taking orders than issuing commands.” She assured him. “I’ll follow your orders, dear leader.” She gently smiled at him as she rests her back against his, her scythe at the ready. “Now focus! Look around your surroundings and I’ll strike!” Aria gripped Petalouda as she looked around.

“Focus. Check the area around you, Fenix.” Fenix thought to himself as he looked, then he heard the ground crumble and erupted. He saw it. A large tube-like monstrosity that was dark and violet…a gaping maw that revealed nothing but serrated teeth when he stared right through it.

“This is a Sand Wyrm? I’ve seen what they look—they’re not like this. Is it corrupted?” Before he analyzed further, he gasped. “It’s here!” Fenix cried. “On my front!”

“Understood!” Aria flew up in response to Fenix’s cry as she looked down and performed a nosedive, entering the open maw of the Wyrm. “Petalouda!”

Understood. Protruding second blade, shifting weight for balance. Petalouda grew another blade at the other side of the scythe as Aria entered the mouth of the Wyrm.

“Aria!” Pheonix was shocked. “W-Was that supposed to happen!?” Pheonix was moving away from the fight because of the truck going forward, but he didn’t want to leave Aria behind and left to be eaten. So he jumped off the truck and fell into a roll that kept some of his forward momentum to move into a sprint.

“Aria!” He called out to her. The Wyrm stood still for a second before he could take a good look and see that there was a thin, visible diagonal slit. Then the upper half started sliding down from the slit. “No way—!”

The upper half continued forming slits around itself, eventually exploding into a disturbingly beautiful display of green fluid and purple flesh. There stands the Black Butterfly herself in the center. Flawless, spotless, unharmed as she gracefully spun her scythe around like a baton. It spun around rapidly and viciously like a buzz saw, yet Aria’s hold of it looked controlled, graceful even. Her fingers delicately pushing around the Scythe’s momentum to form a looping circle, resulting in its razor-like spinning.

Fenix could only describe what he was witnessing as Morbidly beautiful. The gore should be unappealing yet it flies around like dewdrop being splashed against stone, specks of the dew reflecting against the light of the sun as he saw her descend.

“Amazing...you killed the Wyrm in an instant.” He approached Aria, her spinning halted immediately as she raised her palm at him.

“Wait—” Aria looked back at the body of the worm, taking a few steps back away from it and gestured Pheonix to step back too. “Keep your distance, Fenix. This is not a Sand Wyrm.”

His suspicions were right that it’s not a Wyrm. It looked like one, yet it wasn’t. “...Then what is it?”

“It is a Demon.” She answered. “A camouflage of a Sand Wyrm. In reality, it is nothing but a limb of a greater beast. I’ve rarely encountered this variation. But I have read of its existence. The Tremoring Terror, the Burrowing Star, these are one of its many monikers; they are commonly known as—” The ground rumbled, cutting Aria off as the lower half of the worm rose up as high as it could.

Nine more holes were formed around into a ring and more worms rose up similar to the first one, both Wyrms sunk down and grabbed on the ground with their maw as the center cracked and burst outwards like a volcano erupting magma. The worms—limbs were all connected into one singular body.

“We have to gain distance—now!” She abruptly grabbed Fenix by the waist and flew up into the sky.

“What in Gria’s name is that thing?” Fenix stared at the full body of this demon. It looked like a starfish from this distance, he looked at the center and saw a yellow-sclera, Slitted eyeball as the central body of this 10-limbed behemoth.

“The Desert Eye.”