The wind was noticeably fine outside, almost undetectable to the students as they braced against it gently, watching their classmates work.

“Now focus.”

“…”

“Are you focusing?”

“…”

“Sola?”

“Huh?”

“I asked if you were focusing.”

“I was, but then you started talking.”

Ferris pinched the brim of her nose. “Alright, let's do it again.”

Julia and Essex stood behind Sola with the rest of the class, outside on one of the training grounds, watching as Ferris guided Sola through the use of her Whil to very fluctuating results.

“Now focus on where you want to fire.” Ferris said, pointing to the target on display. “That’s your focus.”

“Won’t my lightning just fly everywhere?” Sola asked.

“Only cause you’re letting it.” Ferris clarified, checking if her pocket flask had anything left in it. “Your Whil generates electricity, but electricity isn’t random. It’s electrons travelling through the air, usually through the path of least resistance.”

“Path…?” Sola asked, Ferris dragging her hands against her face.

“She’s trying really hard.” Julia commented to Essex.

“Who?”

“Both of them.”

“It’s in the name!” Ferris shouted, before pacing around the calm herself. “Team Valiant, can you explain it to her in her own words?”

“Sola! Mugs! Mugs mugs mu-“ Essex yelled, as Julia rested a hand on her.

“She means make it simpler, Essex.” Julia said, stepping forward to address Sola. “It’s kinda like…you know that circle bit in a juice box that lets you poke the straw through it?”

“Oh!” Sola said, as it visibly connected for her. “Okay! So the electrons travel like that to get to the juice…right…”

“Good enough.” Julia chuckled, stepping back into the crowd.

“Alright, now aim at the target.” Ferris advised, pocketing her flask. “You can control the electrons, so find out where they want to go, and where they can go. Feel around for where they give the least resistance. That’s the lightning path.”

Sola closed her eyes and took a deep breath, as her fingers started crackling with sparks. Ferris stepped back with the rest of the class, as small rocks from the ground started to lift up, along with Sola’s hair and jacket.

“Now feel around for the weakest path!” Ferris yelled. “Don’t lose it!”

Sola moved her hand through the air, letting it glide around in front of her, as she started to feel something coming.

“Come on…” Julia hoped, nervously holding her hands together.

“Peno decu.” Essex muttered under her breath, watching intently as Sola pointed her fingers.

And with one clean shot, Sola aimed her hand, as lightning flew directing into a nearby tree, then miles off to the side, before becoming the large chaotic mess it normally formed.

“Shit...” Ferris mumbled, Sola's eyes opening to the burning tree and scorched ground.

“Aggghhhh!” She yelled, frazzling her hair. “Why can’t I do it?!”

“…well, I’m calling it. You can all go if you want.” Ferris stated to the class, who promptly took the chance. Ferris went over to Sola, still kicking herself from her lack of progress.

“Why do you think it didn’t work?”

“…because I’m a doofus.” Sola reflected, her fist clenched.

“There’s no point beating yourself up. Wailing will do that plenty.” Ferris advised. “This is a learning curve. These things aren’t found immediately, they’re earned through your dedication.”

“I thought I did enough of that already...” Sola complained, kicking the ground.

“You’re here to be a Venator, not learn some cool new lightning power. Reassess your priorities.”

Ferris headed off with rest of the class, as Julia and Essex ran up to Sola.

“It’s okay. You’ll get it, I’m sure.” Julia assured her. “I’m still pretty inexperienced with my Whil too.”

“But you can use yours.” Sola moped. “I’m a walking timebomb…”

“We will resume this later, when you are more prepared.” Essex advised.

Sola nodded in acceptance, as the other two walked her back to their room, buying her a drink on the way.

“It’s not the end of the world.” Julia said. “There’s a reason Venator training lasts three years. If you were perfect off the bat, you’d have nothing to learn from.”

“But why can’t I just be good at this? That’s all!” Sola yelled, storming back into their room and landing on her bed face first, Julia heading to the kitchen to get her some food.

“Why do you wish to be skilled now?” Essex asked, sitting across from her on Julia’s bed. “As Julia has stated, we are still in training.”

“…because I don’t want to hurt you again…” Sola murmured to Essex. “And me being inexperienced puts the team in danger…” She sunk her head into her pillow, before shrinking back into herself.

Essex sighed. “Pain is temporary. We have discussed this before. I will understand if you accidentally injure me again.” Essex said, before noticing Sola only turn away from her more.

Essex readjusted her seating to better address Sola.

“…I have been inexperienced too. I...almost lost my hand while training my Whil.”

“…really?” Sola asked, now sitting up and thoroughly intrigued.

Essex nodded. “I had learned to turn my hand to basic iron, and I wished to find a Wailing I could encounter to test this ability. Halfway through our fight, it bit into my hand and attempted to tear it off.”

Essex raised up her left hand and showed a few rough bite marks against it, running in a row against the palm and back.

“Wow…” Sola remarked, staring at the wounds.

“The Segaru Clan found me after it had abandoned me, and I acknowledged how thoughtless I was being. I trained to utilise it better and to not make the same mistake again.”

Sola was in awe, fascinated by Essex’s almost fable-like story, before bowing her head in sorrow again. “And you got a head start…”

“Oh, come on, Sola. Everyone gets there at some point, it just takes a little longer for others.” Julia assured her, coming back in and resting a hand on her shoulder, before handing her some leftover cake.

Sola twiddled her thumbs idly. “Are you bribing me with food?”

“Will it work?”

“…yes.” Sola admitted, grabbing the plate and eating the cake, almost forgetting her worries entirely.

Just as Sola went to take another bite, an idea struck Julia in the moment. “Hold on! I just had a great idea!”

“Cool.” Sola replied, still enjoying the cake.

“How about you join me for the Tracking and Hunting survival exercise? Essex, would you mind if Sola took your place?”

“I do not require it, so that is fine.” Essex nodded.

“What’s the survival thing?” Sola asked, distracted with the piece of cake.

“It’ll just be us two spending the night in the woods, making shelter and foraging things, and the team watches back here. We’ll be out of the way of people, so you can practice your Whil all you want without worry of hurting anyone.” Julia explained.

Sola blinked surprisedly. “But I don’t do the class.”

“Well, admittedly, this is just for me. Essex was only coming along as a spot filler.” Julia clarified. “So? Wanna come along? I can pack makings for s’mores.” Julia bargained.

“Let’s do it!” Sola exclaimed, now done with the cake and fist pumping the air. “I’m gonna kick electricity’s ass!”

“Okay!” Julia cheered, joining her, as Essex waited for a second, before joining in too.

———

Ferris looked Julia and Sola over, dressed in their wilderness gear with their backpacks full of provisions, standing out with her by the academy helicopter pad.

“I guess I should be surprised.” She remarked, pulling out a clipboard. “So, Essex is hanging back?”

“Yep, just me and Sola.” Julia said, wrapping an arm around Sola’s neck.

“Fine.” Ferris said, pointing to the cargo helicopter beside them. “The trip to your location should last about ten minutes. Keep in mind, that’s how long it’ll take for us to get to you if you’re in danger, so no breaking things falling off of other things. Also, you’ll have body cameras strapped to you so the rest of your team and I can watch your progress, so no getting frisky while you’re out there.”

Julia and Sola both blushed, avoiding eye contact from the awkwardness, as Ferris cleared her throat.

“You’re treating this as a real situation. You won’t always be surrounded by suburbia when hunting Wailing, so we won’t come and get you unless your lives are literally in danger.”

Sola started shaking at the prospect, as Julia gave her a thumbs up and nodded to her confidently.

Ferris gagged at their display. “You’ve got your reserve weapons?”

Julia presented her assault rifle strapped to her back, as Sola held up a machete, clearly too oversized for her to use.

“You won’t need that.” Ferris interjected, taking the machete from her. “Worst case scenario, you might electrocute something with it.”

Sola pouted at Ferris’ assumption, as she signalled for the helicopter to start taking off. Julia and Sola jumped on with their equipment, leaving Ferris on the ground, watching their ascent.

“You feeling okay?” Julia asked, checking in on Sola, both sitting in the passenger bay together.

“I wish Ferris would stop babying me.” She vented. “I don’t like feeling useless…”

Julia grabbed her hand. “Then let’s show her something worth praising.”

Sola felt a rush of warmth and energy coming from Julia, slowly nodding back to her and squeezing her hand to prove her newfound confidence.

“Alright, girls, just ten minutes till we land!” The pilot yelled back to them. “Best get yourselves ready!”

———

Ferris opened up the monitor room door, being greeted by the faces of the rest of Team Valiant, all calm and collected, with the exception of Harley.

“Are they on? Did they get there yet?” She worriedly asked.

“Ten minutes, and yes, they’re on the helicopter.” Ferris replied, taking off her jacket and slumping into the office chair. She pulled up Julia and Sola’s feed onto the large monitor adorning the wall.

“Did Sola pack her butterscotch? Her bloodsugar gets low later in the day.” Harley asked, frantically pacing.

“Funnily enough, I didn’t ask about that.” Ferris responded, rolling her chair back to watch the screen.

“You know they’ll be fine, Harley.” Wess assured her. “Julia’s the most capable out of us, anyway.”

“Not in a forest. That’s definitely Essex.” Harley said, as Essex raised her head from hearing her name.

“If you’re so worried about them, just watch the screen.” Ferris interrupted, waving at the giant monitor showing their camera feeds. “If you stop talking, you’ll actually hear them.”

Harley dashed up to the monitor, quickly checking to see that they were both okay, shortly followed by Wess and Essex. The display showed the interior of the helicopter from the view of Julia and Sola’s torsos, sitting side by side.

“…t’s a lack of respect. She’s just there to point out that I’m wrong.” Sola said, Ferris turning up their mics a little more.

“She is pretty harsh with her critiques. Like an overly aggressive librarian, or a cranky witch trying to teach you a moral.” Julia replied.

Harley started snickering to herself, with Wess trying not to laugh as well, all beside an unamused Ferris.

“I think you mean bitch.” Sola joked, giving an embarrassed giggle.

Ferris’ eye twitched.

“Sola! Don’t say that!” Julia complained, smiling despite herself. “I mean, you’re right, but don’t say it out loud.”

Harley was in a fit, banging her hand against the table, as Wess was having trouble breathing. Even Essex had to cover her mouth to stop from laughing, as Ferris leaned over and turned the mics off. “They come back on when they get there.” Ferris grumbled. “You happy now, Harley?”

“Absolutely.” She breathed, wiping a tear from her eye.

Ferris sat back and folded her arms, before her pocket buzzed and she pulled out her tablet, groaning to herself.

“Shit.” She said, messaging the pilot.

“What is it?” Harley asked.

Ferris bit her pen. “Apparently, a storm might hit their camping spot later in the day. Great timing…”

“Will they be coming back?” Wess asked.

“It’s up to Julia if she wants to attempt it.” Ferris explained. “If not, we’ll put it off to a later date.”

“Julia’s gonna do it.” Harley said. “She’s cool like that.”

———

“Just got a message from Ferris!” The pilot yelled back to Julia. “A storm’s gonna roll in while you’re camping out! We can head back and do this later if you want!”

“No way! Bring it on, storm!” Julia exclaimed, standing up dynamically, before remembering Sola was still with her. “Sorry. I should ask your opinion too.”

Sola looked out the window, seeing a slowly darkening sky rolling in from just behind the Eldos Mountains, before looking to confident, proud Julia and her open smile, ready for anything.

“I’m okay! Let’s do this!” Sola yelled, a little too loudly.

“Yeah!” Julia added, high fiving her.

“Droppin’ down now!” The pilot said, the helicopter landing with a practiced ease, as Julia and Sola jumped out with their gear. “I’ll be here tomorrow morning, or if you need an early pick up! Best of luck to you!”

“Thank you!” Julia yelled back, the helicopter rising off the ground and out of site, leaving Julia and Sola in the middle of a small clearing in the woods.

“Ferris here. Just getting confirmation of your arrival.” Came Ferris’ voice over their mics.

“This is Julia. We’ve just landed and are ready to set up.” Julia replied, observing her surroundings.

“Julia! This is Harley! Did Sola brin-“

“I’ve got them!” Sola answered, grabbing her butterscotch from her bag.

“Do not forget the temperature. The forest will be deceptively col-“ Came Essex over the mic, as Julia and Sola heard shuffling coming from the other end.

“Get off! This is supposed to be an assignment!” Ferris yelled. “You’re clear to continue. Going into radio silence now.” Ferris said, before cutting off.

“Alright, first things first, tents and tarps.” Julia said, immediately getting to work, throwing Sola off with her efficiency.

“Right now?” Sola asked, going for a butterscotch.

“This is required learning, Sola. No slacking off.” Julia said, unpacking her bags full of provisions. “We’ll work on your Whil once everything’s set up. Could you grab that branch for me, please?”

“Okay.” Sola replied, hopping over to the large oak adorning the side of the clearing, and struggling to pull the branch off. As she grabbed it again, it swung back and thwacked her in the face, sending her to the ground.

Julia climbed over her and broke it off, before pulling up an embarrassed Sola.

“Maybe just start the fire.” Julia suggested, giggling a little and handing her the branch. “You can try sparking it with your Whil if you want.”

Sola nodded, her pride a bit damaged, and started working on kindling for the fire.

———

“Are we staying here for the whole night?” Wess asked, a little antsy from having sat for so long.

“If Julia knows she’s being watched by her team, she’ll work even harder to survive.” Ferris explained. “But legally, you can leave once they’re asleep.”

Wess double took. “Legally?”

“Hey! She’s already done!” Harley cheered, pointing at Julia’s finished tent and tarp covering. “Woo!!! Julia, you’re amazing!”

“The mics are off, so shut up!” Ferris yelled, slamming onto the table. “By the gods…”

Having set everything up, Julia took Sola to the side of the clearing and started setting up a few objects from Julia’s backpack. The team took notice of the feed and quickly realised what they were doing.

“Are they…?” Ferris asked, as Sola’s hands started sparking in her feed. “…huh. Won’t she just burn more trees out there?”

As expected, the lightning flew off into the sky, nowhere near her targets, Sola shooting it again and again, missing and missing, before stopping all together and kicking the ground. Ferris leaned over and turned their mics up out of curiosity.

“…kay. This is still gonna be hard for you. Of course you didn’t get it right in the first go.” Julia consoled.

“Of course?” Sola argued. “Why of course?”

“Oh, bad wording, Julia.” Harley noticed.

“Were you expecting me to be bad?”

“That’s not w-“

“I haven’t done it well before, why would I now?”

“Sol-“

“I don’t wanna hear it!” She yelled, storming into the tent, as Julia quickly followed her inside.

“Sola…” Julia said. “You know I didn’t mean that. I’m really sorry it came out that way.”

“But you thought it…” Sola mumbled, crouching into a ball on the ground, turning her back to Julia. “…I was thinking it too.”

Julia leaned down to hug her caringly, as Harley turned away from the screen, sniffling a little.

“Sola…” Wess bemoaned, her hand to her chest, as Essex went to comfort Harley.

“She’s blocking.” Ferris interjected. “Her brain thinks she isn’t capable, so she won’t let herself do it. I knew she’d hit this wall again, but did she listen?”

“Oh, shut up!” Harley yelled. “It’s hard enough without you breathing down her neck!”

Wess and Essex froze in place, unsure how Ferris was going to respond to being yelled at by a student, as Ferris breathed out slowly.

“…well, I’m her teacher. It’s my job to show her how to improve. This is just my humble assessment of the situation.” Ferris explained. “Please refrain from backchatting me again, Miss Baroke.”

Ferris took her seat, as Harley wiped her nose and returned her attention back to the monitor.

———

A few hours had passed, as Sola tried focusing her Whil a few more times, to expectedly minimal results. She did manage to get the fire started, enough to cheer herself up a little, as Julia did her best to keep Sola’s spirits high.

“You feeling better?” Julia asked, taking a seat next to Sola.

“…a bit.” Sola said.

“You want a little distraction?”

Sola nodded a little too quickly, as Julia giggled to herself and pulled out some cards she’d packed in her bag.

“You mentioned you were a fan of Team Harmony, so I looked up some trivia just in case we needed to pass the time.” Julia said, shuffling the cards together. “Wanna go for a speed round?”

“Yes, yes, yes yes yes!” Sola cheered, nodding happily.

“What was the teams original na-“

“Team Rhythm, but they kept misspelling it.”

“What genre do they pla-“

“Light pop, but they insist they’re rock and alternative.”

“How many mem-“

“Five initially, six after their third album, then they mixed things up with a bunch of albums together and solo records.”

“What was the cut line from their hit song “Love i-“

“‘Your heart leaves me wailing,’ cause their producer thought Wailing was too problematic, so they changed it to ‘ailing.’” Sola finished, even impressing herself.

Julia needed a second before she could respond. “That was incredible!”

“I’m a super fan! Don’t expect any less!” Sola exclaimed, before sitting back down giddily. “Do you have any questions about Quaver?”

Julia reached into her bag and pulled out a whole new stack, as Sola got excited all over again.

———

“I’m back.” Wess said, re-entering the room with a large stack of pizzas. “Are they still doing the trivia game?”

“Question 38.” Harley answered, grabbing a box and sharing it with Essex. “Ferris keeps threatening to turn the mics off.”

“Why won’t they just sleep already…” Ferris complained, lying her head against her desk, as Wess lay a box next to her.

“Are you sure there was supposed to be a storm?” Wess asked, sitting with Harley and Essex and digging into another box.

“That what the NDWN says...” Ferris mumbled. “Stupid weather…”

“I have checked the humidity. The storm will begin soon enough.” Essex explained, surprising Wess with her efficiency. The room stayed silent as they ate, watching Julia and Sola enjoy their dinner as well, as the promised storm clouds rolled in across the sky.

“I’m impressed they can stand this boredom.” Ferris remarked. “I’m only watching them and I’m about ready to die…”

“If only.” Harley muttered, getting a guilty chuckle from Wess.

“…I am concerned if Sola is still in doubts.” Essex said.

Harley rested a hand on her shoulder. “If you want, we can do something for her when she gets back. Like a little party to remind her we’ve got her back.”

“I think she would appreciate that.” Essex said.

Harley turned to Wess. “You wanna start work on a guest list?”

“Fine, but only because Sola deserves it.” Wess replied, scrolling through her Activ contacts.

Ferris looked over at them, going out of their way to help each other, before frustratedly turning back to the monitor, as the storm was starting to make itself known.

———

The wind came in on all directions, rushing against the sides of the tent, as they began to flap back and forth with visible force.

“Aah!” Sola yelped, the first crash of thunder coming in from the horizon, rattling through the tent.

“Looks like the storm’s here.” Julia remarked. “I’ll get our bedding ready. Can you get my bags before it starts pouring?”

“Okay!” Sola said, rushing out the tent and into the clearing, before spotting Julia’s bags leaning against a couple trees.

She headed over to grab them, a few drops hitting her as she ran, as she arri-

“REEELLLLLLLLLLLLMMMMMM…”

Sola jumped back, the bizarre sound lingering out from behind the tree, almost metallic in its reverberation. Sola very quickly grabbed the bags and started backing up, as a small figure she couldn’t make out strode by in silhouette, just out of view, before the rain really started to pour down.

“Julia!” She yelled, jumping back into the tent. “Julia, there’s something out there, and I don’t know what, an-“

Julia grabbed her shoulders and sat her still. “Do you know what it might be?”

“A-animals? But it sounded weirder than that.” Sola explained. “What should we do?”

“…we’re treating this like a real situation.” She said, grabbing her rifle off of her back. “Sola, I need you to back me up.”

“Bu-“ Sola argued, as Julia stared her down.

“This isn’t a time to debate. Our lives may be in danger.” Julia demanded, exiting the tent with a trembling Sola.

All seemed quiet for a second, almost deliberately so, as another figure dashed by in the foliage, unrecognisable in its form.

“That was definitely something. Sola, stick to me.” Julia said, pointing to her back. “You’re the last line of defence. Use your Whil if we have nothing left.”

Sola nodded, as they started circling, back-to-back, the figures slowly making themselves known in the open space. Surrounding the clearing were strange grey and red blobs, almost animalistic in their base form, but clearly gelatinous, as some tried and failed to create limbs to walk on. Small currents of electricity ran through them, occasionally sparking here and there, as Julia readied her rifle in case of a threat.

“Th-they look like Wailing.” Sola quivered. “Are they Wailing kids or something?”

“Yeah...” Julia said. “But there weren’t any reports of Wailing anywhere near the area. Security made sure of that.”

“Could the storm ha-“ Sola asked, as another flash of lightning struck the sky, sending her crouching down again. In the heat of the moment, a Wailing offspring took its opportunity and jumped at Sola, before Julia aimed at it and quickly fired.

The bullets passed through, before the blob dissipated onto the ground, the small bit of current running through it sparking out, as the others started leaping as well. Julia did her best to hit them, having to slow a couple down with her Whil to hold them off, as Sola watched Julia struggling to keep up, and realising what she needed to do.

She stood back up, still awestruck with fear, as her hands started crackling with electricity.

Julia was still busy shooting, as Sola started pointing to a few that had gathered close together, ready to electrocute them, before Julia took notice.

“Sola! Not yet! The rain’s gonna throw you off!” Julia yelled.

Sola was still concentrating, trying her hardest to focus over the thunder, rain and gunshots, as her Whil started fizzling out in her hands, her frustration already getting the better of her.

“Just wait! I’ve got this!” Julia cried, still doing her best to shoot the offspring launching themselves at them.

Sola kept trying, even breathing out loud to help, as Julia grabbed her arm to try and stop her.

“Sola! You’ll get us bot-“

With a final thrust, Sola let out her electricity as best she could, firing a concentrated burst at a few of the Wailing approaching with a degree of success. They melted into the piles the others had, blending in with the scorched ground that now surrounded them, as Sola turned around to see if Julia needed any help.

“J-Julia?”

Julia was on the ground, limp and unmoving, as Sola realised where most of her lightning had gone.

———

“Julia!” Harley shouted, watching Julia’s body collapse to the ground over the feed, with Wess and Essex just as glued to the screen.

Harley frantically turned to Ferris. “Is she okay?!”

“She’s breathing…” Ferris assured her, chewing on her pen. “What an interesting development...”

“We’re pulling them out, right now!” Harley said, moving her hand to Ferris’ communicator, before being stopped by Ferris.

“Hold on.” She said, grabbing Harley’s arm. “Let’s see where this goes…”

Harley felt her hand shake. “Are you serious?!” Harley yelled. “Their lives are in danger and you want to wait this out?!”

“Be reasonable, Ferris.” Wess asked, her attention fully on the screen. “This is too much for any of us right now. At least let us talk to Sola.”

“…no.” Ferris replied, still monitoring the screen. “This is exactly the incentive Sola needs. A true feeling of danger and isolation to give her that push. She can finally learn to use her Whil.”

Harley and Wess stared at her aghast, unsure how to act, as Essex grabbed Ferris’ shoulder, staring Ferris down with her other hand on her scythe, visibly threatening her.

“…I’ll pull them out if they truly get into danger. Right now, I’m sure they can weather this storm and get out alive.” Ferris reasoned. “There’s no point stunting their growth as Venators just because one member is incapacitated. If you ever want to make it in the industry, then Sola should know how to handle this alone.” She leaned into the console. “She’ll have to.”

———

“No…” Sola let out, grabbing Julia’s shoulders in the panic, before noticing she was breathing, letting go and slowing herself down. “She’s just in shock…she’s in shock…I shouldn’t mo-aahh!”

Another offspring clung onto her, Sola trying to bat it away with her arm. It melded to her side, as Sola picked up Julia’s rifle and violently thrashed it off. More of them approached, only increasing the numbers, as the violent rain enveloped the scene, and the horrid sound reverberated throughout the clearing.

“REEELLLLLLLLLLLLMMMMMM…”

Sola assessed the situation, desperately trying not to freak out, despite everything that was around her, and made a snap judgment.

“Sorry Julia…” Sola said, before dropping the gun and putting all her energy into picking Julia up, nearly giving out just from that, and finding a path through the offspring. Noticing the smallest concentration of offspring east, she sprinted past them, doing her best to swerve around each one as they leaped, and holding Julia up throughout. Her breathing became laboured and ragged, as she kept running from the clearing, now thoroughly in the thick of the forest.

Before her legs eventually gave out, she found a spot to lay Julia down in; a small shelter under a fallen trunk pitched over the ground, covered from the rain and fairly secluded.

Sola tried her best to lay Julia against the ground without moving her neck anymore than she had, as well as raising her feet up, checking her breathing and marking her pulse.

“Thanks, mum…” Sola muttered, calling back to the shock treatment classes her mother insisted she attend. She listened to Julia’s chest and counted how long each breath took.“…she’s breathing normally.”

Sola finally let herself hit the ground, a shooting pain ripping through her legs, as she lay against the ground in a moment of earned weakness.

“Please be okay, Julia…” She wished. “I’m gonna get you to help. I’m sure the helicopter’s…”

Mid-sentence, she shot up with a realisation.

“But if they’re watching us…wouldn’t they get us the moment Julia…”

Sola really started panicking.

“What if they can’t see us? What if they can’t find us?! Ferris said radio silence, can’t they help us?! No no no no…”

Sola started pacing around, frantically muttering to herself and popping a butterscotch in her mouth, before remembering Julia lying beside her, motionless, her chest rising and falling with each breath.

She forced herself to calm down, walking over and sit next to Julia, watching the rain fall from past the covering.

“We’re getting out of this. I’m gonna make it up to you for being a total dunce.”

“…”

“I’m super sorry…this must suck for you. I’ve never actually fought a Wailing before, so I’m really lost right now.”

“…”

“But if it helps, I was in a pretty similar spot back as a kid, so…”

“…”

“Back at the orphanage, I had a friend called Taylor, who was, like, super cool, and had this awesome blonde hair, and they kept asking me to come outside in the woods to throw things.”

“…”

“Anyway, I did, and while we were out walking, we fell into a pit in the ground. It was way too high to climb, and they didn’t have a Whil, so we were totally trapped there.”

“…”

“Eventually, they took our food, threw it to a branch, and a bird totally saw it and landed on it, snapping the branch so it fell in the hole. I got on their shoulders and waved the branch around, nearly knocking us both over, and someone from the orphanage saw the branch shaking and rescued us.”

“…”

“After a few years, they got adopted, and we didn’t really talk anymore. But we still got to throw more things before they left…”

“…”

“I’m sorry, I’m all rambly, and you’re still…still. This is…so scary, and I’m actually…terrified. Geez, now I’ve got the breathing problems.”

“…”

“But we’re getting out of this, and I’ll keep saying it until I don’t have to anymore. You’re my responsibility for now, so j-“

“REEELLLLLLLLLLLLMMMMMM…”

Sola instinctively crouched down, dropping her bag of butterscotch, as the unknown sound started ringing through her ears, way closer then it was before. She was silent, huddled into a ball with her hands on her head, desperately wishing the noise would stop and her and Julia could just go home.

———

“I can’t…” Harley worried, burying her head into Essex’s shoulder to avoid watching Sola and Julia get hurt anymore.

“Ferris, pull them out already!” Wess argued. “You’ve made your needless point, so stop torturing them!”

Ferris looked to Team Valiant, all giving her looks of severe judgment, before sighing to herself, grabbing the brim of her nose and picking up her tablet.

“We need an evac on Julia and Sola, ASAP…no, they left the…yes, I can see the storm…well you’re the professional!...I don’t care, just…hurry up.”

Ferris put the tablet down with a careful breath. “The pilot’s gonna take longer to find them. Not just cause of the storm, but since they aren’t in the clearing anymore, they’ll be harder to track down.”

“You should have gotten them sooner…” Harley argued, her head still on Essex’s shoulder.

“I want to speak to Sola. She should know about our rescue plan.” Wess stated.

“I had a feeling…” Ferris remarked, as she sat back down to turn the mics on.

“SSSSSKSKKKKKRKRKRRKRRKRKR-“

Everyone blocked their ears as a piercing sound rang out from the mics.

“Aahgahh!” Ferris cried, turning the mics back off, to everyone’s betterment. “What the hell was that?!”

“Radio…static.” Essex replied, still reeling. “Something is interfering with Sola’s microphone. But nothing would appear to be on the monitor…”

“Maybe the storm is preventing it?” Wess reasoned.

“That is unlikely. She possibly shorted it out when using her Whil against the Wailing.” Essex explained. “But it is still working from her end…”

“This is getting out of hand.” Ferris said, getting up and grabbing her jacket.

“Oh, now it’s out of hand?” Harley complained. “Julia fainting wasn’t the red flag?!”

“Come on.” Ferris advised, getting the door. “We’ll get your weapons and meet up with the pilot. We’ll find them easier if it’s all five of us.”

The team ran out the door, charging to their room, as Ferris started to realise what she’d let happen.

———

“REEELLLLLLLLLLLLMMMMMM…”

Sola stayed huddled, trying to drown out everything, before hearing the slight pattered footsteps of the Wailing offspring behind the tree trunk, though much wetter and heavier.

“You can take them…you can take them…Julia needs you to take them…” Sola reassured herself. “I’ll just zap them as best I can, hide Julia, get the supplies from camp, head back in the storm, oh gods, it’s too much…”

Sola shook her head and focused herself, breathing in and out and steeling her mind. “Relax, just work the problem. First thing, little Wailing.”

Sola peered through the crack in the tree trunk to assess her opponents but couldn’t make anything clear out.

“Stupid Sola. Why’d you drop Julia’s gun…” Sola lamented. Having no other options, she left Julia and jumped out into the small path in the forest where the sounds originated.

It took a second, but the scene started to make sense once Sola let herself think. While she’d heard the footsteps of the offspring earlier on, it wasn’t them she was hearing now. No, this was much bigger.

“REEELLLLLLLLLLLLMMMMMM…” Called out the Wailing facing Sola, fully grown and dwarfing Sola entirely. It looked indistinguishable from the offspring, made of the same grey and red ooze, static running through its body rapidly, but with a more intimidating form and size. It looked to have legs and some sort of head, but almost no form to it whatsoever, as its face was a mass of hard to describe symbols that Sola finally got a glimpse of, stepping back frantically.

Sola wanted to move, to grab Julia and keep running from the threat that only seemed to increase, but something willed her to stay.

And try, at the very least.

“H-h-hey, Jelly Wailing! No hurting us anymore, got it?!” Sola cried.

The Wailing just stared at her, pulsing within its form, before slowly stepping to her with noticeable force and energy. It struggled to enter a run, as each time a limb was formed, it collapsed just as quickly.

Sola started hyper ventilating, almost ready to pass out, before instinct took over and she raised her hands up to it.

“Come on, Sola…straw in the juice box…get the juice…” She muttered, trying to focus on her Whil, as the noises of the Wailing closed in, squelching against the softened ground with increased vigour.

Sola opened her eyes for a brief second, before firing several strands of lightning out her fingertips, a few flying off and hitting nearby trees, but one managing to strike the Wailing head on, as its head caved in and left it reeling.

But…

It kept walking, seeming to have reformed and taken the lightning like it was nothing, leaving Sola completely defenceless as it rushed in, aiming its limb toward her head. Sola narrowly jumped out of the way, behind the trunk Julia still lay behind, as the Wailing destroyed the tree right behind her, splinters flying off in every direction, including Sola’s leg.

“Agghhh!” She cried, trying to ignore the pain ringing out from the bottom of her leg.

Sola quickly grabbed Julia again, having barely recovered since the last run, and now with sharpened wood sticking out of her calf, and headed away from the Wailing, its cry still ever present from the distance as it searched for her through the storm.

Sola noticed tears running down her face, as she finally acknowledged that there was nowhere to go and nothing she could do.

———

“Clearing’s five minutes away!” The pilot yelled back to Team Valiant and Ferris, now over the forest and bracing against the storm. “We’ll spread out in each direction! You three stay together!”

“Don’t engage with any Wailing you see. We don’t know what’s out there or what it can do, so only attack in self defence.” Ferris clarified, the team nodding back to her. “I don’t need you getting killed.”

Harley stared out the window, still trying to find Sola and Julia amongst all the visual noise.

“How do you think Sola’s fairing?” Wess asked Ferris.

“…I don’t think I can say.” Ferris admitted. “Depending on what we’re dealing with, and how dangerous it is, she’ll easily be out of her depth no matter what.”

“Stop belittling her.” Harley proclaimed. “She can get out of this.”

Ferris didn’t feel like replying, as the pilot gave her the thumbs up and started dropping down into the clearing.

“You find them and come straight back! If you get lost, that’s on you!” Ferris explained over the storm. “You three check down east, we’ll check west! Watch out for anything suspicious, and avoid anything dangerous!”

The team nodded in confirmation and headed down east, weapons at the ready in case of danger, as Ferris grabbed her sword by the hilt and sighed to herself.

“You two better be out there…”

———

After what felt like a never-ending sprint, Sola stumbled upon the best luck she’d had all night.

A small cave shot out from the ground, just secluded enough from the rain, but big enough to keep Julia far away from anymore danger.

Sola’s breath was struggling, as she put the last of her energy into laying Julia down again, before hitting the cave floor hard and letting her legs stop for a second.

She managed herself back up and checked her leg again, noticing the dagger-like wood jutting out of it and deciding that leaving it in was her smartest option, despite the terrible pain it caused. She checked Julia’s vitals again, noticing Julia to be relatively fine, all except for her much colder body after being exposed to the storm. Sola took off her jacket and shirt and wrapped up Julia, now noticing the sharp cold hitting her from the cave entrance, but handling it with backbone.

She sat next to Julia on the ground, huddling to keep them both warm, and almost letting her emotions get the better of her, but still holding strong.

Still holding…

“…it’s not fair…” Sola muttered, arms around her legs as she curled into a ball.

As a sudden push of effort, she stood up with renewed anger.

“It’s not fair!!!”

She stood against the caves entrance, right against the edge of the storm.

“Why can’t I do it?! Julia was right there, fighting for her life, and I couldn’t help her! She’s so much better! She deserves better! So why?! Why am I…”

She broke down, hitting the ground again.

“Why am I so useless…”

She let the sound of the rain and thunder drown out her crying, trying to maintain some level of dignity in this moment. She was grateful that Julia didn’t have to see her like this.

“I don’t know what I’m doing…Julia shouldn’t be here with stupid, useless me…”

She stared into the brutal, unforgiving storm, as lightning danced across the sky in a standout yellow.

“I’m no Venator…I’m a stupid fraud who’s gotten by on a lucky Whil…”

Sola didn’t want to acknowledge it, but the ground beneath her was shaking ever so slightly, and she started to hear the noise again. This night was too difficult for her, she wasn’t about to push herself anymore.

Out of the foliage came the slowly forming mass of the Wailing, trudging along the trail Sola had most likely left. Its offspring had regrouped and gathered around its body, calling out along side it and guiding its slow and deliberate walk.

Sola looked up as they called out together, the horrid sound ringing throughout the cave. But she wasn’t going to act. She refused to.

“REEELLLLLLLLLLLLMMMMMM…”

No matter what.

“REEELLLLLLLLLLLLMMMMMM…”

Even if Julia...

“REEELLLLLLLLLLLLMMMMMM…”

Even if…

“RREEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLMMMMMMMMMMMM…”

“No…” Sola let out, forcing herself to take a bold stance, shielding Julia behind herself. “You’re not touching her. I’ve still got blood in my veins, and as a future Venator…”

“…you’re not laying a finger on poor sweet Julia!!!”

The Gelatinous Wailing stood in place, thrown off by Sola’s loud shrieking, as the offspring did so to, before Sola entered the rain, her foot limping behind her, unsure of what she could do, but knowing what she should do.

“Just one clean shot…” She assured herself, as the thunder rolled on in the background. “But it still wasn’t enough...”

The Wailing resumed their walk, calling out as they did so with their piercing cry.

Sola refused to be fazed.

“Come on, Sola. It’s your Whil. It’s all electrons…path…of least…” She looked up to the sky, as the lightning from the storm started closing in. “…resistance…it’s all just…”

An idea hit, one that only Sola would've come up with.

The Wailing’s approach drew closer, the ground quaking back and forth with each laboured step it took, as Sola pointed her hands, not toward the Wailing, but toward the sky, crackling with electricity.

“Resistance…” Sola recited, breathing in and out and steeling her mind one last time. “No…resistance.”

———

“How are we supposed to find them?” Wess called out, bracing her arm against her face, blocking out most of the rain. “This forest is massive!”

“She is around here!” Essex assured her, scanning the area. “She has left a tra-“

Through the gaps in the trees, a brilliant yellow rang out, blinding in its intensity, grabbing the trio’s attention immediately.

“Was-“

“Come on!” Harley yelled, running to where it impacted, followed quickly by Wess and Essex.

———

Despite the scene that was unfolding, the wind was silent, for the briefest of moments, almost showing respect to the two beings locked in combat, as everything that night was decided in one final move.

As a bolt of lightning struck down toward them, it graced its way through the air, aiming for the ground, and landing against Sola, travelling all throughout her body, as she aimed her arms at the now violently fast Wailing approaching at top speed, and striking.

It took a second.

The Wailing’s body was already a mass of ooze, with hardly a shape to it at all, but with the strike of lightning that ruptured through and out of its body, the smallest part of it holding itself together finally gave in and left, as it disintegrated against the ground, leaving nothing behind to continue the hunt.

The offspring witnessed what happened and called to each other, consoling on what to do, as Sola took a step forward, some electricity still coursing through her.

They took the hint and scattered, folding back into the forest, leaving Sola and Julia in some form of peace.

Until the bushes started shaking again.

“Don’t worry, Julia, I’ll prote-“

“Sola!” Harley cried, running out from the forest and jumping into Sola’s arms. “You’re here!”

“You’re here!” Sola replied, hugging her back. “You guys actually…”

“Sola, are you okay? How’s Julia?” Wess asked, emerging as well, followed by Essex.

“I’m all good, but she’s in there.” Sola said, pointing to the cave.

Wess nodded to her and headed in, as Harley refused to let go of Sola for even a second.

“I will take care of the offspring. I am glad to see you unharmed.” Essex declared, hugging Sola quickly before brandishing her scythe and heading back into the forest.

“Harley?”

“Yeah?”

“Ow.”

Harley backed off. “Sorry, sorry. We just saw you on the feed and…your leg!” Harley ducked down to inspect it. “Does it hurt?! Can you walk?!”

“I’m okay. You should see the tree.” Sola said, before shaking her head. “Wait, you saw me?”

Harley nodded. “And…well…it’s just…” Harley tried, before just hugging her again. “I never knew you felt so bad about yourself.”

“Harley…” Sola replied, hugging her back.

“But you’re amazing…and you should know that, even if you don't think it. I know…cause…I’ve been there too.” Harley admitted, letting the rain drown out her gentle crying.

“Finally, Sola!” Ferris yelled out, now meeting up with the team, with the pilot in tow. “I saw the lightning strike. Where’s the Wailing?”

“I killed the Wailing!” Sola proclaimed, proudly posing. “One shot!”

“One…” Ferris said, before becoming speechless in shock.

“Holy shit, Sola! You’re incredible!” Harley cheered, wiping her eyes and lifting Sola up on her shoulders, being careful not to touch her leg. “Keep doing that and we’ll be the best team for sure!”

“It was kind of a one-time thing, but sure!” Sola agreed, as they headed to the cave to check up on Julia, the pilot swinging around the helicopter to pick everyone up and take them home.

———

The wind coming into the infirmary was brisk and sharp, as someone had left the window open right above Julia’s bed, dragging her from her sleep.

“Why am I…” She mumbled, Sola’s ears perking up beside her, as she swung her arms around Julia.

“I’m sorry! I’m so super duper sorry!”

“Sola, calm down.” Julia said, moving her off. “Why am I in the infirmary?”

“Cause we went out on that survival thing, and we found some Wailing, and then you were fighting them, and then I shocked you with my Whil and you passed out, and then I had to protect you while they chased me all through the storm with splinters in my leg, and then the lightni-“

Julia leaned over and hugged Sola, getting her to stop talking.

“Did you get hurt?” Julia asked.

“I mean, I got those splinters, but that took, like, a day to heal.”

“So, you had to drag me away from a Wailing for a whole night, and I’m the only one who got seriously hurt?” Julia rhetorically asked.

“Well, my legs are still pretty sore…” Sola admitted, getting a giggle out of Julia.

“Sola, you’re incredible.” Julia complimented, laughing to herself. “Now, please tell me everything.”

A solid hour or two had passed, with Sola recapping the night’s events to Julia and the four days in the infirmary, where Sola clarified she visited everyday to check up on Julia. The nurse came over during the story and told Julia it was okay to leave, but both insisted on staying as Sola finished her story, as Julia reacted in about the way you’d expect.

“In one hit?!” She exclaimed.

“Bam! Done! Like it was nothing!” Sola exclaimed.

“Julia!” Harley cheered, running into the infirmary with Wess and Essex.

“Sola’s recounting it again, huh?” Wess asked.

“Yes, she was.” Julia said. “Hey, I really want to apologise for making you all worry about me. I’m the leader of the team, I should really know bett-“

“Stop, don’t do that.” Harley interrupted. “You did nothing wrong, and neither did Sola. You both did everything you could. This is just something that’s gonna happen to us in the future.”

“And something to be prepared for next time.” Essex stated.

“But we appreciate you worrying.” Wess added, grabbing Julia’s hand comfortingly.

“There you are!” Called out Ferris from the hallway, making her way into the infirmary. “I’ve been trying to find you for the past few days, Sola.”

The team stayed silent and didn’t acknowledge her, as Ferris continued on. “You’ve made a real breakthrough in your Whil training. I don’t shout praise a lot, but after an event like that, even I have to admit you’re on your way to directing your own Whil.”

Sola refused to say anything, as she stood up and left in silence, followed by the rest of the team, carrying Julia along with them, before they headed back to their dorm room, leaving Ferris without a response.

———

By the time they got back it was already evening, as the dorm hallway lights had been dimmed and the sky outside was beautifully lit. Team Valiant dutifully walked Julia back into their room, as she kept insisting that she was fine and didn’t need the help. The last one to enter was Sola, making especially sure that Julia was doing okay, as she spotted Ferris appear from around the corner, out of breath from having run to catch up with them.

The team noticed Ferris and looked to Sola, who nodded in appreciation and closed the door, as Ferris finally caught up with her.

“Sola…I need to say something.”

Sola folded her arms.

“…fair response.” Ferris said. “Sola…I’m not the bad guy here. I was doing what was best to prepare you for being a Venator. It was dangerous, but that’s what the real thing’s like.”

“You could’ve gotten me and Julia killed.”

Ferris swallowed. “…you needed that push. Nothing I could do was working, so it was the only way I could get you to improve.”

Sola didn’t reply.

“It’s not been easy teaching you. You haven’t seen the worst of it. Some of us weren’t lucky enough to have this lesson drilled in so early…but that’s not what I’m here for.” Ferris said. “You did something remarkable, and you deserve something in return. So…”

Ferris bowed to Sola, in full humility and shame.

“Thank you.”

Sola took a second to process, as Ferris stood back up and walked away, unsure if she made the right impression, as Sola silently reflected on what she said. Struggling to make heads or tails, Sola called it a night and headed inside with her team for a night of well earned rest and relaxation, as the wind outside finally calmed down.