The cool night air grazed across ashen skin, carrying unkempt raven locks forward along with the strong scent of animal blood as he worked at the fresh carcass of a stag. Orange hues seeped from a lighting flame, highlighting both the sharp edges of The Man’s features as well as those of the cave’s mouth. Inside, Tya sat silent in the center of her floor, knees tucked beneath her and hands rested in her lap. Her breathing was methodical, soft inhales being drawn inward only once every few minutes.

Discussing Hephane’s Forest, a region in the northwestern corner of Vousili made famous by its irregular and massive fruit, had managed to calm her the day they’d made their attempt to go to the city. After returning home that night, she couldn’t quite recall what it was that had given her such a feeling. After all, the majority of the farms were too far from her to see the inhabitants had they been out working in fields, and even if they weren’t outside, it didn’t mean anything. They also had other things to tend to. She hadn’t even allowed them to reach Evoles’ gates before getting too panicked to proceed, and she couldn’t help but feel stupid over it.

Yet, despite that, she hadn’t requested they try again.

The day after, they’d collected some more small things around the woods for him to eat, and that was enough to suffice. The herbs would have sold better when they were fresh, and yet neither made the suggestion again that they go. There was an underlying agreement between the both of them that the thoughts of walking once more among society were uncomfortable to say the least. They were content in one another’s presence, able to understand the level of introversion.

The sounds The Man made were absent to her. Her meditation wasn’t easy at first, since she wasn’t exactly used to the presence of another in her home. The sounds of movement were quick to distract her. Even if her wariness had managed to level out to something subtle and only lurking, closing her eyes and achieving the level of relaxation and focus required to delve into herself was something she was afraid to do in the presence of anyone. Especially of someone that could so easily kill her the moment her guard was down.

She had not yet told him of what she was, but after nearly a week with one another, he was beginning to put together the pieces. Elementals were something of a rarity throughout all of Arantis, and those that possessed the desire and level of magic to create bodies like she and her mother had, even more so. Therefore she thought it unlikely that he, being so unversed in so many things, would correctly guess at her true nature, but at the same time, it was easy to see she wasn’t human.

They hadn’t ventured far from one another’s side, leaving little time to do the human things humans did for her. She hadn’t eaten, the thought making her guilty with how difficult it had been for him to find something suitable, and for the first few days, she also hadn’t slept.

Most people were unable to survive such things and still function correctly, though that may have been an overstatement toward the sleep aspect. She did still require it, though she could stay awake far longer than a normal person, it seemed. And by the third day, she was beginning to feel the effects of not getting any, resulting in her caving and curling into bed alongside him, bundled in blankets to avoid his chill. Something which proved fruitless as, when she’d woken, he had tiredly pressed to her in search of warmth.

At least in that instance, she had been glad to find that one, she could sleep without being murdered, and two, he could be warmed up after a while and therefore didn’t always have to be so disturbingly cold.

He was beginning to suspect, though, and she could tell. She was curious to know what he’d guess, in all honesty. There were few races in the world that didn’t require the normal sorts of sustenance, and even less that didn’t really require it at all. Most, like the Sekan, still required something to keep their bodies in working orders. It was even rumored that the Servants of the Ancients that led the souls on, to the moons where they could be reborn-- The Matriarchs, as they were called--- still needed to eat.

Though of course, no one knew the truth behind that. Finding a Matriarch while still alive was seemingly impossible, and claiming to have done so, was a good way to get yourself thrown into a sanitarium.

She had, after so long, achieved the state of relaxation and focus she needed to pull herself inward. Initially, she had searched her core to be sure no real damage had been done to it. It was long overdue, but in the ensuing disaster the High Wench Lillia had dragged her into, she hadn’t had the time or comfort to try. After the usual maintenance checks over it all, she had let herself fall further into the meditation so she may detach entirely from the outer shell.

Working it had become so second nature to her that it actually needed some effort to switch to and from, and while that was mostly a good thing as it made her more capable of things like facial movements that seemed natural and speech that didn’t come out odd or broken, it did make working on the human aspect of her, a chore.

She had settled in quite nicely to the meditation after she managed to get to it. Her fire poked about with tests here and there with control so refined it acted almost like a human would with a limb. That was normal, as it essentially was a limb to her.

And while limbs did occasionally have their little twitches and jerks, it was very much unlike them to react entirely without notice, not unless it was instinctive. Like one sticking their hand over a flame, had they gotten to close, their body would rip the hand back.

The mundane, muffled sounds of The Man’s work had faded. Just as her fire began to do, the new sounds began to pull at her consciousness.

The flames writhed beneath her flesh. Pieces were still in her control, but like threads in wind, there were licks that broke from the whole to protectively follow the flow of her core.

Her mind parted, the dominant side, that of her meditation as she tried to rein the focus back in. Unsteady edges pulled desperately against her direction.

The sounds of The Man’s work grew loud again.

No, not his work.

Vibrations beat so gently against the floor that, had she been conscious of her surroundings, she wouldn’t have felt them.

Metal rattled.

The ground pulsed with steady, fast beats.

Not him.

Her fire burst through her limbs, her eyes shot open.

He had no name to call, so she was driven to her feet as her vision struggled to keep up with the reconnection.

Ice cracked from the entrance.

A chill flooded the cave.

Her sight flooded back in as cold arms were wrapped around her waist, her arms restrained to a frigid chest as she was thrown back to a wall.

Both hands flung up to hit against the solid, lean muscle that had forced her light form against the rock.

Sparks flickered against the thin fabric, the only thing that kept her from direct skin contact.

“Tya,” The Man’s voice tried, though as she looked up, his eyes were not on her. “Tya!” He repeated.

“Let me go---” she words fell out on instinct but the request was not heeded.

Two cold hands cupped either side of her cheeks. His head turned, face all that was in her view as he forced her to look in his direction. The coldness of his grasp grounded her in terror that was soothed by the gentlest caress along her cheekbone.

Her shell did not feel, not often- not with normal people. But his temperature was such a contrast to her own, she felt every millimeter his thumb crossed as it traced her skin.

“Listen to me,” he demanded as her gaze focused. The sound of shattering glass caused her to flinch. “Listen.”

“I am,” she breathed, her eyes on him and only him.

He leaned close, inches from her so there would be no mistake in her hearing as he said “we are being attacked.”

“Attacked.” She repeated only for the meaning of the word to sink in. “Attacked-- By who?”

She withdrew from his grasp, hiking up the end of her skirt to take a few steps down to the curve in the walls. Another shattering of glass burst through, chunks of ice flinging in and skidding across the floor.

The Man hurried to grab her and draw her back inside. His free hand held to seal the wall that had been briefly damaged by brute force on the other side.

“Who?” She asked, her voice then bordering a growl.

“Sékan,” he answered.

“They dare be so bold as to attack me?”

“I think they had hoped to take you by surprise again. They did not expect me,” he said.

Her breath shivered, and as if it would help, he gathered her in the grasp of one arm. “We need to think of something,” he said. “My magic is not unlimited. It may be a time until I tire, but they will not relent, and should they let any words of my presence leave this group, you will be in incredible danger.”

A threat? His expression held fear and sympathy. Panic and pleading- no aggression to be found. No, he wasn't threatening her. Both of her own hands rose, shifting his off her face so she could cover her ears to the noise that kept her mind so skewed.

She was endangered and they needed to do something to escape the Sékan. There was no other way out of her home. The only path was blocked by ice. His- he could remove it. But in doing so, they’d flood in. They needed to be stopped.

Her words faltered as she began, her letters mixing into places they didn’t belong. A frustrated growl left her before she gathered herself to focus on the movements of her tongue. “A barrier,” she said. “I should make a barrier. I should raise one, and you bring down the ice.”

“If they came with the intent of subding you, they will be armed to take the fire out, Tya,” he said.

That was true. Pain would not serve her right now and even if they were unsure, that risk couldn’t be taken lest she be killed.

She needed to be guarded from the moisture.

“I cannot aim,” Tya said, an edge to her tone that said this was an annoyance; a failure on her part. She wasn’t wrong, but he did not identify it as such.

“And you need to be protected from whatever they may have,” he continued, causing her to clench her fist, her previous grimace only deepening as she tried to think through her own limitations. Rather than allowing her to face it, The Man slipped one hand into hers. “Stand behind me, okay?” He guided her back by the hand he had taken.

She complied, watching him carefully as she circled him and stood at his back. He tucked her arm beneath his own, the palm of his hand circling to sit on the back of hers. “I will shield you from everything,” he told her. “I will choke the entryway and aim for you. Charge your attacks, and tell me when you are ready.”

Rather than let her agree to the idea, he stepped forward as yet another shattering sound shot through the entrance. This time, he made no effort to erect the barrier he’d placed, and footsteps were quick to flood the entrance without his intervention.

Immediately, buckets of water were hurled into the corridor, and she pressed into his back, keeping her fire closed only to be met with a light spray as another wall of ice shit to take the brunt of the attack.

“You need to cast, Tya,” he pulled at the arm he still held, and though she was reluctant-- though she was afraid, she let the flames spill from her palm. The fear drove them farther than she had anticipated, and he slunk his grasp back down her forearm to avoid getting burned. The radiating heat stung at his face, but she did her best to pull it from him so she didn’t hurt him. It swirled, tightened, twisted in her grasp. Her fingers tensed as the new wall fractured, and into his back, she said “ready”.

He shifted her hand to the nearest of the Sekan entering. A bald man with the dark beginnings of black hair along his jaw and scalp, with piercing yellow-orange eyes. His water was readied, sloshing from the edge, but hesitance cost him his life as the sight of the fire struck panic into him.

The one that had initially thrown her ammunition shuffled back a step, chucking the wooden container forward as a last resort now that it was emptied of its contents. It made contact with The Man’s forearm as he deflected it with ease and cast it aside, cracking it against the solid wall on one side.

A third steeled, grabbing the woman’s arm to rip her back and to safety as more fire swelled. His eyes fell to the new ball in Tya’s hand, and he took the risk of charging forward to toss the water at the pair. Again, she was only misted as ice blocked the attack, then the barrier broke down at The Man’s will.

“Ready,” she said against him, and he took aim to the nearest man. The woman he had pulled back tried to return the favor, widened glowing green eyes trained solely on the fire, but she was forced to withdraw as the ball struck her companion with force.

She identified her defeat immediately and whipped around to start out the cave’s entrance. Shouts from outside informed both inhabitants of the cave that many more enemies lay siege to their home, and none were willing to listen to the woman’s warnings that they’d failed in drenching her.

The Man pulled Tya forward a few steps, intent on heading to the curve only to stall as the shouts outside faded from anger to surprise.

The fine whistle of an arrow twitched The Man’s pointed ears just before it was cut by the squelching impact of a living target.

The rattling of reins could be heard in the short distance, the pulse of hooves against the dirt.

“Charge, Tya.” The Man ordered, and her palm ignited as she nestled once again into his back. Her free arm curved around his waist, clinging tight to his clothes yet despite this, he guided her forward a few more steps to peer out the entrance.

Much attention had been drawn off the cave.

The woman lay subdued on the ground, an arrow through her temple.

The light of Tya’s fire grabbed the attention of some of the nearest members of the attacking force.

“Shit,” one growled. “Deal with the Princess!” He directed others to the farther end of the trees, pointing to the glimpse of pink fabric glinting in what little moonlight cut through the canopy. “The rest, on the Fire Mage!”

His attention whipped back to the pair as he swept back disheveled strands of red-black hair and gritted sharpened fangs at them. Part of the group split, dashing through the trees and issuing distant orders while they searched out the sound of hooves- a sound that had grown in the short few seconds, suggesting more horses had joined in making it.

The rest rallied at the leader’s front as he drew a dagger from a sheathe and in one swift movement, slit his own wrist.

His blood began to pour free from his pale flesh, then gathered and rose into sparkling crimson rivulets.

Another sickening collision took down one of four guarding the mage, the force of the arrow knocking her a step to the side before she collapsed on her front.

The Man released Tya’s arm.

Tendrils of blood shot forward, slowed by a thick barrier of ice that encircled them. Unlike the water though, his magic was more controlled, drilling through in fine little holes as it tried to impale those on the other side.

Tya, still with an arm around his waist, ripped him back at the sounds of tension breaking in the ice. She had not yet seen the battlefield, but she guessed the crash as the tendrils hit rock behind them meant she succeeded in her endeavor to evade.

She released him and his barriers melted, the slush of his magic still heavy and prepared to reform in defense of the next attack. With so many targets, a charge wasn’t necessary. Instead, she waved both hands outward, a row of fire catching the grass as it followed her movements.

Her hands tensed as she winced, a small sound of pain leaving her, but she didn’t search for the reason. The Man’s ice hardened, more moisture pulling from the ground around her flame to dry her battlefield and pave the way to their enemies.

The attack was slow, but hitting wasn’t entirely its intent. It would have been a benefit, undoubtedly, but getting them to break their formation and scatter was important too.

Hardened crystals of blood followed the mage as he darted away from the fire’s range, growling a quiet “fuck” as his guard scattered to avoid their own demise.

Another arrow pierced the skull of a foe.

“Tya!” Her name rang through the trees. It hadn’t been what she expected- it was male. Softness in his pronunciation even with the urgency in his tone.

“Grab it,” The Man demanded as the sounds of hooves grew closer. Another barrier of ice sprung up, this one taller, curving overhead while Tya searched out what it was he wanted her to grab.

Pepper?

He was too close- she froze, a delay in her body as her thoughts tried to get together what she should do.

Her upper arm was roughly grabbed, ice below her feet boosting her up in time with Pepper’s height. She was drug side-saddled onto the horse, steadied between either of The Man’s arms as he took the reins and jerked them to the side to lead Pepper back the way he came.

The ice barrier fell, uncovering their position, but Tya gathered the flame already coursing the field to swirl it into a ball and strike the nearest of their foes.

The glowing tendrils of blood shot at them once more, but Pepper veered away with The Man’s guidance.

“This way!” Another call through the trees. Closer, and as another arrow streaked through the air, The Man urged Pepper to follow after Nisaki. “Lilly!” He called once more.

More hooves joined the clamor of their own, but Tya was focused on the enemies pursuing, not the allies. She found a foothold in one of the stirrups, her balance on one foot while all of her weight was held between The Man’s shoulder and his arm as she leaned over it, keeping both arms behind him so his view of their path wasn’t skewed and he could lead Pepper.

Sloppy flares of fire were cast outward toward the mage. He had continued after them, but he didn’t move as quick as his magic. The ribbons of blood followed, and she tried to shoot past to stall his efforts. Whether or not she succeeded, she couldn’t tell in the darkness that was closing around the distance they left behind. Her fire lit a short way, but as it extinguished at its limit, the gentle glow of her cave in the distance was all that was left behind.

For a few more paces, she remained leaned over his shoulder, watching carefully, and she wasn’t the only one. With the situation calming, she finally began to notice that Nisaki was in the lead of the three horses, and behind them was not only Lillia, but Melody propped on the back of the Princess’ horse. Her legs were wrapped around Lillia’s to better keep her bearings while she brandished her bow. An arrow sat ready between her fingers, but the string wasn’t drawn. Her ears were perked forward, listening past the hoofbeats to the sound of yelling in the distance.

Tya fell back onto the saddle, aided into place with one of The Man’s hands. As she settled, still side-saddled, she leaned to look past his shoulder again, and with one last glance confirming that they at least weren’t being followed so closely she need worry, she fell against him. A long breath left her, her swelled chest deflating as the raging fire mellowed beneath her skin.