"No!" Noble screamed.
Her emotions went haywire.
This was a terrible night for a suicide mission! Despite Master Chip's old saying, it was never a good day for a stunt like that.
Noble had already lost him to foolhardy self-sacrifice. There was no way that she was about to lose another friend just to save her hide.
Any hope she had of igniting the soul of Syrce vanished. She now ardently, wholeheartedly wanted to stop her friend.
Right now, her will was stronger than even a Saint.
"Abort! Abort!" She screamed.
Hearing her words, Roan's eyes opened wide. "Send me!"
He leaned, adjusting his body for the impending drop.
Noble didn't think as she sent the man directly at the energetic core.
The two collided, the light engulfing Roan in a blinding luminescence. Together, the pair veered off course, missing the mouth of the Remnant by centimeters.
What they did not miss was the Dragon's front claw. The Prince gripped the two warriors, casting them to the ground and crushing them under his foot into the cooling stone.
"Syrce! Roan!" Noble felt her heart shatter.
"Put me down!" Aether ordered more forcefully than he ever had before. "Please! I'll lead him away."
Noble released Aether from her hold, and the man slid onto the Dragon's back before sliding off the swaying tail. He landed lightly on the ground.
"I'm over here!" The young man waved for the Prince to follow.
"There!" Helie pointed as Noble flew near.
But the floating Master did not need to be told. Her eyes had not left the spot where two of her comrades had fallen.
While the dragon chased Aether, the two women raced to the apex of the hill.
A perfect indent in the ground held two still forms. Roan's body lay over Syrce's in an awkward tangle of limbs. He was flattened.
Noble's heart sank.
"I…I moved the earth!" Helie stuttered. "I thought I gave them enough room!"
The brunette looked on the verge of breaking when movement caught her eye.
Roan twitched, his form resuming its more natural shape. He stood, lifting the woman beneath him and holding her in his arms. Roan carried Syrce out of the hole.
She was breathing!
Noble lowered Helie and herself beside them. Syrce opened her eyes and tapped Roan's shoulder to let her stand.
"You're alive!" Noble exclaimed, looking at her cohort leader with no small amount of wonder.
Steam rose from Roan's armor, likely from the heat emitted by Syrce's energy. The Saint could have badly burned the man, yet he remained in one piece with a lazy smile.
"I might not have mentioned it before, but I'm very hard to kill and even harder to crush. It is one of my Abilities. It comes in handy in places like the Chained Isles and when being trampled under dragons' feet." Roan shrugged, bringing his shoulder back to its natural shape.
Noble had heard of the infamous crushing that occurred in Roan's former home before, but she had never given them much thought. That Abilty would be invaluable in a place where pressure could come unexpectedly and quickly.
But Noble didn't have time to think about that. She ran and hugged Syrce.
"And you say I'm the empty-headed one! Never be that foolish again!" Noble puffed out her cheeks.
Seeing the confusion of the other two, she explained.
"This fool was going to sacrifice herself after explicitly telling me not to. The rules should be the same for everyone."
Helie and Roan exchanged glances, realization dawning in their eyes.
In her already weakened state, Syrce had suffered more than Roan from the force of the blow. Yet somehow she was still standing…barely.
"You stopped me." Her grey eyes lacked their usual energy. "I was the only one who could stop the dragon."
"All you would have done was send yourself to your death. Didn't you tell me the way to beat something powerful is to be just as powerful?" Noble shook her head.
"I did say that, but that was advice for you, not me, little Bel." Syrce coughed. "Anyway, there's a second way to beat an enemy…"
"Cunning." Helie had been well-trained as a Legacy.
Wit was what separated humans from most Nightmare Creatures, especially those of lower rank. While this wasn't a Nightmare Creature—at least not yet—the same principle held.
"Trickery…" Noble let the nascent thought form in her head. Hadn't she used feints and sleight of hand in her years in the Dreamscape?
Blustering and bluffing were often as vital as confidence and skill when against a superior opponent.
But what if the trick wasn't a bluff? What if…
The idea took form. Noble shook her head. 'I hate this so much.'
'What?' Syrce sounded only slightly stronger in Noble's head.
'I have a plan, but I don't like it. You won't either.' Noble pressed her lips together.
'Does it matter if I like it?' The Saint sounded slightly bitter.
It was understandable. Noble had just thwarted her selfless act of sacrifice.
'It matters a little. I need your help to do it.'
Noble quickly explained the situation with her thoughts faster than she ever could have with words. Thankfully, the Saint understood almost instantly.
'I see.'
Noble furrowed her brow. 'So, can you do it?'
Syrce nodded. 'I can.'
For all their sakes, Noble hoped it was true. There wasn't much left in Syrce's reserves.
But if they could pull it off, it wouldn't matter.
Having received the Saint's blessing and permission, Noble finally spoke. "We have a plan. I have to warn you that it's crazy. If it doesn't work…or even if it does, get ready to run!"
Roan raised an eyebrow, a smile forming on his face. "In other words, the usual?"
Helie smiled too, "Crazy? Count me in."
Noble nodded. "Here goes nothing!"
Taking to the air, she waved at Aether. The man had made it pretty far with the Prince chasing him, having almost covered the entire length of the hillside.
He caught sight of her immediately and veered from his original course in her direction.
Noble appreciated his swift action. If he took too long, she or Syrce might come to their senses.
His speed left no room for her to doubt. She came toward him, pointing toward Roan and the rest of the group. "Go!"
The young man asked no questions. There was no time. The dragon was hot on his heels.
Aether drew close, and Noble prepared her plan. Unclasping her cloak, she let it fall from her shoulders and hang from her belt.
'Closer, closer…' Noble struggled to bide her time. Her fingers twitched around her waist.
'Be careful.' Syrce answered, bringing a smile to Noble's face.
'If I were being careful, I wouldn't be here…'
'Good point. Be reckless.' Syrce had been too good an example of that recently, and Noble hoped to find a middle ground.
'Who am I kidding? This is insane…'
The time for debate was over.
As Aether passed beneath her in his frantic run, Noble sprang into action. She sheathed her Zenith and pulled out a very different kind of weapon.
Staring down at the Dragon Prince, Noble finished unwrapping the hand mirror…
And pointed it at his face.