I didn't feel the Gaiadrake fall.
I didn't hear the forest cry out, or the earth finally go still.
All I knew was that I was still standing.
My legs were locked in place, muscles trembling so violently they felt numb. My sword was still raised, water clinging to the blade in thin, shaking ribbons, white sparks of thunder snapping weakly through the air. My chest burned every time I tried to breathe, like my lungs were filled with shattered glass.
I waited.
If it got back up…
If it moved again…
I would fight.
I had to.
The world swayed.
The forest blurred at the edges of my vision, green and brown smearing together like wet paint. My grip loosened without my permission. My knees threatened to buckle, but I forced them straight, teeth clenched so hard my jaw ached.
Stay awake.
Just a little longer.
I couldn't tell if the silence was real or just in my head.
Somewhere far away, I thought I heard someone scream my name.
Then my body made the decision for me.
The sword slipped from my fingers.
I swayed once—twice—
And collapsed forward, still upright, consciousness tearing away like mist burned off by the sun.
When I woke, the first thing I felt was warmth.
Not the burning heat of fire or lightning—but something gentle. Steady. Like sunlight filtering through leaves.
My back was pressed against something solid. A tree, maybe. Or the ground. I couldn't tell. Everything felt heavy, distant, as though I were wrapped in layers of cotton.
The second thing I felt was pain.
Everywhere.
It wasn't sharp anymore. It wasn't screaming. It was deep, aching, constant—a reminder carved into bone and muscle that I had gone far beyond my limits.
I tried to move.
Failed.
"…Rain?"
The voice trembled.
Seraphyne.
My eyes fluttered open, light stabbing through them at first. Pink hair came into focus above me, messy and streaked with dirt and dried blood. Her eyes were red—rimmed and swollen, like she'd been crying for a long time.
I tried to speak.
Nothing came out.
Her hands were on my shoulders, gripping like she was afraid I might vanish if she let go. "Don't—don't move," she said quickly. "Please. You're… you're alive. Just—just stay still."
Alive.
The word barely registered.
I shifted my gaze, slow and unfocused.
The forest… was quiet.
Not dead-quiet. Not the suffocating stillness from before.
This was different.
Leaves rustled softly in a breeze I could barely feel. The ground beneath me no longer felt brittle or hollow—it was cool, solid, alive. I could smell damp earth. Fresh sap. Green.
The corruption was gone.
My breath hitched.
The Gaiadrake lay ahead, massive body collapsed among broken trees and churned soil. Its stone armor had cracked completely, crumbling into harmless rubble. The sickly green glow was gone from its eyes, replaced by a dim, earthy brown—fading, peaceful.
Vines no longer writhed like weapons. They lay slack, curling gently into the soil, already beginning to root.
It wasn't moving.
"It's… over," Varein said hoarsely from my right.
I turned my head as much as I could. He was on one knee, spear planted into the ground to keep himself upright. His armor was shattered in places, blood seeping through bandages that looked hastily wrapped. His breathing was shallow, but his eyes were clear.
Alive.
Aelira sat nearby, back against a fallen trunk, one arm cradled tightly against her chest. Frost still clung faintly to her rapier, but her aura was weak, barely a whisper. She met my gaze, relief flooding her expression so suddenly it almost broke me.
Kai was sprawled on his back, staring up at the canopy, chest rising and falling hard. Burn marks crossed his arms and side, his clothes torn and blackened. When he noticed me looking, he let out a shaky laugh.
"…You're an idiot," he muttered. "A terrifying, suicidal idiot."
I tried to smile.
It probably looked more like a grimace.
Behind them—farther back—I saw the others.
Liam sitting with his leg wrapped tight, jaw clenched but eyes shining. Theon leaning heavily against a broken stone wall of his own making, yellow aura flickering weakly as he tried—and failed—to stand straighter. Arion lying flat on the ground, staring at the sky like he'd never seen it before.
Liraeth was seated with her shield planted in front of her, both hands resting on its rim, shoulders slumped. Her breathing was uneven, and faint scorch marks ran along her arm where plasma had burned her from the inside out.
Instructor Aldred stood at the center of them all.
Or rather—stood was generous.
He was leaning on his sword, black aura barely visible now, blood staining his sleeve where his arm had been pierced earlier. His gaze was fixed on the fallen guardian, unreadable.
Alive.
All of them.
A sound escaped my throat before I realized I was crying.
It wasn't loud. Just a broken, breathless noise that shook my chest.
Seraphyne noticed instantly. She leaned closer, forehead pressing gently against my shoulder. "Hey," she whispered. "Hey… it's okay. You did it. You don't have to fight anymore."
I closed my eyes.
The weight finally lifted.
The promise I'd been holding onto with bloody hands—protect them—loosened, just enough for me to breathe.
"I… thought…" My voice came out hoarse, barely there. "I thought it would get back up."
Seraphyne laughed softly, the sound cracking halfway through. "So did we. You were… standing there. Even after everything. We thought you were going to collapse any second."
"I almost did," I admitted.
Almost.
No—I did.
Aldred approached then, boots crunching softly over broken stone and earth. He stopped a few steps away, looking down at me.
For a long moment, he said nothing.
Then, quietly, "That was not the strength of a first-year."
I swallowed.
"I didn't plan it," I said. "I just… couldn't stop."
"I know," he replied. His gaze softened—just a fraction. "That's what frightens me."
The forest shifted.
Not violently. Not in pain.
Gently.
Small green shoots pushed through the torn ground. Cracks in the earth filled with moss, then grass. The broken trunks of trees began to sprout new branches, leaves unfurling as if time itself were correcting a terrible mistake.
The Gaiadrake's body crumbled further, not into dust—but into soil. Rich, dark earth that spread outward, feeding the roots around it.
A guardian, returning to the forest it had protected.
I felt something in my chest loosen. A quiet sadness. A quiet relief.
"I'm sorry," I whispered, not sure who I was speaking to.
The forest answered with birdsong.
Soft. Hesitant at first.
Then more.
Seraphyne squeezed my hand. "You saved it," she said. "In the end."
I stared at the canopy above, sunlight filtering through fresh leaves, and let the sound wash over me.
For the first time since the fight began…
There was no pressure in my chest.
No thunder screaming to be unleashed.
No voice urging me forward.
Just… stillness.
Peace.
My eyelids grew heavy again.
This time, when they closed, I didn't fight it.
Because I knew—
If I fell now—
I wouldn't be falling alone.