The moment passed.

  Kyo straightened, the embarrassment fading into something steadier.

  “I would like,” he said quietly, “as much training as you’re willing to give.”

  Ace studied him now.

  “I need to protect my people,” Kyo continued. “And I can’t let one fight put me out anymore.”

  Baxter nodded once. “That’s fair.”

  Ace’s mouth twitched. “Guess we’ll see what you’re made of.”

  Nearby, Ava remained perfectly still.

  But her breath caught, just barely.

  Ace studied Kyo for a moment longer, then smirked.

  “Well,” he said, nodding subtly toward Ava, “sounds like you could use someone who knows how to keep you alive.”

  Kyo frowned. “What does that mean?”

  Ace shrugged. “Means if things go sideways, she’ll probably drag you out by your collar before you bleed out.”

  Baxter chuckled. “That’s called a safety plan.”

  Kyo glanced toward Ava again, heat creeping back into his face. “I don’t need protecting.”

  Ace raised a brow. “Everyone needs protection sometimes.”

  He paused, then added lightly, “Besides. If anyone’s gonna keep you safe, it might as well be her.”

  Kyo opened his mouth to argue, then stopped.

  The image of Ava moving through combat, precise and relentless, rose unbidden in his mind.

  He swallowed. “I’ll… work on not needing it.”

  Ace’s gaze lingered on Kyo, then drifted briefly toward Ava before coming back. “If things go bad,” he said evenly, “most men wouldn’t complain about her being the one pulling them out.”

  Kyo didn’t smile.

  “That’s not what I want,” he said under his breath.

  Ace paused.

  Kyo hesitated, then added quietly, almost to himself, “I don’t want to keep standing there while everyone else bleeds. I want to be the one who gets her out for once. I don’t want to feel useless.”

  The words settled between them.

  Baxter exhaled slowly and glanced at Ace.

  Ace caught it. His expression shifted, the edge fading. “Alright,” he said, rolling his shoulders. “Umbra.”

  Just like that, the teasing was done.

  “Neutral town,” Ace continued. “Means we blend in, not relax. People sell smiles there just as often as supplies.”

  Baxter nodded. “First stop’s provisions. Healing potions, proper ones. Not the cheap stuff cut with river water.”

  “And arrows,” Ace added. “Better fletching. I don’t want to pull a shaft mid-fight and find out it’s warped.”

  “Repair kits,” Baxter said. “Armor straps, weapon bindings. Anything that breaks out there stays broken.”

  Kyo leaned in, grateful for the shift. “I can track inventory and ration use. Keep us from burning through supplies too fast.”

  Ace glanced at him. “Good. You’re thinking ahead.”

  “Bedrolls,” Baxter continued. “Kindling pouches too. Fire without smoke if we need it.”

  “And food,” Ace said. “Dried meat. Hard bread. Stuff that lasts.”

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  From the edge of the clearing, Ava shifted slightly.

  Her eyes opened just enough to take them in.

  Kyo didn’t notice.

  But she heard every word.

  Her breath caught.

  Baxter glanced between them, then at the darkened treeline. “Alright. That’s enough for now.”

  Ace frowned. “You sure.”

  “We’ve got time,” Baxter said. “And we’ll need clear heads.” He adjusted the strap of his gear and picked up his weapon. “I’ll take first watch.”

  Ace hesitated, then nodded. “Wake me in an hour.”

  Baxter smirked faintly. “Count on it.”

  Kyo nodded once and moved away from the fire’s dying glow moving towards Miles.

  The boy slept curled on the ground, knees drawn in, one hand still clenched like he was holding onto something that wasn’t there anymore. Kyo lowered himself beside him, close enough that Miles’ shoulder brushed his arm.

  Miles shifted, breathing evening out again.

  Kyo stayed where he was.

  He rested his back against a rock, one arm bent so Miles could lean into him if he moved. The ground was hard. Cold. He didn’t care.

  His eyes closed eventually.

  Not deeply, but just enough that time passed.

  A hand shook his shoulder.

  “Kyo.”

  He startled, blinking against the dark. Ace crouched beside him, voice low. “Event timer ended. We need to move.”

  Kyo nodded, head heavy, thoughts slow to line up. He pushed himself upright, joints protesting, and looked around the cave.

  Ava stood a short distance away, turned partly from him. She was sliding her tunic back into place, adjusting the leather chest piece over it. For a brief second, before the fabric settled, he saw her back.

  Scarred.

  Old ones. Newer ones. Thin lines, jagged marks, places where skin had healed wrong. Not decorative. Not heroic. Just proof of years spent surviving things that should have killed her.

  Kyo looked away immediately.

  Then a small face popped into his line of sight.

  Miles blinked up at him, hair sticking out in every direction. “Uncle Kyo,” he murmured, voice thick with sleep.

  Kyo’s focus snapped back. “Hey,” he said softly. “Time to go, okay.”

  Miles nodded, rubbing his eyes, then scooted closer without thinking.

  Kyo let him.

  Around them, the others were already shifting, the night loosening its hold.

  They moved out without ceremony.

  Baxter took the lead, his tall frame cutting a careful path through the dark, every step deliberate. He paused often, listening more than looking, reading the night the way only experience taught you to.

  Kyo followed close behind with Broderick to his side, one hand hovering near Miles’ shoulder, ready to steady him if he stumbled. He kept his steps measured, matching Baxter’s pace, eyes forward but unfocused, still shaking the last of sleep from his bones.

  Miles walked between Kyo and Ava, his small hand wrapped tightly in hers.

  Ava brought up the rear just ahead of Ace, her grip firm but gentle, thumb brushing slow circles against Miles’ knuckles whenever his steps faltered. Her eyes never stopped moving. Left. Right. Up into the canopy. Down to the uneven ground.

  Ace walked last, silent and watchful, making sure nothing followed. Sable padded beside him, ears pricked, nose low.

  The forest breathed around them.

  Miles tipped his head back as they walked, gaze drifting upward through breaks in the branches. “There’s a lot of stars tonight,” he whispered, like he was afraid to scare them away.

  Ava swallowed.

  “Do you think,” Miles continued, voice soft and earnest, “they look the same everywhere.”

  Ava’s thoughts tried to wander. Words overheard. A confession she had not meant to hear. She forced her focus back to the small, warm hand in hers.

  “Yeah,” she said quietly. “I think they do.”

  Miles smiled to himself. “My mom used to say the bright ones were people watching over us.”

  Ava’s chest tightened. “Your mother was a very smart woman,” she said. “She’s probably one of those stars.”

  Miles kept talking, words tumbling out in the unfiltered way only children managed. “That one looks like it’s moving. Do you think it’s a dragon star. Or maybe a knight. Do those exist.”

  She almost laughed. “I bet they do,” Ava said gently. “Which one do you think that really bright one is?”

  Miles squeezed her hand. “I think it’s a knight. Knights don’t get tired. And they always save people.” He glanced up at her. “Kind of like you.”

  Ava’s grip tightened just a fraction.

  Behind her, Ace shifted his path slightly, eyes scanning the dark as if daring something to step out.

  Ahead, Baxter raised a fist.

  They slowed. Then stopped.

  The night pressed in closer.

  Ava took a steady breath.

  Miles leaned closer to her side, still staring at the sky. “I’ll tell you more about them later,” he whispered.

  She nodded, even though he was not looking. “Okay,” she said. “Later.”

  They started forward again, one careful step at a time.

  Then the fog rolled in.

  It came low and fast, crawling across the forest floor in a pale surge, swallowing roots, stones, and ankles. Sable growled behind Ace, the sound deep and uneasy.

  Before Ace could speak, a shrill screech ripped through the trees.

  Sable howled back.

  Miles cried out, jerking away from Ava as he clapped his hands over his ears.

  Panic flared hot and sharp in Ava’s chest.

  “Miles!” Ava shouted. She dropped to a knee instantly, arms plunging into the fog. “Miles, come back to me!”