CHAPTER FIFTEEN

The suddenness of the attack caught everyone off guard, especially Leia, as she was knocked back with a cry and a spray of blood. The lightning elemental landed hard but wasn't down for long and smoothly rolled to her feet, futilely wiping at her lips with the back of her hand while glaring at the perpetrator.

“How can you say you were about to win when you are easily blindsided like that?” The question went unanswered as Jao quickly continued. “This is why you shouldn't go against your speciality. If you were properly attuned to it, you wouldn't have stood there like an idiot.”

"You surprised me!" she said past the blood that pooled in her mouth before surrendering and spitting some out, still glaring at the man—though some of the heat was directed at Tatsuya, who stood with his eyes wide.

It had seemed to him that Jao and Leia were an item of sorts, even if the latter looked much younger than the former, but although they were close—possibly the closest in the group— what just happened showed that their relationship was more along the line of a mentor and his mentee than anything else.

"I punched you in the spirit-damned face! How much more obvious can I be?!" The leader turned to face Tatsuya, gesturing for him to give them space with his hand. "Take a breather. I need to show this foul-mouthed little shit the sheer folly of going against the order of things.”

Tatsuya was more than happy to oblige as what followed was a crash course—literally, in Leia’s case—of the difference between someone using their speciality in the intended way and someone doing the opposite. Jao’s speciality was not a flashy one like the lightning elemental’s own, nor was it capable of great destruction like the late female raider (the other air elemental), but it was formidable in its own right: the ability to imbue in himself coalesced sand, greatly enhancing his physical strength and regeneration—as with further imbuement, every damage would be instantaneously healed—at the cost of his speed and manoeuvrability.

Leia was much more raw and untamed, striking with a ferocity that was almost frightening to see in a person and not an animal. She made wide and aggressive swings, all the while trying to use her enhanced agility to land enough blows and overwhelm Jao. Whenever that failed, and it failed every time, the man would punish her not with stern words or a lesson but with a strike from his limbs. He was never gentle about it.

“Don’t hurt her too much; we only have the medicinal salve on hand.” With his piece said, Rei shook his head and returned to his practise.

As Jao’s hand found purchase in Leia’s hair and threw her to the ground, Tatsuya followed suit—though, rather than continuing his training, he decided to head to the nearby stream to clean himself up.

The morning was unsurprisingly hot, and countless clouds passed overhead, breaking up the monotony of the encompassing blue. The sun hung high, its rays cast a golden, almost ethereal shimmer over the softly waving foliage and leaves of the trees, and the air was thick and heavy, making every breath a struggle. Even the shade of the trees provided little respite as the heat permeated every crevice, leaving no escape.

As the heat did not affect him, it would have been pleasant— and to an extent, it still was—if his mood wasn’t worsened by the reality of his situation and, to his irritation, the signs of life: the rustling sounds of small animals scurrying under the thick ferns, and over the thousand brittle branches, twigs; the soft crunch of dried leaves as they passed underfoot, and the buzzing of insects that flew around his body. Fortunately for the latter, just as he contemplated blowing them all away, the ground began squelching beneath his hard-soled sandals the lower he went.

He paused at the tree line, and as he looked at the dense foliage ahead of him, he reasoned water would be near; eventually, in a few minutes, he was proven right as he started strolling along the riverbank—and as he did so, a flicker of movement caught his attention. Without any preamble, he followed the gentle current that carried whispers of something arcing through the air.

Tatsuya approached a clearing by the river and saw Farah, her dark hair swaying softly with every motion she made as she stood at the water's edge, her amber eyes fixed on Zoel’s brown ones as if she were in a trance. Curiosity overcame what little hesitation he had, and he gingerly stepped forward, watching in awe as the woman conjured flames and controlled them effortlessly.

The contrast between the two was captivating, leaving him feeling honestly impressed: while Farah was a fluid blazing inferno gracefully dancing on her feet, Zoel was still, emanating an aura of tranquillity that belied her immense power over the living vines surrounding her.

He stood witness to their confrontation, an excitement rising within him as he watched the fire elemental raise her hands and launch a searing wave of her element toward the vine elemental. The flames roared through the air, illuminating the forest with their fiery glow, but Zoel (worthy of being called the strongest of the group) silently commanded the vines to rise from the earth, creating a protective barrier that deflected the scorching attack.

Undeterred, or so it seemed from where he was, Farah intensified her assault, unleashing a torrent of fireballs that streaked through the air, aiming to engulf the vine elemental in their embrace. However, it was not to be as the other woman summoned vines to gracefully intercept the fiery onslaught; they twisted and curled around each other without any visible input, intricately weaving, extinguishing the flames with sheer numbers—and then, they emerged from beneath the fire elemental, tripping and disrupting her assaults, and though she tried to evade their grasp, it wasn't long before she was entangled.

The spar had been utterly dictated by Zoel, and it was hard not to feel a twinge of pity for Farah, as said woman tried to escape the vines' hold on her, eyes locked on the former. Still, her struggles were all for naught—more vines took the place of those she managed to burn, and he knew she could not increase the intensity of her flames for fear of harming herself—and so, as a moment of stillness settled over the forest, an unspoken understanding passed between them, and the fire elemental ceased her futile struggles.

Once the vines uncurled around Farah, the tense atmosphere around them dissipated, and Zoel approached her to lend a helping hand up and they exchanged a tentative, almost awkward in the case of the vine elemental—was she a bloody automaton?—hug. Then, they turned to face him, one riddled with sweat while the other barely carried a sheen on her exposed skin, and at that moment, there was no one he rather spar with in the group than Zoel.

Admittedly, her silent arrogance grated on him—not to mention she also didn't personally participate, which he found unusual— but it was tempered by the knowledge that time spent with her would only improve his skills. It would be worth it.

“Is there a problem?” Farah asked, and his breath caught at the sight of her slender, toned stomach (striations emphasized by the sweat) and the brown braise that dropped dangerously low on her hips.

“No, I didn't expect to stumble upon you guys,” he replied. “I actually want to clean myself up in the stream.”

“Oh, then let me join you. As you can see, I'm in need of a wash myself.” Her words were punctuated with a short laugh as she gestured to herself, emphasising her point.

They bid goodbye to Zoel—who had decided to head back to the camp with her seal (who had materialised from nowhere) and grab something to eat—and made their way to the stream a short distance away, their steps light and purposeful. The air was filled with the symphony of nature, the rustling of leaves harmonising with the babbling of the water as it glistened under the golden rays of the sun.

As they reached the crystal-clear stream, Tatsuya couldn't resist the temptation and dipped his hands into the water, cupping them together to gather a handful. He splashed the refreshing liquid onto his face, cleansing away the dust and weariness of his ruminations before scooping up some water and taking a long, refreshing sip. Farah, though a bit hesitant, couldn't deny her thirst either and followed suit (after boiling it, of course), taking a cautious sip from the stream as well.

Feeling rejuvenated, they removed their footwear and dipped their feet into the cool, inviting stream. The sensation was delightful, the flowing waves a gentle caress, and encouraged by the experience, Farah undressed quickly. He turned his gaze away, cheeks treacherously burning at her laughter, but hesitated when his hands gripped his shirt.

He longed to join her, to experience the joy and freedom of the cool water against his skin, but the thought of revealing his bandages to her caused anxiety to bubble within him. It was stupid, he knew. Not only had she (and everyone else in the group) seen his scars, but he was not normally self-conscious. His scars were not a new development and, after all this time, it only made sense not to be bothered by how he looked. Not to mention his ever-present bandages helped a lot in allowing him to ignore his appearance.

 Yet, ever since that day at the inn in Elmwood (after Finn’s reaction), Tatsuya's insecurities—the fear of judgement and rejection from others—had being brought fully to the open, which really couldn't be helped as, for all his self-control, he wasn't actually apathetic. And at that moment, he realised that as much as he could be callous, times like this reminded him that he was as human as the rest.

He couldn't decide whether he liked it or not.

“Don’t tell me you are embarrassed to be naked?” Her tone was cheeky. “Or is it because I am also naked?” 

He shook his head, but the interruption had, ironically, given him the resolve to confront the fear. It may have seemed a bit too rushed, but it wasn't really a big deal and he was overthinking the situation too much. After all, although his scars were a terrible sight to behold, they didn't define him. Instead, they were merely a part of his unique story—some would even say a symbol of strength and growth in the face of adversity, a story of strength, resilience, and the power of healing.

A tad bit over-dramatic, maybe, but the internal words did their job, and with a burst of courage, he removed his clothes and joined Farah at the stream’s edge. At first, he still felt self- conscious, aware of the curious glance and shifting expressions on her face when he neared. But as he waded further in, the cool water enveloped his body, providing a comforting embrace that cascaded over his tired muscles, washing away the dirt and grime accumulated in his spar.

Eventually, Farah approached him, her eyes shimmering with a welcomed warmth and her fingers trailing through the water (heating it to a satisfactory temperature), and as they swam together, their thoughts drifted, carried away by the gentle current.

A moment's respite.