❝𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐨𝐟𝐟 𝐭𝐨?❞
❝𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐨𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐨𝐰𝐧.❞
⊱ ────── {.⋅ ✯ ⋅.} ────── ⊰
“YOU’RE STILL WEAK,” Eris heard Cassian mock her as she was swept off her feet. With a loud thud hitting the cavern ground, she cursed under her breath as she saw the other champion hover above her, his gasp around the knife tightening. She glared at him, her anger rising fast before she grinned.
“And you’re still arrogant,” She responded, landing a sudden kick against the older boy’s stomach and sending him backwards. She pushed herself up and tackled him as if he was one of the village boys she saved Lina from, pressing her forearm onto his neck. Cassian’s eyes held murderous intent as he struggled against the limb blocking his airway. Eris pressed on—she would not lose to him. She would rather die than lose to him.
“Yield, you rat,” Eris said right before she felt the Zhang boy’s other hand wrap around her own neck. She held a restrained gasp, trying to stay up as she felt the grasp increase. Cassian was stronger than her in every aspect, but by the gods above, she knew she had to let go at some point.
“Let go…or I’ll stab you.” The boy promised.
“Do it.”
Within the next five seconds, Eris finally pulled her elbow back, allowing the boy to gasp for air. His hand drew away from her throat and she was pushed to the side where Nari was tending to a snake-looking creature made of stone. There were emeralds in place of the eyes, resting and shining in the light slowly starting to dim with the setting sun. The waters of the cave remained at the same dark blue it always was, though there were times when they glowed bright purple, almost electrified in a way, but the girl was too afraid to find out for herself.
Nari giggled as she softly touched one of the jagged stone fragments protruding from the creature’s body. “Humans are very odd.”
Eris sat up on the ground, leaning on her propped up elbows resting behind her. “What do you mean by that?”
The forest spirit smiled, admiring her friend made of rocks. “Humanity has always been so aggressive, so competitive with one another. Skrael once lured an apprentice into unleashing dark magic against their own mentor and now, the apprentice’s soul walks all over the land, haunted by their defeat.”
The girl’s eyes slightly widened but she remained in her position. She knew that the spirit could detect any rise in emotion, which terrified her. If Nari looked into her eyes, she was afraid that the spirit could see into her very soul. She tried not to hold long conversations with her to avoid such an occurrence. In an attempt to change the subject, the girl focused on the creature, who had its body coiling around the Arcane Order member. “What exactly is that thing?”
The snake’s head drew away from Nari’s hands and appeared to be glaring at her. The forest spirit responded in a language that wasn’t familiar to Eris. In response, she merely arched an eyebrow that left the other being unfazed. “Humans know my friends as terra firma serpentine. They come from the Eternal Forest, my home.”
The snake continued to focus its gaze onto Eris and she glared back at it, not wanting to be intimidated by a rocky beast, and certainly not one made of the spirit’s magic. Even remaining as a champion for the order, Eris knew she was the weakest one. Victoria Taverna, a sweet girl whose words and magic stung like a snake bite was the first champion to join. Victoria was the only kind champion to Eris when she first arrived from the realm between the afterlife and the mortal plane, but she was rarely ever seen again after Morgana took her to the castle within Camelot and positioned her as a handmaiden. All the girl understood from one of Victoria’s last letters was that she infiltrated the room of one of Merlin’s apprentices and placed a pixie within their ear, giving them a terrible nightmare.
The girl remembered seeing her friend at her weakest, and that was when the handmaiden told her about how she became the Order’s champion. Betrayed by her own sister, Victoria was taken to a cliff near her village and was chained to a post in the ground. She had remained there for at least three days, her magic sustaining her life force until a stranger finally slayed her. The handmaiden had shown the youngest champion a scar resting on her collarbone where the deed was carried out, and it was enough to give her nightmares for weeks.
Arius was the second champion to be taken in by the Order. He didn’t possess the gift of spellcasting, he made up for it in deadly strength. He was a widower, but there was no word in the world to describe a man who had lost both his wife and his daughter in the same sunset. Tragic, really. The elf wasn’t one to be trifled with—she learned that the hard way. There were times when Eris would find the elf sitting at the edge of the cavern where the view presented the sky meeting an endless sea with two pendants in his hands. They were traced with elvish runes that the girl had yet to translate, but she had a feeling they represented something about his dead family.
Cassian was the last champion to join before Eris did, but she quickly found that he was difficult to work with. Always aggressive, yet observant and quick to answer. He had arrogance that ticked her off almost every time he spoke, even though he was nothing compared to the magic and mystery owned by Victoria and Arius. He was just a human caught in the web of chaos, but even he dared to pick a fight whenever the elf champion was in a bad mood. Watching the two fight it out was rather entertaining, in the girl’s opinion.
A cold breeze traveled through the cavern, brushing past Eris as little snowflakes flowed by. There was a powerful aura entering the area, followed by the roar of a creature. When Eris stood up and retreated to where Nari still remained, she watched as giant wings formed out of icicle shards flew through the air and a trail of ice and snow carved into the ground. Three giant dragon heads were craned close together as the beast landed on the ground, its claws digging into the rock and forming more icicles. The scales of the beast were white as snow, giving it a contrast to the dark and gloomy atmosphere within the cave. A haunting hum began, and the girl looked up to see Skrael descending from their companion.
“What is that beast?” The voice of Arius demanded, causing the youngest champion to turn her head and witness the elf perched on a stone fragment extending from the upper part of the walls. His scythe was in his hands, an object running against the blade and causing sparks to fly out. Within a split moment, Skrael disappeared and reappeared next to the elf, a playful smile on their face.
“My companion from the lower lands of the Earth, where storms and ice reign, champion. After all...it is my domain. Humanity knows it as the glacies draco.” The Spirit of the North Wind answered, setting a hand on the elf’s shoulder and making him grimace. Eris only grinned at the action. She knew that out of all the Arcane Order members, Skrael was the one who terrified the elf the most. Ah, it felt great knowing one of the weaknesses of Arius.
She watched as the elf’s grip around his scythe increased, a hardened look on his face as he tried to avoid Skrael’s gaze. “A hydra made out of frost. Dragons are destructive and they are all the same.”
“Dragons from the Soaring Isles aren’t like the ones from my home. Slaying them is a barbaric concept,” Cassian spoke up, his hand outstretched to the hydra as the head in the middle lowered itself to him. Eris saw the boy’s hand graze the scales of the hydra with such a gentle nature that seemed unnatural. She was surprised when Skrael’s companion didn’t bite his head off. “Where I’m from, they are sacred. They can bring redemption, something you are far from, Arius.”
Eris’ eyes widened at the boy’s words. The mention of redemption had always angered the elf, no matter who said it, but Cassian was right. By the gods, all of the champions except for her were beyond redemption. She knew that Victoria tormented a poor, defenseless apprentice. She knew that Arius had slain fools for the Order, manipulated by the promise involved with his resurrected family. Even she knew that the promise was just a lie in disguise.
“What did you say?” The elf demanded, yet Cassian remained unfazed as he turned to face the elf still perched on the stone fragment.
“You are far from redemption.” The human repeated, causing the elf to jump down from his perch and stalk closer to him. The elf grabbed the collar of the boy’s red tunic, hoisting him into the air until they were at eye level.
“I’ve seen more things than you have, human. I could cut your tongue out and feed it to that beast without a second thought,” Arius raised his scythe, allowing the tip of it to trace over the boy’s lips and below his eye. Before the situation could escalate, the sound of a swirling whirlpool manifested from behind Eris. She backed away and watched as the Eldritch Queen, donning her golden armor, manifested out of the portal. There was determination and victory in her eyes, something that the girl admired. Morgana was intelligent, crafty, and always one step ahead of everyone else. She knew the woman would be the downfall of whoever Merlin Ambrosius was, but she could care less about the old man. It would be fun to see a powerful woman like Morgana in charge.
“My Queen,” Eris bowed to the woman. If she wanted to stay on the woman’s good side and be rewarded for it, she might as well present herself as a low servant. She knew how to appeal to one’s ego, not before utterly betraying them, of course. Victoria had taught her that anyone around her was just a tool, a mere stepping stone she would cross to achieve her victory. “Ignore the imbeciles. You’ve returned early.”
“Merlin and his puppet still live, Morgana,” Bellroc’s voice began once they materialized from a small burst of fire. Their voice was harsh, almost berating the woman for her supposed failure. The youngest champion merely held her tongue. She also knew to never question nor refuse the orders from the Keeper of the Flame. “Your ruses will only derail the plans set for magic kind to reign.”
The Eldritch Queen raised her left hand, the emerald-colored casing shining briefly. “Merlin will face his end tonight, should Arius complete his orders,” She glanced over at the elf, who still held Cassian by his collar, but the human boy seemed unbothered. “Put the boy down, my champion. We have much to do before the Winter Ball.”
Once Eris stood up again, she turned and watched as Cassian was let go, not before being shoved onto the ground. Arius raised his scythe and made his way over to the Eldritch Queen, bowing to her. “Merlin will face his end tonight, my Queen—I promise.”
Another shadow portal formed behind the woman as she beckoned the elf to follow her. “Come along, Arius.” The two disappeared as the gateway closed, leaving the remaining two champions with the Arcane Order.
There was no telling how long it would be until Morgana would return.
“Bular summoned a what?”
The Harbinger of Chaos gave an angered scoff, rolling her eyes at the news presented to her by Strickler. She leaned in her chair, propping her sneakers onto his desk and crossing her arms. Out of all the stupid things for the Gumm-Gumm Prince to commit, this was one of the worst things. She had everything under control. Jim and Toby didn’t suspect a single thing. Blinky, who was rather annoying when he chastised the girl for not studying her troll lore, hadn’t suspected a single thing either. Not even the Krubera troll was aware of the girl’s second agenda. Bular was an impatient, ignorant brute.
What would her Queen call him? Ah, right. A pawn, simply a sacrifice in disguise if anything went wrong. Bular would be disposed of soon, she knew it. She was more valuable than a troll with daddy issues—which was embarrassing for him. Eris herself never knew her father. She had no reason to learn about him. She had no care for a man who was never home like Altan Zhang. Maybe that was one of the reasons why young Evangeline Zhang was so attached to her.
“He summoned a stalkling to go after the Trollhunter. Speaking of summoning,” Strickler spoke, keeping his gaze focused outside the window of his office, the clouds gathering in a blanket of grey and thunder rumbling. She remembered the tales her mother would tell her where thunder was caused by dragons racing through the skies, for their wings and speed shook the heavens themselves. She preferred that explanation rather than the scientific one. Science almost always managed to make things boring. “Where were you after class the other day? You simply disappeared. The goblins couldn’t track you down.”
The champion rolled her eyes. “I was tending to my own devices. I don’t recall your orders to involve anything refusing my downtime.”
“I see,” The changeling hummed, yet his tone masked something else Eris knew perfectly—worry. Oh, was the changeling worrying about the Trollhunter? His favorite student? It almost made her laugh. She remembered how eager the man was when he demanded her services and freed her from her tomb, but was he second guessing himself now? She would relish in this weakness of his.
The Harbinger extended her right arm out, admiring the two metal bracelets wrapped around her wrist. “You seem worried, changeling.”
The man brushed off her words, a composed expression forming on his face as he fixed the collar of his beige jacket. “I fear Bular’s actions were too rash. Jim’s death could raise concerns and we could be discovered. The brute has lost his patience with me.”
Eris flicked her hand around, replicating the way Morgana’s left hand would always appear and causing her chain blade to manifest. She caught it, the dark handle fitting perfectly in her palm and the metal shining in the light provided above. “It was only a matter of time before he would take matters into his own hands. He obviously doesn’t care about your—I’m sorry—our planning. I wouldn’t be surprised if he mysteriously…” She tilted her blade to the side, as if it was considering an interesting offer. “Bit the dust, but that’s just me. I don’t suppose slaying him would look good on my resume.”
“Slaying Gunmar’s son would get not only us, but many of the other followers killed, Harbinger.” The man reminded her and she only sighed.
“Would that really be so bad? After all, you did say that anyone is a tool to get what you want. I’m simply following your changeling code.” The girl took her shoes off the desk and stood up, dropping her blade and allowing it to recoil back into the bracelet. She glanced at the umbrella resting near the piano of the office and made her way over to it, grabbing it and fixing the hood of a jacket Mary had let her borrow for the day. It was a simple grey one with a small doodle of a heart resting on the side of the left sleeve and the girl was thankful for Mary’s help. She made a mental note to butter the girl up if she ever needed information about anyone in the school, though her eyes were set on a certain co-president of the robotics club.
There was something about Gemma Song that intrigued the Harbinger. She knew how to detect auras surrounding certain people, which was a handy trick she learned from Morgana. Whenever the Harbinger passed by or remained in the vicinity of Gemma, she noticed that there was always a shift in the air. Something powerful, perhaps? She couldn’t pinpoint what it was exactly. She remembered to ask Mary if she had any gossip about the robotics co-president. No piece of information was ever far from her grasp—it merely took a push for her to acquire it.
“And where are you off to?” The changeling questioned, and the girl chuckled.
“To cause some chaos in this sad town.”
The truth was that she was off to meet up with Zel at the canals before she would later find Jim and Toby. She knew that as long as the Trollhunter was with someone else, he would be fine. The stalkling wasn’t stupid enough to chase after its prey when others weren’t around. Perhaps the stalkling was more intelligent than Bular, but the girl pushed that thought aside. She had rehearsals for the Romeo and Juliet play in less than ten minutes, but she couldn’t care less for it. She only had two lines out of the whole production, all placed in the beginning of it, not to mention. The actors did not need her.
The clouds still hid the sun away from view, providing a gloomy atmosphere. Strickler had told her that Arcadia didn’t see as much rain as it currently faced, yet the girl took it as an omen for something disastrous. It always seemed to rain when something was about to go wrong, especially for her. She knew she would have to be extra cautious today.
Thunder continued to roar in the sky as the girl continued on with her journey to the canals. The destination wasn’t far from the high school, yet it was secluded enough for the girl to meet her elf companion. Zel was...odd, to put it nicely. She was fascinated by humans, how they lived, how they thought, how they explored. There was nothing interesting about humans. All they did was look out for themselves. No one truly cared about another—and if they did, they were lying to themselves.
Bloodshed gave way to more bloodshed, Morgana had told her all those centuries ago when the world was still free and magic was able to roam. Hatred created more hatred until all of the violence soaked into the once pure land, carving rivers of blood into it. No matter how many times it happened, they never learned. Humans were made up of violent, miserable fools.
And yet Eris never told Zel what Morgana had said. If the elf saw humanity in such a way, she would let it be. She didn’t want to break the mind of an elf who had already gone through so much, even under the care of Odessa Armstrong.
The Harbinger found her companion sitting at the bottom part of the canal with a book in her arms. Her companion looked rather engaged with the content, simply because it was a cookbook. Toby had told Eris about the Trollhunter’s affinity for cooking and she had asked Zel to bring her one as a gift for Jim. Though she was his enemy, she was not a monster.
Well, not yet, at least.
“Ah, there you are! I was wondering when you would arrive,” Zel’s face lit up with a smile as she closed the book and stood up. She still donned the usual training uniform she always wore during certain training sessions, yet her snow colored hair now held a second short braid on the left side of her head. “What took you so long?”
“I was preoccupied with...a changeling. He seemed worried about the Trollhunter, seeing as his pet sent a stalkling after the poor kid,” Eris replied, setting down the unopened umbrella and stretching her hand out to the elf. Her palm met the book with a bowl of spaghetti as its cover, no trace of use within it at all. She stuffed the item into her backpack and set it aside before folding her arms. “I thought your mother didn’t allow you past the gates.”
The elf shrugged. “She has been more open to extending my boundaries past the mansion. Her change of heart allowed me to sneak into the bookstore through one of the mirrors and steal the book you wanted.”
“I see,” Eris clicked her tongue as her friend stood up and stretched her arms over her head. “Thank you for getting this for me. It's perfect. The protection wards around the bookstore prevent me and Strickler from even being within fifteen feet of it.”
Zel only nodded before tapping a foot against the ground, orange runes carved within it beginning to glow and open up. The elf gave a two-finger salute to the human girl and fell into the portal, leaving the human in silence once she was gone. Eris glanced around for something to entertain her but was left empty handed. She had no reason to go into Trollmarket. She didn’t feel like attending rehearsals. Not even thinking about a snack from Benoit's café could interest her.
Eris simply made her way over to the wall separating her from Trollmarket. She couldn’t even enter without that cursed horngazel, seeing as she had forgotten it in her locker and she didn’t feel like traveling all the way back to the school and grabbing it. Someone from the play rehearsal could see her and ask why she didn’t attend. She didn’t want to deal with such an annoying person, such as Eli Pepperjack. She usually saw him getting stuffed into a locker because of the school idiot, but she kept her head high and gaze averted. She didn’t need to help such a fool.
When she glanced to the side and saw the skies darker than before, her heart almost skipped a beat. Had time really passed that fast for her?
A sudden chill went down her spine as soon as she heard someone jump down from the beams below the bridge. She raised her guard, her form tensing up when she heard someone chuckle.
“Harbinger. You’re finally free.”
Damn it all, the girl thought to herself when she recognized the voice’s owner. Clenching her fist, she tilted her head until she saw a tall figure wearing a mask and his hand grasping around a knife. Out of all the people she hated the most, she hated Cassian Zhang more than his own sister.
“Traitor, you’re still alive.”
Even though she couldn’t see the bottom half of his face, the girl knew that Cassian was smirking. Gods above, she would carve that smile right off his face. He was a traitor and a deserter, nothing more. There was no honor to his name. He had betrayed Eris when he was the last champion remaining. He had watched her become imprisoned beneath the Camelot castle, a simple, unbothered expression on his face as she begged for him to help her. He was a traitor.
“Sorry to disappoint. I don’t suppose we could do this peacefully, can we?” Cassian’s grasp merely tightened around his blade as the Harbinger turned to fully face him. She grit her teeth, her other fist clenching to match the other. She felt her metal bracelets vibrate against her skin, almost as if it was telling her to summon them and use them against the traitor.
She was about to summon them when she heard the familiar scream of Jim Lake Jr.
The scream had caught her off guard, giving Cassian the upper hand with the fight. In a split moment, he had swept her off her feet and she crashed against the ground. His boot pressed her back, allowing the fragments of rock to dig into her cheek. Groaning in annoyance, she forced herself to dissipate into smoke. As she saw the traitor glance around in confusion, she grabbed a hold of his jacket collar and thrusted him towards the bridge beams, hearing him slam against one as a result.
“You are a pain in my-” She attempted to say after reforming and landing on another beam, only to feel the flat end of the knife slam against her face. She cried out in pain, almost being thrown off the platform when she was forced against another beam. Cassian’s forearm pressed against her throat, the tip of his knife hovering near her stomach.
“Apologies, could you repeat that?” He mocked, and the girl winced when she felt the blade slightly press against her shirt and skin. She couldn’t breathe, the pressure against her throat causing her to become almost light headed. “Listen, we didn’t even have to fight like this. All I’m asking is for you to hand over the Shield of the Arcane, but we both know you wouldn’t do it.”
Like she would ever give a traitor such a weapon. She tried to find a way out of the situation, desperately looking around for something to help her. She couldn’t even focus on trying to escape using her smoke form as the blade pressed on into her skin. She looked down at his forearm before giving him a grin. Without a second thought, she kicked him in between his legs and watched as he stumbled backwards. The knife no longer pierced her skin and she ran towards him, tackling him and causing them to fall off the beams.
They landed on their side, a curse coming from both of them as they pushed each other away and separated. She noticed that the area above his right eye was bleeding, making her laugh. She finally administered a successful attack against Cassian. She saw him stand and toss the knife in the air before charging towards her. As he tried to slash across her face, she caught his forearm and twisted it, earning a curse in pain.
“You’re too predictable,” She teased before kneeing him in the stomach. She tried to use her other hand to grab a fistful of his hair, only to be grabbed again. She let go of his forearm and was forced into the ground. Her left arm was pulled backwards and she felt his boot press against her back yet again. No matter how many times she struggled and cursed, she couldn’t escape. She was too tired, too worn out. Cassian was victorious again and she hated it so dearly.
“And you’re too arrogant,” He snapped, his voice raspy and full of anger as his other hand clasped around her wrist where the bracelet disguising the shield remained and forced it off. She felt him force her arm back further, causing her to scream in pain. Tears almost welled in her eyes, but she would have rather died than to let them fall. She did not want her worst enemy to see her cry. “We could have done this peacefully if you simply handed over the shield the first time I asked. No wonder Morgana imprisoned you. You’re just a weak, pathetic champion. If you can’t beat me, then you will never win against your other enemies. Consider your survival as mercy.”
Mercy?
Damn his mercy. This wasn’t mercy. It was humiliation.
Eris suddenly heard the sound of AAARRRGGHH roaring through the thunder, and Cassian finally took that as the hint to leave her. She blinked once and he was gone, leaving her defeated and broken. She could barely stand as her body ultimately caused her to collapse onto her side. She held her arms against her chest, trying to calm herself down with deep breaths. She didn’t even tense up when she saw the stone body of the stalkling shatter near her. She was too defeated to even care.
“Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh! Jim, look!” Toby’s voice started, and Eris looked up to see the Trollhunter, Krubera troll, and Toby Domzalski watching her from above the bridge.
The Harbinger watched as the three of them hurried down into the canal, a worried expression forming on Jim and Toby’s faces. She felt Toby grab ahold of her right arm and as gently as he could, help her up. Pain shot through her body, ending in her left arm and she winced. Cassian’s attack probably sprained her entire limb.
“Friend alright?” AAARRRGGHH asked, yet the girl hung her head low. She had never felt so weak before.
“What happened to you? You look like you fought that Harbinger Blinky was talking about in the Forge,” Toby pressed on, and she released a shaky sigh.
“I was on my way to Trollmarket so I could at least get Jim's birthday gift ready before rehearsals ended,” She lied, putting on a pained smile as she looked up at the Trollhunter. “I guess I wasn’t fast enough. That Harbinger Blinky told me about just swooped in and took me right out...turns out she’s after people who are close to you, golden boy.”
She thanked the gods above when it seemed like the two boys and Krubera troll believed her. Soon after her explanation, the four of them ventured into Trollmarket where they met Blinky in his library. They found him running around, chasing away little gnomes until his jaw dropped at the sight of Jim and Eris. From what Toby told her, someone—that someone being the idiot of a Gumm Gumm Prince—had sent a stalkling to hunt Jim down, on his sixteenth birthday, nonetheless. She had sat through Jim and Toby’s dramatic, yet entertaining tale of evading the stalkling throughout the day, and she hated to admit that some parts made her laugh. She needed something to uplift her mood after a humiliating defeat.
After Blinky had done his best to examine and offer any healing to the two champions, they made their way down to the Hero’s Forge where Jim was subjected to a few more surprises.
“This better not be another surprise because I really don’t think I can handle anymore,” Jim said as his mentor covered his eyes. As Eris, newly patched up and holding the cookbook she had shown the Trollhunter after Blinky’s examination, stood next to Toby and AAARRRGGHH, she could see the remnants of what appeared to be some sort of vehicle? She was unsure. The presentation was small, but she didn’t say a word.
“No, no. If my calculations are correct, there’s only a few more minutes left to your birthing day,” The six-eyed troll explained before taking his hands away from the birthday boy’s face. “Time for one more present...I know it doesn’t look like much.”
Eris felt a part of her cold, dead heart warm when she saw Jim with such excitement upon realizing what his gift was. It was as if he was a young child again, gifted with happiness and warmth that she was robbed of. She pushed that thought aside—today, or tonight, rather—was Jim’s day. She did not want to ruin it more than it already was. Upon seeing the boy hug his mentor with such happiness, she felt another prick of pain within her.
This was the boy she was destined to undo.
This was the boy she was destined to kill.
By the gods above, was that guilt forming in her? No, it couldn’t be. Why would she ever feel guilty for a boy like him? He was her enemy, not some boy she saw as a younger brother. She hated these thoughts. She couldn’t allow them to cloud her goals. She reminded herself that this was a task she needed to complete if she wanted to stand by Morgana’s side when the world became hers. She couldn’t afford such a friendship.
“I knew we’d turn it around.” Toby said, fixing a hand on his hip and smiling.
“Hopefully this is the last stalkling he has to deal with,” Eris added, allowing a genuine smile to form on her face.
“When is your birthing day?” AAARRRGGHH asked Toby, to which he scoffed and fist bumped his troll friend.
“Like I’d ever tell you, wingman.”
Through the bittersweet ending of such a chaotic and tiring day, only one thought echoed within the Harbinger’s mind.
Forgive me, golden boy.
⊱ ────── {.⋅ ✯ ⋅.} ────── ⊰