Without another word, she dropped into a low crouch, her cws scraping the ground as she prepared to leap. Rava’s sharp inhale came too te. With a sudden burst of energy, Vivienne unched herself forward, her limbs powerful and sleek, her tail whipping behind her like a scythe.

  She propelled herself through the air, her body curving in a graceful arc aimed toward the st flicker of movement she'd spotted in the grass. She could already taste the satisfa of the hunt, the thrill of the chase driving her forward.

  But just as she he edge of the ward, her outstretched cws reag toward the elusive prey—thud—Vivienne collided with the ward’s boundary, and a sudden, jarriance sent her careening backward.

  Vivienne rolled her shoulders, brushing off the minor embarrassment with a flick of her tail as she stood upright. She stretched zily, her movements more theatrical than necessary, and g the barrier with a bemused smirk. “Not my most graceful moment, I admit. But at least we’ve firmed it’s as sturdy as you said.”

  Rava, still sing the dark edges of the camp’s perimeter, only half-aowledged Vivienne’s remark. “Yes, well, sturdy doesn’t mean infallible. That’s why we o be smart about this.”

  Vivienne sighed dramatically, folding her arms across her chest. “So, to recap: either we leave it there and hope the wards hold, we take them down and risk letting it into the camp so we fight together, or I sit here and py cheerleader while you deal with it.” She punctuated the st option with an exaggerated wave of her hand.

  “Exactly,” Rava replied, her voice clipped. Her eyes flicked toward the faint shimmer of the ward, looking for any sign of the lurkiherbeast. “Aing up these wards takes time and precision. Taking them down means losing our best line of defense if something goes wrong. So, yes, I’d much prefer it if you stayed inside.”

  Vivienne huffed, her tail thumping lightly against the ground. “Fine, fine. You’re the boss.” She flicked her to, tasting the air with a snake-like motion, her bck eyes narrowing slightly. “But if you ge your mind or things get dicey, I’ll be ready to jump in. Just say the word.”

  “Noted.” Rava gave her a quick, appreciative nod before refog oask at hand.

  Vivienne flopped bato the grass with a groan, propping herself up on her elbows as her tail coiled idly behind her. “Alright, Rava, show me what you’ve got. I’ll just... be here. Useless. Watg.” Her voice was drenched in pyful sarcasm, though a sharp glint of curiosity betrayed her i in the impending fight.

  Meanwhile, the tension in the air thied. The barrier shimmered faintly, casting an eerie glow across the camp, but the night beyond remained silent, the creature seemingly biding its time. Vivienne’s grin faded slightly as her focus sharpened, her pyful demeanor tempered by the ever-present hunger gnawing at her core.

  “If it es through,” Vivienne murmured, more to herself than to Rava, “I am having first dibs.”

  Rava ighe remark, her focus ser-sharp. She stepped to the edge of the ward’s glow, her imposing form casting a long shadow against the flickering light. Her fists rose in front of her, the oversized gaus gleaming in the faint illumination.

  Under her breath, she began to t, her voice low and steady, each word carrying the weight of practiced ritual. The air around her seemed to shift, charged with energy, as the grouh her feet trembled ever so slightly.

  With a sudden, decisive motion, she smmed her knuckles together. The impact sent a ripple through the air, a burst of sparks igniting around her gaus. Arcs of lightning crackled and danced along the metal, lig at the edges like serpents eager to strike. The faint blue-white glow illuminated her determined expression, her amber eyes refleg the electric brilliance.

  Vivienne leaned ba her elbows, her griurning as she watched. “Fancy,” she said, her tone light. “But let’s see if the beast is impressed by your fireworks.”

  Rava didn’t respond. She took a slow, deliberate step forward, the lightning from her gaus growing more erratic, trailing sparks that hissed as they struck the ground. Another ripple of movement flickered in the grass beyond the ward, faint but deliberate, as though the creature was testing their resolve.

  “Careful, Rava,” Kivvy whispered from her spot he fire, clutg a dagger close to her chest. “It’s still out there. Watg.”

  “I know,” Rava replied, her voice calm and steady. She squared her shoulders, her stance firm, as though daring the creature to make its move.

  The sileretched on, heavy and tense, broken only by the occasional crackle of electricity from Rava’s gaus. The shadows beyond the ward seemed to shift, the flicker of movement growing more deliberate, more pronounced. Whatever was out there, it was biding its time, testing their patience as much as their defenses.

  Vivieilted her head, her bck eyes narrowing as her grin widened. “Oh, it’s thinking. That’s cute. I wonder if it knows I’m starving.”

  Rava kept her gaze fixed on the shifting shadows. “Stay ready. This thing isn’t rushing in blindly. It’s calg.”

  “A,” Vivienne drawled, her toeasing, “it has no idea how bad of a decision it’s making.”

  The flickering movement suddenly stopped. The silence grew oppressive, each breath feeling heavier tha. Then, with an earsplitting screech, the creature made its first true lunge from the darkness, crashing into the ward with enough force to send ripples of light surging across its boundary.

  Rava didn’t flinch, her fists glowing brighter as she prepared for whatever came . “Here we go,” she muttered, brag herself. The faint hum of aether in her gaus resonated with the ward’s energy as she unched herself past the barrier effortlessly. Where it had been like running into a wall for Vivienne, for Rava, it was as simple as walking through an open door.

  The creature revealed itself as Rava stepped closer, its massive form slithering out of the tall grass with an uling fluidity. The creature was a monstrous tipede, its segmented body stretg three wagohs. Its height was imposing, rising to half of Rava's own stature, with each segment pted in dark, chitinous armor that shimmered faintly with a celestial glow. The surface of its body seemed alive, tiny threads of aetheriergy trag patterns that shifted and flickered like starlight against a night sky.

  Its head was broad and vaguely triangur, bearing five gleaming bck eyes that seemed to drink in the light, leaving none reflected. The eyes pulsed with an eerie, rhythmic glow, as though marking the beat of an alie. Its jagged mandibles, serrated and sharp enough to cut through steel, clicked in a rhythm that matched the pulse of its eyes.

  The giant is legs—hundreds of them—moved with a grace that defied its size, eae ending in a hooked cw that left gouges in the dirt as it shifted its position. The tail tapered into a wicked stinger, glowing faintly with aetheriergy, and oised like a scorpion’s, ready to strike.

  Its mere presence distorted the air, a faint haze of dusk aether trailing behind it like smoke. Around its body, the faint sounds of whispers could be heard, as if the creature’s energy was resonating with fragments of fotten voices, a haunting effect that only added to its menace.

  Rava’s eyes narrowed, her stance widening as she prepared to engage. “A duskharrow. This will be easy,” she said with a smirk.

  Rava’s smirk deepened as the Duskharrow tensed, its segmented body coiling slightly as if preparing to strike. It moved with a deceptive speed, its mass rippling as the stinger shed out like a whip. Rava sidestepped smoothly, the stinger’s sharp tip slig through the air where she had just been, sending a faint hum reverberating through the clearing.

  “Fast for something so big,” Rava muttered, her gaus sparking with barely restrained energy. She unched forward, closing the gap in a single bound. Her fist arced upward in a thunderous uppercut aimed at the beast’s midse.

  The blow nded with a resounding crack, sparks aheriergy erupting upon impact. The Duskharrow’s armored pting absorbed most of the force, but the beast recoiled, segments rippling in a wave as it skittered backward.

  It responded instantly, its mandibles clig violently as it surged fain, legs scrambling across the ground with terrifying precision. Its tail swung around in a broad arc, f Rava to duck low. Even as she did, the creature twisted unnaturally, its agility belying its size, and lunged with its mandibles.

  Rava brought her arms up, her gaus catg the razor-sharp mandibles mid-snap. Sparks flew as she held them back, her muscles straining briefly before she twisted her wrists, f the beast’s head to the side. She pnted a solid kick to one of its legs, sending it staggering again.

  The Duskharrow loomed over Rava, its full height casting a twisted shadow in the flickering light of the campfire. Its legs unfurled like jagged spears, its stiwitg above its body, ready to plunge downward at any moment.

  Rava didn’t falter. She pnted her feet firmly, her gaus glowing brighter as the tempestous energy c through them hummed in anticipation. “You want to py tall? Fine by me,” she muttered, croug slightly, muscles coiling like a spring.

  The Duskharrow struck first. Its stinger shed out with incredible speed, the faint hum of aetheriergy surrounding it as it aimed directly for Rava’s head. She twisted her body at the st sed, the stinger narrowly missing her as she pivoted around its bulk. With a sharp inhale, she leapt upward, aiming a powerful punch at the underside of its exposed torso.

  The blow nded with a thunderous crack. Sparks aial energy erupted on impact, and the Duskharrow screeched in pain, its segmented body vulsing violently. It swayed but didn’t fall, its numerous legs digging into the ground for stability.

  “Still standing, huh?” Rava taunted, a smirk pying on her lips. “Let’s see how long that sts.”

  The Duskharrow retaliated, twisting its body in an unnervingly fluid motion. Its tail came around in a broad sweep, f Rava to dud roll to avoid being struck. As she came up, the creature followed with a lunge from its mandibles, the sharp edges glinting in the dim light.

  Rava braced herself, catg the mandibles in her gaus once again. This time, the force was greater, pushing her back several steps. Her boots dug furrows in the dirt as she gritted her teeth and shoved upward, f the beast’s head away with a grunt of effort.

  Ihe ward, Vivieched the exge with barely taiement, her tail flig eagerly behind her. “You know,” she drawled, “you’re really dragging this out. I’d have had it half-eaten by now.”

  “Stay out of it!” Rava barked, not taking her eyes off the Duskharrow.

  “But I’m so hungry.” Whined Vivieh a pout.

  “You’d rather eat that bug thaew that you made?” Asked Kivvy in disbelief.

  Vivieurned her head toward Kivvy, her bck eyes glinting mischievously in the firelight. "Oh, absolutely," she said, her voice dripping with mock reverence. "You see, Kivvy, stew is sustenance, yes. But aetherbeast? That’s a feast, an experience, a delicacy of chaos and magic all ed up in chy legs and squishy insides."

  Kivvy gagged, clutg her half-empty bowl protectively. "That’s... revolting."

  Vivie out a ugh, her tail curling zily behind her. "Don’t knock it till you’ve tried it. Though I doubt you could ha—takes a refined pate." She licked her lips for effect, tasting the air like a predator anticipating its prey.

  Outside the barrier, Rava shot them both a gre. "Could you not? Some of us are trying to stay focused here!" she called, her voice strained as she sidestepped another swipe of the Duskharrow’s cwed legs.

  "You're doing fine, darling!" Vivienne called back cheerily, resting her on her hands as though watg a casual sparring match. "But maybe hurry it up? My stomach’s growling louder than that thing is."

  Rava growled in frustration, her gaus sparking as she delivered another punishing blow to the Duskharrow’s side. The impact sent a ripple of energy through the creature’s carapace, earning a guttural screech that echoed through the night.

  Kivvy scooted closer to the campfire, her eyes flig nervously between the ongoing battle and Vivienne, who seemed pletely at ease in her sitting position. “You’re really okay just... watg?” Kivvy asked, her voice filled with a mix of disbelief and . She looked over at the flickering shadows of the fight and then back at Vivienne, unsure whether to feel forted or unnerved by her calm demeanor.

  Vivienne yawned dramatically, her sharp teeth fshing for a moment in the firelight. “Not really," she replied with a zy stretch. "My instincts wao hunt, to earn my kill, but I have enough trol to know dismantling the ward would put us in danger.” She settled ba her hands, her eyes gleaming with an uling mix of curiosity and disi. Her tail flicked slowly behind her, almost nguidly. "I’m not some... mindless beast. I know when to wait."

  “Oh.” Kivvy blinked, processing the response. She hesitated before adding, “That is a more thoughtful ahan I was expeg.”

  Vivienne quirked a brow at Kivvy, a small, knowing smile tugging at the ers of her lips. “What? Do you think I am all cws, teeth, and violence?” Her voice carried a teasing edge, as though she were genuinely amused at the idea. She straightened slightly, cog her head as she studied Kivvy with an amused glint in her bck eyes.

  Kivvy didn’t immediately respond. Instead, she sidelong stared at Viviehe nervousness still evident in her expression, but now mixed with something more skeptical. "Well, yeah,” Kivvy said, her voice quieter now but still tinged with the disbelief of someone who had seen too much. “Especially after that stuff you did in that underground fortress.” She paused for a moment, recalling the violend chaos Vivienne had unleashed. “That... retty intense,” she added, as if the memory was still lingering uneasily in her mind.

  Vivienne shrugged, the motion casual as if the question had little weight to it. “I guess? In hindsight, what I did is something I would have been horrified to even hear of.” She let out a dark chuckle, her eyes glinting with an almost amused detat. “It’s strange how much I crave violenow.” Her voice lowered slightly, as if p the shift in herself, a tinge of something darker lurkih the nonce.

  Kivvy blinked, clearly fused. “Now?” she asked, her voice a mix of curiosity and . “Were you not always like…” She gestured vaguely at Vivienne’s body, her hands waving as if trying to enpass the ey of her imposing, somewhat intimidating form.

  Vivienne shook her head, her long bck hair swaying slightly with the motion. “No, no. I used to be taller, for one.” Her tone was almost dismissive, as if her height had been an insignifit detail that she now simply shrugged off.

  Kivvy, however, wasn’t satisfied with this answer. “You are a shapeshifter,” she pointed out, her toinged with a bit of impatience, but also a hint of wonder. “You just choose to be taller. I’ve seen it even!” She was now speaking more matter-of-factly, clearly believing she uood the nature of Vivieransformations.

  Vivienne chuckled melodiously, a soft ugh esg her lips. “I suppose,” she agreed with an almost teasing tohough this shape I take is what I sider my... well, prime form as my sort of default.” She lifted one hand, gesturing toward her current body, but there was a subtle sadness in her eyes, almost imperceptible. “I wasn’t always,” she said slowly, her back still turo the distant battle between Rava and the duskharrow, “this.”

  Kivvy’s brow furrowed in genuine curiosity, her nervous energy dissipating for the moment. “What were you before?” she asked, her voice softer now, almost as if she had stumbled upon something more personal than she’d intehere was no judgment ione, only the unfiltered curiosity of someorying to piece together a puzzle, but the question hung in the air, heavy with the possibility of a deeper truth.

  Vivieurned her head slightly, her expression momentarily distant, as though she were slipping into some far-off memory. Her bck eyes flickered briefly, a quiet storm of emotions dang behind them, before she refocused otle before her. There ause—long enough to make Kivvy wonder if Vivienne would say anything at all—before she spoke, her voice softer, but yered with an ued gravity.

  “Human,” Vivienne said, almost as though testing the word oongue, a faint trace of bitterness g her voice. “In a faraway nd. So very far away.”

  Her tone was ft, yet there was an undercurrent of something deeper—loss, perhaps, ret. She wasn’t looking at Kivvy now; her gaze was fixed oruggle unfolding before them, but there was a noticeable tighto her posture, the slight rigidity of her shoulders betraying a vulnerability she rarely allowed to surface.

  Kivvy, sensing the heaviness of the moment, didn’t immediately respond. She simply watched, her wide eyes flig between Vivienne and the distant battle. For a while, the only sound was the soft crag of the fire and the distant, eg screech of the duskharrow. The air between them felt thick, like a weight ressing dow her of them was in any rush to break the silence.

  Vivienne’s voice, when it came, was quieter than before, as if she were speaking more to herself than anyone else. “I miss my kids.” The words hung in the air for a long moment, and there was a vulnerability ihat felt almost fn ing from the usually fident Vivienne.

  Kivvy blinked, caught off guard by the sudden shift in tone. “You miss your kids?” she repeated, her voice barely above a whisper.

  Vivieurned her gaze from the fight, her eyes distant as she stared into the fire. “Yeah. I had two. A son and a daughter.” She exhaled a soft breath, as if the very mention of them carried a weight she hadn’t quite been prepared to carry. “I had oh my first wife, and a few years after we divorced, I found a wonderful man. He was a single parent, too. So, we kind of just... became this blended family.” She smiled a little, but there was no joy in it—only a bittersweet nostalgia.

  “It was... it was everything,” Vivienne tinued, her voice lower now, ced with emotion. “Two little wonders, both with their own worlds and ways of seeing things. It was never easy, of course, but it was life. It was home.”

  Her eyes gzed over slightly, as if lost in a memory that she couldn't quite pull back from the depths. “I miss hearing their voices. The way they would argue over the silliest things, but still have each other's backs in the end. They were a force to be reed with when united, and heaven help anyone who tried to e between them. Getting divorced was so worth it in the end.”

  “You got divorced? Did one of you it a crime?” Kivvy asked, her tone sdalized as if the cept itself was entirely alien.

  Vivienne barked out a ugh, sharp but genuine. “Ha, no! Nothing quite so dramatic. After I… after I revealed something about myself, my wife at the time decided she very much didn’t like that. She didn’t want anything to do with me—or our little Lu. So she left, took half of everything we owned, and I never heard from her again.” Her tone grew slightly bitter. “She never even tried to talk to her own child. Just... disappeared.”

  Kivvy’s brow furrowed, her head tilting like a curious bird. “But doesn’t divorly happen when one of you its a crime?” she pressed, clearly struggling to recile Vivienne’s story with her own uanding of retionships.

  Vivienne’s ughter softened into a chuckle, her tail swaying zily behind her. “That soureme. Back where I’m from, something like fifty pert of marriages end in divorce. It’s just... life, really. People ge, groart. It’s usually not a huge sdal.”

  Kivvy’s expression remained skeptical, but she said nothing. Vivienne leaned back, stretg slightly as if shaking off the weight of the memory. “Four years ter, I ended up getting remarried to a wonderful man with his own little daughter, Sarah. She was only a year older than Lu, and those two got along like a house on fire. On one occasion, almost literally.”

  Kivvy blinked, her curiosity piqued. “What do you mean, ‘almost literally’?”

  Vivienne grihe edges of her sharp teeth catg the firelight. “Oh, they thought it would be a great idea to create a ‘magic ritual’ in the backyard. Sarah borrowed some dles from the dining room, Lu brought the inse from my old meditatio, and the hing we khe garden shed was missing half a wall. They were fihank goodness—but I don’t think I’ve ever seen James run so fast.”

  Despite herself, Kivvy giggled at the mental image. “Sounds like they were a handful.”

  Vivienne’s smile softened, her gaze distant once more. “They were. But they were worth every moment.”

  Kivvy giggled at the image, though her curiosity still lingered. “And this wonderful man you married—he must’ve been something special, taking on another person’s child like that.”

  Vivienne’s smile grew softer, her tail curling slightly at her side. “James. He was kind, patient, and had this way of making you feel like the most important person in the world, even when life was throwing everything it had at us. He loved both kids like they were his own. We became a family—messy, chaotic, but ours. Those were some of the happiest years of my life.”

  Kivvy hesitated, her expression caught between awe and sadness. “What happeo them?”

  Vivienne sighed. “Nothing, I hope. Something happeo me.”

  Before Kivvy could ask another question, a thunderous sound echoed in the night, a deep, resonant boom that seemed to shake the very air.

  SupernovaSymphony