Leo sprinted at full speed, leading Gala and Astraea closer to where they believed Luna was. They had reached the bottom of the ravine, assuming Luna had fallen due to the last set of footprints leading in that direction.
But Leo could no longer pick up a trail. He stood still, seemingly confused.
"Come on, Leo, try a little harder," Gala said gently, stroking his head.
Leo couldn't go on. The long trek downhill had dulled his sense of smell. Eventually, they decided to split up.
Astraea grew more anxious by the minute, fearing something terrible had happened to her sister. She kept calling out for Luna, her voice laced with desperation.
Meanwhile, Gala relied on her tracking ability. She and Leo searched high and low for any clues, imagining the worst—what if Luna really had fallen into the ravine?
After searching for quite some time, Gala noticed someone floating in the river. She rushed over, and near the water's edge, she saw Leo howling in that direction. Her heart sank—it had to be Luna. But she was unconscious.
Without a second thought, Gala dove into the river and pulled Luna to shore. The moment she saw Luna's face—wrinkled and pale—she froze. She had no idea how she would explain this to Astraea. Even worse, she knew exactly who was responsible for Luna's death: Kali.
...
"As!" Gala called from afar. Astraea was still frantically searching.
With a heavy heart, Gala broke the news: Luna hadn't survived. She found her body drifting in the river and laid her down by the riverbank. She wanted Astraea to see her one last time before they buried her.
The sight of Luna's lifeless body brought Astraea to her knees. Her tears came in heavy sobs. After seven years apart, her sister had finally returned—only to leave again, without even saying goodbye.
"Gala… are you sure Kali did this?" Astraea asked, needing confirmation.
"Judging by the condition of her body, I'm certain. Kali drained Luna's power—her goal has always been to take the strength from you and your siblings," Gala explained.
"But why? What does she want with our powers?" Astraea pressed.
"It's called the Sevenfold Might. Whoever obtains the power of the seven siblings descended from Elyriana and Eiron will become invincible."
Astraea wanted to ask more—about her parents, their history, and the power Gala spoke of. But for now, burying her sister took priority.
She wouldn't let herself drown in grief. But as she recalled her last battle with Kali—how badly she was injured—and now, knowing Kali had killed Luna, her anger began to burn.
Gala saw the fury building in Astraea's face. She gently pulled her into a hug, trying to soothe her and keep her from doing anything reckless.
"I need to go," Astraea suddenly said.
"Where to?" Gala asked.
"Everia. I need to avenge my sister."
"I understand. But not now. You're not fully healed yet. You need to be prepared before you face Kali again—you know how powerful she is."
Astraea looked at her with a faint smile. "That's exactly why you're here. You're going to train me."
Gala was touched. No one had ever asked to be trained by her. She used to be mocked for her reckless fighting style. But thanks to personal training with Dr. Thrain, she'd improved significantly—enough to be trusted as the Guardian of Tenebrous. That's why she was the first to meet Nimora when she set out for Mythren.
Astraea had powerful magic, but she knew the magic wouldn't be enough. She needed Gala to teach her hand-to-hand combat. Weapon training, too—so she could defend herself when her powers were locked, something Kali could do.
As the two of them spoke near Luna's grave, a brown-haired woman watched them silently from behind the trees—then disappeared.
•••
Back at the Neo-Lab, Nimora and the others had been waiting late into the night. Eira still hadn't returned.
"Nim, I really want to know what happened out there," Arthur said.
"I've told you over and over—she told me to leave first, and that she'd catch up," Nimora replied, clearly irritated by the repeated questions.
"But it's been hours," Rylan chimed in. "Shouldn't we just leave her?"
"No! We're a team. We're not leaving without her," Arthur argued firmly.
Just then, a knock came at the door. They hesitated—it might not be Eira. Nimora went to open it, while the others stood ready in case it was an enemy.
As soon as she opened the door, Eira collapsed into her arms. She was barely conscious. What shocked Nimora most was that part of Eira's right arm was missing, hastily wrapped in cloth, but still dripping blood.
"GUYS! IT'S EIRA!" Nimora shouted.
"What the hell happened to her?!" Rowan gasped.
"I don't know—we need to operate now," said Nimora.
"There's a medical room on the second floor—I'll take her," Arthur offered, rushing over. Rylan helped carry Eira's limp body.
"Keep her arm elevated! We can't let her bleed out!"
...
Thanks to Nimora's medical knowledge, they managed to save Eira, though she was still dangerously weak from blood loss.
But it wasn't just medicine that helped. Nimora was gifted—able to use healing magic. That rare gift had saved Eira from the brink of death.
Eira was still unconscious. Which meant they couldn't continue their journey that night. They had to wait until morning and hope she'd wake up.
The next day, Rowan saw Eira stir awake and called the others. They quickly gathered around to find out what had happened.
"I killed that damn demon," Eira said, her voice faint.
"Who? Vespera? Aethonia?" asked Nimora.
"Vespera. I didn't get a chance to finish off Aethonia—she's too strong. But she couldn't bring Vespera back… not after I hacked her into pieces," Eira said coldly.
"Whoa. I didn't know you were that badass," Rowan said.
Eira chuckled at the praise. Still, she didn't feel like she deserved it. Aethonia was still out there—and had promised to hunt them down, no matter where they went.