"Everyone—be ready," Nycto said, his voice sharp.
Tomoe's grip tightened on her blade. "The Veilfang?"
Nycto's gaze flicked past the trees. "Yes… but someone else. Human."
A figure slipped from the shadows, boots silent on the wet earth. Brown hair, early twenties, a crooked smirk. His eyes burned with sleepless madness, twitching with the raw energy of someone who had eaten too little food—or far too many strange mushrooms.
His stare locked onto Al-Haitham.
"You," he said, voice ragged with obsession. "You put that arrow in my dragon."
Before anyone could react, he lunged.
Lena's body moved on instinct — both feet slammed into Alex's chest, knocking him back.
Tomoe darted in, fists swinging, but Alex twisted aside with inhuman reflex. Nycto's twin katanas flashed — Alex dropped low, sliding under the strike.
He sprang upward, leaping into the trees, his body bounding between branches with predator grace. Bark cracked and leaves rained down as he vanished into the canopy.
Tomoe didn't hesitate — she jumped after him, steel and shadow clashing high above.
Nycto started forward—
A roar split the air.
The Veilfang burst from the undergrowth, its emerald eyes blazing, claws raking down. It didn't lunge like a beast — it folded forward, its limbs bending wrong, flowing from shadow to shadow as if the jungle itself had given it shape.
Nycto's blades came up just in time, the impact shuddering through his arms. Steel met claw, sparks flying.
Above, Tomoe and Alex tore through the branches, their fight rattling the treetops.
Below, Nycto locked eyes with the Veilfang, their breaths steaming in the damp morning air.
Behind them, Lena and Al-Haitham stood frozen between two battles — and the jungle whispered, promising a third.