Leiya stood by the narrow window, watching the edge of dawn crack through the skies.
The city, though never truly quiet, was calmer at this early hour. The distant clatter and voices blended into something gentle.
It almost reminded her of the Fallen Kingdom, of mornings that felt just like this.
Her fingers brushed the folded parchment tucked away in her bag.
"Xerxes," she muttered under her breath.
She reflected on the letter. She remembered every word. The knowledge he had gained from Luminaria's sanctuary and his final words he wrote.
'Live freely', he had written.
As if freedom were something I could simply choose now.
She sighed aloud, 'He's a fool if he thinks writing it makes it true. Even if freedom were possible for me, what would I do with it? Wander? Drift? Try and enact my original goal of going to the outside world?'
She placed a few more items into her bag, preparing for what she had planned next. Perhaps this was her way of moving forward, despite that one thing that continued to gnaw at her.
The hypocrisy.
How could she take his words seriously when he wasn't free himself? He had admitted as much. She recalled a conversation she and Xerxes had in the Fallen Kingdom.
It was whether or not Xerxes could carve his own destiny, and Leiya thought it was useless to think on some abstract concepts like that.
Ones that someone couldn't control.
But she found herself spending a lot more time grounded in those concepts.
Her jaw tightened as her thoughts returned to that moment — the one she hadn't been able to overcome. The sorrow on his face when he refused to tell her the truth. His reason. His excuse. Whatever it was that stopped him from saving everyone in the Fallen Kingdom.
She hated that he had spent those months pretending everything would be fine.
Distracted in her thoughts, she didn't notice the knob of the door turning, but when she did, the presence hit her like cold water.
"Leiya?" Airi called.
It had been months since she heard her voice, it had changed. Less gentle. More certain.
Though she didn't turn. "Why are you here?" she asked flatly. Then, after a pause, she added, "And where is Xerxes?"
She brushed her hair back behind her ear out of habit, revealing the crescent-shaped moon earrings Xerxes had obtained for her birthday, and turned towards them both.
Airi and Thornfum both swallowed.
Airi hadn't expected such bluntness. She remembered Leiya as warmer, as an open book. But this version felt guarded.
Thornfum, on the other hand, was distracted by something far more pressing.
'By the gods… she's a stunner, a woman amongst women. Am I fallin' in love? Is this it?'
He puffed out his chest and cleared his throat. He lowered his voice, as if it made him more imposing. "Ahem. Xerxes is at the interpass. He sent us here. For you, actually."
Airi nodded quickly. "I know you only want honesty, Leiya. So I will be. That is why we are here, we need your help."
Leiya turned away, as though she were expecting something else to be said, and resumed packing her bag. She kept her face hidden from them.
"Why should I offer a hand, Airi?" she replied quietly. "I don't need him as another burden in my life."
And that will only happen if I keep him close. The thought was sharp and unwelcome. Shutting myself off, the loneliness… It's the only way I keep my emotions in check, isn't it? That way, I don't have to be reminded of what happened.
She sighed and spoke aloud, "It would destroy me."
Airi hesitated. She'd expected resistance, but not this certainty.
"But things are bad," Airi said, trying to reason. "Things are really bad. He's fighting out there, and there's no one else he can rely on like he can you, Leiya."
She fluttered closer, gesturing towards Thornfum. "He sent Thornfum and I all the way back to Baratheon on the small chance that you would come. He's praying for that very request."
Leiya's voice wavered with anger and guilt. "Why does he have to rely on me? Why should I put myself through more turmoil, after everything I've endured, Airi? I want to prioritise myself again, it's… easier that way."
She swallowed. "Maybe he should have done the same. That way, he won't get so disappointed when no one comes."
The silence that followed was heavy; it almost acted like a pressure that weighed down on Airi.
"If that's all," Leiya said at last, "then please leave me alone."
Airi's wings slowed, drooping slightly. She motioned for Thornfum to step outside.
He hesitated, glanced back at Leiya once more, then reluctantly complied, closing the door behind him.
The door closed with a thud.
"So…" Leiya said, her voice level.
Airi flew closer to Leiya, landing on her shoulder. Her expression sharpened, and she exclaimed, "This isn't about fighting for or with Xerxes, it's for a greater cause. There's someone out there slaughtering a tribe of people called the Gem'rafh. Xerxes is trying to preserve what little future they have left."
She leaned in, her voice lower now. "I've never been good with speeches. But can you really let it fall apart? Do you truly not care?"
Leiya lingered for a moment and whispered, "Of course I care…"
The declaration forced Airi to step back, but she was making progress, and she needed to press on further.
"Then why won't you go?" Airi asked softly. "You're not selfish. You never have been. You wouldn't abandon people who need help — Xerxes or the Gem'rafh. So what is it?"
Leiya clenched her fists to stop them from trembling. "He didn't tell me!"
Airi felt a dull ache of recognition; she knew from that day when she left, it was what hurt her the most.
"If he'd told me that day, I could have accepted it. But he chose silence. I want to know, Airi. I want to know what was so important that he shattered what we had left."
She exhaled and then stated, "Because if we don't have trust, then what do we have?"
Leiya's words made perfect sense. Trust was the foundation of any bond, and it wasn't a gesture, but a form of surrendering.
To trust someone was to hand them access to your emotions, and to place confidence not only in their strength, but in the choices they made.
After a long moment, Airi spoke. "If I tell you part of it… will you come?"
Leiya turned slowly to face her.
"I don't have the right to explain everything," Airi continued. "But you deserve to ask him yourself."
Leiya nodded.
Airi started, "It was when he reached tier 5. I don't know how it works, but he can go into his soul core, and when he was there, he received a message."
"'Leave the Fallen Kingdom with Leiya if you wish to survive.'" Airi repeated.
"But he ignored the message; he thought that everything would be fine. The voice also ordered him not to tell anyone, but because Xerxes and I share consciousness to a degree, I was able to know. So I hope sharing this won't affect destiny."
Leiya's mind began racing with questions, but she repeated, "He was ordered not to?"
She gritted her teeth. "That fool, he… he talks about conquering destiny, mastering his own fate, but he listened when he was told to stay silent…"
Airi frowned. "He didn't listen because he believed it was right. He listened because he was afraid."
Leiya's expression tightened. "Afraid of what?"
She sighed. "Isn't it obvious, Leiya, he's afraid of losing you!"
The words struck Leiya deeply, and she lingered for a moment.
Airi relived Xerxes' emotions and shuddered. "He didn't want you to know, so you wouldn't ever have to make any of the decisions he had to make. He couldn't afford for you to take on that burden."
Leiya's expression faltered, and the resolute face she was putting on began to crack.
"That wasn't his choice to make."
Airi saw Leiya starting to break.
Originally, Airi thought it was simply the silence that hurt Leiya. But it wasn't. Leiya saw trust in two ways.
Obviously, one way was speaking the truth and not holding it back, but the second was trusting one another with burdens, problems, whatever it may be.
Airi replied, "I know. He never forgave himself for that. He's had sleepless nights, drowning in a sea of guilt for potentially having the chance to save everyone.
Silence settled again, heavier this time. Leiya didn't immediately notice, but her breathing began to quicken, shallow and irregular. Only when her chest tightened did she realise she was looking around the room as if searching for something missing.
Slowly, her mind trailed back to the sorrow on his face all the way back then.
The way he had been acting...pulling away. Putting distance between them subtly.
Was it because of me?
His talk of destiny. Of carving his own fate. The way she dismissed it, calling it trivial. Had that made him doubt himself? Or worse, had it made him doubt her.
Leiya squeezed her eyes shut, thoughts tumbling over one another.
Maybe when we had that conversation, if I'd encouraged him...if i'd believed in it too...would he have been able to trust me more?
The answer she was given wasn't born out of clarity but out of resolve.
"If I don't do this," she said quietly, "then I'm only deceiving myself. I want to help people, and this is the chance I have." Her voice wavered, but she didn't stop.
"And I need to know the truth. I need to hear it from Xerxes. I can't just walk away and wonder what would've happened."
Leiya reached for her bag, gripping it tightly, "This doesn't mean the past disappears, Airi. It doesn't mean I forgive everything. I'm not doing this for destiny, or fate, or whatever name people give it."
Her head lifted. "I'm doing it so I know where I stand."
Airi's wings folded closer to her body. "Then stand with him. Not because he's right, but because he's trying, even when he's wrong."
Leiya finally stopped, picked up her bag, and put it on.
"When this is over, he can start by trusting me."
Airi nodded. "I think… he'd want that more than anything right now."
Airi and Leiya both left the room, and Thornfum immediately sprang up. "Are we in business?"
Leiya peered at him. "Airi, who's this guy?"
Thornfum felt a sharp pain run through his chest as he held it tightly. "That stings… But if ya' should know, I'm Thornfum Furdia, the one who will become the greatest craftsman the world will ever see. I've already succeeded in becoming the strongest and the bravest, so if you need anything beautiful, rely on me."
He finished his remarks with a wink, but Leiya scowled and walked forward.
Thornfum quickly caught up, and before leaving the church, Leiya said, "I need to speak with one more person."
They agreed, and the two waited outside whilst Leiya made her way to one last person.
The saint of the church.
Leiya stepped into the courtyard quietly.
Saint Nikola was kneeling beside a bed of pale flowers, her sleeves rolled back slightly as she tended to them with slow, deliberate care. The scent of damp soil and winter air lingered between them.
"I'm leaving," Leiya said.
Saint Nikola didn't turn immediately. She continued watering the roots, letting the silence stretch just long enough to feel intentional.
"If that is your will," she said at last, "then who am I to stand in its way?"
Leiya frowned faintly. She had expected resistance. Questions. At the very least, disappointment.
"You're not asking why?"
Saint Nikola rose slowly and faced her. Beneath the layers of white cloth, her posture was straight. "People who know why they are leaving rarely need permission," she replied gently. "And those who don't are not yet ready to go."
Leiya's jaw tightened. "I thought staying here would help. I thought the solace would make things clearer to me."
"And did it?" the saint asked.
Leiya hesitated. Then shook her head. "I'm sorry, Saint Nikola, but it only made me sit with my anger, my regrets and sadness."
Saint Nikola smiled faintly. "That is still clarity."
She stepped closer, her voice low. "Many come here seeking light. Others come seeking refuge. Few come seeking themselves."
Leiya looked away. "I don't want to hide anymore." She admitted.
"Then do not," Saint Nikola said simply. "But understand this, leaving does not mean the pain stays behind. It only means you choose where to carry it."
Leiya swallowed.
"This Xerxes Draedon," the saint said, her tone curious rather than knowing, "he weighs heavily on you."
Leiya scoffed softly. "He has a habit of deciding things alone."
"A dangerous habit," Saint Nikola agreed. "But not an uncommon one among those who believe they must protect the world."
Leiya's eyes flickered. "Even if he acts so nobly, I'm not sure I can forgive him."
"I would be concerned if you did so easily," the saint replied. "Forgiveness is not a prerequisite for walking forward. Understanding is."
Leiya took a steady breath. "I need to hear the truth from him. Not letters. Not silence."
Saint Nikola nodded. "Then go. Ask. Demand, if you must."
She placed a gentle hand over Leiya's clenched fist. "But remember, truth is not always kind. It is only honest."
Leiya met her gaze. "I can live with that."
And she was living with that. The world she knew was absent from her family and home. In this new world, she needed to learn how to adapt and live again.
A quiet approval passed between them.
Saint Nikola stepped back. "Then may the steps you take be deliberate, and your heart remain your own."
Leiya inclined her head. "Thank you… for not asking me to stay."
The saint smiled. "Those who are meant to return will. Those who are not… were never lost."
Nikola then crouched once more by the flowerbed, a smile appearing on her face as she gazed at the flowers that were flourishing with life.
Leiya turned and walked away.
"Goodbye, Saint, I'll repay you one day."