Teaser:Not all monsters are born in darkness. Some are simply caged there.
The mist had lifted, but the forest still held its breath.
Rika, Mizu, and Sayos walked cautiously through the broken trees. The battle with the Hydra had left their bodies sore, but their minds alert. Something still lingered—something strange.
"Sayos," Rika said, brushing ash off her arm, "you heard something, didn't you?"
The blond-haired boy adjusted his scarf. "Yeah. South of here. Metal clanking… and a low growl. Caged, maybe."
"Let's check it," Mizu replied, still feeling the weight of the earlier fight in his limbs. The flame in him had quieted—but not gone.
They found it near the cliffs: a broken caravan, torn banners, and a rusted iron cage hidden beneath fallen branches.
Inside, a white wolf. Thin. Chained. Its eyes glowed faintly, more intelligent than wild.
"It's alive," Sayos whispered. "Barely."
Rika stepped forward. "This was a circus transport. They left her here to rot."
"Lucy…" Mizu murmured, not knowing where the name came from. But it felt right. "Her name is Lucy."
"Let's get her out."
Sayos pulled at the hinges, while Rika melted the lock with a focused flame. Mizu approached the cage, the blue crystal around his neck beginning to shimmer.
Lucy growled at first—then stopped. She looked into his eyes.
Mizu reached through the bars, touching the chain. A soft pulse of blue energy ran through it—and the enchantment broke.
Lucy collapsed into his arms, breathing but exhausted. She didn't fight. She didn't run.
Later, by the river, Lucy rested near the fire while Rika bandaged a scratch on Sayos' arm.
"She could've fled," Rika said softly, "but she didn't."
"Maybe she knew," Sayos replied. "That we're not her enemies."
Mizu sat nearby, stroking Lucy's fur. "Or maybe… she's like us. Caught in something bigger. Something she doesn't understand."
"She's one of us now," Rika said, smiling for the first time in days.
The flame and the wind had made room for something new.
A bond.
End of Chapter 3