Fate Weaver's convergence

C85 Winters Crescendo 4

Crash!!!

How could I be so damn distracted?

And that brings us to the present, healers rushing to Beryl to mend any wounds wrought by the Wyvern. Myself, barely breaking away from the fear and anxiety that still grasped me. And Vaughn, who was just now forcing himself from the small crowd of healers out of spite.

Beryl. Vaughn. They're not going to say anything.

The two took hit after hit trying to maintain the spacing I asked for. Each attempt to strike back was thwarted by our own consideration of each other's position. The very real fear of them being injured outside my reach and outside the insurance of the healers was eating away at my reason, controlling my ability to coordinate with them.

They're trying, so hard... to simply give me my peace of mind.

I glanced between each of them, then to my hand.

Come on, stop trembling, damnit! Stop!

My hand steadied with each beat of my heart.

That dream wasn't mine! It's just what it was, a dream! This fear isn't mine!

I had been shaking throughout the entire confrontation, even more so when I felt a strange need to shield the other two. A foreign intent to protect the others no matter what, which I couldn't do past sword length. The only reason I could bring myself to accept it, was that the dream had imprinted Kiyomi's fear onto me. I wasn't going to let that hold us back, not when this would result in a better future. A future for the girl whose life I'm robbing.

Not by choice, but through fate. I will use this second chance to be better!

This fear...

I looked at the wyvern as it circled, careful not to turn my back on the cornered beast. The concept would be laughable given I'm the one cut off from my team. But this monster knows it can't escape this place, so it has nothing to lose.

Your fear isn't mine, Kiyomi. We have no need for it, not when we're this strong! Be steady, girl!

My grip grew evermore firm.

While I temper these hands!

I gulped audibly, sweat beading down my brow as I opened my mouth to breathe easier. In the next moment, the wyvern lurched forward as if to cut my moment of reprieve away from my grasp. Its massive weight flew through the air at me. Had it been heavier, I would have been able to redirect it. But as it stood, from earlier discovery, my weight does not very well back up my strength. I don't have the leverage to wrestle a beast to the ground when I simply lift myself instead. I thought through my options as mana flowed through Wyrms-Tooth, taking its signature hue. The wyvern's scales glowed intermittently with a teal hue, humming to life just as I swung Wyrms tooth in an attempt to trade blows.

It can use mana-break just like the wolverine!

Mana swirled where the blade contacted its underside, the flow of mana being output insufficient to pierce the Wyvern's own. I rolled to its left hips flank, kicking back off the ground to keep up momentum outside of the roll.

"Kiyomi!"

Vaughn yelled from across the arena, grabbing my attention. His clothes looked worse for wear, his hair ruffled and dust sticking to him.

"We have to take it down with individual blows! There's no coordinating strikes on this one! Not with the space we have!"

For the first time, one of the two spoke up about the plan.