Somewhere far from the chaos of the dreamscape, deeper than the waking mind could reach, a quiet illusion held strong.
Not a battlefield, nor a nightmare, just a memory, too warm to question.
Aurus stood still in the soft sunlight, the breeze brushing over him like an old friend. Around him, the others moved as they always had.
Darwin laughed as he lobbed a wooden ball toward Mahvindra, who caught it with a calm ease, four arms folded into grace.
Lloyd sat beneath a swaying tree, muttering to himself as he scribbled onto a scroll, stopping only to glance up with disapproval.
"We're off schedule. Again."
Sylphera rested nearby, her staff across her lap, head tilted back slightly. Her pale eyes didn't see the sky, but her lips moved as if she listened to something deeper.
The foxkin flicked her tail, flipping Aurus's coin pouch in one hand while wagging a teasing grin in his direction.
"Penalty fee's gone up," she said. "You're behind by at least a week of jokes."
