Khione's pseudo-domain had evolved. Her original Frozen World was no longer just a field of cold. It was a space where she could unmake anything, reduce matter to its simplest components. It drained her, yes. But she would grow stronger. She would learn to sustain it longer, to use it more efficiently.
She looked at the frozen corpses, at the shattered totems, at the ice phoenix's fading light. She couldn't help but smile, time to return and rest before meeting him, soon she would reach the next realm and be closer to him.
The afternoon had softened into early evening, the sun low and golden. Nero walked toward his dorm, hands in his pockets, thoughts drifting. The silence with Lux had been good. The whiskey still warmed his chest. He was looking forward to seeing Khione later.
Then footsteps behind him.
"Nero."
He turned. Lux stood a few paces back, his hands in his jacket pockets, his expression unreadable.
"I thought you were heading to your room," Nero said.
