We had been hunting together for weeks now. The rhythm was familiar: I'd strike from range, Menoly would soak a charge, and Loly—furious and precise—would finish with a raking slash to the throat or mask.
It worked. Efficiently.
But there was still silence between us. No laughter. No names spoken. Just nods and grunts.
That changed the day Menoly took a Cero to the chest.
We were ambushed—four Adjuchas, working as a pack. One of them faked retreat, and Menoly went after it. That's when the blast hit her from behind, point-blank. Her body was sent crashing through two quartz trees.
"Menoly!" Loly shouted—a real scream. Raw, panicked.
I didn't hesitate. I bolted after her, Cero charging in one hand, dagger in the other.
The fight was fast and ugly. Loly and I fought back to back, no hesitation. We didn't talk—we moved on instinct, covering each other's blind spots. When the last attacker fell, gasping under my blade, we both turned to Menoly.
She was alive. Barely.
I knelt beside her and activated my Regeneration aura—low-grade but steady.
Loly didn't speak for a long while. Then she muttered, "You didn't have to save her."
"I wanted to."
She didn't argue after that.
[Bond Progressed: Loly Aivirrne – Wary → Guarded Trust]
[Bond Progressed: Menoly Mallia – Quiet → Reserved Trust]
[Pack Instinct Bonus Increased – Coordination & Evasion Improved in Group Combat]
Time passes slowly-
Menoly moved with care now—not hesitation, but awareness. Every step she took was calculated, every glance a search for ambush. Loly still led charges, but she stopped diving headfirst unless she knew we had her back.
And me? I adapted too. Watched their blind spots. Tuned my Spirit Sense sharper. When I crafted arrows now, I etched faint symbols into them—trap markers, signal shots, burst flares.
We didn't talk about the last ambush. Didn't need to.
Hueco Mundo didn't give second chances often.
[Party Coordination Bonus Increased: Ambush Resistance +10%]
[New Perk: Hardened by the Hunt – Group gains minor XP bonus for surviving encounters with no casualties]
Each hunt became smoother—more precise. A takedown wasn't just a victory, it was refinement.
And while trust still grew slow, it grew solid.
Like quartz from the sand.
END