Nely fought against the stone soldiers. Thankfully, they weren't as strong as Helios. Their movements were sluggish, brittle. It didn't take long for her to realize why, Helios was spreading his Neba too thin. Controlling these statues must have been draining him.
One of the statues lunged at Lucas. With a swift arc of her scythe, Nely sliced it clean in two. The shattered remains crumbled at her feet.
Lucas' eyes widened in awe. "So cool!"
Nely chuckled despite the chaos. Statues moved with unnatural speed, swinging weapons meant to crush bones, dust and debris filled the air, and flashes of Neba clashed violently.
Through all of it, Nely stood firm, her scythe gleaming as she cut down another enemy in a single, fluid motion. But she kept glancing at Lucas.
The boy stood, small and fragile beside her, his fists clenched, eyes darting between the towering statues. His breath was unsteady. Fear gripped him.
Nely knew she couldn't fight freely like this. She had to protect him. She took a quick step toward him and crouched down. Alright, Lucas, listen up. I need you to get on my back."
Lucas blinked, his face twisting in confusion. "W-What?"
"It'll be easier for me to protect you that way," she explained. "I can still dodge faster, and you won't be in the middle of all this mess."
Lucas hesitated, staring at her uncertainly. The idea of climbing onto her while she was fighting felt... embarrassing. He wasn't a baby. He didn't want to be a burden.
"I—I can run on my own," he muttered.
Nely rolled her eyes. "Yeah? And what happens if one of these guys swings a giant axe at you? You dodging that?"
Lucas opened his mouth, but no words came out. Nely smirked, grabbing him by the waist and lifting him up onto her back in one swift motion.
"Whoa—!" Lucas yelped, instinctively wrapping his arms around her neck.
"See? Easy." Nely adjusted him slightly, making sure he was secure. "Now hold on tight, alright?"
Before he could respond, she launched forward, dodging an incoming strike with a graceful flip, landing on a fallen pillar. Lucas' heart pounded. He was gripping onto her for dear life, but a strange feeling crept in. His fear got replaced with something else. Excitement.
She was moving so fast. Jumping, twisting, avoiding every attack with impossible agility.
It was incredible. A soldier statue lunged toward them, sword raised.
Nely grinned and formed a short sword from her neba, twisting it in her grip before glancing over her shoulder. Lucas barely had time to react before she thrust the sword into his hands.
His eyes widened. "W-Wait, what? What am I supposed to do with this?!"
Nely dodged another attack. "What do you think? Fight back."
Lucas stared down at the weapon, hands trembling. "I—I can't..."
"You can."
Nely dropped on the floor so did Lucas, statues circled them. "Damn it... what do i do?" Nelt thought, worried about the situation.
The statue lunged, Lucas squeezed the hilt of the sword and swung. The blade slashed clean through the statue's arm. Lucas' eyes went wide as the stone limb crashed to the ground.
The statue stumbled, momentarily off balance, Nely seized the moment, flipping upside down and slicing straight through its core. The statue collapsed into rubble.
Lucas' breath came in short, quick gasps. He stared at the remains, his hands shaking.
"...I did that?" Nely landed gracefully, laughing. "Hell yeah, you did! First statue kill, nice job, Lucas."
Lucas felt his chest swell. A small, proud smile crept onto his face.
"See? Even without abilities you can still help, don't be afraid."
Lucas swallowed hard. Then, in a quiet, uncertain voice, he admitted:
"...I actually have an ability."
Nely's eyebrows rose in surprise. "Oh?"
Lucas looked away, his grip on her shoulders tightening slightly. "I... I don't use it. I'm scared."
Nely didn't say anything for a second. Then, she simply said: "Why?"
Lucas hesitated. His voice was barely above a whisper. "Because... I don't know what'll happen if I do."
Nely was quiet for a moment, then smirked. "It's okay, i will protect you." Lucas' eyes widened slightly, but before he could respond, another enemy charged.
Statues kept coming. One after another.
Nely leaped off a crumbling wall, twisting midair to slice clean through an approaching soldier. It shattered into chunks of rock, pieces skidding across the battlefield.
Lucas felt his heart racing, both from excitement and fear. He tightened his grip on the sword she had given him, its weight feeling slightly more natural in his hands now.
A statue, one that Nely had already cut the legs off of, dragged itself across the ground behind her. Its sword raised high, aiming straight for her back.
Lucas' eyes widened. "Nely!" he gasped.
She hadn't seen it. She was too focused on the enemies ahead.
Without thinking, Lucas moved. His small hands tightened around the hilt of his sword, and with a burst of determination, he swung.
The blade smashed through the statue's head, splitting it in two. The pieces crumbled apart, collapsing into nothing. Breathing hard, Lucas barely registered what had just happened.
Nely, however, did. "Well done!" she shouted, voice filled with approval. Lucas felt something warm spread through his chest. Lucas panted, his arms trembling slightly from exertion, but his excitement overpowered his exhaustion. He looked at Nely, eyes shining with determination.
"Nely!" he shouted over the battle.
She cut through another enemy. "What?"
"When we get out of this," He ducked as a stray piece of rubble flew past. "Can you Teach me!"
Nely blinked, momentarily caught off guard.
"Teach you what?"
Lucas swung his sword at another approaching enemy, managing to chip its shoulder before Nely finished it off.
"Fighting! All of this!" Lucas grinned despite the chaos. "I wanna be strong like you! Make me your student!" Lucas huffed, puffing out his small chest. "I already saved your life once! That should be enough!"
Nely laughed, dodging another attack. "Alright, alright! We survive this, and I'll make you my student, but no complaining when training gets tough!"
Lucas grinned, excitement flickering in his tired eyes. "Deal!"
Then, another statue charged at them full speed. Lucas' face dropped. "Uh—teacher, incoming!!"
Nely groaned dramatically. "You're already calling me teacher? Don't worry we got this!"
The battlefield around them didn't stop. More enemies closed in, weapons gleaming, but as Nely turned forward again, Lucas tightened his grip on his sword.
He wasn't just running anymore.
He was fighting.