I watched as Huffman finally ran off in the direction of the auditorium. Sheathing my sword, I thought about the rescue mission I'd spontaneously taken up. If I were Ellin, and if I wanted to find a hidden spot to train, where would that be? My mind first went to the abundance of secret passageways that served more as convenient shortcuts. Even if Ellin was aware of them—which I highly doubted—none of those places were suitable for swinging a sword or shooting a bow.

Had she really been picking up different weapon types? I'd be impressed if that were true. Though, at the same time, she wouldn't be able to truly hone in on one ability while trying to juggle other weapons. Jack of all trades, master of none sort of deal.

Hang on, weapons. Before going anywhere to train, Ellin would first need to acquire a weapon to train with. The fighting ring would have been her first stop. I'd already stopped by for a sword, but I didn't look too much into the area then. From there, I might be able to gather some clues as to where she could have gone next.

It was settled, then. I lightly jogged back toward the fighting ring, careful to avoid crossing any of the open, exposed areas amidst the rubble and distant sounds of battle. As I traveled, my mind wandered to what Qiqi had said about the upperclassmen fighting monsters alongside professors. Huffman had also mentioned that upperclassmen were sent out to look for missing underclassmen. Was Childe somewhere out here, living his best life basking in the heat of battle? What about Diluc and Kaeya? Were they working together to take down a mob, or did they go their own separate way? Pyro and Cryo—two elements that would work well to take down just about anything. If only there was something that could break down the invisible wall separating them.

I was one of the underclassmen unaccounted for, I realized. Had they sent someone to find me? Surely, upon Huffman's return, he would notify them that I was doing alright. Surely, there wasn't a student out there spending time looking for me when they would be better off protecting the campus? I should probably find Ellin as fast as possible so our forces could commit themselves fully.

At last, the fighting ring came into view, and I entered the scene with relatively low hopes. It looked the same as how I last saw it—tattered and desolate. Though, I did notice a few of the weapons scattered in the dirt were missing. Whether a student or enemy had picked them up, I wasn't sure.

Okay, fighting ring for the weapon. Where to next? Somewhere to train. Most students would go to the fitness center to do so. While hardly what I would consider a secret location, it could be my first lead. The fitness center was located next to the fighting ring and nearby sparring circles as Instructor Xiao would often blend class as a mix of combat with strength and conditioning.

The building was shorter than most in the Academy, only two stories tall, and I noted one corner had crumbled into a pile of broken stone. With the interior partially exposed, I caught a glimpse of some of the exercise equipment that had toppled over. Slowly, I stepped over the rubble and poked my head inside, scanning for monsters. It was dead quiet inside, and other than the equipment racks that had fallen over due to its proximity to the wall, the rest of the center remained untouched.

It didn't even look like students were using the place when the monsters initially attacked, and disappointment weighed on my shoulders. I already wasn't expecting much, but it would be hard figuring out where else Ellin could be. The forest, maybe? I readied myself to hop back over the collapsed wall, but then a small sound caught my attention.

Sniffle.

I paused.

Sniffle. Sniffle.

I walked deeper into the fitness center, straining my ears to locate the source of the sound.

Silence.

Great, I was imagining things. Either that, or there actually was someone or something in here. Question is, why didn't they reveal themselves when I first walked in? I kept my guard up as I searched the room. There was nothing behind the stacked mats. Rows of dumbbells lined a mirrored wall, and next to them were the bench presses in a corner. Something about the benches was off, normally they lined the adjacent wall. How had all of them ended up in the corner?

I bent down to look underneath the benches, and sure enough, a student was huddled there—not just any student.

"Ellin," I breathed. "What are you doing?"

Knees pulled close to her chest, Ellin was hugging her body in a tight ball with her head down. After I spoke, she looked up with teary eyes and a hint of snot drooping from her nose. She was backed up inside the corner, using the bench presses as a barrier to the outside world.

"Lumine!" she sniffled. "Th-There are monsters terrorizing the school!"

"Shh," I stepped closer. "I know, I saw them. Why didn't you go with the others to the auditorium? Huffman was risking his life trying to find you before I stepped in."

"I was getting ready to train. I want to become strong, Lumine. I'm at this school to become stronger, but I'm still too weak. Th-This place is supposed to be safe from the monsters. I c-can't…I'm not ready t-to…"

"You're okay." I dragged the first bench away. "I can take you—"

"No!" she lunged forward before receding back into her ball. "Please don't move them. If I stay here like this, the monsters can't get to me."

"Do you really think this equipment will be enough to stop them?" I frowned. "You're smart, Ellin. I know you are. I also know that you're scared, and that's completely fine. What I need you to know is that you are safe with me. You are strong, and you can get past this fear."

"I…" she shook her head. "I'm sorry."

"Listen to me." I moved the bench anyway. "I'll carry you out of here myself if I have to. We've people out there looking for you, looking for us. You think you're weak? That's fine. I've got your back."

If anything Huffman said about Ellin looking up to me was true, I was hoping at least these words would get to her. Still, I was having a hard time imagining how I turned out to be such a shining star in her eyes. Just like with Huffman, we'd only had the occasional conversation together. What if it wasn't just those two? What did the other Visionless students think of me?

Slowly, Ellin dissolved out of the fetal position and began to raise herself from the barricade of bench presses. I reached over to help pull her out, and her trembling hand held a surprising amount of grip strength as she grasped mine.

"See? That wasn't so bad."

She shuffled her feet. "It's safe inside. It won't be out there."

"You're right. It is safe inside—even safer in the auditorium. As long as we keep at a fast pace, we can get there in no time. Don't freeze up on me, okay? If a monster does attack us," Ellin jolted. "you need to move a safe distance away. Can you do that?"

"I don't want us to separate."

"Then you'll need to be prepared to fight by my side. Huffman told me you've practiced with multiple weapon types. A bunch are lying out in the fighting ring right now. We can pick one up for you there."

"Are you sure?"

I frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Fighting with me…" She chewed her lip. "Won't I just get in the way?"

"Us Visionless need to stick together." I grasped her hand tighter. "That's what you told me the first time we met. I know it hasn't been easy putting up with students who believe having a Vision is essential to succeed, but they're wrong. Do you want to know the truth?"

"What truth?"

"You don't need a Vision. What you need is ambition, and whatever comes after that is a result of your own efforts. It's not always about the elemental energy, Ellin. It's about drive. It's about power. Put in the work, and don't give up."

"Ambition," she whispered and released a slow breath. "Okay, let's do this."

To my surprise, Ellin had selected a claymore to take with her from the fighting ring. I was concerned the weight of it might be too taxing on her, but she quickly found a sling just as I had a sheath. Ellin strapped it to her back, and once the claymore was in place, we were on the move.

"You said you saw Huffman?" she asked.

"He was jumped by a bunch of hilichurls when he went looking for you."

"He looked for me? Why? We barely even talk."

Oh, Huffman.

"Not sure, but you can ask him once we get there." I led us to the area where I had last seen him. "I took care of the monsters there when I rescued him, so it would be safest to go this route."

Ellin nodded as we rounded the corner. I tried to keep a close eye on her—she still exhibited some ansty behavior—in case she fell behind. For the most part, she stuck to my back like glue, and we were well on our way to the auditorium. That is, until we were doused with a wave of water.

She shrieked and I jumped as the cold water soaked through my uniform. Where had that come from? There was no way a mob was this closeby. Unless…did another one spawn in the same spot?

In paying attention to Ellin, I had missed the hilichurls that replaced the ones I'd offed not too long ago. This time, there was a single Hydro samachurl flanked by two Cryo hilichurl grenadiers. The monsters cheered in their successful attack, and I quickly pulled out my sword. Shoot, how was Ellin doing? I turned to glance behind me and was pleasantly surprised to find she already had the claymore off her back, held in front of her shaky body.

One of the Cryo hilichurls reached for the ground and began digging in the dirt, pulling out a Cryo slime and launching it into the air. If that slime hit us now, drenched and all, we'd be in trouble.

"Oh, no you don't." I lunged forward and sliced the Cryo slime in two.

It disbanded into nothing before the halves could even touch the ground, but I didn't have time to celebrate. Another Cryo slime was sent from the other hilichurl. Ellin stepped in to slam it down with the claymore. The slime fell away into pieces, and she looked at me with surprise.

"I did it!"

"We're not done yet."

The Hydro samachurl waved its staff in the air, generating a rain of Hydro contained just in the space we stood in. There was no avoiding the droplets, so I concentrated on not slipping instead. The Cryo hilichurls were back at it again, tossing slimes left and right. The longer we let this go on, the greater the chance one of us got turned into a human popsicle.

"Ellin, take the one on the left." I charged at the hilichurl on the right and knocked it with the butt of my sword before slashing its chest.

It didn't die instantly, so I jabbed with extra force into its midsection, twisting the blade with finality as the hilichurl wailed away. That was one down. I turned to see how Ellin was faring with her hilichurl, only to see she had been hit by a Cryo slime.

She was poised with both hands raised above her head, gripping the claymore aimed at the Cryo hilichurl that now taunted her. From beneath the Cryo encapsulating her body, it was hard to see what kind of expression she wore, but her mouth was held open as if in mid-battlecry.

I narrowed my eyes first on the Cryo hilichurl before deciding to go for the Hydro samachurl instead. This little guy is what got us primed for freezing to begin with, and the risk would always be there so long as Hydro pellets kept coming our way. I slashed at the samachurl in a charged attack, infusing a bit of Anemo for an extra kick. I needed the kill to be fast so I could attend to Ellin—I worry her resolve may have wavered after this.

With the Hydro samachurl gone, I went to face off the final monster, discovering that Ellin had broken free from her literal frozen state and was pommeling the Cryo hilichurl into the ground. Its arms and legs flailed as she dug deeper with the claymore, pinning it into the dirt before it passed on with one final shout.

"That's one way of doing it," I whistled. "How are you feeling?"

"I never want to do that again." She looked at me, haunted. "Have you ever been frozen like that before? The Cryo felt like needles prickling all over my body. In my limbs. In my head. In my veins."

"You killed it, though."

She nodded slowly and slung the claymore onto her back. "I did, and I couldn't have done it without you, Lumine. You helped give me this courage."

"I helped you find it." I patted her shoulder. It was as cold as I was wet. "It was there all along."

"Let's just get to the auditorium," she shivered. "Maybe they'll have a blanket for me and dry clothes for you."

"I don't remember it being this far."

I sighed. "We would have gotten there sooner by cutting across the lawns., but that's not really possible if we want to lay low. Trust me, I want to get there as much as you do. I feel like my whole body is soaking in a wet sock. A cold, wet sock."

I'd kill that Hydro samachurl again if I could.

"I can't believe I was so scared before." Ellin shuffled beside me. We were weaving through a row of decorative trees. "It's not all that bad. Those hilichurls were pesky but doable."

"That's the spirit."

She glanced around. "There doesn't seem to be any monster activity in this area at all. And all the sounds of fighting faded away. Maybe it's over?"

"Possibly, but we can't be too sure."

"We could cut across this field and reach our destination in half the time."

"There's no need to rush it."

She paused. "What about the full-body wet sock feeling?"

"It's better than better jumped by monsters."

"We'll be fine," she insisted. "There's nothing out there, and even if something does show up, we can take it out like we did those hilichurls."

"Your boost in bravery is great, but our priority is safety—"

She took off into the open field.

"Ellin!" I hissed at her, but she was far from the whisper-shout range.

She sprinted across the grass and made it halfway to the next condensed area of shrubbery when I felt the ground rumble. She must have felt it too because she stopped in her tracks and immediately spun around to look at me as if I had the answer to what that was. The rumbling only lasted for a brief moment, but then I felt it again. The ground shook with a steady rhythm, slowly getting stronger, and I realized all-too-late what this signaled. A monster was approaching, and it was a big one.

Ellin came rushing back toward where I was hiding in-between the trees, but before she could reach me, a stonehide lawachurl entered the field by slamming down into the ground from a great height. It tossed its rocky frame backward, glowing amber and releasing a bellow that rattled through my bones. The roar was so loud, I could barely hear my own thoughts. I had to save Ellin. She had frozen again, this time from fear. I revealed my position to the lawachurl and dashed out onto the field in the opposite direction from where Ellin had seized up.

The lawachurl instantly caught onto me, a tiny human with a dull blade, and it reached deep into the earth. What was it doing? I'd never fought a lawachurl before, so its attack pattern was unfamiliar to me. However, because it was of the hilichurl species, I wasn't surprised to see a large Geo slime in its blocky hands. The lawachurl launched the massive slime in my direction with alarming speed. I dashed out of range and had to roll away to avoid being hit.

Just as I recovered from my slime escape, the lawachurl was already making its next move. It lowered onto its Geo haunches and rocketed itself directly at me. Archons, it was fast. I tried to sprint away again, but its rough shoulders managed to clip my side. Just the barest of contact threw me into the air, and my body collided not once, but twice onto the ground like some ragdoll. My head had smacked into the earth, and everything in front of me blurred. Already, I could pinpoint where the bruises would be forming along my side, and a bite of pain flared in the areas where my limbs scraped the ground.

The collision hurt, and the fall hurt just as bad, but I couldn't let the pain get to me. I couldn't slow down. I got the lawachurl's attention just as I wanted, and I hoped Ellin remembered my words from earlier. She couldn't fight this thing. She had to get a safe distance away.

"Go!" I shouted.

The lawachurl roared once more, but I wasn't speaking to it.

"I can't." Ellin finally found her voice.

"Move!"

"I can't leave you here!"

Oh, she was worried about me? "I'll hold it off for now. Go get back up!"

"Are you sure?"

"Go."

Finally, she listened to me and I watched from the corner of my eye as Ellin crossed the rest of the field in a hurry. Once she was out of sight, I turned my full attention to the lawachurl—the lawachurl that was no longer standing ahead of me. A shadow darkened the spot of land directly above where I was standing. Another jumping slam. I rolled out of its range of impact just in time, but before I could fully stand, it raised both fists into the air. For a monster so large and clunky, it could sure move fast. I hadn't even gotten a chance to draw my sword. It was going to slam me into the earth.

I was going to become a fossil forever imprinted into the ground. Ellin would return with a group of capable upperclassmen, and the lawachurl would be munching on my fossilized bones. There's no way I could survive a shockwave like that. Still, I found the strength to lift my sword to block the attack. It wouldn't prevent any real damage, but it's the effort that counts, right? Stand your ground, Lumine. Instructor Xiao would be proud if he saw me now. Then again, I was about to get wrecked, so maybe not.

After what felt like forever watching the lawachurl bring its fists down, they came close enough for me to taste death and my breath hitched. I was scared.

"Stabilize!" A deep voice commanded.

I didn't see the lawachurl's attack collide with my sword. I couldn't see anything at all. A brilliant flash of vivid amber took over my field of vision as a bold shield of translucent gold wrapped around my body. Bits of Geo particles materialized throughout the shield, dark bedrock that reinforced the structure. I was alive.

"Lumine," I looked up to see Professor Morax extend a gloved hand. "Are you alright?"

I reached out to accept when a bright flash of Anemo bloomed across the field for a brief moment before condensing into a single form. Instructor Xiao stood in front of the lawachurl, but I couldn't read his expression. He had donned the mask that normally hung from his waist, and a chill shot through me at the sight of dark tendrils radiating from his aura.

"Evil conquering!"

hopefully, this longer-than-what-i-normally-write chapter makes up for the increasing number of cliffhangers! i feel a bit bad for not updating for a week, especially after posting every day/every other day in the past. ik weekly chapters are not a bad thing at all, and school IS picking up a tad...but writing this fic is something i always look forward to, even if i need to take mental breaks to separate my school brain from my fanfic brain