p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The idea of forming a group, regardless of who proposed it, was the reason the girls were currently turning red with anger. Moreover, the groupings were arranged in such a way that they couldn't even open their mouths to object because they had been divided evenly. While Stella and Aisha were paired with Nabu and Brandon, the other groups were arranged as Musa, Bloom, and Flora, with their respective partners being Riven, Helia, and Sky. Tecna and Timmy stayed behind to guide them through the caves./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Actually, it made sense because Stella and Aisha had powers most compatible with the dark energy of the caves. They knew that Flora, being a nature fairy, wouldn't be very successful in the dark, and unfortunately, the same was true for Musa. Musa's sonic waves were too dangerous for the delicate structure of the caves, as a possible earthquake could occur./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Therefore, Brandon's team would advance along the path ahead, and the others would follow behind, ensuring they wouldn't be a burden and that there would be someone to watch their backs. Nevertheless, the girls couldn't help but be angry about it. Nabu was a wizard, which explained why he was in the first group, but Brandon? It was obvious that his being a commander and stronger than the others was the reason for his position. This, however, didn't seem to ease Stella's anger in the slightest./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Everyone, open your ears and eyes. Even the smallest mistake can lead us into a dead end. I'm telling you right now: if you find yourself at one, either find a way out on your own or stay there and don't cause us any more trouble. Understood?" While the girls ignored him, busy checking each other's protective vests, the men nodded one by one in agreement. With the response from his intended audience, Brandon turned his back and glanced at the girls./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Although they were ready, it was clear they were hesitant, mainly because they would be working separately. Even though they had faced enemies alone before, it didn't mean they felt comfortable with it now. Sighing, Aisha and Stella stepped forward and stood at the entrance of the opening on the right side of the cave. "Everything will be fine; the girls can handle themselves." While Stella nodded, her eyes fell on Bloom, and she thought of her red-haired friend with concern. "Bloom shouldn't have been here. At first Faragonda's idea initially seemed logical, I regret it so much now! We should have left her at Alfea."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Aisha followed Stella's gaze and focused on Bloom. She was sitting on the ground, tying her shoelaces tighter. "Her power isn't something that can emerge from studying. She knows that too, so don't blame yourself for this." Even though she nodded, Stella couldn't ignore her worry. The only thing she could do now was to ensure that the group coming behind would face fewer dangers, or ideally, none at all. Brandon and Nabu had started walking towards the girls. The commander felt a ridiculous unease from Stella's earlier words. Despite not wanting to care, the words had taken root in his mind, repeating themselves over and over./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Internally cursing, he ignored the girls and stood at the entrance of the cave. After Timmy performed one last scan and checked the communication devices, he signaled that they could move. With a final glance at the girls, Stella managed a small smile and followed suit, trying desperately to ignore the uneasiness growing inside her./p
hr style="margin: 0.875em auto 1.2525em; border-style: solid; border-color: initial; border-image: initial; width: 359.234px; color: #2a2a2a; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; font-size: 15.12px; background-color: #ffffff;" /
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Does this man never...," Aisha struggled to speak breathlessly while walking, glaring angrily at Brandon. She nearly tripped over a rock again but was saved by Stella. "Does this man never get tired?!"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Stella shook her head as she reverted from her fairy form to conserve her strength. They had been walking for three hours, and according to the signal, the other group would enter the cave five hours later, but from the left entrance. Timmy's mole crow, which was monitoring the cave, reported that even though there were two entrances, the cave ultimately ended in a single exit. This meant their friends would meet them at the end of the path, unless their paths crossed beforehand./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Wrapping Aisha's arm around her neck, Stella supported some of her weight and continued walking. She could see well in the dark thanks to her moon powers, but Aisha wasn't so lucky, constantly tripping or getting injured. Her body was wrapped in numerous bandages, but Brandon didn't think this was a good enough reason to stop and made it clear in a very rude and harsh manner that they needed to continue. Aisha couldn't even take offense at this, as neither Nabu nor she could see in the dark as well as Stella, leading to trouble with monsters and strange creatures jumping out at the last minute./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"While Brandon had minor injuries, Nabu was more worn out and, for the first time, found himself agreeing with Aisha. Perhaps a normal expert could endure this, just like Brandon, who showed no signs of fatigue, but Nabu was a wizard. Although trained like a specialist, his inclinations were more towards magic. Just like Timmy, who was dedicated to research and development. Although technology was an area they all understood, to be as good as Timmy, they'd need a thousand more training sessions in the lab and learn coding instead of lifting weights./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Brandon," Nabu spoke in a murmur. He didn't want to anger his friend or make it seem like he was advocating for the girls./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""What is it?" Brandon's casual tone made Nabu relax a bit, and he spoke again, just as slowly and quietly. "Can we rest a bit? We've been walking for three hours."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Three hours?/span Brandon thought. He'd been so preoccupied with Stella's words since they entered the cave that he hadn't realized the time. "I don't think this is serious enough to warrant a rest. Keep moving."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Nabu sighed, not surprised by the answer, and his morale dropped further. Suddenly, a loud noise from behind made Brandon and Nabu quickly turn and shine their lights towards the girls. A creature resembling a giant bat but with the body of a crocodile and a kangaroo was dragging Aisha by her boot. Brandon drew his sword and charged towards the girls, but before he could do anything, Stella instantly transformed into her fairy form, leaping to punch the creature in the throat./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"As Nabu whistled, the creature dropped Aisha and turned towards Stella. It seemed her punch wasn't ordinary, as the creature's throat began to glow yellow and swell. As Aisha scrambled back on her bum, Nabu rolled his eyes, knelt beside the young girl, lifted her, and carried her away from the battle. Brandon, gripping his sword tightly, made another swift move to attack, but the creature growled, releasing a violent blast of air, and grabbed Stella's leg, digging its claws in deeply. Stella groaned, firing repeatedly as the creature suddenly went limp and collapsed. Its severed head fell to the ground, followed by its body, as Brandon, appearing extremely angry, stood over the carcass./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Stella! Your leg is bleeding! Let go of me, you disgusting beast!" Aisha pushed Nabu away and rushed to the sun fairy as fast as she could, while Brandon's gaze was fixated on Stella's ankle and calf as if in a trance. "Don't worry, I've got Flora's quick-healing potion with me. The wound will close up in half an hour." Stella nodded, releasing her lip from between her teeth and murmured, "Save it for more serious injuries." Aisha clicked her tongue in annoyance, shaking her head as she glared at her friend. "Don't be ridiculous. This is serious enough, just look at it. How did it manage to dig its claws in like that?" She bit her lip, choosing not to continue. "It's my fault. While you were supporting me, you couldn't watch your back."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Stella sighed as the potion touched her skin, causing her to groan. The pain was so intense she couldn't help but wish she had something to bite on. Aisha carefully poured a bit more of the potion on Stella's wound when Brandon suddenly grabbed the vial and pushed Aisha's hands away. "Stop applying it so cautiously. Heal her wound completely so it doesn't become a bigger problem for us." Aisha glared at the young man angrily while Stella tried to push his hands away in vain. "You'll use it all up! What if something worse happens?!" Brandon lifted his head, his eyes appearing pitch black in the already dark cave as he stared at Aisha. "It won't."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Stella grumbled, too weak to retort as she felt the potion on her skin again, groaning and leaning back. Aisha decided to save her arguments with the commander for later, turning back to her friend and holding her shoulders to embrace her. "It's over, baby. Relax." Stella, despite the pain bringing tears to her eyes, endured without letting them fall, shivering as she groaned again. Brandon ran a hand through his hair, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. When he opened them, Aisha thought she saw even the whites of his eyes turn black. "Damn fairies," he muttered, but Stella couldn't muster the strength to respond./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"In the end, Brandon mentioned that he wanted to rest, and everyone found a corner to settle down and begin their break. Stella could only feel the numbness in her leg, but this didn't last long. The sensation was replaced by tingling, and over time, itching, and burning. span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"It was healing/span. Aisha was looking for a place to relieve herself, while Nabu, lying down, thought it would be a good idea to take a short nap./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I spoke too little. You are not only troublesome but also quite clumsy," Brandon muttered. Stella took her eyes off her leg and turned to Brandon, sensing a strange satisfaction within herself. "Luckily, I spoke just enough." The young man clicked his tongue, his eyes fixed on the fairy who looked breathtaking no matter what she had been through or what state she was in. "I say your span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"'just enough'/span is a waste of breath."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Nabu grumbled, moving his arm away from his face. "Shut up for a bit so the man can sleep!" Brandon ignored his friend, continuing to clean his sword, while Stella leaned her head against the wall, sleepily gazing at her leg./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Feeling relieved after taking care of her business, Aisha returned and crouched down next to her friend, smiling. "How are you, princess?" Stella glanced at Brandon to see if he was listening, then sighed and turned to Aisha. "My eyes are closing, I feel so sleepy." Aisha nodded and pursed her lips in sympathy. "It's the effect of the potion. But this annoying guy won't give us enough time to sleep, can you hold on?" Stella sighed, shaking her head. "I don't think so. My eyes are closing involuntarily; sleep is the only solution." Aisha glanced at Brandon. "Go ahead and sleep a little then, it's better than nothing." There was no need to say it again because as soon as Aisha spoke, she saw Stella's head slowly lean back against the wall and her eyes close./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Stella forced her eyes open, feeling dizzy. For some reason, she felt like her body was floating. Despite the aches all over her body, her eyes resisted opening. An involuntary groan escaped her lips as she tried to move her arms, but the pressure on her hands prevented it. She felt the same pressure behind her knees, though not strong enough to hurt—more like.../p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Startled, she tried harder to open her eyes and looked around. She was moving, that was certain. But not on her own feet; she was on someone's back. Her eyes widened as she lifted her head. "What's happening?" Despite her fragile voice, she ignored it, knowing more important things were at hand. Aisha immediately came to her side. The person carrying Stella stopped and knelt down, waiting for Aisha to take her. "Using a bit too much potion, huh," Aisha muttered, giving Brandon a pointed look as she slowly took Stella off his back and sat her down on the ground. "You slept longer than usual, but you're okay. I mean, you're okay, right?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Stella stared in a trance at Brandon's back. span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Had he carried her? Instead of waking her up, had he let her rest and carried her on his shoulders?/span "Stella? What's wrong, aren't you okay?" This time Brandon turned and looked over at the young fairy. He said nothing, not a single snide comment or anything to make Stella feel terrible for just sleeping. Swallowing, Stella nodded, her lips and throat dry, her mouth tasting strange. "Water," she managed to say. Nabu immediately knelt beside her, handing her his canteen and helping her drink. span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Why wasn't anyone talking? Had they made peace while she was asleep?/span Feeling her throat soften, Stella licked her lips and looked at Brandon. The young specialist was simply observing her, trying to assess her condition without any reaction. "How long have I been asleep?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Aisha gave Nabu a pointed look while trying to warm her friend's arms by rubbing them. "About two hours." Feeling her cheeks flush, Stella averted her gaze from Brandon to look at Aisha. "You should have woken me up..." Aisha was about to say something, but Brandon beat her to it./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""If you moved while half-asleep, you would have been more of a burden than anything else. Luckily, we didn't encounter too many creatures, or we would have had to use you as bait." As soon as he said this, he turned away from them and began doing push-ups. Despite Stella's slight frame, carrying even a kilo for two hours would make shoulders tense up. To counteract any stiffness or numbness, he must have thought exercise was the best decision and was now doing muscle workouts nonstop. Nabu smiled gently at Stella, stood up, and began to walk towards his friend, speaking in a low voice that the girls couldn't hear./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""How did you convince him to carry me?" Stella asked, as Aisha chuckled and pulled out some food from her bag for both of them. "Convince him? He called me a toothpick and Nabu gawky. After making us regret being alive with a ton of insulting words, he picked you up in a strangely gentle manner. And I used my morfix to attach your hands and legs to his body so he wouldn't have to hold you." Stella, while nibbling on small pieces of her sandwich that Flora had prepared, stared at her friend, who was speaking rapidly and at length. "Gentle? He was gentle with me?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Aisha nodded, frowning. "He kept approaching the crystals to check on you through the reflection. I think Faragonda's warning might have worked." Stella sighed as she looked at her food, pondering Aisha's words. That, of course, wasn't possible. Especially when it came to Brandon, someone's warning wouldn't change much—instead, it would likely encourage him to act as he pleased. Stella lifted her head to glance at Brandon and, at that moment, realized he was already looking at her. Instead of the unease she expected, a strange sense of relief spread through her./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Brandon's gaze not bothering her was itself a troubling feeling. Stella had no intention of making the same mistake of falling for him again. Despite his gesture seeming thoughtful and considerate, Stella was certain that Brandon's intention wasn't purely altruistic. She had learned, in a painful way, just how cold and unfeeling he could be. Cursing the rapid beating of her heart, she managed to tear her gaze away. Aisha, studying Stella without trying to look too judgmental, muttered, "He's the last person in this world who deserves your heart."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Stella looked at her friend for a moment, trying to process her words, then frowned, putting up her guard. "Just thinking about it is enough to kill myself, Aisha." Aisha tilted her head, hesitating before sighing and nodding. "I know, Stell. I also realize I'm misunderstood, I mean about Nabu, but I really don't care." Stella nodded as she took a bite from her sandwich, chewing it with a vengeance. Aisha chuckled at her friend's antics before Stella suddenly stopped and wrapped her half-eaten sandwich back up, offering it to Aisha. Though she gave Stella a disapproving look, she took the sandwich and put it back in her bag. "I'm not trying to be a bitch, but if this eating disorder curse comes back to bite you, I swear I'll be the one that'll kill you."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Stella laughed and leaned her head on Aisha's shoulder. "I am eating, Ash. I just can't risk my health by forcing myself."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Do you want to sleep a bit more?" Shaking her head, though she wanted to, Stella pushed the sleepiness aside. "Are we close?" Aisha shook her head, activating a hologram map on her wristwatch. "We're about to enter the underground realm. We'll ask the underground queen to open the doors for us." Stella studied the map for a moment before looking at Aisha in confusion. "Ask? What if she refuses?" Aisha sighed, shaking her head. "I have no idea, Stell. Let's hope she agrees. Otherwise, I won't hesitate to turn back. They sent us on this mission in such a rush! It's maddening!"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Stella stood up, stretching and nodding to Aisha in agreement. "I need to move forward a bit, take care of some things." Aisha laughed and wrinkled her nose. "Please, don't stink up the place." Stella stuck her tongue out at her, grabbing her bag and walking past the guys without a word in search of a safe, comfortable spot. After taking care of her needs, she was about to return to the group when a familiar voice made her stop. "Those stupid fairies won't last long here anyway. The darkness will gradually absorb and drain all their energy." span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Icy/span, thought Stella, clenching her fists. "I can increase the dominance of the darkness a bit more though," said Darcy, span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"of course/span. Stella thought of Riven's idiotic ex-girlfriend. "If you can, do it, Darcy. Don't waste time. Especially with the new girl, but leave Stella to me."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"As Stella rolled her eyes it was obvious that she started to get angry as well, her eyes glowed and her hair seemed to ripple with fury. span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"If they harmed Bloom/span, she swore inside, span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"I'd curse them with such darkness that even in the presence of the sun, it would remain dark for them./span She was just about to hurl her flame orbs at them when a hand grabbed her by the waist and pressed her hard against the wall. Stella was about to cry out in surprise when Brandon's hand covered her mouth, his eyes locking onto hers. "Stay quiet." Stella nodded, and Brandon slowly removed his hand after examining her face for a moment. Stella felt panic replace her rising anger. She wished he hadn't moved his hand, as it had been a barrier between them./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Listening to the sound of the witches' high heels receding, they waited. A flash of light indicated they teleported; something Stella was familiar with. Darcy was the opposite of Stella in powers. Icy and Stormy were too. While Stella represented the sun, Icy represented the frost dragon. Stella ruled over light, while Darcy was a witch of darkness. Stormy, on the other hand, was a mere extra. Her only ability was controlling weather, which was just a hobby for Stella. And teleporting was something Darcy was able to do just like Stella because of that./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""What are you doing here?" Stella was relieved to have managed to say something, while Brandon just looked into her eyes without saying a word. What was this now? In a moment when she thought she wouldn't be questioning her heart, Brandon's touch nearly made her legs give out. Thankfully, the force keeping her upright wasn't her own legs but Brandon's body and the hand still on her waist./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""It's not just you who has needs, princess. We also have excretory systems." Stella wanted to grimace at this, but she was sure if she did, Brandon would interpret it as her being spoiled. "Wasn't there anywhere else you could go? Did you have to come right up to me? And what right do you have to hold me? Did you think I was going to harm your witch friends?" Brandon rolled his eyes and moved a bit closer. "Slow down! What do you think you're doing? You can't come this close to me!" Stella was shocked when she saw the man she expected to be just as angry as she, was actually smiling./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Don't give me orders." Stella rolled her eyes this time, "And what if I do? What will you do?" Brandon answered with silence, his eyes fixed on hers in a way Stella couldn't understand. When he suddenly pulled back, Stella stumbled and pressed her back hard against the wall, nearly falling. "I didn't know you were this stupid, you surprised me."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"This sentence was enough to bring Stella back to her senses. She immediately straightened up, frowning, and stood facing Brandon. "You carried me on your back just to make me feel bad, didn't you? Just so I'd have to thank you. Well, thank you. Unlike you, I don't consider acknowledging a kindness to be a sign of weakness." Brandon laughed as if he was amused and looked at Stella like she had lost her mind./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I didn't help you at all; I did it so I wouldn't get in trouble myself and have to deal with your old mentor even more. If it weren't for that old fool, I wouldn't care if you were dead or alive." Stella had to use all her strength not to show how much his words affected her. This was Brandon; whenever she felt herself softening towards him, he'd do or say something that made her snap back to reality and start rebuilding her walls./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Instead of responding to what she heard, she tried to throw away her hurt by changing the subject. "Why did you protect the witches?" Brandon raised an eyebrow, "I wasn't aware I was protecting them." Stella sighed, bent down to pick up her bag, and tried to walk past Brandon, but the specialist grabbed her arm and stopped her. As she tried to free her arm, she hissed through her teeth, "Let go." Brandon shook his head and moved a bit closer, "Why do you think I protected them?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Stella used all her strength to free her arm. Even though Brandon wasn't using much force, her body was so weak that she had to use her magic to move, which consumed even more of her energy, but she had no other choice at the moment. "You stopped me, that's why." Brandon responded with a sarcastic laugh, "Do you really think you can take on three witches alone?" This time, Stella felt her temper flare. "Believe it or not, even at my weakest, I'd be the greatest danger they could ever face."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Brandon whistled, mocking her, but he knew she was right. So why had he stopped her?/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Actually, it made sense because Stella and Aisha had powers most compatible with the dark energy of the caves. They knew that Flora, being a nature fairy, wouldn't be very successful in the dark, and unfortunately, the same was true for Musa. Musa's sonic waves were too dangerous for the delicate structure of the caves, as a possible earthquake could occur./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Therefore, Brandon's team would advance along the path ahead, and the others would follow behind, ensuring they wouldn't be a burden and that there would be someone to watch their backs. Nevertheless, the girls couldn't help but be angry about it. Nabu was a wizard, which explained why he was in the first group, but Brandon? It was obvious that his being a commander and stronger than the others was the reason for his position. This, however, didn't seem to ease Stella's anger in the slightest./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Everyone, open your ears and eyes. Even the smallest mistake can lead us into a dead end. I'm telling you right now: if you find yourself at one, either find a way out on your own or stay there and don't cause us any more trouble. Understood?" While the girls ignored him, busy checking each other's protective vests, the men nodded one by one in agreement. With the response from his intended audience, Brandon turned his back and glanced at the girls./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Although they were ready, it was clear they were hesitant, mainly because they would be working separately. Even though they had faced enemies alone before, it didn't mean they felt comfortable with it now. Sighing, Aisha and Stella stepped forward and stood at the entrance of the opening on the right side of the cave. "Everything will be fine; the girls can handle themselves." While Stella nodded, her eyes fell on Bloom, and she thought of her red-haired friend with concern. "Bloom shouldn't have been here. At first Faragonda's idea initially seemed logical, I regret it so much now! We should have left her at Alfea."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Aisha followed Stella's gaze and focused on Bloom. She was sitting on the ground, tying her shoelaces tighter. "Her power isn't something that can emerge from studying. She knows that too, so don't blame yourself for this." Even though she nodded, Stella couldn't ignore her worry. The only thing she could do now was to ensure that the group coming behind would face fewer dangers, or ideally, none at all. Brandon and Nabu had started walking towards the girls. The commander felt a ridiculous unease from Stella's earlier words. Despite not wanting to care, the words had taken root in his mind, repeating themselves over and over./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Internally cursing, he ignored the girls and stood at the entrance of the cave. After Timmy performed one last scan and checked the communication devices, he signaled that they could move. With a final glance at the girls, Stella managed a small smile and followed suit, trying desperately to ignore the uneasiness growing inside her./p
hr style="margin: 0.875em auto 1.2525em; border-style: solid; border-color: initial; border-image: initial; width: 359.234px; color: #2a2a2a; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; font-size: 15.12px; background-color: #ffffff;" /
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Does this man never...," Aisha struggled to speak breathlessly while walking, glaring angrily at Brandon. She nearly tripped over a rock again but was saved by Stella. "Does this man never get tired?!"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Stella shook her head as she reverted from her fairy form to conserve her strength. They had been walking for three hours, and according to the signal, the other group would enter the cave five hours later, but from the left entrance. Timmy's mole crow, which was monitoring the cave, reported that even though there were two entrances, the cave ultimately ended in a single exit. This meant their friends would meet them at the end of the path, unless their paths crossed beforehand./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Wrapping Aisha's arm around her neck, Stella supported some of her weight and continued walking. She could see well in the dark thanks to her moon powers, but Aisha wasn't so lucky, constantly tripping or getting injured. Her body was wrapped in numerous bandages, but Brandon didn't think this was a good enough reason to stop and made it clear in a very rude and harsh manner that they needed to continue. Aisha couldn't even take offense at this, as neither Nabu nor she could see in the dark as well as Stella, leading to trouble with monsters and strange creatures jumping out at the last minute./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"While Brandon had minor injuries, Nabu was more worn out and, for the first time, found himself agreeing with Aisha. Perhaps a normal expert could endure this, just like Brandon, who showed no signs of fatigue, but Nabu was a wizard. Although trained like a specialist, his inclinations were more towards magic. Just like Timmy, who was dedicated to research and development. Although technology was an area they all understood, to be as good as Timmy, they'd need a thousand more training sessions in the lab and learn coding instead of lifting weights./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Brandon," Nabu spoke in a murmur. He didn't want to anger his friend or make it seem like he was advocating for the girls./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""What is it?" Brandon's casual tone made Nabu relax a bit, and he spoke again, just as slowly and quietly. "Can we rest a bit? We've been walking for three hours."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Three hours?/span Brandon thought. He'd been so preoccupied with Stella's words since they entered the cave that he hadn't realized the time. "I don't think this is serious enough to warrant a rest. Keep moving."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Nabu sighed, not surprised by the answer, and his morale dropped further. Suddenly, a loud noise from behind made Brandon and Nabu quickly turn and shine their lights towards the girls. A creature resembling a giant bat but with the body of a crocodile and a kangaroo was dragging Aisha by her boot. Brandon drew his sword and charged towards the girls, but before he could do anything, Stella instantly transformed into her fairy form, leaping to punch the creature in the throat./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"As Nabu whistled, the creature dropped Aisha and turned towards Stella. It seemed her punch wasn't ordinary, as the creature's throat began to glow yellow and swell. As Aisha scrambled back on her bum, Nabu rolled his eyes, knelt beside the young girl, lifted her, and carried her away from the battle. Brandon, gripping his sword tightly, made another swift move to attack, but the creature growled, releasing a violent blast of air, and grabbed Stella's leg, digging its claws in deeply. Stella groaned, firing repeatedly as the creature suddenly went limp and collapsed. Its severed head fell to the ground, followed by its body, as Brandon, appearing extremely angry, stood over the carcass./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Stella! Your leg is bleeding! Let go of me, you disgusting beast!" Aisha pushed Nabu away and rushed to the sun fairy as fast as she could, while Brandon's gaze was fixated on Stella's ankle and calf as if in a trance. "Don't worry, I've got Flora's quick-healing potion with me. The wound will close up in half an hour." Stella nodded, releasing her lip from between her teeth and murmured, "Save it for more serious injuries." Aisha clicked her tongue in annoyance, shaking her head as she glared at her friend. "Don't be ridiculous. This is serious enough, just look at it. How did it manage to dig its claws in like that?" She bit her lip, choosing not to continue. "It's my fault. While you were supporting me, you couldn't watch your back."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Stella sighed as the potion touched her skin, causing her to groan. The pain was so intense she couldn't help but wish she had something to bite on. Aisha carefully poured a bit more of the potion on Stella's wound when Brandon suddenly grabbed the vial and pushed Aisha's hands away. "Stop applying it so cautiously. Heal her wound completely so it doesn't become a bigger problem for us." Aisha glared at the young man angrily while Stella tried to push his hands away in vain. "You'll use it all up! What if something worse happens?!" Brandon lifted his head, his eyes appearing pitch black in the already dark cave as he stared at Aisha. "It won't."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Stella grumbled, too weak to retort as she felt the potion on her skin again, groaning and leaning back. Aisha decided to save her arguments with the commander for later, turning back to her friend and holding her shoulders to embrace her. "It's over, baby. Relax." Stella, despite the pain bringing tears to her eyes, endured without letting them fall, shivering as she groaned again. Brandon ran a hand through his hair, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. When he opened them, Aisha thought she saw even the whites of his eyes turn black. "Damn fairies," he muttered, but Stella couldn't muster the strength to respond./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"In the end, Brandon mentioned that he wanted to rest, and everyone found a corner to settle down and begin their break. Stella could only feel the numbness in her leg, but this didn't last long. The sensation was replaced by tingling, and over time, itching, and burning. span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"It was healing/span. Aisha was looking for a place to relieve herself, while Nabu, lying down, thought it would be a good idea to take a short nap./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I spoke too little. You are not only troublesome but also quite clumsy," Brandon muttered. Stella took her eyes off her leg and turned to Brandon, sensing a strange satisfaction within herself. "Luckily, I spoke just enough." The young man clicked his tongue, his eyes fixed on the fairy who looked breathtaking no matter what she had been through or what state she was in. "I say your span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"'just enough'/span is a waste of breath."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Nabu grumbled, moving his arm away from his face. "Shut up for a bit so the man can sleep!" Brandon ignored his friend, continuing to clean his sword, while Stella leaned her head against the wall, sleepily gazing at her leg./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Feeling relieved after taking care of her business, Aisha returned and crouched down next to her friend, smiling. "How are you, princess?" Stella glanced at Brandon to see if he was listening, then sighed and turned to Aisha. "My eyes are closing, I feel so sleepy." Aisha nodded and pursed her lips in sympathy. "It's the effect of the potion. But this annoying guy won't give us enough time to sleep, can you hold on?" Stella sighed, shaking her head. "I don't think so. My eyes are closing involuntarily; sleep is the only solution." Aisha glanced at Brandon. "Go ahead and sleep a little then, it's better than nothing." There was no need to say it again because as soon as Aisha spoke, she saw Stella's head slowly lean back against the wall and her eyes close./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Stella forced her eyes open, feeling dizzy. For some reason, she felt like her body was floating. Despite the aches all over her body, her eyes resisted opening. An involuntary groan escaped her lips as she tried to move her arms, but the pressure on her hands prevented it. She felt the same pressure behind her knees, though not strong enough to hurt—more like.../p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Startled, she tried harder to open her eyes and looked around. She was moving, that was certain. But not on her own feet; she was on someone's back. Her eyes widened as she lifted her head. "What's happening?" Despite her fragile voice, she ignored it, knowing more important things were at hand. Aisha immediately came to her side. The person carrying Stella stopped and knelt down, waiting for Aisha to take her. "Using a bit too much potion, huh," Aisha muttered, giving Brandon a pointed look as she slowly took Stella off his back and sat her down on the ground. "You slept longer than usual, but you're okay. I mean, you're okay, right?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Stella stared in a trance at Brandon's back. span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Had he carried her? Instead of waking her up, had he let her rest and carried her on his shoulders?/span "Stella? What's wrong, aren't you okay?" This time Brandon turned and looked over at the young fairy. He said nothing, not a single snide comment or anything to make Stella feel terrible for just sleeping. Swallowing, Stella nodded, her lips and throat dry, her mouth tasting strange. "Water," she managed to say. Nabu immediately knelt beside her, handing her his canteen and helping her drink. span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Why wasn't anyone talking? Had they made peace while she was asleep?/span Feeling her throat soften, Stella licked her lips and looked at Brandon. The young specialist was simply observing her, trying to assess her condition without any reaction. "How long have I been asleep?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Aisha gave Nabu a pointed look while trying to warm her friend's arms by rubbing them. "About two hours." Feeling her cheeks flush, Stella averted her gaze from Brandon to look at Aisha. "You should have woken me up..." Aisha was about to say something, but Brandon beat her to it./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""If you moved while half-asleep, you would have been more of a burden than anything else. Luckily, we didn't encounter too many creatures, or we would have had to use you as bait." As soon as he said this, he turned away from them and began doing push-ups. Despite Stella's slight frame, carrying even a kilo for two hours would make shoulders tense up. To counteract any stiffness or numbness, he must have thought exercise was the best decision and was now doing muscle workouts nonstop. Nabu smiled gently at Stella, stood up, and began to walk towards his friend, speaking in a low voice that the girls couldn't hear./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""How did you convince him to carry me?" Stella asked, as Aisha chuckled and pulled out some food from her bag for both of them. "Convince him? He called me a toothpick and Nabu gawky. After making us regret being alive with a ton of insulting words, he picked you up in a strangely gentle manner. And I used my morfix to attach your hands and legs to his body so he wouldn't have to hold you." Stella, while nibbling on small pieces of her sandwich that Flora had prepared, stared at her friend, who was speaking rapidly and at length. "Gentle? He was gentle with me?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Aisha nodded, frowning. "He kept approaching the crystals to check on you through the reflection. I think Faragonda's warning might have worked." Stella sighed as she looked at her food, pondering Aisha's words. That, of course, wasn't possible. Especially when it came to Brandon, someone's warning wouldn't change much—instead, it would likely encourage him to act as he pleased. Stella lifted her head to glance at Brandon and, at that moment, realized he was already looking at her. Instead of the unease she expected, a strange sense of relief spread through her./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Brandon's gaze not bothering her was itself a troubling feeling. Stella had no intention of making the same mistake of falling for him again. Despite his gesture seeming thoughtful and considerate, Stella was certain that Brandon's intention wasn't purely altruistic. She had learned, in a painful way, just how cold and unfeeling he could be. Cursing the rapid beating of her heart, she managed to tear her gaze away. Aisha, studying Stella without trying to look too judgmental, muttered, "He's the last person in this world who deserves your heart."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Stella looked at her friend for a moment, trying to process her words, then frowned, putting up her guard. "Just thinking about it is enough to kill myself, Aisha." Aisha tilted her head, hesitating before sighing and nodding. "I know, Stell. I also realize I'm misunderstood, I mean about Nabu, but I really don't care." Stella nodded as she took a bite from her sandwich, chewing it with a vengeance. Aisha chuckled at her friend's antics before Stella suddenly stopped and wrapped her half-eaten sandwich back up, offering it to Aisha. Though she gave Stella a disapproving look, she took the sandwich and put it back in her bag. "I'm not trying to be a bitch, but if this eating disorder curse comes back to bite you, I swear I'll be the one that'll kill you."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Stella laughed and leaned her head on Aisha's shoulder. "I am eating, Ash. I just can't risk my health by forcing myself."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Do you want to sleep a bit more?" Shaking her head, though she wanted to, Stella pushed the sleepiness aside. "Are we close?" Aisha shook her head, activating a hologram map on her wristwatch. "We're about to enter the underground realm. We'll ask the underground queen to open the doors for us." Stella studied the map for a moment before looking at Aisha in confusion. "Ask? What if she refuses?" Aisha sighed, shaking her head. "I have no idea, Stell. Let's hope she agrees. Otherwise, I won't hesitate to turn back. They sent us on this mission in such a rush! It's maddening!"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Stella stood up, stretching and nodding to Aisha in agreement. "I need to move forward a bit, take care of some things." Aisha laughed and wrinkled her nose. "Please, don't stink up the place." Stella stuck her tongue out at her, grabbing her bag and walking past the guys without a word in search of a safe, comfortable spot. After taking care of her needs, she was about to return to the group when a familiar voice made her stop. "Those stupid fairies won't last long here anyway. The darkness will gradually absorb and drain all their energy." span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Icy/span, thought Stella, clenching her fists. "I can increase the dominance of the darkness a bit more though," said Darcy, span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"of course/span. Stella thought of Riven's idiotic ex-girlfriend. "If you can, do it, Darcy. Don't waste time. Especially with the new girl, but leave Stella to me."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"As Stella rolled her eyes it was obvious that she started to get angry as well, her eyes glowed and her hair seemed to ripple with fury. span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"If they harmed Bloom/span, she swore inside, span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"I'd curse them with such darkness that even in the presence of the sun, it would remain dark for them./span She was just about to hurl her flame orbs at them when a hand grabbed her by the waist and pressed her hard against the wall. Stella was about to cry out in surprise when Brandon's hand covered her mouth, his eyes locking onto hers. "Stay quiet." Stella nodded, and Brandon slowly removed his hand after examining her face for a moment. Stella felt panic replace her rising anger. She wished he hadn't moved his hand, as it had been a barrier between them./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Listening to the sound of the witches' high heels receding, they waited. A flash of light indicated they teleported; something Stella was familiar with. Darcy was the opposite of Stella in powers. Icy and Stormy were too. While Stella represented the sun, Icy represented the frost dragon. Stella ruled over light, while Darcy was a witch of darkness. Stormy, on the other hand, was a mere extra. Her only ability was controlling weather, which was just a hobby for Stella. And teleporting was something Darcy was able to do just like Stella because of that./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""What are you doing here?" Stella was relieved to have managed to say something, while Brandon just looked into her eyes without saying a word. What was this now? In a moment when she thought she wouldn't be questioning her heart, Brandon's touch nearly made her legs give out. Thankfully, the force keeping her upright wasn't her own legs but Brandon's body and the hand still on her waist./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""It's not just you who has needs, princess. We also have excretory systems." Stella wanted to grimace at this, but she was sure if she did, Brandon would interpret it as her being spoiled. "Wasn't there anywhere else you could go? Did you have to come right up to me? And what right do you have to hold me? Did you think I was going to harm your witch friends?" Brandon rolled his eyes and moved a bit closer. "Slow down! What do you think you're doing? You can't come this close to me!" Stella was shocked when she saw the man she expected to be just as angry as she, was actually smiling./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Don't give me orders." Stella rolled her eyes this time, "And what if I do? What will you do?" Brandon answered with silence, his eyes fixed on hers in a way Stella couldn't understand. When he suddenly pulled back, Stella stumbled and pressed her back hard against the wall, nearly falling. "I didn't know you were this stupid, you surprised me."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"This sentence was enough to bring Stella back to her senses. She immediately straightened up, frowning, and stood facing Brandon. "You carried me on your back just to make me feel bad, didn't you? Just so I'd have to thank you. Well, thank you. Unlike you, I don't consider acknowledging a kindness to be a sign of weakness." Brandon laughed as if he was amused and looked at Stella like she had lost her mind./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I didn't help you at all; I did it so I wouldn't get in trouble myself and have to deal with your old mentor even more. If it weren't for that old fool, I wouldn't care if you were dead or alive." Stella had to use all her strength not to show how much his words affected her. This was Brandon; whenever she felt herself softening towards him, he'd do or say something that made her snap back to reality and start rebuilding her walls./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Instead of responding to what she heard, she tried to throw away her hurt by changing the subject. "Why did you protect the witches?" Brandon raised an eyebrow, "I wasn't aware I was protecting them." Stella sighed, bent down to pick up her bag, and tried to walk past Brandon, but the specialist grabbed her arm and stopped her. As she tried to free her arm, she hissed through her teeth, "Let go." Brandon shook his head and moved a bit closer, "Why do you think I protected them?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Stella used all her strength to free her arm. Even though Brandon wasn't using much force, her body was so weak that she had to use her magic to move, which consumed even more of her energy, but she had no other choice at the moment. "You stopped me, that's why." Brandon responded with a sarcastic laugh, "Do you really think you can take on three witches alone?" This time, Stella felt her temper flare. "Believe it or not, even at my weakest, I'd be the greatest danger they could ever face."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif, 'GNU Unifont'; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Brandon whistled, mocking her, but he knew she was right. So why had he stopped her?/p