The first rays of the sun crawled across the dark surface of the hand, gently pulling Riven from a heavy, dreamless sleep. After the brutal exhaustion of the previous day, his body had finally demanded a total surrender to rest.

  Beside him, Lya was still deeply submerged in sleep, curled tightly within the thin fabric of her cloak. Her breathing was rhythmic and soft, providing a stark contrast to the ragged gasps of their battle.

  She must have spent half the night mending me, he thought.

  Riven sat up slowly, his gaze falling on his left arm.

  He froze, his eyes widening as he stared at the limb that had been a ruin of shredded meat only hours before. The jagged craters left by the beast’s fangs were gone. In their place, the skin was smooth, save for a single, faint silver line that traced where the deepest wound had been. It appeared as if the attack had been nothing more than a fever dream.

  He flexed his fingers tentatively. The hand obeyed perfectly, though a sharp sting flared deep within his muscles whenever he moved too quickly.

  And she thought her Fragment was useless, Riven mused, a grim irony twisting his lips. It’s probably the most useful thing for survival here.

  He was only beginning to grasp the brutal reality of this place, but the lessons so far had been clear. In the Purgatory, a simple infection or a deep gash usually acted as a delayed death sentence that claimed whoever the monsters missed.

  Yet Lya changed everything. She wasn't just someone to look after anymore. She had become a crucial part of their survival, the one who truly shifted the odds in their favor.

  Riven stood up cautiously, leaving Lya to her much-needed rest as he climbed down from the massive black palm.

  Once on the ground, he used the last of their water to scrub the dried blood from his skin, letting the cold splash finally clear the fog from his head.

  Driven by a growing hunger, he climbed back up to retrieve his gear before setting to work. He managed to spark a fire using dry stalks and a shard of stone, carefully roasting the meat until the scent filled the air. After eating his fill to regain his strength, he stacked the remaining pieces for Lya, who was still deeply asleep above.

  As the morning progressed and the sun began to bake the plains, Riven grew restless. To pass the time, he picked up his sword and stepped into the tall grass, focusing his energy on practicing his strikes.

  He moved through the tall grass, focused on repeating specific patterns of attack. He was linking his strikes together, his blade whistling through the air in a series of calculated combos, trying to master the weight of the steel. He looked capable and his movements were growing sharper with every repetition.

  But as he tried to pivot into a final, rapid sequence, his footing gave way. He tripped over his own momentum and tumbled onto the red soil.

  A soft giggle drifted down from above.

  He looked up to see Lya peering over the edge of the black palm. She was leaning on her elbows, her hair a bit messy from sleep, watching him with an amused glint in her eyes.

  "Hey, I was doing a lot better before you started watching," Riven grumbled as he pushed himself up, brushing the red dust from his trousers. He stood a little taller, adding with a smirk, "I did kill a monster yesterday, you know."

  Lya laughed again. "I wasn't making fun of you, I promise. You’re actually getting quite good, I think."

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  She sat at the edge of the stone, looking down at the massive black fingers. "You sleep surprisingly well on Corrupted Hands, don't you think?"

  Riven stopped, looking up at her with a confused frown. "Corrupted Hands?"

  "Yes," she said, her voice trailing off as she traced the dark surface. "The black hands, if you prefer. But I like giving them a name."

  She then climbed down from the monolith, her movements still a bit heavy from sleep. She ate the roasted meat in silence, her hunger so desperate that she barely spoke until every scrap was gone. The meal gradually brought color back to her face, and once her strength returned, they didn't waste any time.

  They gathered their meager belongings, kicked dirt over the embers of the fire, and set off once more. With the sun now high above, they began their long trek across the endless crimson plains, leaving the black hand behind.

  No sooner had they set off than Lya began to hum a soft melody again, her Fragment pulsing in rhythm with her voice. Faint, green filaments drifted from her palm, glowing with a gentle light.

  Riven kept glancing at her hand, his eyes darting between the path ahead and the ethereal display beside him. He remained silent for a long time, watching the light dance between her fingers, until the thought finally slipped out.

  I wonder if I’ll ever have one of my own

  "How did you get yours?" Riven asked. "Was it your clan... did they give it to you?"

  Lya stopped humming, the green filaments retreating toward her palm. "Yes," she said with a small smile. "I received it and bonded with it just before the Ascension began. I had a bit of a head start, you could say."

  She looked down at her hand. "Even so, I never had the chance to study it. I’m still figuring out how it works—like the healing. I don't really know my limits yet, or the consequences."

  Riven raised an eyebrow, catching the word. "Bonded? What does that mean, exactly?"

  Lya shifted closer to him, the faint glow of her hand casting flickering shadows in the hollow of the palm. "A Fragment, on its own, is just a vessel. It’s a physical object that holds the 'concept' of a power, but it needs a bridge to let it out. That bridge is the Bond."

  She held her hand up between them, the light steady now. "You have to weave your own thoughts and your own life into it. It’s a total connection, Riven. It’s not something you just use... it’s something you become."

  “ It’s called Harmonization. At least, that's what everyone calls it."

  She looked him in the eyes, emphasizing the weight of the word. "The deeper that bond, the more you and the Fragment become one. That’s Harmonization. It’s how you grow, how you truly change. The closer you are to your power, the stronger you'll be.."

  Riven watched her, surprised by how much she knew. She told me she only knew what everyone else did, he thought, but this sounds like more than just common knowledge.

  "I read all that back when I was studying on my own," Lya said, as if sensing his doubt. "I’m just reciting what I remember from the documents I had, but to be honest, I don't understand half of it myself."

  She looked away, her gaze drifting toward the horizon. "I don’t know the specific details or how it truly works. Let's just say that because of my rank, I didn't have access to the more... interesting archives." She offered him a small smile, but it felt forced, as if she were trying to mask a sudden flicker of unease.

  Riven noticed the shift in her expression. "Didn't you study at the Academy? The one we started from?"

  Lya’s answer was short, her tone turning neutral. "No. I studied where I was."

  The answer made little sense, and it was clear from the way she tightened her grip on her cloak that she wasn't going to elaborate.

  Riven didn't push her. He knew better than to dig into a past she was clearly trying to keep buried—at least for now.

  The conversation died there, buried under the weight of things unsaid.

  The steady crunch of their boots on the dry earth became the only rhythm left, a sound that seemed to sink into Riven’s muscles with every mile. His legs grew heavy, and the constant glare of the sun against the crimson grass turned the landscape into a tiring and endless blur.

  They pushed forward without a break, the only distraction being the occasional detour Riven forced upon them to keep their bearing true. Time and again, they had to adjust their route more than once before nightfall, maintaining a steady pace even as the light failed and the plains began to dissolve into a deep black.

  Before the darkness became absolute, they managed to find a safe refuge and immediately let exhaustion pull them into a heavy sleep.