When Joy Fades

Location: Gaia HQ – East Wing Recovery Ward

Elaine sat quietly on the edge of the infirmary bed, her legs dangling, the room wrapped in an unusual silence. Her wind was gone.

Not physically. The air still danced when she moved. The breeze still followed her when she passed through corridors. But the joy that gave it life—her laughter, her spirit—had dimmed.

Across from her, Cyg stood near the window, arms crossed, watching the cloud-strewn skyline.

"You're still thinking about that mission."

Elaine looked up. "I almost lost you."

Cyg turned, his eyes steady but not unkind. "You didn't."

"But I could've. And I—" she faltered, then clenched her fists. "I didn't even want to use Divine Assimilation. Not until I had no choice. What kind of Knight hesitates like that?"

He walked over slowly, mechanical boots quiet against the tile.

"The kind who values life more than power."

She blinked, surprised.

"Elaine. You were scared because you care. Not because you're weak."

"I used to think joy made me strong," she whispered. "But now… it feels like a mask I wore too long. What if I lose it for good?"

Cyg didn't answer immediately. Instead, he gently tapped her forehead.

"Then we'll rebuild it. One gust at a time."

She managed a soft smile. Not quite her usual radiant one—but enough.

Location: Grand Strategy Hall – Later That Day

The Octagon assembled once again around the circular dais. Hikari sat close to Mia, who nervously scribbled in a floating notepad. Sylvia leaned on her elbow, her eyes sharp but flickering with concern toward Elaine. Charlotte, unusually quiet, tapped rhythmically on her lap with a wrench.

Harriet stood with arms folded. "Any updates from Raika and Wang Han?"

"Yes," said Eun-Ha calmly. "They're investigating Abyssal wind traces from Nhal'thor's corpse. Its etheric code was… corrupted. Mutated."

"You're saying it wasn't just an Abyss spawn?" Cyg narrowed his eyes.

Eun-Ha nodded. "Orion's involved."

The air in the room turned cold.

"Damn them," Harriet muttered. "They're using our enemies to evolve their strategy."

"Ironic," Sylvia added dryly. "We can't even evolve our unity without breaking into factions every three days."

Charlotte sighed. "It's not just them. It's all of us. Something's changed since the breach."

Elaine stood up, her voice quiet but firm.

"It's me. I've changed."

They turned toward her.

"I thought I was the wind that uplifted everyone. But… I lost sight of who I am when joy is gone."

"Elaine—" Mia began.

"No. I'm not asking for sympathy. I just want to earn your trust again. Not with laughter… but with resolve."

Silence.

Then Charlotte gave a small smile. "You already have it."

Sylvia nodded, brushing her braid behind her shoulder. "Wind doesn't disappear when it's still—it just waits to move again."

Harriet slapped her on the back with a grin. "Damn right it does."

Elaine laughed.

And this time, it was real.

Location: Inner Forests – Nightfall

She returned to the old training grounds. A field where her mentor, Iris Synthesis 14, once taught her how to listen to the wind. The leaves whispered again, almost knowingly.

"You're still here," Elaine murmured to the wind, eyes soft.

"And I'm still scared."

She lifted Aetheris.

Closed her eyes.

The wind rose around her, not at her command—but because it remembered.

She danced again—not a performance, but a ritual. A reminder.

Slashes of wind rippled through the trees, elegant yet deadly. Her body moved in perfect synchronicity with the breeze, Aetheris a blur of silver and azure.

"One gust at a time," she whispered.

She didn't need to smile every moment to be herself.

She was the gale, the whisper, the breath between laughter and silence.

And that was enough.

Meanwhile – Secret Orion Outpost

"Her Divine Assimilation has stabilized," said Fei Xun, Chaos General – Codename: Chronocrypt. His voice echoed inside the black chamber.

Erebus stood at the center, silent, cloak flowing like spilled ink.

"The Wind Empress has awakened."

"Shall I engage her, Commander?" Fei Xun asked.

"No. Not yet."

Erebus turned, eyes glowing with a chilling void.

"Let her wind grow stronger."

"So that when I break her… all of Gaia will hear the silence."