The tension between Lyan and I was thick, like a blade ready to cut through the air at any moment. I could see it in his eyes, the same cold calculation, the same readiness to act. We'd both survived too long in worlds like these to lower our guard, and I knew I wouldn't be the first to blink. Our exchange earlier had been terse, and while it ended without blood, the unspoken challenge still lingered between us, hovering like a storm cloud waiting to strike.
Aurelia, sensing the rising tension, let out a loud, exaggerated sigh. "Alright, enough of your depressing Earth stories, you bastards." She leaned forward on her elbows, her fiery red hair catching the low light of the inn, glowing like embers in the dark. Her eyes flicked between Lyan and me, and she narrowed them with an edge of playful annoyance. "I've got my own mission, remember?"
