Gray Flame just stood there. He uttered no word nor spared a glance, not even when Carnathia asked for a solution. If one could figure out an emotion from his white mask, that should be of a man who is deep in thought, and troubled, not because he had no answer but because he had a lot, but all were his secrets, and he now pondered which one of it that he would share.    

[b]"Dear Carnathia, would you be so kind as you let me talk with Mr. Gray, thank you?" [/b]said Vesemir, who arrived behind her, smiling as he patted her shoulder and gently urged her to move aside. 

None of them dared to move their lantern from its original position, which was now placed on the cold pavement, guarded by Engelbert. 

Roxas had his eyes closed, like sleeping, but her breath was unsteady, the shadow was still clutching her arm, blood dripping steadily from her wound. 

[b]"Aim Mae! Séyan hûm urdagor anat ar faemor." [/b]

Said Vesemir. The Gray Flame shook his masked head and sighed.

[b]"Im alat yakin,"[/b] he said, glancing at the white lantern behind him in anticipation before taking out a bandage from his inventory and trying to apply it on Roxas's arm. It refused to be in contact with the healer's skin like there was an invisible barrier blocking it from setting in, and when Gray tried to force his attempt to have the gauze wrap around her arm, his hands got cut again.  [b]"Faya hûm alat órënya, im istamat."[/b]

[b]"Haimanan, [b]Nár'elda[/b], séyan emme har feriap an falunn gorthob."[/b] The monocled elf shrugged. [b]"Istama ada mala-alwë lyen difa, mal ada eith alwë dalam mestatië attima vare ḥayāt?"[/b]

Giving up, Gray Flame removed his glove and patched up his injury instead, tucking the rest of the gauze in his pocket when he was done.
 
Looking back at what he said earlier, his instructions were clear, follow the light and do not touch and stare too long. As demonstrated by Carnathia and that Samurai Guy, who easily escaped the phantom's treachery, the advice was proven sufficient, so why the rest hasn't returned? 

Or, was it like Vesemir concluded? They were lured into a trap and deceived into fighting on enemy's turf. Roxas' injury seemed to reinforce that conclusion. 

Fighting those phantoms was a solid option, true, but he didn't reveal that as a solution because the risk was too big, and their parties seemed full of hotheads who itched for a fight. Not to mention injuries received in the phantom realm damage not only the body but also the soul, and one will be powerless to do anything about your physical injury until the phantoms have been vanquished.

Unless...

Now he was thinking about what Vesemir said. [i]Knowledge to safe life.[/i]

He approached Carnathia once more and spoke with a heavy heart. "If you believe I deserve those words of blame, then I accept it. However, there is a reason for my caution. We are not supposed to speak about the shadows in detail, especially not in this Land of Twilight. Discussing what they can do and how to counter them is like declaring an open challenge that might be answered by even more perilous treachery. And for that reason, I preferred to keep them away from everyone's mind by not telling, letting them not be engraved too deep in everyone's mind, forgotten and ignored."

 Carried by the howling wind that suddenly blew around them, both could hear the whispering intensified into pugnacious curses and loathsome wailing.

 "But my dear Carnathia, since we have opened Pandora's box and you asked if there is something we can do from our side..."

He beckoned the noblewoman to follow and offered his hand.

"Before we go further, A fair warning! This... what I am about to do will be very taxing for those who are untrained, and we don't know what's ahead of us after we escape from this darkness. Sieze my hand if you would not heed my warning, and repeat what I say." 

[i][b]Im liuth difyn anan Ar Malik faldirian
Uin sharri nan Së eän 
Adh uin sharri ghāsiqin húrun
Adh uin sharri húnas caran núlëd 
Adh uin sharri ḥāsidan malam ḥāsad[/b][/i]

From Gray Flame's right palm, a small fire kindled, then started from its base, it changed color. White was the flame until it condensed into a dot of light, akin to a star that gradually grew brighter. The night became silent again, and the shadow writhed and slithered away before the dawning light as Gray Flame clutched Roxas' cold hand. For a brief second, the place was as bright as the day, and then the light waned again and the masked elf let go of his grip.

The light on Gray Flame's palm was still shining, but it was carefully adjusted so that it wouldn't be too bright and outshine the guiding lantern. It could also have been done to conserve energy, as everyone could see vaporized breath emanating from his mask and hear the sound of his breath up close.

A faint trace of light now surrounds the unconscious elven healer. The bleeding in her wound had stopped.  
____
Meanwhile, inside the land of the dead, Roxas' injured hand regained its strength again, but the radiant light that surrounded her had somehow negated the veil that kept their presence invisible to the phantoms of the past.

Immediately, the soldiers abandoned their current blood sport. Their vicious eyes glared at a newfound opponent, eager for carnage.

[color=ed1c24][b]"Lads! We find them!"[/b][/color] one of the soldiers cried, his voice was unusually cruel, coarse, and amplified. Their weapons were drawn, sword and poleaxes, and soon they would initiate the skirmish by making a flanking move toward the party's frontline. 

As everyone's attention seemed to be distracted by what was happening in front of Tillius, the captain had already galloped toward Rezello and Forbann, brandishing his bloodied hatched. 


[@Randomguy][@Randomness][@Conscripts]
[@Valkon]