Dust clung to her boots and sunlight spilled across the rugged hills ahead, but Lara barely felt either.
The heat didn't bother her. The rough terrain didn't register. And the two idiots she was tracking? Well, they weren't even trying to be subtle.
"You'd think stealing from a demon noble would make people smarter," Lara muttered, adjusting the leather strap of her blade against her back. "But no. They leave footprints like they're writing me a love letter."
Five years ago, she might've said that with a grin. Five years ago, she was still Captain Lara, still swearing under Malvoria's banner, still launching herself into enemy lines without thinking about tomorrow.
But the woman walking through the wastelands now was different.
Not softer—never that.
But different.
She had left Malvoria's command after the war, after Lucindra's final defeat and the rebuilding began.
She still remembered the exact day she handed over her seal of command, just a few weeks after Kaelith's banquet. Malvoria had offered her a new role.
So had Elysia. But Lara had smiled, kissed her niece on the forehead, and said, "No more crowns. I've got someone else to protect now."
Someone with sharp red eyes. With fangs too big for her mouth. With enough fire magic to burn a city block by accident.
Someone who, even at four years old, had already made Lara believe that chaos could be beautiful.
Aliyah her daughter.
Born of demon flame and Celestial light, raised in the middle of two worlds that never truly liked sharing space.
While humans and demons had begun mixing more freely—trading, marrying, building cities that blurred the old boundaries, the Celestians had remained frozen in their ivory towers, as stiff and cold as they had always been.
The only exception to that icy bloodline was Sarisa. And now, Lara too.
Though Lara never spoke of it.
Never gave name to the ache in her chest when Sarisa smiled without meaning to. Never let herself look too long when Sarisa braided Aliyah's hair with those delicate hands.
They weren't lovers. They weren't married. They were co-parents. That's all.
At least, that's what Lara told herself.
A rustle in the rocks ahead brought her back to the present. She stepped lightly between the scattered boulders, one hand drifting to the hilt of her sword, senses honed.
There.
The two fugitives crouched near a collapsed stone outpost, tossing coins between them.
One of them had a knife tucked into his boot, and the other had the unmistakable air of someone too sure of his own strength.
"End of the road, boys," Lara called, striding into view like she owned the sky.
They scrambled to their feet. One ran. The other reached for his blade.
Lara didn't even flinch.
She moved fast—years of training still humming in her bones disarming one with a twist of the wrist and knocking the other flat with a burst of yellow fire that scorched the ground without burning it. Controlled. Efficient. Done.
The runner tripped over a rock and groaned.
"Embarrassing," she said dryly, hauling him up by the collar. "Next time you rob someone, try not to brag about it in a tavern two miles from the crime scene."
Just as she was dragging both grumbling men toward the magic seal she'd etched earlier, a strange sensation prickled the back of her neck. Like heat curling in the air. Familiar. Dangerous.
Lara's eyes narrowed.
"No," she whispered.
And then, in a flash of black fire, a tiny figure popped into existence ten feet behind her.
"Hi Mama!"
Lara turned around so fast her shoulder cracked. "Aliyah?!"
The child grinned proudly, brushing ash from her tunic like it was no big deal.
Her black curls were tied into three uneven braids, her cheeks were smudged with soot, and her red eyes sparkled like someone who had just committed a crime and was very pleased with herself.
"I used the teleportation circle," Aliyah said, placing her hands on her hips. "All by myself."
Lara closed her eyes for a full three seconds. "You weren't supposed to be able to access the circle without the key sigil."
"I copied yours," Aliyah replied sweetly. "You left it on your desk. Rookie mistake."
The two prisoners stared, baffled.
Lara sighed, releasing her grip on them both. "You're lucky I already caught the criminals, or I'd be yelling louder."
Aliyah beamed. "You are yelling. Just… in your heart."
"Aliyah."
"Don't try, Mama. I'm almost five. Basically an adult."
Lara pinched the bridge of her nose. "You're four."
"Four and three-quarters," Aliyah corrected, lifting her chin with a little Celestial arrogance she clearly got from Sarisa. "That counts."
The prisoners made the mistake of laughing. Lara's glare silenced them immediately.
"Let's just get you back to the Celestian castle," she said, marching toward the circle.
Aliyah dragged her feet behind her. "Ugh, no. It's so boring. Everyone walks like their spine's made of icicles. Nobody yells. Nobody has fun."
"You set fire to the training courtyard last time."
"They said no running. What did they expect me to do? Crawl?"
Lara inhaled sharply, turned to face her child, and said, "You're supposed to be with Sarisa right now."
"She's doing Princess-stuff. Meetings. Boring."
"You like to eavesdrop."
"I already did. This morning. Someone called Grandmama said I'm 'unmanageable' and a 'diplomatic hazard.'" Aliyah puffed her chest out proudly. "That means I'm doing great."
Lara opened her mouth probably to argue, scold, maybe even threaten but Aliyah was already on the move.
Her little hands flicked outward, summoning a burst of black fire at her feet that gave her just enough propulsion to leap backward onto a boulder.
"I'd rather go to Malvoria's castle!" she shouted. "It's fun there! They let me throw spears!"
"Aliyah—"
"Catch me if you can!"
And with a gleeful laugh, she sprinted toward the horizon, her dark flame leaving footprints in the grass.
Lara didn't move for a full two seconds. Then she turned back to the criminals, who were now trying very hard not to be noticed.
"You two. Don't move. I'll be right back."
Then she took off running.
They reached the edge of the canyon within ten minutes Aliyah zigzagging wildly, laughing as she went.
Lara chased her with the resigned dread of a mother who knew exactly how much trouble her daughter could cause if left unsupervised for more than a minute.
Lara finally caught her by the collar as she tried to climb a tree with very sharp thorns.
"Okay. Adventure time is over."
"But Mama—"
"Nope. I mean it. You've already broken three rules, one teleportation seal, and possibly the fabric of inter-realm diplomacy."
Aliyah blinked up at her. "So… what you're saying is, I won."
Lara snorted. She tried to look stern. Tried to remember the speech Sarisa had made her practice—about setting boundaries and being firm.
But Aliyah's smile was infectious. Her chaos, endless. And damn it, Lara loved her more than words could ever say.
Still, she scooped the girl up in one arm and started walking toward the circle. "No more sneaking out. I mean it this time."
Aliyah rested her head against Lara's shoulder. "I just wanted to be with you."
Lara's heart gave a little squeeze. "You could've just waited for me to get home."
"You're not home enough," came the soft reply.
That hit harder than she expected. And maybe it was true. Between minor missions, helping the human-demon border towns, and playing escort for some of Sarisa's more difficult diplomatic assignments, Lara had been stretched thin.
"Alright," Lara said at last, brushing soot from Aliyah's cheek. "Tomorrow, we're staying in. Pancakes and sword practice."
"With real swords?"
Lara raised an eyebrow. "Wooden. You're four, remember?"
Aliyah sighed. "Four and three-quarters."
Lara chuckled, kissing her forehead. "Fine. Four and three-quarters."
And with a final flash of yellow fire, mother and daughter vanished into the teleportation circle leaving behind scorched grass, a confused pair of criminals, and the echo of one wild little girl's laughter on the wind.