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Kazuhas memories had been getting to him. He couldn’t even bare to watch his Captain fight. Beidou notices and thinks he’s worried for her while in battle, but that’s not it.
The Alcor had made a stop on one of the smaller islands of Guyun Stone Forest. As Kazuha made his way off the ship, he took in the fresh air.
It was peaceful here, he decided to scout for a place to meditate while the crew got set up.
After a while, he did find a place. A nice large rock that had been warmed by the sun. He decided to take a moment for himself and continue to think of a poem he was writing. As he felt the low breeze, his mind began to drift.
Soon, he was in a complete state of calmness.
But that was until he heard a whistling noise of an arrow shoot right past his head.
“Hm… seems I have company…” He mused quietly.
It wasn’t until he got up and unsheathed his blade, that he saw the flash of lightning in his preifereal vision.
He was startled, stopping for a moment.
”It was just Beidou” He tried to tell himself.
He was frozen for a moment as he watched his Captain take care of his interrupters.
“You gonna give me a hand?” He heard her laugh slightly.
That was when he jumped into action.
He helped her take care of the rest of the Treasure Hoarders that had snuck up on him, then went to sit back down.
That was when Beidou stopped him.
“Are you alright, Kazuha? I noticed your froze there for a moment!” She laughed again.
“Ah, I’m alright. A bit startled I suppose…” His voice wandered.
“…Are you sure? You don’t usually do that in fights. You’re the level headed one, remember?” She said, her voice lowering a bit.
She then noticed how his eyes wouldn’t meet her own.
“Were you scared for me or something? Look kid, I’ve been doing this for a long time! I promise I’ll be fine!” She smiled again, patting him on his back.
“Yes, I suppose that is true…” He spoke softly and mustered a smile as to not make her question further.
“Ah, come on, let’s get you back to the crew! It’s getting late and we set up camp already.” She said, leading him back to their camp.
Once they had gotten there, the sun had started to set. They started to cook some food for dinner and eventually, Kazuha was down for sleep.
He tried to not let the thoughts of earlier get to him, but it was hard.
All he could think about was the flash of lightning.
The night would only get worse, as he started to hear the pounding of the rain on his tent.
And it was the first time in a while that the lighting had actually scared him.
He tried to clear his mind with thoughts of a calm and serene woodland clearing, but it was hard with the sounds of lighting and thunder forever loud in his head.
He sat through the entire storm, keeping tears and panicked breath at bay. Once it was finally over, the sun began to rise. He debated getting sleep, but decided against it.
He exited from his tent and made his way back over to the rock from the previous day.
He sat there for a long while, till the sun had almost reached its peak.
That was when he heard shouting in the distance.
He turned around and got up from the rock, sensing danger in the wind.
“Seems the crew has encountered a problem…” He made his way back to camp quickly, only to see that treasure hoarders had invaded the camp.
“Ah, it seems the pests are back.” He said lowly, reaching for his blade.
He heard Beidou laugh but could only focus on the flash of lighting that engulfed his vision.
It was worse this time, the sound of thunder invading his mind, the sight of his dear friends body falling to the ground. His vision seemed to grow heavier in his carry-on bag.
In his moment of fear, he was caught off guard and was hit with an arrow in his shoulder.
“Kazuha!” He heard Beidou yell, but he could not react.
He stumbled backwards, the shock hitting him.
He did what little he could to take down the rest of the enemies but quickly fell afterwards.
“Kazuha, you alright kid!?” He heard Beidou ask frantically.
But he could not respond.
He could only shake as the memories of that day flashed in his mind like the Shoguns lightning.
He heard Beidou call for their medic and in moments, he was in the med tent.
He didn’t know how much time had passed, or even that he had fallen asleep, but he stirred and awoke soon enough.
“Kazuha?” He heard Beidou ask quietly as he opened his eyes.
“Mm.” He murmured, still feeling the fear of her lightning course through him.
“You doing okay kid?” She asked.
“I… believe so…” He muttered.
She was silent.
He craned his neck to look up at her slightly.
“You froze in battle again… and… I don’t think you were scared for me. What’s going on?” She asked softly.
He closed his eyes and slowed his breathing, taking a moment before he spoke.
“I… In recent events, I have found it hard to… repress the memories of my dear friend. In your flashes of lighting, I still hear the sounds of my friends’ fight against the Shoguns right-hand… So… it seems as though I’ve become more afraid… I do apologize for the inconvenience of my fear…”
“Kazuha you don’t need to apologize for your fear. It’s said that even the greatest fighters still have moments of fear. Even me. You don’t think defeating Haishan was easy, do you?”
“No…” He whispered.
“Exactly. I’m sorry that I didn’t realize sooner-“
“That is no more your fault than it is mine. You have no need to apologize.” He told her.
“Hah… so quick with your words. Are you feeling better?” She asked.
He moved his injured elbow and winced slightly.
“I’ll be alright…”