Saturday, July 30, 4 S.E.

  Leonidas stood in a loose circle with his friends between Synthra and Bardulf as he contemplated the rewards screen. Primus had agreed to give them six hours before they were forced to leave the Dungeon, and they’d unanimously agreed to claim their rewards prior to doing so—especially since all of them save Leonidas himself would be reaching their Adept rank as a result of the Dungeon.

  His focus, however, was locked on the details of the System windows he was reading.

  The rewards were, in a word, extensive.

  SYSTEM MESSAGE

  Congratulations, Leonidas! You have unlocked a [Title]!

  KINGDOM FOUNDER

  [Quality]: Epic

  [Description]: As a member of the party to complete the first [Rite of Ascension] for the hitherto [Unclaimed Sector 117], you have been bestowed with the title of [Kingdom Founder] as a reward for your efforts.

  [Effect 1]: +10% Resource Regeneration within [Dominion] Borders

  [Effect 2]: +25% All Attributes when Defending [Dominion] Territory

  [Effect 3]: +10% Charisma when interacting with [Dominion] Citizens

  And that, he reflected in disbelief, wasn’t even the best part of it.

  No, the [Platinum Chest] and 1,000 [Aetherium] were wonderful too, but what truly stood out to him was the final reward: the thematic Unique Skill he’d acquired, one which filled him with both excitement and more than a little trepidation as he read over it.

  It seemed, in a word, targeted.

  SYSTEM MESSAGE

  Congratulations, Leonidas! You have unlocked a [Unique Skill]!

  CATACLYSM OVERDRIVE

  [Name]: Cataclysm Overdrive

  [Quality]: Unique

  [Description]: As the Terran Cataclysm, your potential is already vast, but the threats arrayed against you have only grown. Now, gifted with unique insights into your future, you have retained the memories of your darkest incarnation’s use of power. As a result, you are able to wield these insights and do so with greater prowess as you advance in power.

  [Cost]: N/A

  [Effect 1]: +100% all Attributes on Activation for 5 Minutes (168HR CD)

  [Effect 2]: [Locked]

  [Effect 3]: [Locked]

  [Effect 4]: [Locked]

  [Effect 5]: [Locked]

  Leonidas read over the effect of [Cataclysm Overdrive] with silent disbelief as he processed the implications. A one hundred percent increase on every Attribute was… insane. It essentially meant he could double his maximum power at will for a short window. Not only that, but even with the cooldown, he could use it tactically to turn a losing confrontation into an almost guaranteed win, within the scope of reason.

  Ceruviel’s lessons, however, were the reason for his caution.

  She had warned him already that some Skills had hidden drawbacks.

  As his eyes trailed over the new Skill and he considered its potential benefits, his mind drifted back to the cooldown and what it could imply. Was it simply that he would be unable to wield the skill for the lockout period, or was it something more? Would he be weakened, fall unconscious, perhaps even be rendered comatose after each use?

  The most frustrating part was that he had no reasonable way of testing it.

  With Aylar having to take the throne in less than 82 hours, he couldn’t afford to accidentally incapacitate himself. Braedon was still a threat, and while he thought he knew what his final answer to the Princess was likely to be, he still needed to consider if there weren’t alternative ways to handle the Princeling that didn’t necessitate a hurried marriage.

  Not that being married to Aylar would be a bad thing, he admitted to himself quietly. Even in the worst of those Trials, I had been happy with her.

  Part of his hesitation, of course, was lingering attachment to old pre-Incursion sentiment: he’d always believed he’d marry solely for love and love alone, and while he’d matured to realize that necessity was, truly, the mother of action—he could not easily shake the residual hesitation that came with his upbringing and first formative two decades of life.

  Besides, he was the grandson of the Iron Duke.

  He had no idea how in the hell that would go down when revealed to the public.

  Then there was the other, less important, but still minor matter of his surname. It was old-fashioned, a little silly, and more than a touch outdated—but the idea of his wife not having his surname, of his children not having his surname, left him feeling… less than enthused. He understood it was a ridiculous hangup to have, but it was one he wasn’t sure he’d be able to relinquish.

  Stolen story; please report.

  Where he came from, that symbolism meant something.

  Leonidas sighed and reached up to ruffle his hair with both hands, eyes narrowed in frustration. Too many thoughts, too many worries, not nearly enough time. His eyes drifted to the others, and he noted both Bardulf and Synthra settling themselves down the way they’d agreed they would when preparing to undergo Tempering. Primus had assured them the Dungeon was safe for the process, and Leonidas had agreed to watch over each of them as they undertook the transition from Initiate rank to Adept.

  His thoughts on marriage naturally drew his attention once more to Aylar, and after a moment’s hesitation, Leonidas dismissed his System windows and wandered over to where the Queen-Potentiate was reviewing her gains, coming to a halt at her side with his hands tucked into his pockets.

  Aylar blinked when he did, then glanced over and up at him, blue eyes curious beneath her golden bangs. “Leonidas?” she asked simply, watching him with faint curiosity.

  “Hey,” he said a little awkwardly, and then cleared his throat. “I was wondering if you, uh, got anything good?”

  Aylar blinked at him once, and then her full lips spread into a slight smile.

  “I acquired a useful new skill, yes. Would you like to see it?”

  Leonidas smiled in return and inclined his head.

  Wordlessly, Aylar willed her alert to him.

  SYSTEM MESSAGE

  Aylar Taleria Lux Fortuna Eldormer has offered to share a [Skill Window] with you.

  Do you wish to accept?

  [Y] | [N]

  Leonidas tapped the ‘[Y]’ immediately, and the screen populated in blue a second later.

  SYSTEM MESSAGE

  Congratulations, Aylar! You have unlocked a [Unique Skill]!

  RADIANT SHIFT

  [Name]: Radiant Shift

  [Quality]: Unique

  [Description]: Utilizing the knowledge gleaned from your trials and your observation of the [Terran Cataclysm], you have managed to discern a probability pathway for the use of instant displacement using your [Light] Affinity as a bridge between two locations.

  [Cost]: 35 Mana

  [Effect]: Instantly Teleport up to 20 Meters within Visual Range

  Leonidas read over the ability in silence and raised his eyebrow, looking back down to Aylar when he was done. [Radiant Shift] wasn’t just a good Skill; it was theoretically game-changing. While [Cataclysm Overdrive] was exceptionally powerful up-front, [Radiant Shift] was more surgical, mirroring the difference in approach between his own trend toward overwhelming force and her preference for tactical supremacy. The applications of the ability were myriad, and Leonidas found himself faintly envious of the acquisition—though without resentment.

  “Damn,” he said quietly as he dismissed the screen, “that is good.”

  “It is quite useful,” Aylar agreed with another smile. “Did you receive anything notable?”

  “Well, funny you ask…” Leonidas said mildly, and then willed her to see his own Skill window for [Cataclysm Overdrive]. When Aylar accepted a moment later, and he saw her eyes look it over, the Queen-Potentiate’s gaze widened. She looked back at him moments later with a mix of shock and, even if only slightly, a little concern.

  “Leonidas…” she said quietly, her voice dropping near to a whisper. “This… are you sure? What if this—”

  “It’s fine,” he assured her calmly, while tacitly understanding exactly where her concern was sourced. “Really. It is. I know what you’re thinking, but the third trial isn’t inevitable, Aylar, you said so yourself. Besides, I’m…” he trailed off, seeking the right words, and then shook his head as he realized he was overthinking. “I’m not the same as I was before the trials. I don’t think any of us are. I’m not healed, or cured, or magically free of my burdens—but you said it yourself: perspective makes fools of us all. I had a realization after it was all done.”

  Aylar arched a perfect eyebrow at him, but seemed content to listen.

  “W-well,” he said with a sudden feeling of self-consciousness, “I… I kind of realized that I’ve been running from comfort, if that makes any sense. It wasn’t that I didn’t appreciate it; it was more that I didn’t think I deserved it. Bardulf pointed out that I needed to forgive myself, and I think I reached the same conclusion.”

  He paused and lifted his right hand, hesitantly, before reaching out and lightly brushing her hair behind her ear—drawing a faint reddening along the cheeks from the uncrowned Queen.

  “I’ve been carrying around Elatra like lead weights,” he explained to her quietly, as his sense of self overrode his social anxiety and his natural confidence—tempered in that very land—returned blazing to the fore while he spoke, “weighing me down and convincing me I was unworthy of—well, of anything, really. The trials, especially the last one, showed me where that would lead… and I don’t think I’m ready to let that happen.”

  “Leonidas, you don’t have to—”

  He shook his head to cut her off, smiled, and then continued when she fell obediently silent.

  “I think I have a long way to go, Aylar. A long way, and not without difficulty either… but with you, and Synthra, and Bardulf, Parnym, John, Ceruviel, Uriel, and even the Guild and people like Tarnys—I dunno, I think I’m ready to start healing. Not just for myself, but for the future I want to create.”

  Aylar’s expression remained locked on his while he spoke, and she smiled warmly when he finished, inclining her head in respectful acceptance of his words.

  “I think that is a wonderful viewpoint, Leonidas,” the future Monarch said with earnest joy, not for herself, but entirely and selflessly for him. “After everything we’ve seen, I worried—well, I worried you would become trapped in it, wallow in it, and I was prepared for that; Synthra and I both were, but this… this is a remarkable show of self-awareness.”

  Aylar grinned at him, and her eyes twinkled with pride.

  “I am proud of you for that, my lord Archon. I am proud that these trials were able to offer you insights alongside mine own. That is… that is a wonderful gift, Leonidas, and I wish you the very greatest of success in pursuing that healing. Whatever I may do to aid you, please know you need only ask.”

  Leonidas watched her with quiet admiration as she spoke, and his heart thundered and warmed at her words.

  She was strong, he realized—far stronger than he’d ever given her credit for. He’d known the Princess-cum-Queen had possessed an inner fortitude, but now that he’d witnessed the depths of it in the trials, and seen the benevolence she carried with her as easily as others might heft a feather, he could admit to himself that his attraction to her was more profound—not because of the emotions he’d felt in their false lives, but almost despite them.

  He’d seen how wrong their futures could go.

  He’d seen how badly their choices could derail things.

  Yet, despite it all, the constant had been her strength of character, her strength of will, and her unyielding conviction in doing what was right—even if it was not what was kind. There was a ruthlessness to that dedication that, in some strange way, made more sense to him than any sort of blind altruism ever could. Aylar would always put the good of her people before herself, before any individual, and that, to Leonidas, created a sense of safety and honesty he could rely on.

  Not lean on, but rely on. He would need someone to tell him when he was deviating.

  And as he came to that realization, staring into her eyes, he came to another.

  Impulse, adrenaline, or being caught in the moment—whatever it was, it didn’t matter. He turned to her, fully, his eyes locked on hers, and after a moment’s hesitation, Leonidas joined his left hand to his right, and lifted her face in his hands.

  “Aylar,” he said to her quietly. “Do you trust me?”

  The Swordmaiden blinked in surprise, but not in fear, and after a moment, she nodded with a hint of curiosity.

  “Close your eyes,” Leonidas said gently, while his heartbeat thundered in his chest like it was going to blow through his ribs.

  Aylar swallowed when he said it, and her eyes widened slightly, but then—slowly—they closed.

  Leonidas lowered his gaze to her lips when they did, full and pink, faintly parted, and after a moment more of hesitation, he bent and pressed his mouth to hers—sealing in a kiss what he could not easily explain in words alone. It was neither harsh nor desperate, neither aggressive nor ‘dominant’ in the usual fashion, but instead a mark of confession. He kissed her, and his hands moved down to her hips as hers instinctively wound around his neck.

  She tasted like honey, cinnamon, and the faintest trace of jasmine.

  Leonidas lost himself in the scent of her, the taste of her, the warmth of her—feeling her armored body press against his unarmored own, feeling the heat of her proximity anoint his senses, feeling the faint tickle of her silken golden hair as her head tilted and she shivered with pleasure into the embrace.

  It was not primal, or impassioned, or heated—it was soft, and quiet, and vulnerable in its innocence; but because of those things and so many more, not despite them, Leonidas knew it was also right.

  Nearby, he thought he heard someone snicker, but he couldn’t have cared less.

  As far as first kisses went, it was damn near perfect.

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