Brown grass blinked into violet fields, then dissolved back into blank soil. Color struggled to decide what truth it wanted to hold. The horizon never arrived. White stretched endlessly outward, suffocating in its purity.

  Tinsurnae sighed.

  He stared at his female counterpart.

  He still thought of her that way, even if she didn’t. Old habits clung tight. But he couldn’t deny how different she looked now.

  His own hair fell black to his shoulders, framing sharp green eyes. Once, she had been his mirror—longer hair, a smaller frame, but unmistakably the same person split across a line neither of them understood.

  Now she looked like a ghost.

  Her body was bare, smooth and almost artificial, like a doll sculpted from pale porcelain. He wasn’t much different in that regard—yet he still had his manhood—but there were details that separated them, proof that whatever was happening had moved beyond simple reflection.

  Her eyes had turned a deep, unsettling violet. Her hair had bleached white, cascading nearly to her knees.

  It made him believe her story more than anything she had said.

  She was changing.

  Filling in the spaces where identity used to be… and whatever she was becoming didn’t resemble him.

  Or Rhan.

  That thought twisted inside his chest.

  He still couldn’t understand it—Rhan having a gender at all, let alone trying to kill her. Jafar’s involvement. Qui Tensigon’s shadow over everything. And that strange, hollow feeling that crept through him whenever he stood near Jonathan.

  It was too much.

  She looked at him.

  He was still wearing that black streetwear he always favored, the familiar silhouette strangely grounding in a place where nothing else felt real.

  “It’s a lot,” she said softly. “I know…”

  “I can’t complain,” he muttered, rubbing the back of his neck. “Especially after hearing everything you went through. Besides… I missed most of the tournament just sitting in here.” His eyes lifted to hers. “You know pretty well how that feels.”

  “Yeah…” She stood, slow and deliberate. “Well, we need to get back. The team needs us.”

  Her gaze dropped to her hands.

  “I tried to attach to them before I attached to you—”

  “Why?!” His voice snapped sharper than he intended.

  She hesitated. “Because I wasn’t sure I could trust you.”

  His eyes widened. “So you trusted them over me? What the hell!”

  “It’s not that,” she said quickly. “But I made connections with them. Caroline was my first friend. S?urtinaui and I finally found a decent middle ground. And I… I never really got to connect fully with North.”

  “Why are you calling him North now?”

  “It’s what he wants to be called,” she said firmly. “He’s moving on from his past. Changing his future.”

  Her fingers curled into fists.

  “And I need to make sure everyone is ok after the Story attacked the Occulted Moon ship. Plus—freakin’ Jack. I was supposed to be the backup for that little psycho and he became her champion! I know that’s a connection somehow!”

  “Okay, okay,” he said, lifting his hands. “So what? We can’t leave.”

  “Why can’t we?”

  He gestured around them. Endless white stretched in every direction, reality flickering between colors that couldn’t decide what they were.

  “Look around,” he said quietly. “Show me a way out.”

  She turned, scanning the horizon that never arrived.

  Silence.

  “…Yeah,” he said. “Exactly. Rhan made—”

  She shook her head suddenly. “You can channel Sryun in here too, right?”

  “…Yeah.”

  “Good.”

  She stepped forward and outstretched her hands.

  Purple light flickered to life around her fingers, faint at first, then growing into slow spirals of Sryun that bled into the white emptiness.

  He hesitated. “Even if we try, it might not be worth it. We could die trying to force our way out. The tournament could already be over by the time we reach them.”

  “I don’t care,” she said, smiling faintly despite the exhaustion in her eyes. “We take risks to get what we want. That’s always been us.”

  The violet glow deepened, curling around her arms like rising smoke.

  “Besides,” she said quietly, “belief is a powerful thing.”

  The Sryun flared brighter.

  ————

  Back in Curtenail, within the city of Tetis—a metropolis carved from rubies and steel—three blurs tore around the city.

  White clashed against gold and red, streaks of power smashing through towers and shattering bridges as if the city were nothing more than brittle glass. Each collision cracked the air with thunderous force, shockwaves rolling through streets already split apart from earlier battles.

  The white blur moved defensively, constantly shifting—deflecting a golden strike, then twisting away from a red flare that carved molten lines through a cathedral of crimson stone.

  Above, shards of ruby rained like hail.

  Watching from a fractured rooftop stood S?urtinaui.

  The elf wasn’t much better than she had been the day before—right arm still missing, scar still cut from cheek to ear, movements slower than usual—but none of that mattered now.

  Move or die.

  That was the only rule left.

  Another explosion rocked the district, sending ripples through the steel foundations beneath her feet. She steadied herself, breath uneven but eyes sharp.

  Jamal and Crisper had already moved ahead, disappearing to support Crisper’s Killstreaks.

  No one had asked what that really meant.

  No one wanted to.

  Morality had become a luxury they could no longer afford.

  Beside her, Tabia sat against a broken spire, watching the sky with quiet intensity as another collision between the blurs detonated overhead. The shockwave rolled through the city, tearing banners from their anchors and flattening entire streets.

  Ruby dust drifted between them like red ash.

  S?urtinaui exhaled slowly.

  “You think we have a chance against Civen… and the faction backing her?”

  Tabia only shrugged.

  S?urtinaui chuckled softly at that.

  “I don’t assess battles until I’m inside them,” Tabia said at last, her voice calm despite the battle tearing through Tetis. “But with the way the team is now… I’d say we have a chance.”

  Another shockwave slammed into the city, ruby towers fracturing under the strain. The blast sent her teal-and-white hair rippling like a living flame, streaks of violet and ember-light twisting through it as if responding to the battle itself.

  “Though,” she added quietly, “the likelihood of most of us dying is high.”

  Beside her, S?urtinaui’s long silver hair whipped behind her like a banner caught in a storm.

  She sighed.

  “Then let’s go for victory.”

  Tabia nodded once. “That’s the goal.” Her crimson eyes narrowed, sharpening with quiet conviction. “Making sure you and the Blood Prince win. I won’t let anyone reduce the sacrifices made to get here… be for nothing.”

  The words settled heavily between them.

  For a moment, the noise of the battlefield felt distant.

  Tinsurnae’s chest tightened at the thought of Caroline.

  The memory pressed inward—

  “Yeah…” she murmured, voice softer than before. “You’re right…”

  Another collision split the sky, white light clashing against gold and red above the ruined city.

  S?urtinaui straightened despite the pain in her body.

  ———

  Blood crawled through Tetis like a living tide.

  It seeped along ruby walls and steel avenues, then suddenly hardened—spiking outward in violent bursts that tore through buildings and split streets apart. Towers groaned as crimson veins wrapped around their foundations, constricting and snapping stone like brittle glass.

  Ozzy leapt back, boots skidding across shattered metal as a forest of blood-spikes erupted beneath him. Nearby, Destiny floated upward in a sharp arc, golden energy flaring around her as the crimson mass splintered outward, trying to devour and pierce everything in reach.

  “Damnit, North!” Destiny yelled, dodging another surge that shot past her shoulder like a spear.

  Ozzy laughed, blade flashing in rapid white blurs as he carved through the advancing blood. Each strike split the crimson waves, but the liquid only reformed, writhing toward him again.

  High above, North stood on the edge of a fractured skyscraper, palm outstretched.

  Blood poured from his hand like a broken dam, cascading down the structure before lashing outward toward his teammates.

  “My bad!” he called down. “Still trying to control it!”

  “Well turn it off!” Destiny snapped, weaving between a rain of spikes.

  “Keep it on!” Ozzy shouted, grinning as he ducked beneath another strike. “This is great training!”

  “Shut up, Ozzy!” Destiny barked. “We’re supposed to be a team trying to beat you!”

  Ozzy paused mid-step, slicing through a spiraling lance of blood. “Wait… is this a spontaneous free-for-all?”

  “No!” Destiny snarled.

  North and Ozzy both laughed.

  “I’m trying to turn it off and—oh wow,” North muttered, blinking down at his palm. “I turned it off.”

  The blood froze.

  For one silent heartbeat, everything hung suspended in midair.

  Then gravity reclaimed it.

  The massive crimson constructs collapsed all at once, crashing into the streets below with thunderous force, the weight of it smashing buildings and sending shockwaves racing through the ruby city.

  Dust and red mist rose together, swallowing the area as North winced from his perch above.

  “…Okay,” he called sheepishly, “that might’ve been worse.”

  Ozzy appeared beside North in a flash of white, Destiny drifting in moments later as her golden wings fizzled away into sparks.

  “Thanks, Captain Tampon,” Destiny said flatly. “You sunk half the city.”

  “Fuck you,” North chuckled.

  “That was a good one,” Ozzy added, grinning as he offered Destiny a high five.

  She took it.

  North stared at them. “Well, fuck you too, Ozzy.”

  Ozzy’s smile only widened.

  “Okay,” North said, planting his hands on his hips. “So how was that?”

  Destiny rolled her eyes. “You definitely did better.”

  North wagged a finger in her face. “Tsk, tsk, tsk, woman. I asked my good friend Ozzy.”

  Her expression shifted into something dangerously close to murderous.

  Ozzy immediately slid his sword between them like a referee calling a foul. “Time out. Before you rabbits get back in season.”

  “Shut up!” Destiny snapped, cheeks flushing.

  Ozzy laughed. “Crisper’s back from their morally questionable side quest, so I think we can regroup.”

  Destiny and North stared at each other for a long second—

  “Ozzy,” Destiny said sweetly.

  “Yes, my dazzling darling.”

  “Did I do better than North?”

  North groaned. “Bro, you’re such a kid.”

  The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  Ozzy nodded solemnly. “You did.”

  Destiny beamed and floated off ahead of them, golden light trailing behind her like a comet’s tail.

  North stared at Ozzy.

  Ozzy only shrugged, giving him a helpless what do you want from me? gesture.

  They both took to the air a moment later, chasing after Destiny toward where Tabia and S?urtinaui waited.

  They dropped from the rooftop and moved inside.

  The interior resembled an upscale house—nothing like Earth exactly, but familiar enough to ease the mind. Soft ruby-toned walls curved inward, and low couches circled what they assumed was a living-room table. Light filtered through crystalline windows, painting everything in warm red-gold hues.

  Everyone gathered there, collapsing into the soft furniture.

  Jamal’s gray tracksuit robe was stained with dust and dark red streaks. Locs falling over his face. Crisper sat beside him in her combat uniform, rainbow hair tied into a tight bun, just as messy. The matching grins on their faces told the rest of the team everything they needed to know.

  The side quest had been a success.

  S?urtinaui stretched out across one couch, eyes half-lidded, body still aching. Tabia sat close, calmly applying healing Ryun that flowed like cool light through S?urtinaui’s wounds.

  Ozzy stood near the center of the room, grinning beneath his white blindfold. The carved white X on his forehead flickered faintly, a slow pulse of white light.

  Destiny sat nearby, still wearing her blue hoodie, North’s black cape transmuted into long black pants that shifted like shadows around her legs.

  North dropped onto the couch beside her, leaning slightly into her space just enough to be annoying. His red eyes spun with faint sigils, veins of crimson running up his arm beneath his sleeve. Vertical red lines beneath his eyes pulsed with a steady glow, black hair falling to his shoulders.

  An interesting group, all things considered.

  Ozzy looked around.

  “Okay, team,” he said brightly. “How’s everyone feeling?”

  No one answered at first.

  Then Jamal spoke up. “Shit, blood—I feel good. We got hella shit done while out bleeding the block.”

  Destiny scoffed. “That’s what you call it?”

  “Fuck outta here, D,” Jamal shot back. “Your fight with that being in black killed how many motherfuckers?”

  She rolled her eyes.

  Ozzy laughed softly. “Can’t make an omelette without cracking a few eggs.” He turned toward Crisper. “So—you fueled up?”

  She chuckled. “Yeah. I got about ten killstreaks. Two of them can summon a small army.”

  “Fantastic!”

  The room shifted naturally into strategy.

  In the next few hours, they would move against Civen and her faction. Jack was probably biding his time, which meant they had a narrow window to act. Tasks were assigned one by one.

  Ozzy leaned back slightly, voice turning more serious. “Training went well. Everyone improved. Goodie points for everyone.” He tilted his head toward North. “You’re still nowhere near what you used to be… but you can use your blood and Sryun now. And honestly?” He shrugged. “That Sryun was impressive. Even someone like me has trouble with it. The blood is insane and reckless. Great for the situation we’re running into!”

  North chuckled quietly. “I’m not using the blood unless it’s an emergency.”

  “Fair,” Ozzy said, nodding.

  He glanced at Jamal. “Court situation’s… sort of figured out. Apparently certain gang signs help a lot.” He smirked faintly. “Process ain’t perfect, though.”

  Jamal laughed under his breath. “Shit… it’ll have to do blood.”

  Ozzy’s attention shifted to Destiny. “You’re solid. Skilled. No problems there.”

  She crossed her arms. “Still weak against Sryun.”

  “Which is why,” Ozzy continued, “you, North, and I take on the Being in Black—the Land’s Herald. You’ll help with zoning, while we fight her head on.”

  Destiny nodded slowly.

  “Tabia, Crisper, S?urtinaui, and Jamal,” he went on, “you handle the army. Use the chaos to take out Calmbrand and the Blade of the Dawn. Also… S?urtinaui you do what you can. We’re not expecting miracles.”

  Tabia added quietly, “North should open with a large Sryun attack. Something disruptive.”

  North grinned. “Well… I have been playing around with the idea of being a nuke.”

  “Yeah, blood,” Jamal said, pointing at him. “Fuck ’em up.”

  They worked through a few more logistics, refining timing and positioning.

  S?urtinaui said nothing, simply listening from the couch, letting their voices drift over her like distant waves.

  Eventually Ozzy clapped his hands together.

  “Okay,” he said. “I think that’s everything. Get some rest. Do whatever you need to do.” His tone softened slightly. “This might be our last day alive… so let’s make the most of the peace.”

  Jamal snorted. “Wow, blood. You just killed the mood.”

  Ozzy shrugged. “Eh. It was already dead.”

  Crisper burst into laughter.

  The meeting dissolved naturally after that.

  Jamal, Tabia, Crisper, and Ozzy headed back outside toward the ruined shopping district, talking quietly as they walked.

  S?urtinaui curled deeper into the couch and finally allowed herself to sleep.

  And Destiny and North slipped away together, taking a quiet walk through the broken streets of Tetis.

  ———

  “So, Skittles.”

  Crisper glanced sideways at Jamal as they walked through the shattered shopping district.

  “What you gettin’ outta this?” he asked.

  “My life?” she replied dryly.

  “No, dumbass,” Jamal said, waving a hand. “I’m sayin’—everybody got gods and contracts and cosmic nonsense. You just here for what? Game rewards?”

  “Duh,” she said with a shrug. “And I do have a god. I joined the House of Vari through Destiny.”

  “Oh shit?” Jamal and Ozzy said at the same time.

  Jamal slowly turned toward Ozzy, who immediately started whistling like he hadn’t heard a thing.

  Jamal pointed at Tabia. “Get ya man.”

  “He’s not my man,” Tabia replied calmly. “He’s my captain.”

  Ozzy slipped behind her and wrapped his arms around her shoulders.

  “Y’all definitely be fucking.”

  “We do not!” Tabia snapped, cheeks turning pink.

  “Awww,” Ozzy teased. “Is that a blush? But I do love my little T. She’s probably my favorite best person.”

  Tabia shoved him lightly, trying—and failing—not to smile.

  Jamal shook his head and looked back at Crisper. “You ain’t tell me you joined up with Destiny’s people. That’s crazy.”

  “It happened when we fought the Land’s Herald,” she said. “Back when I was deciding whether to kill Destiny or not.”

  “Shit… that’s dark, blood,” Jamal muttered. “But I get it.”

  Crisper blinked, surprised.

  “Shit,” he continued with a shrug. “End of the day, you gonna get buried by yourself anyway. You chose to be a real one in the end, so it don’t matter you was lacking for a moment.”

  “Oh…”

  “What?”

  “Nothing.” She exhaled slowly. “It wasn’t just that, though. My UI lets me stream… and the chat kept telling me to kill her. Saying some really hateful stuff.”

  Jamal stopped walking. “Damn, blood—you been droppin’ the lo this whole time?!”

  “I turned it off,” she said quietly. “Haven’t turned it back on since. It was… unsettling. Even back on Earth, I never got that much hate.”

  Jamal snorted. “Shit, I was hated since I came out the womb.”

  She laughed despite herself. “Whatever.”

  “But that’s good you good,” Jamal added. “Guess I should take that deal with Aulura, huh? Since you linked up with Vari.”

  “Yeah, why not?” she said as they wandered past shattered storefronts. “You’ve been through enough. Every Outlander has. What we’re getting now—it ain’t fate. It’s luck and determination. So yeah… take the win.”

  “You not scared?” he asked.

  She shook her head. “I got a bad habit of going with the flow. Best way I’ve survived these past eight years.”

  “Eight years… damn.”

  “Technically sixteen,” she said with a grin. “Whole time-jumble thing. Feels longer, though.” She shrugged. “I deserve some comfort too.”

  “Bet,” Jamal said. “That’s solid. I’ma try not to think too much on it. Last time I did that, I fucked over my last opportunity.”

  “Last opportunity?”

  “Yeah. Some dude wanted me to leave the hood, live with him. Said he’d help me get on my feet. But I been a man since the womb, you heard? Hardheaded. Three years later…. Got betrayed, died in a corner store… and woke up here.”

  “Damn,” she said softly. “You didn’t deserve that.”

  “Blood, I deserved hell,” he replied with a crooked grin. “I was a menace out there. But shit—I’m here now. So you right. I’ma fuck it up and be lit.”

  “Shouldn’t you not fuck it up?”

  He shook his head. “Y’all don’t understand shit for real, for real.”

  She smirked. “Hmm. Nah. I understand English and some bizarre languages. You just ain’t speaking English… gangbanger.”

  They continued arguing playfully as they walked, voices echoing through the broken plaza.

  A few steps behind, Ozzy and Tabia watched in silence.

  Ozzy chuckled under his breath.

  Tabia’s smile lingered longer than she meant it to.

  “How much of this are you taking on your shoulders?” she asked, not looking at him.

  Ozzy watched her for a moment before answering.

  She was beautiful—no, beautiful didn’t come close.

  Her teal-and-white hair shimmered like living flame, streaked with violet and ember-light that shifted whenever she moved. Crimson eyes glowed like fractured stars against skin traced with faint indigo markings that pulsed with quiet power. A crown of molten red coral rose from her head like something grown rather than worn, regal and warlike all at once. And her armor—a sculpted lattice of blue and silver—fit her as if forged directly from her will, equal parts elegance and strength.

  “You’re the last survivor of the crew,” he said softly. “And before that… you’re seriously dear to me, Tabia.”

  She stopped walking.

  He continued, “I’m doing whatever it takes to make sure you make it home and complete the mission.”

  She turned to face him, eyes steady.

  “No.”

  “Hmm?”

  “I’ll make sure we go home,” she said, voice firm. “You make sure we complete the mission.” Her fist tightened at her side. “We’ll teach everyone what happens when you disrupt the Occulted Moon. And I’ll fulfill my promise of never leaving your side.”

  Ozzy tilted his head, locs swaying. “You don’t have to keep that promise.”

  “I want to.”

  The words landed with quiet finality.

  Ozzy smiled faintly and pulled her into a hug. “Fine. Then we work together and make sure both sides are complete.” He rested his chin lightly against her head. “Happy, my little T?”

  She buried her face into his chest.

  “Yes.”

  “Um… y’all good?” Jamal’s voice cut in from ahead of them.

  Ozzy didn’t let go. “Yeah. What you psychos want?”

  “Y’all really aren’t a thing?” Jamal asked, eyebrow raised.

  “We’re life partners,” Ozzy said easily. “Universe sense. I’m her captain, she’s my vice captain.”

  Jamal lifted his hands. “Aight, I’ma let y’all rock. Not my business. Y’all look happy, so…” He stepped back dramatically. “But quick question.”

  “I’m all ears!” Ozzy said.

  Jamal smirked. “Crisper got this thing with mask people.”

  “It’s not a thing,” Crisper muttered. “Certain masks just bring up bad memories.”

  “Right,” Jamal said. “She got mask PTSD. When she got teleported to Requiem, some masked dudes hunted her down.”

  “Okay, let me explain,” Crisper cut in. “Because you’re just yapping.”

  “What?!”

  She rolled her eyes. “Anyway. I came from Call Fortress. It was a beta game—basically Call of Duty mixed with Fortnite. I was a streamer.”

  “Named Crisper!” Ozzy chimed in.

  “You’ve heard of me?” she asked, surprised.

  “Nope,” Ozzy said cheerfully. “Been in Requiem way too long.”

  “Gotcha…” She exhaled slowly. “When my team and I got teleported here, we ended up in this maze. Endless corridors. No sky. And these beings—masks, long ripped capes—they hunted us. One by one.”

  Her voice lowered.

  “They didn’t chase fast. They just… knew where we were. Every turn felt wrong. Every sound echoed like something breathing behind you.” She swallowed. “I was the only one who made it out. There were fifteen of us. I sometimes still hear their screams…”

  Tabia shifted slightly, pulling away from Ozzy just enough to speak.

  “That sounds like a Warsavage hunting ground,” she said quietly. “One of the Supreme Family Head’s territories. Their family hunts anything… even each other. If you’re there, you’re fair game.”

  “That’s foul,” Crisper muttered.

  Jamal nodded slowly. “Yeah… Warsavage sound like a real problem.”

  Crisper sighed, shaking her head. “I’ve heard enough. I’m not freezing up again like I did against the Calmbrand crew. Thanks for the clarity.”

  “You sure blood?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Bet,” Jamal said, clapping his hands once. “Let’s actually check these stores out then.”

  Ozzy nodded. “We got about three hours before we gotta fight to the death against Civen.”

  “Stop killing the mood!” Jamal groaned.

  They all laughed anyway.

  ———

  “We went all this way just to look at the sky?” North asked, confused.

  “Yes,” Destiny said simply. “It’s nice to just… look at the sky.”

  He frowned, glancing around at the shattered skyline. “Why do I wanna look at the sky when we got all this shit going on?”

  She cut him off with a small smile. “That’s exactly why we need to relax and look at the sky.”

  “But S?—”

  “She’s fine,” Destiny said, rolling her eyes. “You are really suffocating sometimes.”

  “I’m concerned,” he shot back. “And why am I here if I’m so suffocating?”

  She hesitated for a second, then shrugged lightly. “I wanted you to look at the sky with me.”

  North’s pulse stuttered.

  “Oh,” he said, suddenly softer. “Well… you coulda just said that, Des. Damn.”

  He dropped down beside her at the edge of the skyscraper, legs hanging over the side as the Curtenail ruined sky stretched above them.

  For a moment, there was only silence.

  The quiet felt… familiar.

  Then it hit him.

  Jafar and Vari had done this once—sat above everything, watching the horizon. Though the tension now felt different. Lighter. Or maybe just unfinished.

  He glanced sideways at Destiny.

  Her blue hoodie hung loose around her shoulders, platinum-blonde hair spilling freely down her back. She still wore his cape transmuted into long black pants—something he absolutely refused to comment on right now. She looked rough from training, scratches and dust marking her skin, but there was a glow to her that refused to dim.

  Beautiful.

  The thought slipped in before he could stop it.

  Urges started to creep up.

  No, no, no, he told himself. This is a nice sitting-down moment. Don’t you dare start acting up, Mr. Wonderful.

  “You okay?” Destiny asked, tilting her head slightly.

  She didn’t mean anything by it—but the movement hit him way harder than it should have.

  “I’m fine,” he said quickly. “You fine?”

  “I’m fine.”

  “Yeah… you fine.”

  She groaned. “Shut up.”

  They both laughed, the sound drifting into the open sky.

  “So… you made deals with gods,” Destiny said, glancing at him. “That’s pretty impressive.”

  “Why?” North snorted. “Because you think I’m stupid?”

  She smirked. “Besides you being stupid. Just… you’ve only been here, what? A month?”

  “You’re telling me,” he muttered. “Feels like I’ve been here my whole life.”

  She gave him a look.

  “Shut up.”

  She laughed softly, then her expression turned more serious. “You weren’t used during the deal, right?”

  North sighed, leaning back on his hands. “Sadly, I must’ve missed the protagonist luck where gods just fall into your lap. But I made sure the deal benefited both sides.”

  “You cared if it benefited her?” Destiny asked, watching him carefully.

  “Yeah,” he said with a shrug. “She sent Ozzy and Tabia. The crew was cool. They helped my friends. So yeah—I owe her.” He paused. “Now, I’m fully aware she intended for this outcome. Not the murder part… but me feeling indebted.”

  Destiny tilted her head. “If you don’t mind me asking—”

  “I do mind.”

  She blinked.

  “I’m joking,” he added quickly.

  “Grow up.”

  He stuck his tongue out at her.

  “You look too demonic for actions like that,” she said, shaking her head.

  “You love how I look.”

  “I prefer brunettes.”

  “Sure,” he said, rolling his eyes. “Anyway… I don’t mind the deal. She wants to go Beyond Plus Ultra.”

  Destiny raised an eyebrow.

  He smirked. “She wants to go Beyond Divinity. Needs Jafar for it. Which in turn means… I gotta be an actual prince in the empire. In exchange, me and her become partners. I get access to help outside the empire… she gets to ascend and, I guess, survive.”

  “You’re okay with that?”

  “Don’t got much choice,” he admitted. “But I’m making the most of it. Besides… I’m tired. Staying at the palace ain’t so bad.”

  She studied him quietly. “You don’t hate Jafar?”

  North glanced away. “Did I ever say that out loud?”

  “No. But the vibe was there.”

  “True,” he chuckled softly. “But nah. I don’t hate him anymore. And… being closer to him might help me understand him.” He glanced at her. “Kinda like how you and Vari are. I like that dynamic.”

  Destiny leaned back, staring at the sky. “It helps that I mostly see Vari like an annoying, rich older sister.”

  North smirked. “Now I’ll see Jafar as a rich asshole uncle.”

  She snorted, trying—and failing—not to laugh.

  “What about you?” North asked, glancing sideways at her. “Everything good in glitterville?”

  “Yeah,” Destiny said softly. “Me and Jamal talked. It… cleared up a lot for me.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes,” she said, nudging him lightly with her shoulder. “That conversation you were eyeing so aggressively.”

  “I was not,” he scoffed. “My pride wouldn’t let me do that. I was just curious…”

  “Uh huh.”

  “Yeah huh.”

  She smiled and leaned back, eyes drifting upward toward the three suns hanging above Curtenail. Their light washed across the skyline, reflecting off the golden wave slowly advancing across the horizon like a living tide.

  “Jamal said I remind him of Wonder Woman,” she said after a moment.

  North blinked. “Now that I think about it… yeah. You kinda built like her.”

  His gaze drifted for a second before he caught himself.

  She laughed softly. “That’s good, actually.”

  “Yeah?”

  “Yeah,” she said, folding her hands behind her head. “Not just the look. The idea behind it.”

  Her voice grew quieter, more thoughtful.

  “Vari’s a snake. That’s what she is. And for a long time, I thought if I wanted to stand beside her, I needed to become a dragon. Something ruthless enough to survive this world.”

  North nodded slowly.

  “But that’s not me,” she continued. “I don’t need to become something colder just because Requiem tried to carve that into me.” She exhaled, the suns reflecting in her eyes. “I need a new path. One that fits who I actually am… not just what Vari or the world expects.”

  North watched her, genuinely impressed.

  “Damn,” he muttered. “Jamal got some wisdom under the hood.”

  She smirked. “Don’t tell him that. He’ll never shut up.”

  The golden wave crept closer along the horizon, but neither of them moved.

  “So… an Amazon warrior,” North said, glancing sideways at her. “You wanna be a hero now?”

  “Not a hero,” Destiny replied, voice softer. “But I would like to wipe some of the blood off my name.”

  He nodded slowly. “I get that. I’m not trying to be a hero either.”

  “You just want to get to Jafar’s level.”

  “Yup,” he said without hesitation. “And then deal with him afterwards. How that plays out… I got no clue.”

  She exhaled, watching the three suns drift across the sky. “Well, we better figure our paths out. Our legacies depend on it.”

  “Yeah,” he muttered. “Everyone keeps saying, make yourself a story and the world bends around it. Sounds cool, but it’s a lot harder than people make it sound.”

  “Especially for us Jujisn,” she added quietly.

  He smiled at that. “Well, Miss Amazon, you seem to have your path figured out. Pretty concrete. Rip off a DC character.”

  “It’s not concrete,” she said, nudging him lightly. “But it’s definitely better than yours, Mr. Tampon.”

  He laughed. “You haven’t gone full Shakespeare mode in a while.”

  “Don’t jinx it.”

  “Sorry.”

  A brief silence settled between them before she turned toward him again.

  “Now… about your Sryun.”

  He raised an eyebrow. “What about it?”

  She studied him carefully. “How do you actually use it? Yours doesn’t feel like other Sryun I’ve sensed before.”

  He hesitated, gaze drifting back toward the sky.

  “…I don’t really wanna answer that.”

  “North.”

  “What?”

  “Tell me.”

  “No.”

  “My life could depend on it. What if someone else uses it in a similar way? Do you not care about me?”

  He sighed. “Fine. It kinda spikes when… my head’s in a horny space. Or when I’m really close to dying.”

  She blinked. “Oh.”

  He immediately groaned. “Don’t look at me like that.”

  Her lips twitched, trying—and failing—not to laugh.

  “I’m serious,” he added, cupping his face. “It’s not as cool as it sounds.”

  “Honestly?” she said, eyes softening. “That makes sense. Your power always felt… emotional. Lustful.”

  He leaned back beside her again, staring at the sky.

  “Yeah,” he muttered. “Guess that’s one way to put it.”

  She leaned closer.

  “Destiny,” he muttered, voice low, “it’s not nice to tease people.”

  “Well…” she said, eyes glinting with mischief, “this might be our last day alive. And apparently lust makes you stronger. Like the proper demon you are.”

  He stared at her, heart suddenly racing faster than any battle had ever made it.

  “So you wanna—”

  “To help with the battle,” she finished smoothly.

  He blinked, then burst into a laugh. “Ah ha! Us minute-man are still in the race. I knew you enjoyed it!”

  “Shut up.”

  “Right,” North coughed into his hand, trying to look serious. “For the mission. This is for the mission.”

  “Don’t make me change my mind.”

  “It’s cool, it’s cool,” he said quickly, scooting a little closer.

  The air between them shifted.

  He leaned in.

  “Oh my god, North,” she whispered, smiling despite herself. “You’re such a dog.”

  “Nah,” he murmured, red eyes softening, sigils slowing. “I prefer beast.”

  Their lips met—soft at first, uncertain, then warmer, steadier. The world fell quiet around them, fading beneath the sound of shared breath and the slow beat of two trying to find the same rhythm.

  For a brief moment, there was —

  Only warmth.

  Only them.

  A silence that gathered strength rather than broke it.

  Because in the next few hours, the convergence of legacies would be drenched in blood.