The Crushing Void never changed.
It didn't matter how long they stayed, how many centuries passed or how many times they convinced themselves they were used to it. There was no sky or ground in the traditional sense. Reynolds walked through it like it was a bad road he had traveled too many times to care anymore. Miranda followed a few steps behind him with her shotgun slung over her shoulder. She scanned the empty horizon, if they could even call it that.
She broke the silence first.
"Reynolds, I been meanin' to ask you somethin'."
He didn't slow down. "That usually means you're about to say something inconvenient."
"Why in the hell are we helpin' this Aeterium boy so much?"
That made him stop. He turned just enough to glance at her over his shoulder.
"Because, Vastarael Richinaria isn't just an Aeterium. He's the grandson of Vasreveilder Nov Aeteria."
Miranda froze mid-step. "Hold on. You mean that Vasreveilder?"
"The Royal Aeterium, yes."
She let out a low whistle. "Well I'll be damned."
He resumed walking and after a second, she followed.
"When a Royal Aeterium has offspring, their bloodline doesn't just pass down power. They have the innate right to rule other Aeterium."
"I ain't never heard of that bein' used."
"That's because Vasreveilder never used it not even on me or the other Sustainers he converted into Impure Aeterium. He believed command without consent was no different from tyranny. The blood still exists and I can sense it clear as day. Vasreveilder was the only Aeterium with that level of royal purity. Which means if Vastarael carries it—and he does—then there's only one possible answer. He's Dilasyus's son."
"..."
"When Vasreveilder was betrayed, he didn't die right away. He escaped but was broken, hunted and stripped of everything but alive. And in that exile, he found the love of his life. He had a child, Dilasyus."
"And the First Generation didn't let that stand."
"They never do. They hunted him relentlessly. His mother died protecting him. Mintherenia raised Dilasyus herself."
"So the blood should have diluted."
"It didn't. It intensified instead. Vastarael's royal blood is almost as strong as Vasreveilder's was."
They walked in silence for a bit after that. Miranda eventually broke it again, grinning sideways.
"You get real serious when you talk 'bout him."
"Vasreveilder saved my life. He gave me purpose when I didn't have any worth living for. Helping his grandson is the least I can do."
"You're real hot when you're loyal like that, y'know."
He snorted. "When we get out of the Crushing Void, the only thing you'll be doing is saying that over and over."
"I'll be waitin' on it."
That was when the Void shifted. Reynolds raised a hand instinctively. Miranda stopped beside him as the darkness turned back just enough to reveal movement.
Tens of thousands of Voidborn filled the distance. Some crawled. Some floated. Some stood unnaturally still, as if waiting to be told what to do. There were a few giants as well. Miranda slowly lowered her shotgun.
"That… might be a bit too much, even for us. Teleportation Mystic Circle's past them, ain't it?"
"Yes."
"And we gotta go through them to reach it."
"Yes."
"Then we ain't ready yet."
Reynolds agreed immediately. "No point wasting strength before preparation."
They turned back in unison, retreating into the darker layers of the Crushing Void.
°°°°°°
It took them a day and a half to get back.
Distance stretched when it wanted to and folded when it felt petty. Reynolds and Miranda walked the same path they used to escape and somehow it still felt longer. By the time the pressure finally be receded and Luke's colossal silhouette came back into view, Miranda rolled her shoulders and let out a breath.
"Well, if the big guy's busted up, I'm gonna be real disappointed."
Reynolds narrowed his eyes. Luke was intact. There was not a single crack along his titanic shell, no missing chunks or bleeding injuries. The ancient turtle moved forward at his steady, unstoppable pace. All the Voidborn were dead. None of them were surrounding Like.
"Huh."
Reynolds stared a moment longer. "That shouldn't be possible."
A new swarm of Voidborn swarmed as they hurled malformed bodies and distorted weapons at Luke's underside, only to be intercepted mid-charge. Below them, streaks of sapphire light carved through the darkness.
Phaenora was flying beneath Luke as she conjured razor-thin sapphire projectiles by the dozen. Each one carried condensed Soul Energy and when they struck Voidborn, there was only instant incineration. She stopped in midair using her Flight Circles, noticed them, and shouted upward.
"HEY! YOU TWO NEED HELP COMING UP OR YOU GOOD?"
Miranda cupped her hands around her mouth.
"YES, PLEASE! MY LEGS ARE ABOUT DONE WITH VOID WALKIN'!"
With a flick of her wrist, sapphire materialized. It expanded into a smooth, translucent platform that dropped neatly in front of them.
"STEP ON!"
Miranda didn't hesitate. "See? This is why I like her."
They stepped onto the sapphire sheet and immediately it rose, lifting them past drifting Voidborn remnants and into the relative calm atop Luke's shell. When they landed, Miranda expected chaos.
On the porch of the wooden cabin bolted to Luke's shell, Vastarael sat comfortably at the center of a small table. Runner sat to his right with her miniaturized Crystal Lotus spinning lazily above her head. Shimmer sat cross-legged across from him, zweihander leaned against the railing like it was on break. Asenane sat beside Vastarael with her dragon wings folded neatly.
They were playing Monopoly.
Vastarael looked up first. "Welcome back."
Miranda stared. Reynolds stared. Miranda slowly pointed at the board.
"Why… are y'all playin' Monopoly in the middle of a Voidborn invasion?"
Asenane calmly rolled dice. "Because it's my turn."
Shimmer moved a tiny plastic piece. "Also, Dad said I owe him rent."
Runner smirked. "She landed on Richinaria Avenue. Again."
Miranda looked back at the horizon and looked back at them.
"Am I hallucinating?"
"Voidborn numbers dropped significantly three days ago. We've been fighting nonstop. They're thinning out."
Even though he said that, none of them looked tired. Phaenora landed beside them, brushing void ash off her sleeve.
"You should have seen it earlier. They tried swarming all at once. Didn't go well for them."
"Y'all look like you're on vacation."
Vastarael gestured to the board. "We found it on a shelf inside the cabin."
Runner nodded. "He was explaining the rules when you showed up."
Miranda turned slowly to Reynolds. "You didn't tell me he was this kind of Aeterium."
"I made Monopoly out of boredom once. He played it with me when he found out about it."
Vastarael looked mildly offended. "You enjoyed it."
"You bankrupted me in twenty minutes."
"That's a skill issue on your part."
"That's good and all but we ain't here just to admire y'all's calm nerves."
"You found something."
"A whole somethin'. Tens of thousands of Voidborn are guarding the path to the Teleportation Mystic Circle."
"That many?"
"More than usual. And they're organized."
Asenane stopped rolling the dice.
"By Luke's speed, we'll reach that zone by tomorrow. And when we do, it's gonna be an all-day fight at the minimum."
Silence fell for half a second. Vastarael smiled and nudged the board.
"Good thing we have time to plan."
"While playing Monopoly?"
"Yes, dear Shimmer. I think better when I'm committing fictional economic crimes."
Vastarael slid the dice toward Miranda. "You're up. Tell us everything you saw."
Miranda sat down slowly, still shaking her head, picked up the dice, and muttered—
"I leave y'all alone in a Void apocalypse for three days and you turn it into game night."
She rolled.
"Alright. Let's plan a war."