Arcturus followed his friends as they sprinted into the Rubastra family home, or what was left of it. The building was crumbling, and fully half the residential wing had collapsed in the fighting. What was left of the House Guard were scattered, either skirmishing across the estate or hunting and being hunted throughout what remained of the upper levels. When they entered the foyer, it was mostly abandoned: Left to its devices by soldiers too scared of the titanic clashes outside and on the levels above.

Adam led them across the once-pristine marble floor, guiding them by the flickering light of the ruined sconces within. When they reached the massive plinth at the centre of the foyer, marked by the Rubastra coat of arms, Adam reached out and pressed his hand to its surface. For several nervous moments nothing happened, and Arcturus spent the time trying to be a good lookout while Caeara’s eyes haunted his vision.

At some point, Elethea’s fingers had twined with his, and he had no recollection of when.

But he had yet to let go.

Their group stood in silence as Adam murmured under his breath at the coat of arms, each of them naturally assuming a position of watch while the battlemage did whatever it was he had to do. No one was in the mood to talk, let alone crack wise about wizards taking their time. They were too hurt. Too raw.

A sonorous boom from the upper levels drew Arcturus’ eyes, but he looked up dispassionately. His mentor was fighting, but he felt only… resignation. Would she be the next to die, all for their impossible mission? When Beowulf had thrown in his support, Arcturus had let himself believe they’d had a chance. He’d believed that, just perhaps, they could turn the tide and correct the wrongs. The Masquerade. They’d only needed to make it to the Masquerade.

Yet, Fortunis had known about his true heritage. Arcturus felt it down to his bones. His uncle had known. Did that mean he had given the order to kill them all at Yale? Their time at the University felt like a different decade. A different life.

He almost chortled. It literally was, and yet he couldn’t shake his attachment to his parents. He couldn’t snuff out that part of himself that still wanted his father, shoulders straight and that confident look on his powerful features, to walk through the door and declare everything was going to be okay.

What a ridiculous wish.

Adam finished speaking behind them, and the Rubastra coat of arms abruptly split down the middle, before sliding apart. An entrance large enough for each of them to fit one by one opened up, and darkness greeted them within.

“...a secret passageway? Seriously?” Andy muttered.

“Most families have them.” Elethea said in a quiet voice. “Father showed me ours when I was younger, too. Just in case we…” She trailed off into silence, and Arcturus felt her hand tighten around his. He squeezed back in silence.

“Let’s go.” Danica said simply, holding her staff out to light the way as she started down the stairs without looking back. Arcturus glanced at Elethea, who nodded at him, and the two of them entered after Adam, while Andy brought up the rear. “Aren’t we worried about being foll—?”

The passageway started to grind closed as his foot left the fifth step.

“Nevermind.” The Mageslayer muttered.

Arcturus glanced at the walls as they walked, lit by the golden glow of Danica’s halo-topped staff and a conjured ball of solarfire in Elethea’s left hand. There was no writing, no chiselling, no elaborate design. The stone was smooth, and bereft of identifying features. Not even a sconce or a single tapestry. Even the colour was plain; grey stone above, below, beside them. Their descent took them deeper and deeper, and Arcturus only belatedly realised they were subtly curving as they descended. Even then, only thanks to his minimap.

“Adam, what is this place?” Arcturus asked as they continued to descend, his curiosity overriding his fugue at Caeara’s death, at least temporarily.

“Tiberius told me about it a while ago, in case there was ever an emergency.” Adam said as they walked. “There’s an old, old gateway down here. Apparently it was built before the Empire existed.”

“Will it even still work?” Andy asked doubtfully.

“Tiberius assured me it would, I only worry about—”

A boom sounded behind them, and the distant echo of rubble and cracking stone filtered down the stairwell. The group froze for a second, before all eyes turned to Adam.

“Run!” He said immediately, and they did as bade.

Arcturus’ legs pumped as he raced down the stairs, plated boots clanging loudly as they covered the distance to the unknown bottom rapidly. All too suddenly, they ran out of stairs and hit a flat, solid floor. No one hesitated to investigate or ruminate as the bottom of the stairwell opened into a far wider corridor. They simply ran, Arcturus’ hand around Elethea’s own and his eyes pointed forward.

Murals were present, this time. Statues faded into the shadows, with dark silhouettes almost reminiscent of winged gargoyles watching them from recessed alcoves. Something about the corridor, about the entire place, felt ominous to Arcturus. He felt like an intruder somewhere he shouldn’t have been, in a place that he didn’t belong. A place he was most definitely not welcome.

A pair of dark double doors barred the way ahead, and Adam extended his staff, rattling off a series of words Arcturus understood without understanding them — his [Arcane Linguistics] skill showing its value as he filed away the phrases automatically. He had no idea what they did, or what to use them with, but he understood their purpose, and could reiterate them at a moment’s notice now if asked.

The doors flashed with white light at Adam’s interaction, and lines of power like veins of current raced down through three dimensional carvings of men atop beasts with massive wings and four limbs. Arcturus almost stopped to properly investigate, but Elethea’s grip on his hand was unyielding. The doors opened, and they proceeded through and within.

Ahead of them was a simple, if vast chamber. It was circular, with greek-style pillars ringing its perimeter, and a vaulted ceiling above with murals painted upon its barely-visible surface. Adam muttered something, and motes of light appeared all around them, throwing the chamber into sharp relief.

It was massive.

Arcturus could have parked five eighteen-wheelers in a circle around the raised dais in the centre, and the forbidding blackstone archway that sat upon it.

“That’s not fucking ominous at all!” Andy seethed. “Look at that fucking thing, it’s like something the UAC would build!”

“UAC?” Elethea asked in confusion.

“It’s a nerd reference, forget about it.” Danica said with a brittle smile as their group raced into the chamber and towards the dais.

“Tiberius said that the gateway always holds a charge.” Adam said as they reached the stairs leading up to the archway five metres raised in the centre of the chamber, taking the steps two at a time. As they closed, Arcturus realised that the blackstone construction was scaled to fit the room. He could have marched ten people across through its opening.

“So what now?” Andy asked urgently, looking back and forth between the door and Adam. “Console and some levers? Wingardium Leviosa? Rub it three times and—?”

“Why does he speak so much?” Elethea asked quietly to Arcturus.

“Nerves. He talks when he’s nervous. It’s a tic.”

“Oh. I see.” Her eyes hovered on the portal, and then turned back to him. “You said you wanted to talk to me.”

Arcturus looked back at her, and forced a smile. “We have time, Elethea. Once we’re safe, I promise, we’ll be able to figure everything out.”

“My father…”

“I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s not that.” She said, shuddering as she drew in a breath before continuing. “He died the way he would have wanted to: Fighting for what he believed in. I just… I just wish I could have told him how proud I was of him. How strong he looked.”

“He knew.” Arcturus assured her. “Your father knew you loved him, and knew you were proud of him.”

“How do you know?”

“Because I know how you feel about me, Elethea.” Arcturus said gently. “And you never need to say it, other than with your eyes.”

Elethea’s white-gold eyes widened, and then she blushed across her cheeks and nose, with moisture glistening in her eyes. “You are a chore, Arcturus Regis Valoura.” She mumbled, reaching up to brush the tears from her eyes.

“I know.” He said gently, drawing her against him and letting her bury her face against his armour as Adam, joined by Danica, worked on the portal.

The sounds of armoured footsteps echoed out of the corridor abruptly, and Arcturus turned towards Adam. “We’re running out of time.”

“It isn’t as easy as you think it is!”

“We need to close the doors.”

“Oh!” Adam said, before turning and lifting his staff. A discharge of aetherial power later, and the doors started to swing shut. For all that they seemed like ancient, unwieldy, powerful constructions: He controlled them easily. Arcturus was even surprised that they closed at all. He half expected them to dramatically fail and force them to make a desperate stand in the style of Thermopylae.

“You forgot to close the fucking doors?” Andy asked scathingly.

“Shut up idiot.” Adam grumbled, going back to examining the gateway. “Busy.”

A boom thundered against the doors, and Arcturus snapped his head towards them. “That wasn’t good.”

“They’ll hold.” Adam said confidently.

“What’s that optimism based on?” Arcturus asked.

“The fact we’ll die if they don’t?” Danica offered.

“Fair enough.” Arcturus said with a nod, and heard Elethea sniffle-chuckle against his armour.

It felt strange to be speaking with light-hearted tones, even forced ones, without Caeara present. For all her quietude and respectful observation, the purple-haired Terran had always been a warm addition to their company. She’d been travelling with Adam, Andy, and Danica longer. He knew that. But the near two months he’d spent with her, seeing her for the better part of twelve hours most days… It was hard not to bond with someone. Hard to not grow attached to them.

Caeara had been family, by the time Beowulf had arrived. A friend. A sister.

His heart ached for the loss of her, and seethed to kill to avenge her.

“Why did you stop me?” He murmured to Elethea quietly, as if it were just the two of them and no one else. “Why didn’t you let me kill her?”

For a time the Highblade Heiress was quiet, and Arcturus didn’t push her. He could feel how tightly, how fiercely, her toned arms clung to him like he was the only position of stability in her world right then. It was a clearly rare sign of vulnerability from a woman Arcturus had known to happily thrash him in unarmed combat practice.

When she did finally answer, her voice was quiet but resolved. “You would have regretted it. I saw the way you looked at her, and I’ve gleaned things from Danica and Andy over the time I’ve been with all of you.”

Arcturus glanced at his friends, and it was a sign of their shared exhaustion and situation that both of them simply nodded, before he turned his attention back to the door and listened to Elethea.

“I know she was your first love.” She continued. “I know you still have confusing, even overriding feelings for her. I’m not jealous, not really.”

Arcturus looked down at her then, and his skepticism must have been on his face.

“I’m serious.” She said with a smile, punching his armoured ribs lightly. “It’s… more common than you think, on Terra, to share with others. Some rare women take many husbands, but more often, it is the inverse. One father and multiple wives is easier to palate than one wife and multiple fathers.”

“What does that have to do with…?”

“My point.” Elethea said after a moment more. “Is that I was ready to share you even before I knew. I fell for you in that Arena, Arcturus. Call me mad, call me a crazy woman, or an immature girl absent reason or rhyme to her thoughts: But I fell for you, and I knew you were the one I would give myself to. Body, mind, and soul.” She reached up and took his face in her hands, and he saw her eyes searching his. “I can see you don’t believe me.”

“It isn’t that.” He said with honesty. “I just… I don’t know what happens next, Elethea. I’d like to say we figure out how to come back from it all, but how can we? We’re not even fully trained Archons, the only people we could truly rely on are dead…”

“House Highblade—!”

“Your house, Elly, will pass to your cousin now. If what you’ve confided in me is true, he won’t have any qualms about going to war — but not for me or what you believe, for the perception of slighted honour. Valaria will have a civil war, and we’ll be sitting back watching it unfold. It’s not that I don’t believe you, Elethea, I just…”

“Can’t put faith in words right now.” She murmured, eyes searching his as he finally, hesitantly nodded.

“Very well then.” She said with a smile. “Let me help.”

“How—?”

“Hush.” She said quietly. “Just listen.”

So he did, and his eyes widened when she started to speak.

“I, Elethea Solaria Highblade, do hereby pledge my fealty and loyalty to Arcturus Regis Valoura. I shall be his blade, his shield, and his faithful companion.” The doors shook again, but Arcturus was frozen still as he watched her, and listened. “From now until The Ending, unless he should release me of this Oath, I shall agree to be bound to him and adhere to his will.”

The words washed over him with tangible force, and hew knew it was a true oath. A powerful one. The words must have been taught to her, but when she’d have found the time to learn… His eyes turned to his friends, and then Danica smiled at him guiltily. So, it had been her. He smiled back a moment later, and saw her visibly relax. “I make this pledge in full awareness of its immensity, and with the glad acceptance of the weight of such a duty upon my shoulders.” Elethea pulled his face down, and wrapped her fingers in his hair as she whispered the last of the words against his lips.

“In the name of Order, let my pledge be sealed.”

Arcturus felt her kiss him at the same time as the Oath took hold, and she cried out against his lips, holding herself to them as her body trembled and spasmed in his arms. Her fingers in his hair tightened and squeezed painfully, and he could feel her jaw lock as the agony settled in and the hooks of the vow found purchase upon her soul.

For him, it was but a discomforting increase in heat within his body, and the inability to look away from her beautiful eyes.

A shout of victory from Adam, a moment later, startled him out of his reverie.

“It’s working!” His friend exulted as the blackstone frame of the portal started to pulse, lighting up with sharp and elegant runes that shone with white luminescence. Activation sequences fired across the gateway, and Arcturus moved around alongside Elethea to look at it from the front, releasing a low whistle as the gateway roared to life.

“Good, now let’s get the fuck out of h—!”

The double doors exploded as Andy was speaking.

Arcturus whipped his head around as two armoured individuals strode inside, aetherblades in hand. One hand a sword of compressed water, the other a sword that seemed to be made of magma of all things, and dripped slag as she walked.

“Inquisitors.” Arcturus spat, Perdition drawn and ignited. “I’ll handle—”

“Arcturus. No.” Adam said from behind him, pulling his head. “You have to go.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Arcturus growled. “Well take them together, and—”

“No.” Adam said again. “You’re the one we can’t afford to lose.”

“Adam, my last name doesn’t—”

“It isn’t that!” He said angrily. “It’s what you represent. You have limitless potential, Arcturus. Literally limitless. You don’t depreciate, at least not now, and even if you do at higher ranks — which I doubt — you will still be leagues ahead of any of us. Fuck the Throne, you need to survive so you can make them pay! For Vivienne, for Caeara, for Tylariel, and Beowulf, and Tiberius... For all of us.”

“I can't just... I won’t just abandon you all! That’s not what we do. We stay together.”

“We’ve already lost, Arcturus.”

“We haven’t—!”

“We’ll be right behind you, Arcturus.” Adam said firmly. “But you need to go.”

“Go.” Andy said, echoing Adam.

“Go.” Danica agreed, smiling at him with tears in her eyes.

“Go.” Elethea whispered, Adjudication drawn in her hand. “Go with my love.”

Her lips touched his again, once more, fiercely — and then she turned and vanished in a blast of solarfire.

“Elethea!”

She reappeared among the Inquisitors, and both of them set upon her in an instant. Arcturus took an instinctive step forward, and then felt something wrench him backwards. Below him, Andy had appeared beside one of the Inquisitors, and engaged them with blade and dagger, taking pressure off of Elethea as she fought the other. Feeling pressure around his middle, Arcturus looked down, bewildered, to find a lasso of compressed air around his body. His eyes followed the chord, and saw it atherically tethered to Adam’s hand. “Tiberius warned me about this.”

“About what?!” Arcturus demanded.

“Making the decision for you.” Adam said grimly, before hurling Arcturus into the swirling white vortex of the portal.

Artwork by Deti, paid for by Hannibal Forge.