They had received their strange invitations a couple of days ago, as did everyone else in Revaliir. Judging by the fact everyone was invited and this would occur on an island, Rhydian had a feeling they would only need a simple formal wear, rather than anything fancy like a ball or a noble party would require. He had a clean somewhat fancy black tunic that he used on work days at special events. It was Jazrael he was worried about. When he met her, she didn't seem to have much with her. For all he knew, she didn't have many clothes packed with her, let alone anything fancy. So he tried to casually slip a bag of silver into one of her bags. He knew from past experience that giving people money directly could make them feel worse for not having the money themselves. But if it were to suddenly appear then there wouldn't be a problem, right? He just hoped she didn't notice. 

Rhydian had dressed himself in the black tunic with long and cuffed sleeves with a silver belt. His boots were brown and his trousers were a dark brown. They had arrived at the nearest beach, which happened to be Zamatye Beach. Boats had arrived at every dock in every city and at every beach, even in Onnen. These boats seemed to have something magical about them and were far faster than the average boat. When they boarded the boat, it sped off towards horae island and arrived in only an hour, which was incredibly fast for ocean travel. They were going fast, but not fast. Rhydian suspected there must have been some sort of magical teleportation involved. 

The island was lively as ever with crowds of people pouring into it. The sound of music reached his ears before anything else. They followed a path through the trees and into the main area where the party had been set up. In the center, there was a brilliant blazing bonfire keeping everybody warm and lighting up the area. Fairy lights decorated the trees while white banquet tables filled with never ending food and drinks were on the left side. There was an announcement mentioning the trials and the heartbond string thing. This peaked his interest, as he was curious to know what kind of bond he had with Jazrael. He thought they were close… but it was always possible that she felt differently. It was one of those things that seemed to strange to ask. 

"You know, I've never been to one of these parties as a guest. Usually I'm the bartender." He said with a smirk before looking to Jazrael, "Probably for the best. I usually have strong words for any bartender that can't live up to proper standards." 

Usually proper standers meant HIS standards. When it came to bartending, he had a bone to pick with anybody who wasn't on a professional level. This usually resulted in him starting fights with other bartenders and showing them up with his own skills. Sometimes it resulted in him getting a job. Most of the time they got kicked out of the tavern. The one thing he couldn't stand was a bad bartender. 

"What would you like to do first?" He asked Jazrael. 

When the invitation to Horae Island had arrived, Jazrael had been planning on discarding it and ignoring it until Rhydian had asked her about it. When he brought it up, it suddenly seemed like a great idea. She knew she was going to need to find a way to acquire some different attire to wear… her worn boots and the few pairs of leather leggings she had wouldn’t pair too well with the few worn tunics she had as well, and she doubted the tactical style corset would go over well, either.

She had fished around in her bag for whatever silver she had on her, and somehow, there had been a pouch with quite a bit in it. She had been suspicious at first, but then a grin crossed her face as she remembered that Rhydian had helped her carry her bag when the two had last met up, talking about the invitations. He must have slipped it in there, knowing that proper attire for women was a little harder to come by. With the extra silver, she had gone to a higher end shop and acquired a dress, some slippers, and even a few accessories for her hair.

When she arrived at the island, she spotted Rhydian with his back to her almost immediately, for which she was grateful. She had an inkling he would arrive before her, but she was glad that her suspicions had been true. She could see what he wore and that it was more formal than his regular attire, but she felt slightly overdressed, even though many of the women around her arriving were dressed more elegantly than she. She had a red, floor length gown on, which fit tightly to partially down her thighs where it then flared out. The entire bodice of the dress was made of lace flowers pieced together, with some scattered here and there towards her neck and down her arms. Her back was bare. She wore red slippers under the dress. Her black hair was piled partially on top of her head, with a few hairpins with the same style of red flower as the dress on them, placed throughout, the rest spilling in curls around her shoulders and down her back. She had even smudged some makeup onto her face.

Mustering up her courage, she walked up to Rhydian and tapped him lightly on the shoulder to announce her presence. She gave him a warm smile when he turned around, followed by a friendly hug. ”You look like a proper gentleman,” she said with a laugh. ”Not sure it’s becoming of you whatsoever,” she added with a grin and a wink. She fell silent when the announcements started, and found herself curious about the heartstring bonds. What kind of bond did she have with Rhydian? They had met by happenstance, and she had spent quite a bit of time with him since then. They were obviously friends, but she sometimes wondered if there was ever the chance for anything more than that. She had never really had an actual relationship with anyone, so she didn’t know what cues meant what, or when certain things happened, or how to tell if someone was even interested in you. She was glad to be friends with him, even if there had been little moments between them that had caused her to think of something more.

When the announcements had ended, Jazrael gave a laugh at Rhydian’s comment about bartending. She looked thoughtful for a moment when he asked her what she thought they should do first. ”Shall we head to the bonfire and take our turn to get our bond, or whatever it is, so we can check out the trials?” she said, shrugging her shoulders somewhat.

When Rhydian agreed, the pair head over to the bonfire to wait their turn. Their time came, and Jazrael took the piece of paper, scrawling both of their names in a neat script on the slip. She tossed it into the fire as they had been instructed, and moments later, a fairly bright pink heartstring had wrapped itself around each of their fingers. Jazrael looked at Rhydian, not entire sure what that meant. There had been a brief explanation of the colors of the bonds, but not enough for there to be clarity.

”I mean, pink is good, right?” she asked him as they stepped away from the bonfire. She remembered that pink meant either new lovers, or best friends, and she told herself inwardly that the pair had certainly become good friends over their time together. They had certainly been through a lot. And besides, she would know if they were lovers, wouldn’t she? Here she was, working herself up into a frenzy thinking about it.

”What do you say we have a drink before we take on any trials?” she said, clearing her throat. ”I’ll go get them, so you don’t argue with the bartender,” she added with a bit of a cheeky grin, leaving him at a small table with two chairs. As she walked to the bar she looked back over her shoulder at him and gave him a grin before getting their drinks. She came back and set a glass in front of him. It was a cinnamon Adelunan whiskey, exactly what she had shared with him when they had first met.

She took a drink and set her glass down. ”What do you think we should undertake first?” she asked, wondering if he had any sort of thought on which one would be the best place to start. ”I was leaning towards the escape room, or maybe the nightshade?” She wasn’t sure what they were about, other than what they had been titled. She only knew that death and injury would not be permanent, so there wasn’t anything to lose… unless there was.

For a few moments Rhydian could only stare when he first saw her in the dress she'd bought. They were so used to running around in simple clothes and practical hairstyles that when he saw her, for a moment he wondered if she had some sort of magical transformation. Both his eyes and his heart could see the heavenly glow of beauty surrounding her like some sort of aura. Or maybe it was just the lighting from the bonfire. When she suggested to head over to the bonfire, he nodded with a smile. They both walked over to the bonfire and waited their turn. The piece of paper floated down into the flames with both their names on it. Rhydian held his breath and silently prayed that whatever their color was, it wouldn't be below blue. A bright pink heartstring wrapped around their fingers and a feeling of relief arose in his chest. For some reason, the thought of having a pink ribbon made his chest stir with a mixture of excitement and fear. 

"Oh pink is very good!" He said, "I think it means best friends or new lovers. Either way that makes us very close." 

Jazrael left to get drinks while he made sure the small table was clean and with two chairs. He took a seat and gazed at the brilliant array of stars above them. They had seen thousands of constellations each night as they traveled the wildlands. Rhydian never believed much in the stars as they always seemed to be far away and gone from their reality. As he stared up at them, he muttered a prayer to to the stars. A secret just between them and him, spoken barely above a whisper. A wish for luck in this trip and a silent desire to grow close to someone. Jazrael eventually returned with a glass in front of him of cinnamon Adelunan whiskey, which he immediately took a sip of. 

"Delicious." He said with a smile, "It's kind of funny, cinnamon always seems to be a common theme whenever we're together." 

They had met and shared a cinnamon beverage then went on an entire adventure to get themselves a bundle of rare red cinnamon. There were other ingredients they had hunted down and other beverages but the most important moments in their relationship always seemed to involve cinnamon in some way or another. The universe had a strange sense of humor. Putting the drink down, he decided to focus on the trials they would soon be facing. 

"Let's try out the snake oil sales one. I'm pretty good with snakes and if its some guy trying to sell us something, we can always turn it away." Rhydian explained, "I know we won't have to worry about staying dead but we should try to avoid it all the same. The experience of death can't be pleasant. What do you think?"

All the trials would have some aspect of danger but they only had the names to base their expectations on. An escape room, nightshade, a maze with a really bad pun, and whatever a grand prix was. He took another sip of the drink as he listened to Jazrael's opinions, which always seemed to be in the back of his mind even when he wasn't actively thinking about it. 

”I guess it’s a good thing I’m a big fan, then,” Jazrael replied with a laugh as Rhydian mentioned how often cinnamon seemed to be involved with their time together. Truth be told, she wasn’t a huge fan of cinnamon outside of alcoholic beverages, but more so the company that was involved when cinnamon came into play – but she wasn’t about to say that to Rhydian.

She took a deep drink of her whiskey, savoring the flavors, as Rhydian gave his opinion on which of the trials they should undertake first. Granted, what he suggested wasn’t either of the options she had first put on the table, but his reasoning behind it seemed sound. She set her glass down and nodded. ”I think you’re right,” she said in agreement. ”I didn’t really have any reasoning behind what I suggested other than they sounded interesting, but the snake oil bit sounds like it could be rather interesting,” she said with a grin at him. ”And you are good with snakes,” she said, giving him a little nudge on the arm. ”I seem to remember you saving me from a snake with your fire… thing,” she said, laughing at herself as she couldn’t think how else to describe it. Her face became a bit more serious. ”You’re right, though… we might not die permanently, but I’d rather it just didn’t happen at all – though I have a feeling it’s probably going to be unavoidable at some point, and you’re most likely going to be watching me die over and over again,” she said, laughing as she poked fun at how clumsy she was. She didn’t really want to think about having to experience Rhydian dying, even if he was going to come back anyway.

After having decided the snake oil trial was going to be the first that they undertook, the pair finished their drinks, chatting idly about their past adventures together until the time came for them to head towards the beam of light that held the smaller bonfire which would transport them to the trial arenas. Once again, Jazrael grabbed a slip of paper and wrote both of their names on it. Before she tossed it into the fire, she reached over and grasped Rhydian’s hand in hers, giving him a grin. ”Ready?” she said, giving his hand a little squeeze before she tossed the slip into the flames. As the edges of the paper singed, the pair disappeared from the main party area.

When they rematerialized, they were in a small room. It wasn’t elegantly decorated, but the door in front of them was rather ornate. There was a man dressed like a butler between the pair and the door, holding a tray with two flutes of champagne on them. ”Welcome,” he said, greeting them. ”The salesman is just finishing up with the prospective clients who arrived before you. In the meantime, please have a glass of champagne.” He offered the tray to the pair.

Jazrael glanced at Rhydian. ”Makes sense, I suppose. Can’t have too many people in the arena at one time!” she said. When they were in agreement, they each took a glass of champagne, clinking them together in a sort of cheers before taking a deep sip each. After a few minutes, they had both finished their champagne and the butler had taken the glasses from them.

”Perfect timing, sir and madam, your turn has arrived,” he said eloquently. ”Just through that door, there!” he said, gesturing to the ornate (and only door) in the room with them. Jazrael gave him a polite nod in thanks, and pushed through the door, Rhydian directly behind her.

When they passed through the door, they were in complete darkness for a brief moment. Suddenly, the room came alight, and the door closed behind them with a click, as though it had locked. Jazrael immediately noticed that there was no one else in the room with them – where was the salesman? The only thing in the room was a table with two chairs, and on the table a small glass vial held in a silver stand, along with a scrap of paper.

Jazrael walked to the table and grabbed the slip of paper. It was scrawled in an elegant script. ”This vial contains a powerful antidote to an equally powerful poison,” she read aloud. She paused before she said the next part aloud, feeling a lump forming in her throat. Drinking the champagne without thinking, how could she have been so naïve? ”One of you has ingested the poison. It is up to you to determine who drank it, and that person must ingest the antidote,” she continued. She stared at the page for a moment, blinking a few times before reading any further. ”If you do not choose who drinks the antidote within thirty minutes – or if you choose incorrectly – the poison will kill whoever ingested it. The full amount of the antidote must be ingested in order for it to properly work. Good luck.”

Jazrael laid the scrap of paper back on the table. ”So, that’s not great,” she said, turning to look at Rhydian. She looked around the room for a moment, hoping there would perhaps be something that they could use as a clue. She tried to remember if either of the glasses of champagne looked different than the other, but she could not recall anything.

She fell silent for a moment, pulling out one of the chairs at the table. ”Maybe if you just drink the antidote, we’ll be fine,” she said. ”I mean, I’m not human – maybe the poison won’t kill me?” she said, wondering what his reaction to this suggestion would be, even though she was pretty sure her assumption was wrong. Surely the designer of this trial had known that not everyone undertaking the trials would be human. ”And besides, I don’t really want to watch you die,” she said quietly. ”Unless you have a better plan?”

Jazrael mentioned how she was probably going to die repeatedly and something in his heart flared up. It was that same feeling he had experienced when he saw that golem almost about to kill her. A strange fierceness in his chest that almost made him tremble. It screamed to him and commanded him to do whatever it took to keep her deaths from happening, even if it was temporary. 

"I won't let that happen." He responded quietly. 

The rest of their conversation was lighter, as they joked about the past and their previous adventures. Eventually it was time for them to start their first trial and possibly, their first deaths. He held tightly to Jazrael's hand and gave her a confident smile before they vanished. In a blink of an eye, they had arrived in a small room with an ornate door and a butler holding two flutes of champagne. They seemed to be spoiling them before the trial, not that Rhydian would be complaining. He gave a polite nod to the butler before taking one of the glasses. 

"Yeah, and imagine how much clean up there would be with crowds. Even on a nice day things can get difficult to fix." Rhydian commented. 

He felt himself relax as he sipped the drink. Jazrael was here with him and that was more than enough. She may not have the greatest magic or the greatest fighting abilities but she did have the intelligence to outfox anyone. Whoever this snake oil salesperson was, they were no match for her. In the back of his mind worries brewed but he pushed them away, believing it to be nothing but anxiety at the upcoming trial. He really hoped he wouldn't have to fight a snake, that fire trick wouldn't work on anything bigger than a small dumb snake. 

"Are you ready?" He asked as he returned the empty glass, "Who knows what things are behind that door…" 

The door was beautiful but could hold evil monsters or some sort of horrible trick. An overpowered salesman or something else equally horrible. They opened the door and stepped into the darkness. A flash of light turned on and the door behind them closed with a shut. Rhydian stood with his flames ready to fire but instead of a monster or a salesman… there was a piece of paper. 

"….That's a bit disappointing." He commented, "I suppose I should be grateful we won't be fighting after those drinks." 

Following Jazrael up to the table, he listened as she began reading the note out loud. The second she mentioned poison, he realized why the butler had given them champagne. His one weakness for alcohol was exploited so easily, and they didn't even know him! She continued reading as the note explained that only one of them was poisoned. This made things even worse, as it would be easy if they could simply drink the antidote if they were both poisoned. Jaz quickly began suggesting that he drinks the antidote and she potentially dies. 

"No." He quickly responded, "I mean…I am a dragon. We are known for our resistance for poisons. Sometimes even our blood is used as a poison. I doubt they would've found something that could hurt a dragon. Besides I have a high tolerance for pain. Even if I die, it will be less painful then most normal people." 

His words were true but the reasons behind them were different. The memory of her with that broken arm laid in the back of his head, her pained expression lingering in his thoughts. Seeing her in pain wasn't an option. Letting her be hurt wasn't an option. He was determined to not let them BE options. 

”You’re not a pure dragon, though… and I don’t think I’m willing to take that risk,” she said, her voice trailing off slightly at the end of her sentence. If she were to be honest with herself, it stirred something within her when she heard just how determined it seemed he was to keep her safe. She could not remember a time when anyone had cared for her well being in that manner. She had to admit, it was a good feeling.

Five minutes came and went, and the pair did nothing but argue with one another about why the other should take the antidote. Jazrael had come to the conclusion that she would rather face the probable pain of death than have to watch Rhydian die, but it seemed that he had come to the same conclusion, only with their roles switching places. ”We’re wasting time, and we’re both too stubborn to move from our stance,” she finally said after a moment. She brought her hand to her forehead and sighed. ”I don’t even know how long it’s been, but we have to think of something,” she said, her eyes scanning the room again.

A few more minutes passed and Jazrael let out an exasperated sigh. She wished that Rhydian would just take it, but she knew he wouldn’t budge, neither would she. ”You know, I can only think of one way to solve this. I don’t like it, and you aren’t going to either… but rock paper scissors,” she said. She held her hand up before he could object. ”Hear me out. It’s the only way to do it without placing any blame on ourselves,” she added. Of course, if they chose incorrectly, she was still going to blame herself, because it had been her idea.

When Rhydian agreed with her, the game of rock paper scissors commenced. ”Ready… one… two… three!” she said, and extended her hand in a fist, to represent rock. Rhydian, on the other hand, had his hand held out flat in front of him, representing paper. He reached his hand out and covered her fist with it.

”Paper covers rock, guess you’re drinking the antidote,” he said to her, clearly glad that things had gone the way he had wanted. Jazrael, on the other hand, did not look pleased. She pulled her hand away from his with an exasperated sigh and walked over to the table.

”I’m not going to argue with you because I know you’re just as stubborn as I am,” she said, though she did not sound happy about it at all. She walked over to the table and sat down, picking up the vial. She took the cork out of it and downed it. It had no taste whatsoever. ”I really hope I was the one who drank the poison,” she muttered to herself.

Now, there was nothing left to do but wait to see if they had done the right thing.

He ended up winning the bet and having her drink the antidote, thus ensuring her safety. But her words of truth rang through his mind. He wasn't a pure dragon, as much as he hated to say it. Neither a dragon nor a human but something in between. The poison could be just as lethal to him as it was to a demon. Rhydian stuck to his decision and was glad she took the antidote but he could see the displeasure in her eyes. He may have gotten his way, but he could see it left her extremely unhappy. 

"Hey, this is a good decision. And if it isn't the correct choice…" Rhydian paused a moment for the right words, "Then we'll try again with a different strategy." 

If he did die, they would have a chance to check the drinks and look for clues. The room was empty, no chairs or anything else besides the table so he took a seat on the floor, crossing his legs and beckoning her to join him with a smile. They couldn't do anything except wait but that didn't mean they had to be standing the entire time. They began chatting about a variety of things for a couple minutes. They talked about the places they'd been, what they enjoyed doing on days off and other random conversations. 

"You know, I've never asked this but did you ever have a life before Dalanesca?" Rhydian asked, "I don't know much about demons or about their lives….If it's a difficult subject you don't have to answer it. I was just a little curious." 

He listened to her words intently as she began to answer his question. Rhydian had heard a bit about her life with Dalanesca but he never knew if she had a life before that. For all he knew, demons just popped into existence fully grown. He had heard that demons could reproduce but even then he didn't know the full story. Another part of him wanted to understand her more. He wanted to know what made her who she was today. And this was a good way to find out if she had any family to worry about. If she had a demon father…that could be trouble.

Just as he was about to open his mouth to respond, he began coughing. His hands flew to his throat as he gasped for air. Rhydian's lungs burned as did his stomach which felt like somebody poured acid into it. He fell over on his side, still choking as he felt himself grow weak. In seconds, his body had collapsed and his internal organs became a garden of pain. He tried to keep his heavy eyes closed but lost in the battle. He looked at Jaz once more before closing them. His heart came to a stop and his body grew cold. Arms limp and breath gone, he was nothing more than a corpse. 

Back in the small room with the butler, Rhydian jolted awake from sleep and found himself back at the beginning of the trial. His body had been completely reconstructed without any wounds caused by the poison. The memory of that death stood with him. The acid feeling in his stomach, the pain from his lungs, and the inability to breath weren't things one could forget. Pushing himself off the floor, he moved towards the door to see Jaz again before the trial restarted. 

”It’s a decision. I wouldn’t call it good,” she said, huffing slightly. It was very apparent that she did not agree with what had transpired. When Rhydian said that they would try again if it was the wrong choice, she didn’t say anything else. She didn’t even want to think about having to watch him die, even if he was going to come back. Just the thought caused her to feel sick.

When he motioned for her to sit on the floor with him, she obliged. She sat down right next to him, unable to sit the way he had. She instead sat with her legs to one side, her dress fanning out around her. She leaned on her hands towards him as the pair talked. When it came to her questioning him about her past, specifically before Dalanesca, she thought for a moment. Rhydian had told her a bit about his past, but hers was… more complicated, in a way. Well, not so much complicated, as before Dalanesca she wasn’t really sure it existed at all. The human soul who’s body she had had gone on through the soul stream, and she didn’t retain any of its memories. The parts of her that seemed human were a direct correlation to the way hat Dalanesca’s death had affected her power – in turn, making her more near a human.

”Honestly, no, I didn’t have a life before her,” she said, rather simply. ”Dalanesca… created me. I mean, this body, it was a human’s body, once. I told you, I did things in my past I wouldn’t do today,” she said, hoping that he wouldn’t judge her for such a thing. ”I don’t have any of her memories, though… Just memories of what I did in the name of the Reaper. I’m not necessarily proud of it, but it is who I am,” she said, shrugging her shoulders somewhat. ”I don’t have any family… Dalanesca was my only family, and she is long gone,” she said, a small hint of sadness to her voice.

She had cast her gaze downwards while she spoke, but looked back up as she finished. She watched as Rhydian opened his mouth to say something, and instead began to choke for air. Her heart dropped into her stomach, her ears ringing. She felt sick – cold and hot at the same time. ”Rhydian!” she cried, lunging forward towards him as he keeled over onto his side. Of course they had chosen wrong. She should have never listened to him, she should have refused to take the antidote and forced him to.

She ran her hands along his arms, his chest, his back, trying to find a way to stop it, even though she knew it was a fruitless effort. Tears were welling heavily in her eyes, and she was shaking profusely. She was no longer calling his name, but as she saw him look at her one last time and his eyes closed with death having taken over, she screamed it, choked off with a sob.

She pulled his lifeless body across the floor to her, his head and shoulders resting limply in her lap. One hand was stroking his face, the other in his hair, and her tears were flowing freely now. She had never felt loss like this. Though he would be resurrected due to the nature of the arena the trial took place in, that thought was gone from her mind. Right now, she was holding Rhydian in her arms and he was dead, and that was all she could think about.

She didn’t notice when Rhydian had re-entered the arena. The only sound she could hear was her own sobbing, her own voice quietly mixed in with the sobs. ”You can’t be gone,” she said, her hand still stroking his cold, lifeless face. ”You can’t leave me like this,” she continued, lowering her face so that her forehead was pressed against his. ”How am I supposed to figure this out now? I thought maybe…” she said, closing her eyes. She lifted her head, pressing her lips against his forehead while tears streamed from her eyes. She moved back to press her forehead against his again. ”Please… I need you,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper as she held his body close, forgetting everything around her as she cried.

The door opened and he stepped into the darkness once more. Up ahead he could see Jaz cradling a corpse and his blood ran cold, realizing what had happened. Her sobs reached his ears as he quietly stepped closer to her. She pressed her forehead against the corpse's then gave the forehead a kiss. Her lips whispered something but he had been too far to hear it. Rhydian stood slightly behind her, giving her space in case she needed it. In that moment, he realized every time he died it would be like this. How many times could she handle watching him die? At first he was afraid she wouldn't be able to endure the pain. Now he realized there was another type of pain she truly couldn't endure. 

"Its not everyday you get to see the back of your head. Or your full body." He joked trying to lighten the mood, "I really need to get a proper haircut." 

The corpse slowly began to fade away and vanish into nothing. Rhydian squatted down next to her, wondering exactly what she whispered in the corpse's ear. He had heard everything but the last sentence. Her face was still wet with the tears from when she thought he had died. He had a feeling she wouldn't allow this to repeat and would make him drink the antidote next round, regardless of who had the poison. Perhaps it was right, since she went through it, didn't he deserve to go through it too? 

"Hey, its me. All flesh and not dead." Rhydian said holding his hand out to her, "See? Completely alive." 

The experience of death had shaken him to the core but not as much as seeing her like this. Watching her cradle his own corpse almost felt like a horrible morbid ethereal moment. There was something so tragic about her holding him like that, even if he came to life again only seconds later. Rhydian would still try to save her life but he felt his stubbornness die down when he saw the sadness in her eyes. 

"Do you want to stop now?" He asked her, "We might be allowed to go back if you don't want to continue the trial." 

He wouldn't try to force her into anything she didn't want to do. Rhydian didn't know for sure whether they would be allowed to go back. He still wanted to try, but he didn't want to push Jaz. 

Jazrael froze when she heard Rhydian’s voice, and her head whipped around quickly. It then dawned on her, as she wildly looked from his dead body to his very-much-alive body, that they were in the trial. Death was not permanent, yet there she was, sobbing over Rhydian’s fake-corpse – which was now disappearing in her hands. When it had completely faded, and Rhydian had held his hand out to her, she reacted rather quickly.

She launched across the floor at him, her demonic strength making up for her lack of body mass. She took him down to the floor, pinning him there, and began to yell at him. ”How could you do that! Why did you let me take it? You should have taken it! I had to watch you die!” she shouted. Her face was contorted into something between anger and elation. She was angry that he had died and she had to go through that, but she was elated at the realization that it hadn’t been permanent.

”You’re more stubborn than I am!” she shouted, her face having moved closer to his as she yelled. ”What if that had been permanent? What if you hadn’t come back? What if I had to go on stupid adventures without you?” she asked him, and before she said another word, she closed the gap, her lips crashing into his with considerable force. She froze for a moment, realizing what she had done, but after a moment of his own surprise it seemed that he hadn’t minded all that much, and Rhydian had kissed her back.

She broke away after a moment, and righted herself, sitting sideways on the floor once more. She cleared her throat, her face beet red, almost afraid to look at him. ”We aren’t stopping, we’re going to get this right,” she said, looking down and to the side. She cast her gaze sideways up at him, seeing if he had any further reaction to what she had done. She got up, rather matter of factly, and grabbed his hand, pulling him towards the ornate door. ”I’m calling the shots this time,” she said, and with that, she grabbed the door handle.

As soon as she opened it, there was a brilliant flash of light, and the pair had been transported back into the waiting area again. ”Hello,” the butler said, greeting them as though he had not seen them before. ”The salesman is just finishing up with some other prospective clients. He will be ready for you shortly. In the meantime, please enjoy a glass of champagne,” he said, offering the tray to the pair of them.

”Don’t mind if I do,” Jazrael said, and grabbed both glasses before Rhydian could grab one. She downed them both and placed them on the tray, giving him a rather sassy look. The butler took the tray away, letting them know that the salesman was ready for them.

She pulled Rhydian into the room again, and it was set up exactly the same. ”Well, I think I’ll drink the antidote again, what do you think?” she said with a bit of an attitude, though it was coupled with a smile. A hint of red was still in her cheeks, and she had a fleeting thought about how she had reacted upon seeing him alive, but it dissipated rather quickly. She grabbed the vial of antidote and pulled the top off. ”Cheers,” she said, holding it up in a toast to him before downing it. ”Now, we just have to wait until the time is up, right?”