After hearing everything, Helena stood frozen. Her wide, unfocused eyes stared at him—no anger, no imdiate hatred—just disbelief.
Blank, cold, shocked... As if what she'd just heard wasn't reality at all, but so sick, cruel joke.
Like he'd just told her the sky was fake.
Drip...
A single tear escaped the corner of her eye, rolling slowly down her cheek. She didn't even flinch.
Aether's lips quivered. "I... I didn't an to..." he whispered, his voice breaking, eyes filled with guilt, reaching toward her.
But before he could finish—
Helena turned and bolted.
She ran. Without a glance back, without a single word, without a scream.
She just ran.
Her body was trembling as tears finally flooded her face, splashing onto the ground behind her.
Her feet moved faster than her mind could follow.
Everything.
Everything Aether had said—the love, the tenderness, the fate—they were all lies?
He lied. All this ti, she believed him.
Trusted him.
Loved him.
And now?
It was all fake.
The warmth of his touch... the way he looked at her... the safety she felt... shattered. Her breath hitched as she kept running. Through the corridors, the halls, anywhere—anywhere far away. As far as she could from that room, from him, from the pain.
anwhile...
Sera walked slowly toward Aether's trembling form and wrapped her arms around his back. Her touch was gentle, but her voice carried a weight.
"You could've just let her believe it, Aether..." she murmured, laying her head gently against his back. "Sotis... lies are better than bitter truths."
She closed her eyes as she felt his heartbeat thudding fast and uneven beneath her cheek. He was scared.
Not of her.
Not of danger.
But of losing Helena.
Aether didn't speak. He simply stood there, staring at the door she'd disappeared through. His fingers shook at his sides. That door... it should've led to an easier path.
It was supposed to.
That was the plan.
He had hoped Helena would co to him slowly, naturally... that he'd ease her into the truth.
But Helena... she had avoided him for so long. So many chances missed. And now, when the ti finally ca, he just dumped everything on her in a single breath.
All at once... Without preparing her.
.... Maybe he should have gone with the lie?
Yeah... he knew that... his mind thought about it... But, dragging it any further and misunderstanding gets even worse....
He took a long breath, shaky and filled with pain.
"I guess... I just believed everyone would understand ..." he finally muttered, his voice quiet, more to himself than to her.
He had started to believe that acceptance was normal. That all of them would follow like Xara, Aqualina, Sera... They believed in him, trusted him, even loved him, despite everything.
He'd gotten used to it.
He thought Helena would too.
But not Helena.
She wasn't like them.
"She didn't understand... I was wrong to expect her to..." he whispered.
Not everyone could swallow the chaos of his truth and still reach for him.
So were different.
Fragile in their own way.
More human.
So needed more than words and stories—they needed reasons.
And even then, maybe they wouldn't accept him.
Selfish?
No... it wasn't wrong at all. It was her right to feel betrayed.
To be angry.
To judge him.
Because her feelings were real too.
Sera let out a soft sigh, sensing the storm building inside him. Her fingers gently rubbed along his back in small circles. "She's just a child, Aether..." she said softly. "She's scared. Confused. Her whole world just cracked open."
Her body trembled slightly from worry, but she turned him around and looked into his eyes. "There's nothing wrong here. No one's wrong," she whispered. "We just need to make things right. That's what we do. That's what you do. So go fix it, Aether... I believe in you."
She smirked, nudging his chest lightly. "You even managed to ta that bitchy Sandra... I'm sure you can handle sweet little Helena."
Aether stared into her eyes.
He saw no judgnt. No mockery. Just belief.
He nodded silently and turned, stepping toward the door.
Without another word, he left.
Sera watched him go, the tension in her shoulders easing slightly as his form vanished into the distance.
She inhaled deeply and let the breath out slowly. "He's such a ss..." she murmured, "but gods, what a man..."
A wry smile tugged at her lips. She gave a slow nod to herself. "He's the bad guy... and a good man."
Then she clapped her hands with a sudden shift in tone, her smile darkening with mischief. "Anyway... enough of the drama."
Her eyes glinted wickedly as she reached beneath the bed and pulled out a thick stack of aged, ink-stained papers. Her grin spread like a wildfire.
"Now it's ti to shut those High Priests up... and let the festival begin~"
She let out a low, sinister giggle, fingers dancing along the top of the papers. Whatever she was planning... it wasn't going to be holy.
Just then—
Hissss~
Snowflake slithered out from beneath the bed, scales glinting in the light.
"Oh, there you are," Sera purred with amusent. She bent down and scratched the top of Snowflake's head. "What do you say? Wanna co with ? We can play around a bit... maybe even get you a snack or two. If you're lucky, you can eat them."
Snowflake's tongue flicked with delight, her slitted eyes narrowing as a wicked grin curled on her snout, "It's been a while since I ate so bitches~" she hissed, her tail swaying with anticipation.
Sera blinked, then burst out laughing, genuinely surprised. "Pfff—Haha! You're definitely your master's snake!... Gods, I love it." she cackled, wiping a tear from the corner of her eye.
Still giggling, the two made their way through the temple corridors toward the grand eting hall—a chamber where the Empire's high-ranking priests gathered.
The irony?
Sera was the one who had summoned them early in the morning... and she herself was arriving embarrassingly late.
Not that she cared.
She had planned to et them at dawn. She really did. She'd even gotten dressed early and reviewed her notes.
But things had... spiralled.
After all, it wasn't easy to leave when her beloved was still fawning over her... whispering sweet nothings while stuffing her full of love... Literally.
Her legs still felt a little wobbly.
"What exactly are you planning?" Snowflake asked with a curious glint in her eyes, sensing the mischief radiating off Sera.
Sera flashed a sly wink. "Victor was Emperor, right? But Aether... he's just the son of Xara," she said, voice dropping into an amused murmur. "Doesn't sit right, does it?"
Snowflake gave a tiny, thoughtful nod. "Mm. Then?"
Sera's expression shifted, her tone turning wistful, even a little sad. "Honestly... if Aether wanted, I could've made him a god. I had the ans. Sure, it would've caused chaos, but I'd do it in a heartbeat if he asked. That's what I hoped for..." she trailed off before sighing. "But he didn't want it."
"Figures," Snowflake huffed with a tired expression. "My Master has no interest in power or glory... just bitches." shaking her head in disappointnt.
Sera blinked and stared at the snake for a second, lips twitching. "Just what the hell is he teaching you?"
Snowflake gave her a sweet little wink, her tiny fangs peeking through her grin.
"I'm just a cute snake~" she cooed in the most innocent voice she could manage.
Sera almost choked. "Hah! You're more dangerous than you look."
She exhaled and shook her head before smirking again. Her gaze drifted toward the eting hall ahead, lips curling into a confident, calculating smile.
"Anyway... since he doesn't want to be the God of this Empire," she murmured, her voice low and smooth, "there's still a position that's been left conveniently empty for years... and I'm going to fill it."
Snowflake tilted her head even more curiously, "You an..."
Sera grinned as her hand reached for the grand doors, "Aether... The Archpriest."
With a dramatic push, she opened the doors to the eting chamber.
Inside, the High Priests and other Priests, clad in ceremonial robes, sat waiting. Their faces were a mix of fatigue, irritation, and nervous curiosity. They had been there since dawn, wondering why Sera—their summoner—had yet to appear.
They already saw the 'Thing', The sacred fla, a replay of Aether's divine flas... Helena had done her part—perfectly, in fact. No cheating, no skipping to et her hubby.
And now... it was Sera's turn to do hers.
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