“Hey.” A faint voice said. “Hey!”

Dallion tried to stir. His body felt fully numb. Going all-out wasn’t the best idea. He attempted to crack his eyes open, but the light was blinding, making him quickly close them again.

“Wow, when you make a mess, you really go all out,” the voice continued. It was still low, but Dallion could recognize it was female.

Focusing all his strength, Dallion moved his hand in front of his face. It ended up being surprisingly easy. With the light now at more passable levels, he peeked around.

To little surprise, he was on the floor again. The room was very different from where he’d been a while back. Gone were the eighties machines and memorabilia. If anything, the place reminded him of the awakening room he had woken up in before entering this world.

As his eyes adjusted, more things came into focus: doors, windows, a giant birdcage made of Moon platinum, and a small butterfly made entirely of light and crystal.

“Gleam?” Dallion asked. He could recognize the pattern of her light anywhere. “I thought you were dead.”

“I’m a guardian. I don’t die when an item is destroyed. I just go away for a while.”

That made little sense. It wasn’t in any of the scrolls Dallion had read.

“I don’t understand…”

“It’s complicated. Don’t worry about it.”

Slowly, Dallion got back to his feet. There was nothing he could lean on. The walls and the only object he could see were tens of feet away.

“How are you here?” he asked the shardfly.

“You have it the wrong way around. You’re the one who arrived here.”

It took Dallion less than a second to understand what she meant. Yet, for some reason, he didn’t feel regret or even shock. It was almost as if all his emotions had been removed.

“I’m dead, right?”

“That’s not for me to say. I’m just here to greet you. Took a lot of convincing, I tell you that.”

Convincing... Dallion thought. “I’m sorry for what happened in the south. I thought you’d make it.” Even with the rage, guilt, and sadness gone, he still acknowledged the fact that it was all his doing.

“You and I both. It’s not like I didn’t do the same when I was at my peak. I’d have thought that he’d at least let me fly away after shattering a few wings. I was glad that you made it, though. Would have been stupid if I’d gotten destroyed for nothing.”

“Yeah. It wasn’t for nothing.”

Dallion tried to split into instances, but his ability didn’t trigger. Left with no choice, he looked around the old-fashioned way.

“Where’s the Star?”

“Gone,” a new voice said. Dallion briskly turned round to see that Gleam was gone. In her place was a boy in his late teens with long straight hair, dressed in a knee-length tunic. Everything from his clothes to his eyes and hair were purple. “The question is what to do with you.”

Galatea, Dallion thought. He’d seen the Purple Moon in the aetherbird’s memories. Back then he looked different, but Moons tended to change appearance more often than ordinary people changed clothes.

Since Dallion didn’t have the magic trait, he hadn’t been able to read any specifics about the Moon. All he knew was that the deity was the patron of nymphs and the originator of magic itself. All practical information, especially spells, appeared like blank pieces of paper.

“Some were impressed by your actions,” the Moon went on. “I don’t. You could have won the battle ages ago, but you chose not to.”

“I still killed the Star.” One of the positive things about Dallion being in his current state was that he didn’t feel any fear, either. “Someone that—”

“—nobles and armies have failed to achieve.” Galatea interrupted. “Even you don’t believe that.”

“He’s not dead?”

“Oh, he’s dead. This one.”

“There’s more than one Star?”

Thinking back, Dallion had always wondered why there were different descriptors regarding the Star. Most referred to him as the “Crippled Star” or just “the crippled.” However, he’d seen creatures created by the “Twister Star” as well as writing in the buried pyramid out south, referring to him as the “Broken Star.” That suggested that there were at least three, and yet everyone so far was convinced that there was just one… or were they?

“Just one at a time. That’s not the important question.”

“And what’s that?”

“What do you plan on doing?”

Dallion thought for a few moments.

“Am I dead?” he asked.

“Yes.”

That simplified things somewhat. This way he wouldn’t be worried about everything in the world. It was still a pity that he didn’t manage to pass the next awakening gate. He was curious what it would be like being a noble. Also, there was Euryale. Despite being deprived of all emotions right now, he still wished he could have spent more time with her, and not just a bit. In the end, he had done the same as her mentor had—abandoned her just after promising he wouldn’t.

“You’re also alive,” the Moon added. “Right now, you’re like Schrodinger’s cat, but it’s no longer a theoretical matter.”

“I’m alive and dead?”

“And in a small box of magic. At such times, usually a path is chosen for you.”

“But since I’m an otherworlder I get to choose it myself?”

“No.” The Moon shook his head. “The coin was tossed, and you lost. That’s why I intervened. I’m offering you the choice.”

“Why?”

“Magic is the trait of exceptions.”

The explanation would have been enough a few weeks ago. Right now, though, Dallion could see there was more to it. The Moons never did anything without a reason. Even if they were selfish, watching others struggle and fight just for their amusement, they weren’t in the habit of giving people options. If Galatea had the power and will to bring Dallion back to life, he would have just done so.

“Why would you want to? I’m not your favored.”

“You have something that’s mine.”

Dallion felt even more confused.

“My familiar,” the Purple Moon clarified, eyes half closed. “You have him and I want him back.”

“Aether? Won’t he return to you after I die?”

“Normally, yes. If you kept him as a gem, he would have. But you used a Vermillion ring to put him in your realm. Since you’re an otherworlder once you’re gone, your realm goes with you and that includes him.”

Was that why you wanted me to release you that badly? Dallion asked.

There was no answer. In this room, whatever it was, even Aether didn’t have access.

“Your first choice is to die.” The lack of emotion of Galatea’s part was made all the more ominous due to his calm angelic appearance. “Everything will end, and you and Aether will be lost.”

“Not a good choice.”

“Your second choice is to make use of the skill gem he’s become. My familiar will be released. You’ll survive, and in the process gain my traits and the spellcraft skills.”

Death or a skill. Looking at it like that, there didn’t seem to be a downside. That was precisely why Dallion wasn’t comfortable with it. When things were too good, they usually weren’t. If Aether was mad at the world before, after his brief imprisonment, he was probably seething with rage. Releasing him might well mean the end of another era. Dallion would probably be fine, possibly all those close to him as well, but what about everyone else?

“Is this an awakening trial?” he asked. The choice felt too much like one. Two options: be happy or have everyone else in the world be happy, just not both.

“It’s a simple question.” The Moon frowned.

“Aether told me what he’d do if released. You said that even if this Star is dead, another will appear.”

“It takes time for Stars to emerge. It took decades for the Twisted Star to emerge.”

“So, the world will be destroyed after decades?”

“It’s just a choice,” the Moon said again, his tone slightly annoyed. “Those are your two options. Choose one or don’t. If you prefer staying here, deciding for eternity, I guess that’s a third possibility. I told you which I prefer. That’s it.”

Galatea was very different from the Green Moon. Given that he was linked to magic, Dallion had always imagined him more whimsical and goody. Instead, he was cold, arrogant, and unwilling to make any compromises. Even when he cared, he didn’t seem to.

“Can I talk to Aether before I decide?”

“No. You spoke to one familiar, that’s enough.”

Why am I hesitating? Dallion asked himself. The proper choice was to refuse. If he wanted the skill, he could have used the skill gem at any point after capturing the aetherbird. Being in this room made things less clear cut. It was good that the Moons had blocked all his emotions, or he would have chosen out of fear.

Dallion thought back as long as he could remember. Thanks to the value of his mind trait, he could recall everything from the day he came here with perfect clarity, even further back going to his early childhood—both here and that on Earth. Everything considered, he’d done more than one could hope for, more than they could even imagine. In true time, he’d lived over a millennium. People would be fortunate to last a tenth of that. At the same time, there was so much more that awaited him. He could leave the province, leave the empire even, and spend the rest of his life hunting beasts in the wilderness along with Eury.

“Can I make a request?” Dallion took a step forward. “If I choose to live, will you look after the world?”

“We’re always looking after the world.” For the first time, a fraction of the Moon’s mouth curved in a smile. “That’s what the rules are for. Even the exceptions follow those.”

“So, you won’t let Aether destroy the world?”

“Only if it doesn’t need destroying. There’ve been few constants since the start of creation. As long as there’s a Star, the era will end in war and chaos. Also, as long as there are otherworlders from Earth, there will always be a Star. If the only way to contain chaos is to start a new era, that’s what we’ll do.”

“You think I’ll become the next Star?”

“Possible, but I hope not. You’re more interesting than you are. So what’s your decision?”

Dallion’s lips moved, voicing the answer. As he did, the sensation of pain shot through him, causing him to drop to the ground. All the sensations and emotions gone till moments ago suddenly returned, taking him back in the Star’s temple. Arthurows’ body was there, smiling lifelessly a foot away. Melting void matter was everywhere, transforming all copied objects into tar.

Clutching his chest, Dallion felt the spike still there.

Great, he thought. Even after I made my choice, this is what I get?

You don’t have a choice in this one, Nil said in a panicked voice. If you don’t use the gem, you won’t make it.

The Vermillion ring pulled away, only constructed by the chain round Dallion’s neck.

Use it! Nil shouted.

Ignoring the pain, Dallion grabbed the ring.

Vermillion! he ordered, gripping it.

The skill gem within his realm emerged, filling his hand. Only one thing was left now.

Sorry Eury, Dallion thought. I’m not that strong, after all.

MAGIC TRAIT GAINED

The power of the PURPLE MOON now flows through you, allowing you to see and use magic at will.

SPELLCRAFT skills obtained

You now have the ability to craft spells.

SEVEN TRAITS

(+ Awakening, +1 Body, +1 Mind, +1 Reaction, +1 Perception, +1 Empathy, +1 Magic)

You’ve obtained all seven traits. Fancy that. You better not be greedy and obtain an eighth. Things won’t go well if you do.

Purple light streaked out between Dallion’s fingers. Within moments, it grew into a flame surrounding his hand. Purple wings sprouted, followed by a head and the elongated body of the aetherbird.

Without a sound, the creature flapped its wings, heading straight for the nearest wall, then passed through it. When Dallion opened the palm of his hand, only the ring remained.