One benefit to defeating Merlin and offering to preserve his body was that he gave me access to the tower’s treasure vault. He wanted me to only grab a special preservation bag but he wasn’t exactly around to stop me from claiming everything. While the bag wasn’t designed for dead bodies, it was more than up to the task of preserving them. We returned to the void first to safeguard Mom’s body. She said she didn’t need it anymore but I was determined to fix her up so she at least had a comfortable option when she wanted to visit the mortal world. Merlin’s body was more of an afterthought but he had a point, it was healthy and Mom could use it whenever she wanted. She even had his blessing.

The rest of the treasure room was even more impressive. Merlin had been holding out on me. There were more artifacts than I could count, sprinkled over five floors that weren’t on any map. The entrance was in the back of the tiny room at the top of the tower I’d thought was Merlin’s bedroom, hidden behind an old wardrobe. It seemed as though Merlin was a hoarder of magic items and weaponry. While it was true, he also had his fair share of gold and other items of monetary value. He seemed far more fond of collecting items created by powerful awakened of the past. There was documentation to go along with almost everything, including the ones he kept on display out by the throne room.

Merlin asked us not to show his treasure to anyone else but I decided to anyway. They had risked their lives for us. Joe and Zofia ran around the room excitedly when we got there.

“Do you realize what this means?” Joe asked, holding up a handful of jewels. “This means we don’t have to worry about the future. Ever! Our kid’s kid’s kids will be well taken care of.”

“Yeah,” I laughed. “I’m pretty sure we’re set for life without all of this treasure. Did I tell you that I have an unlimited bank account?”

Joe frowned. “Does that work back on Earth? Wait, you aren’t going to live here are you?”

“I haven’t thought about it,” I admitted, sharing a glance with Kalli. “Kalli wants to go back to Gaia, at least for a little while. I think we’re going to have a home on Earth too. Unfortunately, defeating Merlin is probably going to throw both Origin and Scrap into chaos, so I think we’re going have to spend some time here as well.”

“I can help with that,” Zofia said, marching over to us with a handful of tech she’d found. “For the right price, of course.”

“Of course,” I replied. She’s been particularly helpful in the aftermath of the fight against Merlin. Not only did she secure the tower by locking all of the rooms during the battle, but she made sure information got out to all of the tower maidens that they were safe once the fight was over.

When we returned to the throne floor, we found Marcelle waiting for us on her hands and knees. The sight of her reminded me that she’d vanished right before Merlin left the tower.

“Where did you go?” I asked, wondering if she’d betrayed us.

Kalli stepped in front of me and placed a soothing hand on my arm. Relax, Mel. Let her explain.

Looking down, I could see Marcelle was shaking. I sighed and knelt in front of her. “Relax, it’s over now.”

She didn’t look up. “I’m sorry, Lord Melvin. I’ve betrayed you. But I have a reason. Will you please hear me out?”

I extended my hand to help her up. “I will. Come, stand up. There’s no need to kneel. I’m not going to be the new Creator.”

Marcelle sighed and accepted my hand, climbing shakily to her feet. The words flew out of her mouth so fast it seemed like she was worried she was only allowed a single breath. “I’m sorry I told Merlin everything. Lavender told me to. She said it wouldn’t be a betrayal, but I forgot it would be a betrayal to you. I’m so sorry. Can you ever forgive me?”

“Wait a second,” I replied, trying to steady the woman who looked on the verge of passing out. “Calm down. What exactly did Lavender say to you?”

She didn’t say anything for a minute while Kalli and I walked her to a chair. After taking a moment to calm down, she told her story. “Lavender could tell I was nervous when she stepped through that magic door. I was loyal to you, I swear, but she insisted that informing The Creator was the thing that would help you the most. When he found out she was here with your mother, he instructed me not to tell you he knew. He then made me show him where I’d seen her. Only I didn’t. She gave me a map and showed me this valley. It wasn’t too far away, so I had no issues bringing him there. I got the feeling Lavender lived here on Origin before by the way she described things.

I shrugged. “She was old. Maybe she had.”

“Anyway, she was waiting for us with another woman,” she continued. “I think The Creator called her Sam.”

“That was my Mom,” I replied, frowning at the thought of her blackened body. “She’s dead. Sort of.”

“Sort of?” Marcelle asked, sounding taken aback. “Ahem, Lavender and her ran into some caves along the valley and The Creator tried to chase them. He teleported a few times to catch them, but all I could see was him blinking in and out in the same place. Then he ran after them and I didn’t see him again. After that, I waited for a bit and then walked to a town to call for a ride.”

“Alfred?” I asked, earning a nod from the girl.

She sighed. “You were the first one I looked for when I returned. I am so sorry I didn’t tell you about it before. She told me not to tell you, but I knew it was wrong. I’ve betrayed you and I don’t expect you to forgive me.”

I was torn. In a way, she had betrayed me. But if I looked at it through the warped glasses of Lavender’s scheming, her part of the plan was to betray all of us. She was the ultimate bait that lured Merlin into the trap.

I gave her what I hoped was a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry about it. As I said, it’s all over now. No hard feelings.”

“Am I still one of your chosen ones?” She asked quietly.

Kalli answered for me, perhaps a little too enthusiastically. “No! I mean, he doesn’t need that. There are no more chosen ones.”

“Don’t worry though,” I reassured her. “We’re not kicking anybody out. It’s going to take some time but I intend to make sure everyone in the tower, no… on Origin, is well taken care of.”

“And Scrap,” Kalli added. “Don’t forget Scrap.”

I laughed. “Yes. We’re going to take care of all the worlds.”

“What do you intend to do about the dragon?” Zofia asked, flicking a thumb over her shoulder in the direction of the throne room. “You didn’t forget about the fire-breathing dragon, did you?”

“Did it breathe fire?” I asked, hiding behind Kalli. She was fireproof.

“Don’t they all?” Zofia asked, rolling her eyes.

Wendy shrugged after everybody else failed to say anything. “I don’t know. We’ve only met that one dragon with you, Mel.”

“It did breathe fire,” Joe added. “Sort of.”

Shara whistled. “Are you guys always in trouble like this? I can’t believe I’d ever miss the safety of the Blood Moon. And that place is filled with murderers and thieves.”

“I’m going to go alone,” I announced as I came to a decision. “I can teleport out quickly if it tries to attack me.”

“Not without me,” Kalli said, clutching my arm. “Don’t forget who’s fireproof.”

“And me,” Wendy hastily added. “I’m not about to let you both die after coming this far.”

“Here we go again,” Joe sighed, taking something that looked like a laser gun out of his bag.

Zofia started toward the elevator. “Fine, why not. I’m headed to the holo lab to see if I can help.”

While we had fought a dragon god in the past, there was no telling if Merlin’s dragon was more powerful or not. We ultimately decided to let Kalli scout ahead in her fire form. I held my breath and watched through her eyes as she slowly floated around the corner toward the locked throne room doors.

“This is a surprise,” a rumbling voice echoed through the halls.

The dragon’s glowing blue eyes stared at Kalli as she wafted into the room. “I take your continued existence to mean that you defeated the great and powerful Merlin. Worry not, Mortals. I mean you no harm. My only reason for being here was to detain a couple of children.”

I shouted from down the hall. “Are you saying he asked you to babysit us?”

The dragon roared with laughter. “Call it what you will. I did my job and you didn’t enter through this door. I consider my debt to the old man paid.”

“So you’ll leave us be?” Kalli asked, inspecting the dragon for good measure.

Name

Livyatan

Class

Primordial Fire-Breathing Sea Serpent

Level

162

Affection Level

Honor Bound

“I have no quarrel with you, Mortal,” Livyatan replied, yawning for emphasis. “You are with the boy who revived the tower in Atlantis. I suppose I owe you a debt now as well.”

Deciding it was safe, I joined Kalli in the room. “I’m Melvin, and this is my girlfriend Kalli.”

“I think I’m a little more than that,” Kalli scoffed, acting offended as she materialized beside me.

“Sorry,” I replied, laughing for the first time in what felt like ages. “This is my fiancé, Kalli.”

“Better,” she replied. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Levy.”

“Levy, huh?” The dragon repeated, roaring with laughter. “It’s been eons since I’ve had a nickname. Perhaps the new generation won’t be as boring as the last. Alas, I must get back to the sea. I dry out if I’m away too long.”

I thought he was going to teleport, but the dragon floated off the ground and proceeded to fly down the hall toward the park. When he had gone, Joe, Wendy, and Shara walked around the corner.

“Is it safe to come out?” Joe asked, looking a little sheepish. “Don’t get me wrong, I would’ve fought with you, but we wanted to see what would happen first. I’m glad it worked out and nobody died.”

We made our way back to the locked throne room door. It appeared Merlin used some kind of a magic seal on it. Fortunately, we had skills to deal with that.

DELETE

With the door out of the way, we returned to the throne room. Or at least what was left of it. The walls were lined with pockmarks that told the tale of Merlin’s clash with Lavender. When we got to the alcove where Joe left her body, we discovered it was gone. In its place was the shadow from the throne.

“Welcome back, conquering heroes,” it said in a monotone voice. “If you are here in search of the body of Gwenddydd, you have come in vain. Her body and soul have been reclaimed by the Mountains of Nocht.”

Tears streamed down my face as reality finally set in. Lavender was truly gone.