‘Whatever she’d decide would be a rushed decision that would bring nothing good. Instead of trying to predict what she might do, try walking a mile in her shoes. How would you feel if your roles werereversed?’ Solus asked.
‘Scared out of my wits, afraid for the baby, but most of all, betrayed.’ Lith replied. ‘In a way, the idea that there are other populated worlds out there would be insignificant compared with discovering about my reincarnations.
‘The other aliens are thousands of light years away whereas I’m right here. On top of that, Kami has just learned that she has married a person different from the one she knew. I just betrayed her trust and turned her world upside-down in a single swoop.
‘In her shoes, I would have a nervous breakdown and an existential crisis at the same time.’
‘My point exactly. There’s nothing you can say that won’t make matters worse. Just give her time to-‘ Solus’ stomach grumbled, cutting her short.
‘How can you think about food in a moment like this?’ Lith’s outrage would have sounded more genuine if his own bowels hadn’t just replied in kind.
‘Are you kidding me? We’ve been here for hours. Not only have we been through a lot, but we have also skipped both lunch and dinner.’ She said after checking her pocket watch.
‘How long was I out cold?’ Lith’s voice was full of dread as he realized how late it was.
‘A little over half an hour. Why?’
‘Because it means that more than half a day has passed since Kami left and she has yet to return. Do you think it’s a good or a bad sign?’ He asked.
That was one of those rare moments when Solus cursed their bond. She would have loved to tell Lith that it was a good sign and that everything would be well, but she didn’t believe it herself.
From so close and with the after effects of their fusion, he would immediately expose her white lie and feel even worse.
‘Only time will tell.’ She replied. ‘Do you mind shapeshifting into your Abomination form?’
‘Why?’ Lith raised an eyebrow in confusion.
‘Because I have something to tell you and I want to make sure that the crooked man that lives inside your head listens to it as well.’
Lith nodded, turning his body into a black slate of darkness and Chaos. There was no voice in his head this time, but he could still feel the presence of his old self. After making its point, it simply had nothing more to say.
Yet the conflict between Lith’s willingness to enter the Golden Griffon and the Void’s reluctance to put Solus’ future at risk remained.
Soon the Chaos destabilized his form, making the Voidwalker armor sizzle against his skin and forcing Lith to take it off. The stone ring symbolizing his bond with Solus, however, was unaffected.
‘I want to thank you for everything you have done since the day you picked up my stone form and for all the wonderful things you told me today.’ She took his face between her hands, triggering the golden radiance of her skin again.
‘I understand that you are worried for me, but this is my life. If you really care about me, you must let me take important decisions without deciding on your own what’s best for me.
‘Going to the Golden Griffon with you is my choice. I’m aware of the risks I’m taking, but as you always say, nothing that’s worth having comes easy. I’m coming with you because I want this war to end.
‘I want to live the rest of my life with you, taking care of our family and discovering together everything that Mogar has to offer. I’m coming with you because if anything happens to you, I couldn’t live with myself.
‘And before you dare say that you can always pretend to be incapable of controlling yourself, think about the consequences. If the mission fails, the war will go on and more importantly, we’ll have to move from one battlefield to another.
‘I don’t want to live like that. I don’t want to spend my life away from the people I love, always scared about losing you to a stray spell. I’m doing this for myself, to live the life I want.
‘Yet I can’t fight Thrud without your help. Lith Verhen, Derek McCoy, Tiamat, or whatever you call yourself, would you please be my Abomination again?’ She had already asked his help back in Kolga, to fight against the King of the lost city.
‘Always.’ Lith’s blackness and her radiance burst forward as they were pulled toward each other.
‘Gods, not again!’ Solus said in a panic.
They had tried for years to find a way to fuse at will and achieving it twice in a single day would have been considered a great step forward if not for its now unpredictable side effects.
Her fear jammed the synch before they could fully merge, turning it into a tight embrace with their faces stuck deep into each other.
‘I need some personal space.’ Solus Warped to her room, her face red up to her ears and her mind in complete chaos.
‘That went great.’ Lith’s thought oozed sarcasm. ‘Now not only do I feel like a dick, but I’m also alone.’
After waiting for a while, it was clear that Solus wouldn’t return anytime soon. The problem was that time only made his hunger grow while his Abomination form made it even worse.
‘The good news is that now I’m almost in control of this form as well. The bad news is that even with a body made of energy I still need to eat. Let’s see if the coast to the kitchen is-‘ His train of thought derailed when he checked for Kamila’s position and found her right outside his room.
“We need to talk.” She said while walking through the door and taking the chair she had brought with her near the bed where he was sitting, without waiting for a reply.
‘Fuck me sideways. A chair means putting distance between us and that the conversation is going to last long.’ Lith swallowed even though that form had no saliva.
He stared at her face, trying to understand what was about to happen. Kamila’s hair was messy and her eyes were bloodshot from crying. Her face looked tired and tense from stress, making it unreadable.
“I’m glad to see that you are still in your Abomination form, because I don’t know if I would have the strength to say what I have to while looking at Lith’s face.” Her words made him swallow again and curse at himself for not shapeshifting back into human form the moment Solus had left the room.
“It took me a long while to find the right words. Every time I thought to have found my answer, I either needed to eat or go to the bathroom due to the baby. It shattered my resolve and reminded me of how much there is at stake.” Kamila instinctively brought her hand to her womb, sniffling to hold back a tear.
