Skill changes flew at Felix, followed swiftly by an updated Status sheet for his Companion.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Holy wow," Felix muttered, attempting to keep his jaw from the floor. "That's...that's a lot of change."

 

Pit warbled in agreement.

 

"You're a Primordial, now?" Felix asked, too floored to absorb it all.

 

"Just like you," Pit said, his tone bright and pleased. "Now I won't fall behind anymore!"

 

"Bud...is that how you felt?"

 

Pit shrugged and looked away. Felix gathered him up in a hug, and Pit cooed into his shoulder. "I'll never leave you behind, Pit. Alright?"

 

"Alright."

 

"I mean it, bud," Felix repeated. He let his friend go and held his newer, more slender shoulders at arms length. He was still the size of a pony, and small pops of static electricity zapped his scaled hands. "I don't care if you're as big as a house or as small as a pup, you're with me. No matter what."

 

Pit didn't reply, just ducked his glossy, raven head into Felix's chest. They stayed like that for a bit, Felix standing next to the couch, Pit rumbling contentedly into his torso. Things were strange and hectic, but Felix felt good and...and calm, for the first time in a long while. The storm raged outside, but around him there was only the soft crackle of the fire.

 

His eyes drifted to Vess, still asleep despite their noise. She'd shifted into a different position at some point and now her long umber hair hung over her face like a curtain, revealing only the tips of her nose and far cheek. He bit his lip as his Mind started to spool outward again, picking up on new worries.

 

"Were the other's affected?" he asked Pit, meeting his friend's golden gaze. "Like you?"

 

"In a way."

 

Felix and Pit parted as Vess stood, stretching languidly and letting her blanket slide from her lap. She was wearing a pale orange silken blouse and voluminous navy trousers, both of which set off against her darker skin tone remarkably well. A dimple deepened as she smiled brightly, and brushed hair out of her face. "I am happy to see you well, Felix.”

 

"Me too," he said, then coughed. "You I mean. Seeing you is nice.”

 

"Mm." Her smile widened a bit more. “You are taller than I recall. And…scalier.”

 

Felix immediately shoved his hands into his jacket pockets...only to discover he hadn't any. A frustrated burst of Will and Mana changed that, and he stowed his scaled fists. "Ah. Yeah. Consequences of my actions, apparently."

 

Vess tucked a wild lock of hair behind her ear. "I see. And you are...fine? You were out when Pit and your other friends brought you back."

 

"My other—Beef? Is he here?" Felix pressed his Perception up against the edges of the room, but the doors were warded for privacy. "Is he okay?"

 

Vess stepped forward, carefully resting Felix's weaponry against the chair she'd left. "He seemed well. The Lady Isla was taking a look at him, last I knew. He is...strange, though. Him and his little companion creature."

 

Hallow survived too. That's good. "Don't be fooled by that big Body of his, where I'm from he's basically a kid."

 

"Truly? Remarkable. He was the only one strong enough to move you, despite his injuries. He seemed quite sweet." She lifted a hand and touched his jacketed forearm, causing Felix to flinch slightly. "May I see?"

 

Felix swallowed nervously. Somehow she'd gotten so close without him noticing at all. She can't teleport, can she? He didn't fight as she eased his left hand out of his pocket and held it up in her own.

 

Vess peered closely at his knuckles and fingertips, and Felix felt her hot breath against the strangely sensitive scales. "They are shinier than I expected," she said.

 

"What?" he asked.

 

"Your scales. They are quite glossy in the firelight, and quite delicate." Her own small hands, dark brown to his midnight black, twisted his hand over and ran across his palm. His palms were lighter by several shades, and the scales were intricate and tiny. "Quite beautiful."

 

"Uh," was all Felix could manage. He pulled his hand back, disengaging her light grip. "Uh yeah, I guess. It's something I have to get used to regardless of whether I like them or not. Shoving a metric shit ton of Primordial Essence through your core has some side effects, apparently." He paused, blue eyes going wide. "You're not...?"

 

"Covered in scales?" Vess asked, laughing in that husky way she had. "No. I am much the same. Physically at least. The rest of us haven't had a chance to speak much on it, but that Tier IV Link produced some drastic changes in all of us."

 

"Not physical?" Felix asked. "So did your Skills change?"

 

"They did." An expression flickered across Vess' face as she stepped back from him. Felix couldn't place it before it vanished into a business-like calm, and she busied herself with her hair. It came loose quickly, her Agility and Dexterity proving their mettle as she combed and braided it in quick succession. "A great deal, in fact. You, Lord Autarch, have changed almost every one of my Skills to Epic or better."

 

"That's...good, right?" Felix ventured. "The Link didn't mess up your—shit, wait. You had specific Dragoon Skills didn't you? Did that progression get screwed up?"

 

Vess secured her braids into a single plait behind her head, tugging it into place. She took a quick breath, and met his eyes. There was a vulnerability there, an uncertainty that made Felix's stomach turn over. "I—I do not know. The Memories I carry of my order are...they do not cover this. I need more time to be certain how they've changed."

 

Felix wanted to smack himself. He should have realized that before he'd offered up the Primordial Essence to her. "Jeez, Vess I'm sorry. I didn't think about that."

 

She raised a hand, cutting him off. "It is fine, Felix. You gave me the choice, and I accepted it. I bear the consequences of that action, not you."

 

He clenched his jaw, biting off any more words before they came out. He wanted to push his Affinity toward her, to inspect her Spirit and emotions, but he cut that urge off. With his level of Affinity, it was sort of like mind reading, and just as invasive. Even if he put his foot in his mouth, he'd rather just interact as real people instead.

 

Vess, meanwhile, had gathered herself up again and seemed entirely composed. "And you Felix? Other than your scales and your...considerable new dimensions, has anything dire changed? Atar confirmed that the Grandmaster was after you. Did he find you?"

 

“He did.” Felix frowned at the memory of it, almost happy to avoid...whatever was going between Vess and him. He could perfectly recall the Grandmaster collapsing beneath a rockslide and rising water, and aside from his fury, Felix felt a tight, acidic relish over the memory. “He regretted it.”

 

“Oh.” Vess paled a touch and stepped backward. “My apologies for bringing it up, Felix. It was not my intent to anger you.”

 

Felix blinked at her reaction, only belatedly realizing that she was likely not pulling back on her Affinity. She had felt his remembered rage. “You—it’s not you Vess. It’s everything. The masters and matrons and Pathless and everyone in power," he said, disgust on his face. Not for her, or even for the Grandmaster, but for himself. For what he'd been forced to do. "This world is broken."

 

"That is why you must fix it, my Lord."

 

All three of them, Felix, Vess, and Pit started. A man stood in an open doorway Felix had sworn was closed a moment prior. The man was wide-chested and broad shouldered, covered in a sort of blue-green armor, and bearing a huge silvery chest in his hands. On his back were a number of twitching appendages that looked like spider legs, each also encased in that blue-green armor. He smiled once he had Felix's attention, showing off a too-wide grin, many sharp teeth, and a set of glowing copper eyes. He set the chest upon the ground and dropped to a single knee before speaking. "The Chest, as promised, my Lord."

 

Felix raised an eyebrow as his Voracious Eye activated. "You're...a Yttin?" The man looked like a Human aside from the mouth, the eyes, and those wriggling spider-like legs from his back.

 

"I am Eyxti, and yes, I am Yttin. Restored at last." Eyxti pressed his fist to his heart and the chitinous legs at his back went still.

 

"Restored," Felix said, chewing over the word. "I didn't realize you were in need of...How?"

 

"That is something our shaman must speak to you on. His is waiting within his apartments at your earliest convenience. For now, we have brought the Platinum Chest as we promised the Beast." He bowed again, still kneeling, in the direction of Pit.

 

"Beast, huh?" Felix said. Pit's sleek head had lifted imperiously into the air, reveling in the attention. "Platinum Chest. That's a system reward, and a big one. Why do you have one, and why would you give it to us? And stand up, please."

 

Eyxti stood easily. He was tall for a Human, and positively giant for a Yttin. At least how Yttin used to be. "When our people were first cast down, we were given a hope. A Quest from the System itself, to break the curse upon our lands and people, to restore them all to what once was. It was passed down shaman to shaman for Ages, until yesterday."

 

"When I unleashed the sea," Felix finished for him.

 

Eyxti nodded and bowed, deeply. "Yes, Savior of the Deep."

 

Felix's lips twisted at the title. "Ah, don't, uh, just call me Felix. No one needs to call me savior. Okay?"

 

The Yttin stood hesitantly from his bow. "If that is what you wish, then I shall spread the word." He gestured to the Platinum Chest again. "Please open this at your leisure. Shaman Klzix is ready to receive you at any moment."

 

With that, the armored man slipped back out the door and vanished. Seconds later, a guard in leather and mail opened the door and looked around sharply. A badge on their breast showed five black slashes against a red and blue background. When they noticed Felix, Vess, and Pit staring, they gave a little hop of fright. "Oh! Lord Autarch, you're awake! Did you—did you see someone come in here a moment ago?"

 

Felix and Vess exchanged a glance. "Did you not?" he asked.

 

"Noctis' tits! They slipped right passed us!" the guard spat. "Oh, ah, sorry my Lord. I should get the rest of my Talon to start searching. Did they hurt you?"

 

"No, it's fine. They were a friend," Felix said. "Just keep doing...whatever it is you were doing before."

 

The guard hesitated only a moment before snapping to attention and saluting, hand to heart. "Aye, sir!" They ducked back and closed the door behind them, sigils lighting up upon the door's surface as it clicked shut.

 

"They slipped right through privacy wards and a Talon of guards without notice," Vess said. "That is impressive."

 

Pit scoffed. "I could do that."

 

Felix ruffed his friend's head absently. "Of course you could. Seems like I have to talk to a shaman, soon," he said. "But first..."

 

He walked to the Platinum Chest, shimmering in the firelight. The Chest was four feet long by two feet wide and two feet tall. From experience he knew System Chests were extremely heavy, so even that was another point in the Yttin's favor. With an easy movement, Felix lifted the lid and squinted against the rush of System energy that burst outward in all directions. Once the glittering gold and azure dust settled, Vess and Pit had joined Felix and peered into it together.

 

"A ball, a stick, and a hat?" Pit said derisively. "Boring."

 

"That is a scepter and orb of rule, Pit," Vess said. She patted Felix on the back. "And the last one is not a hat—"

 

Felix swallowed. "It's a crown."