Ruby was left reeling from the information. Her eyes drifted to the ground as all around them fell silent in shock. Nexus clenched his fists as he averted his gaze, drowning in unadulterated guilt. "I'm sorry, Ruby. You need to go back."
Ruby's brows furrowed as she finally looked up to meet Nexus's gaze. "Go back? You want to merge mine and Safire's souls because you made the mistake?" Ruby scoffed coldly. "I doubt it could even be considered a mistake. You did this! Why do I have to suffer and essentially lose my life because you fucked up?!"
Nexus cleared his throat, taking a step toward the girls. "Neither of you will die. Neither of you will survive, either. The combination of your souls will create a new being with the shared essence of both parties. You'll be reborn, so to speak."
Ruby stumbled back, trembling from the news. Safire felt tears well in her eyes as she collapsed from the shock. Ruby shook her head, squeezing her fists until her knuckles bled white. "And do the parties have a choice in this? You want to combine us now? After 2 decades? We both made lives for ourselves, you heartless bastard!"
Nexus clenched his jaw. "You don't get a choice. Once the harmony period is upon us, you two will be merged. It is my only way back home. We must leave now." Nexus felt a presence beginning to rapidly descend upon them. "I will be in touch."
Ruby stepped forward, feeling a vein in her forehead beginning to pulsate. "Wait!" Nexus waved his hand, returning the women to Ocerania without another thought. Ruby stumbled, falling back against the lush, green grass. Her heart thumped against her chest as she hid her face in her palms.
The sun set with the accompanying sounds of celebration and chatter from the festival. Odeen's booming voice cut through the crowd as he made his announcements for a plentiful harvest and another year of prosperity. Ruby leaned against the castle wall, watching Safire in her restless sleep.
"There you are! Do you have any idea of how much trouble you're in?!" Ruby didn't even acknowledge Jasher's cutting voice as he came rushing toward her from outside the castle walls. "I've been looking for you for hours!"
'I've been following the runaway princess." Jasher's form physically jerked as he shifted his attention toward Safire's unconscious body. "Oh no... what is she doing here? If she's caught then-"
"Then she takes my place. I guess it won't really matter in the end, anyway. Did Nexus tell you?" Her tone came out accusatory as she stumbled to her feet. "When the harmony period comes around, Safire and I will have our souls reunited. Turns out, your little deity friend split our souls in half and sent me to Earth. I belong here, apparently. As royalty, as Cyrusian. I have to be merged with her soul again."
Jasher frowned deeply, shaking his head in confusion and disbelief. "Wait – hold on... that's so much information all at once. I honestly had no clue that he did that to you. I'm so sorry, Ruby. What's going to happen to Saf- both of you if you get merged?"
Ruby shrugged, inhaling deeply. "Apparently, the 'we' that we are dies. We'll be reborn into someone new. The person we were always meant to be, I guess. Nexus didn't explain all that much, but his explanation was crystal clear at the same time. We don't get a choice. We're going to be forced."
Jasher's face warped with pain as he stepped forward, wrapping his arms around Ruby. She never moved to return the gesture. "I won't let that happen. I will fight Nexus if I have to. You two are not going to die, you're not going to be reborn. I don't care what he gets out of this..." Jasher's determination set ablaze from within. "Come on, I'll take you somewhere safe."
Jasher leaned down beside Safire, scooping her into his arms protectively. "I won't let either of you die as long as I'm alive." Jasher began to walk away from the kingdom. Ruby frowned in confusion, following him from behind. "I have something to tell you."
Ruby's shoulders slumped as she rubbed her temples. "Please, no more shocking revelations, Jasher. I honestly don't think I could take another world-shattering reveal with the way I'm feeling right now."
Jasher swallowed thickly as he pushed forward, undeterred. "You're going to need to know this – I knew where Safire was this entire time." Ruby nearly tripped with Jasher's words, staring at the back of his head in shock. "I know, because I brought her there. That's where you'll be staying from now on."
Ruby grit her teeth, picking up a nearby stone to hurl at Jasher's head. "ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! I just told you a fucking deity wants to mush my soul with the princess's, and your bright idea is to drop MORE shocking information on me and to tell me, 'hey! We're dealing with an essential god! But I can hide you!' Are you fucking thick?! Nexus will find us easily! I should strangle you right now!"
Jasher hung his head, squeezing Safire tight. "I have to do what's needed to keep her safe. Stay behind, come with me. Either way, I'm not stopping. I promised that I would protect her. I was doing well until you showed up."
"Me?" Ruby scoffed. "Ohh, I get it. You're in love with the princess." Jasher stopped walking for a moment. "Oh no, I couldn't bear to watch the love of my life marry another! Even though I want to go back to my own world. I know, I'll hide the princess, start a fucking war, and throw some poor innocent – person in the line of fire..." Ruby chuckled bitterly, running her hand through her hair. "What even am I? Not an earthling, but I'm not from Teralu, either."
Jasher sighed, dropping his shoulders with guilt. "I wanted to ask Nexus if I did as he asked me to, would I be allowed to take Safire to my world, where she'd be safest. Then you fell from the sky, and I knew I had only a matter of time to get you trained up for Nexus's plan. You have no idea how bad it was before I got her out of that castle. She was so depressed."
"And you think I'm handling it well?" Ruby scoffed. "Or is it because you don't have romantic feelings for me that you don't care? You know what, Jasher? I could handle everyone on this fucked up planet betraying me... but not you. We were supposed to be in this together."
Jasher hung his head. "We still are. I'm going to take you to Rufus. The man who took me in when I first got here. I didn't speak a word of the language, I was jumpy and angry, but he was always gentle and kind. You'll be safe with him."
"And Odeen?" Ruby shook her head in disbelief. "What am I supposed to do? Betray the king? Follow in his ex-fiancée's footsteps and just vanish without a word? War is on the horizon. You might not care about your obligations and promises, but I do. I thought we were going to speak with the wizards. We obviously can't trust Nexus now."
Jasher gripped Safire closer, his head reeling. "You're right, but – what happens if you're in the castle and Nexus comes for you? What then? Am I supposed to just sit by when he could take you at any moment and reignite the search for Safire?"
Jasher regretted his words the moment he spoke them. Ruby's jaw parted as pain radiated through her chest. Her face warped as she turned her back to Jasher. "I'll see you back at the castle. And for the record, Jasher... I'm not some object for you to use to shield your little fling. I'm so disappointed in you right now."
Jasher turned to face Ruby, shaking his head. "I didn't mean it like that, Ruby. Come on, you know that I care about you, too! Why would I risk my neck by telling you this if I didn't trust and care about you? Ruby!"
"You made it explicitly clear where your loyalties lie. You should stay behind for Safire. When she wakes up, she's going to need someone who cares about her more than anybody else. She didn't take the news too well, and she's going to need a shoulder to cry on. And Jasher, Nexus will find us no matter where we are. Tell Safire that I'll see her during the harmony period. It's not like we have a choice. I'll tell Odeen that you ran off after an attempted assassin, and that I retreated to the castle."
Jasher sighed weakly, hanging his head in shame. "I didn't mean it like that..." Once Safire began to stir, Jasher's attention shifted toward her. "Hey, don't make too many unnecessary movements. I'm here."
Safire felt herself break out in a cold sweat, grabbing Jasher's shirt in terror. "Jasher, you need to get Ruby to touch me!" Jasher frowned, seeming stunned. "You don't understand, Nexus is the bad guy! While I was out, I was visited by another deity. Nexus is doing this to gain a spirit that has lived two lives. With that, he can take our life force to fuel his body for the next billion years! If Ruby and I touch, then we." Safire moved to mutter in Jasher's ear. He nearly dropped Safire with the revelation.
Ruby snuck back into the kingdom through the crack, making her way into the castle. She wandered through the halls, fighting the tears that dared to prick at the corners of her eyes. "Get it together, Ruby. What did you think? Jasher would never stand up for a woman that he just met... No matter if he's all you have."
Odeen turned the corner to find Ruby, a bright, excitable smile sprawling against his lips. "Rhudy! How did you like the festival? Uh..." Odeen began in slow, methodical English. "Was it good?" He gleamed.
Odeen's proud smile fell when Ruby's reddened, misty eyes turned up toward him. She leaned to the side, peering down the empty hallway from where Odeen had come from. "Do you mind moving? I'm not in the mood today."
Ruby attempted to push past, but Odeen held his hand out, brows furrowing in concern. "I know you don't understand this." His tone came out tender and understanding. "But whatever you're suffering through right now is something you shouldn't deal with alone."
Ruby pushed against Odeen's arm, trying to break the barrier set up by the human tank. Even her enhanced strength could not move him an inch. Odeen turned toward Ruby, taking her wrist suddenly. "Stop turning me away. I'm doing everything to learn more about you. Learn about me in return. If you have nothing else, rest assured you have my full attention."
Ruby could not understand a word, but something in the way that Odeen spoke to her broke through the pain she was feeling in that moment. Tears began rolling down her cheeks as she shook her head, realising how alone she truly was in that moment. Only one word was enough for Odeen to understand. "Jasher..."
Odeen's expression softened as he reached up to brush the stray tear away. "Whatever he's done, he'll pay for. I have something for you. I found it in one of the stalls while I was looking for you. I thought you might like it." Odeen pulled a small, red crystal duck from his pocket, placing it into Ruby's palms.
Ruby's tears of sadness began to change as the stark resemblance between Odeen and the duck, bearing long red locks, was amusing. "Isn't this kind of insulting? I'm surprised that the vendor wasn't beheaded for treason." Ruby wiped away her tears as she looked up to Odeen with a tight smile. "You're trying to cheer me up?"
"I'm trying to cheer you up. You seem so sad, but this duck is made from my image. I thought, at the very least, you'd have a lot of fun mocking it. I fear what Jasher said about your ways in respecting royalty was a farce, but you still capture my eye. Even with those cruel glares."
Neither of them understood a word that the other spoke, yet the meaning behind their words was clear. For the first time since they met, they shared a wordless understanding. Everything was okay.
-End of chapter 11-