Beth rolled out of bed, unable to resist giving the head of the adorable ball of fur curled up next to her pillow a scratch, before heading to the bathroom with a goofy smile on her face. The last couple days had been some of the best of her life. She'd been living in Chris's world, in their new home, with their adorable little kitten, and everything was just… perfect. The food was amazing, the town was beautiful (especially after she'd convinced Chris to cut down on the extreme symmetry), the people were kind and friendly, and she was engaged! She'd already started planning the wedding, enlisting the help of Penny, Jello, and T'ka. She'd been wary of T'ka at first, but Jello insisted and she'd quickly figured out she had nothing to worry about. T'ka was solely focused on keeping Chris as happy as possible, to an almost religious degree. The only way she would attempt to pursue Chris would be if that's what she thought would make him happy, and since Beth was the one who made him happy, she was fully on board. Having someone who was that utterly dedicated to her future husband in a completely non-romantic way was a little disconcerting, but if there was anything Beth had adjusted to it was weird things happening around Chris.
Speaking of the kobolds, Beth had also begun to develop a weird sort of friendship with Ka'lypso. After their fight, the kobold leader had accepted her place as Chris's partner, but that didn't mean she'd given up. It just meant that she needed to get Beth's permission before beginning her pursuit of Chris again. Every time Beth went out without Chris, Ka'lypso would show up within a few minutes, gluing herself to her hip, doing everything she could to prove she would also be a good mate for Chris, and even more troubling, for her. Apparently in kobold culture, secondary mates were to be enjoyed by both parties.
The problem was that Beth actually did enjoy her company. She lacked any sort of filter and had opinions about everything. For Beth, who was used to people who constantly talked around the truth and never said what they meant, people who simply said what they thought were refreshing. It was part of what initially drew her to Chris. Even after learning who she was, he never changed how he treated her. Of course, Ka'lypso's honesty tended more towards criticism, but since she was being honest, Beth didn't really mind, actually enjoying the more critical outlook as she countered with the positives. They even had a few rather deep conversations over whether the negatives in a certain situation outweighed the positives, and one rather heated one on the topic of secondary mates where they'd switched sides, Beth pointing out the flaws while Ka'lypso pointed out the benefits. It still somewhat bothered her that she didn't have a good counter to Chris's multiple selves…
Beth let out a sigh. She was going to miss spending all her time here. But she was also looking forward to finally being a true part of the Scouts. As much as she loved her new home, she knew she wouldn't be happy if living here was all she did. She needed to be a part of something, to feel like she was contributing, and she wouldn't get that here. This was her home, but her place was with the Scouts, braving the tunnels of the Maze to keep the City safe. She just wished she had a little more time to enjoy it before she had to go. But orders were orders and she had to report to her new squad tomorrow. Beth finished her shower and the rest of her daily hygiene before getting dressed and heading downstairs, ready to make the most of her last free day.
"So let me get this straight, your parents are the leaders of two different non-human species who infiltrated your city? One of which happens to be royalty!?! And that's why this Elf King is invading?" Beth heard a female voice ask incredulously as she approached the kitchen, slowing down with a frown. Did Chris have guests over?
"What's your point?" She heard Chris reply.
"How is that not weird?!?" The woman exclaimed.
"I never said it wasn't. I said it was no weirder than I am." Chris retorted.
"He's got a point there." A male voice chuckled.
"Of course, since we're essentially the weirdest things in existence, no World is weirder than we are." A second male voice sighed.
"Precisely." Chris nodded. "Though I still insist my World isn't that weird."
"Dude, you live in an underground city that puts its children through death trials in a giant, fuck-all labyrinth!" The female countered. "That's weirder than anything we have going on!"
"Even the entropy war?" Chris asked skeptically. "And the monstrous races?"
"Absolutely!" The female replied. "Those make sense in the context of their Worlds! But this… who just decides to create a labyrinth and stash all their people under it?!? Who decides sending children into said labyrinth to die is a good idea!?! It makes no sense!"
"It does sound like one of those arbitrary settings that we're just supposed to accept…" The first male voice muttered. "Like the idea that there's a secret society of wizards who hide themselves from the rest of humanity for no good reason."
"Hey, we do have good reasons to hide ourselves." The second male voice interjected. "Playing gods fucked humanity up!"
The room went quiet for a moment. "You're a wizard?" Chris asked, confused.
"I thought your World had something to do with Beasts?" The first male voice added.
"It does, but- okay, see, the Bonded are humans who have Beasts living inside them, and-" The second male voice began to explain when Beth decided it was finally time to step in.
"Chris?" She asked as she entered the kitchen, studying the three strangers sitting at their table. "Who- are these people?"
"Greg, Victoria, Andrew." Chris pointed out, before gesturing to her. "My fiancé Beth." He introduced her as well. "Done eavesdropping?" He asked, causing her to flush slightly.
"Wait, you have a fiancé?" Victoria asked incredulously, looking between him and Beth. "Really?!?"
Chris frowned at her. "What's so surprising about that?"
"I- well, nothing, I guess, just… Well, you never struck me as the romantic type." Victoria explained hesitantly, studying Beth a bit more before turning to Chris. "It isn't one of those arranged marriage things, is it?"
Beth scowled at her. "I'll have you know Chris is very romantic and I am proud to be with him!" She snapped.
"I wouldn't say very romantic." Chris muttered. "Though I suppose I have my moments…"
Beth rolled her eyes, sliding into the seat next to him. "You treat me better than anyone I've ever known. That is more romantic than any grand gesture." She replied, giving him a kiss on the cheek. "Now would you please tell me who these people are and why they're in my house?"
"Well, it's a bit complicated, but essentially, I'm an avatar of the structural building block that describes how a World works, and these three represent the aspects of physical substance, magical substance, and the structural building block that describes how an individual works." Chris explained. "We're somehow connected, and through that connection we can travel to each other's Worlds, so here they are."
"Yo." Greg greeted her, holding up two fingers in a V shape.
Beth blinked. "That-" She paused for a moment. "Actually makes sense." She nodded slowly. It'd been clear for a while now that Chris's ability wasn't like anyone else's, and it was intimately tied with his world. She wasn't sure about the others, but Chris being some sort of world based being just made sense. "How did it happen though?"
"Alexander broke his connection with my world and the pain woke me up in this room-" Chris began to explain.
"No, I mean, how did you turn into… this avatar thing?" Beth interjected, shaking her head, before pausing. Wait, Alexander had done what?!?
"Oh… no clue." Chris shrugged. "It's one of those things that just kinda is for no apparent reason."
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"I'm sure there is a reason, we just don't know it yet." Victoria countered.
"But either way, it isn't really important." Chris continued. "What is, is, no matter the reason why."
Beth frowned for a moment, before letting out a sigh. "You have a point." She paused for a moment. "So are they here to help with the Elf King then?"
"That and whatever else this World throws at us." Greg nodded. "Worlds have a tendency to fuck with people like us, and I doubt this Elf King is all it has to work with."
"Basically, we're here to solve any problems that might exist due to World fuckery." Victoria explained. "Which, in my personal opinion, means we need to start dismantling this whole 'Trial' nonsense as soon as possible."
"I'm fine with that." Chris shrugged. "The Trial has always been an iffy subject, and with the knowledge of how ability energy works, it's largely irrelevant at this point anyway. I'm fairly certain that once Dr. Jacobs experiments prove successful, the Trial will go away on its own."
"Or I can just start spreading the system and it'll go away in a month." Victoria retorted. "It's about power, right? Well, nothing gives power better than the system."
Chris paused. "If you can use it to increase ability energy…" He muttered.
"If it can increase my cultivation, I'm pretty sure it can handle your ability energy." Victoria scoffed.
"Well, then that would definitely end the Trial, because it'd be pointless." Chris nodded along. "Everyone would turn themselves into high-tiers, and the Trial isn't even a challenge once you're that strong." He paused, glancing at Beth. "Well, for the most part."
"If you bring that up one more time…" Beth growled, glaring at him.
Chris smirked slightly. "Anyway, the system would actually help a lot, particularly when it comes to strengthening our people for when the Elves invade. I can help my subordinates and a few of the younger Doppelgangers, but we're going to need more than a few powerful people on our side if we want to hold off armies full of high-tiers."
"I'll head to the surface and see what I can find." Greg offered. "I'm experienced at wearing down the morale of an invading force." He chuckled.
"I'll- just focus on getting stronger, I guess?" Andrew scratched his head. He was good at developing his own personal power, but beyond that he had no idea how he'd fit into a war.
"I need you to help me figure out how to get abilities." Chris added.
"Right." Andrew nodded. "Again, I need to build up my aura first."
With that, the other three left to work on their various projects, leaving Beth alone with Chris. "I don't like it when you suddenly drop these things on me like this." She grumbled, leaning her head on his shoulder. This was the fourth time in just about a week that Chris had dropped world changing news on her! Five if you counted the proposal, though that one was a good thing.
Chris shrugged helplessly. "They kinda just suddenly happen to me in the first place. There isn't much I can do about it, unless you want me to hide it from you."
Beth sighed. "I know, it's just… how do you keep getting drawn into so much crap?!?"
"Oh, I actually figured that one out." Chris replied. "It's the World. Not my world, but… apparently every World is a collection of thoughts, and these thoughts determine how the World should function. Generally, Worlds see unique people as these sort of… 'event magnets' pushing things to happen around them to make their lives more interesting, I guess? So because I'm weird, weird things happen around me. At least, according to Greg. Or I suppose Narita, cause that's who he learned it from."
Beth frowned. "So all the crap that's been happening lately… is because of you? I mean, because of what you are."
Chris nodded. "Right. Also, based on what I've heard so far, the stories- our Worlds are supposedly based on stories, by the way, and the stories our Worlds are based on… aren't very good. Our World has the Trial and whatnot, Greg's World is dealing with a war over entropy of all things, Andrew has one where one side of the World has to do horrendous things to the other just to survive, and Victoria- well, her World seems to be based around people throwing themselves at her… not sure what to make of that one. Still, what I'm saying is that all these Worlds seem to revolve around some darker facet of human nature, almost normalizing it. So I wouldn't be surprised if the events happening around us took a turn at some point." Chris's expression twisted slightly. "If something happens to you-"
"I'll be fine." Beth assured him. "I have the phone, your little watch monitor… you can come in seconds."
"I know, it's just… what if it's something I can't stop?" Chris asked, frowning. "I'm not all powerful. If an Elf with even a mid-tier ability came after you, if they captured you… what could I do? And don't talk about the chances. The chances are fucked around me anyway. We should probably assume something is going to happen to you."
"Then what happens, happens." Beth scowled. "I'm not- I've always known this job would be dangerous, and the consequences involved. You aren't- you're not trying to get me to quit are you?!?"
Chris shook his head. "No, of course not. I'm just… worrying. Probably focusing on this to ignore the bigger issue."
Beth blinked. "The bigger issue?"
"Well… see, I'm in all these different Worlds now, because of the others." Chris sighed. "Which means more and more of me will be completely separated from you. Even worse… okay, we've talked about this, but- I- don't die. You- do. Age is going to be a real problem for us at some point. I'm just- realizing I'm going to need to accept that there's a point in time where you won't be a part of my life, and that bothers me. Unless I want to connect you to my world, but… that has a different sort of issue. I don't want that sort of influence over someone who is supposed to be my partner. It just feels wrong. Though… maybe better than losing you completely." Chris frowned, before sighing again. "I just don't know."
The two of them sat there silently for a moment, considering the grim future ahead of them. "Are you sure connecting me to your world will ruin our relationship?" Beth asked.
"No. Less than before, even. If Alexander can break the connection… Obviously people can defy me, it's just hard. Though, it does bother me that he had to break the connection to defy me… Unless it was more that he wanted to disconnect with my world and had nothing to do with defying me?" Chris shook his head. "I don't know. But it's one of those things I want to avoid unless it seems necessary. However, now that I think about it… is it necessary?"
Beth sighed. "Maybe? Though not yet at least. The Elves aren't even here yet, and I doubt anything will happen until then."
"See, that is exactly the type of thing people say right before something happens." Chris pointed out.
"So you do want to connect me with your World now?" Beth asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I don't know." Chris groaned. "On the one hand, I'm scared of losing you, and on the other… I'm scared of losing you."
"Damned if you do, damned if you don't." Beth muttered. "I think… it's clear you don't turn the people connected to your world into robots or anything. They just seem to be… a little more focused on you than normal. Seeing as I'm already very focused on you… can the connection even do much?"
"See, it isn't the focus that bothers me. People connected to my world seem… disinclined to disagree with me." Chris explained. "Not to the point that they won't, but- I don't want you to stop being honest with me. I don't want you to think that your thoughts and opinions are somehow less important than mine." He paused before sighing. "It just feels like somehow it'd get to the point where you aren't with me because you want to, but because I want you to."
Beth paused for a moment. "I almost want to say I'm okay with that. I do want to be with you, for as long as I can. If this connection just makes me love you more, how can that not be worth it?"
Chris blinked. "That's- a way to look at it, I suppose. But how do we handle the other Worlds?"
Beth sighed. "Chris, I'm having a hard time justifying keeping you all to myself in this World. I'm not saying you should jump into a relationship with everyone you meet but… if there are other people out there who you can form a real connection with, especially in Worlds where I don't even exist… as long as you always love me, I think- ugh, I can handle it. Just- don't tell me about it, okay? Especially not details."
Chris frowned for a moment, before sighing. "That's the problem though. I don't want other women. I just want more of you."
"Chris, from what I heard, you're essentially the embodiment of a force of nature. No, something even greater than that!" Beth sighed. "You're essentially infinite. And I'm just… me. I can't- it'd be like trying to hoard the entire Maze for myself. I wish I could be more, to be everywhere with you, but… it just isn't possible."
"I don't have to be everywhere, you know." Chris offered. "Just because something is possible, doesn't mean it's necessary."
Beth shook her head. "You said it yourself. These Worlds have problems and you and your new friends can do something about it."
"And that doesn't even get to the Immortals." Chris muttered. "Okay. But I'm not pursuing anything. If something happens, whatever, but… I'd really prefer to just be with you."
Beth smiled back at him. "Me too." She paused. "So when do I get connected to your world?"
Chris groaned. "I don't- fuck, how about after the wedding? That's- I mean, we'll essentially be saying we're willing to be together forever. Why not make it official?"
"That sounds perfect." Beth agreed, snuggling closer. She really did love this man. It'd just be nice if he weren't so complicated.