The interior of the tavern they found was just like everything outside—frozen yet elegant, appearing cold but warm at the same time. To everyone’s surprise, it was Kirej who led them inside. But after they ordered and the warm food arrived before them, nobody doubted the lion-man’s choice.

Leo still had no idea what exactly he just ate, but he decided not to dwell on it. The meal tasted good, and it had been a long time since he had consumed something that wasn’t a Voidling. Still, according to Darius’ words, this wasn’t Narzark, so any food they received was most likely safe.

The phrase ‘most likely’ in his statement gave Leo a pause, but at this point, it was way too late to back off. His plate was already half empty and it really tasted good. Though he didn’t dare touch the green bubbling liquid in his mug, Darius could say whatever he wanted, but no drink should look like that.

“Your loss,” the ancient flame simply said, downing the drink—mug included.

Back then, Leo wanted to ask him if he still needed food or how he even processed it, but he stopped himself. He had already bothered the alien with enough questions and didn’t want to cross any unspoken boundaries. He was really way out of his comfort zone here.

Of course, Darius didn’t seem to notice any of that. He simply continued to talk about all the different foods one could find on Sazim. Leo barely caught half of the alien’s excited chatter and just settled to nod at every look thrown in his direction.

It went on like this until all of their crystal ice plates emptied, and an unexpected sense of fullness settled over him. The portion wasn’t even larger than what he would have normally eaten for dinner back as a human, but somehow, he felt as if he had just devoured a whole horde of Collectors.

“Wow,” he muttered, leaning back in his chair. “Just what was that?”

In the corner of his vision, Leo spotted a tiny smirk on Kirej’s face, though the lion-man, as usual, remained silent. Darius had to come to the rescue once more.

“A classic Saklarian Mash,” the ancient flame said. “I’m unsure what the exact ingredients are, but like I told you earlier, it shouldn’t be anything you have to worry about. As for what you are feeling…” he chuckled. “That’s what you get when your meal is prepared by a skilled cook. It might not sound like the most useful profession in the Void, but like everything, it has its uses. Honestly, they and alchemists have a lot in common.”

Leo furrowed his brow. “What? You mean their food can grant boosts or something like that?”

“Exactly!” Darius beamed, floating up and down above his seat. “It’s not as effective as potions and elixirs but usually lasts much longer. Enhanced healing? Not a problem. Tiny buff to your attributes? Also doable, if you have enough Ether. Some places even offer meals that will grant you the ability to temporarily wield a certain element. I’ve personally tested a few.”

Leo’s gaze snapped back to the ancient flame. Even Nyx peeked out from under his cloak. “That’s possible? I thought affinities were supposed to be hard to get.”

“True affinities are, yes,” Darius agreed. “But false and temporary ones? There are plenty of ways to acquire those, and that’s because they aren’t particularly useful—at least not in battle.”

“So why bother? Why waste resources?” he asked, puzzled.

“Plenty of reasons, but the most important among them is training,” the ancient flame explained. “After all, what is false now may become true with enough practice. Your old race even had a saying about that, if I remember correctly. How did it go? Oh yes, I remember now! A lie repeated often enough becomes the truth.”

Leo snorted. “I don’t think that’s what the author had in mind when they said it.”

Darius shrugged in his own unique way. “Maybe not. It still fits, though. Right, Kirej?”

The lion-man just grunted before standing up and heading toward the bar counter. Darius sighed—how, Leo still had no idea, but he’d long since stopped asking.

“Betrayed by my own partner,” Darius grumbled. “Well… you can’t win them all. Come, my new friend. Your room should be ready. Just head upstairs and search for a door with a number six above it. It will open for you. No key needed.”

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“Thanks,” Leo said, getting to his feet. “What about you two?”

“Kirej and I will visit the local Caged Gate and organize a passage for tomorrow. You’re welcome to join us if you want.”

He shook his head. As much as he wanted to see more of the city, he could barely stand on his own two feet. Now, with the food inside him, he had to fight to keep his eyes open. The other patrons inside the tavern kept shooting him odd looks as he stumbled toward the stairs.

“Thanks for the offer, but I’m gonna pass. As you can see, I’m half-asleep already anyway.”

Darius chuckled, following after him. “Good, good. Get some rest, child, and we will see you tomorrow. Try not to wander off, and if you need anything, you have my contact details.”

“I will remember that,” he promised and headed upstairs, leaving the alien behind. It didn’t take long to find room number six, and after he placed a hand on the door, it slid open.

The chamber wasn’t anything special—just a tiny space with an ice bed covered in fluffy furs and a small desk sitting in the corner. Aside from that, the room had nothing else inside it, not even a window—the small orange lamp floating above his head was the only source of light.

Home sweet home. Leo chuckled, dropping onto the bed. Nyx instantly took this as a cue and crawled out of his cloak. She jumped onto the desk next to them and lay down.

“I don’t know about you, but I’m going to sleep,” she said, yawning. “Don’t wake me up unless the world is ending.”

He smiled. “Got ya. I will join you soon. Have to call Lily first.”

Yet, there was nobody to answer him. Nyx already closed her eyes, her breathing slow and steady.

Lazy cat…

With another laugh, he fished out his transmitter and selected his sister from the list. The call took a bit longer to connect this time around.

“Hey, Lily,” he greeted. “How is it going?”

“Leo?” she mumbled, her voice groggy. “You sound like shit.”

He choked back a laugh. “Of course that’s the first thing you say to me.”

“You know what I mean,” she grumbled. “Are you okay?”

Leo allowed himself to fall onto the soft furs. “I am. Just the last few days have finally caught up with me. I’m safe now, though, and should be back soon, maybe even within a day.”

That woke Lily up. “A day?! Are you for real? What happened? Spill?”

So he explained everything as well as he could while omitting the parts where he came close to death. That was in the past; he didn’t need her to worry for no reason.

“Wow,” Lily let out once he finished. “Do you think I will get to meet them?”

Leo shrugged. “No idea, I guess we will find out soon. I got Darius’ cont—” A huge yawn interrupted him.

“You should rest,” Lily cut in before he could speak again. “We can talk once you return.”

“Yeah, I guess,” he muttered, his eyes closing. “See you soon then, sis.”

“See you soon, Leo. Sleep well.”

----------------------------------------

“This is incredible,” Leo whispered as their group entered the massive tower in the middle of Westside Watch.

Everything here looked like something straight out of a sci-fi movie, and he didn’t know what to put his gaze on. That was, until they passed a guard check and entered another chamber—then he finally understood what a Caged Gate was.

The base of the entire structure was a simple Void Gate, no larger than the one back in Wolford. What made it special, however, were the countless machines and cables attached to it, stretching all the way to the top of the tower.

Leo tried to Identify the Caged Gate, and while the System gave him an answer this time, it wasn’t much.

Caged-Purified Star Gate | Tier: III | Status: Operational

No description, no explanation about the tiers, nothing. He turned to ask Darius about it, but the alien spoke first.

“Here we are, my young friend. Your way home. Step forward and wait for the portal to activate. It will bring you right to Naz’Tor. We made sure of that.”

Leo frowned. “What about you two? Are you staying here?”

“We are,” Kirej said, like always keeping his answer short.

“What my wonderful partner means is that we can’t go with you,” Darius elaborated. “Naz’Tor’s shop is currently anchored to Earth, and there’s no way for us to slip past the restrictions placed by the System on the new universe. We don’t have the necessary skills like our mutual friend.”

Should have expected that. Leo clicked his tongue. “Then I guess this is goodbye. Thank you two again. You really saved my ass back there.”

Darius’ flame flared brighter. “We were just doing our job. Don’t be a stranger, though, young one. Call us if you need help or just want to talk. It has been a while since someone with so much potential appeared in the Void.”

He smiled, even if it was a bit strained. “I will. Till next time, Darius, Kirej.”

The lion-man’s lips twitched upward. “And may our paths cross again.”