Zeke dropped to his knees, then planted his hands in the blessedly dry sand. He took a deep breath, then flopped onto his back and stared at the sun, which hung high in the sky.

“Sometimes, you forget just how amazing the sun is,” he said aloud.

“Don’t get maudlin on me,” sighed Eveline. “Nobody wants that.”

“If I want to wax poetic about the beauty of the sun, I’m going to do just that.”

“Is that what you call it?” she asked. “Because I definitely would have used another term.”

“Whatever,” he said, seeing her out of the corner of his eye. As had been the case since she’d taken on the duties of running the tower, her illusory form was slightly translucent. From afar, she looked solid enough, but up close, Zeke couldn’t ignore the fact that he could see right through her. Not in any detail, but she still looked like a ghost from a low-budget horror film.

“Ouch,” she said, clutching her hands to her chest. “That hurts. At least acknowledge that it would take hundreds of artists and a plethora of computing power to replicate this form.”

“You don’t know what a computer even is,” he pointed out.

“I know what you know.”

“Which isn’t much,” he stated. Indeed, the details of his former life had become blurrier of late. He still remembered the big things, but the rest had grown hazy. Still looking up at the sky, he wondered, “How long has it been since I died, do you think?”

“I don’t know. Again, because you don’t,” she said. “You seemed to have latched onto two years as the span you spent in the troll caves, but we both know that estimate was just that – an approximation. And what’s more, without any distinction between day and night, you had no context by which to measure time. And finally, you were in no frame of mind to pay attention to such things.”

Indeed, Zeke had spent months at a time completely alone in the dark. Sometimes, he tried to ignore the mental toll that had taken on him, but the fact was that it had left him markedly changed. And Eveline was right – he had no idea how long he’d spent down there. It could have been a year, or it might’ve been a decade.

There was a good chance he’d never know for sure.

“What about since I got out of the caves?” he asked.

“Nearly twelve years,” she said.

“What? That long?” he wondered.

“This can’t be that surprising to you. You spent years wandering across the Radian Isles. And more than two years passed before you got out of the mines,” she said. “That’s not counting how long you spent in Hell. Or various dungeons. Even traveling across such a vast land isn’t something that happens overnight.”

“So I’m over thirty now,” he said. “Even if I only spent two years in the troll caves.”

“I’d say you’re closer to forty than thirty,” Eveline stated. “Maybe not much closer, but closer all the same. Which is insane. Someone your age should never have the kind of power you wield so nonchalantly. You know I’m not one to offer compliments, but you are a one-in-trillions talent.”

“It’s not talent.”

“Not completely, no. But natural suitability for the life you’ve chosen to lead has played a large part in your rapid progression,” Eveline explained.

That made sense. Zeke had always believed that hard work always beat talent when talent didn’t work hard. However, there was a third category – people that put in the time and effort to get the most out of their talent. That was where greatness came from.

“I never said anything about greatness,” Eveline pointed out. “Right now, you have potential.”

“You just said I’m one-in-a-trillion. And I’m close to the peak,” he replied. “What level were you when you were imprisoned?”

“That’s not important. We’re different people with vastly different circumstances.”

Zeke just shook his head and continued to enjoy the fact that he could once again fill his lungs with air. However, he knew he couldn’t remain on the beach for much longer. He’d already spent far longer in the dungeon than he’d originally anticipated, so he needed to return to the tower as soon as possible.

Thankfully, he didn’t need to trek across hundreds of miles to do so. Instead, he only needed to summon one of his five gates.

“Aren’t you interested in the quest reward?” she asked.

“Of course I am,” he said. He’d been working on that particular quest for years, and he was more than eager to receive the reward. There was only one issue. “We don’t have the holy or demon treasures yet.”

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“You don’t actually need them,” Eveline said. “The demon part will take care of itself.”

“What? How?”

“The tower is part of you,” she explained. “And you are demon enough to lend your attunement to that quest. It won’t be particularly strong, but –”

“Then we’re not going that route,” he interrupted. Indeed, the entire reason he’d ben running from one dungeon to the next was so that he could get the most powerful treasures possible. Cutting corners when he was so close just didn’t sit right with him. “What about the holy treasure?”

“I hate that word.”

“What?”

“Holy. It makes them seem good. Or moral. They’re not, by the way. Some might be, but most are just like everyone else. Many are much worse,” she said. “Regardless, I prefer to use the word faith. I think it’s more descriptive of what it actually is. Sadly, the Framework doesn’t agree.”

“You didn’t answer the question.”

“Right. Well, it’s not strictly necessary,” she answered. “It will help to balance things out, but you don’t actually need it.”

Zeke thought he understood. “Wouldn’t that skew things in favor of corruption?” he asked.

“Perhaps.”

“Then we’re sticking to the plan,” he stated, finally picking himself up. “Where do you think we might find what we need?”

“Well, you still need to go to Hell and descend the Pit. I’m sure you’ll pick something up during your visit,” she said. “I even have some ideas. As far as the faith attunement is concerned, you need to keep in mind the sorts of people who might have such treasures in their possession.”

“And those are?”

“Self-righteous believers.”

“The Radiant Host,” Zeke said without hesitation.

“I was thinking the same thing. In fact, I’ve heard of a crown worn by their little emperor. It’s said to be quite powerful,” Eveline explained. “Perhaps that will work for your needs.”

It was fortuitous, then, that they were already at war with the Imperium.

The moment that thought crossed Zeke’s mind, he considered the possibility that it wasn’t wholly a coincidence. After all, Eveline was a mind spirit. Wasn’t it possible that she had pushed him in that direction? Looking back, Zeke felt that he’d been in control the whole time, and even as he thought about it, his reasons for going to war were consistent with his ideology.

But there were doubts.

“If you intend on going down that road,” Eveline began. “We should part ways right now.”

“Did you manipulate me?”

She shrugged. “Depends on what you consider manipulation. Did I twist your thoughts? No. I couldn’t do that even if I wanted to. There are limits, Ezekiel. Perhaps I could push you one way or another for a few minutes, but beyond that? I would unravel if I tried anything more than that.”

“You didn’t fully answer the question.”

“No, I didn’t, because I don’t like how it was framed. Manipulate. It’s such a nasty word. I prefer to think of it as offering advice. Through it all, that’s all I’ve ever done. Not because I can’t do more, but because I consider you a friend. An ally. We are in this together, Ezekiel,” she said. “And if you no longer believe that, then it’s time we went our separate ways.”

“You can’t survive outside of my mind,” Zeke pointed out.

“I’ll figure it out,” she maintained. “You need to make a choice, Ezekiel. Either you trust me, or you don’t. If it’s the former, great. I will continue to be your friend. If it’s the latter? Then I refuse to subject myself to that sort of abuse. You may not mean to hurt me, but the mere hint that I’ve done something untoward is quite painful. I thought we were past that.”

“Me too,” Zeke said. He could recognize deflection when he saw it, but he also understood her perspective. He’d basically just accused her of controlling him. Of course she would be upset at that. “Look – I didn’t meant to imply that –”

“I know what you meant, Ezekiel. I don’t begrudge you the thought. In fact, I appreciate that you think so highly of my powers, if not my character. But I suppose I just hoped for more,” she sighed. “I’m going to need a while to process. Think of what you want from our partnership, and if you want me gone, then I will figure out how to make it happen.”

With that, she disappeared. Zeke knew his concerns were perfectly valid. She was a demonic mind spirit who’d often talked about her powers of manipulation. It wasn’t outside the realm of possibility that she might have turned those talents on him. Even so, when she left, retreating deep into his mind and practically slamming a mental door in his face, he felt guilty.

Of what, he wasn’t sure. Maybe he really should have trusted her implicitly.

Whatever the case, the damage had been done. He would try to make it up to her at some point in the future – though he didn’t know what might do the trick – but for now, he had other demands on his time. So, after picking himself up, he summoned one of his gates.

It looked no different than it had before the tower’s latest evolution, but with the ability to summon multiple gates had come one other change. Now, he didn’t need to go through the Entry Hall. Instead, he could simply head straight to his home.

So, a few moments later, he was stepping off the dais that held the teleporter in the Lord’s Manor’s estate. The scenery was just as idyllic as always, which served as a balm to his soul as well as his exhausted body.

So was the other sight that greeted him.

“How long have you been waiting on me to return?” he asked.

Adara looked up from her book. “Don’t kid yourself. I was just reading,” she said, still sitting with her back against the trunk of a tree. Her posture was relaxed, but he’d seen the tension drain from her shoulders the moment she had laid eyes on him. “You’re not the center of everyone’s world.”

“You’re literally inside a tower that, as far as I can tell, is lodged in my soul,” he said.

“Fair point,” she said, pushing herself to her feet. She stretched languidly, showing Zeke in no uncertain terms just what he’d been missing. In her armor, she cut an intimidating and powerful figure. Outside of it, she was just as formidable, but with a few soft edges that Zeke couldn’t deny he appreciated. “Before you get caught up, you should know that your friend has been asking for you.”

“He can wait,” Zeke said, stepping closer to her. He wrapped his arms around her, but before he could go any further, she pushed him away. “What?”

“You smell. Like dead fish.”

“I fought a leviathan. From the inside out. That’s probably what you’re smelling,” he said.

“That is…gross. Oddly exciting, but still gross. Go take a shower.”

“But –”

Zeke didn’t get any further than that before she cut him off with a glare. After that, he saw what she meant, so he headed straight into the manor and took a shower. The steaming water was so soothing that, when he went into the bedroom, he couldn’t stop himself from flopping onto the bed.

He was asleep only a few moments later.