"You will not die." Bahamut stated as I sat once more within his domain. "Lissana will waken soon enough, and I will deliver unto her a revelation regarding what you have done. She will know my promise that you shall live, as I have safeguarded you."

"The difference was, before, I did it alone, and this time you were actively healing us both."

He nodded. "You required much less than she, for she was at Death's door. Your actions in the past have, ironically enough, given you the fortitude to even pull this off, as I would never allow a miracle that ends in death." He chuckled. "At least, one intended for life."

"Don't offer me another one." I said. "This is what I wanted it used for, not for your own glory, but so she could be healed."

"And it is in this that you have earned the boon I gave before." Bahamut stated. "Though, I do believe it is long overdue that we discuss your tendency to sacrifice yourself for others."

Tea was brought by, of all things, a Holy Fiend. I politely thanked it and took a drink. It tasted like chamomile.

"You are rather distressingly willing to allow yourself to come to harm for the sake of others, and while your drive is commendable, the effects it has on you is not." He leaned forward. "It is because of this that not only have you suffered what you called a seizure, but it has attracted Fiends and Fel beings. To put it bluntly, the reason why the Felwights were even present is because of your actions."

"I can't want to help people?" I asked just to be contrary.

"No." He stated. "It is this answering of the void's call that attracts the Fel, your lack of care for yourself over others has inadvertently led to agents of destruction seeking you out, though you are not entirely to blame, it does make it easier for them to spot you."

"So, I have to use magic wisely." I said.

"Yes. I took the liberty of dissipating some of the Fel from you, so long as you do not recklessly endanger yourself for the sake of another, no Fel being will be attracted." He reached out and grasped my hand. "Do not seek death, you can help nobody if you are dead."

"What can I do, then?" I asked.

"Seek strength, the rest will follow."

"Okay, King Vendrick." I snarked.

"It is sound advice." Bahamut stated. "A month has nearly passed since you arrived to this world, and you have done much. You have earned a respite."

We sat in silence for a while and drank tea.

"I spoke with Paedon." I said.

"Finally?" Bahamut asked.

"Finally." I echoed, bemused.

"He does not step into the lives of his children often enough." Bahamut snorted.

I looked at the Fiend, who stood at the side, waiting dutifully. I found myself admiring it.

"He chased away a Holy Fiend who was trying to, I don't know, convince me to become one." I said.

"That is their flaw, in seeking Champions, they forget not all aspire." Bahamut stated. "Paedon simply saw an uncertain soul being pressured. What do you see, gazing upon my servant?"

"I see an immaculate being." I said. "Something to aspire to."

"You are not wrong." Bahamut stated. "But you are not correct either. They feed on what is holy, as Elian Furtael fed on faith. Their service, while genuine, is as much a relationship between a beast and a flea. A loss of vital essence and constant irritation, but unlike a flea, they have their use."

I stood up and approached it. It looked at me with calm blue eyes.

"Do you know how a Mortal becomes a Holy Fiend?" Bahamut asked.

"How?" I asked.

"By immersing themselves in the Divine recklessly. Much as you have done. My warning was not strictly for your own health, and your fortitude is not strictly growing used to it. Rather, you are slowly becoming a Holy Fiend." Bahamut stood up and approached us. "You see an immaculate being because you are slowly becoming one, you see a being to aspire to because you are becoming kindred with it."

"Oh." I said.

"No rejection, just an 'oh', as if there was nothing wrong with this." Bahamut stated. "When a Holy Fiend finds a host, they appeal to a Mortal's faith, but they do not force their host, rather, their host takes them in of their own volition, and they swallow the crystal, where the only way to remove it is to have it cut out of them."

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I felt the Fiend's body. "This is what I'm turning into." I said. I looked at my hands, I hadn't noticed they had become like the Fiend's. "Why not tell me sooner?"

"It was not my place." Bahamut replied. "And would you really have believed me?"

"No." I said. "How do I reverse it?"

"Do not channel Divine power through your body." Bahamut stated. "In a month, you should revert fully."

I pulled my hand away, and I was normal again. "That might be easier said than done." I remarked.

"Hold close my sigil, and you will be fine." Bahamut stated. "For though all that is Divine is noble, to act as Divine is arrogance, and to be Divine is to reject all that is not. A Sigil is a proxy, a channel from which to do the will of the Gods."

"What if I don't stop?" I asked. "What if I..." I looked at the Fiend again.

"Then go to the Temple and devote yourself." Bahamut stated. "Shall I tell you a secret?"

I looked at Bahamut again. "What is it?" I asked.

"A Mortal can choose their destiny." He said. "But that which is Divine cannot. You could take any path you wish, take any result you desire, you could become a King, you could become an Adventurer, you could become an Adventurer-King, but the moment you become a Fiend, the moment you can no longer turn back, your destiny shall forever be that. You could be a moment away from becoming a Fiend, and find the resolve to turn back, but the moment you cross that threshold, all other options are gone forever."

"I see." I said.

"It seems I have another visitor." Bahamut stated. "I do not know if I shall be present for when you waken, so if you waken, know that I shall still watch over you, no matter the path you choose."

Bahamut left the room, the Fiend remained behind. I reached out, and I woke up.

It was dark outside, but the light on the horizon that I could see from my window indicated it was early morning. I heard a snore and saw Nash sitting in a chair, his right leg crossed over his left, his arms folded over his chest, and his head resting on a pillow held under his chin. Every time he breathed out, his tongue shot out and did the flicky thing that snakes did. I smirked.

He jerked awake, looking around as if he was expecting to be attacked. He saw me and relaxed. "A genuine from-a-God Miracle, ah?" He asked. "I have to wonder how you pulled that off."

"Bahamut owed me." I said. "I was lucky to survive, really, some of the healing done was toward me so I could keep standing."

"She was not worried this time." Nash said. "I do not know why, but she was certain you would survive regardless. Does this mean you'll be able to handle-?"

"No." I said. "I cannot directly channel Divine spells again, because Bahamut just told me that doing so is turning me into a Holy Fiend. He also told me if I don't do it for a month, and use his Sigil properly, I should revert without issue. I think that partial conversion was the only reason I could have survived this."

Nash looked amazed at this. "The fact you are telling me this means you are going to stop for certain." He remarked.

"The Divine is not a toy for mortals to play with." I said. "I'm certain the only reason why the Gods didn't tell me to stop was because they anticipated what I would do."

"The Gods do not know the fates of Mortals." Nash stated. "For it is in our hands how we live and how we die." He paused for a few moments before asking, "What shall you do in the meantime?"

"I've been training for a month, and even though I have grown significantly, I feel as though I should have gotten more done. It feels like I'm being lazy and that I'm not really trying at all. I have so many useful abilities and it feels like I'm cheating, and every major hurdle I just used something I happened to have access to just to get over it. I feel like, no matter what I've done, I haven't really earned any of it."

"I understand." Nash said. "And while you are right in that you have experienced much growth in power, it is not because you have useful talents, nor is it because you happened to have what you needed. You had what you needed because you otherwise would have died, you have your talents because they give you a fighting chance. That which you have earned is yours because you have earned it."

He looked out the window. "You are stronger because you worked hard for your strength, not because of your blood or power, but because you took the time to train. Certainly, you have experienced exponential growth in your magic talent, but you are also starting from the bare minimum, of course you are going to get stronger faster. It is easy to uncover the power to cast one spell extremely well, but there are those who can only ever use that one spell because they have not trained their talent further."

I grabbed my thumb and rubbed it with my other thumb, though I felt some pain, it reminded me that I was alive, and that I'd done something amazing.

"But I was only able to help Vitria- I mean, Lady Oren because I happened to get lucky killing a Faith Vampire and being roped into Bahamut's desperate attempt to get rid of him." I squeezed a little harder and winced. "I happened to trigger my berserker rage at the right time, happened to have enough strength to break a tile with his head, and was lucky enough to be able to use said tile to stab him in the heart."

"You knew enough to stab a Vampire in the heart, though." Nash pointed out. "Vampires spread so much misinformation about how to kill them that few really know how to. I remember what Basha told me about that day, he thought removing the head was the right way to go about it, but he was wrong. You were the only person in that room with the talent, strength, and knowledge to do the deed correctly. When others were unable to move, so crippled by the Vampire's power as they were, you were able to act. When you were attacked, you were quick enough to defend yourself."

He rolled his eyes and waved his hand. "And yes, you used an ability to overwhelm him, but it was an ability you had as a result of you defending yourself. How many others could say they took on a Faith Vampire and succeeded? Even taking one down usually requires at least five different priests of differing faiths, five swordsmen, and five mages. You did it with one angry Lacertian, and you were much weaker to boot! You were lucky, yes, but nobody looks at luck and sees a man who is incapable, we see luck and think the Gods were on that man's side because he was worthy."

He rested his finger under my chin and lifted my head up. "You have not done anything I would not be proud of." He said. "That you still do not feel worthy is honestly more worrying than if you had thought yourself greater than you actually are. This home is one of healing, my Lady accepts those who need to be healed out of the kindness of her heart, and she rarely requires recompense, as many are eager to repay her kindness. Even if my Lady were able to remove your curses, and were able to heal your body, she would know you are still hurt, and would do all she could to heal your spirit."

I found myself crying again, but I did not try to hide it.

"It feels like I'm just dragging everyone down, that my problems are a distraction from what really matters." I said.

"And I shall say your problems are what really matters." He replied. "We may see catastrophe and wish to help, but not every such tragedy can be healed. If by ignoring you, we led you to a dark path, and many others were harmed, we would have failed in our task of healing. If by ignoring you, we allowed you to seek death, and nobody was around to help you, we would have failed in our task of healing."

He hugged me. "We heal because we know not everyone can heal themselves, even a healer must rely on another from time to time."

I cried into his shoulder until the sun had risen fully. When I stopped, he held me to his side.

"In the stories of my world, a common trope is the hero being able to stand up even when his body is broken, to overcome his limits and to beat the bad guy." I said.

"Those heroes are foolish, then." Nash replied. "And it serves only to cause those who would be heroes to break their bodies to uselessness."

"When a hero is not strong enough, he vows he will become stronger, and does so." I said.

"What is strength?" Nash asked. "It is not how hard you punch, or how effortlessly you swing a sword, it is not how far back you can draw a bow, it is not being able to blow a man apart with sheer magical force. What then is strength?"

"I don't know." I said. "Bahamut told me to seek strength, and the rest would follow. He was quoting a game from my world."

"Not to become strong, but to know what strength is." Nash said with a knowing nod. "Such are the riddles of the Gods, deliberately vague to allow interpretation, so that those unbound by fate may choose their path. Some would seek to become physically stronger, some would seek to become magically stronger, yet the answer is not so strict."

"What do I do then?" I asked. "If there isn't a strict answer, how can I know I've found strength?"

"That is the beauty of such things." Nash answered. "It is up to each of us to find out for ourselves, as the answer will likely be the strength we have gained in the meantime."

He helped me to stand, stepped away from me, and then turned to face me. "Let us both seek strength, together, as a journey shared is all the more rewarding."

I smiled and nodded. "Together." I said...

The winds of fate refuse to change. Time has not changed...