Beneath the waves, Depths stirred, looking upward.

Much as it was incapable of feeling fear, a disquiet arose within. Something was… wrong. The souls, which had been slowly making their way to it, even imprisoned as it was… had stopped.

It seemed it's time had come. It was time to-

Its thoughts cut out when the golden light of the primitive transportation machine lit up the room.

Atop it stood the man who'd visited Depths not long ago. The minor lordling, playing at protector.

"Didn't think I forgot about you, did you?" he asked, shifting in place before nodding to the smaller being at his side. "As we practiced. You've got this."

"It is good you have come, I grow weary of these chains," Depths said, flexing its might against the enchantments that held it so long. Many had grown weak, even as he had grown strong. Yes, it was-

"Yeah, I'm just gonna stop you there," the lordling said, shaking his head. "See, the people who trapped you, they were greedy. Figured you'd make a good power supply. Made them sloppy."

Depths eyes flickered as a soul attempted to escape, only to be drawn back in.

"But turns out, there were people who really didn't want you to get away. They left some things behind, in case their superiors ever changed their minds. Obviously, they didn't, since you're still here. But since Keeper was feeling so accommodating, we went ahead and finished a couple. Wouldn't have been possible without that Sahevin attacking, so I guess I owe it thanks."

Depths eyes flared with light as it processed what the lordling was saying, laughter echoing through the chamber. "You believe you can chain me? To renew my bonds?"

"Yeah, figured you weren't a good listener after my first visit? You ready?"

"Yes, Papa," the smaller being said, nodding.

Depths barely noticed as it earned itself a millimeter of freedom. So weak. It would only need a few hours and-

"Do it," the lordling said.

The next moment, several unfamiliar devices were flung across the room. They looked like a blood star splatter, Depths thought, one where it stabbed through an especially rich artery, full of pressure.

Beautiful, but even a moment's study was enough for Depths to know that they wouldn't reinforce its chains.

The mortals might as well have-

It's thoughts cut out entirely for a second, as a wave of weakness rolled through it.

"Huh. Didn't think it'd be so obvious it was working. Good job, kiddo," the lordling said, ruffling the smaller one's upper warmth protection.

Depths found itself having trouble focusing, remembering what it was… ah, yes, it had been attempting to escape when… when the mortals had done something to it.

It let out a scream as it thrashed against its bonds, bonds that held it much more firmly than they had moments earlier.

Had it been wrong? Had they reinforced the enchantments?

An inspection told it that no, the bonds were the same as they'd always been. It was Depths that had changed.

The mortals had damaged it somehow.

"Ah, that's much better, thank you Bevel," the lordling said as Depths screams of rage suddenly cut out. "Should've expected that it had broken those enchantments when it talked to me last time. My mistake."

"It's pretty stupid, isn't it, Papa?" the smaller being asked as Depths closed its mouth, then opened it again, trying to scream, then searching out the enchantment that had silenced it so many years ago.

Except they hadn't repaired that enchantment any more than they'd tightened its bonds. It shouldn't be possible. Depths was a siphon for magic. Any free magic in its proximity was drawn into it.

That was why mages, ever so arrogant, so sure of their magic, made such easy meals.

"It's used to being the apex predator. It hasn't had time to adjust," the lordling said. "Hit it again please."

"Okay Papa," the smaller one said as the world once more went dark.

This time when Depths came back to itself, the world had shifted. The first change of perspective in nearly a hundred thousand years. It was… laying on the floor?

That couldn't be right. The enchantments wouldn't allow that much movement. Not while it was a threat.

"I think that almost did it. Unfortunately it looks like we're going to have to use the third set. Really glad we didn't try to fight that thing. We've already absorbed enough mana to more than double Aeternia's reserves. Can't believe they set it up as a power source, then let it draw the power into itself. Politics are worse than people being stupid," the lordling said, its voice having grown more firm.

No… that wasn't what had happened. Depths was weak. So weak that even the lordling's words caused it pain. The experience was so foreign, it could hardly understand what was happening.

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It didn't have long to wait.

"Ready Papa," the small one said, as another new sensation filled the ancient being.

One it hadn't felt in the entirety of its ancient existence.

Fear.

"Do it," the man commanded, and in that moment, Depths realized it had misjudged him. As a surge of light flowed through the devices eliminating the last traces of the ancient monster, understanding pierced its foggy brain.

He wasn't a lordling, pretending at greatness. It was one of the monsters even more terrifying than Depths and its brothers.

A loving father.

The sun rose on New Aeternia, shimmering rainbows filling the sky.

An unexpected quirk of having the barrier up at its low intensity. Without Sahevin beating at the border, I'd reduced it which greatly extended our stores of mana. Not that we'd been in danger of running out anytime this decade, even before Bevel and I had drained Depths and turned it into so many memories.

Still, whatever the reactor was using, it wasn't unlimited. Not that most people knew that. Far as they were concerned, it would stand until Ro'an crumbled beneath our feet.

The lake, on the other hand, didn't seem to have the same limits. It had become a full mana well, on the same level as the Everstorm or the Infinite Rift, if a bit smaller in scope. We just couldn't pump that mana into the shield, for reasons I hadn't quite figured out yet.

Ari and I stood upon the peak, alone in the early morning light, looking out across… everything. We'd had another rather intense evening. Things had gotten rather heated after our visit with Tamrie. Well, during the visit. Tamrie'd been more than a little enthusiastic at the idea of the two of us being together. And even more enthusiastic at the idea of the three of us fitting in as many configurations as she could imagine. Even if not all of them were… practical.

In a place where no one could see, where there were no consequences… it had been very educational for Ari and I.

However, my thoughts weren't on that. Nearly two weeks had passed since our fight with the Sahevin Abyss Emperor, Vaserra's stomping of the panther lord and the visit from the dragon Bahama. People were taking that last as a bit too major of an event, in my opinion, considering how little effect Bahama had had, simply going off to pester Inertia or Tarnibus most days.

"Not in love with the idea," I said, referring to why Arizar had brought me up here in the first place.

"It is the simple truth," Ari said, arm linked with mine as we gazed out over my slowly waking domain.

Or… as Ari had just put it. My empire.

"Empires… do not have great connotations, where I'm from," I said, shaking my head.

"Yet it is what you are building," Arizar said, gesturing to the frame of the second airship, already more than halfway through construction. "A projection of your will, outwards across Ro'an. Protection, for those who want it."

"See, I have a hard time syncing those two up… Empire and protection."

"There have been many benign empires throughout Ro'an's history. In truth, there is rarely a better place to live, when the right Emperor comes along," Ari said, pulling her arm out of mine only to slide it around her waist instead as she did the same around mine. "A person whose will reshapes the world around them."

Even knowing we were alone, it surprised me she'd be so forward outside the safety of the palace. Not as much as the implication of her words though. "And you think… I could become that sort of man?"

"No," Ari said, tilting her head back to look up at me.

I stared down at her in confusion.

"You already are that man. You simply need to accept it," Ari said, reaching up to brush my cheek.

"This… isn't something to be done without a great deal of thought. Even if… even if you're right, declaring empire when I'm not even a Hydra-soul… it would be stupid," I said, gazing out beyond our borders.

"There is no reason to declare it. Not yet," Ari said in agreement. "But there will come a time."

"There's a reason you chose to have this conversation now, here, instead of inside," I said as the light broke free of the horizon, spreading inch by inch across Cape Aeternia.

Across my domain.

"To make sure you were fully mindful of the stakes," she said, nodding beyond the peak. "It is a heavy thing, to place a nation upon your shoulders. And an even heavier thing to lay that burden upon the shoulders of your family."

"Bevel," I said, my grip on Ari tightening a fraction.

"That dear heart has suffered a great deal, but she will endure. It is your sister I worry for," Ari admitted, her body turning me towards the west, where the light now struck the land. "She is well suited for the fighting, but the rest clearly troubles her."

"I'll talk to her," I said instantly.

"I think, she would be relieved, to have us take on some of her responsibilities," Ari said, her free hand trailing over where my hand rested upon her waist. "And to free her to do what she is best at."

"Helping people," I said, nodding.

Ari let out a warm laugh, even as she shook her head. "Slaying monsters, Perry. Though she's done well enough at helping those in need. Imagine how much good she could do, if she wasn't stuck guarding her beacon?"

"There are… ways to modify the oath," I said, realizing what she meant. "That I found after unlocking Utility Access. You think I should change hers?"

"I do," Ari said, nodding as we gazed outwards. "Hers isn't the only one you could change, is it?"

"No," I said, frowning. "There are many oaths we could use. I just… they feel manipulative."

"Did you feel manipulated when you swore to become a Magus Dominus?"

"Little bit," I admitted, shrugging as I nodded outward. "My choices were being sent to the front, locked in a tower to power mana batteries for twenty years or… well, I figured this one out on my own. Option C, I guess."

"So you've said. But I do not mean being forced to make a choice. I meant the oath itself," Ari pressed.

"No. If anything, the oath clarified things."

"And what was it you swore? I suspect it's not the version I read in Spellford's libraries."

That was easy.

Even without my enhanced memory, those words were never too far from my mind.

"Upon the ancient Pillars of Ro'an, I bind myself in solemn oath," I began. Even as I spoke, I felt the oath stirring within. "I pledge my life and my soul to protect the people under my charge. I shall be their shield, their storm, and their watchful eye, unyielding until my final breath. My lands shall remain pure, free from the stain of corruption and the scourge of monstrous threats. So long as my Domain stands, my vow stands eternal, etched into the fabric of Ro'an."

It wasn't just my oath that had stirred I realized. Mount Aeternia itself was alive as I spoke, the restored power resonating beneath my feet.

"With full knowledge of what lies before me, I pledge myself as a Magus Protectus."

To my surprise, the mountain responded, a beacon of light shooting upwards, brighter even than the early morning sun, reaching out in millions of twisting threads, reaching to touch every person within my domain, and many beyond.

And I realized my mistake. I'd assumed that the pillars of Ro'an were the great columns of stone that had stood proudly along the Front.

That… wasn't what the original Magus Protectus had held dear. A little bit of fancy stone wasn't the great pillars of Ro'an. Neither was the giant rock beneath my feet.

The great pillars of Ro'an were its people. People I had sworn to protect.

"You're right. I can't stay locked up safely in our little corner of the world," I said, free hand closing and opening. "We won't invade. That's not going to be our way. But I'm not going to pretend to hide either. If people need us, we'll go. What we've built might be an empire. Or it might not."

"But what it is, is a damn good foundation."

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