"Thea..." Liam’s voice trailed off. "It’s complicated, Dad. There are so many details I haven’t told you yet. And I will, I promise. Just not right now. Honestly, I am exhausted and I really want to see the others before I rest."

He looked at his father. "For now, let’s just say Thea has the magic knowledge but no magic of her own."

Linus did not respond immediately. He could sense Liam’s reluctance and decided not to push. He already had more new information to process than he knew what to do with, and he still needed to tell Miranda about Liam.

"You know what?" Linus got up. "You’re right. Rest. I need to go home and tell your mother. She will want to come see you immediately, so I will try to delay her for as long as I can."

He headed toward the door, then turned back slightly. "Rest. I will handle the rest."

He unlocked the door and left.

Liam exhaled. He was relieved that his father knew now, that Linus was on their side. He and Arthur had discussed it before. They had agreed that the adults needed to know eventually, and Linus had been one of the first names on that list.

And now you are gone, and I have told him, Art.

His eyes glistened. He wiped them quickly, then got himself ready to go find Thea.

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

Linus drove home through the pouring rain. He glanced at it and could not help thinking of what his son had just shown him.

Hm. Water. I wonder if he could do something about this rain. Although I have no idea of the scale of their abilities.

He shook his head and reached for his phone.

"Lockley. I need everything you can find on two people. A woman named Sonia Hart and a bald man who goes by the nickname Hawk. Both are currently in the Solarys General ER, brought in with my son."

He hung up.

I need full information on everyone in Rhaenas’s orbit. That is the first step to protecting them, now that Arthur is no longer available.

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

"What do you mean, no? Does that mean you have it? Return it to me this instant!" Theo’s patience had run out entirely. Every moment he spent here was a moment lost. He believed the window to save Arthur was closing fast and the anxiety of it was eating him alive.

"Theo, I do not know how else to say this. I do not have access to our mana. Same as you." Thea was firm and clear.

Theo’s frustration surged.

"Then what am I supposed to do?! How am I supposed to save Arthur?!" He yelled.

"Maybe you are not supposed to save Arthur." Thea said simply.

Theo looked at her like he was seriously considering something violent.

"Have you ever stopped to ask yourself why you are so desperate to save him?" Thea added.

"Do I need a reason to save someone?" Theo asked, his tone sharp with sarcasm.

"Not if your conscience is clear." Thea replied, smiling.

But to Theo, that smile felt like a taunt.

"My conscience is clear. It is perfectly clear!" He did not know what else to say.

Thea sighed. "Theo. Are you sure you are not desperate to save Arthur because you feel guilty that you could not save Aldric?"

Theo went completely still.

"Wh... what?" He stammered.

Thea slowly dissolved into Aldric.

Theo staggered back several steps.

"What — who — you — stay back! Don’t come near me!" He said.

"Why are you scared of me? I thought you loved me." Aldric said. His voice. His face. His body language. His demeanor. His everything.

Theo was petrified.

Aldric looked at him with those eyes. Eyes Theo had not seen in months. And they carried the same gentle, understanding expression that Thea had worn. But coming from Aldric’s face, from those eyes, it hit Theo somewhere deep in his gut.

Tears began to well up.

Aldric said nothing. He simply stood there, looking at Theo with a serene smile. Something Theo had never seen on him before. Aldric had always carried a cold, hard expression, and it had been understandable.

He had been the last King of a world that was slowly destroying itself. His enemies were not other nations or kingdoms or men. They were the world itself.

Aldric slowly opened his arms.

Theo left him standing like that for what felt like forever before he ran into them and broke down completely.

They did not say anything. Theo just cried and Aldric held him.

They stayed like that for a few minutes before Theo’s crying began to settle. He took a step back and looked at Aldric.

"It was not your fault, Theo. You could not have saved me. No one could. Our world was dying. Both of us were going to die. It was only a matter of which of us went first." Aldric whispered.

Theo sniffled and took another step back. He tried to get control of his breathing and his tears.

It took several attempts before he could speak.

"I know you are not the real Aldric. He would never look at me like this. This is how I always wanted him to look at me."

He let out a shaky breath. "And he would never have held me like that. He was not someone who showed his feelings."

Theo kept rationalizing. Aldric said nothing and let him.

"Even though I know all of that, looking at you now..." He stopped. He was losing the battle with his tears again.

"I..." He stopped again. The words would not come.

"I missed you so much!" He cried. But he did not move toward Aldric and Aldric did not move toward him.

"And I am sorry. I have been wanting to say that for so long. I know it is useless because you are not really him, but I need to say it. For my own sanity." He wiped his face with the back of his hand. "I hope you don’t blame me, my King. What am I saying? You cannot blame me. You are dead." He let out a broken laugh at himself.

He took several shaky breaths. "I am sorry. I should have died before you. It was my job to protect you and I did not do it well enough. And now I have been given a second chance." He trailed off.

Theo took a deep breath.

"I want to apologize. Not because I could not protect you. But because I was given a second chance and you were not. I am sorry for surviving when you did not."

The moment the words left him, he felt something heavy lift from his chest.

Aldric glowed faintly in gold.

Theo stared.

"You are me." He finally understood.

Aldric smiled broadly. "I knew you would get there. Eventually."

Theo let out a long, loud exhale. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

"Aldric, you were my King. I was your Archmage. We fought side by side until our last moment. You died beside me, and I beside you." His voice grew steadier with each word.

"I don’t know why I was given a second chance when so many of our comrades were not. But if there is one thing I learned from Caelthorn, from all my years as Archmage, it is this."

"My time is not over because there is still something I need to do. I still have a purpose. I do not know yet what it is. But I am going to find out."

As he spoke, he felt lighter. He felt like himself.

For the first time since he had woken up in Thea’s body, he did not feel out of place. He did not feel like he did not belong. He felt exactly where he was supposed to be.

Aldric smiled.

"When you first woke up in Thea’s body, you struggled with living as a young woman. Then you began to lose your identity. And lately you have been losing your purpose and yourself."

A pause.

"I am glad you finally understand. If you had kept going the way you were, I would have disappeared entirely. You were approaching the point of no return."

Theo nodded. There was something steady and clear in his eyes now.

"Thank you for reminding me."

"Anytime. It is what I do." Aldric chuckled.

Theo blinked. "Now what?"

"If you are asking about getting your mana back, it is not that simple. Because it was never your mana to begin with. It is Thea’s."

"Yes, I know that. And Thea is dead." Theo said.

"Exactly. And other than her, no one else can use it. It is the same for every mage. Or have you forgotten?"

Theo’s eyes went wide. "How did I forget that?! Personal mana is like a fingerprint. Every mage has their own unique mana and no other mage can access it. The fact that I could use it at all was because..." He stopped.

"The body had not yet registered that it was no longer Thea using it."

Aldric nodded. "Yes. You remember."

Theo’s eyes went distant. He was deep in thought.

"I am going to need mana going forward. Or..." He paused. "Maybe not." He said it out loud, working through it as he spoke. He looked up at Aldric. "I have a few options I can try. But for now, I have to make peace with being magicless."

Aldric smirked. "Are you going to be able to live with that?"

Theo chuckled. "You know I will. Even without magic, I still have my knowledge. I am still the most powerfull one among them." He winked.

They laughed.

"Alright. You need to change. Seeing Aldric talk and think like me is unsettling. And it is not how I want to remember him."

Aldric nodded. "As you wish."

He dissolved slowly.

And reformed as Arthur.

Theo went completely still.