Symbiotic Ascension : A Progression Fantasy Adventure

Some say love strikes like thunder. Others call it an insidious poison, a double-edged blade resting on trust—powerful enough to ruin or redeem.

Glenn gazed into Liara's golden eyes, noticing her eyebrows rising in confusion, embarrassment, and expectation. Her shoulders were slumped with the responsibilities she owed her people, a heavy weight she'd never get rid of. The white cross on her forehead was gleaming slightly under the sunlight leaking through the shattered wall, a reminder of their battle with the ungodly vampires. She was clenching the cover tightly, pulling it up to above her chest.

Liara gazed into Glenn's violet eyes, noticing how his lips were pressed together. He wore a brave smile that struggled to hide his fears or his desire not to disappoint. He had politely moved back to the edge of the bed, giving her all the space she needed. Right now, he looked like the kid his father had thrown into the cellar. Terrified at the thought of what was to come, wondering if he'd be strong enough to bear it. Yet courageous enough to face it no matter what.

The Devil's Hand and the Desert Rose looked at each other, breathless. Time seemed to slow down as they lost themselves in the eyes of the other, a fleeting moment during which everything around them seemed to disappear. All of their worries faded away, erased by his and her gaze.

Even though Mana, Aura, and Divinity existed in this world, nothing could compare to the magic of this one moment.

But nothing is eternal.

'What should I do?' he thought.

'What should I say?' she wondered.

Glenn gasped for air, his cheeks flushed crimson, and his gaze fleeting. Liara flinched, the heat rising in her face. Synchronized, they turned away from each other, coughing awkwardly.

"Ah, sorry—"

"Sorry—"

They interrupted each other, an awkward silence landing between them. They both drew a breath, steeling themselves.

"How are you doing—"

"Are you okay—"

They froze, curses muttered under their breaths. Glenn gritted his teeth and brusquely stood up, his back still turned demurely. Liara turned to face him, her golden eyes peeking out of the sheets.

"Please, you go first," Glenn whispered. Liara exhaled heavily and straightened herself up, pulling the covers with her.

"...I'm sorry," she eventually said bashfully.

"No, I'm sorry," replied Glenn, still refusing to look at her.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah. And you?"

"I think so, yes."

Glenn pinched the bridge of his nose, his eyes clenched. "D- Do you know what happened yesterday?"

Liara shook her head silently, diving a little deeper beneath the cover. "It's hard to remember anything with how hard my head has been pounding."

"Your head? Ah, your hangover. Right." Glenn turned slowly, his eyes closed. "I'll heal you if you wish."

The Black Heiress grabbed Glenn's purple, extended hand shyly. "S- Sure."

A soft glow shone from his hand, seeping into her skin. Liara felt her mind clear out and the headache disappear as a drop of concentrated alcohol dripped out of her fingers on Glenn's hand. It took only a couple of minutes, yet it felt like an eternity to them.

"...Better?"

Liara nodded. "Yes."

"I'm glad." The drop of concentrated alcohol disappeared after a quick Mundare. The awkward silence returned in full force, their hands still woven together. Their fingers were intertwined intricately, a spell stronger than even a god's keeping them together. Neither of them commented on it, even though they both were very conscious of that foreign feeling.

"So, uh..." Glenn cleared his throat. "We ended up in the same bed."

"It appears as such, yes," Liara chuckled lightly, clear yet contained, like wind brushing across glass. She closed her eyes, hesitating for an instant. With resolution, she tugged slightly on Glenn's hand. He slowly turned to her, his breath taken away by her beauty.

"I feel like we have lots to talk about," muttered Glenn. Liara nodded silently as she pulled him back into the bed, in a similar position to hers. Below the cover, they still held each other's hands, savoring the warmth.

"I saw your past," Liara suddenly said. The weight on her shoulders decreased slightly, one secret taken away. "Back when you were a child, on Earth. The dust-filled basement, and..."

Glenn froze, his blood turning to ice in his veins. He saw that one scene play back in his mind, the cold rain wash over him. He stopped her by pushing his finger against her lips with a pained expression. "Please."

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Liara gulped while Glenn sighed heavily. "I... I would rather not remember that, to be honest." His face darkened, and he clenched her hand a little tighter.

"But at least we're even now, I suppose," he joked. "I saw your past; you saw mine. Fair and square."

"Fair and square," she repeated with a smirk. Even though he spoke in a light tone, she could still see the hurt in his eyes. The memories of a time past. Without thinking too hard about it, she pulled him in. Glenn surrendered to the warm embrace, feeling the poor memories fade away.

"What do we do now?"

Liara let him out of the cuddle, a little against her will. "What do you mean?

Glenn pushed himself up and gazed into her golden eyes once again. "I can't flee from this anymore. I think I really like you, Liara. You're more than just a friend to me."

Liara fiddled with her fingers, feeling Glenn's pulse through his palm. "I think I like you too, Glenn." She smiled. "More than just a friend, too."

He chuckled. "I'm happy to know that." His purple eyes wiggled with a smile. "At least that's not a one-way romance. Thank Onnea."

"You're a sakhif," she whispered with a smile. Glenn raised an inquisitive eyebrow.

"Am I? I didn't think it'd be stupid to make you my declaration," he emphasized, enjoying the crimson invading her cheek.

"H- How did you...?" Her eyes widened, and she giggled. "The memories. This is weird. You, understanding the Black Heir's language."

Glenn groaned. "Well, get used to it because I will abuse it to listen in on your conversations with Sahro."

She shook her head and smiled, a smile that required no effort. Her heart was light, and her chest filled with warmth. It just felt right.

Yet Glenn's hand still tightened on hers, filled with worry and fear. "A- Are you sure you want to be with... me?" he questioned doubtfully. Liara almost did a double-take when she heard that. She propped herself up and grabbed Glenn's face.

"Yes, I do." She said resolutely, leaving no place for compromise.

Glenn looked away, his fists tightly clenched. "You do realize I have cults, gods, and whatever else's out there chasing after me like hungry dogs after a slab of meat, right?"

"I do," she repeated. "They do not scare me."

"Even if there's a chance they'll capture you again just to hurt me?" He insisted, all of his defenses lowered.

Liara sighed and pointed at her forehead. "Glenn. I am the princess of a fallen nation. I am used to being kidnapped and in danger. And I'm already known as your companion far and wide, a member of the Devil's Hand team."

Glenn grimaced hesitantly before sighing. "That's, admittedly, a very good argument."

He wiggled his left hand with a scowl, making her laugh quietly. "What about him? I think I expelled him temporarily, but he's still very much there."

Liara stopped laughing and thought back to her bird, Whitey, and the noise it'd made as it silenced Diamanes. The colors drained out of her face, and she swallowed heavily.

"Glenn, I think my bird might have eaten Diamanes."

The look on his face was one for the ages.

***

Glenn and Liara flew out of the destroyed wall, their usual clothes on. They had packed their ceremonial, very expensive clothes and carefully stowed them away in their dimensional pouches. No doubt they would have another occasion to flaunt them around.

But for now, battle clothes would be perfect. Glenn almost sighed in contentment as he felt the comfort of the enchanted white fabric on his skin. It suited him much better knowing it would actually protect him and not just make him look good.

Even if it did feel good to wear royalty-class clothes for a while. Great for the ego.

He stole a glance at the white-haired beauty flying on a sword next to him as she searched through the sky for her bird. He had made his choice. With his sister and his mother present in this world, his desire to find where Earth had disappeared to had already waned quite a bit. Abandoning his new friends, his new comfortable position—hell, he even had a Count's title now!

To fall in love with someone was the last thing he needed to completely anchor himself to Limbo. And now, the last ember of desire to return to Earth had been completely buried by Liara's golden eyes.

'I will find out what happened to Earth,' he decided, 'but not because I want to return there. There's nothing to return to, anyway.'

The faces of his old, earthly friends had already long disappeared. His old goals, getting a normal job and simply enjoying life, had similarly faded away. Now, he was a powerful, legendary Archmagi who ate monsters for breakfast. He and his friends even rooted out an entire clan of vampires.

"Even if a little dangerous, that's certainly a very cool life," he muttered, amused.

"Glenn, I see him!" Liara shouted before diving down, her sword glimmering under the sun. Glenn followed her leisurely, not too worried. His Gravity Manipulation brought him to the ground, finding Liara to be holding Whitey by the claws and shaking him up and down.

"Bad bird! Spit it out! Spit it out!" She ordered, the colors draining out even more of her face when she saw the purple invade more feathers of her bird.

"Actually, it's quite the interesting experience," Diamanes said tiredly, his voice coming from a small mouth hidden in the bird's feathers. "Eating worms, chasing flies, that sort of thing. Flying with wings is different than riding a winged beast or magically flying, too. An experience, yes. Can I get out now? Please?"

Glenn stopped at the sight, his eyes widening comically. The laughter burst out of his lips like water from a dam. He slapped his knee and pointed at Whitey mockingly.

"Hahaha, well, well, well." He approached Whitey and gave him a pat on the head. Pebble phased into reality and jumped on Glenn's shoulder, looking curiously at the Diamanes-embedded bird. "The great Diamanes, sealed in a bird?"

"Yeah, yeah, very funny. Now, I'd rather return to my comfy place in your soul rather than stay in that bird's brain. There's nothing there. Like. Nothing."

The bird in question groomed his feathers, silencing Diamanes' grumbling without a care. Liara eventually couldn't take it anymore and exploded in laughter as well.

"Oh? You're going to mock me too, heh? You want me to remind you what you did to Glenn last night, perhaps?"

Glenn and Liara froze, and they stared at Diamanes menacingly. The entity sighed and clicked his tongue.

"Yeah, you guys did nothing aside from hugging each other like penguins or something. It was fucking boring! Next time, I want in on the action, okay? Something explosive!"

"Actually, I think I'll let you stay in the bird, Diamanes. Whitey doesn't seem too annoyed by you, too," said Glenn mockingly. He glanced at Liara, who gave him an amused nod.

Diamanes choked on his saliva, stammering. "W- wait, no, please, everything but that! You know what I said before about not returning to a prison? Forget it! This bird's worse than permanent isolation!"

Liara rubbed her chin, pondering. "You know, I think I'm enjoying the purple look on Whitey. It gives him an interesting edge."

Diamanes gulped. "You're kidding, right?"

Glenn and Liara stared at him silently, the entity grunting dejectedly. "From a sarcophagus to a crystal, to an idiot to a bird. My fate truly is cursed."