There’s a Brilliance in the Dark 

General Times hurried out of his office once he donned the entirety of his professional clothing; he had no time to waste. A crown of rubies and thorns, golden lingerie that hugged his torso, a violet shawl sitting leisurely on his shoulders, and silver chainmail tucked on his wings, he's more than ready to fulfill his duty, but he's also, undoubtedly, nervous that the current state of the empire might cost his life.

Fortunately, no one had arrived in Horace Tower yet, so the hallway outside of his office is still heavily vacated. Well, save for that giant in the unguarded prison cell right in front of his chamber.

A chuckle erupted once General Times' eyes met with the elderly kapre sitting in the confines of that dark cell. Shadows covered his face, but General Times could see that sneering countenance very clearly, as well as the way the giant placed his arm on his raised knee.

"Lord Dominion is back, Rockwell." General Times peered into the tiny spaces between the rusted prison cells.

"Indeed," A raspy and weakened voice replied to the Vyurborne warlord's whisper.

"Your audacity never ceases to surprise me."

"Confidence," The elderly giant stood up and stretched his back, cracking a few bones on his waist. "Not audacity, but confidence."

"I see you found a beautiful substitute for treason in your stay here." General Times' deep sunken eyes glistened in the dark as he glared up at Rockwell. He made sure to emphasize the word 'treason,' but the imprisoned kapre didn't seem interested. "But no colorful semantics can save your head from the guillotine."

"Ooh! Fierce! Did you learn to do that from a pebble somewhere? How adorable! The little boy is learning. And, yes. The execution. Was it for me? How flattering!" Rockwell's rust-like voice echoed with the fluttering of the grasses. "But I worry not, unless our first Praeceptor is not… as bright as we anticipated."

Right out of the bat, the imprisoned giant is already hurling insults at the Praeceptor before he could even meet him. General Times didn't even know how the elderly kapre found out about Lord Dominion's first Praeceptor. But he couldn't care enough to pry. The stunted, decrepit gaffer has his methods to draw answers from his surroundings; General Times has no interest to know the inner-machinations of old Rockwell's mind.

"When you die…" General Times stepped back and turned away from Rockwell. "…I will throw a celebration befitting for such a merry occasion. Finally, the world is rid of you." Then, he walked away.

Rockwell laughed, an insidious and bloodcurdling laugh that sounded more like nails scratching the surface of a rough rock. "And who does the world have left? YOU!? Spilling my blood won't make your bones less brittle, old man!" And then he laughed again.

But General Times just rushed into the Essence of Beauty with a stern face. He immediately noticed that the monstrous double door protecting the great tree had been slightly opened. Not fully, but enough to fit a human just like the man who claimed to have saved his daughter, the man called Aleph. Light spews out of the chamber, and winds from within forces the grasses to dance.

The dazzling gleam coming from the Essence of Beauty blinded General Times, but he inched forward nonetheless, covering his eyes with his raised wings until finally, the light slowly diminished. The Vyurborne general slowly lowered his limbs, and the first thing he saw is...

"Oh, for the love of…" General Times almost cursed when he saw the human standing naked before the Essence of Beauty. He looked away and grunted while shaking his head. "Ugh…" He didn't know why he even bothered taking his eyes away from the new Praeceptor. This is a person his father chose, after all. Of course, it's bound for the Praeceptor to do an obscene performance like this. I guess that just shows how long it had been since he last interacted with his father.

With a sigh, General Times looked up at Aleph, the Praeceptor, with a displeased expression. However, after finally observing his surroundings with a more welcoming mind, a wave of awe hooked General Times' curiosity.

First, he noticed the surroundings: ever-blooming flowers, glowing leaves of various colors, and never-ending arrays of light reflected in the aromatic droplets on the plants. They covered the halls' blackened and poignant walls and replaced it with the luscious embrace of nature.

Then, his eyes rose into the Essence of Beauty itself. The last time he saw the great tree, it looked more like a withering wee plant that could barely touch the ceiling. But now, it ascended into the skies, growing ever-so high that it spiraled out of the gigantic hole on the roof until its trunks completely plugged the space above it. One could barely even notice that a hole was once there. Now the world would soon look upon Horace Tower again and speak not of its phantoms but of the great tree growing above its roof.

Finally, General Times' eyes descended into the only source of light in the chamber. The naked Praeceptor has his hands wide open, head leaned backward, and legs tightly closed. But what made fear creep ever so slightly at the surface of General Times' spine was the iridescent light gleaming out of the Praeceptor's open eyes and mouth. The Vyurborne warlord knitted his brows upon seeing this. He had heard rumors that when a mortal accepted the power of a god, something extraordinary and beyond-supernatural would occur that no mere ordinary minds would understand. Nevertheless, General Times still found himself shocked upon the sight of a human man letting out brilliance bright enough to illuminate such a spacious room.

When the light slowly diminishes from the Praeceptor's eyes and mouth, the chamber soon falls into the grasp of bottomless darkness. But after a few seconds, fireflies appeared around the Praeceptor and scattered about the surroundings. General Times didn't know how those flies reached this place, but after seeing plants grow out of nowhere, he found it hard to argue against the appearance of those small and harmless creatures. His father had already summoned the might of nature; why would he question the arrival of bugs now?

When the fireflies' warm yellow gleam filled the chamber, General Times could finally gather his usual level-headed attitude again and noticed an apparent change in the new Praeceptor's body. Aleph's blond hair now had a few wavy locks of amber strands mingling together; amber, it was a color similar to his father's hair. The different-colored strands embraced each other, creating a harmony of red and yellow flowing above the Praeceptor's head.

Not only his hair, but his body also changed for the better: Aleph's muscles grew larger, making his body transform into a living sculpted masterpiece; his height shot up a few inches high, almost fooling General Times into thinking that he was looking at a different man; and his overall demeanor changed, but General Times could not explain what it was that really changed in his attitude. Was it the playful smile he's donning now that was akin to his father's usual mischievous grin? Or was it the apparent cruelty now seeping through the Praeceptor's emerald eyes? Maybe the Praeceptor is merely showing his true colors now, and the Vyurborne warlord is just confused to see Aleph's true colors. No matter what it was, General Times could not pinpoint what exactly it was that changed in the Praeceptor's attitude, but an inhuman change most definitely occurred within Aleph. It brims out of his improved body. How unfortunate it was then that one of the Praeceptor's arms is gone now. And it's not at all a comforting thought that he lost it after trying to protect him, his daughter, and his guard.

General Times remembered how reminded Rockwell of his imminent execution, but what makes him think he's off the hook? It made his throat dry up, so he cleared his throat.

Aleph heard this, and General Times flinched slightly but immediately managed to regain his composure in just a second. He knelt on the ground and bowed as low as he could, trying to hide his pained and relieved expression.

"I welcome you to your new home, my Lord Praeceptor." General Times uttered, a wave of nervousness subtly touched his silent fanfare.

"Stand, Times." The Praeceptor whispered loud enough for his voice to boom in General Times' heart, "I wish to see your face."