The Decision The Hybrids Made

Aeloria sat cross-legged across from Eldrigan and Peroncerea. Her height made her tower even when seated, her knees folded like two marble statues flanking her delicate frame.

Nelayas rested easily beside her, one of his legs swinging like a boy waiting on a tree stump in summer, leaning his shoulder against her thigh like it was the most natural place in the world. Her enormous hand lightly stroked the crown of his white hair, fingers trailing lovingly through it, and he looked up at her with that quiet, knowing smile of his.

Peroncerea was still chewing slowly on a piece of bread, half her mind processing divine heritage, the other half internally screaming about power imbalance in couples. Eldrigan was leaned back with one arm, his other hand twirling a dagger he wasn't sure he needed. He was trying to focus, but the fact that Aeloria's shin alone could flatten a baby wyvern's skull kept getting in the way.

Then Nelayas spoke.

"Peroncerea, Eldrigan. You unlocked the seal that none of the pantheons ever could. That makes you both kin to us now. So... might as well tell you why this whole temple was ever sealed."

He glanced up at Aeloria with a nod. She returned it with a slow breath, then turned her face to them.

"I am Aeloria Elarinidas," she said, placing her palm over her chest. "Once Priestess of Nelayas. Now, only his wife. But before I was either… I was a mistake."

"..."

"My mother was a kind, frail human woman who lived in a village near the old borders of Nesmarone. My father was an incubus, not one of the diluted ones, but a full-blooded demon noble who could level cities with charm and mindfire. He was handsome, powerful... and gentle to her. He loved her genuinely. But love between a demon and a human wasn't a story that ended well, especially in the Pantheon Era."

Her fingers curled slightly on her lap.

"The villagers… thought she had been cursed. They saw me as proof. I was born with eyes that shimmered red in the dark. I had dreams that came true… and nightmares that made people sick just from hearing about them."

Nelayas gently placed his small hand over hers, anchoring her in the now.

"They burned my mother, strapped her to the altar of their forest god and lit the oils beneath her. My father came too late. He burned the village down, but one of the Demon Lords hunted him down for fraternizing with mortals."

Eldrigan's jaw tensed. "Gods…"

"I ran across the northern valleys for weeks. And then… I stumbled into the Temple of Secrets."

Her smile returned.

"And he found me."

She looked down at Nelayas, brushing a knuckle against his cheek.

"He was waiting at the door, not with judgment not with threats, but with a question."

Nelayas chuckled. "I asked her if she liked sour fruit. I was trying a new orchard's batch and needed a second opinion. She ate five."

"And then he said, 'Well, you can't leave until you help me finish the basket.' That was… the first time anyone wanted me to stay."

Peroncerea's lips curved into a bittersweet smile.

"And you stayed."

"For centuries, yes. He gave me the title of Divine Priestess after I evolved to Ascender Rank. He taught me how to lead the Temple's seekers, how to teach meditation to monks and cradle nightmares into dreams. He came down to me every night just to speak."

"I never missed a single night," Nelayas said. "Not once."

Her fingers trembled slightly.

"I fell in love with him, but I didn't say it. Not for the first few hundred years. I didn't think I deserved to."

"And I waited," Nelayas replied. "Because I wanted her to say it when she felt whole again."

Eldrigan exhaled. "That's... surprisingly healthy for divine beings in that era."

Peroncerea leaned forward and asked.

"So when did you become... you know."

She gestured toward Aeloria's elegant, towering form.

"My evolution, was normal, from Essentia to Ascender. And eventually, Ascender to Divine. My demon blood granted me boundless resilience. My human blood gave me a soul so adaptable that I transcended even the limits of divine law. And my love—"

She looked at Nelayas.

"—grounded me."

She gave a soft, wistful laugh.

"But then the Destras Cataclysm happened."

Nelayas's expression dimmed.

"I went to help the First Generation. I had to. We were the ones who built the fundamental laws of the world. I was the one who taught most of the Second Generation how to speak, think, evolve, and use their Tethers. I raised them."

"But the Second Generation won," Aeloria said flatly. "And because they owed you, they spared you. But they feared your knowledge. So, as gratitude, they imprisoned you."

"And because I refused to renounce him," Aeloria added, "they imprisoned me as well."

Nelayas nodded. "They separated us. I was sealed above and she, beneath. And they made it so only the blood of two hybrids could open both locks."

A silence fell.

Eldrigan looked at Peroncerea. She looked back at him.

"...You're kidding," she muttered. "Our dumb little blood mix is the reason your love story finally got its reunion chapter?"

"You're welcome," Eldrigan added with a dry cough.

Aeloria leaned forward, casting a massive shadow across them.

"No. Truly. Thank you. It's not just that we're free. It's that you reminded us that the old world can still be reshaped by new blood. Hybrid blood."

Nelayas reached over and poured tea into both of their cups again.

"Besides. She makes incredible food. So we'll be here for a while."

Peroncerea accepted the cup slowly.

"So uh... can I ask… how does it work between you two?"

"In what way?" Aeloria asked, tilting her head.

"I mean, like... logistically. He's the size of your kneecap."

Nelayas didn't even blink. "We make it work."

"And how—"

"Peron," Eldrigan interrupted, raising his tea in solemnity. "Don't ask questions that summons disturbing mental images."

Peroncerea grumbled, sipping from her tea.

"I feel like I just got one-upped by a man who needs to float into her palm to kiss her cheek."

"Would you like to see?" Aeloria asked sincerely.

"NOPE."

Eldrigan raised one hand to get to the main point.

"Yeah... we're gonna pass on that training offer."

Nelayas blinked once. "Wait... pass?"

"Respectfully, of course."

Peroncerea sipped her third cup of tea and leaned sideways into his shoulder like she had no worries in the world.

"We're not ungrateful, trust me. It's just... we're not looking to be trained by someone else right now. We want to figure things out together."

"We've had enough hands shaping us already," Eldrigan added, eyes half-lidded, though calm. "Parents, enemies, cults, expectations. Now that we're stronger, we'd like to find our own shape, not get molded into something else again, even by a god."

Nelayas sat still for a moment, caught between intrigue and quiet amusement. He turned to Aeloria.

"...Huh. That's... new."

"Very," she said, her brow raising above the edge of her black visor.

"I usually get people begging me for techniques. Tether guidance. Transcendence paths. People weep just to see me float."

Peroncerea grimaced. "Please. I already have to cope with the mental image of you climbing up your beloved's thigh like a squirrel on a tree trunk."

Eldrigan turned to Aeloria with his ever-flat tone.

"So, about that leaving thing."

"Ah—right," Nelayas said, recovering with a chuckle. "The Temple doors open every night, every sundown, like clockwork. You're not trapped here, not anymore. Stay for the day if you like. But once the moon rises, the world outside is yours again."

He looked at them both, sincerity creeping into his voice.

"You're not obligated to us. You did enough. You brought us together. That's more than the pantheon has done in centuries."

They all sat in a comfortable silence for a moment until Aeloria's attention slowly turned to Peroncerea, her striking face taking on an expression of gentle seriousness.

"Peroncerea, may I share something... personal?"

The succubus nodded slowly.

"You can reach my height. You're not broken."

Peroncerea blinked. "Wait. You mean I'm... supposed to be a giant?"

"In your case, yes. You're a hybrid of a Royal Succubus and a Winged Demon. Both classes possess dominant bloodlines with shape-tethered bodies. Suppressing your demonic traits doesn't just keep you small. It causes instability. Your true form is taller but the more you suppress your desire, the more your demon half begins to rebel in silence."

Peroncerea's brow furrowed, her tail twitching behind her. "...So I'm being punished for having self-control?"

"No. You're being punished for equating control with denial," Aeloria said kindly, though firmly. "Desire doesn't mean recklessness. And in Noble Demons, suppression is dangerous. We can control our actions, yes. But once we tip, our instincts take over. And it may take decades to regain harmony."

Eldrigan raised a brow. "So what does she need to do?"

Aeloria's gaze locked with Peroncerea's, serious now.

"Feed."

"...Excuse me?"

"You're lovers, aren't you?"

Aeloria asked, utterly unbothered. Peroncerea's ears went bright red.

"We—! I mean—we haven't—there hasn't been much—"

"You don't have to be lovers in a carnal sense. Vitality siphoning between hybrid couples doesn't need intimacy. It needs connection. He's half-Eldritch. That essence is adaptable and endlessly regenerative. You're half-succubus. You were made to balance life-force through exchange. So draw from him. Regularly."

Eldrigan looked down at his hand like it just got promoted.

"You will grow not just in strength but into your true form. Don't be afraid of your height or your desires. Embrace them in control, not suppression."

And then, just like that, she shifted.

Her form folded inward, like light rearranging itself into compact elegance. Her limbs retracted in swirls of mist. Her robes tightened into a more tailored silhouette. And before their eyes, she stood at a height just slightly taller than Peroncerea herself.

No longer the towering giant. Just a tall, radiant woman.

"I choose my height. This is normal, comfortable but I prefer my original form. It suits me better."

"Height privilege," Eldrigan muttered.

"I could carry you in my pocket if I got bigger," she replied.

"I hate that I believe you."

And with that, the tension in the air vanished like steam from the tea cups.

The rest of the day passed in easy motion.

They didn't train through combat. Instead, Aeloria walked with Peroncerea across the dark temple courtyard, showing her how to feel the size of her own aura, how to lean into her desires without letting them consume her. Nelayas and Eldrigan sat beneath an old knowledge tree, talking quietly about the madness between divinity and humanity, and what it meant to exist somewhere in between.

They broke for lunch, again. And again. And again. Peroncerea ended up feeding off Eldrigan once without realizing it, when she got too relaxed during a nap. He woke up a little dizzy. She woke up taller.

By sundown, the temple's great doors hummed and creaked open, spilling moonlight across the sacred floors.

"Will we see you again?"

Peroncerea asked, watching Aeloria as the light cast her back into silhouette.

"Yes," Aeloria said. "The Nine Events are approaching. You're both a part of them now."

"The Nine Events?" Eldrigan asked.

Nelayas grinned. "You'll see."

And so, the two hybrids stepped into the cool night, hand in hand, the scent of divine tea still clinging to their clothes, unaware that their refusal to be taught had earned them something greater.

Respect from a god.

And behind them, deep in the temple, a goddess at peace leaned her head on her husband's shoulder, whispering,

"She's going to be stunning when she ascends."

"She already is," he replied.

"Did we tell them that we are actually on the moon?"

"Oh right. Eh, they'll figure it out soon enough that Erna Isles is on the moon. For now, let's enjoy eternity together, my love."

"Alright."

And the Temple of Secrets was quiet once again.

Well at least for another 7,700 years.