The Arbiter

Sometimes life's weight becomes unbearable. Anxiety and apprehension crush until all you want is to hide beneath the covers for days. But life doesn't pause. We can only rage against the system, carving out our small piece of existence. Or we surrender to apathy, accepting things as they are.

From Dale's rooftop, I studied the moonless night. The past days' revelations—magic, monsters, the desperate need to protect my mother—had left me hollow. Here on the outskirts, civilization's glow dimmed enough for stars to shine with purpose, beckoning wanderers home.

I supposed I was a wanderer too. Before this world-ending chaos, I'd just existed, fallen into apathy. Fear had ruled me—fear of failure, rejection, offense. Routine and low expectations felt safer.

The ladder creaked. Dan's crooked grin appeared over the roof's edge.

"Can't sleep?" I asked.

"Haven't closed my eyes without seeing that first goblin."

"He tried to kill us both, Dan."

"Logically, I know. Doesn't make it easier."

I sighed. "When Teras and I secured the Domain, I lost control. A harpy walked into the clearing while I fed on a Gryphon's blood. She looked at me like a long-lost friend. I snapped her neck without thought." Crimson tears stained my cheeks.

Dan let the silence hold, giving me space.

"Are these powers changing us?" I finally asked. "Not just physically—changing how we think, act?"

"They must be. Teras said to 'embody the path.' The powers change us, and we change them. How can we walk a path that isn't truly ours? Your Forsworn fits—you've turned away from every chance to change."

"I needed that wake-up call. When my Mythos awakened, I think my mind broke. The absurdity of our situation shattered my worldview."

"You think that's why you got the Dhamphyr heritage? Your disconnect made whatever force guides this shunt you into a separate reality?"

"Teras had never heard of someone unlocking a bloodline Mythos first. When I quiet my mind, it feels like just the beginning."

"It is a whole new world," Dan chuckled.

"I want to run, Dan. Just leave. Teras doesn't want the Queen claiming this Domain, but I'm terrified I can't handle it. If we go, they can't take it while I live. It stays safe."

Dan held my gaze for a long moment before clasping my shoulder. "Whatever you choose, I'm with you."

"Some people need killing," he added later. "We can't ignore the world's atrocities anymore. We have a duty. An Obligation."

Reality trembled at his words. Dan rose, hovering above the roof as night seemed to descend from the sky. Scenes from our past swirled around us:

Dan defending girls from college thugs at the mall. 

Dan confronting an abusive boyfriend on campus. 

Dan comforting Jessica beside an urn inscribed "Debra Marie Blackwell." 

Dan ending the goblin with stolen steel. 

Dan ready to kill Dale at my word.

Each moment frozen at the pivot—when Dan committed regardless of consequence. When he opened his heart to help others.

The scenes collapsed inward, wreathing him in warm light. Words flowed through me with borrowed power:

"Arbiter of the Aureate. You stand as a bastion between your King and the dark. Whether it be the darkness of his own mind or the evil of the world, you stand stalwart. Duty is an honor, and you shall serve willingly. As word spreads of your deeds, your legend grows. Welcome to Infinity."

Dan crashed beside me, unconscious. Like my own transformation, he'd need hours to recover. I gathered him up and leapt from the roof.

Tomorrow would dawn on a new Legend.