He was nervous as the first group of nobles approached. It was a small group of no more than four. Two men and two women. Two pairs of a husband and wife, judging from how each couple interlocked an arm together in an intimate manner.

  “Champion,” the first man greeted, he and his wife bowing deeply to him, “it is truly an honor to formally meet you.”

  “Thank you,” Galen said, giving a light bow himself.

  After the other couple likewise greeted him, the first introduced themselves.

  “I am Carter Jenmont,” the man said.

  “And I am Annette Jenmont,” his wife greeted.

  The second couple spoke next.

  “My name is Gilles Drisfield,” the second man said.

  “And I, Lillian Drisfield,” his wife said.

  Galen gave a polite smile, “I’m afraid you already know my name. But for propriety's sake, I am Galen Daxton.”

  Gilles beamed, “It truly is an honor to meet you, Champion. Why, I now know how my ancestors felt when they met your predecessor.”

  “Quite,” Lillian agreed, “why, I feel positively giddy being in your presence, holy warrior.”

  Galen internally sighed, Great, we’ve only just begun and I already feel uncomfortable.

  To his relief, there wasn’t too much brown nosing as they exchanged idle banter. Eventually, however, it was Annette who asked the first personal question, “So, Champion. What was life in your original world like? Are the writings we have from the First accurate?”

  “Well…” Galen began.

  He answered in the affirmative, and also responded to all questions they gave regarding Earth. He was a bit more reserved when they asked about his personal life, but not terribly so. The hard part came when they asked him how he felt about Avani, the Dominion, and Athanasius.

  He’d forced a smile, and given non-committal answers such as:

  “I haven’t been in this world for very long, so I don’t think I can give a concrete opinion..”

  “Thus far the Dominion has treated me with the utmost respect. They have done much for me, and I’m grateful for their generosity.”

  And finally, “The Emperor… I’ve only seen and spoken with him once. You can imagine how that isn’t much to go on. However, one thing that sticks out to me is that he seems to be very special.”

  The group had joked with him in a jovial manner how he was quite gifted in understatement in regards to that last response. Galen chuckled along with them, and then decided to go a bit on the offensive and ask his own questions to the two couples.

  He’d asked them about their own lives in this empire, what they did for a living, and their own opinions on the Dominion and its Emperor.

  “Well, Champion,” Carter said, “as you can imagine, I am honored to be part of the greatest empire Avani has ever seen. As head of Jenmont household, my family and I contribute greatly to the field of scientific research. Praise be to holy Athanasius for blessing my family with minds keen for such a task.”

  The others had similar answers, all with glowing and positive views of the Dominion and reverence and gratitude for Athanasius.

  Once they were done giving their answers, the next group had come to have their turn in conversing with him.

  This would go on repeatedly, and Galen thought he was doing alright on his end. Though he was getting mentally exhausted from all the conversations he was having and all the people he was meeting. There was no way he was going to remember everyone, so he had apologized in advance in the likely scenario that he forgot their names. To his relief, they had all been rather understanding.

  He finally caught somewhat of a break when another group finished speaking with him and no new group immediately came to take their place. He sighed, and leaned against a nearby wall. He saw some of the attendees who hadn’t had the chance to speak with him repeatedly glance in his direction. It must have been visible how tired he was, because they seemed to allow him to take a break.

  Boy was he thankful for that.

  He glanced at a nearby clock, and noted how two whole hours had passed. That surprised him, since it sure hadn’t felt that long. He mentally recalled what he had learned in this feast.

  Apparently, the nobles were a mix of what they called Old Blood and New Blood. The Old Bloods were the group that were nobles prior to the First Champion becoming the new ruler of the Dominion. The New Bloods, as the name indicated, were those that had become nobles after the First Champion granted them status. The term also applied to those who more recently attained nobility. Some of those he spoke with were the descendants of the original and first New Bloods.

  From what Galen could tell, there didn’t seem to be any tension between the New and Old. Though, given that they were nobles, perhaps they reserved any animosity for the politics and courts. Galen had seen such things back on Earth. Politicians who were all smiles in public and in each other’s presence, but would constantly work to either undermine or ruin their political adversaries behind closed doors.

  Another interesting thing of note was that there existed several departments in the Dominion whose goal was the research and advancement of whatever area they were in charge of. There was an Agricultural Department, Architectural Department, Medical Department, Military Department, etc.

  One that interested Galen was the Engineering Department, since they were the ones in charge of designing and creating the airships that he’d seen flying about. But then again, he was a nerd when it came to that sort of thing.

  Another one was the Science Department, and that was because part of their research included the study of Ether. They studied how the power worked and interacted with the world, and apparently, even after centuries of dedicated research, there was still much they didn’t know about it.

  Galen thought about the nobles he talked to at this feast. Despite being nobility, they had seemed rather… normal when talking to him. It was rather surprising. They had come across as just ordinary people. Important and powerful people to be sure, but still just people.

  He had only noticed two areas in which the nobility wasn’t “normal.” One, was how blessed with beauty they all were. To the point of almost being unnatural. The other…

  Was their near fanatical devotion to Athanasius Durai and his Dominion.

  The attendees, when Galen had asked them of their opinion of their Emperor, had spoken with gusto and excitement. They had given heaps upon heaps of praise to their divine ruler, and had spoken of him with reverence that bordered on fanatical.

  The thing that really unsettled him was that he could tell none of it was faked. He could tell that they weren’t giving praise out of fear or to keep up appearances.

  Either the nobles were the best actors Galen had ever seen, or they were genuine believers of Athanasius Durai.

  “Hello,” a meek voice called to him.

  Galen jumped at the sound, not having heard the approach of the person who addressed him just now. He turned and saw that eerily beautiful, dark haired, green eyed young woman from earlier.

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  “Oh, hey. I mean, hello,” he said awkwardly.

  The young woman met his eyes, and blushed like she had before. She looked down, shyly biting her lip, “Pardon my manners, Champion. My name is Callista of the Philomena noble house. It is truly an honor to meet you.”

  Galen gulped. Seeing the young woman blushing added a cute factor to her attractiveness. Though he’d spoken at length with some of the other nobles present, the women he’d spoken to had all been much older than him. Speaking with someone possessing such beauty who was also around his age… it made him uneasy in a number of ways.

  Callista could easily give the supermodels from Earth a run for their money, Galen mentally noted. A fact which only added to his nerves.

  “I’ve been eagerly waiting for the opportunity to speak with you,” Callista said with a sweet smile, “you must tell me about yourself, Champion!”

  Alright… just be cool, Galen. Aloud, he said, “Well, what do you want to know?”

  Callista gave him an apologetic, and sheepish look, “My apologies, I know you must have already explained it ad nauseam by this point, but I’d like to know about your past.”

  Galen contained the sigh that had nearly escape his lips. He shouldn’t be surprised, nor should he hold it against the older girl.

  He took a deep breath, and gave the same explanation he had given many times already. He told Callista of his childhood, his parents, and even Serenity. The first time he had given this explanation, he had nearly choked up at the mention of his younger sister. By now, however, he was able to smother the grief that swelled up.

  He continued to explain about the flawed, but peaceful world he had come from, how his life had been, and then the earthquake that had struck just before he’d been summoned to Avani.

  Callista was a very good listener. She gave him a sad and sympathetic look when Galen had explained seeing Serenity fall into a chasm as he was being summoned. It was curious. She hadn’t interrupted a single time to ask any questions like the others had. She merely listened with an attentive ear.

  When he finished, the green eyed girl had been quiet. She then eyed him, and asked him something surprising, “May I hug you?”

  His surprise must have been evident, because Callista had been quick to add, “Forgive my forwardness, Champion! It’s just… you look like you need a hug right now.”

  He hadn’t realized he’d let the melancholy he’d been feeling show on his face. Trying to keep the awkwardness out of his voice, he said, “Alright. If you wish.”

  What man in their right mind would refuse a hug from a young woman as beautiful as Callista?

  She moved forward and embraced him in a tight hug. He wasn’t sure if he should return the favor, but he eventually did with reluctance. He found she was surprisingly toned underneath her dress.

  He had to admit the hug felt pretty nice. Embracing a beautiful woman had that effect.

  The girl was blushing as she pulled away, but held a smile on her pretty face, “How was that? Do you feel a bit better?”

  “Yeah… a bit…” Galen’s face felt hot as he cleared his throat, “anyway, I’ve told you about me. Now tell me about you.”

  “If you insist,” Callista twirled her finger through one of the curls of her hair playfully, “I’m a daughter of the noble house Philomena. I work in the Architectural Department of the Dominion.”

  “Is that so?” Galen raised his brows, “that’s rather impressive. What sort of work have you been involved in?”

  She twiddled her thumbs in a cute manner, “Well, I’m still an apprentice truth be told. So I haven’t led any projects myself. Though I have assisted in a few of them.”

  “Do tell,” Galen encouraged.

  “Well, the walls surrounding Ignis would be one example.”

  “Really? Those massive things?!”

  Callista giggled at his reaction, “Of course! Almost the entirety of the Architectural Department was involved in their making. Many of us are involved in their maintenance and, if we’re lucky, any upgrades.”

  Absolutely stunning, smart, and willing to get her hands dirty? This one almost seems too good to be true, Galen thought.

  They continued to make small talk. Galen telling Callista of Earth, and her telling him about various projects she’d either studied or had a hand in assisting. He was surprised to find he had a smile talking to this woman.

  He was also surprised to find Callista slowly inching closer and closer to him as they spoke. He didn’t want to read too much into it, but… that was becoming increasingly difficult. Eventually, she got close enough and bold enough that she wrapped her arms around one of his.

  Galen’s cheeks burned red at the sensation of his arm pressing against something soft.

  “Hey, listen,” Callista whispered alluringly, batting her lashes at him in a playful and innocent manner.

  Galen could smell a wonderful and pleasing aroma from her, “Y-yeah?”

  The beautiful young woman, only a few years older than he was, bit her lip in a way that was somehow both shy and seductive, “I’ve really enjoyed getting to know you, Champion. This feast, as marvelous as it is, is becoming rather distracting, don’t you think?”

  “Uh… uh huh,” Galen mumbled, figuring he sounded like a stupefied idiot.

  “Why don’t we go somewhere more, private, where we can get to know one another on an even deeper level?” Callista gave him a brilliant smile with an expectant look in her radiant green eyes.

  He gulped and tried to speak, but no words came out of his mouth. Rather, he ended up repeatedly opening and closing his mouth like a fish out of water.

  “Might I take your silence as a yes?” Callista asked hopefully.

  “Uh…”

  When Galen failed to give a coherent reply, the young architect subtly but eagerly pulled him along towards the exit.

  And no one either noticed or cared enough to stop them.

  ***

  Galen found himself in a bedroom, he wasn’t sure whose, lying in the bed staring up into Callista’s eyes as she hovered over him with a flushed expression.

  The architect had pulled him along the hallway and, when finding an empty bedroom, had all but dragged him inside. Galen had sat on the bed, and had expected her to sit next to him.

  Instead, she’d marched up to him, and leaned forward so that Galen found himself falling down on the bed with Callista over him, holding herself up by her arms.

  His heart hammered in his chest as he stared into Callista’s green orbs.

  She gave him an inviting smile as she began to straddle him.

  Uh… is this seriously happening?! Galen suddenly thought in a mixture of panic and excitement.

  His mother would no doubt chastise him if she knew his current situation. Olivia Daxton had always been a strong believer in waiting until marriage to do what Callista was inviting him to do with her.

  He was tempted to give in to the primal urges raging within him.

  Of course he was. As much as he tried to live up to the standards his parents and grandfather had set for him, he was, at the end of the day, still a teenager. And straddling him was probably the single most beautiful girl he’d seen in his life, who very clearly wished for him to claim her.

  Who wouldn’t be tempted by such a prospect?

  No doubt any other teenager in this scenario would have given in to the lusts of the flesh. And Galen was tempted, oh so tempted, to do just that.

  However, something felt… WRONG. And he didn’t just mean that going all the way with Callista would go against the values and beliefs instilled in him. Values and beliefs that he cared about.

  There was something else telling him, almost screaming at him that he shouldn’t go through with this. It was difficult to make out why exactly he felt this way while his body was in the excited state that it was in.

  Callista’s smiled widened, and for a moment, she no longer looked like the shy, yet bold high born architect Galen had seen. Now, she looked almost like a serpent, slowly entangling its prey. Her luscious lips neared his, and he knew that if they kissed, he would lose all remaining self control.

  Almost as though it came as a warning, Arawn’s observation of him from earlier replayed in his mind, “I can see you have a rather strong sense of responsibility, Champion… A strong sense of responsibility indeed.”

  Then, he heard something clear in his mind. A whisper that said, “Don’t do it.”

  It was strange what followed after that.

  Time seemed to slow as he had a moment of sheer clarity and lucidity that cut through the haze of lust in his mind. The act that Callista was steering him towards carried a rather monumental risk. And in that moment of clarity, Galen realized what would happen if he gave into the reckless passion he was currently feeling.

  With his strong sense of responsibility, if Callista wound up pregnant, he’d feel obligated to marry her to own up to his irresponsible actions and help her raise their child. He’d end up stuck in Avani for the rest of his life.

  And since his goal was to make it back to Earth and reunite with his remaining family, he couldn’t allow that to happen.

  So he took a page from Joseph.

  He fled.

  Callista cried out in surprise as he suddenly sat up, leaving her no choice but to roll off him and onto the bed lest he drop her to the ground in his haste.

  He all but jumped to his feet and ran out the room.

  Had he looked back, he’d have seen Callista sitting on the bed, with a look of complete befuddlement and bewilderment on her face.

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