"What is the meaning of this, Aerith!?"
"I meant what I meant. You have no idea what you are dealing with right now."
Each of the Elders had different expressions on their faces right now; all of them, however, were at the edges of their seats as they saw Aerith holding Riley's hand.
The Grand Elder was still on his toes as he stood at the edge of his small throne; his hands, holding the armrest as he looked Aerith in the eyes.
Elder Skeem was also standing; his robotic arms, seemingly charging up as they vibrated.
Elder S'adar still had a smile on his face; both his hands, gripping his chair as he leaned away from his chair; his eyes, full of expectation from the bout that was about to happen.
Elder Olseyir was still completely still, only turning her covered head as she seemed to scan what the Elders were going to do next.
Elder Apo just had his head tilted to the side; the golden glow surrounding his body, even brighter than before.
Elder Bato, well… he looked like a rock that was about to fall from a chair.
As for Queen Vania, she was the only one that was seemingly not actively looking at the two people standing at the podium; instead, she was just shaking her head and sighing heavily.
"Do any of you have any idea how many have tried to stop Riley Ross, only for him to completely shrug everything and continue wreaking havoc like nothing happened?" Aerith then suddenly tightened her grip on Riley's hand—breaking and crushing it like an apple.
Riley, however, didn't seem to mind even as his entire hand was removed from the rest of his arm. And almost as if acting out what Aerith just said, he shrugged as his hand started regenerating in no time.
"Riley Ross was on Theran. And you would think he would become more humble and subdued—but no. His violence thrived. If I place any of you on Theran, will any of you even come out of your house?" Aerith's mouth almost whistled as she sucked in a breath,
"Riley Ross is dangerous. Do you think no one has tried to kill him before? I tried to kill him before, a number of themarians have tried to kill him before. But I don't get it, I don't get why any of you refuse to see what kind of threat he really is. Riley Ross isn't just some terrorist, he isn't like Pirate Queen Xra, or any other Outlaw Ranker…
…Riley Ross was, and is a calamity."
"But—"
"You think I have not thought of ways to completely subdue him? You think I haven't thought of gathering a group of themarians to kill him over and over again?" Aerith turned to look at Riley,
"I have."
"..."
"I have thought of every possible scenario, but there is always one thing that prevents me from actually going through with them," Aerith did not break eye contact with Riley; her face, showing how exhausted she was of everything, "There's this lingering question that pops up inside my mind every time I think of a way to stop him…
…What if he manages to break free?"
Aerith was no longer talking to the Elders; her silhouette, just completely being reflected in Riley's eyes.
"What if a being that can not die, what if a being that you've hurt over and over again for a hundred years, for a thousand years, was able to break free? Some of you are scared of Riley Ross now, of what he can do…
…but imagine him angry and full of rage."
"..."
"You've already gotten a glimpse of that when he killed Elder Zora and ripped an evaniel guardian in half right in front of your eyes," Aerith finally strayed his eyes away from Riley as she looked at Elders one by one,
"I know all of you are aware of what he can do—clones, hundreds of clones, each capable of ending an entire civilization. Imagine a thousand of them, imagine a hundred thousand of them. h.e.l.l, imagine a million of them. Even I, who has fought Riley several times, still do not know what he is truly capable of…
…but imagine that. Just imagine him angry."
"..."
"I imagine that every day… and it scares me," Aerith once again turned to look at Riley, "It scares me to the point of having nightmares, it scares me to the point of thinking I have no other choice…
…what I can't imagine, however, is how much that will scare the rest of you."
"..." And with Aerith's breaths finally calming down, silence started to veil the entire dome. All of them, just looking down as their minds truly started imagining what would happen. They weren't able to think for long, however, as their bodies once again flinched as Riley opened his mouth.
"You did not need to scare them, Aerith," Riley finally said something; his sigh, breaking the eerie silence that filled the air,
"Because whatever you do; whether you bashed my head again and again, whether you trap me in a void for a million years, whether you grind my flesh with a cheese grater forever," Riley then very gently placed his hand on Aerith's cheek, "I will never resent you, Aerith…
…because I love you."
"..." Aerith couldn't really react; she wanted to move her head away, but couldn't. The only thing she could really do was stare back at him; looking at his eyes that were probably the clearest thing in the universe right now—resolved, dauntless, and unapologetic. However, Aerith could not help but breathe out as she saw her reflection in them… and the smile she had on her face.
"Don't…" Aerith shook her head as she was finally able to pull her head away, "...You should stop doing that. I will never, ever love you back, Riley…
…because I hate you."
"...That is okay, Aerith," a subtle smile crawled on Riley's face as he closed his hand, "I know what I am, and I have always known where I stand."
"It's not okay," Aerith shook her head, "We will never be okay. I have seen what I am with you, and it's not okay. And I also hate myself for even thinking about it. You and I will live for thousands of years. I can't—and I can't have you saying things like that for that long."
"W—"
"So, it's love?"
And before the two could completely get lost in their own world; the light that seemed to only dawn upon them started to scatter back to the entire dome as the Grand Elder's voice once again reverberated in the air,
"You should have said that Riley Ross loves you, Princess Aerith," the Grand Elder let out a very long and deep sigh as he sat his tiny body down, "That is the greatest leash one can have in this universe."
"Whew," Elder S'adar held his tail, "I didn't realise you guys were chill like that."
"What?" Aerith raised an eyebrow.
"Very well," the Grand Elder Raised his hand, "As long as Riley Ross can order his clones to stop rampaging—we will make sure New Theran can travel the universe without any visible opposition, and we will also stop pursuing him… for now."
The other Elders all nodded their heads; Elder Apo, even shedding a tear as he leaned back in his seat.
Queen Vania, however, was no longer in her seat.
"I shall test your leash, then."
"!!!"