“…Don’t talk nonsense. I was born without your help, and now I have a sword at your throat.””Eclipse, you cannot kill me. You are also my creation.” “My creator is Lord Zerev.” “Zerev is also my creation. So, you too are my child.” “I may not be able to kill you, but I can hurt you. I can make you weaker!” He raised his voice, pressing the sword closer to the god’s neck. 

At that moment, Theresia reached out to him. Yuri Eclipse froze in place. As Theresia gently caressed the numerous wounds on his face, she spoke with genuine sorrow. “You must have been in so much pain all this time.” 

The god was completely defenseless. Yuri Eclipse could have stabbed Theresia in the heart right then. Being a god, Theresia would not have been destroyed by a mere knight, but Yuri could have at least hurt her enough to please Zerev. But in the end, he couldn’t do it. 

“I’m sorry, my child.” 

The moment her hand touched him, he couldn’t move. He couldn’t tear his eyes away from her amber gaze. 

Yuri Eclipse couldn’t bring himself to attack Theresia as she gently stroked his face, looking at him with such pity. Her touch was so warm and soft that he reflexively stepped back, as if he had been burned. The sword slipped from his hand. 

He was confused. Theresia must have used some power on him. Otherwise… He fumbled to pick up the sword he had dropped, but his body betrayed him, swayed by the god’s every movement. 

“It’s late, but I must also give you the breath of life.” 

“My… my master is your enemy.” 

“I must be fair in giving the breath of life, even if you are my enemy.” 

Theresia gently pulled him closer. For the first time in his life, he found himself doing something foolish without even realising it. Mesmerized by the god’s beautiful eyes, he sat down on the clouds like a well-behaved child. 

The god kindly brushed his short hair and then gently pressed her lips to his, breathing life into him. It was the breath of life that he hadn’t received when he was born from an incomplete being. 

This wasn’t a special act. Theresia, the creator of all things, gave the same kiss to everything, even to the troublesome sorcerers. 

“I’ll see you next time, Eclipse.” 

“Next time…?” 

“Yes, next time.” 

Theresia kissed his forehead once more and smiled. 

“When is next time?” 

“Who knows?” 

“When is next time!” 

Yuri Eclipse stood there, watching as Theresia slowly returned to her domain with her long hair flowing behind her. He didn’t think to swing his sword or return to his master. 

That in itself wasn’t unusual. Up to that point, at least. 

Theresia’s touch was life itself, so all beings loved the god the moment they were touched. Even Zerev, when he was newly born and nestled in Theresia’s arms, couldn’t hate his creator. 

So it was only natural that Yuri Eclipse became helpless in that moment. Everything in the world was Theresia’s child. No matter how wicked someone might be, everyone was once a baby, and every baby loves their mother. 

But sometimes strange things happened in Theresia’s world, things that deviated from the rules. Yuri Eclipse’s face flushed. The once pale dawn sky turned red, not the usual blood-red, but a soft pink, like the petals of flowers on earth. 

Yuri Eclipse had fallen in love. 

But this love was different from the feelings that creations usually had for Theresia in their youth. It was a kind of love that had never existed in the world before. A new form of love. 

It wasn’t a gentle love that was satisfied with a mere touch or a kiss, where one wanted to snuggle and be coddled. It was a possessive love, a desire to hold and explore the body, an overwhelming, thrilling love that sometimes felt like it was tearing the heart apart. 

It was the most intense, obsessive, and dangerous love of all. 

It was passion. 

* * * 

“Are you satisfied now?” 

Kirona had finally succeeded in hearing the story of Eclipse from the mouth of Eclipse himself. With her feverish mind, Kirona chuckled. 

When Kirona was very young, the emperor used to read to her whenever he could find time, even though he was always busy. Mostly, he would read the founding myths or the sacred texts, and like many others, Kirona’s favorite was the story of the Fire Knight, which she had listened to countless times. 

“There’s more to the story after that.” 

“I can’t remember the rest now. Go to sleep. You can imagine the rest from the paintings on the ceiling.” 

Jade averted his eyes, trying to distract himself. Maybe he didn’t want to recount the sordid details of his ancestor’s story, or maybe he was just tired. Perhaps it was both. Kirona leaned into him more.