The mont hung in the air, Elizabeth finally free, Rebecca’s scythe dissolved, Alex already calculating the quickest way ho. But rlin hadn’t moved.
"I still have the Dark Lord to deal with," he said quietly. "I can’t just leave. The people of this world have suffered under him for centuries. If I walk away now, nothing changes for them."
Morgana stepped forward, nodding firmly. "The prophecy spoke of his defeat. If you abandon that now, everything we’ve sacrificed—everything I’ve lost—ans nothing."
Alex let out a long breath, the kind a parent makes when their child insists on one more story before bed. "Alright. Fair enough. You’ve got unfinished business." He raised his hand, and a portal swirled open behind him—glimpses of the Imperial Academy visible through its surface. "You know where to find us when you’re done playing hero."
Elizabeth hesitated at the threshold, looking back at rlin. For a mont, sothing passed between them—recognition, maybe, or understanding. Then she stepped through. Rebecca followed without a word, her gaze lingering on Adam for just a second before she vanished into the light.
Adam stayed put.
Alex noticed imdiately. "You’re not coming."
"Soone’s gotta make sure the kid doesn’t get himself killed." Adam shrugged, the picture of casual innocence. "Plus, Haddy’s still running around sowhere causing chaos. Soone needs to collect her before she accidentally adopts a dragon or starts a rebellion."
Alex stared at him. They both knew that wasn’t the real reason. Adam just wanted to stay and cause problems. It’s what he did.
"Fine." Alex stepped backward into the portal. "Try not to break anything important." The portal sealed behind him with a soft whoosh, leaving Adam, rlin, and Morgana alone in the quiet field outside Kandor.
rlin watched the space where the portal had been. "Is he always like that? Your brother?"
Adam’s smirk faded into sothing softer. "Nah. He’s usually more uptight. But he’s got reasons." He paused, looking toward the distant silhouette of the Dark Lord’s castle. "Being apart from his daughter—the one he never knew existed until recently—that’s been rough on him. Really rough. He hides it well, but..." He trailed off, shaking his head. "Anyway. Enough family drama. Let’s go save your world."
rlin nodded, then glanced at Morgana. "We’ll need horses. It’s a long ride to the castle."
Morgana opened her mouth to agree, to suggest they find a stable, to—
rlin raised his hand.
Four horses materialized from nothing. Not summoned, not conjured—simply created. Muscle and bone and breath, ford from the energy in the air and the matter scattered across the field. They stood patiently, tacked and ready, as if they’d been waiting there all along.
Morgana stared. "You... you just..."
"Energy and matter," rlin said simply. "Horses are just organized atoms. I organized so."
Adam let out a low whistle. "Handy. Much faster than walking." He swung onto the nearest horse with surprising ease for soone who’d spent most of his existence not needing transportation. "Alright, kid. Lead the way. We’ve got a tyrant to overthrow and approximately zero plan. My favorite kind of adventure."
They rode.
For a while, the only sounds were hooves on dirt and the distant calls of night birds. The road to the Dark Lord’s castle stretched before them, winding through hills and sparse forest. Morgana took point, her knowledge of the terrain guiding them. rlin rode beside Adam, his expression thoughtful.
"So," Adam said eventually, breaking the comfortable silence, "you’re from Earth. Parallel version, apparently. What was yours like?"
rlin considered the question. "Normal, I guess? At least, it seed normal at the ti. Cars, cities, internet. I worked a desk job. Drank too much coffee. Complained about Mondays." He smiled faintly. "The usual."
"Sounds familiar." Adam nodded. "My Earth was the sa. Nine to five, traffic jams, questionable life choices." He paused. "Except, you know, different outcos. Gojo winning instead of losing. That’s a big one."
"Right." rlin’s brow furrowed. "In my world, Sukuna never stood a chance. Gojo was untouchable. The whole fandom celebrated for weeks."
Adam laughed. "In mine, they’re still arguing about whether the writing was fair. It’s been years, and people are still mad."
"People get invested."
"They really do."
They rode on, the castle growing slowly larger on the horizon.
"What about cartoons?" Adam asked. "What did you watch?"
rlin brightened. "Everything. Tom and Jerry. Looney Tunes. The old Hanna-Barbera stuff. Later, Avatar, Gravity Falls, Over the Garden Wall." He glanced at Adam. "You?"
"Sa list, mostly. But here’s the question—which Tom and Jerry is better, classic or the reboot?"
"Classic, obviously. The reboot tried too hard."
"Agreed. Though the Gene Deitch episodes are weird."
"So weird. The animation style was unsettling."
They both laughed, the shared cultural touchstones bridging the gap between their worlds.
"Ani?" Adam prompted.
rlin grinned. "All of it. Naruto, One Piece, Bleach in the early days. Later, Attack on Titan, Demon Slayer, Jujutsu Kaisen obviously. My Hero Academia until the last couple seasons." He shook his head. "Frieren was a masterpiece, though. Didn’t expect to cry that much."
"Frieren got too," Adam admitted. "The scene with Himl at the grave? Devastating."
"Don’t even start. I wasn’t ready."
Morgana, riding ahead, glanced back at them with confusion. She caught words—nas, titles, references—but none of it made sense. They spoke a language she didn’t recognize, shared a culture that didn’t exist in any world she knew.
Movies, they discussed. The Lord of the Rings versus The Hobbit trilogies. The rits of the original Star Wars versus the sequels. Whether Marvel peaked with Infinity War or Endga. Whether DC had ever truly figured out live-action.
"They had monts," rlin argued. "The Dark Knight. Wonder Woman. The first Aquaman was fun."
"Monts, sure. But consistency?" Adam shook his head. "Marvel built a universe. DC built a series of accidents that sotis worked."
"Fair. But the animated stuff? DC animated killed it for years."
"Now that, I’ll give you. Batman: Mask of the Phantasm is still top tier."
They debated superheroes, villains, which actor played the best Batman (Keaton versus Bale versus Pattinson was apparently a heated topic in both worlds). They discussed video gas—rlin’s world had gotten a proper Portal 3, which Adam envied deeply. Adam’s world had gotten a Half-Life 3, which rlin refused to believe actually existed.
"No way. That’s a myth. A legend. It doesn’t exist."
"It exists. It’s real. I played it."
"You’re lying."
"I’m not. It ca out in 2027. Died before then but I played it when I went back, paused ti. Full story. Finished Gordon’s arc."
rlin stared at him. "I hate your world."
Adam laughed. "Your world got a Firefly season two, so we’re even."
"Wait. Firefly got a second season for you?"
"Ten episodes. Wrapped everything up beautifully."
"Okay, fine. We’re even."
Morgana listened to this exchange with growing bewildernt. None of the words made sense, but the emotion behind them was universal—friendship, connection, the easy banter of people who understood each other.
The road curved, bringing them closer to the castle’s outer defenses.
"Music," Adam said. "What’s your music taste?"
rlin considered. "Eclectic. Classic rock, so hip-hop, a lot of soundtrack stuff. Hans Zimr, John Williams, Ramin Djawadi. You?"
"Similar. Though I’m guessing your world had different bands."
"Probably. Who was big in yours?"
They compared—bands that existed in both worlds, bands that only existed in one, bands that had completely different lineups and histories. Radiohead existed in both. Coldplay existed in both but had apparently made very different career choices. In rlin’s world, they’d stayed indie longer. In Adam’s, they’d gone pop earlier.
"Lucky," rlin muttered. "Their early stuff was so good."
"Their early stuff was great everywhere," Adam agreed. "The later stuff is just... different."
They rode in comfortable silence for a while, the castle looming closer.
"Books," Adam said eventually. "You read?"
"When I had ti. Not as much as I wanted. You?"
"Sa. Terry Pratchett was big in both worlds, I’m guessing?"
"Discworld? Huge. The Night Watch is one of the best books ever written."
"Vis is the best character ever written."
"Sam Vis versus Granny Weatherwax—who wins?"
"Different categories. Vis for character arc, Granny for pure presence."
"Fair. Tolkien?"
"Obviously. Though I preferred the Silmarillion."
"You’re one of those people."
"One of what people?"
"People who actually read the Silmarillion and understood it."
Adam grinned. "Guilty."
The castle’s outer wall stretched before them now, dark and imposing. Guards patrolled the battlents, unaware of the two riders approaching—or the third, slightly behind, still trying to process the conversation she’d overheard.
rlin slowed his horse, studying the defenses. "So. Any advice for fighting a Dark Lord?"
Adam shrugged. "Don’t. Talk first. Find out what he actually wants. Most ’Dark Lords’ are just people who got hurt and never healed."
"That’s... surprisingly philosophical."
"I contain multitudes." Adam smirked. "Also, if talking doesn’t work, hit him really hard. You’re good at that."
rlin laughed. "I hit you once."
"And I’m still talking about it. That’s how impressive it was."
They dismounted near a side gate, hidden from the main patrol routes. Morgana joined them, her expression shifting between determination and the lingering confusion of soone who’d overheard an entire conversation in a foreign language.
Adam glanced at her, as if noticing her for the first ti. "So," he said casually, "what’s your story? You’ve been with the kid since we got here, but I don’t actually know anything about you."
Morgana t his gaze. For a mont, sothing flickered in her eyes—grief, loss, a weight of years far beyond her apparent age.
"It’s complicated," she said.
Adam nodded, accepting the answer without pushing. "Aren’t they always."
He turned back to the gate, leaving Morgana standing with rlin, both of them watching him approach the castle like he was taking a casual stroll through a park.
"Your friend," Morgana said quietly to rlin, "is the strangest being I have ever encountered."
rlin smiled. "Yeah. I think I like him."
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