After returning from Vera’s soul cluster, the pair migrated down to the lobby to check out. The receptionist right now was different from the woman from last night, so he didn’t seem skeptical at all of the new couple. He didn’t see them pay with someone else's ID, after all. To him, Arden and Vera were nothing more than an attractive travelling couple. If he knew that the couple was actually a pair of unregistered Paradox Starborn, things would be very different indeed. Though, the same could be said of anyone who knew of Arden and Vera’s identities.

  The receptionist had short brown hair and wore thin rimmed glasses as he typed in the relevant information to the computer.

  “And with that, we’re done,” he said, taking the key from Arden. “I hope you enjoyed your stay. You are welcome to come back any time.”

  “We might have to take you up on that offer,” Arden said. “Later, though. Have a good day.”

  The receptionist bowed.

  “Thank you for your patronage, sir.”

  Arden and Vera made way for the door, not knowing that the receptionist’s eyes never left them. Never left Vera, specifically. Only when they left, did the receptionist speak again in the empty lobby.

  “Damn, she looks good.”

  He leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes with a smile. It’d be great to spend the night with her. That face. That body. Drunk off lust, he fantasized over that woman and made a decision.

  He wanted a night with her. But would he actually follow through with it?

  The lustrous thoughts stopped as he planned his next action. If he was going to try to have a night with that woman, he was going to need from assistance from him.

  'Would it be worth it?'

  “What’s so special about that guy that he gets a goddess like that? All he has is his face. And it's only alright.”

  He pulled out a phone from his pocket and dialed in a number. After a few rings, someone on the other end picked up with a groan.

  “What do you want, Hel?” A yawn echoed on the other end after the question was asked.

  “Sorry for waking you. I know it's a bit early for you to get out of bed,” Hel looked outside the clear glass at the early afternoon sun. “But I needed to know. Are you still doing that thing?”

  There was a brief pause as the man on the other end hesitated to answer.

  “...Why?”

  "I have a new hit."

  "Hel, I'm not sure if its smart to continue right now. I've got both Miasma and the Association looking for me."

  "I get that," Hel said. "Really, I do. I'm the same way. But look at these pictures and tell me that she isn't worth it."

  There was another short pause as the voice looked at the pictures he just received.

  “Alright, Hel. I’m picking up what you’re putting down. Who is this woman? Is she mundane?”

  Hel sighed.

  "I don't know why that's so important to you these days."

  "Answer the question."

  "Yes, she's a mundane. I couldn't sense any stellar essence from her. Same with the boyfriend. I personally think that he doesn’t deserve this fine a woman.”

  “And you think he should be relegated to the dregs?”

  “Correct. Just look at her! Here’s what I’m thinking: I do what I do best. And you do what you do best.”

  A sinister laugh came from Hel’s phone.

  “You’ve got yourself a deal, my friend. We’ll take care of the boyfriend together, then we'll do the same with the woman. We’ll hit them after nightfall.”

  “Copy that. I am already tracking their location.”

  “Do you have a picture of the boyfriend, so I know who to kill?”

  “I don’t take pictures of guys.”

  “Sounds about right for you. See you tonight, Hel.”

  “See you then, Yaan.”

  ***

  Arden and Vera walked the streets, drawing stares, both lustful and envious, from both men and women alike. Arden was wondering if it was because of their new bodies, or because of what he was wearing. Arden’s clothes looked like something that people only wear on their days off when they knew they weren't going to leave the house.

  Arden wanted to sympathize, but he had neither days off, nor a house at the moment. He didn’t even have a sister right now. All he had was the coalesced power of two deity-like bullshit entities dwelling inside him and an insanely hot girlfriend with the potential of two insanely strong people inside of her. The term ‘Mary Sue’ drifted in and out of his mind like most tangential thoughts.

  “What are you thinking about?” Vera asked him.

  Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  “How crazy this all is. A month ago, If someone told me that I would go out with someone as strong and attractive as you who could train me and Sya to become Starborn, I would have laughed in their face. Then I would have been attacked again.”

  He chuckled to himself and continued.

  “Then I look around at what used to be slums and see what used to be fantasy, something even more crazy than becoming a Starborn.”

  Vera looked around at the roaming crowds of people. All of them looked well-fed, well-dressed, and had a positive air about them. Nothing like how the people used to be. They used to be like paranoid, abused animals. Only looking out for themselves, and too afraid to let anyone else in. It was amazing how much the atmosphere changed in the two months since the Stargate Cascade.

  “Hope,” Vera answered.

  “Yes, but no. I’m thinking of some much more easily quantifiable.” Arden stopped and pointed to the restaurant where both of them fell in the middle of the day before. “Actual food.”

  There was a small line leading into Savish place of business. All of them looked eager to get inside and taste some of Savish’ succulent meat. After having tried it yesterday, Arden was inclined to feel the same. The couple joined the rest in line, and waited for the people ahead of them to be waited on by the staff.

  “I didn’t expect early afternoon to be peak steak time,” Arden said.

  A man with thick brown hair and a small stature heard him and decided to reply. Like the receptionist at the hotel, he also wore glasses. He looked like a timid schoolmate with average grades.

  “Oh, this isn't the peak yet. This is how Savish’s place is normally during lunch. The evening is when she gets most of her business.”

  The man looked at them, and smiled at the pair’s obvious closeness. It was hard to find even in these rebuilt slums.

  “I haven’t seen you two around here before. Are you new to the area?”

  “You can say that. We arrived yesterday and have just been trying to get out bearings,” Vera answered.

  “If that’s the case, then you two came to the right place. The steak here is to die for. I remember that my wife told me that some of the workers here had to chase a few people out because they were in danger of having a stroke from constantly eating,” the man chuckled.

  As they approached the door, the smell of the steak lingered heavy in the air, like an oppressive cloud of calories that no one was bothered by.

  “The name’s Cayde,” the man said, extending a hand for each of them to shake.

  “I’m Arden.”

  “Vera.”

  Cayde’s eyes widened and a smile appeared on his face. It was clear that not only did he recognize their names, but he was delighted to meet them as well.

  “The meteor man,” he said. “My wife told me about you two. Said you fell into her restaurant last night. She told me you made quite the mess.”

  Worried expressions flashed across Arden and Vera’s faces as they de idea whether to run or not. Cayde simply laughed at their reactions.

  “All of you guys are all so jumpy. My wife was the same way. You don't have to worry. Savish told me keep your secret safe.”

  “And will you?” Arden intended, not yet believing him.

  “Turn to your right and look at your girlfriend. If she asked you to do something, would you do it?”

  “Yes? What does that have to Savish?”

  “He's my husband,” came a voice.

  Arden and Vera looked up to find Savish standing half in and half out of the door, holding it open. Unlike last night, she wore skinny jeans and a white blouse.

  Arden was suddenly incredibly relieved that he was wearing these old clothes, and not the outfit he found last night.

  Savish looked at Vera and nodded with a grin.

  “Nice clothes.”

  “You too.”

  Savish planted a kiss on Cayde’s cheek and turned her attention to the pair of Starborn as her husband lit up with joy.

  “Come on in.”

  She slipped her hand around Cayde’s and gently led him along with Arden and Vera to the same room that they talked in last night. They all sat in a booth as Savish presented her husband with a meal, which he began to greedily devour.

  “I try to have a meal prepared for him when he gets his lunch break,” she explained.

  “It’s the only time I get to see her during the day,” Cayde said in between mouthfuls of food. “Naturally, I make the most of it.”

  Savish looked over the pair of Starborn with a small grin.

  “It hasn’t even been a full day, and both of you look way better. Especially you, Arden. Yesterday, you were a jagged edge fresh from the forge. Raw, almost. Whatever you experienced in the trial left you in a bad state, willing to fight against the Association.”

  Savish’s eyes flickered to Vera then back to Arden.

  “I guess you found what you were looking for. Companionship is the most necessary thing for a Starborn. If you don’t have anyone, you will die. No one can survive on their own in this world.” She looked lovingly at the man hungrily eating his meal. “Cayde taught me that.”

  Cayde pushed his empty plate forward with a satisfied sigh. For someone as skinny as him, he sure could pack it away.

  “It took me a while, but I managed to get through to you.” He looked at the watch on his wrist and sighed, this time in mild annoyance. “Its almost time for me to head back to work. I’ve got a full plate. Metaphorically, anyway.”

  He and his wife stood up and made way for the door. They hugged each other for a full minute while whispering to each other. Afterwards, Cayde opened the door.

  “It was nice meeting you two. Good luck out there, Meteor Man,” he said as he left.

  Savish closed the door behind him and made her way back to the table and sat down.

  “Meteor Man?” Arden asked.

  “You’re a star that fell from the sky into my restaurant. If you have a better idea for a moniker, lay it on me.”

  Arden grumbled to himself, but said nothing that was coherent. He would have liked to say RedShift, but that would be a bit on the nose. And it could let his secret get out somehow.

  “So that’s your husband,” Arden said. “He’s not what I expected when you mentioned being married.”

  “Did you perhaps expect a big man with a rippling body? They’re not my type.”

  “Nothing like that. Big strong men aren’t my type either,” Arden said. “I just expected a second Starborn.”

  “It’s best to pack away those preconceived notions now,” Savish said. “Starborn shacking up with each other is pretty rare. Especially when they pass a certain tier.”

  “Why?”

  “Ego and greed,” Vera answered. “Strong Starborn want all the glory and would rather fight a strong foe one on one and lose gloriously, then gang up on one Celestial and share the victory. It’s fitting that they’re called Starborn when they want to become stars,” she scoffed.

  “There also isn’t anything that can be passed down to offspring between Starborn, because souls aren’t affected by genetics,” Savish added.

  “And Starborn powers come from the soul,” Arden finished. “So what did you invite us in for? I doubt it was to talk about good breeding.”

  Savish put her hands together and leaned forward.

  “Let's get down to business.”