Aria couldn't look her Regent in the eyes.

The paralytic had worked far better than she expected. Rider's frozen was body completely immobilised in a matter of seconds and lying at the foot of Ixis' bed. Perfect proximity for her grimoire. Wiping away the medicine with her sleeve, Aria summoned her armour just in case and the moment she did a pint sized projectile crashed through the window.

Night resized immediately to dwarf his brother Ethros who was casually resting near the secret entrance. He had her cornered in seconds. Normally she'd be delighted to see her partner but Aria knew if he found out she would stop him. Ethros wasn't just her business partner. He was her future.

"I thought you said you dealt with him." Aria addressed the dragon coolly, the sight of her exhausted Agar frustrating her more than anything else.

Ethros rolled his eyes, bouncing off the painting he was teetering on and returned to his usual size. Aria had been naive. She thought the moment Rider had been taken care of she would be free to use their grimoires however she wanted. They would thank her once the demons were gone.

"Aria? What's going on?"

"Nothing, my Agar." Aria said, attempting to soothe him the same way she did to Rider.

But he wasn't buying it. His amber eyes glared at them both, passing from one to the other with a snarl the moment Ethros met his gaze. The albino dragon raised his head, daring his younger brother to challenge him with his wings flared. Aria was immediately glad she had cleared out her room beforehand.

"I don't believe you. Whatever he told you, just ignore him. Step away from my partner Ethros before you hurt yourself."

Aria stepped in front of Ethros, Light Trait flaring in her hands. Night backed away, heartbroken at the sight of her defending anyone over her Agar. He couldn't go against her. His morals wouldn't allow it. He was loyal to her just like Rider. He couldn't get in her way. Not now. Not when they were so close.

"No. Leave him be."

"What're you doing?"

The horror on Night's face made her wince but Ethros was right. All of this was necessary for the future of Opalis. For her new vision of the Excelliars. For her new Agar. The Timekeeper could change the future and Night would understand in the end. It wasn't supposed to be forever. No Agar partnership ever was. But that didn't mean it didn't hurt when he was standing over someone else. He was supposed to protect her. Not Ixis. Not Rider. Her.

"Doing what's right."

Ethros' confident stance gave him an air of superiority that extended to Aria, the two working in tandem already solidifying her decision to support him in eradicating the demons. Risking the lives of a few Traited was nothing compared to the lives the demons had taken. Hellgrind wasn't a place to be discovered. It was a realm that needed to be eradicated.

"You've gotten weaker, brother. We Excelliars need a beacon of strength as a leader not a dragon shrouded by darkness. Having a Regent demon child is bad enough. We'd be on the wrong side of the war." Ethros insisted, trying to reach his brother the only way he could.

Night shook his head, his eyes full of conflicting emotions but Aria wasn't worried. He wouldn't attack her and Ethros would be safe while she stood in her Agar's way.

"There is no war. Not until you came along, brother. Now let Rider go. She's your Agar. You should be protecting her, not me."

"Don't tell me you'd thought I'd be stuck with that cripple forever? Look at her. She can barely stand."

Night winced as if visibly struck, growling furiously at his brother. Every step he took towards her Aria matched it and she could see the gears in his brain trying to find a way to reach her or get around it. Aria smiled grimly, completely aware that wasn't gonna happen.

"Our purpose is to help the Traited."

"The right Traited, brother. I won't be in your shadow any longer."

Aria waited for his signal. Ethros flicked his tail. She rushed towards the edge of the bed the moment Ethros lunged for his brother, claws tearing at each other while they fell through the window together. Aria could hear the sounds of roaring outside her window, the scraping of stone and wings against the roof making her spring to action. She didn't have a lot of time.

Aria's Light Trait sparked dangerously but she held it together and made her way towards the trio of grimoires. Not many people knew how important these specific grimoires were but the Keeper's of Trait wasn't exactly taught anymore. She smiled, finally able to unite them the way the realm intended. The black grimoire: Memoriam. The white grimoire: Oblivion. The scarlet grimoire: Defiance.

All it needed was a single spark of Trait to ignite it and all the demons would be gone. Aria leaned over her two participants, gently sending her light through their skin. She needed their memories to power her spell and besides, they didn't need to remember what she did. Until a hand gripped her wrist. It was a weak grip and clearly didn't want to hurt her but her stubborn Regent didn't know when to give up.

"Ari, are you OK?"

Her Light Trait tightly forged into a sword, her anger getting the better of her even while Rider tried to reach her. No matter what she did the Shadow Traited kept getting back up. She blinked. Rider screamed. Aria's crouched form straightened. Aria didn't know how many times her sword struck her.

Rider's leg was twisted in an awkward angle, her arms awkwardly shielding her face. She'd live. Probably. No doubt it would be seen as a betrayal in the eyes of her dragon. Murderer in the eyes of her people. Aria couldn't have that be her legacy as Throneholder. She had to erase it for good. But not before she enacted her plan.

Rider's grimoire had disappeared.

Aria screamed. Her Trait collided with the strength she had known she possessed. Walls obliterated with sheer Trait. Rider lay motionless. Night towered over her, bloodied and battered but alive. Protective. Kind. Considerate. All the things she had strived to be.

Ethros vapid ivory scales emerged from the blast, skulking in the corner with blood dripping from his jaw. He had lost, Surrounded in smoke the two remaining grimoires lay motionless. She had to think fast. She had to choose. They knew what she had done. They would choose Rider over her. They all did. She had to change that. She had to make her useless.

"It was supposed to work. You said the Timekeeper could do it! Why didn't it work? You said it would work!"

"I don't know-"

"Liar! If I can't have both grimoires...no one can. Not even a Timekeeper can change that. I'll be the one changing fate, not her."

Ethros' expression changed, their tentative alliance waning with every step he took. He would reach Ixis' grimoire first.

"Aria what are you-"

"Wait!

Aria's heart broke at the sight of her dragon. Surely Night would understand. He always did. But he didn't leave her Regent's side. Her sword thrummed with Trait, her eyes fixated on what her Agar had to say. It would be easier to let the black grimoire be given to someone else. If Rider died she had a chance to locate it with someone else in a few years. Someone far less stubborn.

"Aria, wait. If you forget, it'll be easier, right?"

Aria cocked her head, puzzled but intrigued. She had the ability to take people's memories while Rider could do the opposite. It was why she had kept her by her side for so long. They worked well together. But not anymore. She had betrayed her trust by siding with her Agar.

"That's what your grimoire is for. Oblivion helps people forget life's little grievances. They look to you to help them. You're hurting. So please, leave her be."

"So? I don't care anymore. You've already picked your side, Nightshade. What's one more death on my hands? She won't even notice it while she's asleep."

Night floundered, struggling to remain on his feet and convince her against hurting an insignificant Shadow Traited. She had loved her once but knowing she had the ability to rid the world of demons but she refused to do it was the last straw. The demons had taken her mother. They couldn't be forgiven. Anyone who stood in her way was against her.

"Then use Oblivion to change that. We can change that together. You and me as Oathed." Ethros suggested, coiling his way around her back.

It was tempting. Her grimoire still lay on the bed, Ixis still unconscious from all of the tests she had done to try and get her grimoire to summon. The Fire Traited would've died without that Scale Screamer but Rider had always been good at convincing dragons to join them. Aria couldn't even remember her name.

"What about Memoriam? Surely it'll go haywire with her Trait constantly forgetting. Besides, people already know."

"You don't need to worry about that. I'll..."

Night's voice broke under the weight of such pressure, swallowing at the sight of the Eternal Death creeping through Rider's arms. Aria barely noticed. She had to admit Ethros hid it incredibly well.

"I'll make sure of it. I'll deal with Rider. I'll be her Oathed."

Night glared at her with a determination Aria didn't know he possessed. She expected to be sad that he wanted to be partnered to someone else but she felt hollow. All Aria wanted to do was to survive and if it meant erasing everyone's memories over and over again to get what she needed then she didn't care anymore.

"So she won't remember anything?"

Night's pleading look left her broken inside.

"No. None of us will. Not even you, little brother." Ethros said smugly, wilting a little the moment his threat involved himself.

"I can always kill her myself...." He pondered, sharpening his claws on the stone.

Aria's sword disappeared in a searing light. The rush of anxiety punching her in the stomach at the thought of waiting years for Memoriam to be active again.

"No! No. You're right. No...it's better this way. This way...she'll never bother us again."

She gave Night one last look. A blast of light stung her vision. Her memories fell away like sand. The blazing heat of fire that followed burned like the sun. The spots of blood that stained against the nearby wall mixed with the ash from her leg. Familiar blue eyes that kept her focused. Those same eyes soon faded into ashes along with the sins she had committed. Aria closed her eyes for the last time as herself.

"You were right, Ethros. Nothing good ever comes from a Shadow Traited."