Soft gentle touches were placed between Nymphaea and Cole as they settled back down into his quarters for the night. They had decided that it was perhaps in their best interests to return to the small village to expand their relationship. This would be after all Nymphaea’s new home if they decided to marry and she wanted to make sure she understood everything ahead of time.

In their room, they managed to lose themselves where they couldn’t otherwise. Nymph laid a kiss on Cole’s neck as they finished their little adventure. It was still odd that just a bit ago they were only communicating through letters and now they had this life together. She nuzzled her face into his neck and cuddled closer to him.

Bringing the blankets up she realized how cold it was here to the desert. Not so much was it cold as it was different by a lot. “I love you,” she murmured as she closed her eyes. There was a knock on the door and Cole had instinctively brought the blanket up over them to cover up more.

When the door did open it was Cole’s sister. Nymphaea peeked out at her and she was sure that this was just as awkward for her as it was Nymphaea. They were barely used to each other but Nymphaea listened to the reason why Uial came so late. The half-demon was fully aware her aunt had disappeared but it wasn’t the first time it had happened. Now there was a call for people to come help and Uial wanted Cole to go. What shocked her was that Uial asked Nymphaea to go with Cole.

The urgency of it made it a bit hard to get rest but the two of them decided a short rest was needed. They would need it for whatever the goddesses had found. From there they managed to find one of the teleportation stones and activated it. They were on the whale now and it was the first time that Nymphaea had ever been to Sihajja. She looked around with interest as she adjusted Yaeger on her belt.

Once they were inside the bubble Nymphaea looked up at the Ziggurat. “Whoa…” The place was huge and there were numerous other people who were making the journey with them. “This is… Something else.” Her eyes went to the marble and jade structure. She felt like she was holding her breath.

There was one path that everyone was going up but Nymph was just standing still as she took Cole’s hand. This presence that she felt was terrifying. “What is that?” It was surely the great evil that Angela and Shiloh had talked about. The entire ziggurat was almost trembling from it. Why did this have to happen so soon as Cole and she had come together? This seemed highly unfair but that meant that they couldn't fail in their goal if they wanted more time together.

The demon hunter felt as each muscle began to relax as the pair settled back into the large bed that they now shared. He lightly pushed back the hair that had fallen onto her face. His fingers traced her jawline until he pulled her close to place another kiss upon her lips. Cole was genuinely happy. Their families had both given their blessings for them to be together. With how traditional their families were, it was rather a relief. He pulled her close to him against his chest to wrap his arms around her small frame. A small shiver hit Nymph that reminded Cole how the temperature difference was going to take a while for her to adjust to. Blankets were pulled tighter to tuck around his love to contain the warmth. “I love you too,” he responded with a kiss on the top of her head.

Cole was beginning to settle into a sleep when the door was knocked upon and opened promptly. The male twin knew that it was his sister, but made sure to cover up Nymph properly. Uial took little notice or care to their current states as she crossed the large room. “Get up the pair of you. I need to deploy you to a location to handle something rather urgent. Apparently, the world is coming to an end.” The Jiyu leader briskly grabbed up Cole’s slacks and threw them at her brother. He was already getting up as she tossed them and he put them on rapidly. “Get our provisions prepared for us. I will get our gear prepared and we will leave in a timely manner. Let us get some rest before he set out immediately.” Cole mentioned rest, but he knew he would not be capable of it. He glanced over his bare shoulder to look at his mate who was still in the bed surrounded in the blankets. This would be the first time they would be out with the other in a battlefield. He smiled at her with a small wink.

Uial nodded and looked at Nymph. “I am glad that you decided to come her, future sister. I will send some of our outliers to the whale’s city to keep the order along with the rest of the guard already there. You two I know can look into this ‘end of the world’ situation. Get it handled.” The last was an order that needed not to be made. If they failed, the world be over. Cole lightly touched his twin’s elbow and squeezed in a silent reassurance. The femme winked at her brother before leaving the room. Cole turned to look at his lover and sat on the edge of their large bed. “We have quite the task before us. Rest while I get some of our things together.” He needed to get some sleep and would once he felt their gear was set up.

Time went by quickly as they made their way to the Ziggurat. There were quite a few adventurers present that were determined not to let the world die without them putting up a fight. He glanced down at her hand as he clutched his. Cole gave her a reassuring squeeze before moving further into the entrance way to see the doors that were available for choosing. The demon hunter could feel the presence that within the structure and it felt as if it were calling to him. “Whatever it is, we shall make sure that it does not come to the rest of the world. You must push it out of your mind. Now, I want you to make the decision on which door will be our first.” Cole wanted to let her fell more in control of their situation. He was the one who spent more time in the field going up against such ordeals. What he wanted most right then was for his blood to settle instead of the boiling that it had begun to.