For such a powerful being, Muzét had the weakest resolve Gaius had ever seen. She lived to follow orders, and was completely dependent on others to make use of her own powers. Had she been anything other than a substantial fragment of Maxwell's power, he might have laughed in her face and kicked her away when she threw herself at his feet. Literally.

It certainly wasn't pity which made Gaius accept her and form a pact. If Muzét wanted to make herself useful as a tool—if she wanted to be used, rather than respected as a being in her own right—he had very little problem with using her and her powers to achieve the future he foresaw.

Yes, mused Gaius, Muzét was definitely one of the least decisive beings he knew. Except, apparently, in one respect.

"Will you… tether with me?"

She looked up, tears streaming down her face, and a frown flickered across Gaius's face. Tether? He wasn't an expert in spiritology, but if the context was any indication, the answer was no. This situation was uncomfortably suggestive, what with the way Muzét lay prostrate at his feet, staring up at him with malleable desperation. For being a king, Gaius was unaccustomed to reverence of this caliber.

It's befitting of the King of Rieze Maxia and future Lord of Spirits, he thought as he forced himself to keep still, and cautiously replied, "I'm sorry?"

"Tether with me," was Muzét's only, insistent reply. Her already wide eyes widened further, irises trembling with apparent instability, and Gaius gazed down at her as impassively as possible, mental gears turning swiftly. She clearly wasn't thinking straight. Whatever this 'tethering' was, she was going to have to wait until she could explain it to him; he had no way of knowing whether this was just a trap.

"Tethering sounds like you'll be… leashing me," said Gaius carefully after a long and awkward pause. "I will not be placed under the control of the likes of you." He kept his voice calm and deliberate with increasing difficulty as she slid her hand gradually up his leg, and finally stepped back when she reached his thigh, shaking her off. He didn't like this. He didn't like this at all.

"Direct-tethering will make me stronger, and therefore you… Master," said Muzét, giggling. As she rose unnervingly into the air to embrace Gaius, he raised his hands in an attempt to push her away from him, but thought better of it. If this was a trap, he didn't want to be the aggressor. (But really, they were standing at the edge of the cliff where Presa and Agria had perished, on the eve of a bright new world, and she thought this was the right mood to make moves in this direction?)

"I," began Gaius, with uncharacteristic uncertainty, and shook his head slightly to clear it. It wasn't often that someone could throw him off this much, but then again, it wasn't often that a spirit was trying to seduce him. And fortunately failing miserably.

"Explain to me this direct-tethering," ordered Gaius, and Muzét abruptly released him. As she drifted away from him, he found that he wasn't sure he wanted to know anymore, given that a rosy blush now graced her pale cheeks and she wavered coyly in midair. I should have known better, he sighed internally, and closed his eyes. They were wasting so much time. He could have vanquished them all by now and taken Maxwell's place, if only Muzét would let go of this tethering nonsense. From what he could see, she was quite powerful enough already, but before he could say anything—

"Humans' mana lobes are the sources of spirits' power," said Muzét, and for once she seemed comparatively sane, though still a little disturbed (and disturbing). "And yours is a powerful one indeed. By direct-tethering, I'll be able to share in that tremendous power… and serve you in any way you wish."

Gaius raised an eyebrow briefly. This was definitely the kind of offer he thought it was. Or at least, it was if the way she was acting had anything to do with tethering itself. "We humans have a word for what you're doing right now, you know," he muttered, half to himself.

"Really?" asked Muzét, and the naïveté in her voice was almost alarming. How could someone who was so deliberately flirtatious be so innately innocent? Gaius's mind struggled to wrap itself around the idea.

"Yes," said Gaius, turning his back on her and trying to consider his options as quickly as possible. "Solicitation."

The process of thinking was made a little more difficult when he almost flinched upon her resting a suggestive hand on his shoulder before forcing himself to relax. It had been a long time since anyone had touched him like that or caught him off guard, let alone both.

"For the good of my people," Gaius found himself saying under his breath. There really wasn't that much of a downside to linking with Muzét, come to think of it, except having to deal with her overt and vaguely obnoxious coquetry awhile longer. Once the world was his, Gaius would sever their bond by force if necessary. "Fine," he added, turning around to face Muzét, and she grinned at him zealously.

There was a moment's silence while she closed her eyes, and then they opened again, narrowing seductively. Gaius made an effort not to roll his own as she purred, "There. Now we're connected." Beaming at him, she rested a hand on his shoulder, floating horizontally. "I'm all yours."

"Good," growled Gaius, moving her hand away (ignoring her clear disappointment) and turning to the portal open before them. "Now," he continued, drawing his sword thoughtfully and glancing towards her, "can you imbue this with your power?"

"Certainly, Master," said Muzét promptly, with a sunny—if scattered—smile which did not at all suit the seriousness of the situation. "You will have to entrust it to me, however." Gaius struggled not to hide his face in his hand as she scuffed a diffident foot in midair. He wished she would be a little more genuine.

After one more moment's deliberation, he thrust his sword directly through her torso. If that wasn't entrusting her with it, he didn't know what was. She had become its very sheath, after all. If she survived it, so much the better; if she didn't, then could she really call herself a great spirit?

The tiniest of smiles flashed across his face as his sword became embedded in the same sort of mana-vacuum that hovered, swirling, before them. Muzét seemed momentarily surprised at first, but quickly swooned in midair—blushing furiously—and Gaius wondered (half-alarmed) what exactly she was feeling. "Yes, yes," she breathed. "I can feel the power… running all through my body!"

"And I assume you can use it to make my blade stronger," said Gaius, as evenly as possible, and turned his back on Muzét to face the portal at last. "Now let's go meet our fate, and bring Maxwell to his." He wasn't too thrilled about the implications of shoving his sword into forward yet submissive, somewhat scantily clad ethereal ladies, especially given the way she was acting after he did so, but forced his thoughts away from the frantic question burning in the back of his mind: is this like bestiality, or…?

One day, thought Gaius as he finally stepped through the portal—one day, as soon as he had built the future he envisioned, he would find a way to sever their bond and separate himself from Muzét again. The only problem was, if putting a sword into her was apparently pleasurable, then how exactly was he supposed to get rid of her?