The first day after the end of the war, she awoke before dawn. Yune still slept, tired after all she'd done to help them, so Micaiah let her and quietly slipped out of the castle. She didn't need a candle, years of sneaking through dark alleys and enemy territory had helped her eyes adjust well to the darkness.
It was still so strange, knowing she'd helped defeat one goddess and been the vessel for another. Once upon a time she'd just been a girl who wanted to save her country, a girl with no background with a strange power she seemed to have by chance. She'd been first a savior, then a general, then the voice of a goddess. Now she was soon to be the Queen of Daein.
What would have happened if she'd never been separated from her family? If she'd been able to live as the true apostle of Beignon? She tried to picture it and just couldn't; Daein had always been her home and even her true lineage couldn't change that. Beignon belonged to Sanaki, and Sanaki would make a fine empress. Micaiah could never abandon the country she knew and loved so well.
She stared into the east, waiting for the first glimpse of light to break through the darkness. Today is the first day of the rest of your life, she'd often heard, but never before had it been as true as it would be today. The sun would greet a Tellius not full of conflict and anger, but one of peace and reconstruction. If only you could be here to see it, Ashera. For once, you would be proud.
She suddenly heard footsteps behind her; turning around, she smiled when she realized who it was.
"Good morning, Pelleas."
"You couldn't sleep either?" He sat down beside her, taking her hand. "It's so strange. Today will be the first day in who knows how long with no fighting. No wars, no pain...it's almost too good to be true," he sighed. "I didn't honestly think I would survive this, Micaiah."
"But you did." She leaned against him with a smile. "You survived, and you're stronger now than you were in the beginning. I always believed in you, always knew you could do it."
"I couldn't have done it without you," he murmured. "I owe you so much."
"No." She laced their fingers together. "Nobody owes anyone anything. The only thing I ever wanted was for you to survive..." She frowned. "Are you sure you don't mind giving up the throne to me? The public still doesn't know you're not King Ashnard's son."
"But I do," Pelleas said, "and it would be wrong of me to hold a position I didn't earn. Micaiah, you are the one who saved this country, if anyone should rule it should be you."
"Then..." She looked into his eyes. "Will you rule alongside me? As my King?" His eyes widened, and he drew her closer, his cheeks turning red.
"You're asking me to marry you, aren't you?"
"Will you?"
"Ah..." He smiled, even as tears gathered in his eyes. "I-I don't know what to..." He hugged her so tightly for a moment that she almost couldn't breathe. "Yes. Yes, Micaiah, I would be honored!"
She kissed him, and as they drew back from each other she gasped. The dawn was breaking, dark gray fading into a soft pink glow. It was breathtaking, so much that neither she nor Pelleas could say a word as the sun slowly rose into the sky.
Not a single trace of the darkness remained, and for as long as they willed it, Tellius would never be awash in darkness again.