GAIA

Chapter 9: Basilisk

"This is much harder than I thought it would be." Kyrian stared down at the Regalia in his hand.

The core had not even budged since Kyria had handed it over to him. It remained in its sphere form, refusing to budge no matter how Kyrien had tried to let it assimilate.

"Maybe he just needs some time before he can accept the Regalia." Arcadia scratched her head, equally puzzled. Most of them had their Regalia accepted into their being without any resistance or setbacks.

"The Freedom Regalia is the most stubborn Regalia. It will refuse to assimilate with its unless it deems them worthy of its power." Damascus was frowning. This was very unlikely of a Regalia to behave in such a manner, especially one that had been in the boy before. It would definitely recognise Kyrien's genome to be compatible but for some reason, it was not binding with him.

"Maybe you need to get rid of the 'Speed' core that you have before the Regalia can be assimilated?" Arcadia shrugged.

"I don't think that's the case. Most of the Regalia would just consume the existing core and harness the use of its former power to boost its existing set of skills." Kyria said. "Although I can't speak from experience because I've had only my Regalia and no pre-existing core. But if you take Isaiah and Arcadia as a benchmark you shouldn't have an issue with this."

"Maybe he just isn't suitable for the Freedom. Perhaps you could try the Destiny instead." Isaiah drawled from behind him. The Tempest King leaned against the facility's wall with a bored expression. "This training facility is for people who can actually control their Regalia. Not someone who can't even assimilate it."

Arcadia shot him a sharp and he held up his hand in mock defeat. Kyria shook her head in disapproval. "I've no idea how I dated you."

Isaiah glared at her. "He's no better than I am. If I have a temper problem, he definitely needs some therapy." He growled, causing Kyria to turn red and drawing the others attention to her.

"You're seeing someone?!" Kyrien demanded.

"Not that you need to know." She snapped and immediately directed her attention back to his Regalia. "Your Regalia is a more pressing issue at hand than who I'm seeing."

Before Kyrien could utter another word, Arcadia cut in. "The Astra is the first of the Regalia and the only one that's in its primary form. It has the purest power. Maybe it can help awaken the Freedom."

Damascus nodded from her side. "Maybe Aera and I can help too. We have the power to awaken regular cores and it should help jumpstart the process."

Kyria contemplated for a moment. Isaiah could see the reluctance in her eyes. He knew that this was a difficult decision for Kyria. The blonde walked over to his former lover and gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze. "It'll be fine." His voice was like a gentle caress, unlike the usual harsh tone that he used. "You've got to have some faith in yourself and the kid."

"I'm not a kid." Kyrien said blandly. "You're not much older than I am."