Nothing starts until you take action. If you have time to worry, then run!
-Sonic the Hedgehog
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Revin folded his arms over his chest, scanning the two girls before him, "So, mind telling me what that was about?"
"Ugh," Aria let out a frustrated groan. She turned to face him, "Is even your thinking so far from normal, you can't even realize the problem with what you were about to say? Let me spell it out for you.
You. Are. Not our father, you could barely qualify as a family friend, seeing that we met you for the first time yesterday in our sixteen years of life.
An adult male in his thirties is walking around with two sixteen-year-old girls who have barely any relation to him. Even if she found nothing wrong with it, others would and could. So maybe try to think a bit and try not to get locked up or need a phone call from our mother to avoid the authorities."
She was right, and he knew it. To others, he probably looked like a fool who had too much money to spend and no common sense. People who knew him in the past would probably look at the current him strangely and question what happened in sixteen years.
But sixteen years wasn't the crux of the problem; to others, that would be enough time for money to change them, but for him, it would take at least three more decades, but it had only been sixteen years on earth.
Time flows differently from planet to planet, from universe to universe, even in different multiverses time was never consistent across the board. How long had he been a divine being? How many people had he traveled with, without care for age or moral compass?
How many more years would pass on Earth to even reach a fraction of that time?
It would take time to separate the divine life he lived before from the one he was trying to live now, resolving to just not use his abilities would not be enough; another step was needed.
After his moment of realization, Riven smiled as he followed the girls, "How long had it been since someone dared to lecture me?" he whispered under his breath, lightly chuckling to himself.
"I hope you girls are truly mine," he mumbled, a quiet plea from the deepest parts of his being.
"Hey, what about that store?" Aria said, pointing at a store with more formal-looking clothes.
"Ehem." Nyra nodded, looking at the store.
'Sigh, here we go again,' Riven thought, following the two into the store, knowing another hour of waiting awaited him.
After a quick talk with the attendant, he took a seat once again, beginning his wait, but this time he had something else to do. Pulling out his phone, he quickly dialed a number.
Ring Ring RIng
After the third ring, the phone was answered as a voice on the other side hastily spoke, "I greet my Lord, the Paragon of Doom."
"Huaaa, Dutch, what did I tell you about using my title on this planet and even more so over the phone?" He asked sternly, his voice full of authority.
"My Lord, do not worry, I have already hacked into the system, preventing our words from being recorded."
"You hacked into the cellular network, and by that extension, you mean all the systems in the world." Riven corrected his words, knowing how over the top Dutch was.
"Ah, of course, you would understand, my lord, your wisdom knows no bounds."
"It feels like a waste to have you here and not at the palace. Lazaria would greatly appreciate—"
"My lord, my place is beside you at your service and nowhere else; even at this moment, I am doing as you asked and am watching over your family. So, please, my lord, have some faith in Lazaria; she has been trying all this time to get back the trust you once had in her."
"I… Understand Dutch, a leader should have faith in his people."
"I am glad you understand, my lord. So, how can this old man assist you?"
"I'm out shopping, can you bring a vehicle that could hold all my purchases, a small truck should do the trick."
"As you wish, my lord."
"Thank you, Dutch, just come straight to me when you arrive." He said before hanging up the phone and sliding it back into his pocket.
Rising from his seat, he walked over to the cash register, arriving just as the girls and the attendant stepped out of the back.
As the attendant rang up the items, Riven talked to the girls, "I hope you guys chose more than just one item."
"Well, we didn't choose a lot, seeing it was formal wear. We might not be able to fit these clothes in a few months and would only wear them a few times. So we only chose 2 outfits, each of a different size. Just in case," Aria explained, so as not to have to pick more formal wear.
"That's fine then. After this, let's go get proper shoes for your outfits, then we can get some lunch."
Aria and Nyra looked at each other before Aria spoke. "Ok, that works, but after that, Me and Nyra will choose the places to go next."
"Sure thing," he nodded.
"Alright, Sir, that'll be—"
"Oh, here's my card," he said, passing it over, which she swiftly swiped before handing it back.
"Looks all good, Sir. Thank you for shopping with us. I hope you and your daughters have a pleasant rest of the day," the attendant said politely.
"I hope the same for you, too, miss." He replied, giving a small but short smile before walking away with Aria and Nyra in tow.
Quickly, the three walked to a nearby shoe store. Talking to the attendant while walking through the shoe aisles, they tried on a few different shoes. After a short fifteen minutes, they walked out of the store with four boxes in both girls' hands.
Walking over to the food court, they chose a simple fast food place to eat. Taking a seat, they waited for the waitress to walk over.
"Hi, welcome to Stardust highway, what can I get for you today?" the waitress asked, her words clearly practiced beforehand.
Riven gave her a calm yet reassuring smile, easing her nerves before speaking, "Hi, yes, I'll take the number 1. She'll take the number 3, and she will take the number 7."
"Alright, I'll be back with you shortly." She replied with her words less robotic this time.
As they sat in silence, each lost in their thoughts, until finally, Aria broke the silence with her voice. "Hey, I'm sorry about what I said earlier, it was rude of me, I know you and my mom go way back.
"You don't need to apologize; what you said back there was good, a much-needed wake-up call," Riven said, waving her off.
"Huh"
"You girls wouldn't know much about me and probably think of me as the same as the others who probably shunned Sera after she gave birth to you two, but that couldn't be further then the truth.
Sixteen years ago, me and your mother's relationship could be said to be more than friends, but not quite lovers. We were beyond close and were always together, but to pursue my dreams, I had to leave.
I only returned last year, and even then, I was swamped with work and other personal relations involving my own family. I only found out about everything she had been through yesterday."
"Wait, so you say you've known our mother for years, but left, and when you finally came back, you waited a whole year to even bother coming in contact," Aria questioned, her narrowing with accusation.
He shook his head. "It's not that simple."
"How isn't it?" She retorted, her voice a bit colder.
Riven sighed, "When I left, I only knew I would be gone for close to fifteen years, and that's what I told your mother. When I returned, I texted all my friends that I had. Sera was the only one who did not respond. I texted and called a few more times, and nothing. So you tell me who waited."
"I have a question," Nyra interjected. "If you two were so close, then do you know who our father is? Mom said it was between two people, but we only know of the one."
Aria pressed her hand over her lips. "Ugh, Nyra, don't mention that bastard, you'll ruin my appetite."
"Sorry, your mother only told me the same thing and her guess on who the father most likely is between the two." Riven felt a bit bad for lying to the two, but what was he supposed to say? I slept with your mother before running away for fifteen years, no, that would just be stupid, especially if he wasn't their father in the end.
"Why is she so intent on hiding the truth? Does she think it makes her look bad or something that she slept with two guys without protection?" Aria questioned her voice, shimmering with anger.
"I don't think that it," Nyra disagreed, feeling there was something deeper.
"Really, Nyra cause to me it seems like our mother has something to hide relating to our father." Just then, before Aria could continue her rant, Riven's phone began to ring.
Pulling it out, he swiftly answered it, putting it on speaker: "Hello Riven, this is Sera. Sorry to call you when I know you and the girls are busy shopping, but I'm a bit lost and was wondering how to get to the Arcanum wing."
"Do you know your way back to the Cozy wing? If so, make your way back there then–" Riven carefully explained in great detail the path to the Arcanum wing, not leaving out a piece of information that would help.
"Thank you, Riven. I should be able to figure it out from here. Um, also, I wanted to ask how the girls are doing?
"We're doing fine, Mom, we stopped to eat." As Aria says this, the waitress walks over with their food, gently setting it on the table before walking off to assist someone else.
"Okay, you guys, stay safe, I love you. Riven, please keep MY daughters safe." The call hung up, leaving Riven a little perplexed. He knew what she was insinuating, but why was she so against the idea of the two being his?
"Hey, Mr. Riven, what's in the Arcanum wing?" Aria asked, swallowing a bite of her food.
"It's where all knowledge in the mansion is stored, even my personal knowledge." Even though he said this, his personal knowledge was hidden in a secret part, away from the rest of the knowledge, in a place only those who share his blood could reach.
"Is there any knowledge on building computers? I think I want to try streaming," Nyra said absentmindedly, her thoughts wandering to something she couldn't quite identify.
"Let's just go get you one," Riven said without hesitation, already standing.
"Hey, wait, what about your food?" Aria questions only to look at their plates, and realizes that they had both finished. "I thought I was a fast eater, but these two…" Her voice trailed off, letting out a sigh, she followed after them.
From one end of the mall to another, almost all the high-end tech stuff was far from the clothing section and still a decent bit away from the food court. This was a change made recently to protect the equipment from any unforeseen incidents.
Riven quickly led them into a store called Alpha & Omega Computers, walking up to an attendant, Riven began, "Hello, I would like to build a custom computer."
"Okay, sir, what kind of specs are you looking for, as well as case size?" the technician asked, his voice sounding tired.
Lightly pushing Nyra in front of him, he smiled. "She'll tell you."
Nyra Foze paused, her mind racing as uncertainty washed over her. What words could possibly capture the moment? Riven shook his head, leaning in close, he whispered, "Nyra, it's alright, but if you truly want to do this, you need to take action and claim your path forward."
Taking a deep breath, Nyra spoke, her voice calm and firm. "First, I would like a Y70 custom case; you can make the case black, I'll add my own things to it."
"Alright, now what kind of specs you looking for?" Nyra began listing out different parts she wanted included, each one precise and perfectly paired with another to create the perfect setup. Her planning and knowledge of the subject was clear for everyone to see.
"Alright, I got a conclusive list of things you want for your tower, now is there anything else you need today?" he asked, his voice more energetic after talking with another knowledgeable person on the subject.
"Oh yes, can we get a 3 monitor setup, two speakers, a keyboard with a matching mouse, a desk-sized mouse pad around 48x18 in size. It's going on a large desk. And a Mic." Riven added, making sure to include the rest of the stuff she would need.
"Sure thing, now, is that all?" he asked again after writing that all down.
"Yes, that'll be all for now."
"Okay, your PC should be done in 1 to 4 business days."
"Alright, we'll be back then, let's go, girls."
As they walked out of the store, Nyra's eyes remained glued to Riven's back, a barely noticeable small smile stretched across her lips 'Is this what it would be like to have a father… hehe, Then I wouldn't mind it'
Aria, turning back, called out, "Hey Nyra, what are you giggling about? Let's go, there are still plenty of places we should go to."
"Coming," She yelled after them, her voice rising above the din as she hurried to close the gap.
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Next time on Daily Life of the Strongest…
The quiet days don't last forever.
When ancient names echo across realms, and Paragons walk again, Riven must answer a call that predates peace itself.
Doom meets Strife—
And not everyone watching knows it's just an old friendship cracking its knuckles.
Next Chapter: "Paragons of Doom & Strife"