The ceremony was short and sweet. The officiant allowed the couple to say their own vows, leaving not a single dry eye in the house.
"I promise that I will treasure the time we have together," Julius promised. "Whatever comes, I will face it with you."
"Wherever you are is where I want to be," Lena's smile was irrepressible. "And I promise to make wherever you go my home. I love you."
The old man's eyes crinkled with delight. "I love you too."
Noble felt a tear slip down her cheek. She knew how precious love was. It had gotten her through her Nightmare.
Having a home too, was a gift no one could put a price on. Having a person so generous and kind as Julius be that home was an even rarer gift.
Noble looked out at the multitude of guests. She wanted the joy of love and the comfort of home for all of them as well. In fact, right now, she wanted nothing more than safety for the entire world. Her heart was full of compassion for humanity!
Most of all for her mother and new stepfather.
Oblivious to her lofty thoughts, Julius and Lena had eyes only for each other.
With the rings exchanged and the pronouncement of marriage given, the happy couple kissed before the company full of government agents and Academy staff and students.
The auditorium roared with applause.
Before their eyes, a marriage was born. All hoped it would be long and happy.
The reception was an easy transition as people filtered to the back of the room. The food was served in plentiful supply and guests were allowed to sit wherever they pleased.
Rain and the boys found their own seats, the former with some of the Awakened Academy students, and the latter with Awakened Rock so they could ask them all their theoretical questions about combat.
Noble was going to rescue the battle instructor from his fate, but he shook his head. "It's not often I get to field questions from such eager students. I am happy to help them."
The professor realized what he meant. He only ever saw teens after they had survived a horror. Their questions were of a survivalist nature more than curiosity. Rick found the childlike innocence of their inquiries refreshing.
"I'll leave you to it,"
As she turned to go, Brock continued his line of thought, "What is the best offense against a flying monkey with hands that look like cymbals?"
Rock coughed. "What an oddly specific question. I would say it depends on…"
Filtering her way through the crowd, Noble welcomed the guests as she passed. It was weird having so many people she cared about all in one place. If she closed her eyes, almost all of the emotional signatures, even the new Sleepers, were familiar and most of them were cherished.
Noble knew the government officials through her mother, husband, or even her own time working for the entity. The Academy Staff and students were either people she had been working with for years or young people who she was entrusted to guide in their education.
Even more interesting, she could feel how most of these people cared for her.
It was overwhelming to have so many positive emotions directed towards her and her family. It was like food for her soul.
'Right now I feel like I could conquer the world…which I would never do because then I would have to be in charge.'
The thought made Noble chuckle.
Ruling was something she had no desire to do again.
Scanning the reception, the professor spotted two men far more suited to running things than she was.
Fort and Gui were sitting at a table deep in conversation. It wasn't until Fort looked up and saw Noble that his face brightened, and he waved her over.
The chair next to him was empty.
"I saved you a seat and Sarai brought by a plate of food for me to keep for you. She said you shouldn't forget to eat," Fort told her as he patted the place by his side.
"I would never pass up the chance to have Sarai's food," Noble joined the others at the table.
Other than the two gentlemen and herself, there were five government agents at the table: another Director who went by the name of Siv, two people on Lena's evacuation team from the past many months, a spelltech analyst, and a newly retired woman who knew both of Noble's parents when they first moved to the NQSC.
The Awakened analyst patted his stomach as he put down his fork, "The caterer sure knows her stuff. Perhaps you might consider opening a cafeteria with her food back at headquarters, Sir."
"It's not a bad idea, Shafin," Gui conceded.
Director Siv shook his head. "It's a terrible idea…for my waistline!"
The comment earned a round of laughter from the table.
"It sounds like people are having a nice time over here," Lena arrived at the table with her dapper groom.
The group welcomed their hosts with a barrage of well-wishes. Julius took them in, his face beaming with pride.
"Make sure you get some cake. It was just cut," he advised.
"Oh!" Noble dabbed at her mouth. "Then I need to make the announcement and give the toast."
"It can wait, enjoy your food," Lena looked at her daughter's half-eaten plate.
But Noble had already risen to her feet. "There is no time like the present. Don't worry, I'll make it short and sweet."
"You can't stop her once she's started," Fort pushed back his chair and took his wife's hand. "That's probably good marriage advice for you too, Julius."
"I have no intention of stopping Lena. Her determination is something I love about her," Julius kissed his new wife's cheek.
Together, the two couples made their way to the stage. The crowd quieted as Noble tapped on the mic.
"Thank you for coming to this blessed occasion. Fort and I wanted to honor the happy couple with a toast. Mom, I've known you all my life and you have always been there for me. If anyone would have asked me, I would have told them no one was good enough for you. But then you went and found the one person to prove that statement wrong. Julius, you were first my teacher, then my mentor, and finally my friend. You have been a part of our family for a long time and I'm so glad that today we get to make it official—"
Fort's communicator dinged next to her, drawing a reproachful glare from the maid of honor.
The best man silenced the message and cleared his throat. "To Lena and Julius!"
He raised his glass.
"To Lena and Julius," the crowd chorused. Glasses clinked around the room.
Lena hugged her daughter tightly. "Thank you. For everything. This day has been perfect."
"I love you, mom," Noble whispered. "I'm very happy for you."
"We both are." Fort smiled, patting Julius on the shoulder. The Director's device rang again. "I swear I silenced it!"
Pulling out the communicator, Fort looked at the screen to turn it off. Instead, his face paled.
A moment later, devices all around the room began to go off.
Something was happening.
And it was big.