98 - Prepared

A/N: The chapter ahead is raw, which means not been proofread yet nor edited.

***

Now, Prince Valerian is staring deeply at King Liorei. The King noticed his stares. He calmed himself down first before meeting his stares to not trigger his mother.

Duke Paris crossed his arms. His eyes were squinting at the King, his forehead wrinkled. His head tilted to the side. He's studying him. At the same time, he remembered the conversation they once had before.

"Is the moons' mother your 'patron Deity?"

Lord Feryzen was taken aback but he nodded.

"Yes, I said so. She's the one who created the moons. Lots of moons, the Elders say. But now, they're few."

Duke Paris threw his back against the chair with a laugh of disbelief.

"No fucking way."

Their eyebrows raised at him.

He pointed the King, not in an insulting way.

"Motherfucker, you're a son of a Deity?"

"WHAT?"

Their eyes widened.

"You're the son of the moons' mother, the only light born from darkness," he said and tweaked his hair, "Goddamn. Zodiac said it. He said it. We were so lost back then because we didn't know what he mean…but now? Daro hit on two of this world's greatest figures and beauties! The Matriarch, a God, then a Deity! Holy fuck, he's the man!"

Prince Valerian pinned his elbows on the table and placed his head over his hands. He studied King Liorei who is flabbergasted and dazed. The King shook his head.

"That can't be. There must be another reason to that. Maybe he meant it figuratively. We will never know. We will only know once we got him back and ask him. My mother is a human. That's all I know. And they've seen her. You've seen her."

Duke Paris was still amused and laughing when he nodded, "True, but who knows if it is just a disguise? How's one to know?"

"Can you please stop?" The King, infuriated, "You killed her. Is that not enough? She's long gone that I can't even remember her face anymore."

"And if she's truly her? What would you do?" The Prinsiaze caught his attention. He's staring at the King straight into his soul. The King if full of wonders. Both light and darkness dwells in him.

They waited what his words will be.

"Then I'm going to find her and bring her back. It wouldn't hurt to kill a Deity or two."

Prince Valerian smiled.

"I like you. You're like Mommy---"

"Don't compare me to that thing, baby. Don't insult Mommy like that again." Azarese brushed his hair and kissed his head. The Prince only smiled at the King who looked very hurt.

"I like people who are nice to my Mommy. He's your Daddy, is he not, Mommy?"

Skadi Eira scoffed. She can't tell whether the Prince is using all of his luck to see if his mother will berate him or just playing genuinely. Every time he pushes Azarese, he's dragging them along the course of death as well. She's a ticking bomb and he's pushing every button.

"My son," she called. Her loving eyes became cold and so her voice. The smile on her lips is brittle and emotionless, "Shut up. You're starting to get on my nerves."

Skadi Eira saw it coming but it still dumbfounded her anyways. The Prince looked down.

"S-Sorry, Mommy. Please don't get angry..."

Azarese sighed and embraced him, feeling his skin on hers. It's real. He's real and he's warm.

"U-Uhhm..." Watts looked at Lord Feryzen, seeking his help so they could move on. He got it.

"We left our kingdom by sailing as our means of travel. We can't risk getting seen by other descents and delay our mission. Time is our ultimate enemy, so we must beat it. But when we made it past the Forgotten Continent's periphery, anywhere we look, it's dark. We thought it is the aftermath caused by the Ki'zaar, but no. It was caused by somebody else."

The Lord asked for another cup of tea again. Prince Valor is silent in his place and is attentive, but when the Lord began sharing, he looked as bothered as him.

"We sailed further to reach the Wall, but the ocean became violent and swept us away. Our boat sinked and our archmages here helped us get to the nearest islet. It was inhabited. Ancients. Harmless Ancients, I think, and young and weak. They were hospitable and took us in their warm home."

"So, we asked them. What happened? Why is the world so dark? And they said..."

He drink his tea until the bottom is up, yet he still feel his throat is dry.

"They said the Empress have gone mad, cruel and merciless, sparing no child even her kin. They were left with no choice but flee from the Empire. That was all. They were terrified to speak more. They didn't ask us where we're going and gave us their boat. We promised to return and we will. I hope they are still alive until now."

In the midst of their intimidating silence, Skadi Eira's forced chuckles emerge. She's looking at Azarese who was stunned, her eyes slightly enlarged as if something returned at the back of her mind.

"You're talking about that Empress? Because that's what she did before. Hunted down every member of her family, slain them and fed them to the Veils."

Azarese slowly raised her stares at Skadi Eira; she lost it and palmed her mouth.

"You never reincarnated at all. You were a copy. Everything is!"

The look that flashed on Azarese's face is despondent, like the last string that's keeping her together snapped again. Prince Valerian spin around to see his mother and it broke his heart to see her out of sorts.

She questioned everything she thought she knew. How could everything feel so real, yet be a mere replication? Her mind raced, trying to piece together the fragments of her existence, seeking any sign or clue she might have missed. The lines between what she remembered of her first life and the experiences of this life blurred, leaving her disoriented.

A deep sense of betrayal seeped into her consciousness. She felt deceived, as if her very soul had been tricked into believing a comforting lie.

But how dare her cling on a slight sense of hope? Things were never fair to her.

Her trembling hand touched the face of her son. She memorized every inch of it. He's flawless and faultless. How could something so adorable and wonderful as him be untrue?

"If crossing that Wall would mean waking up from this dream, then I'd rather stay here. I don't want to be a-alone..."

The Prince's tears chased themselves down to his face when he heard it. He threw his arms around her neck and cried.

"Then, let's not go anymore. Let's stay here forever. We won't go back to that place. I don't want you to return. I am not an illusion, Mommy! I am real! I am real, I'm not a ghost!"

Azarese smiled and synchronized their heartbeats,

"I've gone too soft, I'm afraid. Because of you."

She faced her son and wiped his tears with her thumbs. She smiled and kissed his forehead.

"This is not a copy. What we have here is real. Must be Brother Astaroth's work. We will find out. Don't cry anymore, my love. Look at me,"

Watts Xirquit handed her a handkerchief and she placed it on the Prince's face. He took a blow and cried again while looking at his mother's eyes.

"I don't want to be cruel to you, so I will let you meet your father. Because if this is just a copy, then he would've been here, too, but no. I will look into this. I will find the truth. So, don't cry. I will give you the family you and your brothers deserved."

Because she did not have one for herself.

~~~

"A rum for your thoughts?"

Azarese looked beside her and found a glass being offered to her by Ohms.

They're in the bedroom and the Prince is asleep on her waist, hugging her tight because he's afraid that he will lose her anytime.

Azarese accepted the drink and took a smooth sip. Ohms sat by the edge of the bed. He's got a glass for himself with the same liquor but definitely not the same thoughts as her.

"As for my thoughts, I think you were reincarnated," he blurted randomly and she lent her ears to him.

"This is not Astaroth's work either, because his powers were sealed. More like taken by those scumbags past the skies. It wasn't a copy either because we're in the same planet, but the past and present was divided by a Wall. But if you were reincarnated, that would mean that you're dead: your body on the Other Side."

Azarese balanced her empty glass on the bed and pat her son's shoulders when his eyes fluttered. The Prince flashed a small smile and it made her smile, too.

"I'm the truest immortal. The worst curse of it all."

Ohms nodded and took a sip.

"You must be desperately asking for death then,"

"I wish I was never born at all."

It made his heart sink. He just couldn't imagine...what she must have gone through for her to wish that she never were.

"You won't ask that anymore this time. You've got what you've always wanted," he stand up and looked back to her, then to the Prince.

"I know you hate my Mom, but she's the best. She can help you with that. You'd be a good mother."

He left her in the middle of a dumbfounding silence. He emptied his glass and went where the others are: in his brother's lab, creating suits and weapons for each of them. His father and brother were together, standing before The Grey. They're having a serious conversation, and best believe that it's about the suit. Watts Xirquit needed his father's expertise to bring out the best of The Grey and stabilize it.

On the other side is Wattroid with Givenchy Quine and Miss President lending them a helping hand. They are the ones tasked in the making of their suits. Blaine Steel and Paris Kean Simmons were busy in programming and other technology works since it's their forte. It would've been much easier if only Maxism Ford Lee is with them, too. Lastly, Chase Hyatt, King Liorei, and Chancellor Titania were seen designing and forging the weapons.

He walked to his father and brother, cutting them from their conversation to wait for him.

"The two dragons, where are they? Elektra and Spike, too." He didn't see Lord Feryzen and Prince Valor with them. Not anywhere.

"They went to see the Wall. I asked them to get a sample of it, so we can look into its particles and make the appropriate suits. They will report to us later. Before we cross it, we will send my droids to survey the environment and collect more samples," Watts answered gum.

Then he remembered, "Oh, let me introduce you to my droids. I named the after you," he said with a smile. He whistled and from the playroom, the droids came flying to see him.

"Master! Master!" The excited droids flew around him, bumping themselves gently on him, too.

Watts chuckled and gathered them in his arms, "Hello. I'm back. Everyone, I will introduce you to my family now. Remember, I named you after them."

"Wow!"

He gently picked up the red Droid with a haughty emoticon, "Kuya, this is Ohm. Ohm, this is my Kuya Ohms,"

Ohm looked at Ohms from head to toe. Ohms opened his palm and Watts put Ohm on it.

"Volty, this is my Daddy. Dad, this is Volty."

Voltage Xirquit opened his hands and accepted the cool droid.

"Hello, Master's Daddy. I am Volty."

Voltage Xirquit blushed. "It's cute. Thank you, son."

"ME! ME! ME TOO, MASTER!" Harmon jumped with a '>O<' emoticon.

"Sorry, Harmon. Ate is not here yet. Kuya Spike, too. So, later?"

Dramatic like her Ate, Harmon flashed a crying emoticon and flew back to the playroom to sulk.

Spike shook himself, like shaking his head, and bumped Serin.

"What about me? Me!" She jumped, too.

Watts called his mother. She excused herself and went to him, "Yes, my love?" She noticed the familiar thing in his arm.

"Oh, that's the cutesy robot before. Hello!"

Serin jumped happily and looked up to her Master. Watts is happy and excited as well for her.

"Mom, this is Serin. Serin, this is my Mommy. I named these droids after us---"

Serin threw herself to his mother while making happy and squeaky noises.

"Yey! Master's mommy! I am Serin! Let's be friends!"

Franchetti Xerene was shocked at first. Then, she became tearful, "Oh, you did? This is so cute. I'm so happy!"

"Hmmp," Ohm. It flew and landed on Ohms's head.

"He's like him," they all said to themselves.

When Spike and Elektra returned and met their droid counterparts, Elektra and Harmon were the happiest. Elektra ran all over the place while holding Harmon over her head. Then they played and made fun of Ohm and Spikey. Serin and Volty were seen bumping on each other, sending each other hearts. Wattroid collected them for a maintenance.

"I missed Harmon. My sweet baby," Elektra sniffled.

"It's only been an hour. You're so dramatic," Spike hissed. But he's not gonna lie, he misses Spikey, too. Maybe because they're the only ones who were normal and they relate to each other very much.

After studying the particles of the Wall that is like liquid, they found that it's composed of atom-sized magic essence linked to one another. It is so lightweight that when they pour it out from the lid, it floated. It's cool to touch and inflicted no effect on the skin. It is proven to be penetrable only if you exert a certain force against it.

But upon hearing what Prince Valor and Lord Feryzen had to sacrifice so they could cross it, they made a theory.

On the other side of the Wall, it keeps anything from going out but the other side allows anything to go in (but force is needed to).

"Priedo, enchant the droids with layers of protection. Better make sure than not," Prince Valor ordered.

They're now outside, about to do the second to the last step before they venture inside the Wall: send the droids in to survey and see what's beyond it. They built a camp near it with the machines and computers and other technology on standby. The upgraded droids are now with bodies. The droids will work in pairs.

Harmon and Spikey were to search for Aviana Lavender Lee. Though they don't know what she looked like yet, Prince Valerian said that once they see her, they will know that it was her. Ohm and Wattsy, a new droid named after Watts, will be the ones to survey the place and look for Prince Maximilien, while Serin and Volty were given the task to visit Prince Valor's kingdom with a note in their mother tongue for the Ki'zaar.

"Are we going to see Daddy, Mommy?" The hopeful Prince asked as he watch the droids fly away in the same direction.

"We will," she said. If only she could she would go and do everything all by herself. But she can't do that because of her son who participated in the preparations, too. He worked hard and gave his best because he's excited to see his father and she won't spoil his efforts.