Chapter 7

Back in Polaria, Denai Heimer faces her parents and a past issue. While in Porci, Heimer finds a way to get in contact with Matthew and Jepp. A detrimental truth sends Denai running for dear life back to The Dark Forest. A wild outrage of Quora catches the Polarian government's eye, leading to the arrest of Denai Heimer and all advocates along with a breach in the Great Wall causing the death of many civilians.

Porci, Polaria

Standing in front of my childhood home was enough to make me depressed. I have no one else but my parents. As an only child, I of course got all of the attention, but my parents were always so caught up in their work lives that the attention I did get was little and very rarely. I wouldn't say my parents were abusive, just neglectful. Being back home was just a sad reminder of my lonely childhood.

Thinking back on my life, I never really had family outside of my parents. Most were distant relatives or dead. Friends weren't even an option for me as my parents always said that it was a distraction and I needed to stay focused on my future. According to my parents, having a successful adulthood was more prudent than having a memorable childhood. Now 72 years old, I only had a few friends, and I consider them to be more like colleagues and co-workers than friends, but that's my own fault.

A loud car honk snapped me out of my reminiscence and back into reality. Staring at the faded yellow door and the splintering windowsills, the dead grass, and the moldy roof, all felt so dreary.

Building up my confidence, I marched through the gate and up the steps and knocked loudly on the door. I waited for a moment, but no answer. Their car is in the driveway, so I know they're here.

I knocked again but louder this time. To no avail, the house remained dead silent. I hung my head in defeat and walked down the steps to leave. I stopped in my tracks when I heard a lock click. I turned around to see the door slowly opening and my mother's old, wrinkled face and green eyes peering through the crack.

"Denai?", she said in a shaky voice. "Mami?", I answered, tears filling my eyes instantly. A small, sincere smile spread across her flushed cheeks as opened the door all the way, holding out her arms to me. Smiling back with teary eyes, I hopped back up the stairs and into my mother's arms.

"Oh daika! It's been so long. We began to think you died", she cried out in Polarish. "I know Mami! I miss you so much!", I cried with her.

"Honey who is it?", my dad asked as he came from the living room to the left of my mom. "Daika?", he asked, looking unsure of who I was. "Papi, it's me", I confirmed. "Oh", he said, shaking in grief as he came to hug me.

"Where have you been? You left for so long I thought you were dead", he berated in Polarish. "I… I didn't think we could ever fix our relationship. I assumed it would be best to stay away", I explained. "That is not true at all", he said, shaking his head. "We want nothing more than to be with our daughter", my mother added. "Come inside, let's talk", my dad offered. I nodded my head and slowly made my way in the house. I looked around, noticing not much had changed since I left, over thirty years ago.

My dad guided me into the living room and I sat down on a giant, fluffy blue sofa. "I'll go make some tea", my mom said, shuffling her feet to the kitchen.

"So, what brings you here so unexpectedly?", my dad interrogated. "I was on an observatory mission and everything was going great until a Quora, bigger than any I've ever recorded, attacked our camp. I was about to be swallowed whole when the man in charge of the operation, whom I hired for this very reason, saved me and threw me into a portal door before I could even say anything. The next thing I knew, I was in Porci", I explicitly stated.

My dad nodded his head for a while as if he was still processing all of the information. I sat there thinking about what he might say while sitting awkwardly and uncomfortably on the sofa.

My mom suddenly appeared around the wall with a tray, breaking the awkward silence. "Here, I made some Nemineny Quec tea", my mother said in Polarish as she placed the tray on the coffee table between me and my dad. "Thank you, Mami", I said with a soft smile. She looked at me for a second with a warm smile as if she was taking some time to appreciate seeing me again. "You're welcome. It used to be your favorite, I'm not sure if it still is", she said cheerfully in Polarish. "Yeah, I still love tea", I assured her. "Mmh", she mumbled, still looking at me with admiration.

"Well, I'm glad you're safe", my dad finally said. I'm sure he had more to say but decided to hold back and just appreciate having me there. That meant a lot to me as he is a very blunt and proud man, he almost never lets things go that easily.

"Did something happen to you", my mom questioned worriedly. "No, well, almost. But I'm safe now and I will have to go back soon", I reassured her. "That's good, I can't lose my only daughter so soon", she said, biting her lip to hold back the tears. I couldn't bare to see them like this. They use to be so bold and harsh; now they're soft and emotional.

Wanting to change the mood, I asked, "How have you guys been?". They both glanced at each other taking in a deep breath. "Decent, could be better", my dad answered. "Well we were planning on moving soon", my mom added, looking at my dad solemnly. "Where to?", I asked. "Oh we've both retired already and it's time we settle down somewhere and vacation for the rest of our days maybe explore the world", my dad said hopefully. "Yes, I was thinking Gocelli, Baftali would be a nice place", my mom continued. "That's nice! Though isn't Baftali expensive to live in, I mean that country has the safest and most beautiful cities in the world?", I asked skeptically. "Yes, but we have plenty of money saved up. You know we had high-paying jobs our whole lives, we could've been living there since we were in our twenties", my dad boasted.

"That's right, one of the reasons you two didn't have much time for me", I said, lowering my eyes to the floor. They both looked at each other regretfully and sighed. "We just wanted to provide for you and give you a comfortable home and a chance at a good future. Our parents were the same way, it's all we'd ever known", my dad defended. "I understand, but it was still hard growing up and you guys were never there for me, just always working", my voice started to shake. "Oh Daita, I know and I am so sorry we didn't give you a better childhood and were such terrible parents", my mom confessed, trying to comfort me.

"I get it, being an adult is tough. I forgave you both a long time ago and made peace with my old life. I just wasn't sure if you wanted to see me", I mitigated. "That's good to hear", my dad finally spoke.

I was surprised how easy my parents were to talk too now. I've never felt this at home or comfortable around them before. I can't remember the last time we sat down and actually talked like family. It was always business to them. My parents had seen me as an investment or business plan the moment I was born. They even admitted it to me when I was a teenager that I was no more than a complex business venture in order to build a family legacy. Sadly for them, it never worked out because I moved out when I was 19 years old.

Deep in my thoughts, I hadn't realized my parents left. I looked around the living room to see if they maybe moved, but there was no sign of them. Suspicious, I got up and went to the kitchen. No one, just some food on the stove cooking on low heat. Maybe they had gone upstairs to talk, or maybe they were putting on a whole facade for me in hopes they could convince me to come back and resume their plan.

Quietly making my way up the long wooden staircase, I heard some mumbling down the hall. When I got to the top of the stairs, I saw a room door cracked open at the far end of the hall on the right. Glancing around, I noticed a familiar orchid door. Gently turning the door handle, I opened the door to reveal my old room. Everything was just how I had left it, which was odd considering my parents were the last people on the planet to care about my stuff. I would have thought they'd pawned all of my stuff or had a garage sale for some extra cash.

I stepped over to the bed against the wall and laid my hand on the comforter. Remembering the endless hours I'd spend in here studying or staying out of my parents' way, I examined all of my old belongings. My vanity across from my bed; the closet to the right of my bed; the large window with a little reading nook. All of it looked rather tidy and clean, with no dust collection visible. That made me think they came in here regularly to clean my room.

A light knock on the door woke me from my thoughts and I shot my eyes over to see my mother peering in.

"Hey, sorry to disturb you, I just noticed the door open and figured you were reminiscing of the old days", she explained. "Oh no worries, you didn't disturb me. I wasn't sure what to do while I waited for you and dad to finish talking", I assured her. "You didn't hear anything did you?", she questioned concernedly, frowning her eyebrows with a worrisome expression on her face. "Oh no, I just heard some mumbling and thought I'd wait in here", I clarified. "Mm, that's good", she concluded to herself, looking away as she spoke.

Taking in a deep breath, I stood up and waited for her to look up at me. She looked worried and a little grieved. Maybe it was what her and my dad were talking about. I decided to say something to not look dumb just standing up for no reason. "Um, I think I… maybe I should go. I have to find a way to get back to my lab". She slowly lifted up her head answering, "What? Why so soon?". I looked around, thinking of what to say. Knowing I had come here to ask for some money to take a flight back, I felt a bit uneasy and still on guard.

"Oh, it's just, you and dad seem pretty busy and I don't want to impose on you guys more than I already have", I came up with a lame excuse. "Oh nonsense! Stay as long as you like", she babbled in Polarish. "No really, I have to get back before anything further happens", I turned her down, starting to feel anxious.

She stared at me with a straight face without saying anything for several seconds. I could feel my heart rate speed up. Nausea began to creep up on me as I tried to avoid eye contact with her sharp, cold blue-eyes. "Well then let us pay for your flight at least", her expression changed instantly. "It's okay mom, I shouldn't be asking you for money after all this time", I responded, with fear of what she might say. "Daita, this is the least we can do after driving you out of our lives", she pleaded ashamedly. "Let us come too! If you don't mind", she added expectantly, her strong cold-blue stare piercing into my soul.

I looked around for help but quickly realized I'm all alone. 'Damn', I thought to myself. I was taking too long to answer and she'd begin suspect something was up. I bit my lip hesitantly, "I guess, a little more catching up would be nice", I caved in. "Wonderful! I'll go tell your Papi. We'll be ready in less than an hour", a smile instantly struck her face as she hurried out the door. "Hmmm", I let out a sigh. 

Heading down stairs, I stumbled a little but quickly caught myself and went to the living room to wait for my parents.

48 Minutes Later

"All ready!", my mom sang in Polarish. I smiled with relief and got up off of the couch, straightening my pants. "I bought the tickets already so we just have to be there before 37", my dad informed. I nodded in reply and followed them out the door.

"Here", my mom offered, opening the car door for me. "Thanks", I said awkwardly. They both hopped in and started the car, giving each other a weird look.

We were at the airport in less a half-hour because of my dad's crazy driving, making my heart jump several times thinking we were going to crash. My dad gestured for me and my mom to board the plane first saying, "Ladies first". My mom blushed which made me a little uncomfortable.

My mom lead us to our seats in first class, bumping into a few people along the way. I jumped into a small cabin before my parents could and quickly cracked the sliding door. I turned on the mini screen while I waited for the plane to take off. A flight attendant greeted me and offered me some snacks and drinks and I took a few as I was really hungry and closed the sliding door this time.

"Fasten your seatbelts and get comfy passengers, we'll be arriving in Pierre in approximately nine hours", the pilot said over the PA. And   with a small jolt, we were off.