Where The Dead Ones Go Book 3 -Emirate-

Chapter 7

"Welcome to the Anoixian Reservation."

This is exactly what I am not expecting when Mr Atomo told me, Morris, and Kairos to head for his country's outskirt borders with the Scythian Emirate and Viceroyalty of Auralia.

We took a train from the capital of the emirate to an old, barely used terminal for about four hours then we took half an hour walk towards an off the beaten path deep inside the forest near the mountain range separating the three nation's borders with each other.

But what we found nestled deep in the mountain ranges is something I would have never imagined.

Not when they call this a "reservation".

"This is..."

The elder who welcomed us at the entrance gate of the place nodded at my cousin whom he and his guards look with utmost reverence as they looked at me and Kairos.

"Yes, fellow ancient, it really is the last vestige of the Golden Age."

I blinked and stepped forward to which they responded with a very respectful bow, "Fellow ancient? Then you are..."

"Just like you, Your Imperial Majesty. A mortal born from an age long gone from the face of Gearth," the elder answered with utmost reverence, "How long have we been waiting for this very moment when you will grace us with your presence. And yet, it is as if not a single moment has passed for us all here at the Verum Zephyranth."

"Verum Zepherant?"

"Yes, Your Imperial Majesty, it means "the true Zephyranth". This place before you all is what is left from the Golden Age of the Province of Anoixi's ephemeral capital city."

Kairos stepped forward and the elder responded the same way as he did to me, "I guess it is high time you tell me the truth about this place. Give me the answers which you never told me during the time I stayed here under your care. How did this place survive? Why is it still existing? For what reason?"

"All shall be answered, our lord and master," he said honestly as he motioned us to all follow him, "Survive is a rather odd word to describe what happened, oh great one. Survival in the time of The Fall is something no mere mortal or random deity can ever bestow to us all here. I am sure you two know full well, Your Imperial Majesty and fellow ancient one?"

Morris and I looked at each other as we relieved in our minds the sheer destruction, the cataclysmic upheaval, and the burning skies during our last stand eons upon eons ago and nodded at the elder who bowed in agreement.

"The great and benevolent Khronos himself, the god of time in his everlasting magnanimity has deigned our city as the only place worthy enough of his providence. The Province of Anoixi and has always been a stalwart supporter of the Imperial Family since time immemorial. We alone have answered her pleas for help and in turn, were rewarded with the greatest task and gift of all. The chance to serve our liege when the time has finally come and to help Tiera to rebuild once more after The Fall of the Golden Age."

Chills run down my spine as I felt the gaze of the people leaving their houses and establishments made of things not seen in the last thousands of years and all are looking at me with tears in their eyes as if their very existence has been affirmed by my mere presence.

And I guess what is the most frightening of them all is that I felt that they all know the truth about me that I never knew myself.

"We exist only to be of service to Khronos and his betrothed. Though it seemed to be eons has passed in the outside world, it is as if not a single day has ever passed to us all here," the elder continued as we stopped at the beautiful river running through the central part of the city, "This is where we found Kairos, the great one, as was foretold by his benevolence. We welcomed him with everything that we can do to celebrate his fated arrival. And as instructed, we have gifted him to the current president of Anoixi. A man born from the province's most ancient bloodline for guardianship. For him to take care and love as if his own. To honor a pact that transcended the great divide between a mortal and immortal."

Kairos blinked at him and looked at the elder in confusion, "You mean to say that it is meant to be that I will be taken care of by Mr Atomo and not just because he is the head of state of the republic?"

"Indeed, great one. House Axiopisto's head during the time of the fall was one of the painfully few who have risen up to the call for the help of Her Imperial Majesty and his benevolence. Khronos himself is eternally touched by the Axiopisto's loyalty to the Imperial Family so much, he has trusted them to take care of his creation as a sign of solidarity and faith."

The son of Thanatos scratched the back of his head and took a deep breath before laying down his question, "I have to keep on hearing the name of the god of time. We do know from Kairos here that he and Apollo were the only immortals who have worked with the Imperial Family eons ago. What I can't understand is what is the angle of Khronos? Why is he so into this. I get it if it's Apollo. But the god of time has seen the rise and fall of countless mortals and immortals since, well, time immemorial. What is so different this time around?"

"While we cannot even hope to fathom the truth about his benevolence's motives. What we do know for certain is that the last of the Imperial Family has made a pact with him and he is only upholding his end of the bargain dutifully."

Kairos looked at the elder before glancing in my direction, "And Vivet is here because she is the one who formed the pact, am I correct?"

"What?!" I exclaimed in shock when I heard him said that but what unnerved me the most is what my cousin has finally pieced together in our minds.

"Yes, I now get it. It all makes sense now," Morris whispered as he looked at the river pensively, "Back at the Parelthon Glaciers, I have been wondering as to why I am not sent to the past like the rest of my friends. And then I heard a voice, Khronos perhaps, telling me that a living soul cannot traverse the passage of time back to the era where he also existed. Yet still, if that is the case, why did Vivet travel there if she is an ancient one like myself without a problem? It shouldn't be possible if we are going to follow the rules of time."

The elder bowed deeply in front of me before looking straight into my eyes, "That is the truth, fellow ancient one. A soul can't indeed exist at the same moment his previous self is. That will unhinge the law of time and space as we know it. However, a few weeks before The Fall, the reigning monarch of the empire has disappeared without a trace."

"Transported to the future to be found by the daughter of the goddess of rainbow, thus avoiding the unhingement of time and space when Vivet was transported to the past mere days after the disappearance..."

"No! It cannot be!"

I shouted in defiance when Kairos said it quietly...

In my panic and disbelief of what I have learned, my wings have sprouted as if to answer my emotions.

I flew as high as I can and wailed in grief before letting my tears fall from my eyes.

My wings have begun to bring me to a place at the outskirt of the reservation where I saw a small cave opening at the foot of a craggy mountain.

I landed at the mouth of it and began walking towards it with nothing but the inner urgings of my subconsciousness.

Instead of rocks and stone, what I found inside is a majestic subterranean lake filled with pure and pristine clear water.

Surrounding it is a smooth wall of bedrock with water flowing through it creating a waterfall wall that showed me my reflection.

Or what I thought was me all along.

What I see instead is a girl dressed in majestic ceremonial clothes bearing a beautiful insignia of the empire.

Followed by a dozen handmaidens, she is walking with her head held up high as she went to the balcony and waved at the millions of people waiting for her.

"Who is she? Who am I?"

"If you want to know the truth, a payment has to be made. What will you offer, demiurge of hope?"

I heard a familiar disembodied voice we from the Parelthon Glaciers echoing around me.

"My ignorance..."

"Very well, the payment has been made. Walk to the center of the lake and the truth of the present will be revealed in its entirety."

I followed his instruction and began walking towards the lake and as I stepped on the water, I realized that there really is more to it than what meets the eye.

"My father is gone, I have to take ascend to the throne."

"No! That cannot be!"

"If it will be really the end of it all, why bother doing something about it?"

"Hope, you say? I do not know the meaning of such a thing."

"All that I have experienced in this short life of mine is nothing but sadness, grief, and regret. Hope is something I cannot say I have the chance to feel."

"A mere glorified figurehead I maybe, there is still something I can do for my people."

"Why are you here? What does a primordial deity want with a petty mortal monarch?"

"Salvation? You offer salvation to me?"

"You are offering something that I cannot hope to pay for even with all the riches of the Imperial Family."

"My friends, family, and comrades-in-arms. As we speak, the main bulk of the Imperial Council Army is on its way to my palace. I can never allow such a time when an imperial has to raise arms against its very own. The warning has been given. Pleas have been beseeched and requests denied. Only a select few have paid heed to our cautions. I have entered a pact with the god of time. This era is already lost. But the future is not. You are all now free of your responsibilities for taking care of me. I am now releasing you from your duties and do what you see fit in these dire times."

"I see that no one has moved an inch just as I did and you have all made your decisions. Now, it's time for us to pay the ultimate sacrifice for our empire. May this be our chance to fulfill our duty no matter how long will it take. No matter what happens to us. We will not fail again. Come, my comrades, the future awaits!"

I stopped walking and I just realized that I am already waist deep at the center of the cold lake and suddenly, a watery apparition appeared in front of me taking on my form but different clothes and aura about her.

"Who are you?" I asked in barely a whisper and she answered with my own voice.

"I am Viera the First. Last Empress of the Vieta Dynasty. Hereditary Monarchial Family of the Empire of the Plurinational Alliance Xenocracy. I am you and you are I..."

I closed my eyes and cried silently when I heard those words.

"Who am I without my father? Sitting on his throne with a crown on my head and a heavy responsibility on my shoulders..."

The apparition nodded at me and looked at my wet wings behind me, "You are also the daughter of the goddess of hope. You have wings yet you are not yet free to fly. But also, you have her powers to create what is real and true."

"Do I even have what it takes to make good of my oath to my people?"

"No, you don't have the power nor the will to do it alone," the apparition answered that broke my heart, "But what you do have are friends and comrades to help you fulfill your destiny. This world has to face darkness first before it can fight for the dawn it has so long yearned for."

I nodded and tried to smile to myself, "Why did I even make a pact with a god of time?"

"Because I believe that he will show me the world I can never achieve for my loved ones. That he will be loyal and true to me as I am to him," she said as she began to fade away, "Now, I will ask you a question, myself. Would you still want to bear the truth of the present or be blissfully ignorant once more and unaware of the past that you have so long yearned for?"

"Bear it, I must. I will not waste the sacrifices my loved ones had made to get me this far. For the bright new daw for us all. For the empire and the children. For our son. I will now uphold my end of the bargain."

"As you wish..."

And with that, the apparition has merged with me, and with it, the memories long been forgotten have been returned to me once more and I finally know now why I am even existing in this time and space...

"Vivet!"

I heard from my mind the call of my cousin and in his mind's eye, I saw him staring at my winged back standing in the center of the lake.

"Morris..."

"Listen, no matter who you are or who you have been, you will still be my beloved cousin, isn't that right?"

I cried once more when I heard him say that and nodded, "It will never change, child of the empire. Never will I be any more than your wayward cousin. That much I can promise you."

"So, what now? Should I call you, Your Majesty? You are technically my liege..."

I just chuckled when he even thought about something like that and willed my wings to lift me up and illuminate the cave as it shows to him my whole childhood, my life as the empress, and all the events leading to me being the Vivet Vivier he knows and cherished the most.

"I'll never let go, Vivet..."

I heard him whisper that as I landed in front of him and give him a warm hug, "I know you won't my beloved cousin..."