Capítulo 302: Family Reunion
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(General P.O.V)
The dark portal behind her disappeared as she stepped onto the infertile and dead soil of the Hollowlands. What was even more concerning was the fact that she couldn't see past the mist on the ground. It all gathered together to obscure the surroundings.
Darken created scythes of darkness as misshapen shapes begun forming around her in the mist. Then the moaning begun. A sound that sent shivers down her spine. Numerous steps sounded, all headed her way. She crouched low in preparation, her attack sequence already going through her mind.
The first of the shapes appeared and Paige blinked her eyes in confusion.
"Howdy missy, the name is Buckwild Thawne, the master sent me. Is you Miss Darken?"
"A zombie?"
She murmured.
"Well I'll be...how dare you? Zombie!? I'm a ghoul thanks ya very much. Not one for manners, I reckon?"
The other shapes turned out to be ghouls as well. And they were all chattering amongst themselves about how she had no manners. Paige felt a headache form.
"Alright alright...get out of here you lot."
A new voice made itself known. Paige looked up and was even more confused. A stone statue of a Hydra with different heads was hovering above her, flapping it's stone wings. There was someone on it's back as well. She tensed. she knew the man on it.
"Sivana."
Darken spat out, pointing at the supervillain.
"Are these things your creation?"
The stone Hydra touched down onto the ground and Sivana jumped off.
"No. More of a joint effort really."
He watched her with a surgical interest.
"How do your powers work exactly?"
Sivana enquired.
Then before she could answer he stiffened, looking away.
"Yes Warden."
Then he turned to Darken.
"No time. The Warden wants to see you."
"You mean Michael?"
Darken asked walking towards Sivana and the Hydra.
The man gave no response. Once he was on top he lightly smacked the hydra and it rose up with a cry from some of the heads. Paige looked down at her hand and saw it trembling.
She was about to meet her father...that son of a bitch.( Sorry Grandma) But she was ready now.
"It's one of the Warden's new initiative."
Sivana spoke up.
"What?"
Darken unsurprisingly had no idea what he was talking about. Her mind was too pre occupied with the family reunion about to happen. Michael had promised to hand over Felix Faust.
"You wanted to know about the ghouls. Basically, he lets all of us carry out our mad science experiments as much as we want. He even provides the resources."
The Hydra suddenly strafed to the right, escaping a collision with a large human bat.
"Watch where you're going Man-Bat! Use your senses! I'm flying here!"
Sivana angrily yelled showing a middle finger.
Man Bat screeched right back before disappearing into the mist.
"Can't really blame him though, this entire world is strange. Even his echo location is useless in the mist."
Sivana commented.
"So wait, Michael allowed you all free reign? Why?"
Sivana shifted to look back at her.
"Did you just forget the realm was in the blink of destruction a few months back?"
Realization dawned on Paige.
"He's preparing. Getting ready for another attack. If it even happens."
Sivana laughed at Paige.
"How naive. Not if but when."
He turned his head around.
"He's given us a chance. A chance to prove we can go up against the true monsters and come out winning." Light shone on his glasses.
"It's power. I would never say no to power."
Paige didn't know what to feel. Then again, they had only won because of stalling for time. Next time they might not be so lucky.
"The drums for the final war."
She whispered to herself just as a huge shape appeared past the mist. A huge castle with dozens of skyscraper sized towers.
"Welcome to the Warden's Palace. We grunts call it..."
"The Dark Tower?"
Paige interrupted with an unimpressed look.
Sivana scratched his bald head.
"Yes. How did you know?"
"Well, you villains lack in imagination."
Paige shrugged.
Sivana frowned.
"You're not getting a Sivana specially baked Cookie, young Lady."
(Elsewhere)
'Vaatu.'.
A whisper only he could hear.
Vaatu's divine sense spread out across the palace, the city and then the whole planet. Nothing was amiss. The source of the whisper was nowhere to be seen.
There was a small laugh.
"Oh come on brother, you think I would make it that easy for you?"
The voice, Vaatu realized was male. Male and very familiar.
A wisp of green flame appeared right before him.
"Follow the ember."
The voice instructed.
Vaatu leaned over to Raava.
"Look after the kids and the Queen. I will be back shortly."
Raava was about to ask questions but he was already gone, following after the wisp only he could see.
Vaatu knew how to lower his presence so he was not noticed as he left the chamber. He was also relieved to be leaving. He hated these fancy social affairs where everyone pretended to be cordial yet were planning plots on each other. It reminded him too much of Olympus.
The wisp led him through the hallways of the huge opulent palace. Each hallway seemed to have a portrait of the Queen but not of Kori or their parents.
Vaatu passed through the hallways, occasionally smiling at the bowing servants. No one asked him where he was going. Even the guards did not prohibit him from passing through the door to the outer garden. It showed just how loved Kori was to her people that they did not care.
The garden was a massive slot of land with an orchard, various water fountains, sculptures and hundreds of different flowers. Vaatu breathed in deep, smiling at the end. The garden reminded him of Demeter.
"I knew you'd love it here."
A new voice said as the wisp disappeared. Vaatu turned to the side and his eyebrows rose up.
"Well, I'll be damned."
(A few hours later)
The dinner party had ended and all the guests had left. Kori had also just finished tucking in the kids.
Now, Kori and her sister were alone. The former caressed her pendant for courage. This talk would likely determine the future of not only their relationship but to some extent Tamaran and it's people. Although Kori wanted a good relationship with her sister, she was also a mother and a queen now. She couldn't show weakness.
Queen Komandr stood in the throne room, her heart pumping nervously. It had been months since she had seen her younger sister, Princess Koriandr, and their last encounter had been fraught with tension and resentment. Komandr had managed to escape their captors, but Kori had been left behind, subjected to unimaginable horrors at the hands of the Gordanians.
When Kori had arrived with her entourage, Komandr's heart had leapt into her throat, jealousy and anger at the forefront of her mind. She had asked herself why Koriandr was back. Hated her for surviving.
But things were different now. She... wasn't sure how, but they were. Kori was like her. She couldn't see the physical toll that her sister's ordeal had taken on her, but her eyes, her eyes told a different story.
She saw the pain of the same memories that kept Komandr awake at night. However, she also saw a fierce determination in them that hadn't been there before. Koriandr was different. She was not the same girl Komandr used to hate and let her frustrations on.
"Kori," Komandr said, her voice soft and hesitant. "It's good to see you."
Kori's face remained impassive as she approached the throne, her eyes locked onto Komandr's. Inside however, she was shell shocked. What was going on? This...was this really Komandr?
"It's good to be back, sister," Kori said, her voice tentative and unsure. She had to be careful and distant. The cordiality could be a trick from her sister. A trick to make her let down her guard.
Komandr walked closer to her, rubbing her hands.
"Kori, please," she said, her voice pleading. "I know that I made a mistake by leaving you, but I did what I had to do to survive. I never stopped thinking about you, and I should have tried to find a way to rescue you."
Kori could see the remorse in Komandr's eyes.
It was too much.
"What is this?"
She finally asked, taking a few steps back while looking around, her eyes lighting up with power.
"You have never been this nice to me. The Komandr I know..."
"Used to be someone vile! Someone who could not let go of her hate." Komandr interrupted.
"I'm not her. Not anymore. I see everything so clearly now."
Tears welled up in her eyes.
"I know what I've done and I feel terrible for it."
Kori was confused. This conversation was not going how she was expecting. It felt like a dream. Her sister was genuinely asking for another chance. How could she say no? How could she say yes either? A small part of her, the vindictive side wanted Komandr to go through what she had. Luckily Kori's heart won out. Her eyes softened slightly as she floated down to the ground.
"I know," she said, and the surge of hope in Komandr's eyes made Kori sure of her next words.
"I forgive you, Komandr."
Komandr felt a weight leave her shoulders at Kori's words, but it was short-lived. Kori's next words cut like a knife.
"However, we have a lot to fix and some things need to be said."
Her face went granite hard.
"You've always resented me for being the one with the closer relationship to our parents. I'm not here for the throne, but if you can't put your jealousy and hate aside, then maybe I should be."
Komandr felt her face flush with anger and shame. She knew that Kori was right, but it was a bitter pill to swallow.
Kori on the other hand was not dumb. She couldn't mess this up because she also had her kids to think of. Words could be said but at the end of the day, actions mattered more.
"I...I'm sorry," Komandr said, her voice barely above a whisper. "It's true I have always been jealous of you, and I've never been able to admit it. But I'm willing to try. I'm willing to work on this, Koriandr."
Kori's face softened slightly, and she took a step closer to her sister.
"I know that you are, sister," she said, holding out her hand.
"A new start then. For both of us. Let's put our differences aside."
Komandr nodded, sighing in relief.
"Thank you."
With those words, the two sisters embraced, a symbol of their renewed commitment to each other and to Tamaran.
:---------------------------------------:
Under a veil of divine spirit energy, Vaatu and Sai watched the reunion between both sisters.
"This feels very wrong. Intruding on their moment. However, it's better than having a dead Aunt and a heartbroken mother."
Sai told Vaatu.
Vaatu was still in disbelief at how things were going. The Sai next to him was not the cute little brother he knew. This Sai was from the future.
His resemblance with Aden was uncanny. The only difference was his green eyes. Everything from the tall height of 6'4, to his handsome face, to his black clothing and long hair...it was all Aden. Then again, the two of them were very close. Still, it felt good to Vaatu that his younger brother had basically modelled himself into his dad.
"So your idea to solve their personal family issues, is to mind control your aunt and make her less of a bitch?"
Vaatu asked.
"It's not mind control."
Sai rolled his eyes.
"I just...showed her things from a different perspective. Mind control makes it sound as if I messed with her personality, I didn't. She's still the same insufferable Aunt who refused to send a single Christmas Card despite mom always sending her a present each year. For 95 years no less."
Vaatu raised his eyebrows.
"This...this is a lot."
He shook his head.
"I know. I wasn't planning to actually intervene." Sai admitted before his face grew dark.
"However, this night changes everything. You think she was jealous before? You should have seen how she got once she knew that mom was the Queen of basically an entire universe. She attacks her and mom is forced to defend herself and Komandr gets hurt pretty bad, loses an eye. The fight between them causes a death toll of hundreds before you and Raava intervene."
Vaatu watched both sisters who were still embracing.
"Maybe you're..."
He turned to Sai and found out that he had disappeared.
"Rude brat."
He cursed in a low voice.
"I heard that."
Came the whisper.
Vaatu smiled.
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