Chapter 14: Wings of fate

Manda looked upset. Her hair was messy, and her eyes looked like sandbags weighing her down. Brinks, however, has never looked more angry in his life until now. Rocks didn’t make any expression; he just stared at the duo. Manda whispered, “Brinks, you said we wouldn’t be loud-”

“I wasn’t loud,” snapped Brinks. His eyes glared deathly at Manda, “I’m only here cause this could be a turning point,” he turned his face to Rocks; he looked annoyed. “Now, where is it?”

“Where’s what?” Rocks said smugly.

Brinks huffed and puffed, “The monster! Nyxon!”

“I don’t know where he is– and I don’t appreciate you busting my door down. You need to relax,” replied Rocks. Manda covered her mouth in suspense as Brinks got even angrier. “You’re just like your father– stubborn and arrogant. You think you can do whatever you want because you’re the boy's son?”

“That’s right!” snapped Brinks. He moved his face closer to Rocks, his breath tickling him. “With that brat gone, I’ve taken the role of a prince again- now that Nyxon is gone,”

“You don’t possess any quality of a Prince,” spat Rocks. He must have triggered something for Brinks to shout at him. He had started shoving shelves on the ground, hoping he would find Lapis or Nyxon.

Nyxon looked gloomy. He wasn’t afraid of Brinks, but being called a monster made him feel sick. Lapis noticed Nyxon’s face and reassured him silently, hoping it would all be over soon for her brother's sake. Brinks glared at the table Rocks stood behind. He thought he was hiding something. “Move,” whispered Brinks.

Manda shouted, “THAT’S ENOUGH! HE ISN’T HERE!”

“OH, YOU WOULD JUST LOVE THAT, RIGHT?” shouted Brinks. “YOU’RE IN JUST AS MUCH TROUBLE AS ME IF WE DON’T FIND HIM,”

“I DON’T CARE! LET’S JUST LEAVE!”

Manda wanted to cry. But she needed to be strong. She needed to get Brinks out of there. Brinks left, but not before slamming another shelf to the ground. He left the shop in shambles before Rocks. Manda felt terrible. She picked up the shelves and placed things back where she found them. Rocks also started to help. Manda kept whispering to herself; she was stressed out more than usual. Luna and Nyxon held each other’s hands while hiding. It was the only thing Nyxon could do to calm her down.

“I’m sorry-” said Manda.

“It’s fine,” responded Rocks. He had cut her off before she could finish. “I never liked that boy– Brinks, I mean,”

“I’m really trying. I just hope he’s safe… Nyxon, I mean…”

Manda picked up a cracked frame. It held a picture of a little girl with dark skin and puffy hair. “Hey– if you don’t mind me asking… who’s this?”

Rocks looked at the photo. He smiled (That was rare.) “That’s Kairo, my Grand-Daughter. She always wanted to be the world's greatest inventor.”

“Do you think she can do it?” asked Manda.

“I believe she can try,” responded Rocks.

Manda finally helped Rocks finish cleaning. She was happy to help fix Brinks's mistakes in the shop. She returned the photo to Rocks, admiring how pretty his Granddaughter was. She leaned against the shop door (the only one that worked).” Hey. Do you really miss Nyxon?” said Rocks. Nyxon’s ears perked up from the sudden question.

“Yeah… I hope he’s ok,” responded Manda.

“Ugh, good. Er, Nyxon! Come out,” shouted Rocks. Manda turned around violently to the shop again, where Nyxon stood with Luna and Lapis.

Manda started shaking. Her legs trembled at the sight of seeing Nyxon again after so long. Nyxon slowly walked to Manda, each footstep getting heavier than the last. Lapis and Manda also popped out from the back. Manda couldn’t keep her excitement steady at seeing the trio. She jumped and cried tears of joy as she latched onto Nyxon. Her cries made Nyxon happy to be back. She made Nyxon fall to the ground as she cried and shouted gibberish at Nyxon’s return. Nyxon’s eyes glinted with joy as he tried to explain everything that happened.

As the hours passed, Manda stayed in the shop with everyone to celebrate their time back in Esmus. Lapis helped Rocks place the door back on its hinges while the key was being made. Luna, Nyxon, and Manda all chatted with Milo, occasionally hopping on Nyxon’s head. Lapis finished with Rocks and returned to the group, with Milo jumping on her head as a surprise. “Wow! You two almost look alike. You really are siblings.” said Manda, shocked at how Lapis looked after all the years.

“Yeah, she’s really cool,” said Nyxon. Lapis was happy with the compliment but didn’t let her face show it.

“Well, I’m glad you’re ok… I really missed you, Nyxon,” responded Manda. Nyxon was happy with the response. Manda turned to Luna, “And your Dad… he’s fine. Although, he just whispers to himself all day– I don’t know if that’s fine to you,”

“Well, he’s alive? But if he’s whispering to himself… He’s probably consulting the Deities again.” said Luna.

“Your Dad can do that?” squealed Lapis. For once, everyone could see the look of fear across her face.

“W-Well, yeah. My Mom and Dad are angels of time, meaning they have a job to align time properly. But if he’s whispering to himself, it means something or someone is messing with fate.”

“What could be doing it?” asked Nyxon. Luna shrugged her shoulders. She didn’t know anything else about it.

Everyone managed to calm down. Nyxon finally retrieved the key to open up King Cleo’s cell. He was ready to leave, but not before thanking Rocks a thousand times. Everyone decided to hold up in the shop until then. Manda was ready to leave, but she pulled Lapis aside to have a talk with her. They were outside. The bright-lit stars above illuminated the kingdom for Lapis to see. It was beautiful, but Lapis didn’t comment on it. Manda tugged on Lapis’s shoulder, “Hey, how’s everything?”

“It’s fine,” said Lapis, still faced as usual.

“I’m sorry about everything. I wish I could have done more back then, but-”

“But you did. If you hadn’t been sneaking down the hallway every day… I probably would have starved to death,” chuckled Lapis.

Manda smiled. “I’m glad I could help… And Nyxon?”

Lapis frowned. “I… don’t know.”

“You don’t know?” asked Manda.

“No, no, no. I know, but it seems weird. Being with Nyxon… feels weird.”

“What’s weird about it?”

Lapis took a deep breath. Her breath was shaky, and she could feel her palms getting sweaty. She was wondering what was wrong with her. “I don’t understand people’s emotions… I don’t know why– but with Nyxon… I can understand everything about him. How he feels, what he’s thinking, what he’s saying…” said Lapis. Manda nodded as Lapis continued to speak. “When… I got poisoned by Magnus… Nyxon took care of me for the whole month. I couldn’t move, and sometimes it hurt to talk. But when Nyxon was done taking care of me… he did this thing.”

“What was it?” asked Manda. Lapis tried motioning what had happened, but it looked like she was trying to move while being tied by a rope. She gave up.

“He like– wrapped his arms around me… I don’t know how else to describe it–”

“A hug,” replied Manda. “He gave you a hug,”

Lapis looked at her hands. They were still shaking and sweating from talking about her feelings. “Y-Yeah… a hug…” whispered Lapis. She tucked her hands into her cloak. “It made me feel… weird… like– all warm and fuzzy. I think I still might be sick. I know that Elf can heal people–”

“Lapis, you’re not sick,” chuckled Manda. She started to laugh but quickly stopped after Lapis stared at her. “Lapis, that was love. You felt love,”

“Love?” whispered Lapis. She started to feel warm talking about it. “I-I don’t get it?”

“It’s like–well… think of it as a warm hug around your heart. When you feel love, it means you’re happy,”

“I’m… happy when Nyxon hugs me?”

“Yeah! There you go! You love Nyxon, that’s why.” Manda was happy to see Lapis grow more towards Nyxon. It was sweet. “Like for me– I love Nyxon too, and so does he. So when we’re together, we both feel great.”

“So… I love, Nyxon. Huh,” whispered Lapis. “Every night, I longed for that same ‘love’ feeling. And every time it happened, I felt…happy.”

Manda smiled. She noticed Lapis’s unsure facial expression, but Lapis finally noticed what was wrong with her now. Lapis thanked Manda for helping her out. “Hey, make sure you take care of Nyxon for me, okay?” said Manda. Lapis nodded. The duo then returned to the shop. Rocks was fast asleep behind the counter while Luna and Nyxon played with Milo. Milo quickly jumped to Luna to play with her more, making Nyxon’s face sour. Lapis’s arrival made Nyxon happy. She could feel that same warm and fuzzy feeling again. She called for Nyxon and watched him slowly approach her. Nyxon stared in confusion, wondering what Lapis could need from him at the time. She hugged him. Lapis hugged Nyxon. Nyxon hugged her back. It made her feel loved.

Luna cleared on the plan again. Nyxon was to sneak into the kingdom and retrieve King Cleo. Meanwhile, Lapis was to distract the guards in the throne room while Luna waited outside on horseback to help with King Cleo and get Lapis out of there. Manda was also there to listen to the plan. She would act clueless about what was happening to hide their secret alliance. They nodded at the plan set in motion. The group set off into the night as Manda waved goodbye, knowing this would probably be the last time they saw each other. The trio watched as Manda flew into the night sky; the plan was now in motion.

Luna quickly hurried the siblings to the castle. They needed to get a horse for their getaway plan. Lapis felt the air blow against her silver hair. It was nice for her and Nyxon. They finally arrived at the castle. The lights were lit inside. It confused the trio. No one was supposed to be home, so why were the lights on? Luna told the duo to wait outside. She wanted to make sure nothing important happened. Luna pushed open the doors inside. She peeked her eyes and ears through to make sure no one was there. She pushed the door open– until it swung open completely on its own. Luna’s mom stood in front of her, worried about her disappearance. Patrica crossed her arms, “Thank goodness you’re here! I was worried sick!”

“M-Mom?” replied Luna. Her voice was in terror at her mother's sudden appearance. She shook her head to ensure Lapis and Nyxon were gone; thankfully, they were. “S-Sorry, I was… visiting the lake-”

“Luna, at midnight?”

Luna sighed. She gave in and walked through the doors. “I’m not a very good liar, am I?”

Patrica chuckled. “No, no, you never were,” said Patrica. She put her hands on Luna’s shoulders and walked her to the living room. It looked like the kids were also there already.

“I keep telling you. Bosken crystals don't mix with tree saps,” asserted Lev. She pushed her glasses up as Cormac groaned loudly.

“Geesh, what’s next? Are you gonna tell me they also won’t find Nyxon?”

“No! But– they’ll help you stop failing your finals!” shouted Lev.

Patrica quickly calmed the room down. Neve was descending in the air as the group noticed Luna with Patrica. The kids quickly shouted with glee as they hugged their favorite sister. “LUNA! We missed you!” shouted Neve. She nearly squeezed Luna to death with her hugs.

“H-Hey, guys!” squeaked Luna. She could barely breathe because of Neve’s strength. “N-Neve! P-Please, let go!” Neve stopped hugging Luna. She started gasping for air as she pat Neve on the head. “So, how’s school?”

“Fine-” responded Cormac.

“No!” shouted Lev, cutting off Cormac as he rolled his eyes. “Cormac is failing!”

“Barley,”

“Fourteen absences isn’t barley!”

Neve sighed. “It’s no use. He’s just gonna say the same thing-”

“What else would I say? He’s still out there,” whispered Cormac. He sounded upset.

Luna rested her hand on Cormac’s shoulder. It put him at ease for a bit.

“I’m sure wherever he is, he’ll be fine.”

“How can you even be calm?” asked Cormac. He looked upset. His eyes flooded with tears as they drenched the school paper on the wooden table.

Luna wanted to tell the truth. But she couldn’t. She couldn’t risk dangering Nyxon and Lapis. Luna calmed Cormac down and helped him with his homework and studies. Luna’s Mom soon called her into the kitchen, wondering why there was a mess. “Luna– I know I raised you better than this. Dishes in the sink? All of these–” Patrica paused. “Three dishes in the sink? Did you have a guest over?”

Luna felt a pain in her heart. She knew the truth, but she couldn’t say it. All the pressure was boiling inside of her as she grew more nervous. “Um, the only guests I had were my hands, mouth, and stomach,” chuckled Luna. She was very nervous, and her mother didn’t find the joke funny.

“Funny,” whispered Patrica. She raised her hands to the ceiling as a bright, sparkly gold Aura appeared from her hands. A lightning scar formed over her face as a portal opened from the ceiling, dropping Nyxon and Lapis.

The siblings groaned in agony as Luna covered her mouth in fear. She had forgotten her mother could open portals. “That is what five years in the south tower of nomads can get you to do,”

“My head…” groaned Nyxon. Lapis was trying to get up, but the floor was too comfy. Milo even took the chance to jump on Nyxon’s head, knocking him out dramatically.

“Mom– but how–”

“I tapped your shoulder. I read your mind as you walked in,” responded Patrica.

Luna gave up and put her head down. Her Mom had her whole plan figured out. King Cleo and Queen Patrica could bend time to their whim. It was impossible to get anything from the two of them. Luna ended up telling her Mom everything. While her Mom was skeptical of the plan, she knew she could do nothing to stop Luna from doing what she wanted to do. Patrica wished Luna farewell. She also gave Nyxon a giant hug. Lapis waved… that was it; she was still getting used to seeing other people.

Luna wanted to take a bath to ease her mind off of things with a nice bath. Nyxon needed one, too. After all, he hasn’t had a decent bath in a month. Lapis stayed behind to watch over Milo; she would take a bath later. Nyxon and Luna sunk deep into the water; the heat warmed their bodies as they stared into their reflections. Nyxon noticed Luna’s long blonde hair floating atop the water; it looked like a river flowing in its own path. Luna looked into Nyxon’s brown eyes, admiring how they shined from the lights, “How are you holding up?” asked Luna. Her voice was soft.

“I’m fine… I’m sorry I was gone for so long,” responded Nyxon. He let out a deep sigh as he dunked his head underwater. He was talking, but Luna couldn’t understand him. She thought it was funny. He brought his head back up, “With Lapis getting sick– and Kogohime in the forest, there was just a lot to do… I was scared.”

“There’s nothing to be scared of–” said Luna. She smiled brightly, “We were all worried about you. Lev, Cormac, Neve, Manda, Mom, and even Rocks. They all missed you so much,”

Nyxon smiled. He let a tear run over his face as Luna swam to him. Their eyes met, taking in the feeling of being near each other again. Luna reached over for a hug, her heart and Nyxon’s chest meeting each other again after so long. Nyxon admired Luna’s long blond hair; it rested on top of the water like lily pads on the river. Nyxon combed it gently as Luna buried her face into his chest. Nyxon tried to adjust himself, but Luna wouldn’t let him. “Can we… stay like this? I missed doing this,” asked Luna; her voice was almost impossible to hear. Her face brushed against Nyxon as the two twirled in the pool of water; they would be there for a while.

Luna finally got dressed; she was done bathing with Nyxon. Nyxon glared at her long hair again; something was on his mind he couldn’t shake. He smiled, “I think you’d be really pretty with short hair,”

Luna turned around, “Is that… what you want?” asked Luna, her voice just as soft as it was before. Nyxon nodded; he was sure it was something he wanted.

Luna walked to the front door, reaching into the brown shelf that was sitting next to it. She rummaged around quickly and found a silver pair of scissors. Luna walked to the standing mirror in the room, using her hand to decide how short Nyxon meant for her hair to be. Each cut of her scissors echoed in the room, and each lump of golden hair hit the floor like a sack of potatoes as she admired her hair in the mirror. She turned to Nyxon, asking if her hair was pretty enough for him, to which Nyxon nodded in agreement.

Luna was happy Nyxon found her pretty; it was something she was looking forward to again. Although, Nyxon wasn’t finished with Luna just yet. Nyxon had a braided hairstyle that he dreamt Luna had worn one day. He sat Luna down on a chair, taking a handful of her shoulder-length hair into his hand. He made the hair loop into each other around her head. Luna even started to hum a sweet tune; it made Nyxon’s mind ease again. Nyxon finally finished; Luna couldn’t help but admire how pretty she looked in front of the mirror again. Nyxon rested his head against Luna’s shoulder; his hair brushed against Luna’s pointy ears as she admired how soft Nyxon felt. She was happy again; nothing could get better than this.

Luna and Nyxon finally left the room together. The duo quickly noticed Lapis holding Milo in the air; she looked like she was trying to talk to the animal. “Can you understand me?” asked Lapis. The cat meowed in response. Lapis quickly noticed the duo watching her talk to Milo, but Lapis pretended nothing happened as she followed Luna and Nyxon. Luna led the group outside to the stables. The horses were asleep, but Luna’s humming woke one of them up.

Lapis and Luna hopped on easily, while Nyxon nearly had to wrestle the animal to let it climb on last. They busted from the castle, leaping over fences as they ran to the streets of Esmus. Lapis clung on tight to Nyxon; the air blowing in her face was almost irritating for her eyes. Then, they arrived at the barrier of water that had surrounded the castle. They had to ride an extra few miles to reach the back entrance to the castle. Nyxon used his Aura to light the path ahead. Its bright blue sparkles were beautiful to look at. It raised a question for Luna. “Hey, so if Nyxon isn’t Magnus’s son. How does his Aura shine the way it does?” asked Luna. She glared at the brightly lit Nyxon in front of her.

“It’s because,” spoke Lapis. She finally stopped letting the wind bother her. “Nyxon is the son of the Queen and King of Elderians. Meaning if Magnus hadn’t done what he did, Nyxon would be the King.” Nyxon’s eyes widened as the news struck him.

“But what about that thing Nyxon did at the tournament?” asked Luna.

“Thing?” replied Lapis.

“I know Elderians are capable of transforming,”

“Yeah. That’s the Aeon Ikari. It’s the manifestation of an Elderians rage.” Lapis took the cloak off of her head, revealing her silver hair and sharp teeth. She closed her eyes, and instantly, her hair spiked upwards as she transformed. Her purple eyes glared at Luna, “This, is it right here,”

Luna’s jaw dropped. She could barely contain the surprise. “Nyxon, you can do that too, right?”

Nyxon shrugged. “I’m trying. But whenever I get angry… I can’t control it. Like my body is taking control of me.” Nyxon let his eyes rest. He laid his head on Luna’s back, hoping the ride to the castle would end soon.

Luna’s eyes softened, seeing Nyxon fall asleep. Lapis undid her transformation, “He hasn’t slept like this for a while. I can notice,”

“I hope things calm down soon,” said Luna, steering the horse past a bush. “I want Nyxon to be ok again,”

“He’ll be okay. I don’t think Nyxon’s the one to give up easily,”’ said Lapis. She sounded confident when talking about Nyxon. It put her at ease.

Luna gasped, “Oh yeah– so, if Nyxon is an Elderian, and he looks like this, why doesn’t he look almost like you?”

“Nyxon awakened his powers way later than mine. So his skin, hair, and color won’t change. I used to have dragon traits, but my powers awakened when I was only a baby. Elderian blood is really pure, so it just washed away anything else I had but that.” said Lapis. She sounded wise again when she was talking about Elderians.

The horse soon came to a stop. Lapis and Nyxon got off as they stretched at the back of the castle. Lapis looked at the chains on her wrist; they still bothered her. Nyxon prepared himself to fly to his room. He waved Lapis goodbye again, wishing her luck in distracting the guards in the throne room. Nyxon flew away, his wings echoing in the background as the view of his sister and wife grew more distant. Luna gazed at Nyxon above as he entered his window. Luna whispered, “Alright, I have to go now–”

“Hey, be careful,” said Lapis. She could feel her Aura flowing from her body. A red smoke with sparkle glints erupted off her as she crashed through the castle window.

All the guard's attention was drawn to Lapis. Her cloak was covered with glass shards from head to toe as she glared at the guards before her. They all shrieked in fear as Lapis’s sharp teeth glared through the dark cloak. “There’s something about everyone's voice that annoys me…” whispered Lapis. Her Aura started to flow from her body as her hair flowed into the air.

She threw her cloak into the wind. Her body jerked in different directions as she started to transform again. Her teeth flashed the guards as they took a step back. She thrusted her hands into the air and twisted her chains with lightning. The sparks and cracks in the air intimated the guards as they tried to move forward to attack.

Nyxon continued running down to King Cleo’s jail cell. The hallway was cold and dripping wet with leaky pipes. He splashed his feet down harder and continued running until he found all the cells open. Everything was open, but he couldn’t find King Cleo’s. He shouted his name, hoping he would respond. Nyxon closed his eyes. He tried to focus on every sound possible around him. The water hitting the floor, the wind flowing from the pipes, and the sounds of fighting happening in the throne room. Eventually, Nyxon heard it: the whispers. Nyxon walked in the direction of the voice. And there he was, King Cleo. Nyxon tapped him lightly, “Um, King Cleo?”

Cleo turned around in suspense. He didn’t expect Nyxon to be behind him. “Nyxon?” he said confusingly.

“I’m here to break you out–” said Nyxon as he pulled a key from his cloak. He started to twist and turn the key inside the lock.

King Cleo stepped out of the cell. His feet were soaked with water. “Thank you,” he dusted his shirt off as he noticed Nyxon’s troubled look. “What’s the matter with you? You look upset,”

Nyxon shrugged, “I’m just… sorry about all of this,”

“No, I should be sorry,” replied Cleo. He caught Nyxon off guard by the sudden comment, “You shouldn’t even have to deal with all of this. You’re so… young.”

“Luna’s also helping me; she was the first to wanna do this,”

“She’s always persistent. It’s impossible to make her stop something,” commented Cleo. He started to laugh a little. It almost made the room seem better than it was. “But, this is my fault. I should never have listened to that… idiot!”

Nyxon was shocked by the sudden outburst. He almost ran away from Cleo; he’d never heard him yell before. “What’s wrong?” asked Nyxon.

“I messed up the timeline. And this time, I don’t think I can turn it back far enough to fix it,” replied Cleo. He started to walk from the dungeon as Nyxon followed. “Eighteen years ago… I could have prevented everything from happening…”

Nyxon felt odd. He didn’t know what he was talking about or what he was referencing. He just knew to say something. “You don’t need to turn back time to fix your mistakes. You can just do it right now,”

King Cleo felt his eyes widen. He looked at Nyxon, who was smiling. That smile… was refreshing.