Junia 105 C.D

Toys lay around in a chaotic mess, some broken, some shattered to the very minute of pieces. The room is dimly lit, with only two candles at the diagonal ends of the room. On the bed, Adrian sat in contemplation. Riya had already drifted into the world of dreams. Eliza had left the room long ago after consoling them throughout the evening.

Adrian, in his state of confusion and anger, had felt this sudden urge to break things. He couldn’t suppress it as he unleashed retribution on all his toys. The state of the room was the result of his frustration and pent-up anger. Adrian did not completely understand why he did, but he felt something inside him settle down after his actions.

‘My mother… they treated her like a servant, NO it was worse than that, SHE IS MY MOTHER!!!!’

Every time Adrian remembered that moment when he saw Lyra subjecting his mother to the humiliation, a fire burned inside Adrian’s heart. He felt extreme rejection remembering those moments.

‘Why did they do this? Ma is so kind and caring. Why would somebody treat her like this?’

Adrian was young; he did not understand the meaning of social standing. The only other person who could rile him up so was the General.

‘Does that man also treat Ma the same way?’

Adrian dark thoughts began to overtake his rationality as he was unable to keep his emotions in check. Slowly his crimson eye began to ooze red. Blood seeped down from Adrian’s left eye. There was no pain for him to feel, but he noticed the wetness around his eye. Adrian touched it and saw blood on his finger. Adrian slowly started to feel sleepy as he contemplated what was happening to him. He looked around seeing Riya sleeping. A sense of peace took root in Adrian’s heart as he slept while giving her a hug. It was warm and cozy; he did not wish to let go of this embrace. Things began to change within Adrian; as he slept, someone was waking up after a long time.

…

The next morning

“Otis, I would like to ask you some things.”

“Give me a moment, Adrian. I will be with you shortly. You can take a seat in my study.”

Adrian made his way to Otis’ study after listening to him. His face had still not regained the calm and joyous expression it always had.

‘Something is wrong with him.’, Otis didn’t fail to notice this sudden change in demeanour. After finishing up his tasks, Otis made his way to Adrian. As he entered his study, Otis saw Adrian sitting on a chair that was far too large for himself. He smiled, seeing the boy and then took a seat himself.

“Tell me, what’s the matter?”

Adrian hesitated a bit; he was trying to form his words as aptly as possible. Seeing Adrian having difficulty speaking, Otis moved to make him more comfortable.

“It’s alright, Adrian; I will help you solve your problem. Tell me what it is without holding back any detail.”

“Yes-yesterday when we went to the palace…”

Adrian recounted the entire incident to Otis without leaving any detail. As the incident continued to be narrated, Otis’ expression grew from a smile to a frown to being totally grim.

“I-I want to ask, wh-why was she treated that way? She didn’t do anything wrong.”

“It is alright, Adrian; you don’t need to worry about it. I will talk to Eliza; everything is going to be alright soon.”

“Ar-Are you s-sure?”

“Why yes, I am. Don’t worry, Eliza is going to be fine. These are matters of the adults you need not concern with them. Now how would you like to go eat some sweets from the kitchen?”

Otis pacified Adrian with his sweet words, but his mind was already working at maximum capacity, trying to figure out the next course of action.

“Un”

“Then hurry up before the chef gives them away to someone else.”, Adrian immediately got off his seat and ran away. Children were easier to manipulate than adults.

‘This is bad; the Lord must be notified of this. I can’t falter after having maintained the façade for 5 whole years.’

Following the train of thoughts, Otis began writing a letter. It was addressed to Lyra, and he knew that she was the only person who could mend this broken situation. The consequences of not doing so would be disastrous. After he was done, he immediately called for sentry.

“Take this to the palace and hand it only to Lady Lyra. Tell them my name, and they won’t stop you from meeting her. Now hurry, be there as soon as possible.”

Otis then wrote another letter with the same content but much more stern words regarding the matter. This was addressed to Marcus, who was in Terra at the moment. Otis understood that while Adrian was a harmless child, some things just couldn’t be done. Marcus had told him that if Adrian were to be in a highly agitated or unstable state, there was a highly likely chance that the entity would emerge again.

When neither Emmanuel nor Marcus is around to control the situation, it could prove to be highly catastrophic for Junia to welcome the wrath of such a powerful being.

…

Adrian walked towards his room with a plate of sweets in hand. He would not be usually accorded such luxury, but today, Otis had been unexpectedly kind. However, the sweets could only distract Adrian for a moment. His interest in the matter was not fleeting, and he was willing to go the distance to get what he wanted.

Adrian entered his room to find Eliza sitting there with Riya.

“Adrian, come, honey, join us.”

“Ma, look what I got.”

“Addy got shweets.”

Riya immediately ran towards him and grabbed most of what was on the plate. Adrian did not remark; he knew she loved to eat sweets. He went and sat next to his mother and offered her some of the sweets. Eliza picked a tiny piece from the plate. The rest she began feeding to Adrian. Adrian gladly took all that his mother offered. Riya, on the other hand, was munching on whatever she had in hand.

“You’ll grow fat if you eat so much.” Adrian taunted his sister. Riya made an annoyed face, but she was revelling in the taste to be bothered by his taunts. Eliza smiled, seeing her children acting normal. Yesterday had made her realise the disparity in her standing and ability. She would not enter the palace anytime soon, but she had to send her son to such a vile place.

‘I’m so sorry Adrian, I wish I had the power to change things. I wish I could provide the both of you the most conducive environments free of conflicts and ulterior motives.’

She was an animal who thought herself free until she was made to realise that she was just in a zoo for the pleasure of people far more superior to her thinking. Such a realisation was existential, and it had forced Eliza to react in an erratic yet humane manner. When she looked at Adrian, she began to understand that he might have the opportunities she didn’t, and her eyes began to see hope again.

“Adrian, honey, what do you want to be when you grow up?”

Adrian grew silent upon his mother’s askance. He had never really thought about what he wanted to be. Yet now, when asked the question and the things that had happened in the past 2 days, he began to feel that there was something he wanted to become.

“I want to protect you, Ma, from everything.”

Eliza was amazed that he would have such noble intentions, but she understood where he was coming from. Adrian was heavily attached to her; there was no doubt that he cared for Eliza and Riya above all in this world. Eliza, however, understood that it would not be enough. She needed to nudge the boy in the right direction, not the one his environment had thrust upon him but the one where he would be able to excel.

“Honey, you know this won’t be enough, right?”

At her response, Adrian looked at her questioningly.

“You cannot protect Riya and me just by saying you will. If you truly wish to make it happen, you must be stronger than anyone who tries to harm us.”

“I will grow stronger, Ma; I will be so strong that nobody will be able to harm you.”

“What if it’s an army?”

“I-uh will…I will have my own army then.”

“Only lords can have armies, Adrian.”

“Then I will be one.”

“But there are many lords here in Endaria; they could easily defeat you.”

“Then…then I-I will be EMPEROR.”

When these words left Adrian’s mouth, a force was released from his voice as his eyes began to glow again. Eliza looked into them out of habit; while usually, they would calm her this time around, she was immediately sucked in.

Eliza knees immediately fell to the ground as she looked around her. The sky was clouded with crimson reflected in the air all around her, and an unholy amount of pressure was being exerted. Eliza’s head was facing the ground, there she saw a stream of blood flowing through her, dying her clothes in red as it passed through.

It took everything she had to raise her head to look around. As she did, lay there a short distance away from her the most horrendous display of might. On a mound of dead bodies stood a man, his long black hair draped down on his shoulders. His ears had been pierced, and his face was the most heavenly thing she had ever seen. Just as Eliza was marvelling at the man, she noticed his eyes. Fear descended all over her body. She felt as if she was looking at the abyss. The man had blue and red eyes. He was reigning from his throne of death; he was the true monarch an Emperor. He was her son.

Eliza was then ejected from the field of death and found herself back in the room. She was palpitating.

“Ma-Ma-Ma are you okay?”

She could finally hear Adrian’s voice, but when she looked at him, she flinched for a moment. Eliza had been reminded of the fear she had only just experienced. However, she returned to her motherly nature after seeing the worry in Adrian’s eyes.

“I’m alright honey, I just blanked out for a moment. I will go take some rest; you play with Riya.”

Eliza stood up and left the room. Adrian looked at his mother leaving; he then looked at Riya, who had not noticed anything that had occurred. She continued to revel in the tastes of sweetness. Adrian, however, was shocked by what had happened a mere moments ago. He felt it when he had declared that he would be Emperor to protect his mother. He felt something within him hum. It resonated with his entire being. Adrian experienced the moment, and he felt alive, he felt strong, and above all else, Adrian felt that everything he had dreamed of was possible. Boundless confidence and spirit were instilled in him.

At that moment, Adrian felt as if the world spoke to him, bowing before him. Even he had blanked out at that moment. Adrian had seen a man with long hair and the same eyes as his. They were standing on boundless serene water. The man had smiled when he saw Adrian and after that Adrian was brought back to his room. Adrian had felt strangely connected to that man. He knew who the man was, but he was not able to say it for some reason.

Adrian once again closed his eyes in hopes of seeing the man again, but all he saw was the darkness he always saw when he closed his eyes. Adrian began to put the vision at the back of his mind.

Just as Adrian was about to open his eyes, the abyss spoke to him.

“THE…HUMBLE…ONE…GREETS…THE…IMPERATOR”