Celestial Saga: Exiled To Earth III 6 Stage Six: The Waxing Moon

"Mother! Mother!"

The bittersweet childhood memories began haunting Alaric in crystal clear view. Sitting high up on one of the castle's window panes, Alaric could still feel the burn on his hands as if it was only yesterday.

When Alaric was little, he would always burn his hands with his own spells. He would often cry, had no friends, he was quick at giving up at almost everything. But his mother was always there to give him strength. The smiling face of a woman, with long wavy golden locks and sapphire eyes appeared before him. Tears rolled down his rosy cheeks, as he reminisced the times when she was still alive.

Everything he did, he relied on her warmth and strength. He was laughed at by the other children in the guild, for being too weak, always compared to his mother, who was guild master back then. But Alaric didn't mind. He loved her more than anything. As long as she is with him, that's all that mattered.

But his mother knew very well that she didn't have much time left. At night, Alaric would run to his mother's room and there he would watch how the doctors desperately try to lengthen the guild master's life. No matter how painful it is, his mother always smiled in front of Alaric.

Worried about her only son, she began reading books to young Alaric, so that he'll have a dream to chase after when she's gone. Among the books she read to him, Alaric loved the story about the princess who was exiled from her kingdom, but came back a hero, the most. Alaric's mother felt at ease, seeing the boy grow stronger and more energetic day after day, trying to mimic the strong princess in the story. She knew she had no more than a year to live, and looking at his growth put her heart at ease.

"Mother, when I grow up, I am going to be just like the princess! And just like you!" Little Alaric knew nothing of his mother's condition at that time, until the day of her parting came.

The surprised boy fell in despair, while listening to his mother���s last words.

"I'll be alone! Don't leave me mother! I'm scared!" He shouted, but his mother weakly held his cheek with her cold hands. "No, you're not. You have your father, you have the entire guild to help you."

"No! They don't care about me!" The boy shouted,

"And… you have the princess, right?"

And she pa.s.sed away.

Alaric then remembered the first time he met Freyja and Kirin, when the thirteen-year-old Freyja snuck into the rune master's tower to save her friend. Back then, it was by accident that he saw her, and found her laughable, pathetic even. It wasn't admiration he felt, it was irritation. How can a plain, normal human even attempt to go against runemasters? So, he helped her. Not because he wanted her to succeed, but because he wanted her to accept her powerlessness—just like how he did.

But things turned out different. She wasn't a plain, normal human. And she wasn't alone either. She was just like the princess in the storybook, and not like him.

"It's all a lie." A voice rang inside Alaric's mind. The voice that has been infiltrating his thoughts ever since they stepped foot in Haia. "She came back because of Kirin, she couldn't care less about you."

"She's not like you. You are different."

"You will never be like her."

"Disgraceful"

"What a loser."

Voices after voices flooded Alaric's mind! He held his aching head tight, grappling with his sanity, with all those voices ramming into his thoughts. "STOP IT!" He shouted, but the voices grew louder.

Alaric struggled, but in the end, he gave into the comforting darkness. The darkness, in the likeness of his mother's comforting arms. "I want to sleep…mother." Alaric closed his eyes.

~ o 0 o ~

Kirin pinched Freyja's nose so hard that it hurt. Then he pushed the back of her knees with his foot, making her lose balance and fall down. "HEY! What's with that!?" She screeched.

"Come to think of it, you grew Freyja!"

"Really?"

"Yeah! Around… this tall!" (1 cm)

"Are you really looking for a fight!?"

"Come on, loosen up. You're too tense. If you're thinking about the phreinians coming here as your fault or something, then don't. For now, we have to finish our job here and to do that, we need to focus. Don't worry, I've got your back." Kirin ruffled her hair. It's been two days straight and they still hadn't found Alaric nor the prince. At this point, they are left with no other option but to ask the king himself. Waiting any more than this is just as dangerous. At that same day, Freyja and Kirin barged into the throne room, ignoring the lack of summons.

"You are not allowed here without—" Kirin silenced the guard with a swift strike on his nape. "Go Freyja." The guards were taken out quite easily by Kirin, while Freyja marched into the king's throne room, finding the man with a few of his concubines beside him.

"How insolent!" The king shouted, enraged with Freyja's lack of respect. He tried to make the guards seize her, but Freyja summoned Astrid, in his rune blade form, and announced herself from Celestia.

"Know your place human! Right before you is the sovereign of Celestia!" Freyja partly pulled down her collar, revealing a spiral wing mark on her upper chest.

Kirin sighed, while the guards were astonished. "That legend? Haha, has this kid lost her mind?" The guards laughed, but the King didn't. And the King's reaction just confirmed Freyja's suspicion... that the king is someone who is aware of Celestia's existence… of HER existence. "Make them all leave. I need to talk to you in private." Freyja ordered, which infuriated the guards. But then the king did as he is told and ordered the guards to leave them alone.

"But your majesty—"

"I SAID LEAVE!"

Now that the king, Freyja and Kirin are left in the throne room, Freyja went straight to the point and confronted the King. "Phreinian, I knew you are behind this." She bluffed, as if she was sure of what she's saying. But she hit the nail on its head! The King's eyes narrowed and he admitted his true ident.i.ty quite easily. "I didn't expect a Celestial to be here, much less the Lenfiare. But you can't do anything, I own this body now."

"So, a phreinian is possessing the king!?" Freyja thought, trying to keep a straight face. "Listen here, I just need two things from you. Give us Alaric and the Prince. And we'll have a deal." She demanded. "I know what you've been up to lately… why sacrifice the lives of people for your sorcery!? Are you phreinians really that desperate for power?"

"You should be saying that to yourself, Lenfiare. Aren't YOU despicable? You were born to hold Celestial core all to yourself. While we work our hardest to get the strength, you celestials were BORN with it and without lifting a finger! Do you even understand the struggle of humans? Of phreinians who are DESTINED to follow your tyranny?"

"…"

"You were allowed to traverse dimensions and play prefect, despite it being your kind who caused this divide in the first place. You can easily judge our ways because you never felt being in our position at all. With your arrogant race gone and your depleting power, you cannot do anything to stop Phrein from taking over!"

"That's a whole load of bull."

"While you comfortably hide behind the barriers you created, while still being able to go around dimensions anytime you wish, we were trembling in fear, afraid that any moment Celestia could attack us. You interfered with out hunt, you blame us for eating, but that's because you don't get hungry yourselves! So now with this crystal's power, and these foolish humans, I will open a portal to let all the phreinians FREE from the cage you created!"

Freyja can feel pa.s.sion, truth and sincerity in his words, which is why she was successfully provoked. She summoned Astrid, in his rune blade form. Holding the burning sword, she charged at the king. However, when she's about to split him in half, she hesitated. Looking at the phreinian somewhat reminded her of herself back in her previous world. Even though they are enemies, she couldn't help but resonate with his sentiments. She felt powerless, as well. Back then, she's just an imaginative child who could only dream. No friends, no one to talk to, no power, no nothing. She had to follow 'reality' and that 'reality' is something where her heart doesn't belong.

"What's the matter Lenfiare? Are you scared of killing this body?"

"FREYJA!" Kirin shouted, just to make sure she won't lose sight of their goal. "I know." She called Astrid back into her medallion and walked away from the king. "I will rescue Alaric, and the prince. Just you wait." But just before she could leave, the King surprisingly revealed their whereabouts. "Your friend is in his room and the prince is… about to die."

"WHAT!?"

Freyja and Kirin left the throne room at once and rushed to the city plaza. There, on a high pole, the prince is chained, and by tomorrow evening, he will be beheaded in front of the public. "Prince Saike!" Freyja shouted, but the prince could only look at her with half-lidded eyes. "Y-you…" He uttered, "it's… over." He gave up, the prince gave up.

"DON'T GIVE UP!" Freyja shouted. It felt like she was shouting at herself. One of the biggest reasons why she wanted to help the prince is because she could see a part of herself in him. She could see Freyja Lenfiare who's desperately fighting, but is too weak to do so. "Don't be so nosy! Just give up! I will die! Don't give me false hopes anymore! It's all over! For Haia, for me, for everyone!" Hearing the prince's response, Freyja turned her back, which surprised Kirin.

Aren't you going to save him?" He was expecting her to rush outside and impulsively save the prince like she always does. But no, not this time. Freyja trembled in frustration, looking at Kirin with disappointed eyes. "NO. How can I save someone who doesn't even want to be saved? The prince of this country is still Saike." Freyja walked away, Kirin followed.

"We should go find Alaric."

~ o 0 o ~