I saw him from a distance and something clicked in my mind and the environment. It was a fleeting moment of sense but I brushed it aside.
* * *
"Brother Zhu please tell me," I said half worried about have scared about my parents. He looked at me and gave a small true smile of light.
"Father has prepared to leave with the Heavenly Mother after you go greet them, they have have prepared for you power and an Immortal worthy enough to rule the Heavenly Realm, should me and our brother continue our power dispute and should you abdicate the throne, in case if a tragedy were to befall either Father or Heavenly Mother, for we know if one falls they both fall," he said sad and in a sort of 'be prepared' you're about to be ambushed. I thought of all I needed to tell them and I decided I need not fear for if I was banished or killed I would at least be able to have a fresh start.
I entered the Great Hall and bowed to my parents, they smiled seeing me and I could visibly tell that my mother was forcefully waiting for me, it was her time to rise from ashes. My Father in the other hand would go to the mortal realm and experience a life cut short during his wait for my mother's return. "My Daughter you return," My Father said his voice booming in the echo of the Great Hall. He looked genuinely happy to see me and then my mother reach her hand out to me.
"Come to me my child, I have heard whispers of pain befalling you bug you have yet to tell me if you have suffered," My mother said to me in worry. I decided to tell them before I came in knowing what I might face so I decided to stick by my decision. I went up to the end of the last level before my parents thrones and I paused. When I did pause my Mother rushed down to me in her worry. Ww embraced each other in a hug and then I pit my mother's hand on my wrist and allowed her to feel my pulse. I watched her face go from worry to confused to blank to sullen to worry again and then finally to disbelief. My mother held me close and then put a bracelet on my arm.
"What is my Heavenly Mother?" I asked before she could take a next breath. I touched the bracelet of jade and gold and registered that it had powers instilled in it.
"I hope your children will be kept close to your heart, as your children will bear the most responsibility and ultimately it holds the entire fate of the world, you could be the Phoenix daughter of the old prophecy," My mother warned. "The bracelet has been soaked in my blood, infused with healing powers, and blazed by your father's fire," My mother explained. "Keep it on until the day you give birth to your children you are growing, when you give birth the bracelet will naturally split into three, one part will always be with you and the other part will naturally belong to your offspring," my mother continued. I was slightly sad my father had said nothing for a while.
"Thank you my Heavenly Mother but why do you say children? I will only be having one child, I am surely not going to have more than one child," I said writing off my mother's words as her wistfulness for me to have more than one child. I could feel the bracelets protection by just simply admiring it, I looked to my father who began to pulse with power, and my mother too began to pulse with her power. My parents summoned a couple of seeds and stored power into them before creating two necklaces with two seeds stored in each.
"Perhaps, but as long as you wear it and give birth the child will be granted one as well, it will grow with your child and shouldn't need replacement unless your child is in grave danger, the bracelet can only save you and your child twice," My mother informed me. I hoped that this function of the bracelet would be mostly unneeded.
"My good child, in hopes that we return before you deliver I would not give you these, but in the chances that you do deliver before we return here are four seeds of life fruits. Plant one of the seeds of yours today and when you go into labor should anything bad happen to you, the tree will react and sprout fruits. The second set will be bestowed upon Chu Zheng Lei the newest Water God and the only person who has the ability to maintain the balance you help create," My Father explained sending out the two necklaces. Upon receiving mine I inspected it's beautiful design. The necklace was made with jade and gold, the pendant was a small translucent and hollow luminous pearl in which the seeds nestled.
"Thank you for your trust Heavenly Emperor," A man in the back hall said. I turned around slightly to scan, seeing as there was only one other person in the Great Hall I looked to where the voice came from. I saw him from a distance and something clicked in my mind and the environment. It was a fleeting moment of sense but I brushed it aside. He walked forward upon receiving his necklace.
Upon seeing him up close I observed that he had long white almost silver hair, a face of warm white jade, and eyes of green and hazel with flecks of gold. He seemed to lock eyes with me and we stood there eyes locked almost as if having an inner battle of wits.