By the Night! What has happened? The Abyssal Daughter? Surely they must be a game! It must be. The Abyss was the only accessible Realm we could enter, but none of our expeditions seemed to have made it back. Surely, this Lilith is a liar! A cheat!
"Big Brother, are you ok?" Niall hastily asked upon our return to the governor's office. He had pulled me aside, far from prying eyes, into a secluded room—a somewhat luxurious enclosure made for high-value guests.
"We need to find that Young Man," I could only say, recalling that strange force that brought me to my knees. "He is only a star-lord, but his power made me nothing more than his thrall. He needs to be found and detained."
Niall's gripe expressions dampened, "At least you still command. It should not be long till Arsene Snow is taken into custody. I have already given out a Tier Seven Planetary Notice for the boy to be brought to the governors' office: Alive."
"A Tier Seven Planetary Notice?" I exclaimed, unable to help my voice from cracking. "Surely this Arsene Snow cannot truly be who he says. He must possess a—"
"It doesn't matter, Cesan." Niall said, patting my shoulder, "We cannot take the chance. The conference with Lilith Snow is about to take place, and we need you to sit in to gain any insight we might have missed. The top officers of the Banking Clans will be there. Of the Seven Prime Worlds, I hear, the Six Empires will be there, and with if there is to be a new King, A True King, then these empires will fade into families; this is a major problem that could lead to structural damage to Noctem. We know nothing but this Arsene, except from the fact his own people, mainly his brother, addressed him as a demon. It should take him about a month to get to The Etheral Palace of Darkness, assuming he flies."
I lowered my head, trailing in thought and lifting my gaze to meet my brothers. His sunken eyes brimming with solidarity seemed to carry a slew of Darkness that grew with each passing day. Naill Roah, my little brother, was the best of us. Strong, resilient, and most of all, unplagued by the need to kill. By the calling that lingered like rot to our blood. He was cold, calculating, a perfect General.
"Whatever you need, brother." I calmly said, and he bore a smile over his smooth greyish-black skin. He released a breath of air and patted my shoulders, pulling me out of the room.
Trailing after my brother's stride, I instantly noticed the strange ambiance within the Governor's Office. It was tense, almost fearful. Even so, there were a few with hope in their eyes and heart. They were praying.
"By Tenebrae's Grace. The time has come."
"The King has returned! A new age is upon us!"
"A Knight of Lunafreya! By the Night Mother! A true Knight has been born!"
Murmurs continued to rise through the governor's office. Rumors of a no-name man none of them have ever met. Yet, he had already begun to gather the Fates of many. If there was ever a god, beloved if not enamored, it was Tenebrae. The Mother of Night. It didn't matter what power one might have, what their potential was. Before the Night Mother, all would bow their head. She was the creator of the Darkness. It was by her Darkness that we exist.
Niall picked up the pace, heading to the conference room. The ether of Darkness began to grow, reeling with a graceful elegance that rippled like a mirrored lake. My heart began to quicken as we approached a set of particular soldiers if that was even their rightful characterization blockading the conference's door.
"The Knights of Lunafreya," I muttered and bowed my head in reverence. Their arrival meant that the banking clans were here.
My brother found a warm smile and performed a half bow, "Master Logan Halstar," He said, not masking his respectful tone, "We are here for the conference."
Cloaked in a hood, with the Sigil of the three Moons: two crescent moons facing the opposite sides while a full moon pressed between the two crescent moons, what many called the tri-moons. Long silver hair was the only thing revealed through the hooded figures of absolute power in Noctem that glittered with moonlight.
Master Halstar pulled down his dark hood and bore a smile. A little plain with long sharp ears, the color of his tan skin, carrying a small tattoo of the crest of the Tri-Moons, just below the lobes of the ear on the right side. He cuffed his arms in good fate.
"The last time I saw you, you were but a young boy, barely starting in the Imperial Order." He said, calm and unfeely like a loose dream. "Although I am surprised you remained on Enrilia. I am sure the other kingdoms would have settled on you."
"It's only Enrilia that supports the true rule of Tenebrae and still practices The Etheral Grace of Zensu," Niall respectfully said, "Not to mention another empire would also never let a Lur'vain hold power.
Master Halstar could only shake his head in disappointment, "A shame you rejected our proposal; with your Practice of Form V, you would have been a true monster in The order of Lunafreya."
"I would not leave my brother," He said with a hint of pride, but that very pride made my cheeks burn in shame. I was not like my brother; I had no compatibility in the Path of Zensu, the Form that relinquishes you to nothing but your inner self.
"Can we head through?" Niall continued and glanced at the door.
Master Halstar nodded, but his gaze slowly grew sharp yet hollow at the same time. There was no emotion in his tone, much less his once warm eyes, only a brimming Ethereal of Darkness, carrying glimmers of Luna's light. "The Order of Lunafreya will be presiding over these discussions. If you, the banking clans, or any of the other six Empires dare to break the peace, you will be deemed an enemy of the only true empire, the Empire of Noctem."
"We may have lost the Night City of Noct, but we found Enrilia. We found Corsem. I know my duty, Master Halstar." Niall replied like a stone; he hardened his eyes and saluted.
The Knight of Luna faintly nodded and made way alongside the other knights behind him. "Then may you find Serenity in the Night," He said, placing his hands behind his back.