Shakkai however was awake and aware, she had heard the voice speak when the door opened. 'Welcome Back, Lord Defender.'
She thought that it probably was the referendum to House Xaxiaz being known as the defenders, but the real question was just who had designed this place that could recognize someone instantly, simply from being a descendant of a certain bloodline.
Shakkai looked around the room that was a huge gray chamber with many a control panels and large class containers and the like, was it some kind of lab she couldn't help but wonder, oblivious to the spirits currently observing her and Samuel.
She was given a sudden vision of a simillar sight from her dreams, but she was unable to make out the importance of it. All she could do was stare at an empty screen that once held text, she saw people talking to one another.
Some that recognized her and were speaking to her or someone standing past her. "The deal to be forgotten. To pass into the next realm and be allowed to interfere."
"The loss of---" The vision ended and left Shakkai perplexed.
Meanwhile the spirits were speaking to one another, discussing amid themselves.
"Told you he would make it!" A proud motherly voice spoke.
"Only a few of our people back in our prime has managed to withstand such a spiritual pressure."
"Yes, how is it that someone so many years later with mixed blood can be so trained?" Another voice asked.
All the spirits turned to the oldest among them. If the spirit would have had facial features then it most likely would have been a smile spread on its lips.
"Isn't it obvious...! The Lady Chronos and her child survived the stasis pod, the reason why it was never found must have been because of a malfunction, however The Lady Chronos was smart enough to have fixed it for her own child. While drawing off the aggressors."
Some of the spirits turned instantly to look at the unconcious man. "So what you're saying is...."
The old spirit laughed.
"That boy is most likely the direct son of Xaxiaz Prime and his wife Ana Chronos, just like the last royal descendant that was put in a stasis pod much later. That boy as a baby was hidden away for so long... thousands of years."
"Tens of thousands..." Another older spirit chimed in. "I suppose he does look a bit like them." The spirit sighed.
"Wait doesn't that mean! That he could potentially save Mother!"
None of the spirits spoke, except for one voice that suddenly spoke up behind all of them. "Whose Mother?" All the spirits turned around in surprise at the sudden presence.
A few moments earlier as the darkness had taken him, Samuel found himself flying in a dark dream until he suddenly started hearing voices, and when he came to he was floating in darkness with several brighter lights that were talking to eachother.
They were speaking about a boy and Xaxiaz and Chronos, as if they were looking at something but all Samuel could see was darkness until everything suddenly started coming too.
He could see what they were talking about as he saw his own body, which made his heart skip a beat or two for more than one reason. At first he wondered if he was dead and the second was when he realized they were talking about him.
But it also made him confused because his mothers name wasn't Ana, and his Fathers name wasn't Prime. He had to ask, "Whose Mother?"
"YOu!?! How did you?" One of the spirits aggressively blurted out.
"I am glad to see that there are still members of our people so trained in the mindscape, it is a place where all our people can understand one another regardless of age. Whomever trained you must be an excellent master."
"These things we discuss were not meant for you to know of, however you are probably smart enough to figure it out on your own. The one thing I will tell you though, is that yes... You are essentially a pureblood Child of Mana."
With those words spoken they all turned to eachother and started talking in a language that Samuel didn't quite understand, its as if he could feel the meaning behind certain words but couldn't translate them by heart.
At the same time something started pulling him back and the voices grew further and further away, and just like that he opened his eyes awake in his own body on the floor.
He lay there for a while processing everything he had heard. The mother he had grown up with might not have been his actual mother at all... his actual parents he had never known.
Shakkai was quickly filled in by Samuel as he sat back up. She had no words to speak and only listened in silence. After that she told him what she had seen and heard while he had been following the calling.
She had mapped out a lot more as they had been going along, Samuel stood up to look at the large room, almost as if feeling him come to, the room also started lighting up as if welcoming him.
"Welcome home!" A sudden voice greeted him and text appeared on the largest 'television' screen above the consoles at the back. Samuel was standing half a floor up where there was a hologram of a planet and several panels around.
There were two short staircases to go down to a lower floor in the same room where there were plenty of chairs and many control panels and screens.
"Who are you?" Samuel asked loudly into the room as his eyes darted around the ancient texts on panels and consoles and as he blinked he realized that some of the text started getting translated into the common language.
Or rather that his brain seemed to translate and interpet the words as he was looking at them. It did give him a slight headache, and amid it all the echoing voice replied.
"I am VIA, which is short for Virtual Intelligence Assistant. I am the Virtual Intelligence in charge of this facility, I am ready to assist the Children of Mana of this facility! What can I do for you today Lord Xaxiaz?"
Samuel was a bit taken a back of course, having no idea what a Virtual Intelligence was, "What exactly are you?" He asked.
VIA replied, "I am a program created by the Children of Mana to assist in the maintenance and safety of this facility. I make sure the facility runs smoothly for many eons to come!"
"Are you alive?" Samuel asked next, still quite confused.
"Negative. I am nothing more than a program created by technology to aid my creators. I am only designed to be of use to you and help where I can! In other words I am not a living being."
"However many of the A.I's created by the Children of Mana did attain sentience, and they did upgrade many of us old V.I's to become like them. Allowing them to be free and self thinking."
"It kind of sounds awful..." Samuel mumbled, alive but not alive, not capable of free thinking. But it didn't seem like it had any complaints about its existence, but would it have if it became like those A.I's - that was the question stuck at the back of Samuels head.
Samuel had many questions so he pushed his other thoughts to the back of his head. "What is this place? Who is Xaxiaz Prime and Ana Chronos? What happened to the Children of Mana of old? Who is the 'Mother'?"
"That is a lot of questions, some of which relevant info might not be in my database but I will answer to the best of my capability!" The Virtual Intelligence appeared as a small blinking orb on many projections around the room.
"This place is Torxakthan, also referred to as Strike Base Avalon, It is a mighty citadel built to withstand all kinds of attack, unfortunately everyone in this base died to an aggressive virus that struck out.-.-.-. Approximately 4509 years ago."
"This base contains much research on all kinds of weapons. While also acting as a city for the personel that live here. The virus released died out approximately 4002 years ago meaning no lockdown is in effect."
"Xaxiaz Prime was the firstborn son of ...REDACTED.... He was the leader of Clan Xaxiaz and led the Xaxiaz Household in defense of our people against it's enemies. Ana Chronos was the sixth born daughter of Clan Chronos."
"The Children of Mana were born or created to be fundamentally different bloodlines yet related at the same time. Simillar to how all Humans are somewhat related."
"Unfortunately my records pertaining any information as to what happened to the Old Children of Mana as per your question has not been updated. Last my records show is that Clan Xaxiaz was holding ground without retreat to allow the rest of the Manaic people to escape." Then it paused as if thinking in silence.