The doors to Helenheim's inner kingdom opened slowly. Upon expanding wider, Talen took the first step with Valentina beside him. The first thing that met them was, surprisingly enough, large skyscrapers and azure palaces properly fit for royalty. After they walked even further inside, everyone was expectedly met by someone on the road; Talen extended his arm, halting his comrades behind him.
Suddenly, Alora was overcome by a strange illness, nearly collapsing to her knees while her hand held her head. Archer and Ava between her helped her to her feet but worriedly looked at her regardless.
"I-I'm fine," she said.
Talen's eyes widened, reacting with Anthony beside him as the silhouette removed his cloak, revealing his scruffy chin. There was no mistaking it. His beard, the shades, and especially the blackness in his eyes spelled it out perfectly.
"Keres Illustrious," Tal smirked, lowering his hand. "Damn, you've grown old. What? Don't tell me you're too useless… for a rematch."
Keres chuckled. "Oh, I'd like nothing more. Fortunately, my Fate is stronger than yours; if we fought, I'd be the victor," he said.
"Really?" The lawyer stepped closer. "What makes you think so?"
Illustrious grinned, instantly moving to strike the man across the face. Excitedly, Talen's hands moved, swiftly catching his foe's quick hand. Gripping his wrist, Keres felt his bone begin to crack before slowly falling to his feet—angrily glaring up at the Unconquerable.
"Your strength doesn't even surpass mine anymore. How weak you've grown, old man. You should be ashamed—-"
Curving his fist across the air above him, Keres attempted to uppercut him in the chin, but that was before another hand entered the fray; her dark-skinned hand catching the punch. Keres's eyes glistened under the sunlight. Removing his knuckles from her palm, the assassin stood up straight, cracking his neck from side to side.
"So, you're here. Alora." He extended his left hand. "Nice to meet you. I'm your father. No hard feelings?"
Alora took his hand without hesitation, yanking him close. The man looked down at her. "I don't give a shit who you are. I have no intention of acting like family. I already knew I'd meet you if I came here, so I came prepared." The Enforcer's right palm aimed at the sky. From the center of her palm elongated a double-edged sword carved from her unbridled Fate; she aimed the length at his throat. "You possess the 'Blessed Freedom' technique, don't you? My friend over here—" She gestured to Archer. "He does too. And if I'm your daughter, some semblance of it should reside within me too. So here's what you're going to do: lead us to some shelter, feed us, let us sleep… and train me. Teach me the secrets of your augmentation and how to properly unleash its turbulent power."
Keres pointed at Archer. "Him too?"
"Yes," she nodded. "His case differs from yours though." She glanced at Talen's brother. "His 'Freedom' engulfs his mind and voice, not the body." Alora glared back at her father—azure eyes burning. "Is that a problem?"
The former proxy shook his head. Still grinning, he threw both hands into the air. "Fine by me!" He turned around. "Follow me."
Everyone hesitantly obeyed. Alora followed close behind her dad, ignoring the blatant stares Talen and Tony dug into the back of his head. Only briefly, she glimpsed over her shoulder and opened her mouth.
"What?"
"Whaddya mean 'what'?" Tony pointed at her. "What's wrong with you!"
Alora sighed. "I know you thought I'd sock him as hard as I could, but that isn't an option, unfortunately. Miss Amit's offer was lofty at best. We don't know if Uriel's influence has already infected this place. Our guide should be one of the kingdom's executives rather than a 'deserter'. No offense, Tal," she said.
He shrugged, eyes closed, and smile softly. "None taken." The lawyer looked at Tony. "You seem pretty nonchalant about all of this."
"Shut up! Cut out your sarcasm!" Tony said, bumping Talen's arm.
Ten minutes later.
Keres's hand turned the knob and opened the door, revealing an apartment building's interior. The man stepped inside.
"Make yourselves at home," he said, spreading out his arms.
Tony, Ava, and Archer fell onto the couch simultaneously, sinking into its cushions and moaning loudly. Talen ignored their stupidity; walking over to his mother and father, staring up at them both. Their voices were low and indistinct. The man was whispering to his parents.
Keres' ear flickered. As Alora walked into his view, the man's attention diverted to his daughter, admiring her brown-skinned face.
"Tell me something: how does someone of mixed heritage like you have skin as dark as that?"
Alora tilted her head. She glanced at her arm, examining its complexion. "Who knows?" She looked back up at him. "It's not like I knew my mom either."
"Ah, right. Would you like to know about her?" He scratched his chin and closed both eyes. "She was a real knockout, that lady."
"Oh, please. I don't wanna hear anything about that piece of shit lady." Alora turned, scanning the room. "Looks like everyone's knocked out for the day." She looked up at him. "But not me. Take me somewhere secluded and teach me how to release my abilities," she said.
Keres groaned loudly. "Ughhh, now? Come on!" The man whined.
She dragged him out the door by the collar of his jacket, closing the entrance behind them, letting the lock automatically click immediately. Talen sighed, sliding over to the chair on the sofa's left in the center; Anthony leaned over.
"Hey," he said. "You alright?"
"I'm fine. Just tired…"
Tal removed his glasses, resting his head on his arm and slowly closing his grassy-green eyes. Before Anthony and the others could react, the Unconquerable fell asleep. Ava giggled.
Archer smiled. The boy stood, walking into the kitchen and opening the numerous cabinets.
He luckily managed to locate cookie dough, but that wasn't until he reached the fridge. After reading the back label of the plastic only briefly, the young man walked over to the oven and opened it, carefully placing each of the doughy nuggets two inches apart. Only following that gradual motion did he close the oven and leave the kitchen premises, entering the living room yet again to situate his rear into the bulky chair placed to the right of the center-placed couch.
Two minutes pass.
Archer looked up from his phone. His grey eyes darted to the kitchen. He looked back at his screen, squinting. 'I forgot to put a timer.' He quickly put a timer on and resumed scrolling on his phone.
Four minutes pass.
Ava's arms stretched into the air. Leaning back into the couch, she slipped out a moan before settling against the arm, gazing at the kitchen.
"You made cookies?" She smiled. "They smell goodddd."
Archer chuckled.
"Hm, cookies?" Tony lazily grinned. "Wow… they smell amazing. What the hell'd you put in there?"
The boy stood up. "You guys are ridiculous." He slid up his sleeve, checking his wristwatch.
Four more minutes.
He looked at the corner, then scanned the entire room, slowly sinking back into his seat. 'Where are Mom and Dad? Weren't they just here a second ago? I don't understand. Did they go into one of these rooms? But that can't be. I can't… hear them. No, I'm sure of it! They're not 'in' this building anymore!'
Archer derailed his train of thought by shaking his head; quickly returning to reality. His grey pupils watched their faces. Tony and Ava were talking quietly while Talen napped. Nobody seemed to realize the other adults were gone.
'I won't say anything. If things go bad… I'll protect my brother!'
Outside the apartment. 8 minutes ago.
Keres entered the yard behind the building. "This should be good enough for you, right?" He gestured to the empty gray area, extending his arms and childishly grinning.
"It's fine."
Alora slid away from him, now standing tall in the center of the area. Keres strolled in front of her with both arms crossed, bending over briefly, scanning her face. His eyes slid back with the rest of his head as he began pacing around the woman, rubbing his chin while gradually moving.
"So, you wish to unleash 'Blessed Freedom' from within you. Tell me, what do you wish to use this power for?" he asked.
She rolled her eyes. "Is this necessary?"
"Yes!" He pointed at her. "Shut up and listen! I'm the teacher, remember!" He cleared his throat into his fist and closed both eyes yet again, continuing to pace around his kin. "Now, answer me. I won't ask again. What do you wish to use this power for?"
"I wish to use this power to reclaim the throne from my old friend Uriel and end his reign before its beginning," she said.
Keres nodded. "I see. Uriel, huh? That was the white-haired brat with the ponytail, wasn't it? The Prince." He chuckled. "Didn't he die?"
Alora shrugged, staring at the ground and rubbing her arm. "Who knows? I can't tell what's real and what's fake anymore. I honestly wouldn't be surprised if I was told I'd lied to my entire life."
"I understand." He raised his hand. "No matter the King, the kingdoms will always be suppressed and ignored. That's the way it's always been," Keres said.
"Why does it have to be?" She tightly clasped the collar of her jacket. "For as long as I could remember, everything's been predetermined from the start. It's despicable. The realization that I never had any freedoms in this world from the moment I was born…" Alora scoffed. "It makes me sick." She looked back at her father. "That's why I want this power. This 'Freedom'. This 'Blessing'."
"Interesting." Keres stopped, staring at her with both hands pocketed. "So you say your entire life has been dictated by outside factors. Does the same apply to the Amits who adopted you? Are they 'real'? Or are they 'fake'?"
If it were anyone else who'd asked this, she wouldn't think anything of it. But it wasn't.
She turned to the man with wide blue eyes, reflexively raising her arm and protecting the side of her face the elder assassin attempted to strike. He withdrew his fist, jumping back simultaneously. She pointed at him.
"I never told you I was adopted by the Amits. You knew we were coming—you even did research!"
Keres smirked. "It's nothing so malevolent. The reason I asked you all those questions wasn't because I was intrigued by your motive. You know the real reason… don't you?"
Alora thought back, remembering the brief instance her father's ear flickered, sucking her teeth at the realization. "I see. Not only were you stalling for time… you were eavesdropping. On Talen and his parents." She aimed a newly-constructed azure sword at his throat. "Something's off though. If you were betraying us, the scent of your aura would shift. I would be able to sense your bloodlust. But I can't. Why? Explain yourself."
"Because. This is merely a test, dear girl."
Keres straightened his posture. An afterimage was produced behind him as his foot scraped the ground. The mirages behind him increased; eventually, spanning the entire surrounding space. Alora glanced at the illusions before focusing back on her father.
"These are afterimages produced by the shockwaves from my 'Innermost Fate' touching the ground. Instead of honing the soul's capability through Predestined Powers, Blessed Freedom releases the body's potential, thereby amplifying their physical strength, speed and sight tenfold." He raised one finger; the afterimages were copying. "This is your first lesson. Beat me before the end of five minutes or there won't be a second." Keres licked his upper lip. "Are you ready?"
Alora's grey hair flew with the wind. Despite the hatred she harbored for the man, there was something within her—something emboldening. With the Enforcer's sky-blue irises shining under the sun above, the tiniest glimmer of a smile spread across her lips, tightening her sword.
"Of course!"
She was starting to get excited.
Meanwhile, back inside the apartment, everyone was eating the cookies placed on the coffee table in front of them.
"These are great," Tony's muffled voice said.
Talen was still sleeping. Nevertheless, Ava's teeth sunk into the cookie, squealing at the taste.
"This is amazing!" She looked at Archer. "How'd you make these?"
Archer chuckled, holding a cookie in his hand and resting against the chair's arm. "They're nothing special. Just cookie dough and an oven." The boy brought the snack to his mouth and briefly sniffed it. "These smell good. Is it just me or—?"
Upon looking back at his friend and sister, they were now unconscious. Archer analyzed the snack he held—gray eyes glowing.
'What's happening? Ava and Tony fell asleep, but that was too fast. I'd understand if he fell asleep, but she was just talking as loudly as usual. There wasn't anything amiss. Or rather, that's what I think.' He looked down at the cookie in his hand. 'It's been bugging me for a while. Something about not only the convenience of the cookie dough but its intoxicating smell irks me. This isn't a coincidence!'
Archer released the snack from his hand, walking across the carpet and kneeling in front of his sister. He snapped before her eyes, then raised his hand to lightly slap her leg—she didn't react. The boy raised, staring down at her as his aura swayed calmly and his eyes shone softer.
'Ava's always been a heavy sleeper. But this is different. If Mom did what I just did, normally, she'd awaken. But she didn't.' Archer's gleaming pupils examined the room. 'We're under attack by an enemy's technique! This is their ability! Then again… if this is a Predestined Power, that means there's only one way to beat this! To make the unknown assailant release their ability, I'll kill them!'
Trivia: Archer's 'Blessed Freedom' is stated to envelop the mind and voice. There are several interpretations you could make for this ability, but the truth is that the Fate 'blessing' his mind enhances not only his intelligence and thinking power. It also amplifies the sound of his voice. For a short time, this drawback disallowed the boy from talking openly, but after a few years of training, he managed to control it so he could speak normally.