Niris stood up. His father would soon call him by hologram. He was torn on what to do. He didn't want to worry him, but on the other hand, he wanted to talk to him about what he was going through. His father was his first confidant and his strongest support. He had grown up learning to confide his emotions to him and to have his attentive ear to guide him through the labyrinth of his incessant inner questioning. For if Niris looked like a confident angel from the outside, he was in reality constantly questioning himself.
Still undecided about what to do, he finally saw his chip flashing, indicating his father's holographic call. He activated it, and the hologram of his father appeared in the middle of the room. The moment he saw his father's benevolent smile as he opened his arms to welcome him, he gave up trying to censor himself. Emperor or not, Aroslan Naeg A'Sahel was his father first and foremost, and the only living member of his family left.
Responding to his invitation, he threw himself into his arms. The latest generation holograms were so well done that you felt as if the person was really in front of you. It was sensational! Burying his face in the delicate fabric of the rich, long-sleeved tunic that fell over his father's wrists, he took a deep breath of the comforting scent that had lulled him throughout his childhood.
"Father! I missed you..."
The emperor tightened his embrace, caressing his cheek on his beloved son's soft hair. He wished he could have stayed longer, but he didn't have much time. He couldn't let their exchange drag on for too long or he would attract the suspicions of Yerpena's telecommunications monitoring team. He forced the little prince off of him and watched him for a moment, both hands framing his face with affection. After making sure he was all right, he placed a tender kiss on his son's forehead.
"I was so scared..." he admitted in a soft voice. "When I heard the news from Inja, I was afraid of losing you..."
"Father, I am not so weak!"
"I know you aren't weak, I know that very well! But you can't stop a father from worrying about his son risking his life on a distant planet, on a highly perilous diplomatic mission."
Niris pouted. Why was everyone around him doubting his ability to complete his mission? It was as if the operation was doomed to failure! Then why had he launched it in the first place? He was offended.
"Not that I doubt your ability to carry out this mission," rectified the emperor, who had noticed the little prince's reproachful pout. "But I don't trust the demons to agree to negotiate and be lenient in case you are discovered."
Niris turned his head slightly. His father had an incredible skill for calming him with his words, it was annoying at times. But it was this skill of playing with words that made him such a good politician. His calm, patient, and natural goodwill made him extremely charismatic, and if you add to that his prodigious verbosity, you have in front of you someone capable of calming any storm. Niris admired this skill as much as he hated it because it meant that he always lost arguments with his father.
"You don't have to worry about that, I have an infallible shield," he said, still a little sulky.
His father raised a questioning eyebrow. Dropping his sulkiness without even realising it, the prince smiled at him with all his teeth.
"Seiran will protect me," he assured him.
"You two have met after all?" the emperor replied with an amused smile.
The prince nodded.
"Why didn't you tell me that you knew Seiran's father and that I already knew Seiran?" He asked him then.
His father sighed, dropping his arms down his body as he did so. He knew he would have to face his son's questions, but he still didn't feel ready. Perhaps he would never be ready after all. Besides, he couldn't avoid the subject indefinitely. He might as well answer his questions now.
He walked over to the bed and sat on it, pulling the folds of his robe up over his knees to keep them from pooling behind his legs. Still giving him a questioning look, Niris sat down beside him, his legs tucked under him.
"Because you aren't bound by our history and I consider you free to have your own life story, whatever legacy we have left you," he explained.
Niris watched him quietly, attentive.
"Your relationship is your own, and I didn't want you to be influenced by my past choices to write your own story. And since Hijvrik lost his life, I didn't want the same thing to happen to you... I figured that keeping you in the dark would protect you at least for the duration of your mission in Yerpena." he finished with a guilty smile.
The prince was still watching him carefully. He understood his father's reasons, and couldn't find anything wrong with them, as usual.
"Are you angry with me?" the emperor asked in a repentant voice, lowering his eyes to the level of the little black-haired angel's gaze.
Niris sighed. Of course, he wasn't angry with him. It wasn't a big deal in itself. He would have just wanted to know in advance to avoid the situation they had found themselves in with Seiran, but at the same time, he was aware that they might be there because of his ignorance... He thought it unfair to blame his father for something he wasn't really responsible for in the end.
"As if I could blame you for anything! You are the most responsible father I know!" He replied falsely annoyed.
The emperor laughed at his attitude and ruffled his hair gently.
"So? How are you two getting along now?" he asked.
Niris gave him a big smile and replied with pride.
"We're dating!"
His father looked at him with a hint of surprise in his eyes before laughing at his son's strutting.
"Ooooh but look at you! You're already in a serious relationship, you're practically an adult," he laughed gently at him. "Aaaah, where's the enigmatic, temperamental little angel who used to run around the palace to get out of class, hmm? Where's my little rascal who used to climb on my shoulders to see the New Year's fireworks?"
He pinched his cheek with a laugh, hiding his nostalgia behind his teasing. Seeing his son officially date someone was a step he didn't feel ready to take psychologically yet. At least it was with Seiran! Just knowing that made him feel much better.
"Father, you're being spoiled!" Niris protested and pushed his hand away and massaged his cheek in displeasure, which made the emperor laugh even harder.
"You'll understand how I feel when you have children," he replied. "The more I see you grow, the more I feel the bond between us fading."
"You're getting downright senile here! You need to go and get treatment, it's serious! And besides, we are too young to talk about children, we have only just started to date!" retorted the little prince.
"I intend to be a grandfather! You'd better adopt a lot of little demons and angels to liven up the palace in Egea," the emperor added, which earned him another look of protest from his son.
"What are you talking about? You won't raise them! And I told you it was far too early to think about that! Stop pressuring me or you won't have any grandchildren!"
The emperor laughed harder at his son's remark. How he had missed those simple, loving moments with his only son! The two angels squabbled for a while before they got serious again.
"Be careful both of you, you are on the enemy ground here. You will have to be strong and united to get through this. I will give you all my support in your fight, but my means are limited while you are in Yerpena," warned the emperor. "Your lives will become diplomatic leverage the moment you make your relationship official. Know that I will not sit idly by if the lives of either of you are put in danger. You know that I am a selfish emperor and I would give anything to save you if anything happened to you, no matter what the political consequences. If I have to give up the throne to save your life, I will do so without hesitation! So be careful, and don't take any unnecessary risks, it's not worth it. I have already lost your mother in a diplomatic mission, I refuse to lose you too!"
Niris did not answer immediately. He could read all the pain and determination in his father's eyes. The emperor had placed his hand on his son's cheek and was watching him intently. Niris was his treasure, the most precious being in the world. And Niris knew it very well. He knew that his father had suffered more than ever from the death of his mother. The emperor was a very sensitive man who did not know how to hide his emotions from those closest to him. The love with which he had bathed his son was also tinged with a spark of despair that he couldn't completely extinguish.
The prince knew this and had always accepted it. Knowing his father's immense sensitivity, he had never resented him for being overprotective during his childhood. And he knew that he had made enormous sacrifices to enable him to lead the life he wanted despite his own insecurities. For that alone, Niris was infinitely indebted to him. Few parents were able to take the risk of appearing in their child's life and letting them grow up learning. He recognised this quality in his father and appreciated it. That's why, in most cases, he gave in to all his requests when he had them, knowing that they were still very rare.
He put his hand on his and smiled to reassure him.
"I don't intend to die, don't worry," he replied.
The emperor smiled. He knew he could trust his son. The trust they had built through extensive communication was solid, and they could rely on it with their eyes closed. It was the main reason for their peaceful relationship.
"Mother died because of me, I will not ruin my own life by being reckless," Niris added in a small voice and looked down, a sad smile on his lips.
"Niris," his father called firmly.
The prince looked up to meet his father's stern gaze.
"You aren't responsible for your mother's death, you were only a child! The only person responsible for your mother's death is the one who killed her and no one else.
"I know, but the fact remains that if I had not acted as I did, she wouldn't have died...."
The emperor grabbed both of the angel's hands and clasped them in his own.
"No one can predict when someone will die, and certainly not a child. You shouldn't feel responsible when you just wanted to see your mother and we left you unattended for a moment. And if she hadn't given her life for you, we would have lost you, Niris."
Niris said nothing. His throat tightened as he recalled the tragic event of his mother's death. She had been on a mission on a foreign planet and had used a temporary interdimensional portal to visit them for a few minutes. Back then, Holograms were just at the beginning of their development. If you wanted to physically share a moment with someone far away, you could only use temporary interdimensional portals. His mother missed her family so much that she couldn't resist the urge to go see them even just for few minutes as those portals don't stay open for more than ten minutes. But when she left and the portal closed behind her, Niris took advantage of both his parents' inattention to jump behind his mother and join her on the other side of the portal.
Unfortunately, this was the moment that a demon member of the clan she had infiltrated as a slave had chosen to ambush her. The appearance of Niris had disrupted the assassin's plans, in front of which the four-year-old angel had suddenly appeared. In a desperate move, his mother had protected him with her body, unable to defend herself in that short time. Niris had been saved at the cost of his mother's life. And fortunately, the emperor had realised that the little prince was missing only a few seconds after he had escaped and had had time to use the portal before it closed so that he could eliminate the demon before it could attack Niris too.
The situation had been catastrophic. The emperor had to wander for several weeks on a hostile planet before being rushed back to Egea. The event had left a deep impression on Niris, who refused to speak for more than two years afterwards. His father had also been devastated but had had no choice but to take it upon himself to carry out his duties as emperor.
"Father, do you miss Mother?" Niris asked him gently.
The emperor looked into his son's beautiful green eyes. It was the first time they had had a serious discussion on this subject. It was both painful and emotional. But he knew it was a necessary step in the healing process.
"There's not a day that goes by that I don't miss her," he replied with a smile of infinite sadness. "But when I see you following in her footsteps, having the same struggles as her, the same fighting and caring personality, my wounds instantly close and I think to myself that she gave me the greatest gift in the world twice in her life: the first time by giving birth to you, and the second time by protecting you with her life."
Niris felt tears welling up in his eyes. His father's sentimentality brought back memories of his mother that he had buried deep inside to overcome the pain of her loss. He hadn't known her long, but it was enough for him to remember his attachment to her.
"What...fights do you mean?" he finally managed to articulate, fighting back tears in extremis.
His father smiled benevolently at him. His long silver hair was tied in an elegant braid and escaped in strands here and there. His father's hair had always been untamable, and his attendants had struggled to find hairstyles that would last more than an hour. He hadn't changed, which made him smile when he thought about it.
The emperor sighed before answering.
"The mission your mother was leading when she died was much the same as yours, only riskier. She had infiltrated several groups of angel smugglers as a slave and was accompanying them to trace the routes of slavery. She was almost finished and only had a few days left before she could return, but her death and our repatriation turned everything upside down. Not only did we lose all the information, but many political allies pulled out of the secret agreement we had made with the willing countries to end slavery for fear of retaliation from the demons."
Niris listened carefully. It was the first time he had heard the whole story of his mother's death. In the palace, everyone refused to tell him, and now that he knew, he understood why. He had unconsciously taken the same path as his mother. That of diplomacy and the fight against the slavery of angels. Unable to utter a word due to emotion, Niris continued to listen to his father.
"It was after her death that I formed a bond with Hijvrik. He contacted me in secret and asked me to forgive him for Lefferina's death. We had known each other since the war of the Great Schism, when we had fought together, but our respective obligations and the bad relations between Egea and Ornikarn meant that we had lost contact. After this chaotic encounter, I clung to life thanks to him. He urged me to continue your mother's fight through diplomacy."
He paused for a moment and then continued.
"Just as she was the reason I ran for imperial office, it was because of her that I formed ties with Hijvrik and Seiran. She said I had a talent for public speaking, and that I had the right personality for the job! She knew me better than I knew myself... In the end, I was never very motivated for anything I did in my life. She was the only reason I was doing it. My only ambition when I met her was to be a tidy state civil servant and have a quiet family life. But she saw the potential in me and pushed me to the top. The day I lost her, I thought everything would fall apart..."
He paused. Niris could feel the emotion knotting his throat. After a moment he finally resumed.
"Seiran's father and I thought we'd keep our friendship a secret while we investigated on our own so that we'd have enough evidence to bring a lawsuit. But Hijvrik also died because of this utopia of reconciliation between angels and demons. That's when I decided not to involve you and Seiran in this fight anymore. It was not yours, but that of the adults, and I considered that you should be free to choose your life."
Age surely meant that his father had learned to live with his sadness. From all the pain he had had to endure through these disappearances, he had learned to accept the suffering and live with it. That is why Niris felt he had to cry for him. With a quick wave of his hand, he wiped away a tear that had started to run down his right cheek. His father was strong, he had to be strong for him.
"When I saw you growing interest in intergalactic relationships, I told myself that even if I wanted to, I couldn't stop you no matter what. That's why when you told me you wanted to be a diplomat, I let you. You had the same eyes as Lefferina, how could I stop you?
Niris gritted his teeth. He had to be strong. If ever there was a day to be brave for his father, it was today. It was now. His father was strong, he had to be strong with him. He continued to listen in silence.
"You are her legacy and her finest achievement. Every day I see it in you, I tell myself that if you take this path too, it's a fight worth fighting. Where I've failed, you may succeed. I wish you success, with Seiran! I hope that your couple will be a symbol of freedom and peace for generations to come.
His father finished with a radiant smile that only he could remember. It took Niris a moment to fight the overflow of emotion that was waiting to explode at any moment. He wanted to tell his father how much he loved and admired him. He wanted to tell him that he was his son too and that he was who he was because he had raised him with such wisdom and devotion. He wanted to tell him that he was his model and that he hoped one day to be like him, even if only a little. But he couldn't find words to describe it all in the time he knew they had left.
"Why is it so complicated to try to reconcile people with each other? Why does ending a barbaric practice and making peace between two peoples seem insurmountable?" was all he could think of to say in the immense confusion of his feelings and mind.
The emperor tightened his hands on the little prince's.
"By wanting to restore peace and justice, you are touching a knot that has been firmly tied for centuries within the intergalaxy. Something that no one dares to touch because it risks causing a destructive war. And as in many cases, it is fear that drives conscious beings such as ourselves. By giving in to fear, the conscious populations of the intergalaxy forget the values that are supposed to animate them, such as humanism. This has been going on for so long that it has become part of the diplomatic policies of intergalactic member states. If all of a sudden you start trying to change this order, you run the risk of destroying a functioning organisation, of destroying the intergalactic order, of creating chaos. If from one day to the next, you make the bad guys no longer bad and the good guys no longer have to fight against the evil that has been exterminated, you create such a change that it will instigate fear. Fear is the worst enemy of consciousness. Once it invades it, it paralyses it and prevents it from acting intelligently."
He paused to brush aside a few strands of black hair that had fallen back on the prince's forehead before continuing.
"People are afraid of change. They'd rather hate for no reason than stop and question a state of things, no matter how unfair. That's the way our world works. And that is why reconciling angels and demons is so difficult. It is a struggle that goes beyond our two populations. It's a will that impacts the entire intergalaxy and heralds profound changes. Sadly, the response can be nothing else but huge!"
Niris seemed immersed in thought. Once again, his father's clairvoyant mind had overwhelmed him. Everything he had failed to integrate in those few days in Yerpena, he had just summed up for him in the simplest and most direct way possible. As lucid as he was about conscious beings and their behaviour, the prince didn't understand how his father could have such a low opinion of himself. Yet he was a genius in his own way.
"Is it wrong, what we are doing with Seiran? Is it wrong for us to want to change injustice and hatred to have peace?"
This time the emperor did not smile. He put on his cold, emotionless face that he took when he wanted to make sure that Niris was integrating what he was telling him.
"It's never wrong to want to restore good and peace, never! No matter what the cost! The ones who are wrong are those who are too cowardly to face their mistakes and fears to make a difference. This fight started with your mother and Seiran's father and may take generations, but it is not a fight in vain. Without the desperate action of some visionaries capable of working for the common good, this world would be an unbearable hell. So never give up hope, and continue your fight!"
The emperor glanced at his chip to check the clock on his dematerialized dial. Seeing that he didn't have much time left, he finished quickly without giving Niris time to respond.
"Niris, you must trust Inja. You may feel that she is standing in your way, but she only wants what is best for you. Trust her, she knows what she is doing! Agree to go back with her if it is too dangerous..."
"But father...!" interrupted Niris, still reluctant to return.
"Only in Egea will you be safe if you slip up! And Seiran is safe here! His family won't do anything to him no matter what, believe me!"
The angel wanted to protest but couldn't find any solid argument. He put on a sullen expression that he couldn't keep from appearing on his face.
"He can join you in Egea, you can meet outside Yerpena, but I beg you Niris, don't neglect your safety! Not only me but Seiran too would be devastated if you were to lose your life!"
Still closed to the idea, the angel did not answer.
"I must go," the emperor finally said. "Niris, please promise me that you will be careful!
The prince looked away, still hurt at the thought of having to leave the demon behind in case of misadventure.
"Promise me that! Or I'll have you go back right away!" his father insisted.
"I promise," the angel reluctantly replied.
"You will follow Inja if she orders you to return?" the emperor pressed again.
The angel finally nodded, making his father smile with relief. He knew Niris would keep his word, he always had.
He drew him into his arms one last time and held him tightly. This fragile-looking little being, whom no one had given long to live at birth because he had been born so small and weak, had become a handsome young man of whom he was proud. Swallowing his emotion, which suddenly returned at the last moment, he clutched the little black head to his chest.
"I love you Niris, you are the most precious being in the world to me." He told him in a soft voice.
"I love you too father. You are the most wonderful person I know," the prince replied.
They remained in silence, secretly waiting for the separation they knew was inevitable. Niris lost all sense of time. His father's arms were the most comfortable place for him, and where he felt most secure. He wanted to take that security with him so he could face what lay ahead in the corridors of the Yerpena Palace. As the hologram reached the end of its programmed time, it suddenly disappeared, and Niris found himself standing in the void.
The angel stood still for a moment. He savoured for a moment the feeling of well-being that gradually dissipated as time passed. Remembering his father's words, he decided to give himself some time to integrate all this information before facing the outside world and the turmoil he was expecting.
This emotional roller coaster had exhausted him, and he lay down to recover a little. He was stuck in his room until tonight anyway. Given the events of the previous day, it was better for him to keep a low profile for a while. With that in mind, he rolled himself into a ball and pulled his dressing gown over him before closing his eyes.