"... Your Majesty... What...?" Jerte says, lifting his head.
He took the words right out of my mouth... Traveling between worlds?! What is that supposed to mean?!
"Jerte, let me explain. I know this could be a dangerous mission, but we need it," the king said firmly.
Jerte, reluctantly, lowered his head again.
"Yes, Your Majesty..."
The king looked at me intently, scrutinizing me from head to toe as if judging me.
"Hmm... You certainly are quite strange. I've never seen a Horsemonde like you-" he said before covering his mouth, as if he'd said too much.
Wait... What does he mean like me? Has he seen others?... Or maybe he just misspoke?
The king regained his composure.
"... Sire, why did you say earlier that you wanted to send me to other worlds?... I can't..."
"... I have a theory about that. I think you have powers that can take you to other worlds."
...WHAT?! AND I HAVE THIS POWER?!
"But how can you be sure?!"
"Because I can see it with my own eyes... Literally."
"But how?"
"Our luminous eyes allow us to see through things. It's thanks to these that Jerte could see you and send the information to Pany to create the pill. I can see your organs, your muscle fibers, your blood... And that aura around your brain."
"Aura?"
"Yes. Before the rift closed, there was an aura very similar to the one around your brain."
"... But how do you know that? We only just met..."
"Jerte sent information to Pany, and she then sent it to me."
... So it's his fault I'm here... Maybe that's why he was so sad before he left... He probably felt guilty...
"... Rather, can you tell me how you came to this universe?"
"... I was about to die, but the rift sucked me in..."
"... I see... What did you feel before the rift opened?"
"Well, I heard glass breaking and then-", I said before being interrupted by the king.
"No, I mean what did you feel inside?"
... Inside me?
I wanted to die because I was stuck in a place I couldn't leave... I had nothing left to do there... I felt empty and purposeless... But what does that have to do with anything?
"... I think because I wanted to leave..."
"Leave? Your world?"
"... Yes... My world is completely different from yours, Your Majesty... I had no purpose left... When I was little I wanted to-", I said before being interrupted again by the king.
"Yes, yes. I don't care. Rather, do you know how it all began?"
This guy is starting to get on my nerves with these constant interruptions... And during my touching moment too! I try to relax.
"... You mean the universe, sire?"
"Oh, so your race has only gotten that far? How quaint," he said, chuckling smugly.
What nerve... Laughing at someone... Right in front of them!
This guy is a real son of a-
"Anyway, there's something beyond what you call the universe... There is something beyond the universe, called-"
"Multiverse theory. The universe is actually an insignificant part of the whole. I already know, sire."
What a cliché... Still, serves him right to be interrupted, jerk.
The king looked at me surprised and interested.
"You know? How can a race that knows nothing beyond the universe know this?... I think I underestimated you, Akira," the king said in a softer tone.
With all the theories we've come up with in history, some of them have to be plausible...
The king continued his explanation.
"Anyway, yes, what you say is true... But it's incomplete," he said while taking a sphere.
"Imagine this is your universe," the king said, beginning to explain everything to me.
The universe is finite and has boundaries that can be reached, albeit with difficulty, and these are determined by a cosmic membrane that forms the fabric of space-time. This membrane prevents the universe from colliding with other universes, and since each universe has its own physical laws, fundamental constants, spatial and temporal dimensions, if they were to collide, they would create a universe too large to sustain, which would eventually implode, destroying the newly born universe and everyone within it.
"In essence, it's impossible to pierce this membrane to interact with other universes... Except for you, apparently."
... What?!
The king approached me, speaking solemnly.
"Akira... I see something inside you... A power never seen before... The power to travel between universes and pass through the membrane that divides them... You can transcend the limits of the universe and the very concept of time and space... You have the opportunity to visit new worlds, discover new races, new technologies, new philosophies of life... That could help-" the king said before being interrupted by Jerte.
"Your Majesty, this is impossible. Mr. Akira is only-"
"JERTE, DO NOT DARE INTERRUPT ME AGAIN!"
I feel the ground beneath me tremble, as if the earth were about to split in half. I feel helpless and tiny in the face of the aura the king is emanating, like that of a gigantic three-headed monster towering over us.
Jerte's gaze is paralyzed with fear, but at the same time seems distant and apathetic, as if he were in a trance. He knelt down again.
"... I apologize, Your Majesty..."
The king looked at me, returning to normal after seeing my fear, clearing his throat.
"... Akira, I know I'm asking a lot of you, but I need your power... My people need your power..."
"... Sire... Even if it were true that I can travel between universes... What would you need my power for?"
The king paused to think for a moment.
"... As Jerte probably already told you, our race split about 500 years ago because our world was on the brink of destruction... Constant wars had drastically altered the climate, bringing our planet into an eternal winter and natural cataclysms. This destroyed almost all the vegetation on our planet and many animal species. Acid rain polluted the soil and water... Few were those who managed to survive and even fewer were those who boarded the ship, forced to abandon the other inhabitants, leading to their death. Among those who took part in the crew was I..."
"... You are over 500 years old?!"
"... Yes. I was still young, but I will never forget the destruction I saw in my youth... Once we decided to build our new city, we managed to discover a way to replace our bodies with these robotic ones you see. This allowed us to beat old age and all diseases, making us immortal... A bit like the pill Pany created for you..."
"... I understand..."
"To prevent things from repeating, we decided to change everything, such as religion, language, art, and morals, creating a terrestrial paradise where the mistakes of the past would never be repeated, where there would be room only for peace and brotherhood... To answer your initial question, your power is essential to allow other races to reach this enlightenment."
... I don't understand...
"... Why would you want to help universes you don't even know? You wouldn't get anything in return..."
"... Akira... If you saw a man drowning, what would you do?"
"... I would help him..."
"Exactly. That's exactly what we would all do... After 500 years, the horrors of my past still haunt me... If only we hadn't been so blind, our world would still exist today," the king said sadly, placing his hands on my shoulders.
"... I know you have nothing to do with this situation... But please Akira... I beg you... Help the other worlds..."
... This is really a great burden to carry...
"... Your Majesty Vlade... I will do everything I can!"
Vlade's eyes lit up at my words, while a tear ran down his face. In that tear, I could see myself being celebrated as a hero. I was loved by everyone.
That vision gave me the strength I needed for my new purpose in life... To become a hero and save everyone!
The next day, Vlade organized a grand banquet at the castle to give everyone the news. All the inhabitants had eyes full of hope. I managed to create a new rift using my desire to visit other worlds. Before entering, Jerte handed me a diary and said, "Once you have saved the first world, come back to us. You probably won't have much free time, but write everything in this diary."
Jerte was the one who helped me the most in my entire life... He welcomed me into an unknown world with kind eyes... He told Pany to help me evolve... And it gave purpose to my life... As small as this diary may be, it is my greatest treasure...
"... Thank you for everything, Jerte!" were my last words before entering the rift, full of gratitude and happiness.
... But I still couldn't imagine the blade that was about to fall on my head...