" Thank you for staying with me, Mimi. I'm glad you were there to help me feel better. "
You say to Mimi as you set her down. Mimi grabs your hands and her face lights up with a smile, looking up at you as she responds.
" Don't mention it, Star Faller! I'll always be right beside you through everything no matter what. "
" Speaking of that… "
Tom interjects in a concerned tone as he looks back at you.
" I don't think that Voldoor is a good place for Mimi. If she comes with us, I'm afraid that she'll be exposed to alot of things that she shouldn't be exposed to… "
You look down at Mimi and start to see her begin to get upset. As her face becomes red and her eyes begin to water, she pulls herself close to you and starts to mumble in a trembling voice.
" But… but I… "
The memory of you having to leave Rosie resurfaces and you begin to feel sick to your stomach. You can't leave Mimi. You have to do things right this time.
As you look at Mimi, you can tell that she seriously cares about you. She's on the verge of crying, so you softly put your arm around her to comfort her before you look up and respond to Tom.
" When I spoke to Arthur and Veronica in Somniohm, they told me that they wanted Mimi to stay with us because that's where she'll be the safest. I plan on honoring her parents' wishes by keeping her close. She's looked out for me multiple times, so it's only right for me to look after her as well. "
Tom looks at you as if he's admiring your compassion for a moment while he contemplates what you said. You look back down to see Mimi nervously waiting in anticipation of Tom's judgment as the room sits silently in suspense, then Tom finally makes up his mind and responds.
" Okay, sure. Mimi can come with us, but once we arrive at Voldoor, she's not going into the city with us. She'll have to wait for us in the cruiser. "
" YAY!!! YOU'RE THE BEST, TOM!! "
Mimi exclaims as she jumps up and hugs Tom tightly. Tom looks down at her with kind eyes, then glances back up at you with a serious stare to speak to you telepathically.
" I only agreed because she still has Faerah's blessing. Where we're going isn't a place for children, Donny. I do understand the sentiment of you wanting to keep her safe though. The Valghuli want to get to you in any way they can, so leaving her here may create more problems for us than if we were to have her along. "
You nod at Tom with a soft smile and respond to him telepathically.
" Thank you. "
Seeing that you and Tom have come to a decision that he doesn't agree with, Roary interjects with a remark.
" So we're bringing a little girl with us to the worst place on Aria… What a genius idea, you guys. "
Tom then looks at Roary patiently and elaborates out loud in an effort to help Roary understand.
" We're bringing Mimi with us because me and Donny are really the only two people strong enough to fight the demons that wish to undo your verse's existence. Since Donny cares about her, that makes her a target for them. "
Roary scoffs in a skeptical manner before he responds to Tom with a rebuttal.
" Your enemies couldn't possibly be THAT strong. Like I said, with me by your side you'll have nothing to worry about. I'm Moriarch's strongest Champion, so I think I can handle an encounter with one of those demons just fine. Plus, the magical walls of Moriarch are impenetrable. With portals not working, there's no way that those demons could get into the kingdom even if they wanted to. If we leave Mimi here in Moriarch, we won't have to worry about her seeing something that she isn't supposed to and she'll be way safer. "
Roary says in a dismissive tone. Tom then glares at Roary with a smirk before the King interjects from his throne with an opinion of his own.
" Now now, Roary. I know that you have the girl's well-being in mind but I think that you should listen to the Otherlanders. You may have been Moriarch's strongest, but Tom and Abbadon can stand up to the likes of Gods. Technically Tom and Abbadon are now both stronger Champions than you are. "
Roary, knowing better than to argue with the King, crosses his arms and reluctantly agrees.
" Yeah, alright. Let's be on our way then. I've had enough chit chat and I'm itching to fight something. "
You look at Gareth and see that he has a crooked smile on his face as if he's been enjoying the discourse between Roary and Tom, but as soon as he makes eye contact with you, his smile disappears and he clears his throat before addressing the four of you.
" Well then, is everyone prepared to leave? "
Before you or Tom can answer, Mimi jumps up and answers excitedly.
" Yeah!! Let's go!! "
" Excellent. I've had the cruiser waiting for us right outside. "
Gareth replies. You prepare to walk back towards the entrance of the throne room to descend the stairs and go outside, but instead Gareth walks to a window on the side of the throne room and opens it. Once the window is open, a futuristic luxury hovercraft appears as it turns off its cloaking mode; and as its doors open, you can see a whole living space inside of it that appears way too large to fit inside of the vehicle.
" I welcome you aboard the finest cruiser that Voldoor has to offer. "
" WOAH!! "
Mimi exclaims with a look of wonder on her face before asking Gareth a question.
" That's so cool!! How did you fit that whole room in there? "
Gareth responds with a proud smile.
" This model of cruiser manipulates the fabric of space inside of it to create more room than it appears possible from the outside. That's just one of our many technologies developed by NaxTech. "
The King then descends from his throne and walks over to you with Sir Gerard as you, Tom, Roary, and Mimi all prepare to board the cruiser. You, Tom, and Roary all turn around and shake his hand as he leaves you with one final remark.
" The people of Moriarch will all be praying for you. I know it might not be much, but I hope that the remaining gods will watch over you and ensure that you return here safely. If you two succeed in your mission, I'd like to see that you all are properly awarded. "
The King then turns and focuses on Roary to speak to him specifically.
" And Roary, don't overexert yourself when you're with them. You may have overpowered and outclassed every ally or adversary that you've encountered in the past, but Tom and Abbadon are different. You're now the weakest among them, and the enemies that you encounter will be more difficult than anything you've ever faced before. It is in your best interest to listen and learn from them. "
Roary nods his head in agreement with the King's advice, but you can tell that he's skeptical of the power and abilities that you and Tom both possess. Tom immediately comes to the same conclusion, and you both look at each other in acknowledgment silently.
The King then turns back around at Sir Gerard and gives him an order as they both walk off and disappear into the castle.
" I want our military stationed and at attention at all times. Put the majority of our forces at the walls and have them monitor the activity from our walls to the horizon. I want our Champions sent out to protect our villages, but have the Top 100 hidden amongst the common folk of our kingdom to monitor the populace. Arm the guards with enchanted weapons and have several medical tents on standby in case there's an attack and people get injured. We need to prepare for the worst and hope it doesn't happen. "
" It will be done, your majesty. "
You turn back around to see that everyone else is walking around inside the cruiser, but Gareth is standing on the edge of the entrance hanging on the outside looking at you with amusement.
" Are you coming, Abbadon? "
You look up at him and answer as you step up on the window sill to board the cruiser.
" Yeah, let's go. "
You walk inside and the doors close silently behind you. As you start walking around the cruiser, the environment feels peculiar because you feel like you're inside of a regular building. You approach a window and see that the cruiser is flying incredibly fast, but somehow it feels like you're stationary with no momentum. You turn around to see that Tom, Mimi, Roary and Gareth have all made themselves comfortable on a few couches made of some sort of solid material that has the properties of a liquid in the center of the room. You see the couches molding into varying shapes underneath each of them and you go sit down next to Tom. As you sit on this strange couch, it immediately responds to your body and molds itself into the ideal position that would be most comfortable. The couch immediately matches your body temperature and you almost feel like you're floating on a cloud.
" Refreshments, anyone? "
Gareth says as a couple of his identical clones approach everyone holding glasses of a strange looking golden liquid on a platter after each of you is relaxed and used to the couches. Tom leans forward and looks at the clones peculiarly as he answers.
" No thanks. "
Mimi looks at the glasses with wonder and asks Gareth a question.
" What is it? "
Gareth grabs a glass from a platter that his clone is holding and takes a sip before answering Mimi.
" Nanowater. When you drink it, the man-made molecules react with your taste buds and change their structure to give you a taste that your mouth will find most satisfying. It's made with yet another technology developed by NaxTech, and it has all of the same health benefits of regular water with no drawbacks. Each person tastes it differently depending on their own unique taste buds. "
" I'm good. "
You say to one of the clones as it offers you a drink. Roary seems almost offended as he declines a drink as well. Mimi shakes her head as she answers.
" Mama wouldn't want me to have any. Thank you though. "
Gareth chuckles to himself and downs the whole glass before speaking to the group.
" Well then, I think now is a good time to break the ice. "