"But we don't feel anything, Your Majesty," Guard Captain Vermiel is confused and he's not the only one. Everyone in the throne room is whispering to each other, anxiously fluttering their wings.
"No monsters yet, a rift forming," I try to explain.
"Love, how can you tell with such certainty?" Gotrid stands up and clutches my hand.
"I just feel it," I admit that I have no rational explanation. "Just as you feel cardinal directions. It's pure instinct I guess?"
"Your Emperor instinct?" Erik raises his eyebrow.
"My... other instinct," I bite my lip, hesitating. This has definitely something to do with my half-Divementis brain.
"Your Majesty," Liana bows in front of the throne. "Give us your orders."
I study her for a moment. The shift in her is remarkable, but the shift in me is even more so. I have no doubts anymore. Half-Divementis or not, I am the Celestial Emperor. And right now, every fibre in my body is battle-ready. Celestials indeed are heavenly warriors by nature.
"Gear up, we're departing in five minutes," I order with no hesitation in my voice. "I know that there's a battle unit in Osaka, but this is a perfect opportunity to explore the rift itself before it closes."
"As you command, my Emperor!" the hall roars and, for the first time, it makes me feel truly good as the Emperor.
We rush to our apartment where the maids quickly help me and Gotrid into our brand-new armour that has yet to experience a battle.
"You'll need to learn how to do it faster next time," I tell them because we're behind our scheduled departure by three minutes when they finish braiding my hair. This time I look at my reflection in the mirror with confidence. I love how I look in Celestial armour.
"We will, Your Majesty!" the maids bow.
I turn to Erik who's nervously stepping by the door, feeling a bit left out. He knows that this is one of those things that he will never be able to share with me.
"You're in charge, Erik," I tell him and kiss him urgently. "The Celestials staying in the mansion will listen to everything you say as if that order was from me."
"I know," he nods resolutely. "I'll hold the fort until you return."
I kiss him again on the porch and spread my wings immediately after that. The Imperial Guard is already hovering above the mansion. I spot Liana and Soren at the very upper part of the flock.
"Your Majesty, you have to lead the way, we still can't feel anything," Miruel tells me. We've notified the local authorities. They will try to follow our formation and send the JSDF to assist us."
"Follow then," I say simply.
As always, I'm strategically positioned in the middle of the flock, but that's okay because I'm sending them the direction where we should head through telepathy anyway. I feel that the rift shouldn't be far because the mysterious pull I'm experiencing is super strong. So strong that I have no idea why they can't feel anything. I set the speed to the highest the Imperial Guard can manage and we cross ten kilometres in just six minutes.
Listen, everyone, I address the whole Royal Guard. Our mission today isn't to only defeat the monsters that come through. We have a unique opportunity to explore the rift itself. For that, I need you to protect me from incoming attacks as I won't be joining the battle unless it becomes absolutely necessary.
"As you command, Your Majesty," Vermiel shouts back against the wind. "However, we need you to respect that should the situation turn dangerous, we won't hesitate to escort you to safety."
Noted, I answer. There's nothing I can do about it anyway. The highest Celestial priority will always be protecting their embodiment of magic.
It turns out that the rift is about to open in the suburbs of Osaka. Miruel immediately notifies the local authorities to start evacuating the area while I'm trying to pinpoint the exact location. It's not that difficult in the end because the closer I get, the more unsettled I feel. And when I get goosebumps under my feathers, I do not doubt that we've reached our destination.
I conjure up a levitation platform so that I don't have to be flapping my wings all the time and start slowly getting closer to the spot. Nothing is visible at first, but then the space itself starts bending. Fearing that monsters can start flooding at any moment, I stay hovering at the highest tip of the rift where the monsters shouldn't be a threat after their immediate appearance. At least before they notice me and start spitting venom or something. Which, hopefully, will be deflected by my protectors.
"I thought we would be able to see through to the other side," Gotrid lands on the platform next to me. "Maybe it's not a two-way portal?"
"It's collapsing already, I can feel its power diminishing," I realise. "It won't stay open for long. Whatever comes through stays trapped here."
"How are you going to analyse it?" Gotrid scratches his chin.
"I'll try sending my mind to the other side," I tell him my plan. "If it's a portal that connects two places and there's life, I should be able to feel something."
"Won't that be dangerous?" Gotrid gets startled.
"This isn't an astral projection," I assure him. "I'll search the space with my mind, but I won't leave my body."
"Do what you must then and leave your protection to us," he says confidently and puts up a shield around us like a huge bubble.
I sit down in a meditation posture to focus better and half-close my eyes. The rift is connecting to somewhere unknown, but what if it's actually the world of Draconia and the game was its exact replica? Is that what I should ask my father tonight?
I send my consciousness into the rift, trying to reach beyond the distorted horizon. I expect difficulties, but the minds of beings on the other side are already jumping to our dimension through the distortion, making it easy for me. I reach out to them. While they lack higher intelligence, I discover that they also feel pulled towards the rift. Some of them are entering right now!
"A heligorr incoming!" I hear Vermiel shouting alarm, but I try not to let it disturb me.
I reach further, but, sadly, I can't see the alien dimension. I can only feel its inhabitants. And they are vicious, unlike anything I've seen before. Real monsters, not animals. I momentarily lose focus when something hits the shield Gotrid put up and several guards are sustaining. But the shield holds, so I close my eyes again.
I can feel that the rift is destabilising quickly so I have to hurry. The Divementis came from that dimension, I need to find out more. However, all I can feel so far are monsters. What's making them so aggressive without a reason, though? Do they want to eat or just kill? I try to reach even further, stretching my telepathic range to its current maximum.
And then suddenly something pushes into my mind. It's not testing my defence, it's not curious. Whatever that is, it's going for a kill. I put up a mental shield just in time when a telepathic surge comes through the rift. Luckily, my mental barrier blocks it successfully, but it still shakes me. Would I be able to stop it just a few days ago? I have a feeling that it's thanks to my father's torturous training methods.
What was that?! Is there a Divementis on the other side? But that force didn't resemble my father at all. It wasn't cold and calculativeâit was a crude force and raw menace.
A DIVEMENTIS!
An inhuman voice echoes in my head. I'm pretty sure these were not actual words, but a mental interpretation of what that thing imagines when it comes to the race of my father.
What are you? I try to send him a message in a similar way.
How can you not know? the voice stops pushing, curious now.
How can I know when I've never seen you? I answer, hoping maybe that thing can be reasoned with after all.
I can see now that your mind is very young, the voice is surprised. How can a child defend itself against me?
I'm not a child, I retort. I'm the Celestial Emperor!
I probably shouldn't have said that, but he offended me and my Emperor nature doesn't take that well. Besides, I'm proud to be the Celestial Emperor. I won't hide my identity.
Nonsense, Celestials are extinct and they were not telepaths, the voice argues. Are you a Divementis who was born on the other side? Did your people tell you nothing about me?
The telepathic pressure gets stronger again. That thing is trying to peek into my memories! I do the same as I did with my fatherâI push it away with my emotions. I expect to be half-successful at the very least, but that being pulls itself back almost completely.
You're not a Divementis! it exclaims, astonished. The Divementis can't project emotions.
I told you that I'm not, I say. I'm the Celestial Emperor.
Oh, I understand now! it laughs. You're half-Divementis! But how is that possible? The proud Divementis would never stand so low to breed with lesser races. Are they that desperate?
What are you? I demand to know.
No answer. Instead, it starts pushing again. It's testing all my defences, trying to find a way into my brain. I'm holding the best I can, but that thing has centuries of experience I simply don't have. I'm afraid it will break through sooner or later.
"Love, your nose is bleeding!"
Gotrid shakes me, trying to get me out. That's a fatal mistake because I connect to him automatically. When that being feels Gotrid's consciousness, it goes after him instead. In a panic, I pull Gotrid to my chest and kiss him, trying to mingle our minds so that he gets the same protection I have. Gotrid doesn't know what's going on, but his default is to trust me completely so he doesn't struggle with me.
That's a pure Celestial mind! the voice roars. So the Divementis succeeded after all? They resurrected the ancient extinct races to oppose me?!
It's too much, I feel my defences crumbling. It's attacking me with everything it can and even though it's not going for a kill but information, I can't let it. However, all my amazing Celestial magic is useless in this battle of two minds. Is that what my father meant when he mentioned that magic won't help me? Did he mean this?
But then I realise that powerful presence isn't resonating within our world. It's attacking me through the rift, but it actually can't cross the border between our dimensions the same way I can. It can hurt me only because I'm sending my conscience out there. I pull back immediately and... I'm free! I can't feel it anymore. Whatever that thing is, it can't get through.
Naturally, it's a huge relief, but I realise that I didn't get out unscathed. My head is pulsating with an insane migraine, I'm extremely dizzy and my nose won't stop bleeding. I collapse into Gotrid's feathery embrace as my brain shuts down to escape the maddening pain.