Elsewhere in the Hospital

I walked into the hospital playroom, where Iniko sits and play alone. The boy looks a bit skittish, but that is understandable, he did just witness a ridiculous battle.

“Iniko, right?”

The boy's ears twitches once his name is said.

“Myr-lin,” Iniko asked.

We exchanged a nervous expression.

“You're that lady's son, right,” he asked. “She told me a lot about you...”

Thinking back on the conversation I had with Jade moments ago; that’s right, Mother did adopt this child, he’s probably never talked to anyone that was his age. She mentioned that he’s roughly around my age and has a similar Mana Presence as me and my siblings.

“That lady, was our mother...”

Iniko gazes with a surprised expression.

“I'm not blaming you, but just remember, that's our mother... She sacrificed her safety and magic to make sure we stayed alive...”

Iniko looks down and like the natural ‘Big Brother’ that I am, I lift his head and flash him a reassuring smile.

He reaches out and gives me a tight hug, afterwards we started chatting with each other, learning more about one another.

Jade stands outside the room the listening in on our conversation with a faint smile. She sheds a single tear as she reminisces her time with Father and Mother in their Golden Hourglass party.

She snaps out of her daze and approaches the two of us.

“Boys, we don't have much time,” Jade barks. “Get your things so we can leave.”

We exchange a confused look, why is she in such a hurry?

She mentioned that you all were on a tight schedule before you woke up... Iniko states telepathically.

I snapped my attention to Iniko, who seemed extremely at ease knowing he just so casually read my mind. This is the second time my thoughts were heard by someone else.

“Ummm... Shouldn't we be healing?”

“Absolutely not,” Jade shakes her head. “The enrollment deadline is this afternoon!”

My eyes bulge out of my skull and I quickly jump up.

“Why would you wait until now to say something?!”

“Seems irresponsible if you ask me,” chimed Iniko.

I knew from that smart-ass remark that I would get along with his kid.

Mother did have the best judgement.

“It's a good thing we don't have to go very far,” Jade comments. “This hospital is located in a small village under Avalon's jurisdiction. So, we should have a safe passage from this point on.”

“But how long will that take?”

“Normally, it'll take a day and a half,” she laments. “However, I have a spell that'll have us there in under a minute...”

Jade gives us a devious grin and in return, we give her worried smile that eventually turns into uncontrollable laughter.

“Mrs. Mother was right, you're awesome!” Iniko states with a beaming smile.

I usually get compliments from the maids and other servants in the manor, but something about Iniko’s words made me feel validated.

“You're cool too!”

Minerva and our siblings rushed into the room with their bags in hand.

“Jade! Is it time to go!?” Minerva whines. “We've been here since last night and it smells like liche in here!”

Jade erupts in laughter and she guides the other children out of the room.

Moments Later outside the Hospital

Lilac and Father came by the hospital to give us a new pair of clothes and to officially adopt Iniko into the family. He seemed on edge, which was a natural response, considering the circumstances. Before they left, Father did let us know that the culture of Avalon is vastly different than what we are used to; he mentioned the extreme level of prejudice we may encounter.

See, in hTraè, every being that draws life, has sentience, all came from one person. She had many names, Our Dear Mother, Reality Queen, Mother of Monsters, but one fact remained, every creature in this world draws breath because of her. However, with a number of different races this world has, you’re bound to have some sort of racial supremacy in the mix, and Avalon is no stranger to that. Since me and my siblings are all half demon and half dragon, we’re pretty much walking targets.

Jade opens the carriage door and has lets us inside the stagecoach one by one before she closes the door and mounts the front.

“Hold on to your seats kiddos!” She yells out.

Jade closes her eyes and begins scribe her name in the air.

“Aspect of Momentum: Speed Signature: STAMPEDE!” She yells out and her whip emit to red light as she whips the bicorns. They neigh and whine, however as they pull the carriage, the speed increases.

The stagecoach suddenly stops; most of us held onto the walls of the carriage and kept our eyes shut, Minerva, kept one eye open to peek at our surroundings. She opens her eyes and inhales softly; she slowly opens the window of the stagecoach and is completely enamored at the sight of the city.

“MyrMyr, come look at this,” she pulls me over.

I open my eyes and walked towards the window, the other children, excluding a sleeping Boudica, each open their eyes to view the city in the far off distance.

The city of Avalon is a coastal market city that known for its vast imports and various cultures. Speaking of cultures, my uncle was telling me about some of the different cultures that we may encounter. I’m pretty familiar with Jigoku and Demon culture, and what is left of dragon culture. Apparently, the continent of ShanGri-La was once known as Dragon Country, but after some ancient war, majority of the dragons were practically wiped from existence.

This place is like a dream…

We reached the port and docked the faerie that led to the city’s entrance. Monspeed and Meliodas ran to the edge of the boat to stare in awe at the distance bodies of land. South of ShanGri-La is the Beastmen continent of Besteria, it’s made up of three countries, Fangalor, Bestahlagro, and EMZ (Extreme Mana Zone): South. To the east of Dragon Country, there is the Elven continent of Dartaania, they have about three settlements and a central capital city called Kaynta. Lastly, north of Dartaania is the Sorcerous Continent of Sidhe, formerly known as Fairy Country, according to Uncle Aether.

The faerie docks at the entrance to the city’s mainland, and a dense forest appeared from seemingly nowhere. It turned out that the city has a natural camouflage due to the mixture of cultures and “potential shady underground world”.

Jade didn’t seem bothered by this and gathered us all up and proceeded to the city’s true main gate. Unsurprisingly, we had a quick and smooth journey, about ten minutes from when we initially landed.

As we approached the city’s gates, I noticed that there is an arch with a swirling interior about twenty feet from the gate. It was being guarded by several heavily armored knights.

Looks important… Minerva states telepathically.

I’m sure we’ll have some lecture on it…

We finally made our to the gates and we were stopped by two guards. 

“Permit,” one of the guards asked Jade. She flashed him a smile and handed him a stack of papers. Surprised, the guard clumsily tried to catch the documents; the second guard noticed the struggle bolted to assist his comrade. Jade chuckles and dismounts the carriage to help the two. After the guards collected and verified our permits, they allowed us to enter the city. 

Minerva opened the window and each of us were completely in awe at the sight of of this ethereal and futuristic-like city. There were weapons shops, taverns, clothing stores, cafes, there’s even a train! Avalon was more than what Uncle Aether, no Father and Mother led us to believe. This is literally something you see in dreams, or in fantasy novels.

The carriage abruptly slows down and the driver window slid open, “Welcome, to the City of Avalon,” Jade yelled from the outside of the carriage, the younger kids squealed in excitement, much to Jade’s amusement.

“We're not here to gawk, we spent one more day needed to make this trip, and we just barely made it,” Jade huffs. “I need to take you all to the Institute before the deadline or Lord Chronos is going to kill me!”

Elsewhere at The Caliburn Institute

A woman with olive skin, cat-like ears and a platinum-blonde bob sits at her desk and looks Jade's group head toward the school from a magic mirror. The woman smiles and directs her attention to a little girl that bears a striking resemblance to her.

“My dear, it seems Lord Chronos' children have arrived,” the woman states.

The little girl's face stays obscure in the shadows as she nods her head. Lady Eos, the woman, gives the girl a gentle smile.

End of Chapter Ten