Name Part II

Calir held the scarf with care.

"This- this is a scarf. I made this for you but things happened and this ended up here."

"Scarf? That sounds funny haha." Little Lu giggled as he found the word funny. He then continued "Can I play with it?"

"This is not a toy, silly. It's like this, you wrap this around your neck so you don't feel cold." Calir explained as she wrapped the scarf around her son's neck. She then chuckled because it was so long that it was touching the floor. 'I remembered Chris said that it was too big for a baby. I guess I might've been too excited when I made this.'

"I feel warm." The little boy uttered as he caressed the long black scarf. 

"Hmm… What's this Mama?" He asked as he found a word engraved in red on it. 

"That- that's your name. Or what it was supposed to be." Calir said as her eyes moistened. She remembered how she almost lost her son when he was born. 

``My name? But it's written wrong,' he thought. "Did you not write the correct spelling Mama? Haha you should also study sometimes." The boy said trying to lighten the mood as he felt her mother's unspoken feelings. 

Calir bent down and pinched Little Lu's cheeks. "You're making fun of Mama huh, I'll add another 20 minutes to your study hehe." 

Little Lu panicked and tried to think of excuses but he thought too long and so it was decided. He was spoiled, it's true but Chris would sneak some punishment once in a while to teach the boy a lesson. But not that's just Chris. Calir on the other hand would punish the boy because it was fun and also that way she will have more time to spend with Little Lu. The two wanted Little Lu to live a happy and safe life. So they let him play as much as he wants but they always teach him skills he would need to survive in this world. A world where fairness is decided by power and a world where choices are only presented to those with enough capabilities. 

Calir found the boy's expression cute and hugged him. She then said "I didn't write it wrong because it was a different name in the first place. Your current name means Light and Miracle. Just like the hero Lucia. You are our light and you created a miracle by being born in this world." She looked at the boy's pure eyes with intense joy and affection. Her pitch black eyes that many have feared and saw when they took their last breath was full of warmth and care. If those who knew her as Crimson Veil see her now they would think that the world has turned upside down.

'My name means light and miracle. Cool! I can't wait to tell Leah and Luna.' The little boy thought as he couldn't wait to brag about his name. 

"And the name that's written on this scarf means Unbound and Powerful. You read it as… "

—---

"Arthur, that is my name." Said boy with eyes black as night.

"Arthur?" Little Lu pondered because this name was very familiar.

Arthur didn't give him much time to think about the name because he held Little Lu's hand and suddenly took a step, a single step that made them cross thousands of light years. 

*Woosh! 

"Huh?" Little Lu uttered as he found himself standing on a blue cube rock the size of a regular house. The cube was pulsing and produced a magnetic sound. His hair stood on ends and so did Arthur's. "Haha you look funny." Little Lu said and played with Arthur's hair. It didn't take long before they again travelled and arrived on a planet made of water. Or more precisely a ball of water that's the size of a planet. They flew on its surface and swam to its core. There, Lu and Arthur found a giant pearl that was producing soothing clouds like energy. 

"I feel sleepy." Little Lu said as he felt his body relaxed. Oddly enough even under water, they could still talk.

*Swoosh! 

Now they arrived near a black star coated with pitch black flames with purple neon lightning flickering out once in a while. It was destructive and dangerous but Little Lu only felt a tingle when lightning flickered near them. 

Little experienced something that all the powerhouses in the lower or upper realm would never even begin to imagine. The two little boys explored the vast cosmic space without a care in the outside world. They rode on an asteroid surrounded by auspicious clouds that was as big as a car. And slid on a space dust ring (like Saturn's ring but without the planet). 

Arthur would take Little Lu to play and sometimes they would take a break and admire some stars up close. But Little Lu only felt warm and a little bit cold near them. If a powerhouse were to even get a glimpse of light from these stars, their demise was set. They wouldn't even be able to comprehend what happened before their bodies disintegrate and their souls vaporised. After all these are no ordinary stars, these stars are all made from solidified and profound laws. 

They continued to explore the vastness and wonder this realm offered. Yes, this was a realm, created by a being who reached the end and beginning. Little Lu forgot the concept of time in this place. He felt like he belonged here like he was a part of it. It's like a missing part if his soul has finally found its piece.

Eventually, after exploring and playing, mostly Little Lu, Arthur just watched and observed him. The two boys found themselves on top of a lone planet. It looked like Earth and it was the smallest planet in this realm. It's also the only planet that gives off the feeling of… life. The planet was the center of this realm; there were three moons of different sizes orbiting around it giving off a profound feeling and the brightest sun not bigger than the biggest moon was on the other side orbiting around this one planet.

The two boys entered the planet. They glided down and found themselves on a vast prairie. "Whoo! That was fun!" Little Lu exclaimed and looked at Arthur with expectant eyes. He clearly wanted to do it again but Arthur only formed a faint smile as he looked around. There was only flat ground beyond, with long green grass that reached up to their knees. There were no trees, hills or mountains. Only grassland as far as the eyes could see.

"Woah! It's so soft!" Exclaimed Little Lu as he rolled around and fumbled. "Big Brother! This is the best place yet. I feel so… so… at home here." 

"Home." Arthur gazed on to the horizon, his thoughts unrecognizable. Faint three moons with different hues and sizes could be seen and a bright sun hidden behind some clouds could be seen peeking. "This is where I have been sleeping all this time." He said as he pointed toward a small patch of grass that formed a circular bed.

"You sleep here?" Little Lu asked dumbfounded. He could see no house or any indication of a shelter. Even a small sheep has a house to sleep in in the Village yet Arthur sleeps on this grass.

"Where's your Mama and Papa?" He asked as he felt an emotion he hadn't felt in a long time inside him, it was sadness.

Arthur looked at Lu and waved his hands. Auspicious energy gathered out of nowhere, it was more powerful and more profound than the Mana Little Lu had come to know. The energy molded together and formed two silhouettes. It was Chris and Calir. 

Little Lu immediately recognized the two and ran up to them to give them a hug. But he passed through them and he fell forward. 

"They are not here, these are just images I made based on your memories that I have seen." Arthur conjured up these two from the memory he got from Little Lu. They were smiling, they always do whenever they are in front of Little Lu.

"My memories? Isn't that inside my brain?!" Little Lu gasped as he clutched his head. "Did you go inside my head?!" 

Arthur faintly chuckled as he found this reaction amusing. He then patiently explained to the five year old boy. "I have been inside of you all this time. I have been asleep until just recently and you… Lucian, you are the one that woke me up." 

"I-I didn't wake you up. You're lying." Said Little Lu innocently as he recalled that this was the first time he saw this boy in front of him. 

"Mama said lying is bad, Big Brother." Said Little Lu as he shook his head innocently. 

"I'm not lying." Arthur crossed his brows, he felt a little irritated that Lu would bring up Calir. "You woke me up earlier when you knocked on the barrier- ". Arthur paused, he didn't continue to explain because he knew Little Lu wouldn't understand him. 

"I am you and you are me but at the same time we are different." Arthur said as sat down, he beckoned for Little Lu to sit next to him and the boy obliged. "I was the first born of Calir and Chris our mother and father, when I was born my mortal body died… " He explained as he looked to the sky. His pitch black eyes looked regal and aloof but hidden emotions were hidden inside them. Emotions he thought were long gone.

Little Lu sat quietly as he listened attentively. For some reason he knew this was important and even though he didn't understand some things he still got the gist of their situation. 

"I am stuck here in this place and couldn't come out to be with you and our parents. I need a strong body that is compatible with my power to be free." Arthur explained to Little Lu the plan he had in mind to be able to come out and be with them. "When you grow strong enough you will ascend to a higher status, your body, our body will then be strong enough to house my power. I will perform a spell when that time comes. I will create a perfect copy of this body that you will use. A body that will suit you more and be able to house your soul better." 

Arthur explained how the body Little Lu has right now was his to begin with and so as it grows it will be modified to fit his powers and house his very being more than that of Little Lu. Basically Arthur had no proper body and this body that Little Lu had, had no proper soul. From the start Little Lu was an anomaly, he was an incomplete being. 

As the revelation hit Little Lu, he felt scared and overwhelmed of course but also excited and thrilled to have a powerful brother. He's still a little kid after all, existential crises would only haunt him when he got older and became more aware of his existence. And by then it would be easier for him to accept reality as it was already shown to him at an early time. Or so Arthur hoped. He didn't feel the need to hide anything from Little Lu, after all everything will be upto Little Lu on how to handle this. He was simply guiding him and showing him the way. How Little Lu moved forward was up to him. He is his own being. Arthur had no intention of controlling him even though he could. It would speed up the process for sure and he would be free immediately but for someone who had reached the lonely peak, to experience life and everything it offered is all he wanted now. Arthur can do everything he wants and what he wants currently is to play the role of a Big Brother. A role he never got to experience before.