My Boy

Sky, why don't you tell me about your adventures in Rubeki territory? What happened? I saw you holding those Purple Sabers like it didn't hurt you at all, so I'm naturally curious of course. How strong did you really get?" I asked him.

I felt like a proud parent for the second time in my life watching him react in a happy mood to my compliments. It was like he looked up to me, and that's all I could really ask for.

"Oh! I learned how to use the strands to heal myself and make small objects like water canteens. Let's see... I'm really good at fighting now and I even dueled with Illya to prove it! We killed a ton of Rubeki as well, we fought some intelligent ones." He explained to me.

This was the moment of truth.

"Did you see anything about Providence? I'm sure that would've been an easy opponent for you." I said, rubbing his head.

By playing it off as an innocent ego boost, I hid from Illya's radar about my true state of sentience, followed by her master plan as I slowly continued to expose it.

"Nope! She must've been too scared of us." Sky explained to me.

For two years? Do you think Providence left you out of her radar for two years? He definitely still was a kid, as he couldn't think about something like that. That was fine, as it perfectly played into my plan.

Everything was slowly building up and coming together. Illya's story was falling apart as I have been able to predict it event by event... but what is the turning point that causes Sky to evolve into a Deity?

It's soon. His strand control is just about the bare minimum it takes to become a Deity, but I am infinitely curious about when it'll happen. When we return to MTG? Sometime later? How much longer do I have to play this game without making a mistake? It was all up in the air, and nothing was certain. That made me more nervous than I could imagine.

"You probably did scare her off. Well, now we can return home. I think you two deserve a break, huh?" I asked them, specifically looking at Illya.

"That would be nice, but it's all up to you, Headmaster Ali," Illya whispered to me. Then, that was part of her plan... interesting...

"I order you two to rest for the next day. After that day, you may come back if you're feeling energetic enough! Understood?!" I playfully yelled at Sky and Illya. They nodded.

"Oh! Sky, everybody is going to be so happy to see you and Illya again! We've been working pretty hard, so we're all really strong now as well!" Shike told Sky. He nodded and they lost themselves in a conversation, talking about their friends at MTG.

I could rest now that I knew Sky was safe, but I was surprised by his reaction and current reaction. He handled two years away from everybody quite well, especially considering he was only twelve when they began... ah, he's fourteen now, that does make me feel old.

"So, Belle is okay? She was able to return back to MTG? That's good... it looks like I was able to save my family. You hear that, Illya?" Sky turned to ask her.

That's it... that's why Illya was exiled as well. This was part of her plan, to become somebody close to Sky, to form a bond that was unbreakable... that was honestly pretty smart of her, but I highly doubt Sky would turn on his previous friends and family to save that bond. She overlooked the fact that Sky is my child and helps all he can, not all he wants to.

"That's quite wonderful! How is Belle? Is she still in A-Ranking with the others?" Illya asked Shike.

I could tell Shike was skeptical of Illya, which meant he picked up on my advice and was watching out for her.

"Uh, yeah! Belle is the second strongest in A-Ranking, she's quite the powerful candidate! Oh, she's going to be so happy to see you two again... and hey! Remember Boo? She's so much stronger too! I'm afraid that you may have some pretty tough competition now, Sky!" Shike teased him and they both laughed. I was glad he had his best friend here to talk with as he got back to MTG. We were almost at the front gates by now, and I could see Sky get more and more excited.

"Should we surprise them? Do they know about me coming back?" Sky asked. I drifted off into my own independent thought to think about everything.

So, this world was all a part of Illya's interference. I have no idea why I'm here, and I remember that I died I think... I'm not sure why I'm alive here and why I only recently gained sentience, but I do know that the golden strands I possess can awaken people. It can override their programming and give them real lives... does that mean Illya's strands are in every single person here? There were so many things I still didn't know... but I was sure of some things as well.

Sky isn't from here. He might have grown up here, but he wasn't first born here, he was sent here. Shike, Belle, and Alexia are his friends, so I don't know what Illya has planned for them, but I know that it's nothing good since this world is also used as a Trial for Sky to become a Deity.

There were so many things to consider that I was lost, but I slowly pieced parts of the mystery together and was able to come to the conclusion that Sky was invincible here and wouldn't die under any circumstance. This isn't much of a Trial if Sky dies in the middle of it... but people like Shike and me, who may or may not have true sentience, we're supposed to die. I'm almost sure of it.

It was sad to say that I knew I was going to die... but that's my boy. I would do anything to prolong his life, along with spending mine in battle to give him the opportunity to grow stronger.

Because I would be lying if I said that Sky wasn't going to become the one who surpassed them all.