Chapter 4 S2

Niris opened his eyes suddenly. Fully awake, he felt as if he had been shaken out of his lethargic sleep. He lay there for a few moments, his eyes riveted on the ceiling of his room. His body was pulsing with energy, but his mind was tired. It was a strange sensation. A glance out of the window told him it must be around six o'clock. 

He sat up slowly. His head was spinning. Eighteen o'clock... Yet when he had joined the sanctuary with Jibaru, it had been close to midday... he deduced that he had fainted after the ritual. His mind must have received the sudden overflow of natural energy with a violence he wasn't used to. If he was lying unattended in his bed, it meant that the operation had gone well. 

Cautiously, he placed his feet on the floor and waited a moment for his mind to stabilise before sitting up again. It was a strange sensation to have a tired mind in a body galvanised with natural energy. It took him a little while to get used to it before he grabbed his inner coat and put it on. The nights were cold in Sophianopolis at this time of year, so it was best to be careful. 

Putting on his slippers, he left and headed for his father's flats. On the way, he greeted the palace staff who were busy preparing for the night. He opened the large door to his father's sitting room without knocking. He knew he wasn't there at that hour, and he would have sensed it if he'd had guests. Without further ado, he dragged himself over to the long, light blue sofa embroidered with gold thread that sat in the middle of the room and let himself fall onto it, face down against the fleecy fabric. 

He stayed there for a few moments. He loved this sofa. Everything about it reminded him of his family and the happy times he'd spent with his parents. The light blue, which hadn't faded thanks to the meticulous work of the palace upholsterers, emanated a warmth he could never get enough of. It was the emperor's favourite colour, and the mere sight of it gave him a gentle feeling of well-being. 

He turned and looked at the ceiling again, pensive. He had come as much to enjoy his father's presence as to ask him questions. Questions that he knew would be painful for him. But he needed answers. His troubled mind had been searching for the truth ever since the recent events and too many things were upsetting him for him to simply put these questions aside. That's why he had decided to confront his father as soon as he had recovered. All the more so as he risked leaving Egea again for an indeterminate time. 

The angel wandered in her thoughts, trying to keep her brain from the mental fatigue that was gradually eating away at her. Niris immersed himself in meditation to make sure his body was holding up and that his energy channel was connected to his brain again. But Jibaru was a master at this and he could find nothing wrong with his condition. His channel was perfectly reconnected and the natural energy flowing through his body was both well directed and well contained. 

He closed his eyes for a moment. He had to put his mind in order. His reading from the previous day had taught him nothing new. Irene of Mezara, known as the accursed queen, had put to death the last dragonrider, Lycanthe of Ensra, for cheating on her husband and leading him to his death. Thereafter, her reign was one of desolation and misery. Everyone around her died one by one, she had to fight three different wars which she lost, having to concede land and wealth to her enemies, and family and disease ravaged the kingdom of Egea after that. After that, the people revolted against the royalty and a civil war ensued between the Myrthian angels and the Tirithian angels, the ancestors of the Egeans. This war ended with the sad moon of blood, which was a massacre, or rather a mass extermination of the Myrthian angels, who were then considered deviant. It was the story of the one and only genocide committed by angels. 

Everyone knew this story. It was taught at school as the bloody story behind our modern era. It is part of our history and part of the inglorious times of our people. The antiquity of angels is taught through the tragedy of the fall of a great dynasty, the Palmites, a generation of Myrthian angels who had brought a golden age of promise to angels. The trauma of the Myrthian genocide was passed down over the millennia as a lesson never to be repeated. 

So the angels learned to give up power and not to desire glory so that it would not bring the downfall that follows. The shame of having such an event recorded in their history books marked their minds forever. If Egea was what it is today, and the angels a resilient and non-violent people, it was only because of this tragic episode that still haunted the minds of the descendants of the survivors. For there were no longer any known Myrthians on Egea. They were now considered an extinct species of angel. 

Niris already knew all this. Rereading it had only brought back memories of the teachings he had received when he was younger. But what surprised him most was that at no point was the death of the dragonrider Lycanthe mentioned. The books spoke of the death of the dragonrider as the turning point in the downfall of the Palmites, but nowhere were the details of the event mentioned. 

If no one had recorded the precise details of the killing, then how could Niris have dreamt the scene with such precision? This dream... was disturbing. To say the least. He had the impression of having experienced the scene as if he were there. More than a dream, Niris had had the impression of having plunged into an old memory buried deep in the recesses of his mind. 

Disturbed, he turned on his side. His eyes unfocused, he was drawn out of his reflection by the sudden entrance of his father, who trotted up to him with a big smile on his lips. Niris sighed inwardly. That man was hopeless! He was completely gaga over his son and couldn't hide his joy when he knew that his son had come to visit him. 

"How are you feeling?" he asked, sitting down on the sofa and taking his cheeks in his hands, examining him from all sides. 

Niris, who had straightened up when he heard him coming, protested. 

-I'm fine, everything went well and Jiba reconnected me without any problems," he replied blasély. 

But he knew that the Emperor wasn't listening to him. He would not leave him alone until he was sure that his son was in good health. After examining him from every angle, he pressed his ears against his chest, level with his heart. Niris let him do this with a sigh. Finally, Aroslan straightened up and detached himself from him. He took his hands and gave him a reassuring smile. 

-I can see that, you're obviously in great shape," he acknowledged with relief. 

Niris smiled weakly. His father was sometimes excessive, but he knew he was genuinely worried. That's why he let him get on with it without complaining too much. He had a loving father, and that was a blessing he couldn't deny. 

-I knew you'd manage, but you know how it is. When you're a parent, you can't help but worry about your children," he said with a rueful expression. 

-Ah, I know, don't apologise..." replied Niris, tired of fighting his bouts of worry. 

The angel leaned back against his father's shoulder and closed his eyes. He needed to regain his energy, he felt so tired! They stayed like that for a while. The Emperor put his arms around his shoulders and gently caressed his back. This gesture comforted the angel, who sighed at ease. Truly, there was nothing that could heal a sick heart like the pure love of a parent for their child. He felt his chest lighten a little as he embraced his father. 

As he thought back over the events of the last few days, he took his father's right hand in his own and squeezed it. Then he gently rolled up his sleeve to show his forearm. There, a long scar barred the emperor's white skin. Slowly, with the tip of his forefinger, he traced the length of the scar up to his elbow. Gently, his father took her hand and, with a gentle smile, placed it back on his lap. 

-It stopped hurting a long time ago," he reassured him. 

But Niris was still worried. His father had never wanted to tell him what had caused the scar. To leave such a mark on the body of such a powerful man, it must have been someone terribly powerful who inflicted it. Seeing the little prince's preoccupied expression, the emperor decided to divert his attention. 

-I'm glad to see you're okay, it was a risky mission. I should have prepared the ground better before sending you, it's my fault if things went wrong. 

Niris turned his head and clenched his fingers into a fist in his lap. 

-There was nothing more you could have done. The situation degenerated without anyone being able to anticipate it, and you're in no way to blame for what happened. 

The emperor laid a gentle, protective gaze on his son. He knew him well, and he knew that he blamed himself for the way events had turned out. And he knew he wouldn't talk about it himself. In this, he took after his mother and found it adorable, even if not always easy to manage. 

With a deep sigh, Niris leaned back against his father's shoulder and closed his eyes. He needed to recover his energy, he felt so tired! They stayed like that for a while. The Emperor put his arms around his shoulders and gently caressed his back. The gesture comforted the angel, who sighed with relief. Truly, there was nothing that could heal a sick heart like the pure love of a parent for their child. He felt his chest lighten a little as he embraced his father. 

-You know, if it's too hard, you don't have to carry it all, Niris," said the Emperor, breaking the silence with his gentle voice. You're not alone, you don't have to carry it all alone. I, Jibaru, Erma, Lobil and all the others who saw you grow up are here to support you. You can rest on us when you're exhausted. 

Niris smiled. He rubbed his forehead against the silky fabric of his father's robe, feeling the balm it applied to his gaping heart, which had been bleeding heavily since he left Ornikarn. 

-Thank you, Father," he murmured. I don't know what I'd do without you, honestly... 

He finally tore himself away from his father, forcing himself to end this moment of comforting intimacy into which he wanted to plunge and never emerge again. 

The emperor grabbed his cheeks again and pretended to play with them to mock him. Niris let him do so before letting go of his zygomatic. He put on a serious face. 

-I've actually come to see you about something," he finally admitted. 

His father looked at him, intrigued. 

-What do you know about the story of Lycanthe d'Ensra, the last dragonrider? 

Aroslan cocked his head to one side. Clearly, he hadn't expected this question. 

-Why are you so interested in this old story?" he asked. 

-Just... tell me what you know, I'll explain later. 

The emperor thought for a moment before speaking. 

-Well, I don't know any more than you can find in all our history books," he said thoughtfully. She was the last living dragonrider, in other words, the last angel to have had a supra-energetic connection with a dragon. She was put to death by Irene of Mezara without a trial for supposedly causing the death of her husband. In reality, Queen Irene wanted to seize power, and to do so she had to get rid of the obstacles in her way, which were her husband and Lycanthe, which is why she sentenced the young woman, who was actually innocent, to death. You know the rest...

He finished his story with a questioning look at his son, who was staring at the fabric of the sofa with his eyebrows furrowed. As he had suspected, his father didn't know any more than he did. He hadn't taught him anything new. He thought about it, looking for a way to find out new information on the subject somehow. His father must have known something that would entice him! There had to be something to be gained from the knowledge the angels had accumulated on this subject! 

-The dragonriders, why did they disappear after that? he tried another approach. Lycanthe of Ensra was the last, but there could have been others after her, couldn't there? 

The emperor thought for a moment before answering. 

-It's not that Lycanthe was the last and her death was the end of the dragonriders, it's that the link between angels and dragons has become weaker over the years and fewer and fewer angels have forged supra-energetic links with dragons. 

He paused for a moment, then resumed when he saw the wide-open eyes of his fascinated son.

-Dragons are our cousins, strange as that may seem. Not only do we share our genetic heritage with them, but we also have a special energetic bond with them, which gave rise to the dragons. The problem is that the angels then divided themselves into several families, the main ones being the Myrthians and the Tiriths. This division of the angels into two large families was the source of many conflicts that drove the dragons away from us. Over time, there were fewer and fewer dragon riders because there were fewer and fewer angels capable of weaving a supra-energetic link with the dragons. You know what they say, that greed makes you lose blood. This saying comes from our history with dragons. 

Niris looked at his father with fascination. He loved dragons and dreamed of seeing one in real life one day. But he knew he would probably never get there. Dragons had disappeared from the intergalaxy thousands of years ago and no one knew if there were any left. He fed his imagination with these stories, which he loved. 

-When Lycanthe d'Ensra died," continued her father, "there weren't any working dragon riders left. That's why they say she was the last dragonrider, and that her death put a curse on Queen Irene and all her people, the Myrthians. But I don't much like this justification if you ask me, because it clears our ancestors of their despicable and ignominious act. 

Niris frowned. He now understood the link between the dead woman and the history of his people. It was complex, but he understood that a subtle link held it all together and that this link involved dragons. He wanted to ask more, but he saw his father's tired face and didn't dare question him further. He too was tired anyway, even though his body was electrified all over. They both needed a rest. 

-Do you want to stay the night? It's been a long time since you've used your room in my flats," suggested his father, who stood up and began to undo his dress. 

The angel looked at her father with a look of gratitude. He knew that every little thing he did meant something to him, and just the thought of that made him feel fully loved. 

-What do you think?" said his father as he turned around, still waiting for his son's answer. 

-Haha, you must admit that you miss me," teased his son.

-What do you mean, you can't live without me? You're the one who can't live without me, I can't believe you're pulling my leg! 

-Who can't live without who?" continued Niris, rising to his feet. 

But the moment he put his foot down, he felt a wave of electricity run through him. Suddenly, his vision blurred and his balance failed him. He felt himself slipping. His mind was slowly evaporating into unconsciousness as he struggled to keep his footing. But the force drawing him in was too strong. Something was drawing him in. Something powerful. 

-Father..." he wanted to say, but the words barely left his lips without making a sound. 

-You'd better not push too hard, because we all know who the losers are in this game..." said the emperor, who had turned back to his wardrobe and had not seen the little prince flinch. 

A thud as he fell made him turn around instantly. 

-Niris! He rushed towards his son, who was lying unconscious on the ground. 

-NIRIS!" he repeated in a voice full of anxiety.

But nothing could be done. The prince didn't respond. He had lost consciousness.