A/N: Goooddd evening, readers! On this rainy night (Well, where I live anyway.) I bring to you chapter 2 of Imbroglio, which hopefully you guys have been waiting for. As always, reviews, and over all feedback is a necessary to continue on- so don't forget it!
Feng Wen's PoV
Something was very wrong.
When walking out of the arena and into the masses, I expected the usual to happen: people (the majority being women) screaming, fawning and chasing after three of the most popular individuals in the game. But there was no screams, or chases or even a slight fawn. Instead there were hushed whispers and mumbles as the four of us passed through the crowds, the only thing seemingly normal were the mesmerized stares as we walked past.
We were a half mile away from the castle when I sped up from my third position in our line to walk along side Prince (Dad had decided to keep Mom and I in the middle of the group because of our terrible sense of direction.). "Mom, what's going on? This can't be because of Fan, is it?" I whispered, leaning in slightly to make sure I was heard over the buzz of other conversations going on in the crowd.
Prince turned so he could whisper back in my ear, "I'm not sure yet either, Feng Wen. We'll find out everything once we meet up with your aunt." The crowd had suddenly gotten louder, which gave me a feeling it was far from coincidence in regard to Prince and I's interaction. What are they thinking... I turned away from Prince to glance around the crowd, meeting a variety of expressions as I met eyes with some of them. I've stayed away from the gossip surrounding me for over a month, I can only imagine what they'll be saying now...
That last half mile seemed the longest out of the entire trip, but finally we were at the main entrance of Infinite Castle. The castle was just as grand as ever, with its looming towers and heavily guarded borders yet now it featured scars as well as scorch marks on the stonework of the walls. Surely those weren't caused by players, were they? Neither Prince or Dad had to say a word as the guards immediately opened the gate for us; though for some reason they kept giving nervous glances at Zhi, who returned with a triumphant smile.
"Why did we go through the main entrance? Surely there is a back way to get inside?" I asked as we walked through the lush gardens.
"And have the crowd following us find out those entrances?" My father asked incredulously. "Besides, revealing that Prince has returned may soothe those that felt abandoned. And with you being the 'City's Champion', showing your face may also relieve some tension."
"Ah..." I replied simply, though not completely convinced by his argument. With how they were looking at us, especially with Prince and I together, I think it just made things worse... I fell back to walk alongside Zhi as Mom sped up to Dad since we reached the massive oak doors that were the entrance to the fortress.
"Try not to worry too much about the politics of the situation, Feng Wen. After all, that's your mother and I's problem, not yours." Dad said soothingly as he pushed open the doors; turning his head to give me his gentle smile.
"I wouldn't be too sure about that..." Zhi whispered to me, raising his eyebrow skeptically at my father's words.
"What do you mean?" I asked as we walked through the doors, entering the large foyer. There was a giant staircase in the middle of the room, that led up to a balcony where another pair of large wooden doors were centered with the staircase; no doubt being the throne room. There were also a number of doors that lined the walls of the balcony as well as the walls below it. Overall it was a very grand entrance room, that no doubt was designed by my father. Hell, if I remember right Infinite Castle is still considered the most beautiful player structure to date in Life 2.0 and Second Life's history.
"Let's be realistic here, Feng Wen." Zhi began, this being a rare moment of him calling me by my real name in-game. "It's only a matter of time now before the public finds out you're either Prince's or Guiliastes' son. And then it's only a matter of time before the public starts putting two and two together that Prince is a woman, especially since it's not exactly uncommon knowledge that Professor Min Gui Wen is married, and we don't exactly have the technology to produce a biological child between two men."
"But what does that have to do with politics?" I asked, a bit bewildered by where Zhi was going at.
Zhi nearly tripped up the stairs, causing my parents to stop and look at him questionably. Zhi waved his hand that he was okay, but when he turned to me his face suddenly changed to an expression of irritation. "Feng Wen, I swear... What I'm saying is that you're going to eventually be dragged into the political side of this game because of your parents kind of being politicians in this game, and extremely important ones at that. Your mother is the most famous player to date, and the Overlord of the most populous continent in-game. Your father is publicly known as Prince's right hand adviser, and also a famous player for being part of the Odd Squad. And on top of all that is when the little factoid of Prince and Gui's child winning the Battle Tournament that Prince hosted is revealed, all hell is going to break loose in the media."
We had reached the top of the balcony, where I saw at the left and right of balcony were hallways. My parents went left, and we walked through the slightly chilly stone hallways that were lined with torches. "At that point," Zhi silently lifted his hand, raising two of his fingers. "you're going to only have two options. You can continue to try and ignore the onslaught of the public, that will make what you've seen so far a walk in the park. Or two, you can step up and take control of your public image by formally declaring your parentage and your association with the Odd Squad. And if you don't plan on completely annihilating yourself in society, I would go with option two."
The hallway was long, our footsteps echoing against the stone floor. I appreciated the length of the walk though, because Zhi had just given me one of the toughest and life defining decisions I would face in my life. The whole situation only weighed heavier on me the longer we walked, my mind unable to handle the flood of emotions and thoughts there were being spawned. Through the sea of processes in my head, something Dad said rang through the noise. 'I don't see much of anything ever going back to how it used to be.' is what he told me before the duel. Did he know that things would turn out like this? That me finding out Mom is Prince would create an irreversible domino effect, even if Fan hadn't gotten involved?
I felt a small bump to my lower back, as if someone had thrown a beanbag at me. I looked to see Zhi with his left hand curled up in a fist, his eyes narrowed. "Hey, don't get all bummed out on me just because of what I said!" He said, "I just said what I did because I want you to be aware of what's to come, so that when the moment comes you'll make the right choice. But for now, just calm down and enjoy the moment that you're in Infinite Castle, something that nearly every person has dreamed of! Enjoy the moment you're with your parents, and that your previous ideas about Prince were false! There are still silver linings to these gray clouds!"
Before I could ask as to why Zhi seemed so wise in such an obscure subject, my parents finally stopped in front of a metal door that had an eye-level identification device on the lock; which made it look very out of place in the medieval themed castle. Muffled voices could be heard through the walls but not the door, which told me the door itself was probably quite thick. Prince walked up to the device, looking straight into the little screen. Suddenly a holographic scanner appeared and ran across Prince's face, focusing particularly on his eyes. "Positive I.D; Player Prince, Overlord of the Central Continent." It chimed in a feminine, robotic voice. The door swung open, revealing the volume of the room inside to be nearly eardrum-shattering with the amount of screaming and yelling.
"What do you mean there are players demanding refunds for the Battle Tournament!?"A woman screamed, sounding absolutely outraged at the idea. I couldn't see because my parents were still standing in front of the door, their eyes threatening to pop out at whatever was going on inside.
"With those damn rumors on top of the accusation of a scandal, they think the tournament was rigged!" Another female voice yelled, who sounded like it was my aunt Shui Han.
"Ladies, please!" I heard a gruff male voice boom, but was ignored among more shouting.
"And what are we suppose to do about it? If we give in, we just confirm their false accusations and destroy our reputation!" The first voice cracked, the owner growing increasingly emotional by the sound of her voice.
Suddenly, Prince gave a cough that silenced the room. From the side, I saw his expression had changed to one of the fearless leader he was known for; an expression that quickly irritated me. No, Feng Wen! You've got to remember that's Mom! I quickly told myself, trying to calm my subconscious reaction. However no matter how much I tried to see Mom in that expression, the woman who would make me cookies and read me bed time stories as a young child, I just was unable to. It's like her entire demeanor changes when she's Prince...
"Prince..." I heard another voice say, this one sounding like a young girl.
"I know this is stressful time, but let's at least act like the adults when we are in front of new company." He said, moving himself inside the room as Dad followed closely behind him. I took that as my cue to enter the room, with Zhi following me as well. The room was a decent size for how many people were inside, which was roughly around fifteen to twenty individuals. They were all seated or had seats at a large, round glass table that had monitor built in the center of the inside of the table, allowing everyone to be able to see what was on the screen. On top of that was a large screen that was on the wall directly across from the door, also allowing visibility to everyone in the room no matter where they were seated. All eyes focused on Zhi and I, though it was evident they were more interested in me than in Zhi.
"Feng Wen!" Squeaked a familiar voice, to which suddenly there was soft and round orb in my arms.
"Meatbun!?" I replied, totally astonished to see our family pet in the game.
"Meatbun-bun missed Feng Wen! Meatbun-bun wondered when he could play with Mommy and Feng Wen in the castle!" Meatbun exclaimed happily, snuggling closer to my chest. No more than a second later Meatbun was suddenly asleep, producing soft snores that were actually quite cute.
Hearing how happy Meatbun was to see me helped my mood a bit, knowing that the only thing the little pet was concerned about was eating and playing with those he loved. Even something as simple as this can be a silver lining, I suppose. I smiled as I whispered to the now sleeping pet, "I missed you too, Meatbun."
