Chapter - 10

It had been ages since Mon-El had had a good night's sleep. It was true he slept better next to Kara. There was something about her that gave him a sense of comfort. But finding out that his only brother was alive should have been the real relief. Sadly it wasn't like that for Mon-El.

He was keeping secrets from Kai. And Kai would only be hurt and disappointed when he found out Mon-El loved Kara.

Mon-El fidgeted in his sleep again. He had finally remembered her. The little girl he met once. Right on the day Kai was bonded to his future bride. And slowly, he was drifting back to that fateful day on Daxam.

5 years before the destruction of Krypton and the fall of Daxam

Prince Mon-El of Daxam sat by the riverside, writing down coordinates for planets he had taken from his Astronomy teacher. There were three planets he wished to visit, unlike his brother Kai, who only visited Xeutov because of all the womenfolk there. Mon-El rolled his eyes, striking out the coordinates of Xeutov and adding the ones of a planet called Earth.

"Your Highness." He heard someone call him. Turning around, he saw it was his brother's guard, Hal-An. Mon-El gave him a bright smile. He might have been Kai's guard, but Hal-An was his best friend.

"Am I being summoned again?" Mon-El asked, standing up and stretching his stiff legs.

"The Crown Prince wishes to have a word with you, Your Highness," Hal-An said, gesturing Mon-El to lead the way.

"What does he want now?" Mon-El walked straight to the garden that led the way towards the palace. He saw Kai pacing in the courtyard, scratching his chin. Kai wore the royal scarlet robes. Today was the day the Kryptonians were coming to visit them. The day Kai takes the vow of Val-Or.

"Brother," Mon-El greeted with a small bow.

"Oh, stop doing that, will you?" Kai narrowed his eyes at him. "You are a prince, Mon. Act like one!"

"I apologize, brother," Mon-El said, standing straight.

"Now, what were you telling me about the blood bond?" Kai questioned, taking a seat on a stone bench and patting the empty space for Mon-El to join him.

"Blood Bonds of Val-Or. Considered most sacred of any bonds. You already know how it's done. But are you sure?"

Kai shook his head. "A blood bond for a mate can never be broken. I'm in deep shit, aren't I?"

Mon-El couldn't help but smile. "It's not like you are marrying her right away."

"Still. This isn't something I want. I didn't sign up for this. She's a Kryptonian!"

"I'm aware of her status, Kai. But think of the peace this bond will bring. No more wars. We will all live happily."

"Easy for you to say." Kai rolled his eyes at him. "It's not like you plan on staying here after I take the throne."

Mon-El let out a loud sigh. "It would be better that way, Kai. I always wanted to travel, you know that."

"Well, you should be happy about something. The Kryptonians are gifting me a pod, with the latest technology they say. My bride's granduncle, Lor-Van made it. You can have it."

"Lor-Van is the greatest Kryptonian scientist. Isn't he an explorer too? So is his daughter, Lara."

"Lara Jor-El, yes. She's the aunt."

Mon-El nodded. "I would love to talk to her about her space travels. I was rather fascinated by the book she wrote."

"You are such a nerd, Mon."

Hal-An cleared his throat, making the brothers look up at him. "What is it?" Kai asked.

"Your Majesty, they are ready for you."

Kai groaned and stood up. Turning to face Mon-El, he said, "Wish me luck, brother. My death wish is upon me."

Mon-El pulled him into his arms, surprising the older twin. "It's going to alright, Kai. You will always have me by your side." Kai nodded and awkwardly hugged his brother back.

Kai pulled away and fixed his robes and ran a hand through his hair. When he saw Mon-El smile brightly, he smirked and walked away. Mon-El decided to go back to the riverbank, asking Hal-An to join him. Since it was such a big day, their mother wanted Val-Zee to guard Kai. And Mon-El was happy to have his best friend by his side again.

"So, Earth?" Hal-An asked, pointing at the paper Mon-El was still holding.

"Yes. I read about it in Lara Jor-El's book. Sounds like a beautiful world. She hasn't visited it yet, but she writes only good things about it." Mon-El smiled. "What if I go there before Lara? I will be the first to explore Earth?"

Hal-An shrugged. "It is said they look a lot like us. What if we came into existence because of them?"

"You mean ancestors from Earth?"

Hal-An nodded. "Anything is possible. But it has a yellow sun. You have never been to any planet with yellow sun. It could be dangerous."

"You are right. But I want to do this. Maybe a little research will help." Mon-El was determined. He had made it a goal to explore other planets. No one was going to stop him from going to Earth. Just as he was about to voice his thoughts, he heard a sweet sound coming from the garden, followed by giggles.

He made his way towards the garden to see a little girl running around, chasing a dragonfly. Mon-El couldn't help but smile when he saw her run around. But his smile fell when he saw her run towards the riverbank. Mon-El ran after her and saw her standing by the edge, watching the river flow as the dragonfly hovered near her.

"Kryptonian," Hal-An whispered to the prince. "Must be related to the Crown Prince's bride."

"A younger sister? The poor thing must be bored." Mon-El stood observing her. She seemed awfully curious. She must have been around seven or eight. And she was yet to see them. "I'm going to talk to her, you wait here."

Hal-An nodded without a word. And Mon-El made his way towards the little girl. He held out a finger and the dragonfly flew towards him and sat perched on his finger. The little girl turned around and gasped.

"My lady, where do you come from?" Mon-El asked in a gentle tone.

The little girl was busy looking at the dragonfly. Smiling, Mon-El asked her to hold out a finger. She hesitated, but did what he said. Mon-El gently placed the dragonfly on her finger and kneeled down next to her.

"And now you say, "Fly away. Chase your dream. Seize the day." Unless you say these world, the dragonfly will always be around you, not moving on," Mon-El explained. "Give it its freedom, my lady."

The little girl nodded and repeated his words, "Fly away. Chase your dream. Seize the day." The dragonfly gently lifted itself off her finger and flew away, crossing the river and disappearing out of sight. The little girl turned to look at Mon-El, her light blue eyes shining. "I did it!"

"Yes, you did. You gave it the biggest thing it wishes for. Its freedom."

The little girl moved back a little suddenly, finally realizing she was talking to a stranger. As she stepped back, her foot dangerously close to the edge, Mon-El reached out and grabbed her arm, pulling her closer.

"Young lady, I wish you no harm. I'm the Prince of Daxam. You can trust me." Mon-El gave her an encouraging smile. "What's your name?"

"You are the Prince?" she asked in a low voice.

"I am." Standing up, he gave her a small bow. "Pleased to meet you, my lady."

"But I'm not your lady. I'm Kara."

Mon-El couldn't help but chuckle. "Well then, Kara, I'm pleased to meet you." He held out a hand for her.

The girl hesitated but soon slipped it into his. He kneeled down again and placed a small kiss on the back of her hand. However small, she was a lady and this was the proper way to greet her.

Mon-El then took a seat near the edge and asked her to join him. She sat down and looked at the river. "Do you have lots of water bodies here?" she asked in her small voice.

"Like this river? We sure do. There's an ocean behind the castle. Some of the rooms face the ocean."

"I know," Kara replied with a small smile. "My room overlooks the ocean. It's very beautiful. It's not like that on Krypton."

"I'm sorry. But not everyone is a fan of a room overlooking the ocean. Take me, for instance, I'd rather look at the river."

"Why, don't you like the ocean?"

Mon-El shook his head. "It scares me."

"But you are old! You shouldn't be scared!"

Mon-El couldn't help but chuckle. "Really? And you aren't scared of anything?"

Kara shrugged. "I am. I don't like leaving my parents."

"Oh yes, are they meeting the King and Queen now?"

Kara nodded. "They told me this trip would be fun. But it's boring."

"Hmm… You are the guests of the crown. We cannot bore you, can we?" Mon-El winked and stood up. "How about I take you riding?"

"You have horses here?"

Mon-El shrugged. He wasn't good at horse riding, but he didn't want to tell the little girl that. "We do, my lady. But I was talking about a dragon."

"A DRAGON?!" Kara yelled. "NO! I'll die!"

"I promise you, I will protect you with my life." Mon-El held out his hand for her. The little girl hesitated. But this was the prince. She was not supposed to say no to the prince. She gave him a feeble nod.

Mon-El just smiled and gestured for Hal-An to get Aermy. Mon-El then led Kara to the place where his dragon had landed. She was big and blue. As soon as she saw Mon-El, she moved closer and nudged his face with hers, making him chuckle as he caressed her head.

"Kara, meet Aermy, the Warmheart." Mon-El kneeled next to Kara, so Aermy did the same, bowing down to Kara. "Touch her. She's mine, she won't harm you."

Kara hesitated but when Mon-El grabbed her hand and placed it over the dragon's head, she froze. But soon seeing the dragon respond to her touch, Kara smiled. "She likes me?"

Mon-El nodded. "Aermy loves children. Come on, if I take you riding now, we can come back before the sun sets." Mon-El lifted Kara in his arms. She threw her arm around his shoulder, but when he set her on the dragon's back, she sat straight, touching Aermy's back. Mon-El jumped up and leaned closer, patting Aermy. "Let's go, girl!"

Aermy lifted herself up. This made Kara squeal a little as the wind hit her face. Mon-El slipped his arms underneath hers and grabbed the reins. "Hold this," he said, bringing the reins closer. Kara did what he said and they were now flying right above the castle.

Kara's eyes widened. "This is so beautiful," she called as she saw the ocean and the castle that stood next to it. Instead of flying over the ocean, Aermy took them towards the river and the great mountains. She knew her master wasn't fond of the ocean.

Kara smiled brightly when Mon-El asked her if she was having fun. "I am. This is the best day of my life! Thank you, Prince!"

But little did the girl know that as she flew with Mon-El, her destined mate was taking the vow of Val-Or at the castle, promising to take her as his mate. With a final blood bond, the vow would be complete and they would be mated for life.

A/N: Okay, so your first look at the brothers' lives on Daxam. You will be seeing more flashback chapters soon. But hey! Kara met Mon-El when she was young! :D

I know Superman's mom, Lara did not take her husband's name after marriage, she went by Lara Lor-Van, but the universe you are reading is a different earth, not the TV Earth-38, so different names and why Kai exists here. :)

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