The Beginning of the End

The carriage ride back to Neo Domino definitely took too long if the tapping of Jack's foot the entire ride was any indication. But I could understand his frustrations, I wanted to know what this was all about as well.

When the carriage pulled to the castle, Jack jumped right out and left me with the driver asking him to take care of me.

I stepped down from the carriage with assistance and stared ahead at the castle in annoyance. Doesn't he know that this is a trap? I snorted as I walked away from the driver when he wasn't looking. Old Domino can't declare war on anyone because I was still the head of state in a way and they can't do anything of the sort without confirmation from me. My husband definitely doesn't think well when he's panicking.

"My princess!"

"Yes?" I turned to the voice that called to me and was surprised to see it was Bruno. He looked reserved and solemn but the feeling I had toward just wasn't there anymore.

"Come, I will take you to the throne room where it is taking place."

I nodded and followed him into the castle. There was no reason for this but obviously Kiryu was planning something. There was loud commotion from inside the throne room and Bruno pushed open the doors. The arguing ceased when I entered the room and I looked at them all. Kiryu was there with two men with helmets. The man who save me from my stepmother was there standing behind Jack, Saiga I think.

"You're all idiots." I sighed. "Things like this are ridiculous and I don't even know why I put up with it." I waddled into the room and I probably didn't look as intimidating as I wanted to look but I could help it. I had a rock sitting where my stomach should be.

I stepped next to Jack and grabbed his hand. I turned my glare on Kiryu and frowned. "Why are you here?"

He opened his mouth and I shook my head. "Don't answer that. I don't want to hear what you have to say. I'm tired and sore and you just like to ruin everything. I could be relaxing right now but you decided to come here with some invalid, dumb declaration of war when you don't even have to power to do so!"

He shut his mouth and I snorted. Then I remembered. I snatched my hand from Jack's grasp and stepped back to turn on him. "And you! You really are too easily manipulated. Obviously the Kingdom of Old Domino can't have a declaration of war without my consent and you rushed home and decided to handle this on your own leaving behind the most important person in this decision. You all are so dumb!"

"But-"

"Shut up!" I put my hands in my hair and pulled. "I'm going to tear my hair out! Go home, Kiryu. Go home and don't come back until you have something smart to say. I can't believe you would come here to do something so stupid."

I stormed out of the room leaving them to be dumbstruck with each other. It was annoying but we were already back home so at this point I decided I would go back to sleep in my comfy bed. That was, until my legs were wet suddenly. I blushed, did I seriously lose my bladder in the middle of the corridor? Then I realized it was different because it was accompanied with pain. It couldn't be happening now! My body was frozen but I had only made it to the next corridor from the throne room. My heart was pounding and I couldn't get my voice to work, not to mention there was blood in the mix. The procedure of childbirth wasn't meant for males and I wasn't sure what to do next.

"Somebody?" I called but the hall was empty. "Bruno? Jack! Somebody!"

"Martha!" I called and the necklace glowed before the fairy appeared. "What should I do?"

"Dearie, I can't do anything from here. Scream and I'll resonate your voice. Someone will hear you."

I calmed myself a bit and took a deep breath. "Help!"

I could hear the echo through the empty hall and the sound of feet coming almost immediately after.

"Yuu!" I sagged in relief as Jack rounded the corner and nearly tackled me. "What's wrong? What happened?"

"It's time." I said, and he looked down at the puddle beneath my feet and lifted me away from it. "Bruno! Go tell the doctors on standby to get things prepared. Get someone to clean up! Get everything that will be needed!" He was shouting out orders left and right as he rushed me toward the room that had been prepared for the birth, uncaring of the disgusting bodily fluids leaving me, I couldn't wait for this baby to be out so I could witness him as a father to his own child.

"It's been five hours!" My head hurt along with the rest of my body as the contractions hit me every minute.

"The child will be ready soon, when it gets in perfect position we will take it."

"What does the position matter?!"

I tightened my grip on his hand as he argued with the nurse assisting. "If we don't get it right, the umbilical cord has a chance of strangling the infant before we can get it out. We have to let the body do what it needs to."

"Love, just let them do their job." I smiled weakly at him and he wiped the sweat from my face."

An hour later, they had given me a drug to numb my body and cut into my abdomen. Jack forced me to look at him through the procedure and as I heard a wet cry ring across the room, I laughed and cried in joy. They took the child for cleaning but then their hands were back inside of me.

"There is a second child!"

The process seemed so much longer with the second child but my heart almost stopped when the second cry didn't ring immediately. I was sure I crushed Jack's hand in the silence and when the doctors gave the child a sharp smack to the bottom and the second cry came right after, I nearly fainted in relief.

The doctors sewed me up and handed me the first child wrapped in a pale blue blanket. "Your firstborn, a boy."

I situated the child in my arms and rubbed a small cheek with my forefinger. They brought the second child in a pastel yellow blanket, situating her in my other arm. "Your second, a girl."

I grinned at Jack and he smiled back. "You've done so well."

I nodded. "They're so beautiful Jack. So beautiful."

He stroked my hair and the drowsiness hit me then. "Don't you want to hold them?"

He took the boy from my arms and smiled. The nurse watching showed him how to properly support the child's head and body. I was exhausted but didn't want to fall asleep in case I dropped the child. "Where is Father?"

"I shall go find him!" One nurse nodded.

Luckily he was waiting nearby and I went to sleep as soon as he took the little girl from my arms.

The moment the two children had been together in my arms, a bright light shone blinding everyone in the room.

"The pure heart. . ."

I cuddled my children close, the warmth radiating through my own body.

"This is so strange. There has never been an instance with more than one pure heart at once."

"They are one. Not in body but in soul." I explained, not exactly knowing why I knew. "My angels."

The doctors explained that since I was conscious and coherent, I could leave at anytime but I would have to be careful with my incision. It would be a while before I could do any heavy lifting, not that I did anyway, and before I could go back to my normal routine. There was the smallest amount of baby fat left but it wasn't all bad. The actual incision looked the worst.

Three days passed since the birth and people were seeing them for the first time. Many had been surprised there were two little infants and not just one but they were excited to fawn over them.

Gifts and jewelry tumbled in from the town, it was almost impossible to go through it all. It seemed strange to me that they could give so much to the royals but couldn't take one child in. My thoughts traveled back to when I met Rally in town and I smiled.

"Bruno." I called, handing off the children to Jack and Father.

"Yes?" He answered, coming immediately to me, "are you hurt or dizzy? Do you need me to get you a chair?"

"No no, I need you to find Crow and Rally for me. Bring them to the castle's main garden. I'll be there waiting." He nodded and hurried off and I wandered over to Jack.

"I'm going to see Crow and Rally. Find me in the gardens." He nodded in understanding and I left for the garden, waiting patiently.

When they arrived I knew this was going to be a hard reunion.

"Come! I have something to show you."

Rally took my hand and Crow walked next to me while Bruno remained an appropriate distance away. It was painfully obvious that they knew nothing of each other even standing next to each other.

I sat Crow down on a bench and Rally next to him.

"Listen," I started, my dress blowing in the soft wind, "there's something you should know about each other. Something that will change everything."

"What is it, Neesan?" Rally asked and I smiled sadly. I couldn't ruin him like this, it just wasn't fair for me to do such a cruel thing.

"Crow." I cradled his head in my hands and he watched me. "I'm going to erase the cloud that shrouds your heart in darkness. I hope you'll forgive me for showing you such horrible things."

I watched his pupils dilate and from there I allowed Martha to take over. The fire, his parents' deaths, our time together, he would relive it just as I had. It was cruel to make him go through such tragic events once again but his little brother was the only thing he had left in this world. He could handle it better. It was tiring to see an Earl be a servant in a non-native kingdom. Rally was watching as Crow lost consciousness and stood as I laid him across the bench. I grabbed Rally's hand and pulled him away so that Bruno could take care of Crow.

"Rally, did you know that you're eleven years old now?" I stroked his hair and held him close.

"I never knew how old I was. How do you know?" He questioned.

"Because, I knew the day you were born." I remember that your brother came to stay at my house when you were born so that your family could get into a routine."

"Really?" He looked at me brightly and I laughed.

"Yes really." I ran my fingers through his hair. "I saw your brother again after that and he told me how much he loved you and that he would protect you no matter what. He said that the color of your hair was similar and that yours was really curly. I knew that he would love you even through the darkness."

"Who is it?" He bounced in my arms. "I never thought I had any family but you know who my brother is? Can't you tell me?"

I smiled and shook my head. "It makes me sad that you have forgotten about one another. I'm sure that back then, you loved him just as much as he loved you." I pointed to Crow on the bench. "That is your brother."

Rally stared wide eyed at my best friend. "When he wakes up, I promise he'll tell you how much he missed you and how happy he is to have you back in his life. You lived in Old Domino. Far from here, on the other side of the castle. Your father was an Earl there and your mother, a well known Duchess. He will take the title of Earl and restart anew in that kingdom if he so pleases. You could go with him if he chooses to restart there and have a new life or you can stay here with Jack and I and the King. You will always have access to wherever you wish to go, whatever you choose. You are nobility and have the power to do as you please."

His mind seemed to be processing all of the information and I laughed softly. "Maybe I've told you too much at once."

"No, I understand." He responded. "But why now? Why does it matter now, Neesan?"

I looked at the sky that was slowly darkening in a storm. "I have a feeling that all of this shall soon come to an end."

"Thank you for coming!" I smiled. There was a party held for the birth of the twins. I was walking around mingling with patrons as so stated in my job requirements. I laughed and excused myself to move on. Many people came not only for the birth but to see the next pure hearts.

My little angels truly were special. Apparently, in the history of everything, only one pure heart was ever alive at one certain time period, and one pure heart has never given birth to the next pure heart. Now the balance was disrupted, three pure hearts existed at one time and one pure heart gave birth to the next pure heart. It also seems that the last ten generations of pure hearts had married into or were born of the Royal Family of Atlus. Myself, Jack's mother, Jack's grandmother, her father's brother, and the others I can't remember. It also seemed that Father wasn't actually an Atlus at first but when he married his late wife he took her family name. There was so much stuff I hadn't known and it felt great to know it.

After I walked around and greeted everyone, I went to a pedestal that was already set for the occasion. A glass was tapped to gain everyone's attention and I smiled despite the pounding of my heart. Jack and Father planned this party but I was responsible for everything that happened during said party. I rolled my eyes, they really annoyed me sometimes.

"I want to thank everyone again for coming to celebrate this joyous moment. My little angels were troopers through the struggle and although they were born two months premature, they are healthy, beautiful infants." They had come early but the panic didn't set in until after they were born that they were healthy and normal, no deformations or anything of the sort. It was natural that they were small but I had many assurances that they would grow up to be fine. Jack came to stand next to me, our daughter in his arms and Father gave me our son gently. "Our son was born first. His name is Renton after the first king who ruled Neo Domino, the very first patriarch of the Royal Family of Altus." I gave him back quickly not wanting the loud noise to wake him suddenly.

"Our daughter next, Ori, after the priestess of light who saved all from the tyranny of the darkness. Ori Julinda Atlus."

The cheer was loud in my ears and I smiled, proud that I was able to get through without stuttering or making a mistake. I saw a flash of orange in the corner of my eye and Rally was standing there, a smile on his face. He opened his mouth and I looked at him knowing I wouldn't be able to hear what he was going to say but somehow the words that left his mouth resonated clearly as though we were in an empty room made of glass.

"Eat the light, Primo."

Things slowed down for me. There was a coldness at my back and I watched the horror spread across the faces in the ballroom slowly. I vaguely heard my name being shouted and I turned and the process felt like an eternity. Jack was running toward me, I think, but he was moving too slow to be running. The cold feeling at my back never went away and the dark portal was so frighteningly familiar, my brain shut down. I felt detached from myself and the words spilled from my lips like water, I hadn't even realized.

"He won't make it in time, will he?"

I could feel the smirk spread across his lips and his red eyes gazing intensely at me. "Not in this lifetime."

The motion was so quick and the ballroom disappeared before my eyes, nothing but darkness beyond that. My stomach lurched but I felt no pain. Is this what death feels like?

Hot breath was on the back of my neck and I shuddered at the words whispered there. I had been captured and there was nothing I could do anymore.

"Welcome to Darkness."