Prologue 5

Another Time, Another Place

Parliament Tower, once known as a bane to humanity's existence, was now a beacon of hope. The tower held only the most elite members of society, the ones who would guide humanity. It is very uncharacteristic to have drama overpower the voices of logic and reason in an environment as regal and professional as this one.

Today is not that day.

A woman, long slender legs, red heels. She balanced on her feet perfectly as her footsteps stomped along the marble floor. Her long pink dress was clean, she was obviously someone of power in society as well. She presented herself fairly well normally, but for whatever reason today, she was a "pissing off person". Another woman in green uniform, it looked professional, very secretarial, matched with her spectacles on her face. She held her back with whatever means in order to prevent the storming Princess from reaching her destination.

"Princess Nia," the brown haired woman calmly tried to allay her, "You're not supposed to be here until lunch. Simon is not expecting you until-" her voice escalating as Nia fought her way through the door to reach this, Simon person. Upon opening the door she saw him, this man, this blue haired man with a regal blue and red trimmed coat, white dress shirt and pants, it accentuated the contrast of his uniform. He looked a little quizzically at the door bursting open suddenly, the Princess right behind it.

"Supreme Commander Simon I-" "Leave us, Kinon." Simon calmly shut down the secretary, "It seems my wife has something very important to tell me." Kinon took her leave and closed the door silently. Now all bets were off, Nia let her frustrations out. "Tell me it's not true…"

Simon, noticeably putting on an act, puzzledly looked back, "What are you talkin-" "Don't lie to me!" She cut him off. "Simon, tell me the truth, what happened?" She choked back a little tears, fearing the worst from what he was about to say. As Simon put his drill pen down, he placed both hands on his executive mahogany desk and pushed himself up. "You are alive because of a choice I made." Nia briefly looked at his face, her instant horrified face, floral irises expanding as they reflected the shadow of the man who was once the real Simon the Digger, it was enough to culminate the anger to release a full open palm slap to his face. "Faack you Simon!" She just learned that word, obviously. "How dare you?" Nia wiped a tear away from her eye, "You really think by saving me, I wouldn't feel the burden of all you had to do to keep me alive? How cruel are you?"

"Cruel Nia?" Simon rhetorically snapped. Simon looked at her intently, arguing his point and escalating his voice to a fever pitch, "Cruel!? This whole Godforsaken universe is cruel: Kamina and Kittan and Makken and Kid and Iraak and Zorthy, heck, we even lost Balinbow and Jorgun, and you think I can take one more loss? The one blessing in my life? This world is not perfect! A million humans on earth, and you had to win the lottery and be some pawn for the enemy!" he caught his breath as he fervently spoke, "And I have to pay for that?"

Nia collected herself. With only the only way she knew how to respond, she sweetly and silently smiled, she shook her head. She opened her eyes, a hint of sadness, a hint of desperation, and plenty of love, she tugged at his lapels of his coat making the weight heavy. "Simon," she begged, "Please just take back every order you've set in action. Stop this right now. I...I...I…" she looked in an empty space on one of his shirt buttons, hoping it would stop the awkwardness of the situation. "I love you."

Simon hugged Nia intently, resting his chin on her head, "I love you too." He placed his hands on her shoulders and slowly extended her away, "So it pains me to do this. Guards!" Just then almost on cue, two armored masked enforcers came into the room, batons in hand. "Arrest the Princess on suspicion of treason, she is to be placed under house arrest at the Commander's Mansion." Nia couldn't believe what she was hearing, as she began to struggle her arms to grab hold of Simon, the guards grabbed her.

"Simon stop this! This is not what you want. I know your heart. Please stop this now!" It was almost as if everything was slow motion at that moment. The guards dragged the light Nia Teppelin farther and farther away from her freedom to speak. Nia saw his face, the stern face of someone deadly serious about the edict he just gave. His piercing eyes, staring at her as the elevator doors closed on her. Nia's eyes, those soft floral eyes, they darkened at the last second, "Have I lost you Simon?"

The elevator ride was long, it was the longest elevator ride down. Each floor made Nia's heart sink deeper and deeper. Her shock resonating in her mind as now she was a prisoner now to her own husband. They reached the ground floor. One of the guards gave her a slight nudge. "Come on Princess," he rushed her, "Your Gunlimo awaits." A Princess being held prisoner and being loaded into a Gunlimo? The thought was laughable. The Princess went in the backseat, a guard slowly and politely closing the door on her. That guard got immediately taken out by an unknown assailant. Nia was so sad, she never noticed this.

She just stared at the ground of the limo, wondering and collecting her thoughts, still in shock about what just happened. To snap her out of her trance, the driver opened his partition to speak to his passenger. "I'm sorry Princess," a familiar voice spoke. Princess Nia picked her head up slowly. "I wish this could be better circumstances. Unfortunately, you are now our prisoner." His reluctant face gave way as he turned his head slowly to focus on the road ahead of him. Nia realized the precocious danger she was in. She turned to her left. A muscular rooster came on that side of the door, blocking her escape. To the door she came from, they activated the safety lock to prevent her from attempting to roll out.

The driver stepped on his pedal with great gusto. The Gunlimo picking up speed, marching away as Nia could only frantically look at the back window as the sight of Parliament Tower began to get farther away. With one final breath she uttered one phrase, "Help me Simon!"