AC: I want to thank my Beta-reader for proof-reading this chapter and all the previous ones I forgot to mention.
Remi ported to Chaotic. After settling everything with his parents, he came back with a smile on his face.
During those two months, he had a long talk with his parents. It was mostly boring, since he knew what happened when they were under the control of the M'arrillians. Still, he missed them a lot during the invasion.
He looked around and searched for his friends. He smiled when he saw Tom and the other three together.
He waved at them and they waved back, inviting him to join their group. Which he did.
Epilogue Part 4: Visiting The M'arrillians
"How's it going dude? You were gone for a while!" Peyton declared.
Remi nodded, "I spent a lot of time with my parents. They missed a lot of what happened when the M'arrillians were there. I had to explain everything they missed on the news. What Chaotic was and etc," he sighed and let out a small smile, "It wasn't important to come back here. They did ask me a question that I can't answer. I mean, I just went with it and didn't care about that."
"What is it?" Kaz curiously asked.
"How do I deal with two different memories of the same day?" He told them.
The four other teenagers were pensive. It wasn't something they thought of at all. It was just normal for them. Of course, from the outside perspective, it was obviously strange and maybe a bit worrisome for them.
"I don't really care about that," Sarah decided.
The others agreed with her.
"Yeah. I told them that it wasn't a big problem. I didn't mess up my exams. It's easy to separate them. It's very different here and back home," he crossed his arms together. Remi looked at them, "You sure you are okay with me hanging out with you? I don't want to just join your group like that."
"No problem, bro! We were in this together and we are friends!" Peyton enthusiastically replied.
That reassured the boy, who nodded. "Good. How are you with your matches so far?"
"Only got a few. Most of the players are still catching up and forming back their friend group," Tom replied, looking around.
That was the case. There were many groups at their tables who seemed to be waiting for someone to return.
It might be a bit slower for everyone to come back to Chaotic, as they got a bit used to not being able to port in automatically. It was something to get used to.
"I won most of them," Kaz answered as he raised his chest a little.
Remi looked around and watched the creatures. They were mostly watching the few matches going on. He was surprised to see a M'arrillian around, "They are here too?"
"Only three of them max. Today, it's just Vix'ben," Tom answered.
The teenager turned his attention to them, "Good that the good M'arrillians can still come here," he stopped and thought more, "What about the Earth?"
"Not a chance for many years," Sarah answered.
Remi nodded, "Even if one of them is my friend, I wouldn't be okay with them just coming around after everything. They did nothing bad to my parents but still…" He said nothing else.
The boy thought back about Bahrakatan. After the battle, the Coralsmith came and went clean with him. The crab creature pretty much told everything he did that caused the invasion of his world. The portal he built, the battlegear and his cooperation until the moment of the invasion. Remi remembered the creature was guilty about it. He sighed. He didn't really respond to this, as the creature pretty much left after his confession.
He had plans for today, but waited a bit more. He continued to converse with his friends and eventually, it was time to go, "Got to go. I need to visit someone and get a scan," Remi told them with a smile.
"Where are you going?" Sarah curiously asked.
"I'm taking a risk and I'll search for Ba…hrak-katan. His name is mouthful," the teenager grumbled.
"You think you're going to be okay in the Deep Ocean bro? Do you have a scan from their territory?" Peyton asked.
"No. I got one near the entrance," he showed his scanner. They could see the gate, but it was closed in the image, "I think I'll get the scan with the door opened too."
"You sure you are going to be, okay? We can come with you," Tom suggested.
"No. Too risky for you," Remi replied quickly.
He argued a bit with them, insisting he would be fine on his own. "It isn't the first time I do a scan hunt on my own in a risky place. I can get around without being seen. I got a few from Mount Pillar without the Danians noticing me. If I can pass them, I can pass the M'arrillians," he chuckled nervously, not that certain of himself. He waved at them and ported to Perim.
Remi ported in front of the large gate that led to the Deep Ocean. The Doors of the Deepmines were opened. The large gray gate with the green eyes stood to the side. It was also damaged or sabotaged, as it couldn't be closed again. There were many spikes of extremely solid rock that held the door open and to prevent it from completely being closed.
It was clear the M'arrillians didn't want to be behind locked doors anymore. He couldn't blame them.
The statues of the creatures that seemed to hold the door closed were broken in pieces. It showed the deep hatred of their confinements.
Remi felt a bit of dread, just standing in front of the door. He noticed, near the entrance, two M'arrillians that guarded the entrance of the gate. Those green crab-like creatures looked a bit around for any intruders.
Already, a problem with infiltrating the Deep Ocean. He needed to pass the guards for that. He couldn't climb to pass over them. He wasn't that athletic and he would drop to his doom. He couldn't pass since they were cautious about guarding the place. No signs of weakness in them. They were a tribe against the world. They were weakened greatly from the invasion of the Earth, which ended in failure.
What he knew was that Gal'drad was the leader of the M'arrillians. He was in the middle of fixing many things. Remi hoped the rebirth of the M'arrillians might lead to a better life for their tribes and the others. Chances were low of course. It was Perim and conflict would rise again and again. Such was life.
In a way, he hoped it would be as usual for the other tribes, instead of wanna-be tyrants.
The boy decided to approach them. He couldn't slip past them, so it was the direct way. He wondered if it would be fine or not. He could port out if things went wrong.
"Halt!" the M'arrillians yelled at the same time. They quickly relaxed when they noticed it was a Chaotic Player. The one on the left ordered, "State your business."
"I came here to check on Bahrakatan. I'm Remi," he put his hand on his chest.
The two looked at each other. They frowned and turned their attention back to the human. It was clear they spoke with someone in their mind.
"Bahrakatan said he is coming to greet you," one of them said.
The other one gazed at the teenager with a bit of disbelief. He nodded at the boy.
Remi wondered what was going on.
The blue Coralsmith showed up, "Remi! Good to see you again," he declared in a good mood. He sounded a bit relieved about something.
"Yeah. We are friends and I wanted to see if everything is okay."
"It is. It might be best that you don't come here for a while. It's still pretty chaotic and not everything is under control yet. It's not at the level of the civil war we got, but some still aren't completely into Gal'drad beliefs. They aren't fighting with fists, but with words. Still, you coming here might complicate everything."
"Yeah. Can't change the world in a few days," the teenager replied a bit awkwardly. He was a bit curious about what was going on. However, he decided it was best to do as Bahrakatan said for now.
"Remi. I am glad you came. I thought it might not be possible for you to come after everything. I thought I would see you again in Chaotic," he scratched the back of his head a bit nervously. There was something going on in the mind of the creature.
"Everything alright? Except for the civil war?"
"I wasn't certain you wanted to see me again. I caused the entire ordeal for Chaotic and the invasion of the Cothica. I just didn't care enough until I saw what I did. I had the power to prevent all of this. You almost lost your parents and many of your friends almost paid a heavy price too. I followed Milla'iin's ambition to follow Aa'une belief and what he left behind. Even if it was mostly war and ruin for our tribe."
"Yeah. About-"
"I'm extremely sorry for what I did. I know words mean nothing, but I hope you might be able to forgive me one day. I know you said we are friends, but…" he gave a nervous glance. He thought it was mostly out of politeness and that he saved his life.
Remi was quiet after the M'arrillian declared his apology. He scratched the back of his head a bit nervously too. It was a bit awkward. He closed his eyes quietly. He looked in the eyes of the Coralsmith who looked back at him. He let out a small smile, "You don't need to apologize again. I forgive you."
He couldn't believe it, "But… I put your world in danger. You can't just forgive me like that," Bahrakatan replied.
"I know you made a mistake, but you did so much to correct it. You saved my life," he let out a larger smile. He put his hands on his hips, "You also saved our world."
"I put it in danger in the first place."
"You still helped us Bahrakatan," his smile left for a few seconds when the creature didn't seem to listen to him. He sighed quietly, before he smiled once again, "And we are friends Bahrakatan. You saved me and I can't forget it. You aren't the only M'arrillian behind this. It's Milla'iin that I cannot forgive. He was the one who put you through this and caused everything."
"I still did as he said. I didn't care that much until…until I saw what I did," he saw the human grab his hand, "Sorry," he nervously chuckled, "Guess I get a bit emotional. I'm not really used to that," he put his pincer on his side, "You might be a little naive to forgive me that easily."
"Maybe, but you are my friend. You betrayed your tribe to save our world. It was surely hard for you to do the right thing," Remi answered with a small smile.
"Yeah. It was heavy. Holding it back. I couldn't let the pain in my chest go away," his eyes dimmed a little, "I'm… glad I saved you. Also, I am glad that Gal'drad and the others stood in our way."
"Promise me that your tribe will thrive and become better," Remi asked.
"What kind of promise is that?"
"One I ask for your tribe. I know you can do better. You just need to believe you can do better. I know you can do it and I know you will," the teenager released the hand of the crab creature. He took a step back.
Bahrakatan chuckled as his eyes shined brighter, "You're right. This is only a new beginning for our tribe. We will go beyond what Aa'une and his ancestors put us in," he put his pincer on his chest, "I promise I'll make sure Gal'drad won't go mad with power. We will get better. You are our guide to the Cothica and this promise, is one we will keep."
"Guide?" Remi had no idea what he meant.
"I'll explain another time," the Coralsmith replied. He chuckled when his friend frowned at him. A heavy weight was off his chest.
AC: This is the end of this chapter.
Next: Checking on our friends.
Tom, Sarah, Peyton and Sarah visited their friends on Perim as the rulers returned.