Chapter's Summary:
This chapter showed the time line up for the realms of Earth, Sanctuary and Boazan/Warza.
Camus was about to meet his first death, while Heinel was repeatedly denied for one.
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Sanctuary's Realm
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Camus stood there like a frozen statue himself. Being in Sanctuary's realm meaning he had different timeline than the earth now.
It must have been almost two years on earth since all the saints entered the Sanctuary's realm on the High Priest's call, soon after the end of the Galactic War event. He recalled that his disciple was among the rebellion teens who joined that event—against the ice master's will. In fact, the purple-haired girl who initiated the event was the reason why the High Priest Shion opened the Sanctuary's realm, only to seal all of the saints inside it.
"This is not a Holy War yet, and those bronze apprentices are barely real threats to us. Why does High Priest Shion in such a hurry? That girl will not last long with that arrow on her chest. Everything could still be taken care of in the earth's realm." Camus wondered, but he accepted that High Priest Shion should be the one with the ultimate knowledge. Afterall, Priest Shion was the only person whoever met the last Athena two-hundred years ago.
Camus sighed. "I hope Milo won't find out that I left my temple unguarded for Hyoga. He'll go berserk, that hot-tempered guy."
He touched the ice coffin where the Swan Knight trapped—supposedly for eternity—like what happened to his mother in Siberia.
"Sorry, Hyoga. You were not there yet with your cosmo. It's better that is me who stop you here, rather than the other gold saints." Camus exhaled, "You deserved a good death, but this one is not eternal, bless Athena. When everything is sorted out about our goddess Athena's descending, I am sure that the High Priest would allow me borrow his power to free you, Hyoga."
Camus adjusted his headpiece and turned his body around to walk back to Aquarius Temple. He still secretly hoped that Hyoga would inherit his gold armor in the future, when the real Athena and the High Priest pardoned the bronze rebels. He was sure that the goddess and the High Priest were generous as always.
"Camus, are you okay? Can I visit you shortly?" A telepathic voice rang in his head.
"No, Milo. I already know that Hyoga is with them down there. So be it, I'm fine. Don't come." He replied back while hurrying his steps, going through a secret path that Gemini Saga had told him before he went missing.
"Why can't I come ? We can talk about it, I mean about what is happening there."
"I don't want any visitor right now. I advice you to do the same, Milo. Mu had let them pass him, apparently."
"Camus, are you hiding something? You can ask me, you know. I can take care of Hyoga for you."
"Non, merci. I'm out." Camus shuddered, "It's so true that the Scorpio saint's instinct is legendary very sharp." So Camus decided to be very careful of Milo's probing.
"Cam—"
The Aquarius had one sidely cut off the communication. He sighed in relief, when finally he reached his guarding post.
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Earth's Realm
It was the end of the second year for the Boazan invasion on earth.
People of the earth were lucky that the Falcon facility seemed to evolve higher and higher in term of technology, compared to where facility was at the first day of invasion. The Voltes V team with their giant robot had repeatedly beat those giant monsters that had appeared around the world. The people on earth already dared to think of defeating the obnoxious aliens calling themselves the horned-nobles of Boazan.
On earth, the only creatures with horns are animals, and so must those boazanians be.
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Boazan's Realm (the third year after Earth's invasion)
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Heinel felt the ground beneath him starting to shake. He expected everything would be over soon. Afterall, he already sacrificed himself unto the torch of Godor. The honorable battle together with Godor and finding out the family he secretly wished for—those were Godor's generous gifts. He didn't deserve another wish. So he was ready to give Godor what he promised—his life.
He could faintly hear Kenichi's voice still calling his name. Far down below, Daijiro and Hiyoshi were also shouting 'brother' to him. The Gou's brothers must have been in shock at La Gohl's revelation so much that they forgot who killed their mother two years ago. How could they readily called him big brother after all those blood and tears they shed for fighting this disgraced alien prince?
Hiyoshi turned out to be a little brother he never thought of wanting, but now he wanted it badly. If all of this stupid war didn't happen, would Hiyoshi look up to him as a big brother? Would he followed him around asking about this and that on piloting giant robots, proudly showing his skills or invention—Just like little Aella did?
Also, how Prince Gohl the traitor turned out to be the infamous La Gohl the hornless rebel? It was difficult enough to accept that Dr. Gou Kentaro was a boazanian. But Dr. Gou as the deceased Prince Gohl that he used to despise almost into the same level? Unthinkable!
Heinel felt it was getting hard for his his brain to think anymore, all he could do was just releasing his emotions and indulging in those.
"Dad—" Heinel choked by the heat. He had abandoned his formal style of speaking for the man that was his number one enemy on earth. But who cares about it when you are about to be burned alive?
He didn't want to call that man 'father' which was less intimate way of speaking. There was no brainless uncle who used to sneer at him at every chance, or that greedy General Gurul who would point this out as his weakness worthy for stripping him out of the status as Boazan prince.
Heinel's only regret was that he would be joining those worthless Boazan trashes too soon. He did not feel afraid of the death itself. Afterall, he had been prepared to sacrifice himself long before the defeat of Godor. He was ready to give his life fighting Voltes V at his underground castle on earth—if not because of Katharine had shot him with that tranquilizer and kidnapped him back to Boazan. He just regreted that Katharine had to sacrifice herself and died before he could answer her love, not giving what she had wished for.
He took a deep hot breath and roared,"Glory to Gohl, King of Boazan!"
Heinel could not see it, but his father was drowned in tears. La Gohl actually heard Heinel's blessing as the former heir of Boazan throne, while his people was aiming their communication device to where Heinel stood.
"Lozaria, our son could have been the King of Boazan that we sought for, what you've proposed before my failed coronation," he whispered.
La Gohl remembered Lozaria sweet but proud smile when helping him putting the royal rob before entering the hall of ceremony—continuing their intense planning the night before. I still think that the best person to abolish the caste system and unify Boazan should be a horned king or queen so that'd be a solid start in unifying the societies, however, you will do just fine, Your Highness...my love. Lozaria's soft and clear voice was always music to his ears, to which he replied while kissing her, "Then tonight we'll have to intensify our effort on preparing the kings and queens you requested, my dove." Lozaria giggled and kissed him back briefly. I could never deny my king's wishes, so see you soon, darling. That was their last kisses and their perfect life together, with their Heinel already been there.
"My son...Heinel—" La Gohl called over the coms. Whatever decisions or noble verdicts that he should deliver later on upon earth's number one enemy, or how he should act as the role-model of Boazan and as a new president or a new king, La Gohl did not care anymore. Right now, how to stop Lozaria's dream king from killing himself was his number one list. But how could he persuade the warrior of Godor not to sacrifice himself? Surrendering one's soul for Boazan's glory is the essence of being the chosen warrior of Godor.
La Gohl remembered how nice it was half a day ago when he could finally hugged his three sons, here on Boazan soil. Now, La Gohl also greedily wanted to hold this son, the child that Lozaria had traded with her life. Gohl wanted to tell that poor child how precious he was to his parents, even before they knew him. "Heinel! Come down here. Let's talk, hurry, son!" He shouted in panic seeing that some hot rocks already falling down.
Heinel did not hear his father acceptance and callings for him. At that moment his head was suddenly flooded with high pitch noises that hurt his brain, knocking him entirely to the rattling ground.
He already realized it before—that after he had disengaged from Godor's neuro-enhancer—he felt like his untrained inner-energy being awaken again. It hurt him exactly like in those time when he was joining Aella's training with the King of Warza. But this high pitch was definitely how his brain used to respond to Aella's untrained power. Perhaps Godor's energy and the Warza's were using the similar technique of manipulating the strong force. That strong force was one of the four fundamental forces of universes, so that probability was not zero.
"Impossible." Heinel thought he was tricked by his sensitive brain post-Godor—when he half hoped that it was Aella's doing.
Then the cliff started to crumble, falling down. He lost his footing on the ground and started to fall with those rocks, engulfed in flames below.
On the way down, some hot rocks bumped into his body, so he covered his face with both hands out of reflects. Then something big hit his body, that he almost bounced. But that thing somehow clung onto his body and prevented him from bouncing away. However, heavy hot rocks were still all around him and ready to burry him soon. So what was the point of looking at the thing that hit him? "It will be over soon."
"Ah-nee! Heinel Nee!" The thing that hit him made a loud cry. Immense pain attacked his brain again Somehow along with those high pitches, there was a readable voice, calling him in Warzanian language he used to speak. "Ah-nee! hold on to me!"
Impossible!
There was only one person calling him ah-nee—meaning big brother—in his world. The phrase ah-nee was not limited to the blood-related term, as it also used for a kind of cultural symbol of protection, guidance, and authority upon the calling person: everything that he was for the princess of Warza Kingdom.
Could it be—? But the only wormhole connecting Boazan's galaxy to Warza galaxy was destroyed by the enemy of the Warza King a decade ago, cutting Boazan from the possible precious and prosperous diplomatic relation. The event had exiled Boazan from that sector of the galaxy. And Boazan people had believed that the Warza galaxy could have been destroyed by its enemy as well. It was not something that saddened the horned boazanian,though. Because—the moment Zanbazil found the way to contact Warza galaxy to get Heinel back—the boazanian reluctantly had to accept that there was a hornless-but powerful king there. In fact, Zanbazil and his chronies cheered the destruction of the wormhole and made Heinel watched the footages almost every time they met at the military academy—every year at the end of the military class. It was made an exemplary case where Boazan should endorse the destruction of hornless' worlds by themself.
Heinel opened his eyes. However, the falling rocks around him blocked the light, causing a darkened vision. In the short moment before he was buried under the pile of hot rocks, he could see the faint light of an energy shield. And he could see what hit him was actually someone of much smaller built than him. That person was in a full armor that glowed in silver and with white patterns. The person also wore a full helmet with energy face shield that was hardened like a piece of unbreakable glass. Through the face shield, he could see shining eyes—the eyes of shining diamonds. That meant, the person was also raising the inner strength to the maximum level. Like when Aella is burning the force—was his second-last thought before everything went dark for him.
His last thought was actually what he always said while reprimanding that particular stubborn girl. "You should stop calling me 'ah-nee' and start using 'grahn frehr' when you are officially the heir of Warza, my princess."
"Heinel Nee!"
No, princess, I don't want you to see me like this.
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