Chapter 4 – Alear

Neither of them moved. They stood still, looking over in the direction the Somniel would be, each with their own thoughts on the sudden revelation.

The Divine One… is awake? Ivy thought.

Not that she doubted Lumera's words, far from it, but it was still hard to believe. The Divine One's slumber, finally over… and on the very day she had come to Lythos?

What were the odds?

She glanced over to Lumera. To her surprise, the Divine Dragon Monarch was teary-eyed.

"Queen Lumera?" Ivy asked, concerned.

"Ah, forgive me," Lumera lowered her head as she brought a hand to her face to wipe away the tears. "It's just that… I had waited for so long, and now this day finally arrived."

Seeing her like that, Ivy regretted she did not have a handkerchief in hand to give it to her.

"I understand," Ivy said instead. "If you must weep, don't let my presence stop you. Or perhaps I should take my leave."

Not that she felt comfortable being in the castle on her lonesome. Wait outside the vault instead, perhaps.

"No, it's fine, I would rather you stay," Lumera turned towards her. "Though I think it's time for both of us to leave this place. We must head over to Alear's side."

"Eh? Did you say 'we'?" Ivy asked, surprised.

"Of course," Lumera nodded, a small smile back on her face. "You were hoping to visit the Somniel, did you not?"

Ivy remained silent for a moment.

"… Yes, I did," she admitted.

"I was going to grant you a visit regardless," Lumera said. "Now then, let me open up a portal."

She turned around to face the very center of the platform, before proceeding to raise an arm. As it happened, Ivy simply stood and watched.

I'll see the Divine One, she thought. And he will be aware…

It took a full second before the reality of that thought sunk in.

"Wait!" Ivy suddenly called out.

Lumera stopped. Lowering her arm, she turned back.

"Can we first retrieve my wyvern?" Ivy then asked. "I would not want to leave her behind if I am to go elsewhere."

"Ah, that's right. Yes, we can do that first," Lumera nodded in understanding.

With that, she walked past Ivy, before descending down the platform. The princess then brought her hands to her chest and gave a small sigh of relief.

This should give me some time… I hope.

She would then follow after Lumera.

The trip would prove to be as uneventful as the previous ones, as they made their way to the entry courtyard. At least, it was until Queen Lumera would suddenly come to a stop.

"Hm?"

She glanced upwards, as if again trying to look at the Somniel. This in turn made Ivy to stop as well.

"Is something the matter?" She asked.

"Alear has left the Somniel," Lumera replied.

"He did?" Ivy also glanced over.

"Yes, he has descended to Lythos."

"Perhaps he's making his way here?" Ivy suggested.

"I'm sure that is indeed the case," Lumera nodded.

She would then frown, however.

"Yet, he did not warp to the castle directly?"

She then shook her head.

"Well, it doesn't matter. We'll just have to meet halfway."

With that, she glanced back down and resume her walk.

Waiting here is certainly not an option, Ivy thought before following suit.

They'd soon reach the courtyard. The crowd had long dispersed, though the place had not been emptied. The griffon knights had remained, still surrounding Ivy's wyvern who was lying on the ground. The sight of her approaching rider would make her stand back up, though. The griffon knights for their part made bows of reverence to the approaching Lumera. The flight leader for her part would dismount instead.

"Your Majesty," she'd finally bow once Lumera had stopped before her.

"I will be departing the castle momentarily," Lumera told her. "An urgent matter has come up."

"Understood. Shall we accompany you?" The flight leader asked.

"There's no need," Lumera shook her head. "I won't be leaving far. That said, our visitor shall be coming with me."

The griffon knights were surprised upon hearing that.

"Is that so, Your Majesty?" The flight leader asked, frowning. "Would it not be best then for us to go as well?"

"It's fine, I trust there will be no problem," the Queen reassured her.

The flight leader spared a brief glance to Ivy, who simply stared back stoically.

"Very well, Your Majesty," she said in the end.

"Regardless, you did a fine job bringing her here," Lumera said. "You're dismissed."

The flight leader made another bow before stepping aside. She would then signal her squadron before mounting back. They'd then all take off, their job done, as they left for a different area of the castle. With them gone, Lumera and Ivy closed the remaining distance until they reached the wyvern.

"My, such a well-groomed wyvern," Lumera said. "What's her name?"

"She doesn't have one," Ivy replied.

Lumera glanced at Ivy, slightly surprised.

"Really? Why not?"

"I never thought to," Ivy admitted.

Lumera glanced back to the wyvern.

"I see. Well, we must be on our way."

With that Lumera began to step away, stopping a fairly distance away. Ivy watched this with slight confusion.

What is she-?

But her thoughts would be interrupted when she saw Lumera's body suddenly glow. A golden hue enveloping further. Ivy was quick to realize.

She's going to transform!

Indeed, Lumera's body began to change immediately after. Become larger, its shape changing. It was brief, but once it was done, a white dragon stood in her place. Ivy stood in awe.

So this is a Divine Dragon…

The dragon then turned, until it was staring down at Ivy. She couldn't help but be taken aback. Despite knowing it was Queen Lumera, she was still intimidated by the large dragon before her.

"Follow me," Lumera's voice came from the dragon's mouth.

Finally snapped back to attention, Ivy would finally mount back on her wyvern. Lumera would then spread her wings and take off the ground. Ivy's wyvern would follow shortly after. They ascended and turned in the direction of the outer wall, until they had rose higher than it. Lumera would then fly off, in a south-bound direction. Ivy ordered her wyvern to follow, and off they went as well.

Ivy once again found herself flying over the land of Lythos. Except this time, it was at the side of Queen Lumera. It was strange, how things had reached this point. More so due to the very reason they were traveling. Despite her earlier hopes, Ivy found that the delay in their encounter with the Divine One had helped little to soothe her nerves.

I will meet the Divine One… I will meet the Divine One… she repeated in her thoughts, as if trying to convince herself it was no dream.

She may look composed on the outside, but on the inside her heart was racing. What for long was a distant dream she doubted it would ever come true, fate would come to prove her wrong, and now she was going to meet him face to face. If he had still been asleep perhaps it could've been more manageable, but now that he was awake…

At the very least, she could now understand what her father felt.

"We're almost there," Lumera's voice would snap her out of her thoughts.

Ivy briefly glanced towards her. Even in her dragon form, a look of determination was evident on the Divine Dragon Monarch. Or perhaps it was the impression Ivy got in light of things. Regardless, Lumera's words would soon prove to be true. Off in the horizon several figures would come into view, in one of the valleys nested between the rocky little hills spread all over the grasslands.

That is quite the big entourage, Ivy noted.

As they came closer, however, things started to look off. The figures did not seem to be moving in any direction, mostly keeping to the valley. In addition, what movement they had seemed to be all over the place, coming closer and away from each other, as if it was one big performance. Except, the sight of weapons drawn and magic coursing around indicated it was no such thing.

It's a battle! Ivy quickly realized.

She was shocked. A battle, here in the Holy Land? But most importantly…

The Divine One is under attack!

"What? What's the meaning of this!?" Ivy heard Lumera cry out.

Without warning, Lumera suddenly sped off, rushing over towards the unfolding battle.

"Faster," Ivy quickly ordered her wyvern.

With a roar, the wyvern flapped her wings with more force, and she too gained speed. As they tried to catch up with Lumera, Ivy's mind was in overdrive.

Who are they? Was I followed? How did they get past the outposts?

Nevertheless, she was quick to reach out for one of the saddlebags, extracting an Elfire Tome from within. Whoever they were, if they had dared to attack the Divine One…

It was then she saw one of the figures fall, fatally struck most likely. As soon it hit the floor, it's body suddenly dissolved into black smoke and red sparks. Ivy's eyes widened.

Corrupted? No, it can't be!

Now more than ever Ivy desired to reach them and help out. However, she would not get her chance. They had come across the battle as it had been winding down, for the Divine One and his companions quickly defeated the remaining Corrupted. That would've been the end of it if not for more Corrupted to come into view, charging towards them. However, Lumera had finally reached them as well, and proceeded to fire a beam of blue energy from her mouth. In one fell swoop, she vaporized the approaching Corrupted. Such a sight once again had Ivy in awe at the Divine Dragon Monarch.

Once she had arrived to the scene, Ivy ordered her wyvern to land. Placing her tome back in its bag, she would proceed to dismount. She was quick to look around. Without the Corrupted, there were only four figures left. One was an old man, and two others a boy and a girl.

They must the Stewards of the Dragon, Ivy realized.

Then, the last one…

Ivy felt her heart skip a beat. There he was, in the flesh, at last. What illustrations she had seen had not done him justice, she felt.

He's so… stunning, her mind was quick to say.

Despite Lumera's impressive entrance to the scene, Ivy's modest own did not go unnoticed. All four glanced in her direction, looks of surprise and confusion at this unknown presence. Seeing the Divine One stare back at her, Ivy poured all her willpower in remaining composed. She could not afford to falter, not now. To her fortune, the Divine One would be quickly distracted as Lumera's body began to glow golden, making him glance at her again. In an inverse to what Ivy witnessed back at the castle courtyard, Lumera changed from dragon to human. She remained hovering in mid-air, though slowly descended; the golden hue lingering until her heels touched the grass. A smile would manifest on her face as she looked towards the Divine One.

"At last. You are awake," Lumera said.

She then brought her hands to her chest and closed her eyes.

"What a joy it is to see you, Alear."

The Divine One, Alear, stared at her, astonished.

"You're…" he began, but then trailed off.

Lumera opened back her eyes.

"Yes, it's me," she nodded.

Then, without warning, she lunged… and enveloped him in a tight hug.

"I waited so long for this day!"

"Ah!"

Alear was taken aback by this sudden action, though Lumera's grip on him prevented him from actually stepping back. At that moment they were not the Divine Dragon Monarch and the Divine One, but just a mother and her son.

"I came here as fast as I could," she told him.

Lumera then let go of the hug.

"You're not hurt, are you?" She asked, concerned, checking him all over.

"I'm… I'm fine," Alear replied, still dumbfounded.

Lumera sighed in relief.

"I'm so glad to hear that," she said.

As the two had their moment, Ivy found herself approached by the other three.

"Excuse me, Miss," the old man began, "but who are you?"

"She's a guest," Lumera answered before Ivy could, turning back to face them. "We were in council when I sensed Alear's awakening."

"I see," the man said, briefly glancing over to Lumera. "Then for she to have accompany you as well, it means she's no ordinary woman."

"That's right," Ivy nodded. "Allow me to introduce myself."

Eyes were on her again, including those of the Divine One.

First impressions are important…

She took a deep breath.

"I am Ivy, Princess of Elusia."

Expectedly, she saw the Divine One's companions gasp in shock. He himself had a more subdued look of surprise, however. Ivy turned to face him specifically for the next part.

"It is a pleasure to stand before you, Divine One," she joined her hands and made a slight bow.

"I see," Alear said, before giving a small smile. "It's a pleasure to meet you too, Princess Ivy."

It was a good thing she had her head down, as Ivy felt her face heat up. The Divine One being pleased to see her; this day was just turning even more unbelievable by the second. Though as it was…

"What!?"

"The princess of Elusia, here?"

"That can't be!"

He seemed to be the only one. Alear turned to them.

"Huh? Is it that surprising?" He asked them, confused. "I thought you said it was normal for royal families to come visit me."

Ivy's eyes widened slightly.

He doesn't know?

Well, it was perhaps expected, considering Elusia's adoption of the Fell Dragon faith happened after his slumber began. From the sound of it, it was a detail that had yet to be told to him.

"Um, well, you see, Divine One," the older man said, "when it comes to the Kingdom of Elusia, it's a different matter."

"Yeah!" The girl added with a nod. "They don't worship you, for starters."

"They worship the Fell Dragon instead," the boy finished.

Alear frowned.

"Is that true?" He turned to Ivy.

"I'm afraid it is," the princess admitted.

"I see…" Alear went pensive.

Seeing him like that, Ivy felt her mood dampen.

I knew it would happen, but it was still too soon, she lamented.

It would certainly be disheartening if the Divine One's opinion of her dropped because of it. Just then, Lumera stepped forward.

"Be as it may, her presence here is not a problem," she said. "You can have my word on that."

The boy and girl glanced at each other, still looking a bit unsure.

With things as they are now, there is little point in not clearing things up, Ivy thought.

"Truth be told, even being their princess it doesn't mean I share all of my people's opinions," she said. "The subject of the Fell Dragon being among them."

"Huh? An Elusian that doesn't worship the Fell Dragon?" The boy asked, surprised.

"That sounds… hard to believe," the girl was likewise skeptical.

The old man said nothing, but looked pensive nonetheless.

"Well, I believe her," Alear suddenly said.

Ivy quickly glanced over to him, surprised but also relieved, her earlier worry gone having heard that.

"You do?" She asked.

Alear simply nodded.

At this the old man hummed.

"Well, if both Queen Lumera and the Divine One can vouch for her, then I see no reason to doubt myself. We will place our trust in your words as well."

He then glanced over to the young pair.

"Isn't that right, you two?"

The two glanced towards Ivy, before then back to him.

"I suppose that's true."

"Yes, sir. You're right."

The old man nodded in satisfaction, before turning back to Ivy.

"I apologize for our earlier behavior, Your Highness,"

He then placed a hand over his heart and made a small bow.

"I am Vander, thirty-second Steward of the Dragon."

"I'm Framme!" The girl then said, before gesturing to the boy. "And this is my twin brother Clanne. Together we are-"

"The thirty-third Stewards of the Dragon!" They chorused in unison.

"It's a pleasure," Ivy nodded.

They look not much older than Hortensia, she noted, and they already hold such a high honor?

She had to admit, she was impressed… and a bit jealous.

"It's good to see things turned out well in the end," Lumera said with a smile. "Now then, let's head to the castle."

She glanced to Alear.

"At long last, you will be coming home, my dear child."

Alear frowned.

"Home..."

Lumera tilted her head in confusion.

"Alear, what's wrong? Are you not excited?"

"If I may, Queen Lumera," Vander suddenly spoke, which made her turn to him. "Ever since he awoke, the Divine One's memory has been hazy."

"Oh my!" Lumera turned back to Alear, now looking distressed. "Is that true?"

"Y-yes," Alear replied. "I don't remember much of anything from before I woke up."

He then hung his head.

"Including my own mother, it seems."

He has amnesia? Ivy was likewise surprised at the news, though said nothing.

To have been separated for a thousand years but finally reunite, only for one of them to no longer remember... that was quite tragic indeed.

Lumera sighed.

"I suppose I should've considered this could happen," she said. "We finally see each other again... and you can't even remember me."

"It's gonna be alright, Queen Lumera!" Framme suddenly exclaimed. "I'm sure the Divine One will remember in due time!"

"Yes, Framme's right," Clanne said. "This could be a temporary thing for all we know."

"I agree with them," Ivy added. "The two of you share a strong bond, as mother and child. Surely not even a thousand years can erode it away."

Alear glanced back up.

"That's right," he said. "Perhaps once we spend enough time together, I may remember. After all, we are family."

Lumera was silent for a second, before slowly nodding.

"Yes… we are."

A small smile returned to her face.

"Very well then. In the meantime, I can tell you about everything myself. Though regardless-"

She then gave Alear another hug.

"Memories or not, I'm glad that you're back. Able to hear your sweet voice again, and gaze into your eyes once more. That is enough for me."

"Mother…" Alear hugged her back.

As the two dragons hugged, Ivy and the stewards merely watched.

"It heartens me so to see them finally reunited," Vander said.

"I still can't believe it happened before our very own eyes," Clanne said.

"I know!" Framme gave a wistful sigh. "It's like something out of a dream."

"No, it's no dream," Ivy shook her head before giving a small smile. "It's real."

After a few seconds, Lumera and Alear finally ended their hug.

"Now we must head for the castle," she said before turning towards the others. "We have lingered here for too long."

"You're right, Queen Lumera," Vander said. "There could be more of those strange men lurking about."

"I hope not!" Framme exclaimed.

"Y-yeah, that was enough excitement for today," Clanne agreed.

"Then we're leaving right away," Lumera declared.

She stepped away from them before her body glowed golden, turning back into her dragon form.

"Climb on my back," she told them. "It will be faster this way."

They did as told, save for Ivy who mounted back atop her wyvern instead. Once they were all aboard, Lumera would take off. The now group of six were soon flying away from the valley, towards Lythos Castle.