Disclaimer: English is not my first language. I'm using Grammarly to check the Grammar and using Word to write it.
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It didn't take long to watch all of the 'Epic of Remnant'.
It took Daisy a few minutes to stop laughing at seeing me in a dress.
My family didn't have many questions about the Remnants.
Unfortunately, we finally reached the part that I was dreading the most.
The Lostbelts.
"How about another break?" Da Vinci is looking at me with a worried face.
"There's no point in delaying this. Let's just get this over with this," I said tiredly.
"Henry, what's wrong?" Nora asked concerned.
"What you're about to see is going to be awful," I said bluntly.
My family blinks in surprise.
"What does that mean?" Isaac asked, dreading the answer.
"You're going to see," Da Vinci said sadly.
The screen lights up.
After the world was restored, the Mage Association came demanding answers and then called us liars when we told them what had happened.
Assholes.
Chaldea had to be shut down so the Mage Association could investigate us.
Thankfully Goredolf bought Chaldea before they could do that. We really got lucky with Goredolf becoming the new director.
Doesn't take long for everything to go to hell as Anastasia begins her attack on Chaldea.
We were able to run away but not without losing Chaldea and Da Vinci had to sacrifice her old self to stop Rasputin from killing us.
Kirschtaria's declaration of war against Proper Human History was the last thing we heard before zero sailing into the Imaginary Number Space.
"What just happened?" Isaac asked in disbelief.
"That was the Alien God making her move," I said.
"Alien God?" Nora asked with wide eyes.
Da Vinci nods, "Cosmos in the Lostbelts is what we call the invasion of the Alien God and the bleaching of the world."
"Hold on, bleaching the world? What does that mean?" Isaac asked.
"The world was wiped clean. Everything we fought so hard to protect was gone in an instant," Da Vinci said tiredly.
My family is stunned into silence.
What can you even say to that?
The screen lights up and the memory continues.
We exit the zero sail in the first lostbelt located in Russia.
It was a harsh world that only the strong could survive.
Our meeting with Patxi was a crucial point in our time there.
The more we learned about the land we found ourselves in, the more clear it became that the entire situation was something that we had never come across.
And it only became worse as time went on.
Learning what Yaga are and how they ended that way.
Joining forces with the rebellion.
Learning the truth about what was a lostbelt and what we needed to do to restore Proper Human History.
We went from saving the world to destroying other worlds.
Our battle against Ivan the Terrible was a difficult one but it was his question that took the fight out of me.
"Are you truly going to order these Yaga to die!?" Ivan demanded.
I couldn't bring myself to.
I just...couldn't do it.
If it wasn't for Patxi, I wouldn't have had the resolve to go through all the lostbelts.
I just wish he didn't have to lose his life for it.
We cutted down the Tree of Emptiness and sealed the fate of the Russian lostbelt.
The memory came to an end with the visage of a bleached world greeting us when we left Russia.
I glance at my family and they are still looking at the screen stunned at what they have seen.
"It's all gone," Isaac whispered.
"Oh my god," Nora covers her mouth in horror.
Daisy just keeps looking at the screen with wide eyes.
About what I was expecting.
"Told you it was going to be awful," I said.
"Why did Team A betray humanity?" Isaac asked.
"They were gravely injured in the explosion that Lev caused. Even putting all of them in cryogenic sleep made no difference. It was just delaying the inevitable," I said.
"The Alien God made a deal with Team A. They would heal their wounds if every member of Team A rebelled against Proper Human History," Da Vinci said.
"I can't believe that these people were once in charge of saving humanity," Nora shakes her head.
Well, Daybit and Kirschtaria had other plans that went against the Alien God.
"This is going to appear later but I'm already going to say this. Kadoc does join our side later," I said.
"Why?" Nora asked incredulously.
"A lot of things happened. I know it doesn't look like it but Kadoc isn't a bad person," I said.
Nora frowns, "I will trust your judgment."
Speaking of Kadoc.
"How is he by the way?" I asked.
"Still healing from his injuries, besides that, he's doing fine," Da Vinci said. "Kadoc's laying low for now. The Mage Association believes that he's dead."
"Is he going to come to Brockton Bay?" I asked.
"Most definitely. He wants to be as far away as possible from the Mage Association. And what better place than another dimension," Da Vinci said.
"Nice. What do you think is going to be the PRT reaction to Chaldea having two 'Masters'?" I asked amused.
"That will confuse them even more. I'm sure they are already having a hard time trying to understand you," Da Vinci said, equally amused.
There's another person that I still haven't asked about.
"What about Sion?" I asked.
"Oh, she went back to Atlas to talk with her father," Da Vinci said.
That can't be good.
"Is she in trouble?" I asked immediately.
"Nope. She went back to report to her father about everything that had happened. And before you ask, yes Sion will also come to Brockton. She is officially transferring to Chaldea but before she can leave she has something to finish in Atlas," Da Vinci said.
"Her father is okay with that?" I asked.
I don't know how the politics of Atlas work but I do doubt they would be happy to lose someone like Sion.
"I guess he is. Sion didn't mention him when she told me about her transfer," Da Vinci shrugs.
Good enough, I guess.
I turn to my family.
"Any more questions?" I asked.
"Who is Sion?" Nora asked.
"You will see shortly," I said.
"Are all of these losbelts like the Russian one?" Isaac asked.
"If you mean that they are worlds that meet a dead end, then the answer is yes," Da Vinci said.
"My god, I can't believe that there are seven worlds like that," Isaac rubs his temples.
I let out a snort, "It isn't just seven Dad. There are countless potential worlds that all were also pruned."
"....what?" Isaac asked.
"The pruning phenomenon words like this. In theory, the universe allows the birth of infinite possibilities, but it lacks the energy to sustain them. So to not waste energy, the world culls the timelines where the prime species aren't making any advancement," Da Vinci explained.
"I'm sorry, prime specie?" Nora asked confused.
"Prime species are the dominant species of the planet. And as you saw in Russia, that doesn't mean it will always be humanity. If another species suddenly appeared and they showed more potential, then they would become the new prime species of the planet," Da Vinci said.
Isaac rubs his chin, "I see. Like the dinosaurs could have been considered the prime species before they went instinct."
Da Vinci and I glance at each other.
"What?" Isaac asked.
I rub my neck while letting out a nervous laugh, "Well, the thing-"
"One of the lostbelts is a world dominated by dinosaurs, isn't it?" Isaac asked deadpan.
Da Vinci and I nod.
Dad lets out a groan as he pinches his nose.
It's also where ORT is but I'm not going to say that.
"Sweet, what's wrong?" Nora asked.
Daisy is looking at her lap with a frown.
"It's nothing," Daisy mumbled.
I think I know what she is thinking about.
"You can ask it," I said softly.
Daisy's slight flinch.
"I get it that it was a difficult decision that all of you had to make but....was there really no way of saving them?" Daisy asked.
Mom and Dad glanced at each other briefly.
Nora hugged Daisy, "Sweet, not everyone can get a happy ending," she said gently.
"Sometimes in life, you only have awful choices," Isaac places his hand on my shoulder, trying to comfort me. "And in the end, all you can do is choose the least awful of all of them."
My parents understand why we had to destroy the lostbelts.
Daisy, on the other hand, is still a child. She still believes that heroes can save everyone.
If only the world worked like that.
I got up, walked to Daisy, and kneeled in front of her.
"There was nothing that we could have done that would have changed their fate. If there was, we would have done our best to save them," I said.
The lostbelst weren't even about good or evil.
It was about survival.
"We can be the good guys, or we can be the guys that save the world. We can't be both," I said softly.
Something that I learned the hard way.
Daisy suddenly throws her arm around my neck and hugs me tightly.
"It's not fair," Daisy said.
I hug her back, "I know. Those Yagas didn't do anything wrong."
Daisy shakes her head, "That's not it. It's not fair that you were the one that was forced to make that decision."
I froze at what she said.
Daisy....
Daisy and I are enveloped by two sets of arms.
My parents joined the hug, holding us tightly.
I let out a shaky breath, close my eyes, and enjoy this moment.
My family isn't rejecting me.
We stayed like that for a few minutes. No one said a word, it wasn't necessary.
My parents let go of me and Daisy.
"It's okay," Nora said, wiping some of my tears.
"It's still going to take some time to get accustomed to this whole thing. And, well, I don't think you're going to need much of our help," Isaac said, trying to lift the mood.
"You don't have to do anything special. Just being present is more than enough," I said.
We all return to our seats.
"You look better," Da Vinci said with a soft smile.
"I feel lighter," I said with a small smile.
Morgan and Medea smile at my answer.
"Are we going to move to the hotel?" Daisy asked.
"There's more than enough space for all of you," Da Vinci said.
"They don't have to. We could fortify their house with a few wards," Medea shrugs.
"Is it that easy?" Nora asked.
"To me it's," Medea said with a smirk.
Mom lets out a sigh of relief.
"Thank you but I think we should stay at our apartment," Nora said.
Daisy pouts at what Mom said.
"Yeah, we don't want to cause any trouble for you guys. Besides, we don't want to draw any unnecessary attention," Isaac said.
"Dad, the hotel is under surveillance. It's too late for that," I said. "Didn't I tell you before coming here?" I rub my neck.
I'm pretty sure that I did.
"...fuck, that's right," Isaac pinch his nose. "How worried should I be?"
Da Vinci shrugs, "I wouldn't worry too much. We have measures to protect your identity. One more thing, once we're finished here, I'd like to discuss with you which servants are going to protect you."
"You don't have to go so far," Nora said.
"Yes, we do. We have plans that will attract all kinds of attention. When that time comes, people will do anything to figure out Henry's identity and how to control him," Da Vinci said grimly.
My family glances nervously at each other.
"Don't worry, they will have to go through Chaldea first," I said. "No one is going to hurt any of you."
I'm going to kill anyone who tries to hurt my family.
"Okay! So, let's continue," Da Vinci said.
The screen lights up.
In the next few hours, we saw our arrival at the Wandering Sea and our meeting with Sion, the lostbelts of Gotterdammerung, SIN, and Yugakshetra.
Atlantis and Olympus shocked my family. The Greek Gods reveal that they are actually spaceships and the utopia they have created. And, let's not forget, the summoning of U-Olga Marie, who we thought was the Alien God but she was in reality another apostle.
Heian-Kyo was Limbo's attempt at becoming a Beast and it failed big time since he didn't understand the requisites in becoming one. I may also have enjoyed killing him a little too much.
Avalon Le Fae was a mistake, there is no other way that I could explain that place. It was a land literally made of the bodies of its inhabitants who had died, and the fairy-twisted nature only made it worse.
The heinous treatment that Castoria received there makes my blood boil to this day.
Morgan was the only reason this accursed place lasted for so long. And she was betrayed and killed in a gruesome way.
Fucking fairies.
That is the only lostbelt that I can say that it needed to be destroyed.
Nahui Mictlan was another nightmare to deal with it.
Not because of the Deinos, who welcomed us with open arms, or Camazotz, or Tezcatlipoca and Tenochtitlan, or the Ocelomeh, or any of the dangerous animals that existed there.
It was because of that thing that came from outer space.
The Ultimate One from the Oort Cloud.
ORT.
I have fought all kinds of beings from across all mythologies and that thing was a genuine monster.
Even through a memory, you can still sense the oppressive aura that ORT radiates.
Something that is making my family very unsettled.
"That thing isn't here, right?" Isaac asked, terrified of ORT.
Mom and Daisy turn to us, their faces filled with fear.
"Of course not. This was one of the first things we checked," I said, trying to calm down my family.
"Did you check South America?" I asked.
"It slipped my mind," Da Vinci admitted with a grimace. "I will do it once we're done here."
I hold back a frown since my family is finally calming down.
Eventually, we managed to win against ORT and bring an end to Mictlan.
After we continued with our adventures to restore Proper Human History.
The memory kept playing until it showed our fight against the Alien God.
It comes to an end when it shows me waking up in the hospital.
A bright light engulfs all of us.
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We're back at the hotel.
I let out a groan as my body
My family quickly moves to my side.
"What's wrong with him?" Nora asked concerned.
"He's exhausted and hasn't eaten anything yet," Da Vinci.
Oh yeah.
I forgot about that.
"He also hasn't stopped working since his fight against the Empire," Medea said.
"Which is why he will go to bed right now," Morgan said, placing a hand on my shoulder.
"Well, I-" Da Vinci interrupts me.
"You're going to bed," Da Vinci said flatly, crossing her arms.
"I agree with her," Nora said, also crossing her arms.
I glance at my father and he shrugs in response.
"Okay, okay! I'm going," I raise my hands in surrender.
Suddenly Fou lands on my shoulder.
"Fou!" Fou said, placing his paw on my cheek.
"Oh, hey Fou," I scratch his chin.
I notice that Daisy is looking at Fou.
"You want to pet him?" I asked.
Daisy nods rapidly.
Fou turned his attention to Daisy and suddenly leaped onto her shoulder. He sniffed Daisy for a moment, then licked her cheek, which made her giggle.
I smile at the scene.
Okay, time to go to bed.
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It's been a while since I had such a good sleep.
I was woken about an hour before the meeting with the PRT.
We also had a banquet that Barghest made.
It was delicious.
Da Vinci also asked for some reinforcement.
Leonidas, Bazett, Joan (Jeanne Alter), Arash and Sasaki.
Daisy is sleeping and my parents are awake.
They were told about what was going to happen to the Empire.
They had mixed feelings about my participating. In the end, they hugged me and told me to be careful.
I left the hotel with Morgan, Barghest, Leonidas, Thrud, Ortilinde, Hildr, Bazett, Joan, Arash, and Sasaki.
Ushiwakamaru and Cú Chulainn left the city, making their way to the end of the escape tunnel that the Empire has. And to deal with the two unknown capes that are there.
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We enter the PRT building.
"Well, this is certainly new," A voice said.
Huh?
Leonidas, Bazett and Barghest get in front of me.
There's a man wainting for us on the lobby.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
Hold on, isn't he.....
"Now, now, we're all friends here," The man chuckled.
"He's a mage," Bazett said.
My eyes widen at the information.
"Where are my manners. Let me introduce myself: I'm Myrddin," Myrddin said, locking eyes with me.
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This last two chapter two longer that I wanted.
Swear to god, it felt like they were fighting me to not get written.
Now that is done, next chapter is the end of the Empire and, most importantly, some world building.
Now if you excuse me, I'm going to work on Records of Worm.
I have been itching to get back to that history.
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Please leave a review. It helps me to stay motivated.
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If you like my stories and wish to support me, you can find me over at pa-tre-on (slash) Regulareader.
Or at Ko-fi.com/regulareader.