From Kin to Sisters Bound by Oath
On the sixteenth day of August, in the year A.D. 2162—Space Era 80—the imperial capital of Berlyn upon New Hope lay veiled in rain. Silver droplets traced the tall panes of the Thors mansion, gathering into rivulets that flowed like mist across the gardens, as though the earth itself were draped in a spectral veil.
Within the upper hall, a frail child of three years, Aelyzabeth von Thors, stood at the window. Her emerald eyes gazed into the rain in silence, cheeks pale with the lingering shadows of a shattered lung from which she had only just recovered.
"Aelyzabeth… does it still trouble thee? Has thy wound mended?"The voice was that of her elder brother, Alexander von Thors, ten years of age, who approached with tender concern.
"Yes, brother… though… Sister Margaret seems ever unkind to me."Her voice was soft, her eyes cast downward, still unable to grasp why her half-sister, Margaret, had never once looked upon her with warmth.
Alexander smiled faintly and brushed her silver hair."Think little of it. Perhaps Margaret bears burdens of her own. Do not let her bitterness weigh upon thy heart."
Aelyzabeth nodded obediently, trusting her brother, for Alexander had ever shown her kindness.
Suddenly, the rumble of engines echoed through the rain. Headlights carved through the mist as five sleek automobiles glided into the courtyard. Their metallic-grey bodies gleamed—Mercedes-Benz R-NV 009s, each driven by the power of DreemSpear crystal, a fuel beyond any known in the cosmos.
"Grandfather has come," Alexander said with a smile. "Let us greet him.""Yes, let us go," Aelyzabeth replied, her voice bright despite her frailty.
From the foremost car emerged a towering figure clad in a black and silver uniform—Field Marshal Otto von Escheinsen, her grandsire. Though in his sixty-first year, he strode with undiminished command. His eyes softened at the sight of his granddaughter, and for a fleeting moment, the steel of war was eased by affection.
Yet from another car stepped a young officer of twenty, whose lips curled into scorn—Lieutenant Rudolf von Escheinsen."Well, if it isn't the little prodigy. I heard your lung burst—quite the frail miracle, aren't you?"
Aelyzabeth stood composed, her voice steady."Indeed, I was ill for a few days. But I shall recover."
Rudolf's brow furrowed, yet Otto's stern voice cut the air."Enough, Rudolf! It is plain the child still suffers."Chastened, though inwardly fuming, Rudolf fell silent.
Then another child alighted from the car—a girl with pallid skin, flowing argent hair, and emerald eyes so like Aelyzabeth's that she seemed her reflection.
"Alisu," Otto said warmly, "this is thy cousin, Aelaera von Escheinsen. She is of thine own age."
The girl smiled brightly."Greetings, Alisu. I am so glad to meet thee!""And I thee," Aelyzabeth answered, a rare smile softening her pale face.
When the elders withdrew to discourse upon affairs of state, the children were left to themselves. Alexander departed in search of their father, while Aelyzabeth led Aelaera to the parlour. There, for the first time, laughter rang freely from Aelyzabeth's lips. The two girls spoke of toys, of fairy tales, of dreams yet to come—and in the innocence of that hour, they forged a vow.
"Aelaera… give me thy hand," said Aelyzabeth."Gladly," replied Aelaera, placing her right hand in her cousin's.
Aelyzabeth drew forth a small silver ring and slid it upon Aelaera's middle finger."Thank you," she whispered.
Aelaera's eyes widened with delight. She, in turn, produced a silver ring of her own and placed it upon Aelyzabeth's finger."Now, Alisu, we are equal."
Thus, beneath the storm-laden sky, two children bound themselves in sisterhood. What began as a tender oath of friendship would become the thread that wove destinies together—an unbreakable bond that, in time, would reshape the fate of the human empire.
Thus ends Chapter II.