As Hornet and I walked the castle halls, I would briefly glance at her, checking to see if she was alright and even making small talk with her. Ever since she manifested inside the Void she was always so stoic, never showing any interest besides fighting and hunting.
But one time, when I was walking the training grounds where the Mantis Lords would train the newly created or formed insects, at the corner of my eye I saw her snuggling one of the fleas that would occasionally fly around the city.
Curiously, when I approached her she immediately hid the little flea and denied talking about such things to me.
"So, Hornet, how is the king?" I ask Hornet as she walked beside me.
"Father has been busy. He has been preoccupied with the final preparations to finally move the Pale City into the living realm." She spoke like a soldier giving a report.
"You know, you don't need to always talk like this every time we speak. We're basically related, if you think about it."
"As much as I would like to speak with you plainly… brother, I am still responsible for making sure the insects that manifest, and you create, stay in line. I've already had enough trouble with the Changelings always setting up pranks and causing problems in the city."
Ah, the Changelings. When I first created them, they were rather docile, but the moment I leave them alone or don't give them orders… well, things could get a little weird.
"If you want them to listen to you, Hornet, just tell them it was my order, and if they don't listen they'll lose their hot springs privileges," I say to Hornet.
"I shall keep that in mind, brother. On a different note, Mother has been speaking with Grandmother Silk about me having children again… and I need some help." She says, looking at me.
"I'm… not really good with these types of things. Maybe you should ask Mother for advice. I mean, she did have thousands of children," I say to her.
"Sigh. I did, and she simply told me to find a mate and breed." She says, shivering at the memory.
"Well, if anything comes up I'll be sure to help you, alright?"
"Alright, but don't tell anyone I told you this or I'm skewering you." She says, threatening me.
Cute.
We finally arrived at our destination. Looking around, it was a rather large workshop. It had multiple insects working and creating the different tools used for the city, and there working with all of them was the Pale King.
He didn't wear his usual clothes. Instead, he wore a pale set of work clothes that were covered with a bit of ink. He was writing something down before we announced ourselves.
"Father!" I call out to the king.
He turned his head toward me and, with a smile on his face, walked over to the both of us and gave us a hug.
"It is good to see you. Come, I have something to show you." He gestured for us to follow him, and follow him we did.
Once we reached his table, I quickly took notice of the scroll. It had an impossibly intricate design and thousands of sigils carved into it.
"Behold! The final piece to finally bring the city into reality!"
"It's so… confusing to look at," Hornet says, looking at the scroll.
"Well, to make sure that the city doesn't disintegrate with all the power Stygian would need to provide to manifest it and transport the citizens, it needed to be extremely specific about the commands needed."
"So… this is the final piece. A way to finally bring the city to the physical world," I say, examining the scroll.
"Yes, and all you have to do is bring this scroll to a secluded area with a lot of open space."
"Alright." As I say that, Father rolled the scroll and gave it to me.
"Also, I would like to make a second request," Father says to me.
"Yes?"
"Well, I've been talking with… the Queen, and I think it's time for us to meet your… other family."
"Oh! Well, I'll inform them once you're finally in the physical realm," I say to Father.
"Thank you. But higher beings like us won't be able to leave the dream realm normally, so I would like you to bring these with you." He said, handing me a small pouch.
"What's inside?" Opening the pouch, I saw small totems that resembled the King and the Queen.
"With these totems, you'll be able to create physical bodies for us to inhabit in order for us to finally meet your other parents."
Storing the scroll and pouch, I gave the King one final bow before leaving with Hornet.
Once we finally left his workshop, Hornet walked a bit closer to me before speaking.
"So, I guess it's almost time. We're finally going to leave this Void, and I'll finally get to meet your overly emotional other sister."
"Hey, Charlie's just… growing up, and she's just going through something right now."
"Uh huh. Anyway, you better hurry up and do it already. I want to try and hunt some demons, or whatever it is you call them."
"Alright, but you better not hunt the ones that aren't really a threat. Maybe go hunt a rogue overlord; maybe that'll give you a challenge."
She smiled at me before giving a quick hug and quickly walking away.
Cute.
I walked back to my room and laid down on my bed, and slowly I felt myself waking up and returning to the physical realm.
---
Waking up, it was already morning, and my maids were standing beside my bed ready to serve.
Getting up and walking to my bathroom, the maids began to quickly remove my clothes and clean my body. Once they had finished, they quickly adorned my body with some casual clothing.
Once they had finished, they picked up my old clothes and, giving a quick bow, left my room.
As I walked toward my door and left my room, I walked toward the dining room, where Mom and Dad were already there eating.
I took a seat across from them, and within seconds they served me breakfast. As we all ate, I decided to tell Dad I had something important to tell them.
"Hey Dad, I have something to tell you."
"Sure, son, what is it?" He says, looking at me while eating waffles.
"Well… I'll be moving out soon."
This made both Mom and Dad spit out their meals and look at me directly.
"What! You can't be leaving! Oh no, is it because of what I did last night?! Please don't leave me!" Dad says, holding on to my legs while crying.
Mom, on the other hand, looked completely fine… well, except for the fact she seemed to be trying her best to hold back tears, and her mouth was bleeding.
"Tell me, son… what caused you to decide this?" Mom says to me with an authoritative tone but with a hint of sadness.
"Well, I've been planning this for a while, and I already have a place in mind," I say to them.
Mom simply rubbed her head and looked at me.
"If you're really sure about this, then… I won't stop you. But if anything happens and you need help, don't hesitate to come back, okay?" She says, looking at me with a bit of sadness.
"I will, Mom."
Looking down, I saw Dad was still crying and holding on to me. I simply gave him a small pat on the back before continuing my meal.
---
It was finally afternoon, and I was leaving soon. Saying their final goodbyes, I unfurled my wings and soared high into the sky, flying in a random direction.
After flying for a bit, I finally reached a rather large open area surrounded by mountains to hide the kingdom I was summoning.
So, placing down the scroll and the totems, I began channeling power into all of them. I felt as the energy left my body and into the items. Once they were fully charged, they stopped absorbing energy and began to glow white.
Then, not a moment later, the items began to sink into the ground, and after a few moments the ground underneath me began to shake.
Thinking quickly, I flew up into the sky, and as the ground beneath me cracked, the city began to rise and, along with it, the castle.
A few minutes passed, and once the city was fully above ground, small lights began to form, and from those lights the insects that manifested and I created began to form.
Once they had finished forming, I flew down to the main balcony of the castle, and opening the doors revealed the Father and Mother standing there with Hornet.
"Well done… son."