The temporary hideout in Chronohelix was electric. The atmosphere was one of pure, unadulterated joy. The assembled spies and the new allies, having escaped the impossible grasp of the immortal Emperor, drank, ate, and were profoundly merry. The dual success—the retrieval of the Aureblade and the Oathkeeper's Shadows—was a victory worthy of any king's feast.
However, in the midst of the jubilant celebration, Luisa, the Vylonian spy and tactical mind, was consumed by professional curiosity. She walked through the crowd, seeking out Zeddicus.
"Um…" Luisa spoke up, drawing Zeddicus's attention from the revelry. "I don't understand."
Zeddicus, the Elder of the El Max Clan, smiled gently. "What is it that you don't understand, Luisa?"
"Well, I get the fact that the El Max Clan is incredibly powerful," she admitted. "But how did you guys do that? All you did was scream 'Dozgan.' And what is Dozgan? Is it some kind of god or ancestral spirit or something?"
"Mmmm. A fair question, and I'll explain everything," Zeddicus promised, his calm voice a contrast to the surrounding noise.
"Alright, sir," Luisa said, readying herself to absorb the new information.
"You see, the Dozgan isn't a god," Zeddicus said, his red eyes with their ten white dots gaining a luminous quality. "It's our eyes."
"Your eyes?" Luisa asked, leaning closer, peering into the mysterious features of the Thorenzian elder.
"Yes. Like the Aethelgardian Roogan, the Dozgan is a visual power. It holds immense capabilities, and what you witnessed moments ago was just one of its many powerful abilities."
"I see. In other words, teleportation?" Luisa guessed, connecting the sudden vanishing act with the common magical theory.
"That's exactly right," Zeddicus confirmed. "We can move between different dimensions, or realms, at will, thanks to the Dozgan."
"I see," Luisa said, immediately moving to logistics. "Is there any drawback?"
Zeddicus's smile faded slightly. "Yes. The drawback is severe. Excessive usage can lead to the loss of sight. In other words, permanent blindness. In my lifetime, I've seen so many of my comrades go blind and have to live with it for the rest of their lives, sacrificing their sight for the safety of others."
"That must have hurt," Luisa murmured, saddened by the cost of their freedom.
"It did. So I decided to make sure none of my comrades use it excessively and unnecessarily," Zeddicus finished.
Luisa paused, the question of their initial capture still burning in her mind. "Sir Zeddicus, please, one more question."
"Alright," he agreed.
"Valerus told me that you guys were locked in the dungeon with him. If you are this powerful, couldn't you have simply opened portals and dimensions and escaped easily? Why were you arrested in the first place? And why didn't you escape sooner?"
"Well, we were arrested because of our powers," Zeddicus explained, the celebration momentarily fading as he revisited the painful memory. "Arthur… no, the Delacronix clan felt profoundly threatened by us. They thought we could start a massive Thorenzian revolution, fighting against Aethelgard for our land. So they targeted us and locked us up."
"So why didn't you escape?" Luisa pressed.
"For one simple reason: it wasn't that we didn't escape, but that we couldn't escape," Zeddicus clarified. "Arthur, or Lysandra, cast a complex, potent spell on the iron door of the dungeon. The magical spell made it impossible for us to open any dimensions or portals. The enchantment nullified the Dozgan power entirely. Thus, the only way out was through the iron door, because as long as we were in that dungeon, Dozgan was useless."
"I see," Luisa mused, finally understanding the trap.
Zeddicus looked at Luisa, his gaze deepening. She noticed the strange, intense stare.
"What is it?" Luisa questioned.
"Luisa, I've heard so much about you from Valerus," Zeddicus began, his voice taking on a formal tone. "I heard that the Thorenzians and Vylonians have come together to become one nation: Chronohelix. At first, I was mad at the decision. We, the El Max Clan, were all mad. We hadn't forgotten the slavery. But something calmed us down."
"And that is?" Luisa asked, her brows furrowed in surprise.
"You, Luisa," Zeddicus said.
"Me?"
"Yes. Apart from the tragic sacrifice of Lord Ozan El Drodragon—who gave his life to ensure we had a chance to return home—you played a massive role in helping our people, even though you were a Vylonian." He bowed briefly, a deep, respectful inclination of the head. "Even if I wasn't there to witness it, I feel grateful. Thank you very much for helping my kin."
"No, I only did what I thought was right," Luisa replied humbly.
Zeddicus smiled warmly. "Chronohelix is your home. And even if the Vylonians and our people still find it hard to coexist as one nation, in time, we will. I look into a future with hope, and I believe that Chronohelix will indeed be an empire of light."
Luisa returned his genuine smile. "I believe so too."
Elsewhere in the Chronohelix hideout, away from the boisterous celebration, the landscape was calm. Tall, wild flowers danced gently to the rhythm of the warm desert wind, their few petals flying past like delicate paper scraps.
In the midst of the flowers, Valerus held the Aureblade aloft in his right hand, the golden glow of the blade capturing the last rays of the setting sun. He was lost in deep, contemplative thought.
Athena approached him quietly and tapped him gently on the shoulder, snapping him out of his intense gaze.
"Yeah? What?" Valerus jumped back into reality, turning sharply in response to Athena's tender touch.
"What are you doing here alone, brooding?" she questioned, tilting her head. "Everyone is over there celebrating while you're here all alone."
Valerus looked at the Golden Sword once more, his expression hardening. "Well," he began, lowering the sword, "I was wondering why the Aureblade suddenly stopped absorbing things when we were trapped in that flaming prison."
Athena leaned closer, resting her head on his arm. "Oh, that just means you haven't mastered it yet. The Roogan is powerful, but the Aureblade is ancient. It's like any elemental technique—it has limitations, and you just haven't learned how to channel past them. In time, I'm sure you will. I believe in you, babe."
"Thank you, baby," Valerus said, feeling the tension ease in his shoulders.
They were about to share a long-awaited kiss when a soft, polite cough cleared a throat nearby, breaking them out of their daze.
"Rhea? What are you doing here?" Valerus questioned, pulling slightly away from Athena, a flush of shyness palpable on their faces.
Rhea El Max just smiled, her reddish, dotted eyes crinkling with amusement as she watched the young leaders of Chronohelix.
"What is it, Rhea?" Valerus asked, regaining his professional demeanor.
"Well, I came to see you, Valerus. It's important, but I can certainly come back later," Rhea offered, taking a step back.
"No, it's fine. We can discuss it. What is it?" Valerus insisted.
Rhea's expression grew serious. "You have Great Ancestor Thorenz's golden sword, the Aureblade, safely in your possession. But what about the black sword, the Oathkeeper's Shadows? You know, in the wrong hands, that sword could bring about great ruin."
Valerus frowned. "I'm sure you're aware that Arthur has it. Lysandra stole it before leaving Vylonia. I figured that if we were to have any chance against the power of the Oathkeeper's Shadows, we needed to get our hands on the Aureblade first. It was a long story, but we finally have the one we set out for."
Rhea looked at Valerus and let out a brief, single scoff of disbelief.
"What's so funny?" Athena questioned, a confused smile playing on her lips.
"Pardon me," Rhea said quickly. Then, without warning, her white-dotted, reddish eyeballs suddenly glowed. A small, shimmering dimension opened in the air beside her, revealing the unmistakable sight of the Oathkeeper's Shadows resting inside a crystalline void.
"The Oathkeeper's Shadows?!" Valerus's eyes widened in profound shock. He took the black blade from the dimensional rift just before Rhea closed it with a flick of her hand. "How did you get it?"
"Well, when I saw Arthur wielding a black sword in the arena, I immediately suspected that might be the Oathkeeper's Shadows, a weapon lost to my kin for generations," Rhea explained calmly. "So I thought of how to get it back. While you were focused on retrieving the Aureblade, I was actively watching and waiting for the right moment to strike."
She paused, looking at the newly reclaimed sword in Valerus's hands. "When you countered Arthur's and Lysandra's combined attacks, they were sent reeling. It was that precise moment that I sent the sword to a small, isolated dimension, hiding it from them so that I could bring it home once more—where it truly belongs."
"Wow, thank you so much, Rhea," Valerus said, gripping both swords—one gold, one black—the weight of their destiny settling on him. "You've just handed us a massive boost in this battle."
"It's fine," Rhea replied with true humility. "I'm just playing my role in this battle. The El Max clan is committed to Chronohelix."
"You're amazing, Rhea," Athena praised her warmly.
"Thanks, Athena." Rhea gave them one last smile, then turned and walked away, leaving them alone once more with the two reclaimed relics of their past.