Chapter 741: Mother

A conflicted expression tendered Tristin's expression. The chef, upon checking out sweets, high-grade and expensive, went through the motions subconsciously. Her words dropped monotonously; her eccentric nature took a major hit. Thus, without much time wasted, Igna carried on with sweets to the terminal, from there on, the ride headed for Rotherham came to be pleasant.

*Dring, dring,* vibrated the phone, elbows rested against the case which laid to the side, the head prepped up to the changing scenery, the shadow of influence from the capital followed into the outskirts – villages and stop-points permeated the main-road, one they traversed a few moments prior using an arched bridge. The railway grew from grown to suspended, running a few kilometers, till it descended onto a manmade desert of stone and dust. A rough-edged hill, similar to a knife to pudding, was carved into a valley for the newer line.

"Hello," he answered emptily, the mind drifted into the clouds.

"Hello cousin," hastily fired, "-return to Rotherham, orders from lady Elvira. Be quick, Éclair, the archangel, and Alta are present. A car will be waiting." The call ended.

'Shaky voice, an impatient way of pronunciation, something must have happened. I could ask Éclair for more information,' the fingers hovered atop the tablet, '-no, I'll sleep the ride off, fast travel as they call it.' Passive sun ray fell against the side, sneaking into the train – the warmth was pleasant and indulging, a sense of relief washed the thought or more precisely, drowned the mind from itself. 

The hospital light, not so easy on the eye, snuck from the bright hallway and into the resting room. '-Where am I?' the face veered to the side, snapping onto the ajar window, '-the townscape,' clambered to a sit, '-Rotherham. Ten years stuck in Hades' realm, I thought I'd have never escaped. I told that boy to not come yet he disobeyed. My ear's ringing from pain. Must be a side effect. Feels weird, the torture and pain seem to have been erased, I remember the images and not the experience. Something's amiss,' from the window to the door, the visage halted at a clock that read, 15:34, and continued to reveal a modestly furnished room. 

"Welcome back," said a familiar voice.

"Thank you," the presence went unnoticed until it spoke, "-Igna?"

"Yes, mother," he returned a comforting smile, "-I'm glad to see you're alive."

"Same here," her expression, joyous at first, fell into regret, "-you know, don't you, about who I am and what I've done."

"Yes," returned a sincere gaze, "-I know the whole story, mother."

"Stop," she murmured, "-I'm not your mother, just a pretender."

"No, I won't. Family aren't those related by blood, family are people who would bleed for you, people who'd sacrifice much to aid another. If we look at it from the perspective of Lord Death and Persephone, you both were very close, in a way, as his heir, I'm his son, which in turn means, indirectly, I'm your son. I wouldn't have mattered anyway, lady Persephone or lady Courtney, what I know is this, you, the person who stands before me, is my mother, the one who rescued me from myself. No amount of words can ever express my gratitude."

"Softspoken as always," she patted his head, "-I'm glad to be back, Igna."

"Me too," they smiled, "-onto serious matters," he shuffled to the window and pushed further, "-I came-by to pay a visit. Lady Elvira's demanded my presence, someone very important has stepped onto Rotherham's soil. I'm clueless about who it is. Mother, as queen of Arda, recovery is paramount. I know what I say is inconsiderate – our disappearance has spread the seed of mistrust across the continent. Time is nigh, dig our feet into the ground and stand firm," the mysterious gaze shifted from outside to her, "-I said I wouldn't get involved in politics. Can't help it, if I don't get involved, you'll be left to deal with a mountain of problems. As your son, I abhor the idea of my mother being treated poorly. What I'm saying is, the burden will be ours to bear – the kingdom's suffered enough, about time for a culling. Stay and rest awhile, I'll help as much as I can. Those who move against us will face the wrath of the Haggard name, that much I promise," the speech took him to her bedside, "-before I forget, your vessel's been bestowed with the boon of divinity. The imprisonment Lord Death cast to sneak thy soul out of the underworld has been lifted. Daemonum Gladio, the scythe, representation of death, has truly been lost. The weapon's merged with your symbol of power," he took her right palm and displayed the symbol of the agriculture and vegetation (a gathered line of wheat; a sheaf) on her wrist, "-the olden powers will return. About the shared link, the death-element of Daemonum Gladio's dormant inside thee. In other words, nothing's changed save the acquisition of the old powers and dispelling of the binding curse."

"Hold on a moment," she grabbed his arms, "-did you defeat Zagreus and fight against Hades?"

"I have no idea, we fought as a collective, the outcome I wanted came true, therefore, yes, we've won, I'd assume." 

"Fair enough," the grip eased, her complexion flushed in fulfillment, "-I'm freed from his shackles. Thank you, Igna, for everything."

"Mention not, mother," he leaned and gave a peck on her forehead, "-I'm grateful to have you as my mother, truly." 

'The bliss in his expression and face is genuine. It's so awkwardly cute.'

"I'll be off, take care, mother," he stormed out, leaving Courtney to watch and smile.

'The monster sleeping inside him has been appeased, if ever the blood-lust returns, an angry Igna might as well slaughter a nation if it were to avenge someone he loved. Watcher of the Shadow Realm, how interesting,' a telepathic link established, '-did you hear, Undrar?'

'I did,' returned the other side, '-he's grown and matured. Achilles should be reaching the top of the tower, I wonder what move Igna and his companions will make, can't wait to see.'

'Mother's doing fine,' he strolled past the corridors until a closed-off wing shy to the main-entrance, '-the Q-zone,' he paused and stared, two mages guarded the entrance, they threw a look to say, '-don't come close, tis for thy own good.' The blurry barrier barely made the outlines of figures in white, '-must be a precaution for the plague.' Outside waited for escorts, "-young master, please follow us," said suited men in black, "-lady Elvira awaits thee." 

'An armed escort,' he obeyed till a black SUV, '-they must have followed me since I arrived at the station. Just how much security's present in Rotherham,' engine started, the buildings moved, he watched through tainted windows, '-cameras, I never noticed, Éclair usually handles all the nitty-gritty.' They arrived at airfield 06, the private airfield reserved for top-ranking members of Phantom and personal hangar/warehouse for the Haggard's. Most of the family's private cars, bikes, armored helicopters, and military-ranked jets were stationed and maintained here – far from what the populous thought. To hide a secret, the best way was to leave it out in the open, the touchier a subject becomes, the greater grows interest. Airfield 06, despite the amount of firepower, kept underground and in the various hangars, there are occasions where passenger planes land and are taxied to the airport. In more ways than one, 06 was a spare-runway and storage area. A vast landscape of flatness sprawled outwards till the barriers, the only change in level was hangars, warehouses, and the secondary control tower. Runways intermixed with yellow-grassy plains, harbored a group of people and vehicles to the far left from whence they crossed into the airfield. Drive from the entrance to the hurdled group took a few minutes, a testament to the sheer scale of land the duchess of Rotherham owned. 

Armed escort gathered around two figures, a lady bearing black-hair and another baring scarlet, the latter was slender and taller to the former. "-We've arrived," said the driver, "-please head on to lady Elvira, young master," said one opening the door.

"Will do," he exited and beelined for the duo – each step closer tugged onto the guards' survival instinct. Head turned suspiciously, fingers at the ready to pull the trigger at a moment's notice.

"There you are," said the black-haired lady, "-Igna."

"Aunt Elvira," he replied, "-long time no see."

"Yes, long time no see," said she without much concern, the mien seemed preoccupied with another matter, her seeking pupils skimmed the horizon. 

"Over here," gestured the lady to her side, "-Igna, how are you," red-lip sticks and sharp features coyly suggested to a less-than-amiable personality. 

"Serene, you're here?" he walked to her side.

"Don't sound disappointed," she touched his cheeks, "-been a while since we've met. I hear you're single now, might I ask why," she tiptoed for more height, "-maybe now you'll give me a chance, won't you," she whispered softly.

"Don't tease me too much," he replied invitingly, "-I might just take the offer."

"Very interesting," her fingers outlined his jaw, "-perhaps we should discuss the matter further, privately."

"I'm at your mercy," he smiled.

"HA-HA," her coyness broke, "-I'm glad," her visage relaxed, "-Been a while, hasn't it, Igna. Also, my invitation is sound, I mean it – if you wish, I could be-"

"Please no," he placed a finger to her luscious lips, "-I might indulge too much if I were to take up the invitation." 

"Oh, come on," she pushed his arm to the side, staining her cheeks with the lipstick in the process, "-I've said it before and I'll say it again, when are you starting the haram."

The tip of the index stained bright red, "-no haram," he replied, "-too much work," he leaned to her ears, "-by all means, keep up the teasing and the offer might just come true."

"Try me," she replied, "-I've been waiting for this."

"Understood," he stepped back and shuffled to Elvira, "-my dear aunt, please tell me why I was called?"

"No sign of the plane yet," she exhaled, her puffed-out chest relaxed, "-have you and Serene finished planning the one-night-stand?"

"Yes," he replied, "-considering I'm not romantically involved, why not?"

"Whatever you say," she shrugged, "-you're a good kid, I trust the judgment. Here's the deal, the Queen of Elendor and Amsey of Lum is on the way to Rotherham. The man's personal fight ended favorably, he should relay the outcome personally, I heard you both are quite good friends."

"I suppose."

"-And about the queen of Elendor," her lips tightened, "-the lady's insane. We've been carrying her kingdom through the war, Phantom's at a loss – we've lost the advantage and we've lost men. The talk is scheduled for tomorrow. Igna, since your mother's at the hospital, you, prince and first-in-line to the throne, will speak on behalf of Arda. Time to step into the spotlight, my nephew. I won't ask much if anything, negotiate on behalf of thy kingdom and show us what you can do. Éclair's already complied information to assess the situation. I'm looking forward to what you can do."

"Any restrictions?"

"None whatsoever, the Federation's a gathering of nations, an alliance. I will precede the talks and mediate my concerns accordingly – do what you need to do to secure a future for the lost Kingdom."

"Lost kingdom?"

"Tis the nickname given through the Arcanum. Arda's been a victim from way back when humans have always assaulted demi-humans – the disparities aren't obvious nowadays; still doesn't negate what happened. There they are," she pointed, "-the plane."

'Mediate talks on behalf of Arda, she must have pulled strings to get me into power. The Blood-Kings faction would explain Serene's presence. The current issue is Elendor, how to deal with her. My resolve will either make or break it. What approach, the Federation's new boost was founded on Elon's dynasty and Phantom's financial support. Where does queen Gallienne sit, if Elendor is lost, it might give the cue for the Empire to launch an invasion and even worse.'