Angel Monarch

"Shit..." they whispered in utter disbelief.

Sera walked up beside Sabyr with a wide grin. She leaned against their shoulder while glancing between Bea's smiling form and the terrified Tree of Endless Hunger.

"Really Sabyr? You told me you watched Aerin's fall. You didn't say you watched it from your prison cell!"

Both women chuckled, while Sabyr sighed with embarrassment. Eventually, they shook off Sera's body and stared at Bea with a serious, albeit still fearful, expression.

"You're right. I was indeed a prisoner and came to Earth with everyone else. Are you satisfied?"

Bea continued smiling for a few seconds, then glanced at Sera, who said, "But you boasted about a bunch of different events you supposedly witnessed during Aerin's fall. Were those all lies?"

Sabyr shrugged and crossed their arms.

"I wasn't lying necessarily," she said while glancing towards the dark ceiling. "I just didn't experience anything in person. I heard other people talking about certain events, and I retold them as if I were a witness too."

They again burst into laughter, which caused Sabyr to pout and look away with an annoyed expression.

"Anyway, now that you know my secret, tell me what you came to ask?"

Both of them stopped laughing as their expressions turned serious.

"We came from the west coast, where we encountered an enormous tree, multiple times taller than any other great tree in this forest. I've a sneaking suspicion you know exactly what I'm talking about!"

Sabyr tried to keep her cool, but their small frown betrayed their real feelings of distaste.

A wooden chair grew out of the ground, and with a sigh, Sabyr seated themselves.

Sera also made her usual throne of Angelic Metal, while Bea just sat on the throne's handrest. She seductively let her right leg dangle near Sera, revealing her foot, ankle and the area just above her knee.

"You're correct. That was the heart of this great forest... A special person. An old World Tree who gave life to Earth long ago... My mother, Yggdrasil!"

Strangely, Sabyr's voice contained no pleasantness. Whatever their relationship was with this Yggdrasil, it had no usual mother-daughter love.

"What do you mean she gave life to Earth?" asked Bea, while keeping her greenish-gold eyes focused on Sabyr.

"I'm not sure myself, by my knowledge, Yggdrasil was sent to this Realm by Life billions of years ago. She landed on Earth and gave life to a barren planet. However, somewhere along the way she went rogue and left Earth's Realm behind...

"I was born right before the Angels captured her, so I ended up in Dark Prism too... And before any of you ask, I hate my mother's guts, so do whatever you desire with her."

There was no emotion other than contempt in Sabyr's gaze. They weren't lying, as far as Sera could see.

"That's good to hear, since I was planning on using her for Evolution. Could you tell us more about her?" asked Bea, with a confident smile.

Finally, Sabyr's face stretched into a wicked smirk as she said, "Sure thing."

"After escaping Dark Prism, we came to Earth with everyone else. She joined the people from the Northern Realms and became a sort of goddess in their weird religion. Her mind already begun deteriorating back then, but after getting sealed, she fully lost her mind...

"We escaped the Pocket Realm at the same time, when the Apocalypse happened. She created this great forest, and I took up refuge here too. She hadn't left that spot since we'd arrived."

Bea and Sera both glanced at each other with confused expressions.

"What do you mean by 'losing her mind'? Did a Seed of Madness begin growing inside her? Is she a monster?"

Sabyr shook her head.

"No, it wasn't a Seed. It's regular insanity, which's worse. It makes her unpredictable... When the Angels captured her, the Archangel of Destruction personally arrived and did something with Yggdrasil's soul. She was an Empyrean before the capture, but afterward she became a mere Ethereal!"

Both women's eyes widened in shock. However, considering the information they gained from Despair, this news wasn't too surprising.

The Archangel of Destruction was the strongest of the Knights of Fate. The sibling trio's eldest sister. Someone who fought and killed many Empyreans before. It's only natural she could do something impossible like removing someone's Ranks.

"We understand. Do you know everything else we could use against her?" asked Bea, while keeping her excitement under a tight poker face. She just gotten significantly closer to Stellar Rank!

"Not really. I've never been close to her and never seen her fight. I don't know her exact capabilities nor her mental state. However, she's still an Ethereal, so be careful while fighting her... You probably know how elusive and powerful World Trees are!"

Their conversation soon reached its conclusion. Sabyr disappeared without a trace, while Sera and the others left the hall behind.

They spent a few more hours until sundown in the Village. Sera upgraded the armory of the citizens and helped Aponivi, the Workshop Branch's leader, with a few tasks.

Her newfound understanding of Angelic Metal came in handy as she made some new machineries.

As a parting gift, Sera left behind a few tons' worth of Angelic Metal supplies in different forms. Some were fabrics, others different metals with unique properties, and she even left a few metals which emitted constant light or heat.

All the villagers were overjoyed and threw a big party for Sera and Bea's departure.

When night fell over North America, and Sera said all her goodbyes, they met up with Kastral and Alyrine. Together, they flew into the night sky and headed straight for the Atlantic Ocean.

They traveled above the waves for a few hundred kilometers before Sera wrote to Vicky on her new watch. A few seconds later, the two hippogryphs and their riders flew through a wide portal and exited near their mansion in New Athens.

Vicky and Henry both awaited nearby as both women dismounted. They stroked their mounts' beaks, said thank you and let the hippogryphs return to their nest.

Afterward, Sera walked and hugged both her daughter and Henry tightly. The Prince looked quite surprised, but didn't refuse the warm embrace, while his fiancée nearly exploded form joy.

"Did you send the Arachnids back home without issue?" asked Sera after a few minutes of hugging.

They walked up to the mansion's porch and stopped at the large, open doorway.

"Yeah, they seemed surprised when I opened a Gateway. It was quite funny... They all looked like Brian, but without his dog head and bright fuzzy fur. I was wondering, since they could turn into humans, could Brian do the same?"

Sera chuckled and patted Vicky's white, shoulder-length hair. She then leaned forward and whispered in her ear.

"Don't give Mary any weird ideas. It's bad enough that my son plays with a giant spider-dog hybrid. I don't want him turning into a human... Anyway, good job and thank you for your help!"

Bea burst into laughter behind the mother-daughter duo, while even Henry needed to glance away to hide his lighthearted giggle.

Vicky didn't even care about Sera's words. She just enjoyed the head pats while making strange noises similar to a cat's purr.

The sound was so cute, Bea couldn't hold herself from grabbing her daughter from the back, and embracing her tightly. She pushed her face against Vicky's, while they both giggled and grinned.

"The dinner is ready, and the other residents are already eating, Mistress Seraphine."

The sudden familiar voice surprised Sera. She yelped and jumped around, only to discover a petite lady wearing a maid outfit.

"Dammit Hestia! Stop scaring me!... What the hell are you wearing?"

Hestia didn't take offense at Sera's words. In fact, Sera could see the hints of a smile playing along the petite lady's lips.

She glanced down at her black and white outfit, then stepped back, grabbed the sides of her skirt and curtsied elegantly, yet also somehow mockingly.

"I saw the other maids wearing similar dresses, so I adopted their style. Do you like it?"

Sera just rolled her eyes and, with a shrug, walked past Hestia.

"I don't really care. Wear whatever feels comfortable, but don't be naked!"

Hestia nodded, and after everyone entered, closed the doors. Together, they went straight to the dining hall, where the sound of laughter and joy echoed loudly.

Sera waltzed in with a wide grin, her long golden petal dress flowing freely behind her. The laughter turned into shouts of joy as everyone collectively glanced towards the Angel.

Nick yet again flew into Sera's chest like a rocket, but there was something different about the young boy. A second later, Sera saw the change; a small girl on Nick's back with her small arms crossed before his neck, held on for dear life.

Her freezing blue eyes with black lines stared up at Sera. She tilted her black and white-haired head as she reached forward to touch the scar running along Sera's face.

"Victoia!" said Jo, the young baby, who looked like a small backpack on Nick's back.

"No Jo. This isn't Victoria. She's mommy!" declared Nick with a straight expression.

Jo narrowed her eyes at Sera and touched the scar again. She then looked away towards Agnes. With her little finger she pointed and said, "Mommy" she then pointed at Sera and said, "Vicky!"

The adults really struggled not to burst into laughter. It seemed little Josephine thought everyone with Vicky's facial scar was the same person. However, her entire world shattered when the actual Victoria walked in and stopped beside her mother.

"Hi Jo. I'm Seraphine, Vicky and Nick's mother, but you can call me Sera."

Finally, understanding shone in Jo's bluish-black eyes as she pointed and declared, "Pfera!"

That's when everybody in the room lost it. For a few minutes, nothing but laughter echoed inside the dining hall.

Sera's eyes moved between her friends, and a deep, exhausted sigh escaped her tired lungs. It felt like she could finally breathe after four years… It felt like she finally arrived home!