Chapter 17: Happy People, Happy Place

Her words send my thoughts to confusion. She wants… us? Does this mean she knows who we are? It could be the case; if Balam can sense his kin, then I can assume the rest of them can do the same as well. But if we were her targets from the start, then why making this situation? Why take hostages now?

An idea flashes in my head. Piecing together the series of events, I finally learn her intentions behind this scene. It’s certainly not the most peaceful, but it’s smart, I’ll give her that. I’ll play along with her, then.

However, before I could say anything, the girl next to me has already lost her marbles as she lashes out at the hooded assailants:

“You wicked fiend! Who would… P… I mean, Arthur, what are you doing?” Bea’s shouts of anger soon turn into those of surprise and shock, as she sees my hand raising against her, blocking between her and the individual.

“I understand,” I answer in a calm tone while secretly touching Bea’s hand with my remaining hand to signal her to play along. “We’ll come with you, so let the rest of them go.”

“Dude!” Gabriel, shocked at my response, immediately grabs me by the shoulder. “Don’t be rash and talk this out!”

“Don’t worry about me…” I answer, letting out a smile. However, before I can finish my reasoning, Gabriel has already pulled me back and, using his body to shield me from any potential danger, speaks with a determined voice:

“No! I would never let a guest, a friend, to risk themselves to danger like this! If I can’t keep one person safe, then how could I call myself one of the four Archangels that governs the world?” 

“And that’s exactly why I can’t burden you or the kind people that have been taking care of us any further. In the end, Gabriel, I’m just a faraway guest. It’s your duty to keep your people safe, is it not?”

“But…”

“Don’t worry.” Stepping out of his protection, I raise my hand to offer a shake. And without having him accept the proposal, I forcefully grab onto his hand and see it done. “We’ll be safe, I promise. Farewell.”

“Here. Now let the others go.” Raising my left hand to signal a surrender while holding onto Bea’s hand with my right, I take a step forward and give my final answer.

“Smart move.” The girl praises my actions, while the other hooded figures instantly drop the people they’re holding, and, with only an instant, appears around us, forming a circle with us three in the center.

“Girl… I swear, I’ll make you regret this decision. It won’t even take until tomorrow.” Gabriel, gritting his teeth and clenching his fists in anger, lets out a grunt.

“And I’ll be waiting for you with open arms the whole night, Angel. Until the next time we meet!” The girl then lets out a smirk from beneath the hood as a giant circle appears underneath us, similar to the circle I’ve seen from Gabriel back in the desert. The next moment I know, we’ve already left the bustling crowd. In front of us now is a lone house at the bank of a giant coursing river – the fabled Nile.

 

“Let go of me!” As soon as we appear on the scene, Bea immediately breaks free of my grasp and shouts in anger. “These people brought harm to others! They were willing to take hostages! Why did you just decide to agree to go with them like that, Peter?”

As I’m about to give my answer, the woman behind all of this has already given one for me, although it’s not the answer Bea wanted to hear at the moment. “We’re not bringing harm to anyone. Let’s just calm down and talk, alright?” Opening the door and gesturing inside, she makes an offer.

Looking at Bea’s angered face, I don’t believe she’s going to enjoy this. But, nonetheless, this is a necessary conversation to have. I don’t want her to misunderstand our future new ally.

“Don’t worry, Bea.” I nod to accept the invitation while turning to Bea to explain. “I’ve met them before, back when we were separated. I can assure you they mean good. Let’s just hear their reason, okay?”

“… Fine. Just because it’s you, Peter, I’ll trust them just for this once. But if their reasoning doesn’t convince me, I’m leaving.”

“Thanks, Bea.”

We soon find ourselves sitting around a large dining table in the middle of the house. The place itself isn’t much despite being two stories tall, with only a giant candlelit living room that doubles as a dining room – where we are – on the first floor, while the second floor only consists of a few small bedrooms. As we’re all stationed in our seats, the woman finally removes her hood, revealing a lovely face in her early twenties, with long hair in the color of the morning sun and emerald green eyes shining a charismatic gleam. Pouring out a cup of tea for each of us, she gestures:

“Here, have a drink. My comrades should arrive in a few minutes, and we’ll start our talk then.”

Just as she says, only a couple of minutes later do sounds of footsteps echo from the outside. Into the room comes a group of people, whose faces we all realize as soon as we come to meet them. They then all give a polite bow to the woman:

“Boss, we have returned.”

The leader pauses for a while, taking a close look at all of her allies' faces, and starts calling out their names:

“Red?”

“Present.” A bald, muscular man with tanned skin raises his hand and answers.

“Orange?”

“Here, Boss.” A sleazy man with dark blond hair quickly answers.

“Turquoise?”

“Yes.” This time, it’s a rather short woman with similarly tanned skin to the first man and short, dark brown hair.

The list of people goes on, all of them being colors we could think of. From Blue, Yellow, White, Black, to even the less common ones like Magenta, Cyan, Celadon, and Aquamarine. It takes quite a while for her to finish her rollcall, but once she’s finished, the woman lets out a smile on her face for the first time and nods with satisfaction:

“Good, everyone is here. Our goal for today is a success.”

Turning to us, she continues. “Now, let’s officially start our talk, shall we?”

“Why are you doing all of this?” Bea immediately asks before I could say anything. Of all the time I’ve spent with her, this is the most uncomfortable and disdaining I’ve seen from her so far. Is their method that unbearable for you, Bea? Even though it’s clear now that they weren’t even harming the citizens at all?

“Before you answer that,” I raise my hand and add, “I think it’s a better idea if you introduce your name and this group of yours first.”

“Good point.” The woman nods in agreement. “I was planning on doing that first anyway.”

Sipping her tea, she starts her end of the story:

“Pelle Torden, at your service. As you can tell, I’m not originally from this land, but I’ve been living here for a long time, so it might as well be my home.”

“How come you’re here, then?” I ask, much to Bea’s dismay.

“It’s... quite a long story.” She hesitates for a brief moment before giving her answer. “One day …”

“Then don’t bother answering and go straight to the point.” Bea grunts while tapping her feet. Her disdain towards someone she’s only met for the first time like this is something I’ve never seen before.

“Looks like your friend really doesn’t like me.” With a sigh, the woman, now Pelle, comments.

“I’m sorry, I swear she’s not usually like this.” I answer. “But please, continue.”

“Well, if you want to cut to the chase: for reasons, I’m now here, and this group of mine is a resistance force, attempting to bring about a revolution. The colors you heard before are all codenames, as they do not wish to reveal their true identities to our foes, which could, in turn, harm their families and friends.”

“Revolution?” I ask. The fact that there are others that share the same ideals of rising against the angels excites me, for now I know we all share the same cause. However, it does feel odd to me that she hasn’t brought up the matter of the crosses to us. Is it because she’s trying to keep a secret from her men? Or is it another reason?

“Why us, then?” I ask.

“To be honest, I only wanted you.” To my surprise, she still doesn’t mention the cross one bit, and the look on her face almost seems like she doesn’t know about it at all. “Since there seems to be a great deal of magical energy in that sword on your hip. But I could tell that your partner here means a great deal to you, so I thought of bringing both of you here. Now, any other questions?”

Before I could ask about the problem that’s been on my mind, Bea, however, has different ideas:

“Is it really necessary?”

“What do you mean?” Pelle asks back.

“Does this whole ‘revolution’ need to happen at all? The people here are living just fine; well, even. Their infrastructure is good, their lifestyle is filled with pleasure, and I don’t see a single miserable face during my short time here. Tell me, then, why is this necessary?”

Answering the question isn’t Pelle, however, but the subordinates standing behind her. As if too used to the sort of complaints like Bea’s, the muscular man, Red, only lets out a light smile. “Sure, looks that way, huh? Everyone’s laughing with joy, people can get whatever they want without needing to do anything. A true utopia, is that what you mean?”

“If you understand, then…”

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“It means you don’t understand anything.” The short woman, Turquoise, interrupts her with a slightly annoyed face. “Bea, isn’t it? You forgot one important thing about humans. And that is our evolution from other species. How did you think humans once stood at the pinnacle of Earth? By working, by thinking! Only through labor do our bodies grow strong, only through hardship do our minds go sharp! If we were all just spoon-fed everything we need from our birth to our end, we’d be nothing more than animals wagging their tails waiting for their masters to tell them what to do! That’s not life, that’s slavery! We’ll be slaves to our own desires!”

“That’s not true! The mind can be trained through more than just hardship! The body can be trained through more than physical labor!” Bea, not backing down from her argument, shouts in return, even standing up in the process. “Don’t you see that starting a revolt would only cause people to suffer! We’re not in wars anymore! We don’t need to be caught in the fire! We don’t need to recklessly throw our lives away for only possibilities if our current lives are already plentiful!”

Hearing Bea’s words sting my heart to its very core. So, after all this time, it finally comes back to this, huh? That same lecture you and Pedro gave me before. But this time, for me, things are different. I’ve seen the life the people here have, and to be frank, for once, I’m doubting my own choice. But when I heard the resistance’s reasonings, I couldn’t help but agree with them as well. Humans can thrive in even the harshest of circumstances, and through hardship, we can prosper into a whole new level.

“But the next generations will only devolve to good-for-nothing pigs!” Now it’s time for the sleazy man, Orange, to argue.

“But our generation will suffer from bloodshed and meaningless deaths!” Bea cries out in retaliation.

“We humans aren’t animals live to only feel pleasure!”

“And each of us have hopes, dreams and loved ones that could be lost in the flames of war!”

“Ugh, enough of this! Peter, you tell them!” Bea, having finally snapped from the rag-tag group, turns to me. But… what exactly is the answer here?

I know that we’re shackled by the angels. I know that humans deserve to be free.

But from what I’ve seen here, in my short time in this land… is this not freedom? Is this not happiness?

But if the angels in this place are in the right, then what does that make me? What… am I traveling for?

“You’re no hero, Peter. You’re just an egotistical prick.” Suddenly, his words come echoing back in my mind. Damn it, why am I remembering that jerk? What, are you here just to laugh in my face, Pedro? Even though you’re not here, you’re still able to lecture me, is that it?

The words return once more, this time even clearer than before. Egotistical prick… No hero… The words circle in my mind…

Ah, I see.

I can’t believe it. The answer has been in front of me the whole time.

It irks me to say it, but thanks, Pedro.

Calming down from everything, I look at Bea straight in the eye, and ask:

“Bea… No, Your Highness, Beatrice Bedryant. May I ask: what do you think about my journey thus far? Did I make a good decision?”

On Beatrice’s face is a state of pure and utter shock. However, it only lasts for a second, as she, as if predicting that I would turn out like this eventually, lets out a sigh and answers:

“Back in the night that you left your house, I said that I wanted to join you on your journey from the start. But I never told you the reason, didn’t I?”

“No, I don’t think you have.” Looking back, it did seem like something that should have been said. I don’t know what went over me to make me not noticing that small detail.

“I knew that the Angels’ rule in England, no, in Europe had issues. So, when I heard about the history between the Angels and the Demons, I thought that there may be some validity to it; that this way isn’t how it’s supposed to be. So, I decided to follow you on your journey, to see the rest of the world for myself, to see if it’s truly the Angels that are in the wrong.”

“However,” taking a small breather, she continues, “seeing this place has given me a new look. There’s nothing wrong with the way the world works, Peter. It’s all in the individuals in charge. And I have that power. I, no, we can make the world a better place, a place for humans, angels and demons alike to be truly free.”

“… I see.” Hearing those words coming from her mouth still brings some surprise to me, but now that I think about it, there’s still so many things about her that I never really understood. “Then, Your Highness, answer me this. Are you planning to be a hero?”

“I’m not just planning to, Peter. I have to.” Beatrice answers with a shake of the head. “For I am one with power in my hands. If I can’t be the hero we need, then who will?”

“… You’re right. You should be a hero to make the world a better place. But for me… I’ve just realized it. I’m not a hero, and I never will be.”

“… Peter, you don’t mean…”

“No, Beatrice.” With a firm nod, I finally answer. “I’m no hero. I’m just an egotistical prick. I still love humans, and I still find them mesmerizing. But only until now do I realize that while I love them, I don’t really understand them at all. It’s like admiring a picture: no one could truly grasp the artist’s true intention within them. So, in the end, I can only follow my own selfish desire, and my desire right now is telling me to see this journey to the very end.”

Hearing my words put her into complete silence, but underneath that silence is not that of relief or happiness. Instead, it turns to that of fierce determination, one that I honestly would have never thought to appear on her, even if I knew she’s capable of having it as a true-born ruler. For the first time ever, Bea manages to truly terrify me as she speaks in an eerily emotionless tone:

“Then it seems like our paths end here, Peter Pendragon. You need not worry about my safety anymore; I’ll manage on my own. I hope for your safe return.”

“Wait, Bea!” I shout, leaning forward immediately to hold onto her hand. Her answer is definitely not something that I expected. What does this girl think she can do on her own in a foreign land? On England soil, sure, but this is uncharted territory!

My effort, however, soon proves itself to be worthless. As the final words leave her mouth, a sudden blinding flash of light appears from under her feet, and, before I could grab hold of her, Bea is already gone, disappeared without a trace.

“What the… what was that? Where did you go? Bea!” I desperately exclaim.

“Teleportation magic…” Pelle, meanwhile, is shocked beyond words. “Unless she’s an experienced mage, a stupidly good prodigy, or…” Turning towards me, she asks with a firm, dreadful look. “Boy… who exactly is she?”

“At this point… I don’t even know myself…” Still distraught from the situation, I can only answer so much. “She already hid the fact that she’s England’s First Princess from me before, but now this…”

“Tch...” Pelle grunts in frustration, before turning to her men, who are still standing in wait, even after the whole debacle. “Search for her immediately! And-”

Raising my hand to interrupt her, I bring out my end of the deal:

“Let me join you on your search as well.”

“And what can you, a foreigner who doesn’t know a square meter of this land, do? Leave the search to us.”

“… Fine, but promise me her safety first. If you can’t do that, I’m personally bringing this place down myself.”

“You have my word.” Pelle nods in return. “I can’t risk losing her goodwill any further than I already have, anyway. For now, all you can do is rest up and wait for the news.”

 

As I head upstairs and lie on the single bed in the room, I can’t help but still think about what had happened between us. Bea leaving just like that, and with a power I wasn’t even aware of… where is she now? Is she still in this nation, actually? But more importantly…

“I know I just said all of that… And I still believe what I said, but…?”

“My King…” Balam, who has always heard my thoughts, shows up to answer.

“No, I don’t deserve to be called ‘King’. A king has to lead his people, but all I can think about is my own selfish desire.” With a bitter laugh, I answer.

“What I search for in a king isn’t a righteous heart, but a wise mind… However, if that is your wish, then I’d still follow… Peter.”

“Well then,” he continues, “do you feel like you could have done anything differently, given the situation?”

“I… No, I don’t think I could.” I shake my head and let out a sigh.

“Then it’s the correct thing to do,” Balam concludes. “Have faith in yourself more. You’re still the one worthy of being my partner, after all.”

An unexpected flash coming from outside the house interrupts my attempt to continue our conversation. Immediately opening the window to see what’s going on, the scene that ensues sends shivers down my spine. An army of hundreds, maybe thousands, of angels, each fully equipped with a crossbow ready to fire, is flying in wait, surrounding the house. Gabriel really wasn’t joking around when he said it wouldn’t take until tomorrow for Pelle to regret it, huh?

From below, I can see two unmoving corpses lying on the ground, and although they’re lying face-down, judging by their hair and clothes, I can still tell they’re Pelle’s men sent out to search for Bea. What surprises me the most, however, is the fact that there is yet another person standing in the middle of it all.

“Bea! Get out of there!” I scream towards the windows in hope of my words being able to reach her. However, all I receive in return is dead silence from the girl standing below, and a shout from a man flying above:

“Hey, Artie, dude! What did you do to piss off your mistress so much? Get over here and talk it out, will you?”

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