***Crystal with Mia and Boshu//Stuck at the void between the land of the dead and the living because they were exposed to the poison from the underworld, before the barrier collapsed***
" Mia, you are the only one amongst the living who has seen the Tree of Knowledge, with her living eyes. "
Mia heard her mother's voice in a whisper in her deep sleep. She wanted to move and ask her more about it. She wanted to ask her mother how she was doing and tell her how much she missed her but she could not move her limbs. They felt like solid boulders, immobile. 
" M... Mother... "
She tried to yell, yet nothing came out of her mouth. 
" Shhhh, Mia, only listen. You are still under their influence. They might hear the conversation we are having. They will never let us close this gate. But the barrier between the dead and the living, must be restored. You and I both know what havoc it will cause if the breech is not contained in the earliest. "
Mia was slowly understanding the situation. 
" The Great Serpent is in pursuit of his father, the Original Serpent. He is headed towards the Tree of Knowledge. It has been his undying wish to capture its Spirit and gain control over the Balance of Life. 
It took a huge sacrifice on the part of the Great Serpent to take him down along with himself. I don't think he will be able to do it again without our help. "
The Tree of Knowledge. 
Everyone knew about it but most didn't believe in it but it influenced Life in every way. 
" Akata will be here soon. He was another one who saw and interacted with the Tree of Knowledge when he was in your womb. We will need his Hybrid Energy to open the vortex. "
Akata's name had the desired effect. Mia opened her eyes with a bright flash. 
***Sacred Lands***
" I know what you are trying to do, " The Great Serpent hissed as his father burnt the Sacred trees down with his venom , while they tried hard to stop him from treading further. 
" Give up your futile chase son. I can taste its sweet presence in the air. The Tree of Knowledge has manifested itself this time. I have waited for this for ages. Nobody can take this away from me. I will not let it. "
He seemed to be growing swifter and stronger with every step that he took ahead. 
It didn't take him long to crossover to the Land of the Lakes. 
But the moment he stepped on its water, he was pulled below the water level, several miles. 
It was Anjana and the Little Merboy. 
They dragged him till the furthest point and left him at the strongest undercurrent, to break his speed. 
" Ignorant fishes! I will make your entire race pay for this... "
He was about to flood the waters with poison, just when the vortex opened. 
He immediately forgot everything. He turned towards it as if his life depended on it. Nothing mattered to him anymore. 
It was the dimension where he could find the Tree of Knowledge . 
He could smell it's heavenly scent and see it's ethereal leaves. It was like a hungry wild dog was thrown a bone, it made him hysteric. 
He was close, very close. His body slithered as his form changed quickly to his original one, a vicious snake. 
" Akata, now. Release them. "
Before the snake could understand what was happening he found a million birds fluttering their wing in his face. He tried to snap at them with their fangs but right at that moment the Great Serpent, leaped over him from the back, turning his head and direction towards a different vortex. 
The portal leading to the Tree of Knowledge closed and they were now facing the rift between the dead and the living. 
The Late Fox king had effectively driven most of them back inside but they were large in number and the void was getting bigger with passing of time. 
" I will have to leave now Mia. I can , now finally find my peace. Take care of your father and your siblings. From now on, you will be an elder sister and mother figure to them as well. "
The souls from the bird clan, the late Fox king, Crystal and everyone who didn't belong to the land of the living, we're gradually being sucked in. 
The Fox king spared one glance at Lin and nodded. Lin bowed and sent his salutations back to him. 
They watched from the above because Crystal had specifically forbidden anyone from getting in, except Akata. 
" I hope the Birds will finally find their deserved respect and place Boshu. "
The birds chirped as he wiped his tears, " Do not blame the ones who could not let go off their grudges. We Birds, had to see a lot of bad days. " They said as Boshu sobbed along with them, 
" I know. Wouldn't I know better what those rogue Wolves did to us. But my Roe is not like that. "
He kept sobbing. Seeing his long lost relatives like that was overwhelming. 
" We know because we hold no grudges and we hope the future generation will not , as well. "
And then they were also gone. 
It seemed like the battle was finally over and the war was won. 
Mia, Boshu and Akata turned to climb up the rope , that was still hanging as the world of the dead gradually constricted. 
" You go first! " 
Mia told Boshu. 
As soon as he hopped a few steps up, the vortex flared up. 
A forked tongue emerged and then emeged a serpent head. 
Another gigantic serpent was coiling it's body and was trying hard to drag in down. 
But the forked tongue, found it's way towards where Mia was standing. 
" No! Not my daughter, snake. Not on my watch! "
But before it could strike with it's deadly fang, the Wolf King jumped over its hood and smashed it between his strong hands. 
" Father... No..... "
Mia tried to grab his hands but he was already half way down his waist towards the netherworld, there was no coming back. 
Boshu quickly shoved Akata above and grabbed Mia by her waist, trying to stop her from following her father. 
" It's okay. I guess, now we are even with the birds. Why should they be responsibile along for maintainance of this border. It should be a shared chore my girl. "
Mia was uncontrollable as she saw him smile through that pain. 
" Besides, do you think I would have been able to live happily after seeing your mother disappear again? 
This is only for the best. I can't wait to meet her on the other side. "
And those were his last words. 
Mia saw his vanish, along with the rest of the mayhem with the biggest smile she had seen on his face, ever. 
*****
Peace
" And that's how grandfather killed the snake. He kicked him like this on the head and like this on his tail and he flipped him off like this... like this... "
Akata was giving a full performance to his little sister, Merindale, Xie and Ruby's daughter. 
As an older brother, he was on baby sitting duty while the adults were busy, preparing for Xie's coronation ceremony. 
He couldn't stop telling her the story of their grandfather's bravery, over and over again with a lot of added spices of course and the little girl smiled and giggled, while kicking her hands and legs in the air. 
It took a lot of convincing for Xie to finally accept his responsibility in their father's absence. 
He was the worst hit because he was unconscious during the incident. He was unable to forgive himself for being absent and blamed himself for his father's death. 
***
The first prince had taken the helm of the Fox Kingdom very well. Who would have thought he would make such a fine king. The subjects cherished and loved him dearly. 
Boshu decided to leave the Wolf Kingdom and go in search of the scattered members of his Bird Clan. 
" I will be a coward to let them live like this. We can't lose our identity, our ethnicity like this. I will have to do this Roe. Please, forgive me. "
" Who is going to forgive you? I am coming with you? Do you think you can build your kingdom without your queen, you stupid moron bird? "
She hit Boshu at the back of his head as she stood in front of him with a huge backpack. 
" I love you, "
Boshu had tears in his eyes again. 
" I love you more, stupid a*s! "
Roe jumped on top of him and if anybody saw them from a distance, without any context, they would definitely think it was a deadly assault on a Bird's life. 
***
Mia and Lin, watched Akata play with Merindale from the palace . 
" Akata looks so happy when he is around her. He hates when we take him home. "
Mia observed. 
Lin admired Akata for a few more minutes and then he mischievously turned his gaze towards his wife. 
" Why don't you give him a substitute? "
" A what? "
" A substitute to play with you know. I can help you with that. "
He smirked as he pulled her close and then swung her around, finally pinning her against the wall. 
" Lin, what are you doing? There are maids coming this way. We need to get ready before the Coronation Ceremony begins... " she tried to protest. 
" You don't need to worry about that... "
Lin smirked as a bright flash pulled them away from there as he bent down to plant a kiss on her trembling lips. 
***
" Tell me honestly, is it true? Am I really... "
Jade could not find any word to complete her question. The mer-witch physician, who had just finished examining her, gave her the glad tidings that she was pregnant. 
" It will not be an easy pregnancy , Your Majesty. You are carrying, not one, not two but triplets. "
" What! Really? "
She yelled so loud that Anjana rushed in. He was so anxious about her health that he couldn't even leave her alone for a physical examination. 
" That was why my senses were acting weird. I tried so hard but I couldn't detect this pregnancy. "
Jade gasped as Anjana blushed and ran away. 
The physician nodded. 
" I think this pregnancy is out of the ordinary . We need to find out the genders as soon as your powers return to normal. We might need to make some adjustments in the Celestial Realm. "
 Jade understood exactly what she meant. 
The curse that had plagued the merworld for so long was finally lifted because of Mia's existence and Crystal's sacrifices. But it was a long way until things could get back to absolute normal. 
This was the first pregnancy which would involve no sacrifice, no invoking of the dark powers. 
A male born this way would be free to mate with another mer-witch, who would not necessarily be the queen. It will be the first step towards the natural building of the mer-male population. We are leaving the hybrids out of the equation. 
How the Celestial Realm reacts to such a birth was crucial. 
***
POV of the Tree of Knowledge
They came to me in search of power. 
Some came in search of answers as well. 
I have been witness to ages that have come and gone, 
I have seen heaven and hell. 
The wheel of time, turns with no hindrance, 
Love comes and whispers peace in its bosom. 
Like the floating cloud, it is delusional. 
It gives you strength to move the entire colosseum . 
Naive, fragile, tender but poisonous at times. 
Love is a dagger that lovers would happily pierce their hearts with. 
This love, they never understood it's true meaning or worth. 
A treasure beyond what they could ever imagine. 
A force that could alter even the flow of time, turn the tides. 
So tell me honestly, 
Would you still come looking for me, if you found this love, hiding behind the tapestry?