The gong had been rung.
The Heartstaff was coming home.
It could mean only two things - end of hostilities or utter destruction in its wake.
The entire Chemorian landscape was active.
The tribes were on high alert.
It was time for the Royal homecoming.
The shoes were brushed and the harness was checked. Every weapon was shined and greased and each soldier was given a double dose of their usual supplement.
The leaders sat inside their circles working on their core. Strengthening their strategies and working on their magic that was going to wreak havoc on the opponent.
Chemora was gearing up for war.
" It's near! "
Layla's remark caught everyone's attention and they turned around only to hear her laugh.
" He is here. He is coming for you. " She erupted into another hysterical laughter.
" Did you all think that you forced me to bring you here? Hell no! I brought you here! This was my mission. You are doomed. You all are. This is your end. "
Her laughter kept getting more and more uncanny.
Finally it was George who spoke.
" She is joking right? Just trying to manipulate? "
He turned towards Robert.
" You ought to see past her treachery.What is she blabbering about? "
" This will be the end of Chemora! '' Layla continued. " That wretched land will know how it feels to eliminate an entire population. This time they braced for their due. "
( Hysterical laughter followed by sounds of mental banging. )
She kept doing that as Rozelle , George and Quill waited for Robert to reply.
Suddenly they got distracted with the sound of one of the boys moving. Then followed another and the other as they all rushed to check on them, forgetting Layla and her ominous talk, momentarily.
Xen was the first one to come around.
" How are you feeling? We had been worried about... "
Xen shoved them all away.
" Get off me! " He looked like he was in a very bad mood.
It took him a few seconds to check on his surroundings.
" How far are we from the destination? Do we have any updates on Mira? "
His voice was much huskier than it usually was and there was a drastic change in his demeanor.
Before anybody could answer Kian came around.
He too seemed very agitated. He spared Xen one glance but instead of checking on each other, they turned away, as if they were mere strangers.
Kian went for the control panel.
He typed something and opened another window, checking something and doing some calculations.
" We need to boost this ship's speed.
We will not make it to the destination before the alignment is complete. After that, it will be too late. "
Rozelle and George looked at each other.
" We cannot do that. To increase the speed, we will need to feed it more fuel. It will cut the oxygen supply drastically. " George came forward.
" So what? We are here to save Mira. After the alignment, we might be too late. Then what will be the whole purpose of this mission? "
They saw his point but were unable to respond. Voluntary suicide, was no solution.
" Let's check if we can go with Oxygen. We can then stop feeding the entire ship and the Earthlings can simply use cylinders. Will save life and resources. "
Braze's voice came from the back. His gaze was authoritative.
" How can we do that? Cutting the supply to check that will kill all of us instantly if it doesn't work. "
Rozelle put in.
" We can do it at the back. There is a vacuum chamber. It has a line for oxygen supply. Let's use that. "
Robert suggested as he stood up, trying to lead the way.
" You three, please follow me. " He said.
The tension was palpable. They walked side by side but neither looked at the other, nor did they speak.
The awkwardness was real and heavy and it was sinking deep under their skin.
There was no argument, neither was there any quarrel but they had lifted a wall around themselves and it was forbidden for the other one to trespass near.
" I will go first. " Xen volunteered.
Robert helped change and get inside.
He fell on the ground with a sudden change in pressure. But it didn't take him much long to adjust to the foreign conditions.
He lifted both his thumbs up to give Robert a go.
Next in line was Kian.
He did not have much difficulty. He walked out with his hair falling down on his face, flipping it back as he left the confinement.
Braze entered and seemed fine. But as he walked around a little, blood trickled down his nose. He quickly turned around and wiped it in his sleeve before anybody could notice. He had a lot on his shoulder. He didn't have the time to embarrass himself.
" Let's cut the oxygen supply and switch to cylinders. " Rozelle had walked in as the boys left.
" Wait! Let me try as well. "
Robert was stripping and getting changed as he got ready to go inside the chamber.
" No way! Are you crazy? You are a... "
" Halfling... By that logic, the Chemorian blood in my vein ought to keep me alive. The less resources we use the longer you can stay alive. Let me try. The most that can go wrong if I fail is that I might faint. You can always pull me out. "
Robert smiled before he went inside.
Rozelle opened her mouth but nothing came out. She watched him from the outside with concern.