On the night of the moon festival, as the ritual took place in the duchy; something else was taking place as well. Around the same time, in the palace:
Maximus stood by the balcony, looking at now the new moon in the nightly sky. The cheery blossom's petals, in a distance, flowing around in the cold wind. A breathtaking view, yet Maximus held a mixed of confused and worried look, trouble in his mind; slowly drifting into his own thoughts.
Just as he was lost in his own world, he felt a warm embrace from behind. Slowly looking back, he saw Celestina, who was looking back at him with a warm smile, as she began to ask in a soft voice.
"Enjoying the night view?"
Maximus chuckled slowly, turning back as he returned her embrace.
"Yeah… And also, taking a break from yesterday's experience…"
Celestina then laughed heartedly, as she said that she would make sure to have Nino learn how to properly cook. Maximus slowly smiled looking at her, as he began to stroke Celestina's head.
Feeling Maximus's care for her, Celestina slowly looked up with a calm expression and asked,
"What's disturbing you, Max?"
The once moving hand paused, as Maximus smiled at her, saying nothing could be hide from her. He turned back, slowly looking at the petals that has now reached to the palace as he began to speak,
"Well, it's about Kai…" He stated. Celestina kept looking at him carefully, as he continued, "Remember, Anastasia came to meet me yesterday. There, she told me something strange…"
Celestina wondered, confusion in her eyes as she asked what he meant. Maximus sighed slowly, as he expressed; "Well, she told me that Kai doesn't-"
But as Maximus was speaking, he was interrupted with a sound of knocking on the door. Questioning who it was, it was confirmed to be a knight of the palace. But his voice had a worry tone, as he said something happened to the second princess, Montina (Mono).
Maximus and Celestina exchanged a worry glance, as the two rushed out of the room. As the two slowly reached closer to her room, they were met with a few maids; each having a confused and troubled look on their face. Passing by the maids, the two entered the room, calling out;
"Mono…? Are you there?"
Celestina called out, her voice calm and clear, when the two noticed Mono standing by the window, looking outside at the cherry blossoms flying around in the moonlight. Her crimson hair reaching down to her waist, in her light night gown showing her delicate beauty as she kept her eyes fixed outside. But something seemed to be different about her…
Celestina called out to her again, but Mono didn't react anything to it. Slowly, worry began to fill the room as Celestina tried to call out again. But Maximus stopped her, stepping forward. He took a deep breath, pausing for a while before he called out to her again, but with a different name.
"…Hitomi?"
To his calling, Mono finally looked back. But as she slowly turned to look at the two, it seemed she wasn't the Mono from before. The once shiny, crystal clear emerald green eyes she held, were now turned into a clear and calm, reflective like a still pool of water, a deep, cool blue colour.
And as she fully turned back, she looked over the two in confusion.
Celestina and Maximus, both of their eyes widened in a slow realization to what actually happened, as Mono; or Hitomi opened her mouth, her voice soft, asking;
"Am I…"
Her voice slowly vanishing in the quite night… As around the same time, something other worldly was happening in the Archduchy.
Right after the ritual was performed, the trees bloomed into cherry blossoms, while everyone was enjoying the wonderful view; as if the time had stopped around them, which actually happened.
Among the group, sitting on the wheelchair, Kai too was taking the moment into his memory, when he suddenly noticed that something felt off. As he slowly looked around, he noticed that everyone in the group stood frozen. Nothing seemed to be wrong with them, only that they all were frozen in their own place; while enjoying the celestial like night view.
"The time stopped?"
Kai wondered to himself, looking around everyone; trying to find any source for the time to be stopped. As he looked around, his eyes got locked onto a feather that was falling down, just above the serene lake. The feather had a soft glow to it, as it felt over the frozen lake.
"Feather? But isn't the time stopped?"
Kai looked up, as his eyes slowly widened in surprise. What he saw in front of him, was a large and majestic swan.
The bird, held a vision of celestial beauty and tranquility. Its feather shimmered like moonlight, in delicate hues of silver and white; exuding a serene and mystical glow. The large, blue eyes reflected the gentle luminescence of the moon, adding an ethereal charm. The moving graceful wings, adorned with intricate patterns reminiscent to the lunar landscape, while its slender, slightly curved golden beak and delicate yet strong feet contribute to its majestic appearance.
Surrounded by a soft, halo-like glow, its aura was as of that to the moon, captivating Kai to look at it in astonishment.
"A swan? Pretty big from the normal size… And also seems to be the one responsible for the time freeze."
Kai kept looking at the bird, and so did the bird back at Kai. Many questions were running in Kai's mind; why the bird is here? Why is he the only one able to move? What does it want from him?
As the questions kept running in his mind, Kai heard a deep voice of a man; smooth and warm.
"What an interesting sight."
The voice spoke, as Kai looked around before his eyes settled on the bird again. "Was it the swan that spoke?"; Kai thought, as the voice responded again.
"That's right. I'm talking to you, descendant of the Moon Wizard."
The revelation left Kai surprised, as he noticed the bird's beak not moving. "Telepathy?", Kai wondered, but another question sparked up in his mind;
"And what did it meant by descendant of the Moon wizard?"
As he was still taking on the situation, the bird continued to speak using telepathy.
"You appear to be a human from the outside, yet from the inside; you are entirely something else. No fixed form and constantly changing… Truly a unique sight."
"No fixed form? Constantly changing? What…?"
Kai was puzzled, wishing to ask what it meant, but the bird continued on its own.
"Whatever you are, I don't have much time in here, so listen to me carefully. Three months from now, this world will face a drastic change- a great calamity will come upon all the living beings of the entire universe. No matter what you do, it can't be sealed away again like before. And by now, it's already on the move to reawaken itself and soon to regroup its army. So, you must prove your worth to them and put an end to that calamity once and for all."
Listening to the bird, Kai could only stare at it in disbelief.
"This doesn't make any sense! A calamity coming over the world; what is it anyway? And can't be sealed away again? So, was it sealed away in the past? And whom am I supposed to show my worth and why?"
Questions kept running in his mind, when he noticed that the cherry petals were slowly beginning to move again.
"The time is up,"
The bird said, as Kai looked up at it. The bird looked directly at Kai into his eyes, saying;
"You will soon get the whole truth, so remember what I have told you. You are the only key to stop that terror."
Saying so, the bird slowly began to vanish in a soft glow, as well as the things around Kai began to move again.
Slowly, everything was back to normal. Everyone was all fine, for them nothing had happened; only Kai was the one who witnessed the actual thing. He stared in a daze towards the serene lake, while the rest were still mesmerized by the night beauty. Among them, Nino for a split second, looked back at the serene lake. As she turned back towards continuing to take in the view, she noticed Kai. He was sitting on his wheelchair, stunned. Nino was about to call to him, when suddenly everyone presented there heard Kris's worried voice.
"Your grace!"
Kris voice rang out, echoing around in the night. Everyone turned towards the mansion, as they all saw Kris rushing towards them, only to stop right in front of Hiro with a worried look. He took a glance around, before he slowly whispered the content to Hiro.
-To be Continued