Prey of the Lion

Chapter 12: Objectives of the Opposition

Chapter 12: Objectives of the Opposition

“Say ahh.” Utos ko kay Pan habang naglalagay ng pagkain sa kutsara. Sumunod naman siya at saka niya binuka ang kaniyang bunganga, sinubo ko ang pagkain pagkatapos at saka siya ngumuya. Pan is very clingy and sweet, and somehow he reminds me of my sisters back at my kingdom. Sa mga oras na ito dati, ang kasama ko ay ang aking mga pamilya at may sarili kaming mga mundo habang kumakain sa mahabang mesa. This is a new setup now. I am already an empress of Liondale Empire, and I am Leo’s. Hindi pa rin ako makapaniwala. Pakiramdam ko ay nananaginip pa rin ako.

“So, I will be tutored... When will it start again?” Tanong ko kay Leo.

“Later. You’ll meet the royal tutor, Madame Phoebe. She is on her way here now. Depending on your progress, you will graduate either sooner or later—but I expect it’d be easy, since you were also trained before already, right?”

“Yes, but I was trained to be a king, not an empress.”

“There’s really not much difference, right?” Leo asked, tumaas pa ang isang kilay niya na tila sinasabi na wala namang pinagkaiba iyon.

I rolled my eyes, muli kong sinubuhan si Pan nang napansing ubos na ang kaniyang kinakain. “You think so.” I replied.

Sobrang laki kaya ng pinagkaiba! Being a king and empress are very different matters—there are several responsibilities too that are distinct to each category and role. I have no idea how to be a proper empress... Isa pa, magkaiba ang kultura ng aming mga kaharian, I have no idea how Leo’s empire works, because all my life—all I have done was study the background and history of Parzelin Kingdom, my kingdom and supposed-to-be under my reign and authority... I feel like I am back to square zero.

“Anyway, Filo, what did our intel say?” Tanong ni Leo kay Filo at saka ito uminom ng kape.

Tumikhim naman nang bahagya si Filo at tila naghanda, “may ninakaw ang Luna Axis kahapon Emperor. Their target was the Lunar Museum which stored the magic staff of the late Dark Lord.”

Tumingin naman ako kay Akane na tahimik lang ding nakikinig sa mga sinasabi ni Filo. Hindi ko alam pero tila kakaiba ngayon ang awra ni Akane... There is something sinister about her, and when she caught me looking at her, she smiled and regained her composure, that sinister aura that she emitted was gone as if it was just my imagination and as if it was not there in the first place.

“Did they successfully retrieve that item?” Kumunot ang noo ni Leo.

“Yes, I am sorry. It seems like Luna Axis has made plans prior to their attack. Everything was just a diversion, we didn’t see it coming. We fell into their plan,” there was frustration in Filo’s voice. “They were willing to sacrifice a lot of their followers and members, just for that magic staff.”

“Uhm, may I barge into the conversation?” I asked, napunta naman sa akin ang atensyon nilang lahat. “What magic staff? And Dark Lord? You mean the Dark Lord in fairy tale stories? Isn’t he fictitious? Just a myth and legend?”

“He is real...” Leo said, as if it was a matter-of-fact, “but history has been altered so much, it was for the betterment—because the more people who believed he was real, the more powerful he was. It was better if it was believed that he isn’t real, but he was... And he walked among us, centuries ago, long before us. And he shrouded Terra Forma in terror.”

“Oh...” I mumbled.

“Have you heard of the tales that Terra Forma used to have one moon only? And it was Austrum, the golden moon.”

Umiling naman ako. “The Dark Lord’s reign of terror and bloodshed ended when there were heroes who waged a war against him, they could not kill him, however, they managed to seal him away. That created Ostrum, the purple moon... So, yep, it has been said as well by storytellers that the purple moon is the Dark Lord, and that the golden moon is keeping it at bay.”

The story sounds fishy, I do not know why. I am not really fond of history, but there is something suspicious about the story. It felt like there were a lot of loopholes and that a lot of lies, and just bits of the truth was given and told. It is just a gut-feeling.

Tumingin ako kay Akane saglit at nakita ko siyang tahimik lang ding nakikinig sa tabi.

“Pan wants to say ang tagal niya magsubo ng food.” Nabalik ako sa riyalidad nang magreklamo si Pan. I chuckled and put food at the golden spoon, then fed him once more.

“Sorry, Pan.” I giggled. “I was carried away by the things I am learning.” Saad ko.

“It’s okay, Pan forgives Mama.” Sagot naman niya.

“So, that ‘Dark Lord’ person, which is apparently real, owns the magic staff that is sealed in Meteor City?”

“Yes.” Filo replied.

Nag-isip ako nang malalim, bakit ito kinuha ng Luna Axis? I wanted to make it make sense, and that is the time when the idea came into me as I brainstormed for possibilities and reasons as to why.

“What if Luna Axis’s goal is the revival of the Dark Lord?” I deduced, nakita ko naman ang bahagyang paglaki ng mata ni Akane.

Sina Leo at Filo naman ay seryosong tumingin lang sa akin, “I mean, why steal the Dark Lord’s magic staff, right?”

“That is impossible. He is sealed—it cannot be undone,” Filo replied.

Tumango naman si Akane at tila sumasang-ayon sa sinabi ng kabalyero.

“Well, it is not impossible. It is a possibility. I mean, can you think of other reasons as to why Luna Axis sacrificed a lot of its members for a mere ‘magic staff’? The words came from you already, sino ba ang may-ari ng ninakaw nila kung hindi ang Dark Lord?”

“You’re smart, I’ll put that into consideration.” Leo said, “but no one knows how to undo the seal of the Dark Lord. It is impossible. There is no way.”

“Well, just because we do not know about it does not mean there is no way that exists.” I insisted, “anyway, it is just my theory. Don’t let it bug you... As you guys had more encounters with this opposition and I only heard about them since the day I got here.” Saad ko.

Nang matapos na kaming kumain ay nagpaalam na ako at bumalik ako sa kuwarto upang maligo at magbihis—I was informed that anytime now, Madame Phoebe will arrive soon and she will be my tutor. On the other hand, Leo went to the throne room where he had to do his emperor duties by meeting his Imperial Council of Liondale, which I heard consists of the most powerful and influential individuals of different industries and field in the empire.