PART THREE: THE WAGES OF TRUTH
For several moments, Emre simply stared at his daughter’s doppelganger in awe, completely enthralled by her. She was far more beautiful than he had imagined her to be and it was hard to believe that his own daughter would eventually grow up to be the woman sitting before him.
She slowly put hair behind her ears and smiled at Emre then said, “Thank you for agreeing to meet with me after such short notice, Prince Emre. Actually, do you mind if I call you dad? You look just like my dad, only, well, younger obviously.”
Emre gulped but nodded trying his best to stop gawking at her.
“I am sure you must have a lot of questions for me but if you don’t mind, I have a few of my own I’d like to ask you. First of all, what happened during your meeting with Director Port? Protector Melody told me that you left Director Port’s office looking visibly distressed. I was very worried about you when I heard that,” Ada stated placing a reassuring hand on Emre’s.
Her actions were strangely reminiscent of Avery, Emre noted, whom he knew was a skillful master of deceit, using whatever means to fight she had available at her disposal including emotional manipulation. It starkly brought him back to Reality and Dewey’s words came to mind.
“I came here searching for clues about getting to my son because my Avery convinced me that this Timeline was a great place to start though gave me little else to go on. So I approached Director Port to offer me the answers I sought,”
“Oh, I see. Were his answers forthcoming?” Ada asked still feigning innocence and concern. Emre was surprised that she was so convincing and would have fallen for the facade had he been unfamiliar with Avery’s tactful ways.
Emre hung his head low and soon afterwards ordered what she recommended from the Restaurant’s automatic menu which promptly arrived later.
“Dad? What did Director Port reveal that has you so sad?”
“The Director told me there was no way to safely transverse there and he was so kind as to reveal the cover story they led everyone here to believe about my son- that he had been kidnapped and then murdered and his body never recovered,”
“And you believed the cover story?” Ada asked him surprised.
Emre shook his head. “Certainly not, even Director Port was convinced that there was something amiss about the cover story and what is known by the Department is still very unclear… When Protector Melody told me you wished to meet up with me, I was thrilled, because I knew you’d have the true answers I sought…”
“Truth be told, I came here searching for you particularly. My Avery told me to search specifically for you because she was convinced that you were an expert on this issue,”
Ada was stunned by his revelation. “What led mom to think so highly of me as to send you all this way just to speak to me?”
“She couldn’t really put her finger on it but she seemed entirely convinced of it. Wasn’t she right then, honey? Aren’t you the one who will give us the answers we seek?”
Ada sipped on her multi-colored drink and shook her head. “Dad, I… I don’t know what to say. The answers you seek are going to be very painful for you to hear. I would completely understand if you would want to walk out of here without learning them but… just know that should you choose to stay and hear me out, it shall be heart wrenching to say the least,”
“I didn’t come all the way here just to turn back without any answers. Please, be as brutally honest as you can be. I need to know everything,”
Ada sighed and nodded. “My mom and dad, your doppelgangers, also did everything in their power to get to my brother in time. They spared no expense, left no stone unturned but as I am sure Director Port explained, there is no way to safely travel to where he is. As a result, Ull completely took over my brother and turned him into the monster he is now…”
“It wasn’t so bad at first. Initially when Ull took over him, he still left him some semblance of autonomy and my brother would often visit my mom and dad and reassure them he was still himself. He had newly developed powers and he was excited to share his new adventures with my parents but… in time, the visits got less frequent until there was not a trace of the son my parents had known and loved,”
“My mother went through a lot of pain because of it. Of course she tried everything she could to get her son back but it never amounted to anything. After a while, she gave up everything else and eventually just became docile…”
“I decided that I would honor her valiant sacrifices and do the world a favor by getting rid of the monster my brother became… There is a way to defeat him but unfortunately, the key lies with my mother and it is only a matter of time before the monster gets rid of the only threat to its existence,”
“Wait a minute, are you saying there is no way to prevent your brother from becoming the monster you claim that he is? Isn’t there even the slightest possibility that he still lives but the monster had suppressed his presence somehow? Blaize could still be in there somewhere, terrified and crying out for our help and if we could figure out a way to save him-” Emre stated with hope burning through his eyes.
“My parents were just as hopeful of finding a way to save my brother but there is no way to save him. They found that out the hard way and it tormented them and still torments them to this day. That monster pretending to be my brother has cost thousands of lives, dad. It destroyed the entity only to establish itself as the evil taking over our world and countless other Timelines that are linked to our own.
“It continues to inspire its followers to commit the worst atrocities known to man. That thing is nothing like the Blaize you knew and loved. There is no way to prevent Ull from taking over but don’t you think we need to slay it if not for the sake of the world then in the loving memory of my brother? Do you think if he was still somehow still in existence, he would approve of how the monster has misused his body and his power to perform unspeakable acts of evil?”
Emre sighed. “I didn’t want to believe that you would be so convinced that the only solution to what happened to your brother is to destroy him. I am very sad that you think and feel this way.”
Ada sighed. “I see you have spoken to Dewey and he has undoubtedly poisoned your mind against my cause with his idealistic bullshit. I have tried everything you could think of to try and save my brother even going back in time to steal him from an his mother’s arms but nothing has worked so far because no matter what, Ull always gets to him and always takes over him…”
“Do you think it gives me joy to want to see my own brother dead? It is the only way, Prince Emre. You saw what Maelstrom did to the world when she tried to take over, right? Well, just know that when my brother takes over, it will be a whole lot worse and there is no creature in creation powerful enough to defeat him,”
“I refuse to believe that there is absolutely no way to save my son from such a grim fate. Ada, please, come back to D-1 with me. Help me find a way to save your brother. Isn’t it exhausting fighting a battle you know you can’t win all alone? You don’t have to be a vigilante, Ada, and you certainly need not spill any blood, least of all your own brother’s,”
Ada practically hissed at hearing that. “I’m not a vigilante, Prince Emre. I am a proud member of the Order of the White Cloak. I protect innocents from entities that would see the world destroyed. I am sure my dearest Uncle failed to mention that too…”
“It is unfortunate that even after our lengthy discussion, you still choose the most painful and futile path of all but then again, my brother was always your favorite child and you will stop at nothing to keep your delusion of his salvation alive,” she stated standing up in anger.
Suddenly, the air around Portia’s Restaurant became so cold that it became difficult to breathe. Ada immediately protectively flanked her father’s doppelganger and stated, “Prince Emre, listen to me, you need to get out of here immediately. I’ll try to hold it off as long as I can.”
Stunned by the sudden change of her tone, Emre prepared himself to travel back to his respective Timeline, dragging Ada with him if he could or else coming back with back-up to help his daughter’s doppelganger. However, he was suddenly unable to do anything other than have his senses assaulted by a sudden potently foul stench preceding the appearance of an entity.
Reality itself began to disappate in the area surrounding the entity whose gaze was suddenly fixated on Ada.
“Foul wench, I have tolerated you besmirching my name for long enough. My righteous name shall no longer be tainted by your unworthy lips!” its ghastly voice proclaimed filling up the room and causing it to shake and dissipate into non-existence, piece by piece.
Suddenly, Ada began to cough uncontrollably, a smoke-like substance emerging out of her mouth, matching the pitch black color of the entity’s Aura. Ada collapsed but Emre caught her in his arms before her head hit the floor and the entity observed him for a while before its dastardly wicked features stretched into a horrific, unnatural smile as it jeered, “Hello father.”
TO BE CONTINUED…
Is Blaize’s fate truly set in stone or shall Emre and his loved ones find a way to save him? Shall Ull succeed in completely taking over Blaize? Stay tuned to find out! Links to previous parts are shown below:
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