Angel Monarch

Henry and Vicky emerged onto the deserted street, at New Athens' other side.

Every citizen already received the warning, so they left for the nearest shelter. The night's lateness also meant there weren't many people outside, especially since this was the calmer part of New Athens.

On either side, family homes stretched along the wide road. The dew on their perfect lawn glinted under the bright moonlight.

Behind the two teenagers, the military vehicles began arriving. While the soldiers evacuated the buildings, Vicky walked around looking for the Gate's exact position.

It would've been ideal if Realm Gates only opened in unoccupied spaces, but life wasn't perfect.

Vicky walked towards a four bedroom, two-story family home, and stopped at the edge of their lawn.

"Looks like we will need to pay for damages again… Great!"

She whispered to herself, then turned to Henry. "Is this house evacuated?"

"Yes… Try minimizing the destruction this time! It costs a lot to build new homes!"

He spoke with a sly grin, which Vicky mirrored. While giggling, she turned back towards the home, closed her eyes and pointed her hand at the structure.

All the shuffling and shouting came to a sudden halt, as soldiers and citizens alike stopped to look at Vicky's handiwork.

The small, pale girl continued to concentrate, and as power flowed through her body, space seemed to bend around her.

It accumulated and eventually shot out towards the large house… That's when something truly amazing happened!

They needed to remove the home, so the Gate would open on an unoccupied space, making containment much easier.

For this reason, the soldiers usually demolished the structure, even if it's a skyscraper, but Vicky wasn't a fan of such wide scale destruction, so she used her power to contain the building.

The space around the family home bent and twisted. Gradually, second by second, the two-story building became smaller.

It kept its scaling. Walls, roof, and foundation maintained consistent relative dimensions to each other, but the entire building rapidly decreased in size.

The two-story became a single-story, then tiny—child-sized. It continued turning smaller until the large house was the size of a hand.

Sadly, the house's weight, though more compact, prevented its removal. But Henry got a fix for that!

He swiped her hand across the air and sent the small house one second into the future relative to the current time. This meant the house would never reappear until he willed it.

The space where the two-story family home stood was now empty, except for a few broken pipes, which sprayed water and sewage everywhere.

Behind Vicky and Henry, the soldiers shook their heads in disbelief, while the few civilians froze in awe.

Even though everyone was aware of the Prince's and Princess's Evolved power, watching them work still felt like seeing miracles happen right before their eyes.

With the house gone, the regal couple lingered close by while the soldiers returned to work.

Their job was clearing the perimeter and killing any monster that could slip away from Henry's and Vicky's wrath.

It took the Realm Gate ten minutes to reach Earth and connect the two with its invisible tendrils. Upon establishing the connection, the Realm Gate opened!

Reality broke on a small point, and the portal slowly stretched in every direction. Fearless, Vicky approached the Gateway, mentally surveying the opposite side.

"Seems like a 3rd Tier Gate. Nothing exciting. Just lots of Corrupted and a few Horrors—nothing we can't handle!"

Henry wrote all her words down and sent orders to every unit nearby. They all prepared for the approaching horde, even though a 3rd Tier Gate wasn't a big problem.

"How is the other Realm? What's its name?" He asked, while continuing to type away.

Vicky concentrated on the ground below the monsters and received a mental image of the Realm.

"Desolate with toxic wastes, large amount of radioactive and solar radiation. The Realm is planet-like, but the proximity to its star, and possibly outside interference, made regular life impossible. Its name… Sterquil!"

They stood next to the widening Gate, while Henry transcribed Vicky's every word. He then relayed new orders to every unit and ordered toxic waste management teams for possible cleanup duty.

After Vicky gained every information she could, the two backed away.

Henry took a moment to change into more appropriate clothing and summon his weapon. Unlike Vicky, he wasn't a Transcended just yet, so he needed some extra assurance.

From his feet, a cloud-like layer rose over his body, leaving a midnight black armor with glowing white lines behind. It moved across every inch of his body until nothing stayed uncovered.

He held his black gauntlet to the side, and from its metallic depths a long staff grew. At its end, a long sharp blade formed, bringing Henry's warscythe into reality.

Henry twirled the warscythe once, letting it cut through the air. When its blade touched the grass below their feet, it began rapidly wilting, like it reached the end of its lifetime.

Satisfied with the result, Henry turned towards the widened Gateway.

He watched the monstrous horde, each beast more repulsive than the other. They stood near the opening Gate, ready to attack at any moment.

Vicky stood next to him, still wearing her magical dress resembling the night sky.

She could seem careless to most, but Henry knew her too well. In his eyes, Vicky seemed attentive, ready to kill any monster that wanted to enter their Realm.

Her body language even suggested agitation and worry, so to lighten her mood, Henry leaned in whispering, "So, why haven't you told me about Thea's bullying?"

Vicky's head snapped to the side, her mouth a thin line. She was clearly unamused by the question, which brought further joy to Henry.

"Seriously? Now? This isn't the setting to discuss my PERSONAL fucking issues!"

Henry just chuckled at her flustered, angry expression, then stayed silent for a moment.

"So why didn't you? I would've helped you if asked!" He whispered, causing Vicky to sigh in dejection and regret.

"I know… That's why I didn't tell you…"

Henry glanced at his girlfriend in confusion, worry evident on his helmeted face.

"What's that supposed to mean? You don't want me to help you? Was I too overbearing?"

She shook her head and looked away in embarrassment.

"Yes… No… Maybe… I don't know… I like when you help me, but it also caused a bit of resentment to build up inside me… I want you to help me, but I also want to figure things out on my own… Do you understand?"

Henry chuckled after hearing her words and said, "Not even the slightest. If you didn't want my help, why didn't you ask? I can't read your mind. That's Lilith's power!"

Vicky groaned in annoyance, then glanced at the Gate, which finally widened enough for monsters to step through.

She stared at them for a moment, then turned back towards her boyfriend.

"Okay, let me explain a different way! I want you to help me at times, when I'm struggling, but I don't want your help every time!… The entire point of attending school was to find myself, but it feels like I don't have a personality! Like I can't solve anything on my own!"

Henry dismissed the helmet from his face and looked down at Vicky's small, shaking frame. With his gauntleted hand, he gently touched her shoulder and spoke in a tender, calming tone.

"You can solve everything on your own, but you don't need to. That's why I'm here! To help you!"

A tear ran down on Vicky's face as she continued staring at the ground.

"But you won't always be… Everyone keeps leaving me… My mothers left me… Bran left me… My friends left me… I keep finding new people whom I get along, then eventually they all leave me… You will leave me too… Just like everyone else…"

The more she spoke, the more tears ran down her cheeks. By the end, she was sobbing.

Henry breathed a sigh of relief, finally finding the crux of the problem.

Vicky felt helpless and feared abandonment. Given these issues, Henry recognized his next steps.

He reached down and lifted Vicky's face so their eyes met. While Vicky sniffled, he leaned in close and gave a gentle peck on her lips.

"I will never leave you! No matter what! That's something you can count on!…"

Vicky didn't look convinced, but she continued listening in silence, letting Henry's words calm her turbulent mind.

"I also understand your need for independence, and I think it's a good idea! But please, when you come across something harmful, like bullying, tell me! I won't solve your issues if you don't want to, but I can always listen to your venting and provide helpful advice, if you ask!"

After finishing his sentence, he leaned in, giving another peck on Vicky's lips. She closed her eyes, absorbing the moment, so she would never forget.

As the kiss ended, a sad sigh exited her, and she blushed from shame.

"I'm sorry… This is neither the time nor space to explode like this… I don't know what's going on… My feelings were all over the place these past few days… Am I losing my mind?"

Henry laughed when hearing her words. He had a pretty good guess for Vicky's emotional fluctuation. She was correct, however; a battlefield wasn't the setting for that discussion.

"I think you should share these thoughts about your emotions with someone else… Preferably an Evolved woman!"

Vicky pondered, eyes downcast, while Henry redirected his sight towards the Gateway.

"That's probably enough…" He whispered to himself, and released the time sphere he had been holding.

He placed the time sphere strategically, when Vicky became emotional. Monsters jumping through the Gate were stopped in time instantly. But Henry's manipulation and careful thinking didn't end there.

He also pushed each monster into different points in time, so every single one occupied the same space.

The time sphere's removal ended their separation, bringing everyone back to the present.

Hundreds of monsters appeared at once, shooting a fountain of blood dozens of meters into the sky.

Gore rained down on the nearby soldiers and buildings. Reddish mist, blood-tinged, filled the air near the Gate.

The soldiers stood frozen, watching the horrific image in both fear and awe.