Moving Along Remastered

Chapter 37.5: Together

Moving Along Chapter 37.5: Together

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Erick was laying in his cell bed staring up at the ceiling lost in a whirlwind of revelations. For hours he thought about what Amelia's parents had told him and still couldn't get his head around it. Zuboi absorbing all of the souls of the world? How was that even possible? Something to that scale was only a theory at best and absolute nightmare at worst. The real kicker? He knew Zuboi could do it. Would do it. But why? Sure, he'd be the most powerful being in the world, but he'd also be the only one too. Not much to rule when all your enslaved subjects were absorbed. What did he gain out of that?

He didn't get to linger on that thought, however, when his scaly ears perked against his horns. Shifting his arms, which he'd been using as a head rest, he glanced over at the entrance to his joint cell to see an Iguana and crocodile with about the same build as him march in with Sirine in tow. Though he tried to remain expressionless, he could feel himself giving her the disapproving brother eyes. Spending time in a cell with nothing to do gave you plenty of time to think.

While he still didn't agree with her about turning on the whole world for one dragon, he understood why she'd done it. Bearing the weight of what had happened to Erick all those years ago couldn't have been easy. Especially when you carry that secret so close to your chest. 'I'm the last family she has,' he thought with a low sigh. After their father had passed away, it'd just been Erick and Sirine. And when he really thought about it, he'd do anything to protect her too. 'But where do you draw the line?' Obviously there wasn't a single one that Sirine wouldn't cross. Otherwise putting your faith in the clutches of the king of lizards would've given her pause. Did she know about Zuboi's grand plan though? What he was trying to do? Maybe not..

"Dispose of the adult leopards," Sirine's cool voice cut through Erick's thoughts. "Our lord no longer has any use for them." There wasn't any sign of reservation when she said this. It sounded as easy as marking something off of your to do list. It made Erick clench his maw in rising anger. There was nothing he could do as Mr. and Mrs. Specks were dragged out of their cell. They gave their daughter a reassuring look that didn't look convincing in the slightest.

Amelia cried out in anger, "no! What are you going to do to them??!" She pounded her fists against the transparent prison. "Leave them alone!! They haven't done anything wrong!!" Her voice began to shake as it rose several pitches. Erick jumped to his feet to rush to her on instinct, only for his clawed hands to press against the clear wall of his own cell. She was just on the other side, yet still so far out of his reach. Though she looked enraged, he could see the fear in her eyes at the helplessness of the situation. His claws scraped against the unyielding prison without leaving so much as a scratch. 'Dammit, I thought I had more time.'

Amelia's mom, who he learned was named Sasha, broke first, "Amy, it's going to be ok!!" She said it in a strained voice that told everyone in the room the opposite. "Don't forget that you're father and I love you very much! We always will, no matter how out of reach we seem!!" Desperation clung to the goodbye she said to her child. Amelia choked back a sob with panic beginning to flood her eyes. Her fur rose straight up while she attempted to process what was happening. Her parents struggled against their captors as they were dragged away from her.

"I-I love you too m-mom," she said in a wavering tone that could be shattered in an instant. "You too daddy, even though I don't say it too much." Her increasingly wide eyes drifted to her father's who had been fighting to keep it together. That failed when he looked upon his little girl as if the sudden knowledge this'd be the last time he saw her hit him.

"Oh sweetheart," Jared's eyes went red with tears without looking away from her. "You are the greatest gift we've ever been given. You and your brother. I'm so sorry that we couldn't protect the both of you." He reached out and grasped his wife's paw tight then gave her the best smile he could through his mourning. "You'll do right by this world better than we ever could."