'...Sorry.'
Those words echoed through his mind as Theodore stared at his father's limp body, watching blood from the hole in his chest pooled all around him.
He was in denial for a moment as time seemed to have stopped just for him to think. He was feeling a mixture of both confusion and rejection, unsure what to make of the current situation.
Eventually, his gaze would snap from his father towards Ra, and in almost an instant, a bubbling rage rose inside his chest.
'...'
Theodore immediately rushed towards Ra while multiple magic circles appeared behind him, they gleamed green before dozens of claws emerged from them.
He was beyond angry, his chest burned to the point of it being painful. He didn't make a sound, not a single cry escaped his gritted teeth as he let himself be guided by pure rage.
Ra's expression didn't change one bit when he fully turned to face Theodore, he waved his hand and summoned multiple fire constructs all around him as they all would fly towards their targets the instant they were manifested.
Theodore's Dragon Claws tore through everything thrown his way, much to Ra's surprise, he raised his eyebrows in slight confusion but nonetheless continued to attack, trying to see what would work.
Although, Ra's flaming attacks had only managed to slow him down, and even so Theodore showed no sign of stopping or wavering one bit.
'...It seems that using a human vessel is too limiting.' Ra thought to himself as Theodore cast another spell, this time dark smoke rose from the ground and encased his entire body, and in a matter of seconds, he along with his other magic circles disappeared.
Frowning, Ra began to look around while keeping his guard up, not knowing what sort of spell Theodore's just used. He would soon find out though as the subject of his caution suddenly appeared right behind him, bringing the green dragon claws up from the black smog and all of them struck forward.
However, a god will always be a god, Ra instantly reacted to the ambush and turned around, extending out his hands just in time for a wall of flames to shoot up and brushed all the razors away.
Theodore tooked a step back, almost got hit by the sudden counterattack, however when the wall lowered itself, Ra was encased in an aura of golden divinity. He recalled the dragon claws and attacked the barrier, however all of them would simply bounce off of it.
"You've grown way stronger than I've anticipated." Ra spoke with a crooked head. "I've gotten rid of one of your more annoying followers and your strength isn't reduced at all. I'll retreat for the time being, Apostle, this is your lucky day…"
Theodore didn't get the chance to say anything back at all, he could only watch in silence as the air around Ra bursted upwards, only for the man to disappear the moment the flames had died down and soon the portals around them would disperse as well, leaving little to no trace behind.
He didn't even realize how frustrated he was feeling that his powerful aura burst forward and encased everything around him.
Mixed with his ice, the ground and walls began to freeze up, causing the two conscious people still within the perimeter to panic and they quickly turned towards him.
"Your Majesty! Please calm yourself!" Rhys was too afraid to speak up so Sheridan had to be the one desperately crying out, she slowly moved closer towards Theodore despite her many injuries however she would only be pushed back by the sheer force of the energy.
Rhys grabbed Sheridan by the arm and pulled her back towards him, eyes cautiously fixated at Theodore who seemed to be in a trance as he was now staring at Lawrence's body, it was hard to see his expression due to the dark aura encasing his figure.
"What should we do…?" Sheridan whimpered, looking at her master with a worried expression, she didn't seem to be caring about the fact that if the frost managed to climb onto her, she would be dead in a matter of minutes if not quickly treated.
Rhys was more worried about his 'friend'. "...We need to call someone that can match his strength."
"Her Majesty Asmodeus, we need to get her here." Sheridan turned towards the rubble where the downward stairs were buried, she swiftly grabbed Rhys' hand and pulled him over, struggling slightly due to their injuries.
When they were standing in front of the large pile of debris, they began to look for any way they could break through or enter through some gaps, however after only five minutes of searching, they realized that Theodore's icy aura was starting to creep towards them, frost snaking on the ground as if looking for something to lash on to.
It seemed that all hope was lost for the two of them, their only solution now was to run away while they still could and let Theodore handle his grief by himself.
Sheridan didn't exactly liked that thought, like the other Ragerains, she worshipped only the strong, and her loyalty towards her king wasn't going to be discarded simply out of the fear of death.
"Your Majesty!" She tried screaming again and again, though her attempts her in vain as the aura's strength didn't lessen one bit.
But it seemed that luck was still on their side.
Suddenly, the debris was kicked away by a mysterious force. Sheridan and Rhys moved out of the way just in time before anything managed to hit them, and as they look towards the now-opened area, they saw another demon standing by the stairs.
Sheridan's expression brightened in almost an instant. "Lady Asmodeus!"
"Hm? Oh, Sheridan, what's going on here?" Asmodeus looked around, her eyes jumping all over the place as she turned to inspect her messy surroundings.
It didn’t take long for her to notice Theodore standing in the middle of all the chaos.
"We were under attack!" Sheridan began to hastily explain, wincing slightly due to the growing pain in her wounds. "...And His Majesty's father was—"
Asmodeus didn't wait for her to finish speaking, she could already see Lawrence's corpse on the bloody ground while Theodore blankly stared at him, it was as if something had taken his soul away too.
She slowly moved towards him, ignoring the frost that began to crawl onto her skin, she didn't have much issue moving through the powerful aura as she matched it with her own, allowing her to enter as safely as she could.
Sheridan and Rhys watched in silence as Asmodeus managed to reach Theodore at the center of the storm, but by then the thick dark smog had obstructed their view until they couldn't see anything at all.
Asmodeus pursed her lips and carefully wrapped her arms around Theodore's shoulders, pulling him closer until she could cup the back of his head in her hand.
Due to the sudden movement, Theodore's eyes snapped onto Asmodeus, who was looking down at him with an expression filled with sorrow and pity.
"...I'm sorry, I wasn't here to help him."
"..." Theodore slowly stood up straight, although he didn't remove Asmodeus' hands from him. "I…You did nothing wrong."
His words seemed to be directed at Lawrence rather than Asmodeus though, but Theodore's conscious focus on the real world allowed him to take control of his emotion-ridden aura and it didn't take long until the dark storm subsided, leaving behind only some frost that'd already started to melt.
Asmodeus eventually let go of Theodore and gave him a soft smile. "It's okay to cry, you know?"
Theodore only blinked at her without saying anything, until eventually he would turn towards the palace's entrance, which was left wide open for everyone to see the concluded battle outside.
The egyptian soldiers suddenly were turning into sand before disappearing with a bright light, even while they were still able to move, none of them attacked as if Ra's retreat had caused them to stop functioning altogether. It only took a few minutes until the only thing left outside were traces of a bloody fight and occasional bubbles that rose from the Ragerians movements.
Theodore took a shaky breath before glancing towards Asmodeus. "Can you go check on Merlin and Eugene for me? They're in Deeper Delphi, you know where that is, right?"
"Ah," Asmodeus nodded, eyes slightly widened at how calm Theodore was despite what'd just happaned. "Yes, it's Lucifer's Purgatory, all of us know where that is, don't worry, I'll bring them both here safely."
Without looking back at all, Theodore started walking towards the other Ragerians outside, seeing the wounded and the dead lying all over the battlefield.
While he thought he'd somewhat calmed down, in reality, he wasn't sure what sort of emotions he was feeling at that moment; Anger? Frustration? Sadness? He couldn't tell, his chest felt like it was about to burst and he found it becoming increasingly difficult to breathe as he walked and saw how many of his people had fallen.
However, Theodore did know one thing.
If someone dares to mess with him or his loved ones, then he'll take care of it the only way he could.
Revenge.
.
.
.
Everyone he knew stood quietly behind him as he stared at a large lump on the ground. Merlin, Eugene, Asmodeus, and even Rhys were there dressed in the darkest clothing that they could find at the time. They'd all came to attend the many funerals as soon as their wounds were patched up, Merlin and Eugune only had some scratches and bruises, although Rhys wasn't as lucky and he had to support himself with a crutch.
The Pearl Palace's garden had more than enough space for it to become a resting place for the dead, many fallen Ragerians were buried there, and in honor of their sacrifice, their graves were also nicely labeled with polished gravestones and surrounded by flowers.
Lawrence's grave was the most special, it was located farther away than the rest of them in an isolated area surrounded by tall bushes that encased it in a dome of flora. Theodore'd handpicked the place, wanting somewhere he could spend time alone with himself.
Theodore slowly knelt down until his hands were touching the soil, caressing it with a sense of longing. Even though it hadn't even been a day yet, he already missed his father's presence.
Many thoughts swirled inside his mind, he was angry, furious with the person that's taken him away and also with himself. He blamed himself for Lawrence's death, thinking that maybe he should've done something more to protect him.
"Theo, it's not your fault." Merlin spoke up as if reading his friend's thoughts.
"...How?" Theodore replied, feeling that his voice was struggling to come out. "This wouldn't have happened if I—"
"Theodore." Asmodeus cut him off with a stern tone.
He finally turned to face everyone behind him, he wasn't the most sentimental type, and despite feeling frustrated and sad, he didn't shed a single drop of tear. "Then what's even the point? I…I have all this power, I can take on anyone if I put my mind to it, but I can't even save a single person?"
No one responded to him for a long moment, but then Merlin finally spoke up after walking closer to him. "So what if you have a sh*t ton of power? You aren't some omnipotent god that can do everything with a snap of a finger."
Theodore stared quietly at his best friend for a few seconds, contemplating whether he should reply or not. At that moment, he couldn't think much of anything, his head and chest felt like they'd been stuffed with millions of glass shards, it was painful, and it distracted him from thinking of a logical response.
He decided that he couldn't stay there anymore and quickly walked away, accidentally hitting his shoulder against Merlin as he left the group to look at him, slightly baffled at his reaction.
Theodore stormed back into the palace and made a beeline towards his bedroom, walking past Sheridan who made a move to call after him but seemed to have decided against it after seeing that he was in a rush.
Closing his bedroom doors behind him, Theodore crashed himself onto the futon, hands balled into a tight fist while he took deep breaths in an attempt to calm himself down.
It didn’t work in the slightest, and instead it only made him even angrier, it took Theodore every last bit of his willpower not to snap and destroy everything around him.
Eventually though, he would feel something wet roll down his cheeks, and soon he was quietly sobbing to himself while he buried his face in the pillow.
He missed his father.
He was beyond furious at Ra.
He wanted him dead.
Theodore didn't know how long he'd been lying there, but the next thing he realized was the sudden tiredness washing over his mind, making him feel drowsier by the seconds.
He didn't know what he'd been thinking about at all by the time he closed his eyes.
.
.
.
As his vision returned to him, Theodore looked up to find a familiar face staring down at him.
His hair was just like how it was before; dark raven with a tinge of white along each strand. His eyes shone the same color as Theodore's; a beautiful emerald green, although it was also very different from his, instead of it giving off a cold presence, this man's gaze was warm and gentle, a total opposite of one another.
Theodore instantly bolted up from whatever he was lying on and stared at the person in front of him in pure disbelief. "Dad!?"
"Ah! You're awake!" Lawrence exclaimed with a bright smile, though a moment later it would turn somber as he looked at his son. "I…I'm sorry that I was a burden to you, I even got myself killed."
"No no!" Theodore grabbed Lawrence's arms, shaking his head frantically. "You didn't do anything! It was my fault…I should have taken care of you better…I—"
Suddenly, Theodore was pulled into a bear hug, Lawrence's strength far exceeded what was once his in the world of the living, although Theo didn't care at all and returned the embrace while listening to his father's voice.
"You didn't do anything wrong either, then. There's no need for you to apologize." Lawrence slowly broke away from the hug, smiling down at his son. "Think of it as me taking a long nap, it's tiring living at this age and time after all, don't think too much of my death."
Theodore swallowed an invisible lump down his throat. "...That's easier said than done."
"Oh what do you mean?" Lawrence let out a thunderous laugh. "You'll get over it in a few days, you're that type of person after all."
Theodore didn't know whether to take that as a compliment or an insult, but either way he felt slightly better at the fact that he'd gotten to talk with his father again even after his death.
But that just raised several dozens more questions.
"Where is this place? Am I dreaming?" Theodore inspected the area around them, seeing that it was night time and they seemed to be in some sort of garden, tall hedge walls surrounded them on all sides. They were specifically located in an open circular area of the 'garden' where there was a marble-white table and chairs, both having intricate designs on them.
"Hm, I actually don't know either, the next thing I knew was that I woke up here." Lawrence scratched the back of his head.
Though it wouldn't take very long for Theodore's question to be answered.
He was looking at the empty table when suddenly a woman was now sitting on one of the chairs when he'd blinked. Theodore was taken aback by the woman's abrupt appearance and took a step back on reflex.
"Who—Where did you come from?"
The woman was extremely gorgeous despite her seemingly being in her mid thirties. Her dark curly locks flowed to the middle of her thighs and her golden eyes shone a fierce beauty, after taking a closer look, Theodore noticed that her pupils were slit like a reptile's. Her black and red flower-designed dress only left her ankles and sanguine high heels visible as she sat cross-legged on her seat.
She would turn towards the two of them after a wave of her hand, manifesting a fancy sweet stand and a couple of tea cups onto the table. A gentle smile was visible on her rosy lips as she spoke in a calm tone.
"I usually don't like being rude to my guests, but it's sad for me to see that you couldn't recognize what sort of place you're in."
Theodore felt slightly less guarded around the woman now that he knew that she wasn't a threat, her voice and her kind posture spoke enough for themselves. He straightened his back and began to look around once again, this time he noticed something familiar in the atmosphere.
"Is this…a god's domain?"
The woman's smile grew wider as she clapped her hands. "Yes! Correct! I know you're a sharp one, Theo!"
He didn't know how to feel about her suddenly using his nickname the first time they met, although since she seemed friendly, he would let it pass for the time being. "So…Mind telling us what's going on?"
Lawrence on the other hand had his eyes glued to the woman, his mouth slightly parted as if he was shocked to see the person in front of him.
Theodore frowned at his father before snapping his fingers in front of his face, pulling the man out of his trance. "Are you okay? Why are you looking at her like that?"
"Ah, it's just…" Lawrence's gaze returned to the woman and she simply smiled at him while slightly tilting her head.
"Hm? I thought I perfectly sealed your memories but I guess it's loosened now."
Theodore instantly became concerned over the brunette's words. "What? Did you meet my father before?"
"Of course~" The woman chuckled with the back of her hand covering her mouth.
"How?" Theodore was starting to feel impatient, he didn't know what this presumably 'goddess' had done to Lawrence and he didn't like the fact that she was keeping something from them.
However, it seemed like the goddess had read his mind, since she would then spill out the answers that he was curious about.
"Well, because I'm your mother."