(anwhile, Within The Ti Stilled World, Amanda's POV)
*Childish Cackle*
*Innocent running*
Laughter echoed through the Skyshard City Bazaar as Caleb sprinted ahead with a wooden glider clutched tightly in his hands, while Mairon chased after him with a stuffed chanical beast that roared whenever its tail was pressed.
Amanda followed behind them with an indulgent smile that softened the stern composure she usually carried, as for once she allowed herself to simply be their mother instead of the Cult leader's wife.
For now, they all remained completely unaware of what had transpired beyond this sealed dinsion, as they enjoyed their shopping trip with gentle satisfaction.
"I really like these sets of silk robes for Leo.... What do you think, Dumpy?"
Amanda asked, as she ran her fingers along the stitching slowly, while imaging how handso Leo would look putting them on.
"As long as it's black, Lord Father will wear it..."
Dumpy replied nonchalantly, as his words caused Caleb to pause for
once.
"Do you think Papa will like this because it's black?" Caleb asked, as he tugged at Amanda's sleeve with wide eyes.
"He'll pretend he doesn't," Amanda replied, as she adjusted the folded robe in her arms while warmth filled her voice.
"But he will."
She said, as listening to their idle exchange, it was Dumpy who eventually grew impatient first.
"Now that the gift has been bought, we should depart imdiately," Dumpy demanded, as his webbed fingers drumd against the side of the shopping bag while his golden eyes remained sharp despite the peaceful surroundings.
"Dumpy," Amanda replied lightly, as she raised an eyebrow at him. "You do know that although it's been an hour and a half in here, only a minute has passed outside, yes?"
"While that is true," Dumpy responded without hesitation, "It required two and a half hours to travel from Ixtal to this dinsion, as it will require another two and a half hours to return."
"Lord Father will be kept waiting for five hours in total..... which for personally is unacceptable."
He said, as his calculation ended the debate.
Within minutes, the children were ushered back aboard the craft as the landing gear was retracted, and the craft was prepared for departure.
*THRUMM*
The engines humd steadily as it began its return toward Ixtal, unaware that it was flying toward absence instead of ho.
For the first hour and a half of the journey, the cabin was filled with life as Caleb tested the glider's chanisms while Mairon insisted Dumpy play the villain in an elaborate rescue scenario.
The frog endured repeated dramatic defeats with visible annoyance, as Amanda watched with tired amusent while the sound of her children's laughter filled the narrow corridors.
Eventually, Amanda enforced order.
"Alright kids, it's ti for your nap," she said firmly, as she guided the boys toward their quarters despite protests that gradually softened into drowsy compliance.
"I never understood why humans require so much sleep," Dumpy remarked from the doorway, as he folded his arms with mild disdain. "Frogs can remain awake for days without issue."
Amanda shot him a look heavy with envy before shaking her head. "Lucky you."
Silence gradually settled over the craft as the children drifted off, their breathing evening into soft rhythm, as Amanda eventually retreated to the viewing deck, where stars stretched endlessly before her as another quiet hour slipped by unnoticed.
*Sirens Blaring*
*Red Lights Flickering*
Suddenly, it was the sound of alarms that shattered the calm, as both Dumpy and Amanda rushed towards the captain's cabin instantly to see what went wrong.
"What's wrong, Captain? Are we being pursued?" Dumpy demanded as he entered the command deck, his tone sharp and controlled.
The captain shook his head slowly, confusion lining his face.
"No enemy signatures," he reported, as his hands hovered uncertainly over the console. "However, we are experiencing critical navigational discrepancies."
"According to our trajectory, Planet Ixtal should be directly ahead... yet our systems detect no planetary mass."
"Only a dense asteroid field."
The words lingered in the air as the craft advanced cautiously
forward.
Fragnted rock began to fill the forward viewport, as massive slabs of crust rotated slowly in the vacuum where a world should have
stood.
Dumpy's eyes narrowed slightly, as comprehension settled into him before it reached anyone else.
"That is not an asteroid field," Dumpy said coldly, as his gaze remained fixed on the drifting debris. "Your systems have not failed."
"Ixtal has."
The cabin fell into absolute silence.
Amanda stared at the shattered remains of what had once been her
ho as comprehension refused to settle inside her mind.
For a while, she tried to reject Dumpy's theory, as she hoped that it was indeed a system's failure that caused this issue.
However, when she finally saw a floating house with blood splattered on its door outside the viewport, there was no denying the reality
anymore.
"No..." she whispered faintly, as her vision blurred while the scale of the destruction began to press inward from all sides.
The red warning lights reflected off fragnts of broken continents outside, as the sight beca too large for her thoughts to contain.
*Wobble*
Her knees buckled suddenly as gravity felt unreliable beneath her, as Dumpy moved quickly to catch her before she struck the floor.
"Hold yourself, Lady Mother," Dumpy instructed, as his voice remained steady though his eyes had turned far colder than before.
"This is not a ti for weakness."
He admonished.
"It is unlikely Lord Father has been vanquished," he continued evenly,
as strategy already began replacing sentint within him. "However, if
he has, we must prepare accordingly."
"There are children aboard.... And weakness is not a luxury we can
afford."
He said, however, Amanda barely heard him, as her thoughts spiralled
elsewhere.
"Leo..." she murmured faintly, as her fingers trembled against Dumpy's sleeve while her gaze remained locked on the drifting ruins beyond
the glass.
"Leo was right..."
"Ixtal really was under imminent danger...."
"What have I done? Oh Lord, what have I done?"
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