The next day…
"BRING THE SECOND SUN!!!"
Then, the smoke engulfing the city of Romulus ignited. Multiple explosions rung throughout the entire vicinity, silencing the screams of the poor souls that were consumed in its flames. The demons that came from the rift marched forward like an invading army. A massive dark aura erupted from the rift, drowning the city in darkness. Missio blinked.
He awoke in the ruins of Romulus. His surroundings burned with intense flames, boiling the blood of dead bodies. He glanced around – confused. He lowered his head, looking at his body. He was in the body of a child. In that exact moment, He felt a warmth on his hand. He raised his head, gazing to his right. In his vision, a woman held his hand – a woman he knew very well. It was his own mother.
He didn't react to it in shock or rather he didn't know he could. He heard an explosion in the distance that rung his ears. He turned his head forward, looking towards the charred sky. In the far distance, hovering above the ruined city were two men with void-like wings that were twice the size of their body.
He had thick but combed blonde hair that were paired with his bright golden eyes. He wore a black three-piece suit with red accents with mismatched buttons, an open collar with a red-striped black tie coiled around it, a white over coat hanging over his shoulders that disrupted the entire outfit. It was the man who had killed the expedition the previous year – The Prince.
He turned his head slowly. He looked over at Missio and his mother. A chilling smile formed on the prince's face as he flapped his wings. Suddenly, Missio was pulled away by his mother. Her lips moved in a frantic manner. They continued running through the ruins as the prince followed them. Eventually, they hit a dead end. Missio and his mother spun around. The prince neared them, speaking something that Missio couldn't hear.
He drew a red orb from nothingness and threw it towards them. Missio's mother shielded her child, absorbing the red orb. The prince chuckled, covering his mouth with his fingers. His lips parted but no sound came from his mouth. He turned around and left the duo in the ruins. In that moment, Missio's lips couldn't help but curl upward. A sorrowful smile formed on his face as he realized…
'This just a dream…'
The sky fractured into a million fragments. Colors bled into something unknown as reality began glitching. The next second, Missio awoke in an endless plain. He blinked, peering towards the never-ending horizon.
'The Dreamworld… Thank Pangea that wasn't real…'
Missio clutched his chest, chuckling. Eventually, he drew a deep breath and closed his eyes. When he opened them, he was back in the RV. He straightened as light seeped through the windows of the vehicle. He glanced to his right – Dante was still asleep. He coughed and shook his brother awake.
Dante groaned. "What…?"
"I woke up. That's what. Now, get up." Missio stepped off the couch.
As he entered the bathroom, Dante jolted up. The supreme commander stood and twisted his body.
"He woke me up… that's new." Dante commented, stretching his limbs
After Missio exited, Dante went in next. Missio slid on his slippers. Stepping outside in his pajamas, he took in the fresh morning air. Dante stepped outside as well. He stood beside his brother, watching the sunrise. As they watched it, Dante asked Missio a question.
"Did anything happen?"
Missio didn't respond immediately. The dream flashed across his mind once more. He heaved a sigh and answered his brother's question.
"I had that nightmare again…"
"…Are you feeling okay? Any headaches?" Dante asked – worried.
"…I'm fine." Missio replied.
The King stared at Missio for a moment. Then, he looked towards the sunrise again. After watching the sun rise above the horizon, the brothers went back inside and put on some clothes. Missio wore a black shirt with a black overcoat over it, black pants and boots of the same color. Dante wore his classic striped light gray sweater, black jacket, light cream pants with his branded sneakers. The brothers exited the RV. Dante activated his new meta glasses.
In a moment's notice, The RV locked itself and shut down. Dante glanced at his little brother.
"Let's go and have breakfast."
Missio nodded. "I'm down."
They headed off. Exiting the RV parking, they strolled around the streets of Vatican City for a while. Eventually, they found an open restaurant. They sat down, grunting. After a few moments, a female waiter brought the menus.
"Here is the menu, gentlemen."
She placed down two cups, pouring cold water into them.
"I hope you have a great time at our restaurant." She smiled.
"We'll let you know." Dante replied.
She then left. Dante grabbed the glass and poured the cold water down his throat. The cold water spilled down his dry throat, giving him heavenly bliss.
"Oh… yes, that's the stuff." Dante burped, placing the cup down.
Missio also drank the water. He opened the folder, scanning the food items. Dante did the same. After a few minutes, the waiter returned with a notepad.
"May I take your order?"
"Uh… yes, give me the breakfast special and a cup of tea." Dante stated.
"I'd like the breakfast special as well. Just give me a cup of soda instead." Missio gave his order.
"Noted." She wrote down their order and tapped her pen against the notepad. "We'll have it ready in ten minutes."
She spun around, heading towards the kitchen. Dante sighed, watching his brother. He noticed that Missio seemed to be more relaxed than usual. After a nightmare, he would be on highly agitated. Yet, right now, He seemed to be at peace. Missio stared at the morning haze for a while. He turned his head and met his brother's gaze.
"What?" He blurted.
"Nothing…" Dante leaned forward. "But are you seriously okay? Back at the RV, you seemed…"
"Yeah, I am…" Missio leaned back. "I dunno why but… I didn't react impulsively to that nightmare."
Dante paused, looking at his brother through his glasses. A smile couldn't help but form on his face.
"Your mental training in Venice really paid off." He commented.
"Well… that could be it."
"It's your own hard work that led you to this…" Dante stated. "Now, you won't be plagued by those nightmares again."
Hearing Dante's words, Missio had a realization – the memories of that day could never haunt him again. His shoulders relaxed almost instinctively as his heart trembled at the thought. He clutched his chest, drawing a long breath.
"Yes… Thank you…" Missio's voice cracked.
Dante didn't speak – he didn't need to. He watched Missio in silence as his brother rejoiced the results of his labor. He felt proud of him – truly. He heaved a sigh of relief. He pressed his palm against his chest, feeling his throbbing heart. He inhaled deeply, letting out a sigh of relief.
'He's ready to ascend…'