Dimensional Travels: World at War-Chapter 91: Follow your heart

Mithrael walked into the room after sending the guards away. He smelled Heith before he saw the man. Heith was sitting in the corner, mumbling to himself as he looked up at his father.

Before Mithrael could speak, Heith addressed him. "You are wrong, father. Mortals exist to serve us and worship us. I have spent more time in this world than you. I know what I am talking about."

Mithrael sneered at his son in response.

"Foolish child, when will you cease listening to your own lies? I gave you four chances to walk the path for which I set out for you. You caused too much trouble for this Empire, yet still you claim you have done no wrong?"

Heith chuckled in response as his bloodshot eyes met with Mithrael’s calm gaze. "Time will prove you wrong, father. I have seen what freedom does for mortals. They rape and pillage. They are vile, desperate creatures. While it is true that we are to guide them, they are meant to be pawns for us."

Mithrael sighed as he looked up. His eyes met Trephania’s through the boundaries. "I tried." He said simply before slashing his hand. Reality broke as time was used as a weapon. Heith collapsed to the ground as his body began to crumple. "No! Father please! Father!" His legs crumpled to dust, and he tried to grab Mithrael’s legs.

Realizing his father had no remorse and was not turning around, Heith began screaming at Mithrael. "I curse you!" The young demigod shouted as the dust reached his abdomen. "I hope your empire fails, and the mortals kill you!" As his chest caved in, the demigod glared angrily at his father. His body finally crumbled to nothingness, and Mithrael walked out of the room.

"Tell the heroes they are free to do as they wish today." Mithrael said to one of the guards. "Keep watch over them from a distance and ensure every need of theirs is met. No one is to bother me unless there are dire circumstances. I will be at rest in my quarters."

Trephania watched Heith’s body crumble. She held onto Dreha as the Phoenix stroked her hair. Her sobs echoed against his chest as mana pulsed around them. The Phoenix said nothing, merely stroking his grand-daughter’s hair as he gazed at the passing of Heith’s soul.

"Was there nothing that could be done?" She wailed, her voice hoarse as her tears soaked Dreha’s shirt. Dreha paid the shirt no mind as he kissed her head.

"I wish I could say there was."

Eric sat with Mia as they both stood around Liara’s crib. "It’s time."

She nodded, trying to wipe away her tears. She checked the diaper bag and swept around the room for extra toys. In the corner, she saw one of Liara’s favorite toys: a small circle that had soft buttons the baby could suck on.

Mia collapsed, her hands failing to reach for the toy. "I can’t do it Eric." She whispered. Her eyes watered as tears began free falling. She sat on her knees, rooted in the spot.

"It feels like yesterday that we welcomed her into this world, and now we have to send her away from the front lines..." Her quiet sobs filled the room as she grabbed onto Eric, her face pressed against his leg.

"I.."

Eric placed his hand on Mia’s chin, causing his wife to look up at him. "We knew coming into this that it would never be easy." He whispered quietly.

"Each mission, every gunshot, and all the wounds are for our daughter’s future."

He faltered, his own voice breaking.

"We must send her away, for now. That way, when we come back to her, we can tell her about the world we built for her.

"With our own hands."

Jessica entered the room. She saw Mia on the ground and kneeled to hug the woman. She pressed her forehead against Mia’s.

"We will win. That way she can come back to a safer place."

Mia sighed, her body shaking as she kissed Jessica’s head. "I know." She took a few deep breaths and wiped her tears away. She walked over to the crib, with Eric and Jessica close behind. They each looked down at Liara, saying their goodbyes mentally.

"It’s time."

Eric and Jessica nodded.

Samara met the family at the front of the house. Liara began screaming as she was jostled, her eyes opening as she looked around in confusion. Eric stroked the baby’s ears as Jessica smiled. "Goodbye for now, sis. I love you more than the world." She said, kissing the baby’s head before jogging over to Liam. The couple would be joining the rest of the HUMINT Section near Phase Line November.

Eric and Mia said their last goodbyes as Samara jostled the still screaming infant. Samara smiled at the baby, cooing.

"You just had to hand me a screaming baby." She said gently, chuckling as she kissed Liara’s head.

The three of them laughed. With one last hug, Samara joined John in the back of an LMTV, and Eric watched as the convoy began to drive away. He sighed as he held Mia close.

"It will be okay, my love."

Mia pressed her face against Eric’s chest, her tears drying on his shirt. "I know. We have to make it okay. Let’s go build a safe world for our daughters."

Hood Hill was a flurry of activity. As Eric walked into the Battalion HQ, he saw tanks beginning to move out, and the last 4 apaches flew overhead.

He shook his head as he sat down at his desk, Mia joining him. "Why doesn’t this Mithrael guy just leave us alone?" Eric grumbled as he looked at the map. "He has his empire."

Mia sighed as she helped Eric pack up maps. "We have been trying to figure out the answer to that for five hundred years..."

The room rumbled, and Eric grabbed Mia. "Another fracture?" He groaned, but then he sensed a massive amount of mana coalescing in front of him. He grabbed his weapon, pointing it near the front of the room. "No. Something is coming." He growled. His eyes narrow as he watched the form of a woman take place.

"Eh?"

He watched as the Goddess that Dreha had introduced him to, Trephania, crossed over the boundary. She had been following Eric and Mia since they had handed off Liara. The Goddess sighed as she looked at the couple.

"It is because he thinks mortals cannot guide themselves. He truly believes that his overtaking of the world is better for you."

Eric and Mia sat, stunned as they just watched a Goddess phase into reality. "Can you even do that?" Eric asked, noticing she isn’t a projection anymore. "Usually when Dreha appears, he seems to be like a screen. But you? You’re real."

The goddess smiled as she stretched. "I am no longer a goddess. I have thrown away my divinity. That bastard has betrayed our vows and now he has killed our son. Furthermore...

He is not the God I loved."

The world shook as she said that. A voice echoed throughout the atmosphere as if thunder rocked the entire plane of existence:

"TREPHANIA!!!"

The former Goddess smirked as she leaned back. "Oh, he’s not happy."

Eric and Mia shared a look as the room was silent for a moment. They blinked, and Eric shook his head. For his own sanity, he woulf ignore what happened. He sat down at his desk, bringing out a notepad and pen as he motioned for Trephania to join him.

"So, you were saying he believes mortals can’t rule themselves?"

Trephania nodded. "Yes. Around half a million years ago, we were first wed. I gave birth to my first son. We decided to come to a world called ’Higrad.’ It was a world much like your own. Vast levels of technology, and the power to traverse the stars. But there was a problem. The mortals were killing each other. Eventually... they used a massive planetary level weapon. We lost all of our power because the faith we had been building up ceased to exist."

Eric furrowed his brow, jotting notes.

"What do you mean by losing power because of faith?"

Trephania laughed.

"I forget you otherworlders come from a world of no mana. You see, us God’s rely on the faith of Mortals to grow in power. The more souls that pray to us, the more powerful we are. With enough power, we can create new cosmos. Some of the most powerful God’s have created entire universes."

Eric sat back in shock, his eyes widened as he looked at the woman in front of him. "Then why hasn’t Mithrael just smited us?"

She shook her head. "We are prohibited from interfering directly with the mortal plane. There are beings above even us. They rest among the highest planes of existence. They are called overseers. If a God or Goddess interferes with mortal life, the overseer will erase the existence of that entity."