When I Met Myself

The Surprise

My shock at seeing my mother was quickly dispelled by rage at her for this harsh (gross understatement) treatment at her hands. 

"By the sun, Mother, what in the name of Aiofeus are you doing?!" I growled at her.

Her three eyes smoldered at me, as she coldly glared at me, and said, "The question, filius, is what you are doing. I left you to your own devices, only to find that you took the stupid step of abducting two of our enemies, just when we were about to attain peace. Imagine my shock when I got to know that you actually killed two of them! I hope you realise that you have set the entire kingdom on the warpath, and now, because of you, and you only, countless lives will be lost in the struggle that is to follow."

I glared back at her, defiant and unrepenting. "I did what was necessary! If we don't cut the weed that is the Machite kingdom at its root, it will grow and slowly strangle all of Magna Galaxia to death! I was forced to make the choice between a lot of lives and ALL THE LIVES IN OUR GALAXY, and guess what I chose?"

"The choice you made was between the assumed and the real! You can't possibly know how things will pan out. You're a Warrior, not a Ruler." she said, looking at me with disdain.

I was about to reply, when I realised something. "What did you just say?"

"The choice you made was between the assumed and the real."

"No, no, after that."

She looked at me, bemused, and said, "You can't possibly know how things will pan out."

"AFTER THAT!" I roared.

Suddenly, she looked a little frightened, as she stammered, "You're a W-Warrior, not a r-ruler."

I stalked up to her; my frame easily towering over hers, and quietly, menacingly whispered, "You think a Warrior is inferior to a Ruler?"

"No, of course not! I'm just saying they have separate talents!"

"That's not what it sounded like when you said it, Mother." I spat the last word out, which was laced with disgust and anger.

"Filius, calm down, and take a deep breath. You're not yourself right now." She raised an arm in a gesture of peace, attempting to placate me. This, however, just caused me to get angrier, as I said, "DON'T YOU DARE TELL ME WHAT-"

Suddenly, the door flew open once more. I could see the outline of a man against the dazzling white sky. As he walked forward, I experienced the second shock of the day. It was the Emperor!

"Amadira, may I have a word with Melsur, alone?" he asked cheerfully, as though he was commenting on how sunny a day it was.

I got on one knee, and bowed, still shocked.

"Indeed, Emperor Anax."

Saying so, my mom teleported herself out of the room.

The Emperor looked at me, and smiled once more. His smile was truly genuine and beautiful- anyone could see that. His eyes lit up, as they crinkled at the edges. It seemed to glow, and the room seemed to get brighter because of it.

"Melsur, my dear boy. We have a lot of talking to do."

_____________________________________________________

"Okay, okay, slow down. You're telling me that this bloke Garris actually used to throw a bottle of apple cider that would hit your head every time and spill most of your 'apple cider' until you learned how to catch it AND uncap it in the same second? I don't believe you!" Emperor Anax said, tears of laughter streaming from his eyes.

I grinned, and nodeed.

"And then, this one time, we'd gone on a Time Mission, and weren't able to find Morfus, so we went without him. He was so angry that he swore it would never happen again. A few months later, when he had again disappeared, we left without him, and heard some yelping from the back. A LOT of yelping. When we stopped the ship in space, the yelping turned to angry shouting, and we realised what had happened- Morfus had tied himself up to the ship by one leg with Gontonum." 

Emperor Anax was now clutching his sides, unable to suppress the laughter.

"Stop, I'm gonna die of laughter."

I smiled, unable to believe that the Emperor of the Galaxy was such a cool guy. Suddenly, I saw Emperor Anax's face turn grave.

"Now, let's talk about slightly more serious matters."

"Absolutely, Emperor. I suggest you begin with explaining to me why I was abducted like an ordinary criminal by my own mother for killing scum that we would have destroyed in war anyway."

"Take a seat, my child. What you'll hear next may come as a shock to you."

I sat down, waiting for his answer.

Little did I know then, that answer was to change the course of my life, forever....