"Welcome back, Your Majesty."
A cold, stern female voice resounded in the underground subspace, as the thump caused by her right fist colliding with her left chest caused an aftereffect. An act that meant loyalty with heart, speech, and deed.
A young woman came into the professor's view, standing near the high-security gate.
The woman appeared to be in her early thirties. Black hair and black eyes, as characteristic of the majority of the country's population.Her short hair was slicked back neatly, with a few stray hairs falling on her forehead, completely opposite to her image on the battlefield.
Her skin was fair but rough, her eyes cold and sharp, with a communicator attached to her left ear, its extended microphone reaching her cherry-red, chapped lips. A dark blue, translucent screen veiled her left eye, likely a multipurpose appraisal lens.
Her build was strong; although it didn't look manly, her muscular build was clearly visible under her skin-tight, black battle suit.
Her neck-long battle suit was reinforced with additional armor at the torso, hips, limbs, and knuckles, while allowing free movement at the joints, stomach, and waist. Her adaptable battle boots were also reinforced with armor at the soles.
A laser sword and a cold metal dagger hung from her waist. She was dressed as if she were ready to deploy for the battlefield at a moment's notice.
The cape on her right resembled the veil of a saree, with the left end tucked on her waist, boldly declaring her position as the Chief Military Commander of the Evolvan Unit, General Eka Chandravanshi.
Her strength is only second to the monarch. Quite young for the immense amount of power and responsibility she carried.
"Is everything ready?" the King said in a commanding tone, almost sounding like a statement with no place for a negative reply.
"Yes, Your Majesty, we can proceed without further delays." The answer came in a polite but stern tone, the one that refused to bow down even to the country's monarch.
"Uhm, didn't you say all the Elites will be in the meeting?" The professor looked around and asked in perplexity.
King Manik half-turned towards the professor, his smooth hair flowing in the movement, his eyelids half-closed almost mockingly, a smile playing on his lips that looked polite and disdainful altogether.
"Hmm, so?"
The professor shuddered, and although he was sitting in a wheelchair, he found his knees going weak.
"So..." he gulped nervously, though his face revealed nothing. "Where is the Evolvan's Welfare Minister?"
The King's eyes slowly snapped open, an unreadable irritation present in his eyes.
"Look behind you, Professor," he said politely as he gestured behind the professor.
The professor turned his head instinctively. A middle-aged man wearing horn-rimmed glasses and a grey business suit came into his view. He had a humble and polite, but dignified and authoritative expression on his face.
Noticing Professor Lee look his way with a dumbfounded look, he gave a light smile and said, "My apologies, I hope you could pardon my delays for pleasantries as we had more pressing matters at hand previously."
He gave an elegant bow and continued, "I am Latif al-Lashkar, from the Ministry of Evolvan's Welfare and Rifts Management."
The King gave a hearty laugh, which sounded a bit genuine this time. "As cold as ever, I see." On which the minister just stood still and pushed his glasses up, like he didn't hear the comment to begin with. The statement baffled the professor, however he decided to ignore those ambiguous words of the Orb ruler.
The King turned towards the professor and declared, "So, as you can see, this is our Evolvan's Welfare and Rifts Management Minister. So, should we start the meeting now?" His eyes half-closed again, the same mocking tone returning.
"Ya, sure," the professor replied, smiling professionally.
"Please come this way," the young commander said sternly as if declaring a military decree and not showing the way. As they disappeared into the giant door, the professor's eyes held a light, a light of maybe a little hope, or maybe it was something else.
....
Swish! Beep!
The door locked behind as Jiya entered Luv's apartment, or so to say, his late sister Mayra's apartment. The motion-sensitive lights turned on, illuminating the solemn apartment.
Jiya entered the familiar living room, her eyes restless as if trying to find something or rather someone. But she knew there would be no one.
No one to run towards her, pick her up and spin around, no one to embrace her and kiss her, no one to remember her birthday. No one, no more. The apartment looked familiar and unfamiliar at the same time.
Suddenly, Jiya found herself floating above the ground, and the next second, her vision was spinning, and before she could process anything, her feet touched the ground again.
Jiya was disoriented from the sudden spin, but before she could tumble and fall to the ground, Luv spun on his heel as he abruptly came in front of Jiya and caught her in his arms, grinning ear to ear.
Jiya's head cleared a bit seeing that grin as she understood whose mischief it was.
"You..." Jiya hissed as she pushed herself out of his embrace, but almost tumbled. Before she could fall, he held her in an embrace again, patting her head.
"Don't think you are alone," Luv spoke, as if he could read Jiya's mind.
And in that moment, it suddenly struck Jiya: Luv wasn't the type to do any such mischief to begin with; he was doing that to make up for his younger twin's absence.
Now her memories of the past became clearer, and she remembered how the gentle and caring Luv was always there behind the shadows of the bright and playful Mayra.
How he steadied her after she was dizzy from Mayra's spinning hugs. How he wished her birthdays even when he was on the frontlines, even after Mayra's death? How he never overstepped, but held her to comfort in Mayra's absence just like now.
If Mayra was the bright afternoon summer sun turning up the heat, melting every sad ice, Luv is the warm winter morning sun, cozy even in the cold of disappointment.
Jiya stood there with a dumbfounded expression for a few moments before Luv called her.
"Here, catch!"
Jiya fumbled her hands in the air only to miss the object.
Luv chuckled, "As slow as ever, I see."
Jiya grumbled something under her breath, which wasn't quite audible, but it was clear she was annoyed. But, she still bent down to pick up the object.
Jiya's eyes widened in recognition as she picked up the object.
"T-this..." Jiya stammered.
Luv walked up to her and stood smiling before talking again. "Like it?"
"O-of... of course," she whispers in an emotional voice.
And why wouldn't she be emotional? After all, it was the one and only surviving memento by her love, which she thought was destroyed alongside other gifts and mementoes either by her dad or during the field work.
A black shiny rectangular screen embedded in a black belt. A sliver of golden glaze on the screen.
Her first ever communicator, gifted by Mayra, was later thrown away by Jiya's dad after the engagement was broken off between Luv and Jiya.
Jiya looked up to face Luv, her eyes filled with gratitude and nostalgia.
"Thank you," she said, her voice almost a whisper.
"Now now, don't make that face and cry again," Luv teases her.
"I'm not crying," Jiya said, a bit embarrassed.
"Ya, you aren't. Just rest here for a bit while I call the bank."
"Why?"
"Well, don't you need liquefied money for making payments and stuff?"
"But why would they do that through a call? Don't the civilians need to go to the center and sign many forms to make it happen?" Jiya asked, fidgeting with the communicator.
"With other civilians, yes, but not with the sole heiress of Sir Group."
"But..." Jiya trailed off, not having the courage to continue. How could she have had the courage to tell that her parents kicked her out themselves? How could she say that with her own mouth, that too to one of the country's top hunters?
She couldn't, and he didn't ask.
Luv noticed the look in Jiya's eyes. Smart as ever, he picked up the possibilities of what had happened and why Jiya was silent.
He knew her well enough to have guessed the reality, but he knew her more than that to never let Jiya catch on that he knew.
"And well, they can't deny the Suryavanshi family as well, now can they?" He said smugly to Jiya, changing the subject.
"Now sit here and have something while I make the call," Luv said as he disappeared inside the house.
Jiya was sitting on the couch alone in the living room, looking around, when something caught her eye. Something she knew too well, but didn't know at the same time.
[The Hand-Bearing Lotus]
A legendary weapon that looked like a lotus held by a hand was passed on to the head of the family as an heirloom in the Suryavanshi side. However, it was never found out what it was used for.
The legends had it that it was made after The Assembly Line Massacre and used during the invasion by The First General. However, it could never be activated again; in fact, it couldn't even be found out who was the original holder of the weapon.
It was during the Era of Re-creation that it fell into the hands of the Suryavanshi family and became a symbol of power.
However, it had little to do with Jiya, who saw it as a mere memory of her lost love.
She went back to it, slowly picking it up. It looked like a fragile showpiece in her hands.
A lotus bud held in a pale hand, its delicate stem curling and touching the jewellery at the end of the hand. A beauty that momentarily made her forget the reason she picked this up.
"Jivika!"
A sudden shout pulled her out of the trance. "Y-yes?"
"Jivika? You okay?" Luv walked over to Jiya and looked at her, his voice concerned.
"Y-yes, I'm fine," she replied hurriedly, putting the heirloom back.
Luv gave a sigh of relief, noticing Jiya putting it back. "You will be the death of me someday, silly girl. You can have it if you want."
"I can?" Jiya asked, her hands picking up the heirloom again and clutching it fondly.
"Of course," Luv said, clearly reducing the value of that treasure in the eyes of a clueless civilian.
A soft smile spread across Jiya's lips as she thanked Luv for the nth time today.
"Now come and eat." Luv dragged her to the dining table for a merry meal, oblivious to all that was coming, and his contribution to it.