Draconia Offline vol. 1

72.1. The Viceroy - Part 1

Liana has no idea what's happening, but everyone in the Royal Office is suddenly standing up and pointing outside. She hurries to the window and sees hundreds of transfiguration symbols materialising in the space around the skyscraper.

"W-what?" the Viceroy gasps, both terrified and astonished.

She doesn't understand a thing, but it's obvious that it must be the Emperor's doing. The shield is pulsating with beautiful rainbow colours and the transfiguration symbols interweaved into each section are made with the precision only Aefener is capable of.

She wants to call the Royal Guards, who are currently on duty, to ask what the hell is going on, but a deafening explosion roars, startling everyone. There's a flash of ominous light and then it's quiet again. Whatever that thing was, the shield stopped it. Their Emperor stopped it. Their embodiment of magic did something amazing again. Something miraculous.

"The guards aren't picking up," Ingri says all panicky. She didn't need the Viceroy to tell her what to do, she isn't her assistant for nothing.

Liana hurries to the nearest balcony, her own guards following her. She takes off immediately, even though her ceremonial robe isn't exactly made for flying.

"Gotrid!" she sees the Royal Consort taking off from a balcony a few floors below and shouts after him.

"I can't feel his consciousness, Viceroy!" Gotrid is scared shitless, but the adrenaline is pumping him. He won't rest until his partner is found.

Fortunately, it's never hard to pinpoint Aefener's location. All Celestials feel in which general direction their embodiment of magic is all the time. They fly a bit higher and spot their Emperor almost immediately because he's hovering just a few metres above the building.

Hovering...? Is that the right word? It's the strangest sight. Their Emperor is levitating and looks like a huge feathery cocoon. The air around him is sparkling with residual mana, keeping his unconscious body afloat. His guards are circling around him, unsure what to do because the sparkles are making their feathers stand.

"My love!" Gotrid is on the verge of tears.

He quickly conjures a levitation platform, folds his wings close to his body and, ignoring the tingles, approaches the floating Emperor. Liana follows him.

"It looks like Aefener fainted, but his residual mana is serving as a cushion," she comments, amazed. She never heard of such a phenomenon.

"The air itself loves him," Gotrid vehemently presents his own theory. "Our racial element would never let him fall."

With extreme caution, they untangle the feathered cocoon. Aefener doesn't look hurt, at least something, but they can tell that his mind is closed completely. Their Emperor is deeply unconscious and his mana level is dangerously low. He gave his everything to create this shield.

Gotrid gently takes Aefener into his arms and the residual mana dissolves completely. It seems it was holding Aefener for as long was necessary for him to be retrieved safely. Was it his doing? Or does the air truly love its ruler?

They land on the balcony closest to the Royal Office and his second Royal Consort Erik is impatiently awaiting their return.

"Ryuu," Erik bursts into tears when he sees his partner unconscious.

He kisses Aefener's forehead, trying to wake him up, but nothing happens. The Emperor doesn't open his eyes even for a few seconds. Gotrid won't let him carry Aefener, clutching the Emperor to his chest, so Erik carries his wings instead. Celestials are extremely light, but hard to carry at the same time. When they can't fold their wings, feathers are suddenly everywhere.