After all the confusion with Vanko, a few days had passed, and Prime was deeply focused on the papers in front of him. Despite everything that had happened with the killer robots, normal life didn’t stop. The decision to go help Tony had resulted in a workload much greater than Prime had imagined possible after just a few hours away.
Initially, Prime considered ignoring the issue, but after a comment from Ema, who asked why her father wasn’t working on his laptop as usual, he couldn’t come up with an excuse. Prime didn’t want to set a bad example for Ema, making her think that she didn’t need to work if she didn’t want to.
It was still early, and although Prime technically didn’t need to sleep, he did so because he found it enjoyable. Even so, Prime didn’t dream, and his senses were so sharp that even while sleeping, he always seemed alert.
Prime briefly stretched on the sofa, still seated, and glanced at the digital watch on his wrist. It was 6:00 AM, and there was only one hour left before Annie, Ema, and Sara would arrive at school. Annie and Sara, both 17 years old, were about to finish high school.
Ema, on the other hand, was only 14, so it would still be some time before she needed to think seriously about what she wanted to do in the future. These thoughts made Prime chuckle briefly. Suddenly, he realized that his concerns were also starting to become mundane.
(I wonder if that’s why those strange dreams started)
As this thought crossed Prime’s mind, he sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He didn’t know exactly when it started, but it had been some time since, whenever he slept, something appeared in his dreams. Prime didn’t know who or what it was, just that this entity always told him not to forget his goal.
Prime always woke up confused because he couldn’t remember having any specific goal. In the end, he dismissed these dreams, but they had become increasingly frequent. However, it had been almost three months since Prime had last had these dreams.
Setting these thoughts aside, Prime got up from the sofa and walked over to the apartment’s glass window. Stopping for a moment, he calmly observed the activity outside. Even so early, the streets were already full, and the sun beginning to rise on the horizon indicated that the day was about to start.
As he admired the view, Prime suddenly sensed something, small and faint, but unmistakable. It was the same feeling he had when Annie suddenly turned into a symbiote before him. However, Prime remembered that, with Annie, he hadn’t picked up on anything until he was close enough and focused on her.
Cautiously, Prime walked through the apartment to a specific door. Slowly, he opened the door labeled "Ema" and peeked inside the room, just his head visible.
The room was flooded with pink, with several stuffed bears scattered everywhere. Prime couldn’t help but think that Ema really insisted on transforming her room this way. Although he found the environment quite childish, what could he do? In the end, he had given in to Ema’s wishes.
Setting these thoughts aside, Prime observed the little girl lying on the bed, hugging a stuffed bear. He watched her for a few seconds, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t feel anything.
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
(Could it just be my imagination?)
As he raised an eyebrow, Prime decided to forget about it and prepared to close the door. However, he remembered he needed to wake the girls. At that moment, he felt the presence again, much stronger and clearer than before. Opening the door firmly, Prime looked directly at Ema.
However, Prime still didn’t feel anything. He approached Ema and tried to focus, but the presence inside her still seemed dormant. Confused by the situation, Prime wondered why he had sensed something earlier. Despite the oddity, he decided to wake Ema; after all, she needed to go to school.
“Ema, wake up! You need to get ready or you’ll be late for school”
As he gently pinched Ema’s cheeks, she began to stir slowly on the bed until she opened her eyes. To Prime’s surprise, Ema’s eyes were briefly purple, but they quickly returned to normal with a blink. Prime was puzzled by the situation; he couldn’t just dismiss it as imagination. Something was clearly wrong.
“Daddy? What are you doing here?”
When Ema heard Prime's question, he watched her for a few seconds while she stretched. Then he placed his hand on her cheek and closed his eyes, but once again, there was no sign of the seed responding.
"Ema, are you feeling anything different in your body?"
When Ema heard Prime’s question, she looked confused. She waved her arms around and made several strange movements until her hand rested on her stomach. This made Prime worried.
“Are you feeling anything unusual in your stomach?”
However, contrary to what Prime expected, Ema’s response was not what he had imagined.
“I’m hungry”
Prime blinked at Ema’s response and decided to drop the subject. After helping Ema get up, he went to Annie and Sara’s room and woke them up. Finally, everyone gathered in the living room for breakfast.
A few minutes later, everyone was ready to leave. This time, Prime decided to join, even though he doubted he would find anything concrete. However, he hoped he might come across some clue about the presence he had sensed earlier.
“Annie, Ema, come here for a moment. I need to talk to you about something”
Upon hearing Prime’s words, the two exchanged a look before approaching him. Ema stood by the door, waiting for everyone to return.
“Listen, I need you to keep an eye on Ema. I believe the symbiote seed inside her is about to awaken”
Upon hearing Prime’s words, Annie was the first to react. She cast a quick glance at Ema, who was waiting by the door, and Prime immediately understood what her expression conveyed.
“You don’t need to worry about Ema’s safety. I made sure the symbiotes have a natural instinct to protect their hosts. To them, the hosts are more important than their own lives, because as long as the hosts are alive, the symbiotes remain immortal”
Upon hearing Prime’s words, Annie visibly relaxed and gave a small smile. Prime patted Annie’s head, once again acknowledging how much she cared for her sister.
“To sum up, and I might be wrong, I’m sure I sensed something this morning. However, if what I perceived is correct, I don’t understand why the symbiote hasn’t awakened yet”
Annie and Sara nodded before turning back to Ema. Meanwhile, Prime took out his phone and made a quick call. Within seconds, a voice answered on the other end of the line.
“Mr. Ryan? I didn’t think you’d actually call after asking for my number. Did something happen?”
The person on the other end was Peter. Prime had given him his number some time ago but had never returned his call. Since Prime was planning to contact Peter soon, he thought this would be a good opportunity.
“Hello, Peter. I’m glad to hear you’re well. I called to talk about my daughter, Ema. Do you remember her?”
After saying this, Prime waited, and the response on the other end came promptly.
“Of course, little Ema?”
“Right, I think the symbiotic seed inside Ema is about to awaken. I’m not sure exactly when this will happen, so I asked Sara and Annie to keep an eye on her. Also, I’d like you to stay alert for any signs of this happening”
After saying this, Prime continued the conversation with Peter for a few more minutes before ending the call. He then turned his gaze to Annie, Ema, and Sara, who were talking near the door, hoping nothing significant would happen.