My eyes slowly opened and were bombarded by light in turn. A headache slammed into every corner of my mind and my chest ached fiercely with every pounding of my heart. I was keenly aware of the layer of sweat that clung to my clothes and the exhaustion that had buried its claws deep into my soul.

Lazily, I glanced around and saw that the throne room had been cleaned up. Many of the banners had long since vanished. At a brief count, I only saw three remaining. It was a sad number, but that was to be expected. It has been five thousand years, after all. In fact I was shocked to see that many left in the end.

I closed my eyes again as I struggled against my headache and all the new memories that had been unlocked. I was more aware of who I was now. What I’ve been. Does this mean I’m still me? This life I had was a distant one, compared to how far it was the memories of earth were but a blink of an eye away.

It was a harrowing thought the more I pondered on it. Was I two separate people or the same person stuck living life on repeat?

My thoughts swirled through my mind as I worked through them slowly. I was a goddess and my realm was the undead. That would explain the loyalty the praetorians still had for me. But the living would not have that faith for me.

But it gave me an idea. What if I did a grand reveal and rescued them from the imp horde? After all, it is easier to convince them as a savior than as a stranger. The biggest question that hung on my mind was if sacrificing innocent life was worth it?

I sighed as I sat up on my throne and glanced around. The throne room was empty, and even the spots that the other three Athantoi occupied were empty. “Theo?” I called out as I adjusted myself, ignoring the pain in my chest.

“Yes, your grace?” She appeared next to me and gave me a small bow.

“What did I miss?” I asked as I took a breath to steady my nerves and push back the memories that were flooding through my mind. Especially of Alessia.

“Griffon and Saber are leading the palatine in retaking key points around the palace. Syn is currently gathering all the sub commanders and briefing them. Lord Kharon is going through the mountain of paperwork and waiting for your next orders.”

I nodded my head. That was good. No one jumped the gun on anything. That meant I had time to prepare for my plan and discuss it with the others. “Do the praetorians know I’ve returned?”

“Yes, your grace. They have been working around the clock to get the palace cleaned up and have the defenses reorganized. I recommend you meet with the sub commanders when you can.”

“Of course. Let Syn know I’m revising the plan slightly. Inform him he is to clear the eastern block of the palace, and set up a staging ground to the western portion. I also want the entire praetorian guard ready to move with me to defeat the horde and whatever threat lies behind it.” Thankfully, now my headache was starting to rescind, leaving only the exhaustion that clung to my bones. I wanted to sleep, but I knew I couldn’t. I still needed to cleanse another meridian and push into the next step.

“Right away, your grace.” Theo’s armor shuffled slightly as she took a step behind me and silence fell onto the throne room once more.

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“Kharon?” I called out into the silence. I wasn’t sure if he could hear me or not, but it was worth a shot. Seconds became minutes as I waited and I couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed. How else was I supposed to get a hold of him?

But just as I was about to lose hope, darkness fell from the ceiling like a waterfall and coated the velvet carpet. It shifted and flowed like ink as it took on a humanoid shape. “You called my empress?” Kharon’s silky voice came from the depths of the flowing darkness.

“Yes, I had a slight change of plans I wanted to discuss with you.” I paused as I pondered some of the other feelings in my chest. “Also, welcome back, grandfather.” A smirk crossed my face as I teased him a bit. With the rush of memories from earlier, I finally knew who he was. But there were some other things that eluded me still.

“Ah so your memories have returned. I’m glad to see that.” His brilliant red eyes flickered into existence and they shined a little brighter at my words.

“A little bit. I remember a few things here and there.” As I spoke, I pondered on the connection that I felt to the surrounding people. Theo felt like an older sister to me. Kharon was pretty much my grandfather. Though how true that was, I didn’t know. Even with the memories I have, he was still an enigma. Though my father was still really fond of him.

“Good, good. Forgive me for being rude earlier. My emotions are not exactly the most prominent thing at times.” He bowed slightly towards me and his voice rolled off his tongue as smooth as butter.

“It’s no problem.” I waved off his apology. Truly, I wasn’t the slightest bit bothered by his actions. It was perfectly understandable why he was the way he was. “Anyway, I’ve called you here to discuss the new plan that I had for defeating the imp horde.” I sat back on my throne and crossed my legs. The pains that had wracked my body were thankfully falling away one by one.

He stared at me for a few seconds. His eyes were pulsating in color, and I could feel my flesh tingle as his gaze crept over my exposed skin. “Oh, I see you unlocked the gate of healing. Congratulations.” His head tilted slightly and his tone took on a more congratulatory tone.

“Thank you.” I preened slightly at his words, but I was careful to hide the fact that it wasn’t purely by choice.

“Now what about this plan is different?” He asked as he brought his arms together.

“Well, I realized it would be difficult to convince the general populace to give me their loyalty just by reappearing. So, I decided that when the imps attack, we can rescue them instead. It would do wonders to convince them about me.” The more I thought about the plan, the more that I loved it.

Kharon’s eyes glimmered in the darkness and I could almost feel a shadow of a grin cross his face. “I see. This is a good plan. I fully approve of it.” He replied with a curt bow and I felt pride swell in my chest.

“Good. Ensure that the villages have been properly evacuated and informed of the full scope of the threat, please.” I brought my hand up to my chin and tapped it thoughtfully as I tried to figure out anything that I might have missed.

“Worry not mistress. I’ve given the order as soon as you asked me to. The outer village has already been evacuated and fortifications are being built in the inner village as we speak.” He replied as he straightened himself out. This was good. He was as reliable as they came.

“Kharon, after this whole mess is over. I’d like to speak with you about a formal retirement.” I crossed my legs and swept away a few strands of hair that had fallen into my vision. Kharon deserved a full retirement. My memories, albeit fleeting, were more than enough to prove that fact. He worked hard for the last five thousand years and even before that. He was alive when I was a child, and still just as mysterious. It’s only fair he takes the rest that he needs.

“I..” He paused for a moment and his red eyes dimmed into faint embers. “I don’t know what to say to your majesty.”

“Don’t say anything. Just decide on what you’d like to do and let me know. I’ll make it work. In the meantime, just function as my advisor and I’ll take over ruling.” This was the next step of my plan. Once the imp threat was annihilated, I would look outwards and restructure Asteria. Like a Phoenix, we would rise from the ashes of the past. Even though I wasn’t the same person I was five thousand years ago, I would take my experiences and build on them. Asteria will rise again.