The crystal palace shimmered in the afternoon sun, a beacon of hope for all of Crystal Tokyo to see. The king only wished he could see it more often. His days were occupied by meetings with ambassadors from other countries and their noble families that represented their lands. His nights were occupied by formal dinners with visiting nobles or the occasional party.
While it all sounded busy and glamorous, Endymion had to admit that the life lost its appeal several centuries ago.
900 years a King... He could still recall a time when he’d been a bright eyed young prince of the Earth Kingdom. When he only saw ambassadors from foreign lands and envoys from the Moon. Things had been so simple back then. While he didn’t live long enough to become King then, he often found himself wondering how different his rule may have been.
Of course, in that ancient past, Endymion knew he would have never been able to stand with Serenity at his side. In this distant future, though, it wasn’t she who stood at his side, but he who stood at her side. The savior of the galaxy, Neo Queen Serenity was the true beacon of hope.
It was a rare afternoon without duty that led Endymion to the crystal palace’s gardens. Rows of flowers and trees lined the entire eastern side of the palace, eager to receive the sun’s morning light. What drew Endymion to this place, though, was the secluded rose garden. The rose garden was kept separated from the rest of the palace gardens by large, Gothic-style gates and fencing. The gates were nearly always left open, but their separation often discouraged visitors.
The king reached a gloved hand out to gently touch a petal of a bloomed rose. These roses had withstood the tales of time. Helios, as a wedding gift, had given Endymion an ancient seed from the days of the Earth Kingdom, a seed left from the garden that had been planted at Prince Endymion’s birth over two millennia ago. It would certainly explain the king’s natural attraction to the gardens, which had blossomed 900 years ago at the start of his reign.
When had been the last time he’d seen his wife? While both were bound by duty, Serenity’s role was much different. While Endymion mostly met with ambassadors from other countries on Earth, Serenity spent her time meeting with envoys from other planets and systems in the Milky Way. While she was not the sole ruler, she was the one who brought peace to the galaxy when she plunged herself and Chaos into the Galaxy Cauldron. Without her sacrifice, only a dead future remained.
Removing his glove, Endymion took this rare moment to let his bare fingers gently caress the petal as he leaned in to take in its scent. As he inhaled, he was taken back thousands of years, back to the Earth Kingdom.
