Kastori Restorations (The Kastori Chronicles Book 4) by Stephen Allan Page A

but when the night comes, it becomes a frozen block of ice. We have people there, Dad said so, but we haven’t heard from those people in years. Maybe they tried to reach us during the two and a half years that Typhos ruled this planet, and that’s how Typhos knows.”
    “Doubt it,” Cyrus said. “Typhos is too powerful to have to rely on human minds. I’ll bet you more than anything he sensed those worlds a long time ago and has had his eye on them since that time.”
    Celeste nodded.
    “Are you teleporting us?”
    “That is the plan. When we’re all equipped, we’re going to go immediately. I will sense the location and try and go to where the human base is so we have something to go off of, but after that, we are on our own. The human base really may not even have anything, but I figure it’s as good a place to start as any. We have to find the source of the energy, which is supposedly the coldest spot on the planet.”
    “Works for me,” Cyrus said. He saw his father approaching Crystil. Pops pointed to the two of them and began walking to the siblings. Cyrus nodded to Celeste, and the two walked to meet them halfway. “Hopefully works for them, too.”
    “Unfortunately, there’s not much choice in that,” Celeste said, much to the shock of Cyrus. “Cyrus, this part of the mission is all us. Dad can’t help us, Crystil can’t help us, at least not on our journey to rescue Typhos.”
    “You mean kill Typhos.”
    “He’s your brother.”
    “And the man who killed Erda and nearly you.”
    Celeste scowled, but Cyrus wasn’t about to back down from that point. I can’t believe she really wants to save him. She’s either the most compassionate person in the universe or the most insane. I wonder if the void still has an effect on her. Possible.
    “Are you two leaving soon?” his father said as he approached.
    “Yes,” Celeste said.
    “I came to say goodbye then,” the Emperor said. “I will be expecting you two back. I am going to stay here to help build ships as we need them, and giving all of my energy into creating them.”
    “Sounds good,” Celeste said.
    It truly was a new world, thought Cyrus, where Celeste would affirm their father’s position rather than ask to do whatever made their father the safest and most secure. He took a look at his father and saw the eyes of a man who was comfortable with that. It almost seemed like he wanted them to become more assertive, and to be willing to take charge of the empire and, maybe, the throne. He looked much older than Cyrus remembered him, but then again, Cyrus himself looked older. Only Celeste looked about the same as she had when she started. Maybe there’s something to the whole forgiveness and letting go of anger idea.
    “We’ll be fine,” Celeste added. “Dad, we’ll be back in one piece. We promise. Let us know if there is anything we can do to help when we get back.”
    With that, they embraced tightly, the two holding each other close. Cyrus looked over to Crystil, who gave a warm smile, and he walked over to her slowly.
    “Girl’s grown up quite a bit, huh?”
    “In some ways, past us,” Crystil said. “I never thought she would turn out like this. I know you didn’t.”
    “But I take it I turned out exactly as you anticipated?”
    Crystil playfully pushed Cyrus away, jokingly cursing at him before he came back and squeezed her tight, gently rubbing her back as he hugged her.
    “Don’t do anything stupid,” she said as she pulled back. “I know you. I have to tell you that every time.”
    “And I’ll forget every time,” Cyrus said, producing an eye-roll from Crystil before a gentle laugh.
    Cyrus went up to his father and embraced him tightly.
    “You sure about going to help the others?” Cyrus said.
    “My role as emperor is to lead the people, son. The people need to be led by example for a great battle that is coming, so that is what I’ll do.”
    “Good deal, Pops,” Cyrus said as the two laughed and