East Von Havelin.
The Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Petrichor, Pangaea's most technologically advanced kingdom, sat quietly on his seat as he waited for the ramp of his mana-powered Jet Cruiser to open, while numerous Droids, equipped with blasters and swords on their waists stood behind him. Illuminated only by the dim, blue light of the walls of the hull of the Jet Cruiser, East's face was barely visible, making it hard for anyone to tell just what kind of expression he was making right now…
And after 5 minutes of still and pure silence…
The ramp slowly opened, illuminating the hull of the Jet Cruiser with light, finally revealing the warm and confident smile on East's face. And when the tip of the ramp finally made contact with the ground, almost immediately, East stood up from his seat and marched forward with grace and elegance, befitting his title of Crown Prince, while the Droids wordlessly followed behind him in a neat and organized manner.
And when East's feet finally touched the smooth, metal plated ground, his ears were immediately greeted with the deafening shouts and cheers of citizens of Petrichor. Unbothered by the sheer volume of the noise, the smile on East's face remained the same as before as he continued to march. In front of him was a long, straight road that led towards the Royal Castle, while around him were the citizens of Petrichor, all positioned on the side of the road, were cheering loudly and calling his name.
He had just come back from a brutal war with an enemy kingdom and won a decisive battle near the borders of Petrichor. And when the news of his achievements reached the Royal Capital, the citizens couldn't help but gather around and cheer for him when he finally arrived.
East waved his hands at his citizens with a naturally charming smile on his face, making the women who got a perfect view of his smile swoon over him and cheer even louder. Feeling the presence of the numerous Droids behind him, East finally continued marching forward, waving and smiling at his dear citizens as he did so.
This continued for an entire hour, where East would simply march forward with a smile on his face while waving at his citizens until he finally arrived at the entrance of the Royal Castle. A massive set of double doors laid in front of him, with Knights, all wearing mechanically enhanced power armor, neatly lined up on the sides, with their swords raised up high.
""We greet Your Majesty, Crown Prince East Von Havelin..!!""
The Knights yelled as they greeted their Crown Prince in unison and promptly slammed the tip of their swords on the hard, metallic ground, producing a harmonious melody of metal clashing with metal, greatly pleasing the ears of those who heard it. East simply smiled at them, however, and without saying anything else, he continued walking towards the massive double doors that opened their own when East was nearing it.
The sound of the footsteps of Droids following behind him then ceased, a sign that they had stopped following him and simply stayed outside. Finally inside the glorious halls of the Royal Castle, the entrance behind him slowly closed itself, preventing any noise from outside from reaching his ears.
Now, all alone and away from anyone's eyes, the smile on East's face instantly went away, replaced with a face with no expression whatsoever. His eyes were now cold and indifferent as he continued walking through the grand halls of the Royal Castle.
"Veronica." He called out.
[ Yes, master. ]
A pleasant female voice, resounding from the hidden speakers in the halls, then responded to his call. East kept walking forward, passing through the paintings of the past Kings of Petrichor and their statues and asked,
"How is my father's condition?"
[ King Robert Von Havelin, due to the drug master had administered into his body, is now slowly losing his vitality and is currently fifteen days away from dying. ]
"Good."
The sound of his steps echoed throughout the silent halls as East neared his destination, the entrance to the Royal Castle's basement.
"And what of my brother? Have the Droids found him?"
[ Negative. Prince West Von Havelin, together with the help of the Nobles that support him, have managed to escaped the borders of the Kingdom, using the war with the Kingdom of Drakoria as a distraction. ]
"Tsk..!"
Clicking his tongue, East opened the door leading to the basement and slowly walked down the flight of stairs. He then asked once more,
"How is the Cyborg program? Any progress?"
[ Yes, master. A total of 1,000 children had been captured and are being equipped with biomechanical components as we speak. ]
Right after saying that, East finally arrived at the bottom of the stairs, where he could finally hear the painful and agonizing screams of the children he had abducted. Opening the door to the Testing Chamber, East went in and was immediately greeted by the sight of a thousand children, all hanging from the ceiling, crying their hearts out, as numerous biomechanical parts were being welded into their flesh.
Indifferent to their pain, East calmly watched the sight in front of him as he peacefully listened to the painful cries of children. The sound of pain and agony greatly eased East's heart, making him smile unknowingly as he watched the children's flesh burn from the scorching metal.