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Ch.52 Dream or reality

  Zion's eyes fluttered open, the familiar darkness of the underground cave replaced by a dazzling, ethereal light. He found himself standing at the edge of a vast, cloud filled expanse. Other figures, both familiar and unfamiliar, stood beside him, their faces etched with a mix of wonder and confusion.

  A colossal, cloud formed gate loomed before them. As it slowly creaked open, a breathtaking sight unfolded: a vast, ethereal throne room, its floor and walls shimmering with iridescent hues.

  Zion's gaze was drawn to the throne at the center of the room. It was a magnificent structure, crafted entirely from clouds, its form shifting and morphing with each passing moment. And seated upon it, with an air of serene majesty, was a humanoid figure composed entirely of clouds.

  Noticing the chattering, Zion finally registered he was among people. Unknown whether some of them could be called people, Zion nonetheless called them people. As he was tracing person after person, he recognized someone he knew very well and blurted,

  "Father!"

  Val, who saw Zion, immediately went to hug his son. He didn't care whether this was a dream or his delusion. He was the head of Thundersons, he had to maintain his calm even if barely.

  He had left his son behind, knowing well this could end his son's life. Val had tried to take Zion's place but Zion, as stubborn as a bull, didn't move an inch. Val had been worried day after day, a tear had escaped his eyes when he was hugging Zion.

  Moon, who was looking at all of this, was contemplating something. It seemed he had gained an ability. While this might look just like a dream, without doubt, there was reality in it too. Moon was sure everyone in here was real.

  "Moon, what's going on here? Am pretty sure I didn't miss you enough to dream about this. Is this some experiential new power?" Raiz came flying next to Moon.

  Moon couldn't help but chuckle. Raiz always had keen instinct. He had almost figured it out in a few minutes. "You can say that. This is one of my new abilities to literally just take someone in a dream into this room."

  "Wait, can you just bring people in here and trap them inside? Example in war, you could literally just kidnap the other army and lock them here," Raiz said out loud.

  "No, unfortunately that's not the case. There are two conditions to this. First, the person needs to be asleep or sleepy. Second, if the person isn't willing, they can break out. I'm sure everyone here came willingly," Moon said to everyone.

  "What about me? I don't even know you, so why would I come here willingly?" Zion raised his hand and asked.

  "You must be Zion," Moon said warmly, looking at the boy. "I've heard a lot about you." He glanced at the little girl who was always talking about her big brother.

  The girl turned red and silent, looking down. Seeing this, Moon chuckled before turning back to Zion. "You are rare among the rare, even among us. Your name was in the pillar before you even had a chance to touch it."

  "You see, all of us here are a clan. Yes, a quite odd one. Beast humans and so on. We don't distinguish race among us. All of us here have our names in our city. It's like a proof that you really are among us."

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  "To get this, normally you would need to touch a pillar just outside our city. But something unexpected happened. One day your name appeared, and of course, everyone knows you didn't touch it."

  "Thanks to my connection to Clauster, I could also invite you. You felt subconsciously that this place safe. That it was the last place that would be a harm to you and you came along ."

  Zion nodded. This would make sense, but it still sounded absurd. How was any of this even possible? It was like he had missed a few hundred years and everything had advanced.

  "So it really is you, Zion," Val said joyfully."It seems so, Dad. I'm happy to see you again," Zion replied.

  "Isn't this still a cheat? It doesn't matter where any of us are. We can always communicate.""I can only do this meeting once a month. It's not that convenient," Moon said.

  Moon looked at the throne room and created a long table, of course made of clouds but floating in the air. Ten chairs made of cloud, each holding a unique symbol in their back.

  Earth: A towering oak tree, representing stability and growth.

  Water: A shimmering droplet of water, symbolizing fluidity and adaptability.

  Fire: A flickering flame, representing passion and energy.

  Air: A gentle breeze, symbolizing freedom and lightness.

  Thunder: A bolt of lightning, symbolizing power and authority.

  Rain: A gentle drizzle, symbolizing renewal and abundance.

  Wind: A swirling vortex, symbolizing change and unpredictability.

  Sun: A golden orb, symbolizing warmth and life.

  Stars: A constellation of stars, symbolizing guidance and hope.

  Moon: A crescent moon, symbolizing mystery and intuition.

  The ten chairs were each in their corresponding color. The closest chair was the tenth, belonging to Moon. Something Raiz was suspecting Moon had a hand in it, a cloud that was biased. Raiz laughed.

  As if Moon was reading Raiz's mind, "Could you stop making those faces? It's about me, isn't it? You always make that face when it's about me."

  Raiz turned away and said, "I don't know what you're talking about," but internally thought, "Did he gain another ability called mind reading?"

  Satisfied with his changes, Moon said to everyone, "From now on, this table will be reserved exclusively for the Lords of our clans, and its name will be the Grande Vision."

  A murmur arose among the crowd. There were 10 seats, signifying 10 leaders. One of them randomly raised her hand and asked, "Our beloved leader, if the Lords sit there, will the ordinary folks just stand?"

  "No need for formalities," Moon replied. "Just call me Moon."

  The young lady from the Thundersons almost sweated at the thought of addressing the leader by his first name. "I couldn't possibly do that, sir," she stammered.

  Moon shot her a reassuring smile. "Everyone here is a trusted member of our clan," he said. "Unlike others, we don't have to worry about betrayal. I trust every one of you." As he spoke, Moon created comfortable cloud-like cushions for everyone to sit on.

  Moon boomed, "From now on, I will name those who will sit on these chairs and become lords!" He gestured towards the cloud seats. "First, Raiz will take the Moon chair."

  Raiz grinned and sauntered towards the crescent-shaped seat. As he sank down, a jolt of energy surged through him. "This feels… powerful," he mused. "Like I'm connected to the very essence of this place."

  Moon, unfazed by Raiz's theatrics, continued, "The Stars chair will be occupied by Zion."

  Zion, who had been lost in thought, snapped to attention at the sound of his name. Confusion clouded his features. Why him? He was a nobody, a prisoner even. But after a moment's hesitation, he brushed aside the doubt and approached the Stars chair, finally taking a seat.

  Next, Moon called out, "Alia, you will take the Sun chair!"

  Alia, ever composed, walked with quiet dignity towards her designated seat, earning a boisterous cheer from Brav, who seemed to have taken on the role of enthusiastic supporter.

  "Next is Aurora," Moon announced. "Please take your seat at the Wind chair."

  Aurora, with the regal grace of a queen bee, approached her chair. As she sat down, a subtle shiver ran through her, a sensation she couldn't quite explain.

  Raiz had mentioned feeling something similar, but she had dismissed it as a momentary quirk of the chairs. Shaking off her thoughts, Aurora settled into her seat with effortless elegance.

  "Amilios, it's your turn. Take the Thunder chair," Moon continued.

  Amilios grinned and strode confidently towards his seat. Like Raiz and Aurora, he experienced a peculiar tingling sensation upon contact. His reaction was more pronounced, but he quickly regained his composure and sat down with a satisfied sigh.

  "Neon, the Air chair is yours," Moon declared.

  Neon, brimming with enthusiasm, bounded towards his seat. As he plopped down, he felt no unusual sensations. The wolf couldn't help but wonder if the others were simply exaggerating their reactions.

  "Val, please take the Water chair," Moon said.

  Val, who had been half-listening, snapped back to attention. He was still unsure if this was all real, but he followed Moon's instructions and made his way to the Water chair.

  "Last but not least, Brav. The Earth chair is yours!"

  Brav, bursting with excitement, rushed towards his seat, waving to Alia. "I did it, Alia!" Alia couldn't help but smile at the familiar, nostalgic feeling.

  Moon got up for the first time and said proudly" No matter where in the world you are. You will be able to enter this room once month. Remember, together we are stronger!"

  Hearing those words, a light ignited in everyones heart. Everybody got up and cheered from bottom of their heart.

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