Chapter 439: The Send Off

Across Waverly Dock, hundreds of men and women all stood waving and cheering the small fleet that pushed off the dock to head into the open sea. Alfred stood with Isra, Edward, Astrid and Balder watching the fleet depart to discover the new world. The entire upper echelon of the Empire had gathered to see the fleet off: William, Issac, Charles, Catherine, Marcus, and many more.

Alfred looked around, an immense pride filling his heart that he could watch the fleet leave. On their sides, numerous cannons point out towards the sea. The creation of the cannon was easier to achieve compared to the musket, being less technical. After two years of testing, it was finally perfected. Mass production was not yet possible, but Alfred ensured that they were installed on the voyage to the New World. This world wasn’t Earth. He didn’t know what existed across the ocean. He couldn’t risk having someone as important as Sasha vanishing.

----

"Give me a second, Alfred." Isra gently tapped Alfred’s shoulder and walked over to Catherine, who was desperately fighting back tears. "Catherine, you can cry, you know. No one will judge you." Her words made Catherine nearly break, but the old Duchess refused to allow herself to look so disgraceful in public.

"I can’t cry. Sasha is doing what she has dreamed of." Her voice was shaking. Looking behind her, a nanny stood holding a young girl in one hand and the hand of a young boy in her other. "At least she left me a granddaughter."

"How is Joyce?" Isra signalled to bring the girl closer to herself. Grabbing the young girl’s small hands, she rubbed her hair, making the baby giggle in delight. The more she looked at Joyce, the more she suppressed her laugh at how similar she also looked to Marcus. Looking at her old friend, Catherine saw the teasing look in Isra’s eyes.

"Don’t say what you wish to Your Majesty." Catherine joked, making Isra chuckle. "She’s fine. A bit small for her age, but nothing to be concerned about."

"And Marcus?" Looking over at the general, he stood alongside William, watching his wife depart, wondering if he would ever see her again. Whilst the marriage was a political one, over the years, the two had become close. Isra knew that, whilst the man wouldn’t show it, he was scared about the future.

"He is staying strong. But he knew this was coming. After Sasha had Joyce, she desperately tried to get back her old figure so she could depart for the sea." Catherine sighed and rested her hand on her cheek, "His Majesty sent me a few letters concerned about how she was rushing it, but after proving she was able to carry out the mission, he gave her the go-ahead. I don’t know if it’s true, but I think he just wanted her out of his hair."

Isra chuckled, unable to refute the point, "Well, it wasn’t just that. Although the musket isn’t complete yet, the cannon is. Even if we are invaded, hopefully it will be enough. It’s just a shame that we can’t mass-produce it yet. Only the core territories have them installed."

"Well, whatever the reason, Sasha got her way in the end. The girl has been excited ever since she returned from Tralon." Catherine and Isra looked towards the ocean once more; the ships had gotten much smaller. Isra gently touched Catherine’s shoulder, seeing that she was about to cry. "I hope she stays safe. God, she knows how to make her mother worried." Catherine scoffed, tears forming in her eyes. Turning around, she quickly walked off without a goodbye. Although it looked cold to everyone, Isra knew that she wanted to be out of the public eye to let out the feeling she was bottling and took no offence.

----

Isra walked back over to Alfred and sighed. "How is she?" Hearing his soft voice, she smiled and shook her head.

"Like any mother would be. I think it’s good that she has Lawrence and Joyce to look after. Otherwise, she would be lonely." Isra paused, "I think we need to send someone to help her look after her lands. She will be a mess for a while. I don’t want her to make a mistake out of grief."

"Get it done, but run it by her first. I would love to, but if I say anything, it will seem less of concern and more like I don’t trust her." Alfred said with a bitter smile and looked down at his children. Edward was now six, but thin. Although he had grown, because he was stuck in his wheelchair, it was hard to tell how tall he would be in the future. Alfred sighed, seeing that his son was still unable to recover properly. Although he wasn’t as withdrawn as before, he lacked the bright expression of his siblings, sitting with a deadpan expression.

Astrid and Balder, unable to stand still, ran around, carefully watched by the nannies taking care of them. Both children, now five, happily played, swept up in the festive mood around them. Looking at Balder, his eyes dimmed compared to looking at Edward. The resemblance was uncanny; the young boy was a smaller version of himself. His eyes glanced over to Astrid, who happily approached Edward, trying to get him to play as well.

His eyes hardened even more. It was something he couldn’t help. He loved that his daughter tried to make Edward feel normal, always being kind to the boy, but her appearance was eerily similar to Helga’s. Every time the girl smiled up at him, their faces overlapped, bringing back terrible memories. It was the same with Balder, but to a lesser extent.

He wanted to try to love them. He wanted to smile like a father. He didn’t wish to show his displeasure, unable to blame them, but he would still subconsciously judge them. Alfred could tell that Astrid had picked up his feelings towards her, and it resulted in the young girl always trying to please him with small actions. It was sweet and warmed his heart, but it could never make him fully accept her. Even Balder could sense his feeling, but unlike Astrid, he didn’t care and did his own thing.

’I really am awful.’Alfred shook his head and watched his children play. He felt like a piece of trash for the way he acted, but it was something he couldn’t control. Peeking over at Isra, she stared at Astrid with an icy look. Although she wouldn’t do anything to the two bastards, she made it clear to them that she was not their mother, that she had no interest or love for them.

The children picked it up and, in turn, stayed clear of Isra, only approaching her when Alfred was around. Looking back at Edward, he saw him smile at Astrid. The young boy looked up at Abu and asked him to push his wheelchair so he could follow her. Astrid’s face lit up brightly as she saw her brother join in her game, expecting him to act as he usually did and refuse.

Around the port, Abu pushed Edward at a leisurely pace to chase Astrid, the young girl allowing herself to be caught a few times in their game of tag. "Even Edward can’t help but get caught up in the atmosphere." Isra lovingly said, forgetting her hate for Astrid and Balder.

"It’s a good thing." Alfred sighed as more of the children ran over to join the game. Abu made sure that none of them accidentally hurt Edward as he allowed himself to be dragged around on the children’s whims. "Although I can tell he is still not being open with them."

"Give it time," Isra said happily, not seeing Alfred frown.

’How much more?’He kept telling himself the same thing that Isra said, and each time would ask himself the question. It was like Edward had plateaued at his current mental state. Looking towards Balder, he watched as the boy refused to let himself get caught by Edward, turning to look with a mocking smile a few times before running again. He had heard how Balder bullied Edward at the academy, and whilst it wasn’t anything terrible, just slight teasing and alienation, it was a matter of time before it got worse.

’Balder can’t be near Edward if he is to get better, but I can’t take him out of the academy without ruining the family image.’ Internally groaning, Alfred once again found himself stuck and decided to push the matter aside again. He hoped it was a childish quirk and that in the future, Balder would grow out of it, realising the importance of family unity.