MLTP Part 2- "Standing In The Dark"

"Standing In The Dark" is the second Part of "Miracula Luxia: The Prequel". It was released on 29.12.2019.
== Plot ==
Aleks has to make the tough decision which will determine whether Seiko will stay with him and their daughter or be left somewhere safer.
It's a tough choice for the soon-to-be father (for the second time), but he has to decide, for the sake of his growing family.
== Story ==
"Good mornin', honey!"- Seiko greeted her beloved one.
"Seiko!"- Aleks exclaimed, seeing that she was standing after lying on the bed for a whole week due to her pregnancy.
"I know what you think. Yes, I'm fine."- She smiled- "Look, I can walk around now!"
"That's good."- Aleks said- "But you still need to be careful. The baby... "
"Don't ya worry! Our baby's all safe and sound."
Aleks nodded and looked around.
"Where's Marinette?"- He wondered.
Seiko raised her eyebrow.
"What? Oh, well, she's with her grandpa."
"She's with my father?"
"Yup! The old crook said that he'll take care of her while we take care of this matter."
She pointed at her belly and looked at it. It was big, carrying a new life within it.
"Our son's growing up. I'm so happy, Aleks! Soon he will be born and we can cuddle him. And play with him. Isn't that exciting?"
Aleks nodded.
"Yes. But don't forget what I told you earlier."
"Remind me again?"
"Hm. The pregnancy is surely taking a toll on your mind, my love. We need to keep the baby safe somewhere. Those lands are not entirely safe and the guards won't be able to protect us forever."
"Oh, come on! He'll be fine!"- Seiko scolded Aleks- "Besides, Father will protect both children while we're here."
"Maybe. But not so well after what happened to my mother."
"Oh."- Seiko remembered the moment when Aleks's mom died to a group of pirates on the shore- "I'm sorry. I didn't want you to... to remember."
Aleks sighed, stood up and kissed his pregnant girlfriend on the cheek.
"Don't worry about it, love. I will keep us safe, no matter what. But now I have to go check on my sister."
He started to leave the room.
"Wait, Aleks!"- Seiko stopped him- "What about our marriage? Is it going to happen soon?"
Aleks nodded.
"It will. Just be patient. We just need to find a proper priest to do the ritual."
"He always says that, but I doubt we will find one. After the attack on our hometown, few priests remained and all of them are too busy to do rituals for anyone."- Seiko thought to herself and sighed. She sat on the bed and started to think as Aleks left the room.
He went outside and checked the status of the watchtowers. Most of them were abandoned, but some of them still had soldiers inside.
Aleks nodded.
"So far, so good."- He thought to himself- "There's still hope. The soldiers are actually doing something to keep the place safe."
He sat there and watched as the guards sharpened their weapons until one of them approached him and pointed to the west.
"Sir, a large band of monsters is coming! What should we do?"
Aleks came close to the gate and inspected the attacking force. It was small, but very strong, consisting of Orcs and Giants.
"Alright, everybody, let's get serious! Defend the gate and watch the others for more invaders!"
Unfortunately, some of the invaders were mages and shamans. They surprised the guards by burning some of them down and seriously wounding a couple more.
Aleks fought valiantly to stop those beasts, but was knocked unconscious by one of them.
He woke up only to find ruins and his family standing next to him.
His father helped him stand up.
"Honey, what do we do now?"- Seiko asked him, cowering in fear behind Ayumi.
"What happened?"- Aleks wondered.
"While you were taking your nice nap, monsters attacked and destroyed most of the place. We managed to drive them away, but not without many losses. The soldiers fled to the west and told us to come.
Aleks held his sister's necklace in his hands. He looked at it and shaked his head.
Then he looked at Seiko. She was still utterly terrified by the outcome of the invasion.
At that moment he saw a few Giants approaching them.
"Run!"- Aleks yelled and drew his weapon to intercept them.
"No! Honey, we can't leave you behind!"- Seiko responded, fearing for her beloved one's life.
"She's right, brother. We can't!"- Ayumi added.
"It's okay. I will join you later. You run to the encampment. I will stop them."
"You heard what my son said, ladies."- Aleks's father said- "Move it! Move it before they slay us!"
Seiko looked Aleks while holding their daughter's hand.
"Seiko, run! Don't stand there!"- He yelled.
She complied, but not before telling him to be careful.
He nodded and attacked the Giants.
He managed to slay most of them and severely wounded their mage.
After that he tried to run towards the gate, only for it to collapse before he could reach it.
"No! No, no, no!"- He screamed, knowing that the gate was the only way to the western lands.
Or so he thought. It was leading to a small forest, impossible to enter through other ways other than the gate.
He looked at the ruined place, shedding a tear as he did so.
Then he decided to run to the south gate which collapsed behind him.
"Don't worry, family. I will find you, sooner or later!"- He said to himself as he ran in that direction.
He was alone, afraid and had little food with him.
At least his family was safe.
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Meanwhile, Seiko, Ayumi and Aleks's father watched in horror as the western gate collapsed.
"No! Aleks!"- Seiko yelled and tried to move the stone away.
"Seiko, stop!"- Ayumi said and restrained her- "He's fine. He probably fled in another direction."
"Jesus, Ayumi. What am I going to do without him?"
Marinette started crying, but her aunt managed to calm her down.
"It's okay, Seiko."- Ayumi tried to reassure her sister-in-law- "We will find him. But first, we need to find the encampment."
"Damn right!"- Aleks's father exclaimed- "My kid will be fine. He knows how to survive on his own! Now let's find the encampment and keep ourselves safe."
The others nodded and continued walking forward.
Soon, they encountered a man with long blonde hair.
It was Yoshiki- Ayumi's husband and Aleks's best friend.
They told him about what happened to Aleks. He shed a tear.
"I hope he survived."- He said- "But, knowing him, he's tough as nails. He can make it."
"As for us, we must go to this encampment. And fast! Come on, I'll keep you safe."
They walked forward as Ayumi embraced her husband.
"I'm glad you're okay, dear."- She smiled- "What happened to the soldiers?"
"Most of them are safe"- He said- "Some of them died from their wounds. Really unfortunate."
The four of them reached the encampment successfully and stayed within. They waited. And waited. And waited.
Until they realized that Aleks was not going to come back.
"He... he can't abandon us!"- Ayumi said- "... Or can he?"
"No."- Yoshiki responded- "He's probably looking for a way to reach us. Stay calm,"
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And looking he was. Searching every bush, every stick, he tried to find his family. 
But to no avail. Most of the paths were leading to dead ends and some were leading to traps.
Aleks was aware of where to look, because of the map that he found on the ground before fleeing. He continued looking for his family until he noticed a small pathway, leading to a small camp.
He asked the soldiers there (Who were very thrilled to see him alive) where his family was located. Fortunately, they knew the exact location and told him about it.
Soon, the young man was on the road, traveling towards a large encampment.
When he finally reached it, an overjoyed Seiko saw him and ran towards him.
She hugged him tight and slapped him on the face.
"Don't ever do that again!"- She yelled at him.
He smiled as he touched his cheek.
"Point taken. Never leave family behind. I won't make the same mistake."
Marinette hugged her father as well.
"I missed you both."- He said.
His father and sister approached him.
"So, what took you so long?"- His father asked him- "Too many trees?"
Aleks nodded.
"Way too many dead ends. It took me a whole week to get here safely, after a few soldiers gave me directions to the encampment."
He looked at the place and sighed.
"Now that we're reunited, I must send you away again."
"But... but why?"- Seiko wondered.
Aleks sighed.
"I saw many Giants on the roads and in the woods. They're going to attack soon and this encampment may not hold them all off."
"But where will we go?"- His father cut him off'- "There's nowhere safe around here!"
Aleks thought about it. Finally, he came to a conclusion.
"Maybe not around here, but there is a place we can go to farther to the west."
Seiko shaked her head.
"You don't mean your other sister's village? That place is not very well developed!"- She exclaimed.
"Not really. But it's relatively safe. You will be safe there. I will escort you there and then I will leave to find the source of this problem. Okay?"
Aleks's father nodded.
"Understood. If you say that we'll be safer there, we'll listen to you. Right, ladies?"
Ayumi and Seiko nodded.
"I'll get Yoshiki. He can help us too."- Ayumi said and left to get her husband.
Soon, they were all ready to travel. They bid farewell to the guards and left the safe confines of the encampment to reach the village.
It took them five days, but they finally reached it. Aleks sent his pregnant girlfriend and their daughter in and bid farewell to them.
"So it has come to this, eh?"- Aleks's father wondered- "You're gonna leave us here and try to solve more problems alone? Peculiar."
Aleks looked at his father.
"I'm sorry, father. I wish there would be more time for apologies, but I have to find the source of this madness. Alone. All of you will be safe here, in my sister's village while I'm away. Make sure that Seiko and the children are alright, okay?"
The old man nodded.
"Me, Ayumi and Yoshiki will take care of this. Don't worry. Now go, if you have to. The lands around here depend on you. Don't let them down."
Aleks nodded and headed to the opposite direction, but not before being hugged by his sister as a goodbye.
"Stay safe, little brother. I know that I cannot stop you and I won't. But make sure you survive an encounter with their boss, gotcha?"
"You got it, sister."- Aleks said and walked away, leaving his sister and his father to return to the village where Seiko, Marinette and Yoshiki waited for them.
== Trivia ==
* "Standing In The Dark" explains how Aleks feels like being in the darkness- unable to do anything (in this case, protect his family from monsters. However, he is still able to send them to his sister's village for protection- a sign that he doesn't want to keep them in harm's way, but to actually keep them safe.