Day 3:

Today we will have a meeting on what to do about Ira's father. The entire planet is on edge and you can feel it in the air. You can practically see the unease in the atmosphere. We, the Militia, are going to put an end to this.

"Luhan, it's rude to write at the table," Ira said, capturing my attention.

"S-sorry." I stammered, slamming shut my diary and quickly shoving it into my coat pocket.

"Quite alright." She smiled at me, a teasing light playing in her eyes.

"Lulu's got a diary." Xiumin snickered, elbowing D.O as if this were the funniest thing.

"Act your age." Ira snapped, though there was no malice in her voice.

Silence fell and all eyes were turned to Ira. She looked as beautiful as ever despite the fact that some of the color was missing from her complexion. I could see when her eyes quickly flitted to her ring on her finger and would glimmer with excitement and happiness. Ever since her father had started acting out, Ira's happiness had been draining. I was glad that our daughter and our eminent marriage could make her smile once more. 

"Yet again, our search parties have disappeared. There's no sign of them and no way to communicate them. We have no idea how your father is staying so hidden and where our search parties are going." Sehun reported, his sharp features making this news seem even graver.

"He could be roasting them all." Chanyeol shrugged which earned him various glares and looks of disapproval. "What? It's what I'd do if I didn't want to be found!'

"Chanyeol, I get your point. Yes, my father could be using his ability for bad. But part of me wonders if this is supposed to happen." Ira sighed, all the energy was gone from her now.

"How so?" Kai asked, brow furrowed.

"The Tree, on several occasions, has revoked an individual's ability due to the fact that they were using it for bad. It hasn't done that yet and I'm starting to wonder if this is the end of my reign." She explained.

"But why would your reign end?" I asked, standing up in shock and knocking my chair back.

"How would I know? All things must come to an end, no?" As she spoke, a look flashed in Ira's eyes that I couldn't ignore. She was slowly losing her will to rule. I could remember when we were children and she was chosen to be queen. I could see once more in her eyes her desire to escape such responsibility.

"Perhaps, but not like this. If your reign ends with your father taking over, EXO will be destroyed. The Tree chose you. You can't override the Tree's decision." Lay shook his head.

"He's right. If this was meant to be, your powers would have been revoked. It's been millennia and you haven't done anything worth losing your title. This is simply your father desiring what he does not deserve." Tao nodded in agreement. 

"So what do we do about him?" She rubbed at her temples

"We wait. At this rate, we're only making ourselves weaker by sending out our troops in search parties which they never return from. This battle is not in our favor at this time, so we wait for your father to strike first and make himself vulnerable," Suho said from the far end of the table.

"We can't just wait! Waiting will make it too late when we can take action! I say we strike now and get this trouble out of the way." I yelled angrily.

Shocked looks found their way towards me and I understood why. Out of everyone, I hated combat the most. Even Lay was more eager to go into battle than me. It was unlike me to suggest that we charge head first into a situation such as this one.

"Luhan, I don't like it either! You think I don't want to go right now and make sure that Ira doesn't have to worry about anything?" Suho shot back, pain in his eyes. He had loved Ira once and she chose me over him. He knew that and he wanted to respect it, but I wasn't making that easy for him.

"Please, I don't have the energy for quarrels. I agree with Suho that we wait. There's nothing else that we can do at this point." Ira held her hand out to stop us, sighing. "Just be ready for anything at all times."

"Are you alright?" I asked, sitting on the edge of Ira's bed tentatively.

"I'm just worn out. I'm worried about my father and about Mari. I just want to get married and have everything turn out okay." Ira smiled at me comfortingly though her words only made me sad.

"Let's have the wedding tomorrow," I said, surprising myself.

"Tomorrow? You realize that that's in a few hours, yes?" Ira stared at me in shock.

"I know. But I don't want to wait any longer. This is the perfect time to do this. We need something to lift people's spirits in this time of worry." I urged, leaning forward.

"Luhan, we have nothing prepared." Ira shook her head.

"We don't need a big ceremony. You have a dress and I have a ring. All we need is an altar and some vows. We can do it with just the Militia and Ciara and some of the servants here." I sounded almost begging now, but I didn't mind. For some reason beyond me, I felt it urgent that we get married now. 

"You don't sound like you're going to give up," she said, a smile in her eyes.

"Is that a yes?" I raised an eyebrow at her.

"Yes, you idiot. Let's get married tomorrow." She smiled, a hint of the Ira from our childhood shining through.

Yes, let's.

I wandered about nervously, chewing at my lip in anticipation of what was to come. This felt so out of place given the circumstances, but it felt so right at the same time. With all of the stress on Ira, I just wanted her to have one day to herself. A wedding was all I could give her at this point. I had given Ira my heart and my life and now here we were, about to bind us together forever.

"Luhan, you can't come in! You mustn't see the bride before she come out." An attendant shouted at me as I tried to see Ira.

Disappointed, I turned away and pouted as I walked away.

I walked down the hall, wandering to kill time. Occasionally I would stop to talk to someone, but staying in one spot seemed to make me even more nervous. I was anticipating this marriage with both excitement and a dash of fear. I was afraid of forever, afraid that I couldn't keep Ira happy.

"Luhan!" Kris called to me, running down the hall.

"Yes?" I perked up at the sound of my friend's voice.

"Where's Ira?" He asked, lowering his voice as he looked around.

"What's wrong?" I asked, noticing Kris' tone.

"Is she safe?" Kris asked.

"She's getting ready, but they won't let me see her," I said slowly. I was confused. What was happening that was so stressing. Why was Kris refusing to tell me what was happening?

"We need her now." Kris spoke gravely.

"But what about the wedding?" I blurted, worried now.

"Her father took the opportunity to attack. He's burning down every village that leads to the palace. We need to set up a defense now," Kris said with urgency.

"Get the others, I'll get Ira." I nodded. I was worried, but I had to be strong.

I ran back to Ira's room as quickly as I could, pushing my muscles to their limit. Disregarding the attendant, I burst through the door to reach Ira. The maids all jumped in shock and tried to push me out the door, but Ira simply turned to me with calm eyes. She looked at me with curiosity and waved off her maid as she stood.

"What is it?" Ira asked calmly. But behind her eyes I could see worry. She knew something was wrong.

"Your father is attacking. The others are putting up a defense, but it may be too late." I explained, wringing my hands. 

I watched as Ira's golden eyes turned a darker color as they did when she was angry. She set her jaw and straightened her posture. Without hesitation, she gripped her silk dress in her hands and tore the fabric away from her body. Several maids gasped and one even fainted, but they understood the weight of the matter.

"Let's go," Ira said firmly and strode out of the room.

"Ira, he's already here! He has the Tree of Life surrounded in flames." Sehun cried as he came my way.

"We're too late." She shook her head, squeezing her eyes shut in grief.

"He says that if you give up your crown, he'll let the tree live and stop his attack," Sehun said, casting his eyes down.

"We aren't letting him. He is not going to get what he wants." Ira clenched her teeth together, rushing forward.

We hurried to the courtyard in the middle of the palace where the Tree was. A ring of flames surrounded the Tree and burned dangerously as if daring Ira to challenge them.

"Suho, forget the tree. I can handle this here. Go with the others to the villages and save whatever and whomever you can." Ira ordered.

I watched the fear in her eyes grow to anger as she strode forward to the tree.

Opening and closing my mouth, longing to call out to Ira, I turned away reluctantly. I had to trust that Ira could handle her father. The others and I had to save the villages and make sure that we could stop the fire. 

Running, Suho and I met with the others outside the palace walls where fire at everything in sight and swallowed everything we had once loved. Screams painted the air and I could see before me a once beautiful landscape being torn apart by evil. 

Tears fought their way to my eyes, but I blinked them back. I had to be focused now. Xiumin and Suho were already working on taming the fire while the others were trying to find survivors. Shaking my head to completely clear it, I began to lift up burning debris to see if there were any civilians trapped beneath the rubble. We were working fast, but it was too little too late. There were more corpses than people and it was taking a toll on all of us. Yes, ther had been wars before, but we had never seen such ruin as this.

Suddenly, a blinding light flashed from within the palace.

"Ira!" I screamed, turning to run towards the palace, but someone grasped my arm to stop me.

"Luhan, don't. She's safe." I turned to see Tao holding me back.

"Tao? But how do you know? Weren't you just over there...?" I pointed and trailed off when I saw another Tao working to save the people.

"I'm from another time and I can't answer your questions. Just know that Ira is safe. She used her powers to create a stone out of the Tree. Whoever has that stone can control whomever once relied on the Tree. Find the stone and find Ira." Tao warned before dissipating into thin air.

"Tao!" I called, but he was gone.

This made no sense. Ira was safe, but I had to find a stone? Why would she not be able to find it?

As questions consumed my mind, the blinding light consumbed my body. I felt weightless in this light and felt as if I were falling up. For a moment, I thought I was dead, but I was brought back to reality when I crashed into the earth painfully.

, I sat up when my sight was returned to me. I looked around to see the other members of the Militia scattered about, but there was no one else around. This was not EXO. The land was different and the air was strange. Most troubling, though, was the fact that Ira was nowhere to be seen.

We were somewhere new.

Ira was gone.

And so was our hope.