CHAPTER 456: MELODY OF CHANGE

The captivating melody echoed inside the giant chamber. The metal and frozen surfaces resonated with her song, amplifying it.

The engineers controlled by the parasites turned towards the beautiful melody in confusion. Their eyes landed on Valerie, and every single one knelt with their heads bowed.

The parasites ejected from their necks and floated into the air. They wriggled, trying to escape the invisible force holding their tiny bodies.

Valerie didn’t kill them immediately. She wasn’t a vengeful person, nor a sadist, but she knew when a punishment was in order.

Water droplets began falling one after another as the ice melted on the ceiling. Like rain, the water fell all around the chamber. As the droplets landed in the puddles, the room further harmonized with Valerie’s singing.

The air heated back up, and the parasite’s wriggling and screeching increased. However, even their disturbing screams created a perfect harmony with Valerie’s enthralling voice.

The generator’s heavy buzzing turned lighter too, adjusting to the melody’s frequency.

The music spread throughout the entire vessel, echoing through the ship’s metal framing. It sounded as if an entire orchestra was playing somewhere in the ship’s belly.

The children and civilians began dancing with joy at the warm melody, while the soldiers rushed towards the source.

Many people simply knelt on the ground upon hearing the music, with their heads bowed and necks exposed. The parasites ejected from their necks too, and together they floated towards the generator room.

In the waters surrounding the ship, the large octopus-like creatures named Scigny tried escaping the melody. The parasites infected the ship, using it as travelling vessels, but even they couldn’t escape an Ethereal’s wrath.

From each Scigny, a bunch of parasites flew out, back onto the Old Dawn. The octopus creatures simply stopped moving, their consciousness long dead.

All the parasites gathered around the generator room, floating midair. They wriggled and shrieked, yet Valerie’s melody only became better from their noise.

The generator’s rumbling became louder, and minor explosions shook its metallic surface, adding another instrument to the strange yet beautiful music.

Metal fragments, bolts and gears flew into the air. Slowly, the entire machinery came apart and began floating around the giant room.

Plumes of smoke and scalding hot air escaped the burst vents, creating a cloud near the ceiling, while broken pipes filled the ground with near absolute zero coolant. The two temperatures met, creating a perfect environment.

Valerie’s singing gradually got louder as she reached the song’s crescendo. There she stopped for a moment, appreciating the exquisite melody she created.

The metal bits and pieces clanked into each other. The parasites continued screeching and wriggling, which from Henry’s point of view looked like dancing.

The water drops continued hitting the metal floor and the large puddles. Even the fast-approaching soldiers’ footsteps added to the music.

The tall woman chuckled with delight and soon continued her wordless song.

The metal pieces began falling fast. They began repairing themselves while moving through the air.

The bolts snapped the machine pieces into place. The gears snapped together. The polymer parts connected everything. The broken pipes and burst vents connected to the generator.

Within moments, the entire machine put itself back together.

Valerie’s song became quieter, and even the parasite’s shrieks nearly died out. The soldiers reached the generator room, so their footfalls stopped too.

Silence reigned inside the dark generator room until a small, mechanical beeping echoed through the metal surfaces. Small lights flickered on around the machinery, creating an eerie atmosphere.

A wide smile grew on Valerie’s lips as she began singing again. Her voice got louder, along with the shrieking parasites and the hum of the generator.

The melody continued growing louder as Valerie’s song reached its finale!

She screamed her lungs out as the generator hummed with joy and began generating energy for the vessel again. The temperature increased, and with the warmth, all the parasites shrieked one last time before exploding into confetti!

With that, her song reached its end. Her voice began dying down again, but just before it fully disappeared, Valerie stomped her feet hard, sending a loud echo throughout the vessel.

A moment later, the metal surface below her feet began changing color from regular metallic gray to an aesthetic dark blue, similar to her and Henry’s eyes.

The blue coloring spread through the generator room and the surrounding corridors. Every metal surface on the ship changed color until no boring gray remained.

The singing faded into silence, and only the generator’s gentle hum remained as background noise.

Valerie turned towards the gathered few hundred people with a wide smile. She stood with a straight back, and bowed from the waist, like an actor after an award-winning performance.

The gathered soldiers couldn’t help but clap and cheer after hearing such a magnificent melody. Vicky, Will, Sarah and even Henry began clapping, albeit her son only did it ironically.

The General just stood baffled, shaking his bowed head. However, under his hand, he hid a small joyful smile.

"Thank you! I hope everyone enjoyed my performance! I also bring good news! With my son’s arrival, we finally found a way to get back home!"

An even louder cheer went up as all the soldiers’ faces glowed with excitement. They thought their Captain was joking at first, but her sincerity was soon confirmed.

"That’s right, everybody!" Said the General without raising his voice, cutting through the chatter and excited cheers.

The crowd became deathly silent as General Bryce explained the situation. However, Henry didn’t tell him everything yet, and he found the current crowd a bit too enthusiastic.

"I think we should discuss everything privately first." Said Henry in a whisper to Bryce. The General nodded without glancing away from his soldiers.

"Okay everyone! Spread the word and get ready for our exodus! We’ll return to Earth soon!"

The soldiers ran off, while Vicky teleported everybody else back to the Captain’s office. They walked into the room next door, which had a pretty big lounge area.

Everybody found a seat, and soon the long-awaited question arrived with a sigh from Valerie’s mouth.

"So, what’s the situation back on Earth? Since Liza isn’t with you, I assume things aren’t great."

Will snorted, while Sarah laughed. Henry and Vicky’s expressions stayed serious.

"Nah ma’am. Things are way worse than ’aren’t great’. We’re in a losing war against Asia, and if we don’t hurry, the Antarctican Continent won’t survive the next few hours!"

As always, Will’s words, while rude, held a concise truth within them. The General went pale after hearing his words, while Sarah just continued chuckling.

Valerie smiled gently and prepared a witty comeback. Henry intercepted the dialogue, which saved everyone the trouble of hearing two immature adults’ banter.

"We aren’t exactly losing, but the enemy has way more Stellars, and an Ethereal is leading them. The Stellars aren’t the current problem though. We need someone to occupy the Ethereal, and since everyone from Europe got locked away, you’re our only hope!"

General Bryce and Valerie glanced at each other. Only a handful of Ethereals existed in Europe, so Asia probably wasn’t any different.

"First, we’d like more information about what’s happened in the past four years—"

Before the General could’ve continued, Vicky cut in, her white eyes full of seriousness and hints of desperation.

"We don’t have time. Our friends and allies are currently putting their lives on the line. They’re fighting without a chance at victory! We need to help them as soon as possible!"

Bryce opened his mouth to berate Vicky, but Valerie raised her hand, silencing everyone. She smiled at Vicky, finally seeing the young girl in a new light.

At first, Valerie believed she was just a close friend to Henry, but seeing the two seated right beside each other and hearing their arguments... There was no hiding it!

"I don’t think you’ve introduced yourself yet," Began Valerie, her smile widening at the girl’s surprised expression. "My name is Valerie, the Captain of Old Dawn and the supposed Queen of London!"

The gigantic woman reached out towards Vicky, grasping her much smaller hand in a gentle handshake.

It took her a few moments, but soon the Princess regained her composure and smiled back with warmth.

"My name is Victoria. Princess of the Angelic Order, current leader of most European city-states, and the upholder of Europe’s alliance with Antarctica and South-America... I’m also your son’s fiancé..."

She couldn’t hold back her blush from showing. Her voice also became meek, making her extremely cute in Valerie’s eyes.

To show some semblance of control, her white eyes stayed focused on her future mother-in-law’s dark blue ones.

Vicky’s words silenced the room. Will and Sarah smiled smugly and with pride, while Henry grasped his fiancée’s empty hand.

Valerie soon released her other one and leaned back on the leather sofa comfortably.

"Fine then, we’ll help. How could I say no to my cute daughter-in-law’s request? However, we’ve a slight issue. The fighting could last for days, which’s four times as long inside this Realm. We can’t leave our people behind after telling them the good news."

The young Princess raised a confused eyebrow at Valerie’s request.

"I mean, this problem has a simple solution... Why don’t I open a Gate wide enough for the entire Old Dawn to pass through? That would solve all the issues, wouldn’t it?"

The General’s and Valerie’s eyes widened with surprise, while Will and Sarah laughed at their dumb expressions. Henry simply gave a small squeeze to Vicky’s hand while looking down with concern.

Vicky had never opened such a large Gateway before. She never pushed herself too much either, but still... There were too many unknowns...

However, Henry knew better than anyone how hard it’s changing his stubborn fiancée’s mind, so instead of berating or disagreeing with her, he just provided silent support.

A few seconds later, Valerie clapped, bringing everyone’s attention back to herself.

"That’s amazing! Then let’s begin immediately!"