Now that Zhang had made up his mind to help the humans of this planet, he immediately starts thinking of ways to help them.

The obvious and most effective way he realizes would be to go to the sky kingdom. He is confident that he can get there if he can come up with a plan to breach the thin layer of cloud that forms something akin to a shield, restricting entry into the so-called Sky dwellers' kingdom.

He makes his way to the ship's navigation panel and opens the history window in the ship's log.

'There it is.' Zhang chirps excitedly, pulling up the charts showing the components forming the shield. He knows that with a few changes to the atmosphere regulators and a few modifications to the thrusters, he would definitely be able to breach it and enter the paradise-like place.

With the first step planned, he promptly gets to work. He continues to work till his stomach growls; he goes to the small kitchenette tucked in a small corner of the ship, presses a few buttons and a simple yet sustainable meal appears before him. He gobbles it down before going back to the control panel and working on the adjustments.

*****

YiYang sighs; he is unsure if he should tell the younger about his encounter with Zhang. For he can't comprehend how YiHuang will react, hearing about a human whose eyes glowed the same way his eyes did.

A long time ago, YiHuang had confided in him about his vision and had sworn him to secrecy.

YiYang had kept the secret. Looking at YiHuang's reaction just moments ago, YiYang decides to not come completely clean about his encounter with Zhang.
He is still contemplating how he should approach the subject when YiHuang interrupts his thoughts, "Brother, I didn't press you for answers then, but you need to tell me how you were able to breathe land air?"

The crown prince looks around the room to make sure that they were alone before answering, "A-Huang, I didn't cross the barrier on my own. I was bumped off the edge when I was investigating an unidentified flying object that seemed to have grazed past our atmosphere."

YiHuang's eyes widen, and he purses his lips, "Brother, we must report this to father immediately."

Of course, this is how YiYang had imagined his brother to react, so he is prepared, "Ah-Huang," he sighs before continuing, "Listen to the whole thing."

YiHuang calms down; something in his brother's eyes tells him that they are not under any kind of threat. He nods, signaling the older to continue.

"The thing that bumped me off the barrier was a spaceship."

A small gasp leaves YiHuang's lips at the information, but he doesn't interrupt his brother.

"I fell into the sea; the air over the sea was a little breathable, but due to impact, I lost consciousness." YiYang pauses to gauge YiHuang's reaction. He smiles. YiHuang had always been very protective of him, and now that he was being told how his brother had had an accident, the younger is furious.

"Brother, what makes you smile?" YiHuang asks, visibly angry at the mistimed smile directed at him by his dear brother, who was in the middle of describing an unfortunate event!

YiYang shakes his head and continues, "When I opened my eyes, I was being dragged out of the sea by a human." YiYang raises his hand, stopping YiHuang, who is about to interrupt him. He presses on, "I couldn't breathe; the air on land is still toxic to our system." he pauses, recalling the suffocating feeling, and his hand moves to his throat, "I started gasping for breath. I knew I won't survive for long. The human swiftly supported me and took me inside his space vehicle. I think I must have lost consciousness again, but when I came to, the human had his palm placed over my forehead." YiYang pauses and chuckles at the memory of how his gift had categorized the human's touch as a threat and flung him away.

YiHuang looks at his brother with an 'I think the accident damaged him' kind of look in his eyes, "What's so funny about you almost dying on land!?" the younger asks.

YiYang ignores the question and continues, "Of course, my gift protected me, and he was flung to the other side of the room."

YiHuang can't help but notice the affectionate tone his brother's voice has taken while describing the events. This further cements his belief that his brother's mental health had indeed been compromised and that it was probably due to the injury he had incurred during the accident. He frowns.

YiYang fails to notice it and continues, "Ah-Huang, he may have been the reason I fell, but he was also the one who saved my life. Moreover, he is not human. Well, technically, he is, but he doesn't belong to this dimension. So..."

Hearing this makes YiHuang's eyebrows disappear into his hairline. "Mn!?"

"He is from Earth 2.03. Remember, we read about how humans had destroyed their planet and themselves in the war for resources? Zhang is from that planet."

"Zhang..." YiHuang mutters under his breath, the human's name rolling off of his lips like it belongs there. His eyes get a dazed look, and the tips of his ears turn scarlet.

YiYang doesn't fail to notice the slight flush that colors his brother's cheeks, nor does he miss the soft look in YiHuang's eyes. He is instantly glad that he had protected Zhang. Looking at YiHuang, the crown prince is now more than sure that the human and his brother are connected somehow. What remains to be seen is, what is it that has the power to link a human and a YuanJian?

YiYang clears his throat, startling the younger prince. His blush deepens. YiYang pretends to ignore it and states matter-of-factly, "He saved my life, so it's only right that I return the favor. You know how father gets whenever humans or their technology are mentioned. I told Zhang to find his people and live without drawing attention to himself."

YiHuang's face falls a little. It doesn't escape YiYang. "Ah-Huang, you don't need to worry about him causing trouble. He looked and acted like a gentleman. With the right attire, he could pass as one of us." YiYang says, looking and sounding impressed with the human.

YiHuang's expression sours.
'Does my little brother have a crush on a human whom he has not even met?' the older prince wonders, smiling on the inside.

YiHuang abruptly stands up and bows to his brother and states, "Looks like there is nothing to worry about, I shall take my leave," and walks out of the crown prince's chamber, much to the older prince's surprise.

*****

By the time Zhang is done, it's already dark outside.

"All done," The astronaut exclaims, hugging the control panel and kissing one of the many keys on the complicated-looking board. He looks out the window, and darkness greets his eyes, 'It's better like this.' He reassures himself. After all, he was planning to go to the sky kingdom unannounced, so his chances of getting in unnoticed would be better in the dark.

He caresses the monitor attached to the panel and whispers seductively, "My sweet companion, just get me there, and I will make it worth your while." He chuckles excitedly and kisses the monitor's edge before typing in the coordinates of his destination.

Over the next few minutes, Zhang double-checks the systems concerning aviation in case he had overlooked something. Finding everything in order, he goes to his small cabin and opens his suitcase, which holds two pairs of neatly stacked informal cloths and a small wooden box double the size of a spare change holder.
He reaches for the box and opens it to reveal a metal disk with zick-zack edges.

Zhang looks at it fondly and rubs its smooth surface with his thumb. "General....father, I hope it brings me luck just like it did to you," Zhang murmurs and brings the surface of the disc to his warm lips before pocketing it. He closes his eyes and whispers, "For Earth."

"Let's do this!" He says excitedly before sitting on the Captain's seat and pressing a circular red button positioned in the middle of its wide arm.

Immediately, the whole ship starts to vibrate and lifts off the ground. It hovers a foot above land for a few seconds before shooting up vertically into the sky at almost the speed of light.
A few seconds later, there is a loud bang as the ship collides with the translucent barrier of Lan Teingfei empire, and the outer hull of the ship cracks.

"Damn it!!!" Zhang yells as his body is once again flung across the ship's deck just like it had happened when he had touched YiYang's forehead, and his head hits the nearest wall, a sharp pain shoots from the middle of his shoulder blades, and he loses conciseness.

*****

Having left his brother's chamber, YiHuang goes to the Eastern grove. It's a place that no one bothered to visit as the citizens of TengFei had lost the allure of all things nature-related in the past century. YiHuang, for reasons unknown, had always found solace there. Every time he stayed in TengFei for longer than a few days, he would automatically set camp in a cave he had come across in the secluded forest years ago. The Emperor never bothered and doted on him like he did on his brother and had left him to his devices as long as he fulfilled his duties: barrier maintenance and security of remote regions of the sky empire.
As expected, spending time in the grove calms him down. So as soon as the sun sets, he leaves and makes his way to the armory, intending to get ready to make a trip to land.

Since his brother had mentioned Zhang's name, the pull he had felt when he was on land had returned, making YiHuang restless and anxious.
There was a reason why YiHuang was feeling like he needed to find this human: Zhang. Though YiHuang had told his brother about his recurring dream, he had never explained it to him in detail.

For instance, YiHuang had never told his brother that the man in his dreams had glowing blue eyes, nor had he told his brother that this man was called Zhang.

YiHuang almost reaches the armory before he recalls it to be a restricted section directly under the Emperor's direct command, and only those with permission could enter. 

YiHuang couldn't tell the reason for wanting to visit land: a place despised by his people.

So he does the next best thing, he decides to wait for the sun to set. For YiHuang knows that during the dead of the night, he would be able to enter the forbidden area relatively unhindered when the sun was not shining over the empire. After all, he wants to go to land unannounced.

As soon as darkness falls, with quiet swifts steps, YiHuang makes his way towards the armory.

Once there, he waits for the guards to change their shifts and enters it without alerting security. He picks up his sword and the mask: things that are mandatory for the trip. He is about to leave the place when he feels a pull. He recognizes it to be the same kind he had experienced when he had gone to look for his brother on land earlier that day.

He stops dead in his tracks, and instead of going towards the barrier, he starts walking towards the place that was more of a home to him than the place he had primarily spent most of his childhood in, that brought him comfort and the one that he had left barely an hour ago: the eastern grove.

{Note :- Word count 1995

Please ⭐Vote⭐ to show your support for update if you have enjoyed it.}