Interstellar Age

Lunaria and Celestia stared at Erich in complete and total disbelief for several seconds of awkward silence. Almost as if they believed they had not heard the man correctly, and then out of nowhere both of them flushed red in embarassment, as Lunaria began to stammer wildly, completely unable to form a proper sentence as she did so.

"What? But, you, me, we, how? You don't even know me!"

Erich however chuckled when he heard this. In both lives, he had never been able to get the ancient and majestic beauty to blush like a little schoolgirl. It was honestly the cutest thing he had ever seen, and he was quick to voice this thought aloud.

"You're adorable... In the damn near thirty years we have known each other, I have never been able to get such a reaction from you... I suppose this is coming out of nowhere. After all, in this timeline, this is our first meeting, at least in person..."

Lunaria was convinced Erich was a madman, she honestly could no longer tell if the man was lying to her or being truthful, but Celestia was quick to catch onto his words, as she pointed at the man with wide eyes that were filled with disbelief.

"You're a Sage!"

Lunaria looked back and forth between her daughter and Erich, and was quick to deny this potential reality.

"That's not possible! The sages are only found among the Elven species! Besides, those old fogies are all full of shit!"

Erich looked at Lunaria with an expression that pointed out her hypocrisy, something he was quick to comment on himself.

"Who exactly are you calling old, Lunaria? I happen to know that you are at least old enough to have been an infant during the Primeval Era and that was millions of years ago..."

Lunaria stared at Erich in disbelief. It had been so long that she was perhaps the only being that still drew breath who was old enough to remember an era that was more legend than history. Because of this, she had always claimed she was much younger than she actually was. Despite the fact that her mother was the last Empress of the Ancient Elven Empire.

There were so many things that Lunaria wanted to say to this shameless man. She had already completely forgotten the rage she should be feeling in this moment due to the fact that Erich had shamelessly called her by her own name. And before she could remember this, Erich spoke up once more.

"I am indeed what your people refer to as the Sages. Though I must say the abilities of those who still live are far inferior to those of their predecessors. I have seen many things from the long-forgotten past, to the secrets of the present, to the uncertainty of the future. And I know for certain that the Elven Sages were capable of far greater things than just getting a glimpse of the near future.

For example, I come from a doomed timeline, one where an extra-galactic race invaded the galaxy and presumably wiped out all life. That race was the Naraku. They are currently devouring the last remnants of biological life in the Andromeda Galaxy, and plan to invade the Milky Way in full force within the next eighty years. Unfortunately for me, some idiot accidentally triggered their invasion prematurely during my past life.

I journeyed across timelines to prepare for that day. Hence why I developed an advanced artificial intelligence. One that has proven loyal to me more than once... She's actually the reason I made it back here.

Lunaria, I won't speak of my past life, which you have no memory of, but I am indeed loyal to you for reasons you can not fathom. And I intend to fulfill the promise I made to you before our together time was cut short in that life...

I will build the Germanic Star-Empire into a nation worthy of being called your ally, and together we will rule this Galaxy... I have at most fifty years to pull this off, as by my calculations we will need to prepare for at least thirty years for the Naraku Invasion."

Lunaria stared at Alex in disbelief. She honestly did not know how to treat his words. The Naraku were an extra galactic race that intended to invade the galaxy and everything in it? It sounded like a grand conspiracy, or some bullshit lie that Erich was saying to gain her trust.

But when Lunaria thought about it, her mother had said the origins of the Naraku were mysterious, and that they had suddenly shown up in the galaxy without any warning. Perhaps Erich was telling the truth.

Celestia however was more eager for Erich to prove he was actually a sage and was quick to voice this while her mother was mulling over the man's words.

"Alright... Say you're actually a sage, and you have somehow unlocked an ancient and forgotten ability to transcend timelines. Prove it! What exactly is my royal mother going to do next?"

Erich smirked when he heard this, before saying exactly what Lunaria was about to do to him.

"Your mother is going to slap the ever living shit out of me..."

After saying this Erich did not wait for a response and shamelessly leaned forward and kissed Lunaria, shocking both herself and her daughter. After tasting her lips again for the first time in what felt like a lifetime, Erich sat back in his seat with a dumb smile on his face as he closed his eyes and waited for the inevitable.

And just as Erich had predicted a loud slap resounded throughout the interior of the luxury yacht. Along with a red handprint on Erich's cheek. Still, he did not stop smiling. Despite the fact that Lunaria and Celestia were both glaring daggers at him.

Lunaria hissed through her clenched teeth, so enraged by Erich's shamelessness, that she honestly still could not believe he had just forced a kiss upon her.

"You dare! You dare steal my first kiss! There are not words to express the level of pain you will suffer from my hand-"

Before Lunaria could finish her thought, her eyes widened, and she froze on the spot. A thousand images flashed through her head in that moment, memories of the good times that she and Erich had shared in their past life.

Erich had never before dared to violate Lunaria's mind with his telepathy, but at this moment he felt the need to project his memories. Or else she might actually have him executed for his bold actions just now.

Of course, Erich did not include the memories that he regretted, or how he turned away from Lunaria and his other lovers after he had been forced to join the Terminus Hive. Nor did he include the group activities between him, Lunaria, and Celestia. As he felt that in that moment, she would not be able to handle such a scandalous revelation.

And once Lunaria had awoken from her daze, she stared at Erich in a way that Celestia had never witnessed the woman ever stare at anyone before. A single name escaped the ancient Elven beauty's lips, as she tried to determine if what she had seen and felt just now was all real.

"Erich...."