---
(On a hill near the rebel camp)
A group rode on horseback, making their way toward the camp.
Kaelia and the others followed close behind.
Kara was with them too—still unconscious, safely carried on one of the horses.
A barrier surrounded her body, preventing anything from touching or harming her.
The leader of the small rebel group called out,
"We're not far now, everyone—we'll be there soon," he said, riding ahead.
Kaelia rode among the rebels.
When Henry had been attacked by Doomsday, she fled and returned to the tavern where she reunited with her group.
Using the device Henry had given her, Kaelia tracked Kara's location.
They spent days searching for her until the tracker finally picked up a signal.
Following it, they found Kara at a rebel camp.
At first, the rebels were hostile and distrustful. But once Kaelia explained what had happened and whose side she was on, their attitude began to change.
They bonded with the rebels and learned where Kara was being kept.
According to them, Kara had been in a coma for a very long time.
She'd been caught in a temporal disturbance, one that happened a few years after she was sent to the Phantom Zone.
This temporal anomaly created an indestructible barrier around her body, sometimes making her intangible.
The rebels who had once been her friends took care of her and protected her, waiting for the day she would finally wake up. So much time passed that a legend began to form around her—because she never woke.
Kaelia met the leader of the group watching over Kara.
She told him her brother wanted to see Kara again.
But he told her not to worry—he had already contacted another rebel leader.
That's when she discovered Henry had been captured.
She and her team grew closer to the rebels and soon learned there had been unrest among the rebel groups.
They had joined forces to rescue Henry.
The mission was a success, and they were now on their way back to the camp where he had been protected.
But on the way, they were intercepted by Zod's guards.
A battle broke out.
Kaelia's group fought fiercely, but they were outnumbered.
The rebels formed a circle, placing the weaker members in the center for protection.
Swords clashed. Arrows flew. Bodies fell.
Their numbers were dwindling quickly—at least a hundred guards surrounded them, while they were no more than thirty.
They were being boxed in.
Suddenly, someone leaped over the rebels and landed in the middle of Zod's soldiers, sending over ten men flying with a single wind-charged slash of his sword.
It was a man—a young man.
His face was serious, eyes locked in focus.
Henry had arrived just in time, wielding a sword.
He stood in the center of Zod's soldiers.
All attention turned to him.
"Get him!" a guard shouted.
"Careful!" Kaelia called out.
"Don't let him escape!"
The soldiers attacked, but Henry swung his sword, releasing a shockwave that launched the first group backward.
Another squad closed in, but Henry flipped his blade and used the blunt side to knock them back without killing them.
With Henry's arrival, the pressure on the rebels lessened drastically.
He jumped high, landing hard near a group of Zod's soldiers. The impact cracked the ground, and several enemies fell into the fissures.
Henry continued tearing through the ranks.
The rebels regained their advantage and helped finish off the rest of the guards.
When the battle was over, Henry approached the survivors.
He saw Kaelia, her brother Rhydan, and the group that had been with him before the Doomsday fight.
Raising the hand he still had, Henry stepped forward and smiled.
"Guys... It's good to see you. I'm glad you're all okay."
Kaelia and the others gathered around him, exchanging words and laughs.
They had grown close during their time together.
"Looks like you're still in one piece... well, mostly," Rhydan said.
Henry grasped the stump of his missing arm with his remaining hand, lowering his gaze.
"I'll fix it... somehow," he muttered.
But right now, he wanted to see one person—his sister.
That's why he was here.
He turned away from the others and walked toward the unconscious girl lying atop one of the horses.
Beside her was a young girl, holding Kara to keep her steady.
Henry approached. The others had told him what Kara looked like.
As he neared, he got a better look at the girl. She wore a hood, had long blonde hair, and pale skin. She couldn't have been more than sixteen
She was beautiful—strikingly similar to their biological mother.
Henry smiled softly.
"May I?" he asked.
The girl nodded and watched him closely.
Henry reached out and gently ran his fingers through Kara's hair.
He stayed like that for a moment, smiling like a fool, lost in the moment.
The girl beside her looked at Henry in awe, surprised by what she was seeing.
Henry didn't notice when all the rebels dropped to their knees, heads bowed.
After a while, he turned around—confused by the sight.
Everyone was kneeling. Even his friends.
They were revering him.
Henry let out a small sigh, unsure what to make of it.
---
(Back at the rebel camp)
Henry sat at a large round table. Around him were his friends—Kaelia, Rhydan, the rebels who had helped him escape, the mage, and the girl who'd watched over Kara.
He had returned to the camp and was now preparing to leave for Earth. It was time to say goodbye. Zod could already be there.
"Why did they kneel back there?" Henry asked.
"You're one of the few people who can touch her," said Valira—the girl who had spent years caring for Kara.
"What do you mean?" he asked.
"No one but me can even get near her. And I can only touch her because part of that temporal anomaly hit me too. We're linked. That's why I can interact with her at all. But you... you're her brother. When they saw that, they knew who you were," Valira explained.
"Oh..." Henry mumbled.
"What's going to happen to her? How can I wake her up?" he asked.
"I don't know... We've tried everything. Nothing works," Valira said, disheartened.
Henry sighed and looked at the mage.
"What about you? Can you do something?" he asked.
"Don't look at me like I'm a miracle worker... do you know how much mana I spent getting you out of there?" she snapped.
Henry stood up. It was time to leave.
"I have to go back. I don't know if Zod has reached Earth yet."
"Then take me with you," said Reed.
"He's right—you'll need help. And you can't just leave after everything we've done for you," said Valen.
Henry paused and said, "I know. I'm not running away. I need to go back because my people need me."
"We are your people," Valen reminded him.
"I know that too... I don't want to leave, but I don't have a choice. I wish I could take all of you, but... the device that opens the portal to the Phantom Zone can only take three at a time. Anything more would be destroyed."
"If you need to go, that's fine. Just don't forget your promise," said Valen.
"I won't," Henry replied.
"I'm going back. None of you are obligated to fight. You've already done more than enough for me. But if anyone wants to help me, I'd be happy to have you."
He expected no one to volunteer.
But to his surprise, everyone around the table raised their hands.
"I'm going. Someone needs to babysit His Majesty," Reed said sarcastically.
"He's right. You can't take care of yourself," Rhydan added.
"You're a fool. Inexperienced. But I'll go."
"Me too."
One by one, they all volunteered.
"Guys..." Henry whispered, genuinely moved.
"I'll go too," said the mage.
"You?" Henry asked, surprised.
"I'm the most experienced one here. You'll need me. There's a lot I can teach you—and you'll definitely need my help."
Henry wanted to argue, but having a powerful mage on his side would be a huge advantage.
Others wanted to go as well, but in the end, only one could join him.
Henry agreed to take the mage.
Kaelia had already handed him the bracelet that would open a portal to Earth.
Standing in an open field, Henry carried his sister. Valira watched from a distance as her friend was taken away.
Sadness filled her heart—but she had always known this day would come.
The mage stood behind Henry and Kara.
"Goodbye, everyone. Wait for me. I will return. I'll keep my promise," Henry said, activating the portal.
Kaelia looked a little sad to see him go.
"Goodbye," their friends said in chorus.
Henry, the mage, and his sister stepped through the portal.
It closed behind them.
"Do you think he'll come back?" Reed asked.
...