The Little Prince of Today. Part 6.

THE NEWS

Then the beautiful and great Hawk once again appeared. He asked Owen to go to a lonely place where they can talk without anyone listening. They did it.

HAWK - Owen, I bring news for you. Nothing pleasant, but I have an obligation to inform you.
OWEN - Do not scare me, please ... what happens?
HAWK - It's your father, King Max III ...
OWEN - What's wrong with him? Speak once!
HAWK - The King is dead.
OWEN - What ?! But what are you saying?
HAWK - He reigned for a long time on our Planet. He was very old already.
OWEN - But the time on our Planet is very different from the one here ... he has not reigned too long.
HAWK - More than a millennium, according to Earth's time.
OWEN - Yes, it's true ... but what should I do?
HAWK - You're no longer Prince Max IV; Now you are the King and you have to assume the Kingdom.
OWEN - But ... how am I going to do? And my life on Earth? And my family that I adore with all my soul ... and my friends? And the mission that brought me here?
HAWK - We've talked before. You know it and you knew it. You have helped a lot in this Planet, you have been an example of love, collaboration, honesty ... you have given everything.
OWEN - But it's a very short time ... just twenty years ...
HAWK - My King, we have to leave tomorrow. Do today what you should do. Leave a legacy of love and solidarity for those who may need you, your earthly body.
OWEN - I will. I mean, I already did it when I got my driver's license. Now leave me just a moment. I need to order my ideas, think about what I will do with my family, how to tell my mother what is happening.

The Hawk moved away, leaving Owen deep in thought. He shed many tears, too many. For all that he would have to leave without concluding, perhaps without saying goodbye to so many people he loved and who loved him. He made a decision: he went back to his room, lay down on his bed, and fell into a deep sleep from which he would never wake up.

New York, May 12, 2019

Ivan

Picture courtesy of Jane K. Muller.