Alice, Mei, and Eary stood again amid the icy ruins. The magic inside the jewel had transported them back to this desolate place, but this time, they were determined to find Mote, the small blue moteling who had been Eary's constant companion and friend.

The ruins loomed like frozen sentinels, their secrets hidden beneath layers of ice and time. Eary led the way, his footsteps echoing in the eerie silence. He knew they had to be cautious, for they had no idea what dangers lurked in this forsaken realm.

As they ventured deeper into the ruins, their surroundings grew darker, and the air grew colder. Alice shivered and pulled her coat tighter around her.

"This place gives me the creeps."

Mei nodded in agreement, her eyes scanning the shadows for any movement.

"We need to find Mote quickly and get out of here."

Just as the tension in the air reached its peak, the ground beneath their feet rumbled. Five massive stone statues, each resembling a fearsome warrior, burst from the icy ground, surrounding the trio. Their lifeless eyes glowed with an eerie blue light.

Eary's voice quivered with fear.

"We're trapped!"

The statues moved with mechanical precision, their movements unnaturally fluid as they closed in on Alice, Mei, and Eary. It seemed that escape was impossible.

But just as despair threatened to consume them, a blue light filled the air. Small, furry, bat-eared creatures, darting between the statues with remarkable speed, appeared in a blur. They were the motelings, Mote's kind, and they had come to the rescue.

With acrobatic grace, the motelings leaped onto the statues, distracting them and knocking their stone forms off balance. Eary couldn't help but gasp in amazement at their agility and bravery.

Alice seized the opportunity and removed Mei and Eary from the encroaching statues.

"We need to move," she shouted.

The motelings continued their daring assault, chattering and squeaking as they fought the statues. It was a chaotic and surreal sight, but their determination was undeniable.

Finally, one of the motelings managed to disable a mechanism within a statue, causing it to crumble into pieces. The others followed suit, and soon, all five statues lay in ruins.

Breathing heavily, Alice, Mei, and Eary turned to the motelings with gratitude. Eary's eyes filled with tears.

"Thank you, all of you. You saved our lives," Eary said gratefully.

The motelings chattered and hopped about, seemingly pleased with their heroic efforts. One of them, slightly larger than the others, approached Eary and extended a tiny hand. Pointing at Eary, the little moteling called out,

"You! You're one of Mote's friends. Anu wants to see you."

With the motelings leading the way, the trio soon found themselves in front of a series of tiny, shrine-like houses, each adorned with intricate carvings and symbols. The little holes in the walls hinted at their occupants' small stature.

As they made their way to the largest of these shrines, a sense of wonder washed over them. The path leading there shimmered with enchantments, revealing a hidden entrance. The motelings beckoned them forward.

Inside the grandest shrine, they were met by two motelings, one smaller with a radiant, soft red glow and the other more prominent, blue, and familiar. It was clear which one was Anu, the leader.

Anu's voice was surprisingly deep as she addressed Eary.

"You are Eary, the one connected to the Claris powers, yes?"

Eary nodded, feeling a mix of awe and trepidation.

"Yes, I'm Eary, but I know nothing of this, 'Claris,'" Eary exclaimed, thinking back to the voice in the jewel.

Could it be the same thing that burned him and Ilia?

"We've come in search of Mote, our friend," Eary stated as he scanned his moteling pal.

His light was dimmer as he sat, floating, in a meditative position. Not moving or showing any signs of awareness.

Anu nodded solemnly. "Indeed," Anu said as she floated closer to the party, Mote staying in place. "Mote has undergone a ceremony to cleanse himself of toxins and evils. The world outside can be corrupting to our kind. But Mote is the Legendary Royal Moteling and can not be taken down so easily."

As she spoke, Eary's heart sank as he remembered some of his embarrassing moments with Mote. And some of his best. Eary firmly replied back to Anu.

"I liked Mote the way he was! He doesn't need all this. I need his help! We have a lot of questions for him." Eary explained.

The stoic Mote had awoken from his meditation. Flying to the rest of the group, Mote greeted Eary,

"Hello, my child."

Mote's voice, once boarish and mocking, with his thick accent, was now ethereal and stripped of all personality.

Eary replied in confusion. "Mote?"

Mote's face gazed down at the boy. His serene aura both comforted and disappointed Earhart.

Mote spoke, "I see you are having trouble with my natural state. I apologize, my child."

Mote's voice stilled the darkness and commanded the attention of all. He continued,

"I am the Legendary Royal Moteling, Mote. It is my duty to instruct and train the bloodline of Claris. However, 13,000 years ago, all of that changed." Mote's tone took on a somber vibe." The last of the Claris left us here to guard these ruins. As the tomb of her people. I could never have dreamed another Claris would be found thousands of years later."

Just then, a small yellow moteling approached the pair, it whispered something, and Anu excused herself.

As she departed, Mote approached, and his demeanor dramatically changed. He now spoke with a thick Boston accent, his voice dripping with melodrama.

"Eary, my guy! How could ya leave me in this godforsaken place, surrounded by these pint-sized weirdos? I've been starvin' for some decent food, and don't get me started on the lack of DoorDash and Netflix. It's barbaric, I tell ya, just barbaric!"

Eary's eyes widened in surprise as he struggled to contain his laughter.

"Mote, I missed you too! But we're in the middle of something important. We have a ton of questions," Eary said excitedly.

Mote continued to whine dramatically, his tiny moteling arms flailing.

"Important, shmimportant! I've been bored outta my mind, and these guys have no sense of humor. You gotta get me outta here, kid!"

Despite Mote's theatrics, Eary knew he had to be reunited with his moteling friend. With a smile, he reassured Mote,

"Don't worry. We'll find a way to get you out of here. Just hang in there."

Alice chimed in, elated to see Mote.

"We got a lot of questions. But first, 13,000 years ago?" She asked, her voice betraying her calm exterior.

Mote's grin widened as he replied, "Yep! And I was already old back then. The other Motelings gave me an ass adjustment."

Mote said as he turned to expose his large glowing posterior.

"Turns out my ass was outta alignment! And we Moteling's have a collective memory. So essentially, my ass was on the wrong frequency, so I couldn't remember nothin'."

Eary looked at Mote in shock. He wondered just how much he may have actually preferred the fake Mote. The moteling twerked his behind, shimmering with sacred light, to demonstrate the difference.

"This is serious, Mote!" Alice, interrupting his little dance, stated firmly.

Glancing over knowingly, Mote replied, "Isn't it always?"

Alice straightened her posture and pressed on.

"We talked to a woman's voice-someone named Ilia."

Mote's ears sprang up. "Ilia? What did she say?"

Alice flashed Eary a knowing look, and then she replied,

"She told me to tell you to behave yourself and to explain the situation. But most importantly, she wants you to help Eary."

Eary looked over at Alice in surprise.

"Really?" he asked.

"Really," Alice replied.

Mote paced back and forth on his tiny furry legs. His mind clearly raced with implications.

He muttered to himself. "Anu did say she felt it."

And,

"That great big pull when the kid went off." Mote continued to pace as Eary slowly approached him and asked, eyes full of concern.

"Mote? Am I different," he asked.

Mote sighed, a sigh that spoke of only grave news. Looking at Eary, Mote somberly replied,

"Yeah. You're different, Eary. Anu told me, but... I've always known, somewhere inside me," The little moteling continued. "Ilia is a Claris from the ancient past, Eary; yeah, and I mean Ancient. Queen Grumpy-Pants and I saved the world and stuff some 13,000 years back. I did the same with Micha 13,000 years before that! Now it's your turn. I guess you drew the short straw again, Eary."

Mote exclaimed as Eary interrupted,

"What is that? What on earth is Claris?"

Mote toted back."You are! And there is only one of you out there. Everyone else is just piggybacking off of you! I mean, powers-wise, that is. You're the source, Eary!"

Eary felt numb. He had no idea how to interpret something like this. He stood in a daze until he heard Mei ask,

"Where does Eary's power come from?"

Eary heard Mote's voice reply, although his gaze was fixed on the cavern floor. He studied the stones on the floor as Mote spoke,

"It comes from Claris themself! The creator of the cosmos and my boss to boot! Yeah, they sent me here with a piece of themself in tow! It used to be a sizeable brilliant gem, but then it was broken into four gems. One of the Claris's blood can only possess each of the four shards. The Nocopo created 3 civilizations, each with their own Claris god-ruler."

Eary looked at Mote in awe.

"God-ruler," he asked,

Mote scoffed.

"Don't go taking it literally. The only extraordinary power a Claris has is their ability to master other powers rapidly."

Eary replied in enthusiasm.

"Like in the research facility."

Mote nodded

"and with Ephraim. You must have been chosen around then." Alice replied.

"Chosen?" Mote nodded in shimmering enthusiasm. "Yep! I know it firsthand! Only a handful of the Nocopo and the humans that lived there survived. I know that for a fact! I counted them myself. You'd have to be one of many possible candidates. Ergo, ya must be chosen." Mote examined Eary. "I think you got the shard of life, Eary." Mote's expression shifted. "No, no, it couldn't be the same."

Eary looked down at the blue imp, who, up until now, had always been slinging wisecracks, 'how could this be true?' Eary thought to himself. With a heavy sigh and heart, Eary inquired,

"So what do I have to do?" Mote, with a big mischievous grin, smiled.

"That's the spirit, kid! Don't worry, I've been doin' this a long time, and I ain't lost no Claris yet!" Mote's reassurance helped as the moteling continued. "First! You have to know a war is going on in this world. It is on the edge of the contested territory and all that."

Mei piqued up and asked, "Contested territory?"

Mote continued, "Exactly! There's been a war in our universe since the beginning of time! Between our good creator itself, Claris! ...And the dark one, Eldris."

Alice interjected, "Hold up, few questions."

Mote peeked back at her. "Shoot."

Alice continued. "So why is Eary called a Claris, and there's some sorta God out there named that as well?"

Mote grumbled. "The ancient Nocopo revered their royal families as descendants of Claris, so it became their title." Alice continued.

"Okay, so why did 'Claris' send you then?" Mote cringed as he was reluctant to explain. "It really wasn't that big deal, honest. They blew things way outta proportion!"

Eary folded his arms."What ya do?"

Mote scoffed."Really? You just assume..."

Eary pressed further. "Mote..."

Mote rolled his eyes and explained. "Okay, so a few of my buddies and I had a party; nothing too big now. I invited my whole department and several others. But the next day, there were a ton of call-ins, and a few billion galaxies fell to Eldris. It was a mess." Mote scratched his large ear. He continued, "So, anyway, because I diligently showed up the next day, they stationed me here, on this cozy little backwater. With all my party guests." Mote shrugged.

Alice, Eary, and Mei giggled.

Alice said, "You got demoted."

As she finished, the three burst into laughter. Mote cocked his head and grumbled,

"You three should be thanking me! I've saved this whole rock twice now." Mote crossed his little arms and huffed.

A faint glow of red light caught the corner of Eary's eye. In a moment, Anu was amongst them once more.

She spoke, "Ah, Mote. Have you filled the Claris in on his role?"

Mote, instantly returning to his serene state, replied, "I, uh, was, umm, getting there. Eary, my child, you must defeat the three dark scions of eldris. Only then will our world be safe, and the law of Claris will fill the land once more."

Anu nodded, her melodic aura radiating, and stated. "Indeed. The boy has yet more to unlock. He will need more training."

Mote quickly and melodically replied. "Ah, yes. Indeed, Anu. I shall leave the moteling sanctorium and brave the mortal world again." Mote declared.

Anu replied in concern, "Mote, you have been away already. Surely another moteling can take your place?"

Mote shook his head. "Mmmm, I'm afraid not. For I have much to teach this young one. Much combat and magical stuff, Yes. I must go; only I can teach him to tap into his true power."

Anu asked. "Exactly what kind of magic? He is of Claris stock; we serve as guides, little more Mote."

Mote, with the same mischievous glint in his eye, replied. "Ah, but are you familiar with the powerful magic A-ma-zon?"

Anu looked back, puzzled. "No, where have you..."

Mote immediately interrupted. "You are unfamiliar? It is ancient forbidden magic, and only I know how to access it. Without me, Eary will never have its power."

Anu sighed and looked at Eary. "I can always tell when one is being dishonest. Is it true? Do you need Mote to access the power of A-ma-zon?"

Eary replied, knowing that Mote knew his dad's Amazon password.

"Yes! I absolutely need Mote to access Amazon."

Mote quickly muttered to Eary."A-ma-zon."

Eary looked to Anu and repeated, "A-ma-zon. "

Anu sighed. "Mote, are you really teaching the new Claris to lie?"

Mote shook his head. "It's no lie. Just ask the humans."

Anu scoffed, "Mote, I have known you forever! I can tell when you are up to shenanigans. I'm afraid, this time, things are too important."

Mote whispered, "Anu, toots! You know I've always been the best moteling for the job."

Mote boasted as he crossed his arms confidently. Anu was not hearing it. She summoned forth a band of motelings from the shadows.

"You will speak to Lorcan." Mote groaned, "Lorcan? That dweeb? C'mon, Anu, that guy is a loser! Just let me and the kids skidoo..."

A voice ranges out from the moteling guards.

"Enough, be mindful of whom you speak, royaling!" A dark red moteling glimmered up to Mote, restraining an arm behind his back.

"Ouch! Rowan! Knock it off now. We used to be roommates. Don't you remember our college days?" Rowan tightened his grip. "Quiet, you will do as my sister orders."

Anu glimmered towards the three teens. Reassuring them that Mote would not be harmed, Anu, Rowan, and the other motelings escorted Them into the largest shrines.