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Kafka sat on top of a large building.
This was it.
This was the day.
The day that Stelle would remember.
The day that Stelle would be reunited with her family.
Kafka pressed the rewind button on the small recording device, then pressed the play button.
It was a recording of what Elio told her and her son before they were to wait in vicinity where the battle would take place.
"She has a rendezvous with death."
"In realities that have come before."
"That it may be he shall take her hand."
"And lead her into his dark land."
"So she shall close her eyes and breathe her last breath."
"As he takes her down into the depths."
"She has a rendezvous with death."
Kafka's throat tightens. Her hand clenches. Her brow furrows. Her eyes are closed. Her breathing increases as the images and scenes Elio showed her pass through her mind.
"At the final point where she faces destruction."
"With a gash in their chest and her on her last breath."
"To her pledged words she whispers true."
"She shall not fail that rendezvous."
Kafka's teeth clench as the picture flashes in her mind of her daughter in another life is on her knees. Her head looking to the stars. Trails of blood streaming from her arms to hands, dripping to the ground beneath her, pooling around her ever so slowly as she breathes her final breathes raggedly.
Tears forming at the corners of Kafka's eyes.
Elio's voice continues speaking in the recording.
"She has a rendezvous with death."
"In this unknown life."
"Of an unknown time."
"That it may or may not be he shall take her hand."
"To try leading her into his dark land."
"She has a rendezvous with death."
"And I to my pledged word am true."
"She shall not make it to that rendezvous."
The recording ends and Kafka releases the breath she was holding, covering her mouth slightly with her hand. Some tears are dripping down the corners of her eyes.
She felt the anxiousness of waiting.
These were going the be the longest hours of her entire life.
But Elio at the end of the talk gave her the script.
Her role was simple...
Wait and see.
Your son will take care of everything.
And after his part is done and her memories are restored.
You shall enter the fray.
It was going to be a very long wait.
Caelus lied prone in the position he was tasked to take. He had finished rebuilding his prototype sniper and was viewing the scenery through the scope on it.
The sky.
The buildings.
The pathways.
Soon enough his scope landed directly on a flower, and he adjusted the scope's focus to get a clearer look at it.
It had grey pedals.
Like her hair.
And a golden core.
Like her eyes.
He moved his head away from the scope, looking in the area where the flower was located.
In a small garden plot off the side of a path.
He slowly smiled as he spotted it with his own eyes off in the distance.
He would have to carefully pick it to give it to her later.
All he had to do for now though...
Was to just wait.
Himeko sat in her room on the Express.
She was on her couch leaning to her side.
She stared out the window and off into space with dull eyes.
She recalled what Caelus and Kafka messaged her after she gave both of them her phone number.
Today is the day...
The day that our Stelle comes back...
The day that I get my family back...
Kafka...
Caelus...
Please...
Bring her home.
She brought her hand up and held the locket that Kafka gave her.
She hated the idea of staying here on the Express.
...
...
...
Maybe...
I'll join the fray with them...
After all...
You can't keep a mother bear separated from its cub for too long.
...Otherwise she might get agitated.
Himeko's eyes narrowed as she gripped the locket tighter.
She looked to the corner where she kept her usual choice of weapon.
Then she looked further behind it and saw another that she kept covered underneath a blanket.
She stood up, walking over to it, past the briefcase.
She reached out, grabbing the blanket and slowly pulled it downwards.
Revealing a large greatsword that looked like the embodiment of fire itself.
Kept under control and tamed with its strong blade.
Her eyes narrowed more as she smirked.
Hello... Old friend.
We have a battle to partake in...
Plus, wouldn't you agree that...
I'm in need of some de-rusting?
She reached over, grabbing the handle firmly.
She watched as it sparked to life with her touch.
She smiled.
Well...
Doesn't this feel nostalgic?
Yeah...
Nostalgic, indeed.
Stelle was sitting at an outside table at a restaurant in the Luofu. She had all the time to herself now that Tingyun's funeral was finished, so she wanted to take the general up on his offer of them being treated with the utmost hospitality.
And her hospitality treatment was going to be her eating food.
At least... That's what she had planned.
If it weren't for her hearing the sounds of a child screaming off in the distance.
Stelle's head perked up at the scream and she placed her fork down slowly.
She sighed when she looked down at her fresh uneaten food.
Guess it was time to go play protector again.
She leaves a few hundred credits on the table as a tip and walks off to where she heard the scream.
She didn't know that she was going to end up in the middle of who the hell knows where, surrounded by mara stricken knights and monsters.
I thought they said they cleared most of them out!..
Stelle growled as she blocked the impact from one of the wolves who lunged at her, kicking it away and impaling it with her lance. It exploded in flames, yelping and shaking all over the ground as it burned alive. She removed her lance fast when she heard the charging of one of those apes from behind her. She just barely had enough time to block an attack that sent her flying back into a building, grunting loudly when she slammed into it. She opened her eyes in a daze, shaking her head and her eyes widened when one of the Ballistarius aimed and fired at her. She barely managed to dodge out of the way and onto her feet, growling loudly.
She lunged at it, pointing her lance directly for its head and impaled it. It was jammed inside of its head, causing her twist and pull in a savage manner, not being able to avoid being attacked from behind by another mara struck soldier. She felt its blades make contact with her back, causing her to stumble forward.
Stelle growled louder and twisted the lance with all of her strength—all but tearing the head off of the Ballistarius with it still stuck on the large weapon—turning around fast and parrying the next attack from the soldier, slamming the side of her lance against its head and knocking it to the side before jumping up and piledriving her lance into its torso, digging down deep, making the ground explode in an area of flames.
It burned the soldier to ash to the point where it couldn't revive itself, along with the head that was still stuck on it.
Then she heard the ape roar, looking upwards as it launched into the air, diving down directly for her.
She barely had enough time to roll out of the way when it slammed down.
It recovered faster than she expected and she was met by its fist slamming directly into her torso, sending her flying bursting through a few vacant buildings. She rolled around like a ragdoll and groaned, feeling too weak to stand up right now.
The ape had created a large amount of distance from the remaining group of remnants and her.
She coughed raggedly, rolling onto her knees shakily. Her hands didn't have as much strength in them as she hoped, making her struggle to get a good grip on its handle. She managed to use it as a support to stand to her feet, but it slipped from her grasp and she fell to her knees anyway.
She breathed harshly with her head down in the temporary silence.
...
...
...
She looked up and took in the view of the vacant area.
So this is how she would be defeated.
Not in some grand battle.
Ambushed in a long abandoned location on the Luofu.
With no Cloud Knights knowing of these remnants who had hidden themselves away and regrouped within the shadows, ready to retaliate once they were found.
She didn't even...
Bring her phone with her...
She couldn't send a help signal...
She couldn't do anything.
There were no Cycranes for her to get ahold of.
There were no skiffs flying above this area.
There was nothing.
She let out a sigh when she saw them approaching her.
The group led by a Shape Shifter who readied its weapon and had it pointed straight down to her.
Like hell she would give up just like this though.
It just felt...
Like it wasn't in her nature.
It wasted no time as it thrusted its spear into her abdomen, making her eyes glaze over as she clenched her teeth and let out a pained grunt.
She looked up at it and saw it looking down at her.
It made the mistake of leaning closer as if it was trying to taunt her.
She summoned all of Qliphoth's strength of preservation in her right hand, slamming her fist right into its head.
It got launched back, pulling its spear out of her as she sent it to go meet the Aeon itself.
She covered the side of her abdomen and closed her eyes in pain. The ape approached as one of the other Shape Shifters hissed out orders to it to finish the job.
She could only struggle out a laugh in disbelief, spitting out some blood in the process.
At least... The child is safe...
She'll definitely get help...
She'll definitely...
Tell them...
She waited for the fist of the ape to finish her off.
But it never came.
Instead she heard a loud blast of energy fired from behind her and felt it whizz above her, landing directly through the upper body of the ape, disintegrating it completely.
It made her eyes open as she watched the ape fall from the sky, landing back away from her. The rest of its body now disintegrating and disappearing.
Who?..
What?..
She heard footsteps from behind her.
Then suddenly, the entire area where the mara struck were, was surrounded in what seemed to be a stasis field after she saw a grenade go flying into the middle of the group.
It kept them frozen in place.
"Well..." She heard a mechanical voice speak.
It was a male's voice, that's for certain.
"They'll be like that for a good few minutes... At least until she gets here."
Who... Is she?
Who... Are you?
The figure stopped on the side of her and she saw the barrel of a rifle pointed towards the ground in front of her now.
It was definitely a big rifle.
She slowly looked up and saw the figure wearing a jacket that...
Almost seemed similar to hers...
And he had a mechanical mask covering his whole face.
He reached up, putting his fingers through the under side of it, sliding it off and letting it drop the ground.
When he turned around...
All she could do was stare at him with widened eyes.
He looks...
Almost...
Like me...
Who...
"Who... Are you?.." Stelle asks the man who stands in front of her, looking down at her.
Grey hair.
Like hers.
Gold eyes.
Like hers.
A jacket with the same color pattern.
Like hers.
"Look into my eyes, Stelle." He says, kneeling down in front of her.
"Look deep."
So she does.
Both of their eyes glow, and it feels like the stellaron inside of her is going into overdrive.
Her breathing quickens.
She almost starts hyperventilating.
Then the next thing she sees...
Is white.
Stelle opens her eyes at hearing her alarm clock.
She grumbles sleepily, rolling to the side of the bed, reaching out to the end table and feels around for the clock until she finally finds it, pressing on the button to turn it off.
She slowly sits up from bed and opens her eyes.
Her hair covers all sides of her face, flowing down as if it were a veil.
She smells breakfast coming from beyond her room.
She gets up from the bed, stumbling slightly but regains her balance. She walks out from her room and down the stairs slowly with her hand on the wall to support her.
She looked around the corner where the kitchen is and sees her mom cooking.
While her mum is setting up the table.
And...
Her...
Brother...
Is sitting on a chair with a textbook in hand, reading it as he waits.
They all notice her presence and look towards her.
"Goodmorning, sweetie." Kafka says.
"Goodmorning, darling." Himeko says.
Her brother looks up from his book and at her, smiling gently.
"Goodmorning... Sleepy head." Caelus says.
Caelus...
Caelus...
My...
My brother...
Caelus...
Stelle turned on the faucet to the bathtub slowly to get the water to pour out at a slow pace. She waved her hand beneath it to see if it was cold, and it was.
She waved Caelus over as best as she could with her wrists being tied in chains.
He wobbled over slowly, the rattling of the chains loud and echoing through the bathroom.
He knelt down next to her and they took turns, cupping their hands under the water and drinking.
It tasted... Awful.
But it didn't make her want to throw up...
She and him drank more until they both had their fill.
It was what they needed to do to survive.
Then they heard the loud screams through the walls, with the sound of gunshots, and loud booms.
They quickly got inside of the tub and pulled curtain closed.
They both huddled next to each other and held each other in a tight embrace.
If they were to die here.
They would die together.
"Being antisocial again as usual?" Caelus asked as he sat down at the table she sat at.
She was completely blown off and rejected by the woman she had her eyes on her entire life.
She was about to graduate and step into the path of adulthood.
And the older woman, who granted, was her teacher...
Couldn't reciprocate her feelings.
Simply because of one really...
Really...
Stupid...
Fucking...
Excuse...
You and your brother are just... Simply too intimidating.
The fuck is that supposed to mean?
Stelle groaned loudly, with it slightly mixed with a growl as she ruffled her hair from its controlled state and made it a complete wild mess again. She looked over at Caelus with a very annoyed look.
"You're antisocial too, you fucking idiot." Stelle snapped.
He held his hands up in defense.
"Hey now, sis. I'm on your side tonight."
She just sighed as she let her head drop into her hands.
"I know... I know... I'm sorry."
Caelus leaned over and gently pat her on the back.
"Well, at least you still got me to kick around, eh?"
She looks up at him and he smirks.
"You know... I hid my bike in the courtyard incase you ever got the idea to ruin this whole place by causing some chaos."
Stelle couldn't help the grin that spread on her face.
"I may not be a doctor either, but I definitely know that a couple of very loud, disturbing bikes and maybe a chase with security and police could definitely brighten your night up."
She grinned as wide as the Cheshire Cat now.
"Fuck it. Why not?" She replied.
You could definitely say, their mothers looked displeased at first.
Or were trying to anyways.
But Kafka couldn't help the grin that reluctantly broke out and the laugh that followed after.
Himeko just sighed and shook her head.
"Come on, Hime... You have to admit... It's a pretty ballsy thing for them to do."
"Please, Kaf. Please. Don't encourage them."
Caelus and Stelle just sat there, rubbing the backs of their necks.
"Really, Hime. Are you telling me you wouldn't want to just... Go wild after having your heart broken?" Kafka asks, still slightly giggling.
"..."
She crosses her arms, closing her eyes.
"Come on... You definitely would..." Kafka drawls.
Himeko grunts a little and her brow furrows.
"Just let it slide. What matters after all is that..."
Kafka lets out her signature smirk.
"They didn't get caught, right?"
Himeko just sighs, making the siblings laugh.
"Hey, sis?.."
Stelle opens her eyes.
"Do you ever think about... What might've happened... If mom didn't find us when she did?.." Caelus whispers.
She blinks a couple of times, staring up at the ceiling.
"..."
She has, but probably not as much as her brother.
Because to her, in the life they're both living now, it's a question that doesn't matter.
So she rolls over onto her side, still resting on the couch.
"Well..." Stelle mumbles out.
"If she didn't..."
"I think that..."
"I would've never left your side either way." She finishes.
It's Caelus's turn to stay silent now.
"When... Mom and mum leave us... Promise me that we'll still stick together." Caelus says so quietly that Stelle could only just barely hear him.
Her eyes soften and she pats him on the head.
He doesn't move.
"I promise you, Caelus..."
"I promise..."
I promise...
I promise...
I promise...
Caelus...
Tears are flowing out of her eyes. The stellaron inside of her has all but healed her wounds. She stares up at the person who still stays in front of her.
The memories have come flooding back...
They've been restored to where they belong.
She chokes out a sob and reaches her arms out for him.
He wraps her in a tight embrace.
"Caelus..." Stelle sobs out.
"I'm here, sis." He hugs her tighter.
"Caelus... Caelus... I... I..." She wants to say so many things right now.
She can't.
She wants to apologize.
She can't.
"Br...Brother... I..."
"Don't apologize, Stelle." Caelus says in a gentle tone.
"But... But... I... I forgot you... Caelus... I..."
"It's okay, Stelle."
All she can do is just close her eyes and sob into his jacket as she grabs handfuls of it.
They hear the clicking of heels approaching from the side.
"Ah, look at you two... Having a heartfelt, sobbing reunion and not even including your mother?"
They both break the embrace and see their mother standing there, smiling her usual smile.
She walks up and kneels down, pulling them both into a tight embrace.
They both embrace her back, just as tightly.
"Mother's here now... Mother's here for you now..." Kafka whispers softly. "Oh, I've missed this..."
"I hate to be the bearer of bad news during this, but... The stasis is gonna wear off soon..." Caelus mumbles in the embrace.
"How soon?.." Kafka asks idly.
"A minute, probably..."
"Well, that's a minute I get to spend, holding my two kids who I've found again..." Kafka now kisses both of them on their heads.
Then she feels someone press against her from behind, wrapping an arm around her.
She figures out who it is instantly.
"Don't forget me..." The familiar voice says.
Kafka just smiles.
Stelle and Caelus look up, seeing the familiar figure of their mum behind Kafka.
In all of her majestic flaming glory again, as they remembered seeing from so long ago.
Burning brightly like a phoenix, with embers softly falling and scattering all around her.
It brought warmth to all of them.
"What say you all... That we finish up here... And have our reunion somewhere else more comfortable?" Kafka asks this time.
So they all look up and over to where the mara struck are, seeing the effects of the stasis starting to wear off.
The family stands up together and now forms a line, side by side.
They ready their weapons and watch as the stasis field shatters. The mara struck hissing at them and readying their weapons.
Both sides taking their battle stances.
And one side charging at the other.
They attacked.
The family defended.
They all acted in unison.
The daughter, with her persevering flames that were unwavering. A lance that burned bright and indestructible.
The son, with his arsenal of crafted weapons, gifted to him by his power of forging, so that he could use these weapons to protect the ones he held dearly. A rifle in his hands that pierced even the sturdiest of shields.
And the two mothers. One who burned as bright as a phoenix and left nothing but ash and cinders in her wake. A greatsword from a lifestyle long left behind and now remembered, cleaving through enemies, stopping them in their tracks before they could even get near the people who she held dear. The other who was graceful and elegant as if she was a seamstress amidst a battlefield. Creating an unforeseen pattern that would wrap around the enemies, making them dance to her tune as if she was also a puppet master. Making them attack their own with their own weapons, while also forcing them to harm themselves after the friendly fire had been done.
One by one, the enemies fell.
Until there were none left.
Until only the four remained.
A daughter.
With her brother.
And their mothers.
All wrapped in an embrace at the end of it all, as if it were pieces of a puzzle put together.
A family reunited.
...The daughter had a rendezvous with death.
But to the Destiny's Slave's pledged words true.
She has failed...
That rendezvous.