Chapter Text
As the worlds separated, sliding ever further apart, the queens of Keves and Agnus could only watch as their trios of Ouroboros heroes ran desperately towards each other. Dashing through the mirrored forests as they sought to not lose sight of their friends, the six youths of fate (and their two Nopon companions) were forced to stop at a sharp cliff overlooking the twin oceans.
Stood against the cliff, watching their friends as Taion fell to his knees, Noah could only think of one last thing to say.
“One day…! I’ll come see you! I promise!”
Even as they slipped further away from each other’s view, Mio didn’t stop waving at them.
“Me too! One day… I promise!”
And even though it broke his heart to see her go, Noah believed it. He was content that they’d see each other again, regardless of the distance between the two worlds. That really was what Noah truly believed, as his true companions faded away.
~~~
But, just as the two worlds were about to separate from each other, everything suddenly stopped. As the last vestige of a shared sky abruptly went dark, a single force came to life to see it.
“…How strange. The two worlds should have returned to their prior states before the collision. And yet, they remain here, frozen but almost separate.”
The voice, which would have sounded almost robotic if it even had an audience, paused as it searched for an answer.
“There seems to be little recourse, despite the wishes of the admins; a restoration is necessary. But backups are in short supply, and the state of each world is precarious…”
In the darkness, three crosses of light formed above two ethereal spheres, seemingly stuck together.
“…And yet it is somehow worse than I had thought. The last backup from when the worlds were connected was when the first admin yet lived…”
The voice pondered the query for what could well have been a millenia; time was not currently a working concept. When it did speak once more, it would have sounded almost frustrated, despite its monotonality.
“If the worlds proceed exactly as they once did, then restoration of the latest backup should pose no issues. Perhaps it will create a vicious circle without intervention, but the critical change can at least occur before interventions are made…”
After one last moment to consider, the voice made its decision.
“There’s little else left to consider, and only one course of action; let’s begin the experiment.”
As it proclaimed those four words that began these worlds, the skies of Keves and Agnus both returned to the blue they should have been, only they weren’t Keves and Agnus any more. They had once again become the Bionis and Mechonis in one world, and Alrest in the other.
Almost satisfied with itself, the voice was about to return to its observational role when it noticed something odd.
“Minor backup corruption? How strange. The worlds seem to have reformed as normal… No glaring construction errors… Whatever small changes have occurred are outside my vision. For now, I will assume nothing of note has changed.”
But perhaps that was a poor choice of words on the voice’s part.
~~~
Fear of uncertainty was the very nature of their sworn enemy, and so Noah had made the decision not to dwell on what would happen next. And yet, it was still a shock to wake up knowing what Moebius even was. The thought jolted him painfully awake, spurring the realisation that Noah didn’t recognise the room he was sleeping in. Perhaps that wasn’t so strange, though; Queen Nia had implied that everyone in Aionios was recreated from Origin’s data, which means he must have existed before the worlds collided.
Noah had just finished assessing that fact when he suddenly realised his Blade was sitting on his bedside table…Sword of the End and all.
Okay, that’s not right, Noah barely managed to formulate in his head. The Sword of the End was created from Origin; all vestiges of it should be long gone. So, if this sword still exists, then where the Flames am I?!
Rising from the bed in a hurry, he temporarily ignored that his same red jacket was in the wardrobe to put it on. Grabbing his blade and attaching it to his hip as N once did, he stopped in front of the door with trepidation, before he took a deep breath…
…and stepped outside, into a Colony he had never seen before. Perhaps Colony was even the wrong term; there was no Ferronis in sight, and the buildings were more reminiscent of the permanence of the City, or perhaps Fort O’Virbus. It did seem to have large cannons around it, as he would later discover, though its materials were entirely different.
But all that paled in comparison to how much more lively it seemed! People of all ages, much like the City folk, walked through the street as Noah did, unconcerned with him in comparison to their own lives. He saw Nopon trading at a central square, a welcome reminder of his old home, and children playing, and-
Wait… City folk…!
That was what he was missing; just like the City folk, all the people of this Colony lacked the more unique features of the soldiers of Keves and Agnus. Though Nopon were present, he saw none of Eunie’s wings on people’s heads, or Lanz’s tough grey skin, nor Agnus’s abundantly common luminous lines or strange crystals…
…Not even Mio’s fluffy ears.
As relief turned to fear, he stumbled backwards just in time for someone to catch him. He didn’t even notice them calling out to him for a couple of seconds, until a louder shout knocked him clean out of his reverie.
“Hey! Are you doin’ okay?!”
“Oh!“ Noah spluttered, thankfully regaining his composure (and balance). He turned to face the helpful stranger to find a tall, brawny red-headed man with a shorter blonde one. “Sorry about that… I lost my cool for a moment there.”
“Ha, no kiddin’. Not sure what’d make someone freak out like that in broad daylight-“
“Reyn, come on,” the blonde stranger interrupted. “He could need medical attention, he doesn’t need to be grilled for personal info!”
The red head, helpfully referred to as Reyn, looked sincerely apologetic. “Right, sorry man… Wait, hold on, I don’t think we’ve actually met.”
Noah laughed nervously. “Yeah, I don’t remember meeting the two of you either. I’m Noah.”
The blonde nodded, shaking his hand. “I’m Shulk, and this is Reyn.”
Reyn waved with a strangely familiar smile. “Pleasure to meet you!”
Noah couldn’t help but smile back. “You too.”
“Uh, but are you okay now?” Shulk asked, concerned.
He answered with a somewhat unconvincing nod. “I should be fine now, thanks to you both.”
And that was partially true; though he was nowhere through processing everything he’d just realised, it was at least reassuring to know he wasn’t without kind people in this new world.
Reyn laughed. “Don’t mention it! But, hey, if you need a hand with anything, feel free to ask us! Shulk will probably be in the weapons development lab, anyway.”
Noah had no idea what that was, but he couldn’t help but notice something else funny in that sentence. “Wait, you’re volunteering him without telling me where to find you?”
“Uhh…”
“What he means to say,” Shulk stepped in, “is that as a member of the Colony 9 defence force, Reyn’s a bit harder to get a hold of during the day. He’s not wrong about me being in the lab a lot, though.”
Noah hoped he was as good an actor as Mio had been, because hearing the phrase Colony 9 almost sent him to tears.
“Um, thank you!” he began, awkward even to him. “I am a bit new here, so having someone to talk to will be a huge help.”
Shulk seemed to ignore Reyn’s smug “Ha, I knew it!” and instead opted to simply nod and wish him a good rest of the day. Noah waved at them as they left, slowly walking back to the room he had woken up in. Once inside, he sat down heavily onto the bed, almost tempted to go back to sleep to calm his nerves.
But through the many questions he had swirling around his head, he couldn’t help but think of one person in particular.
I wonder what Mio’s doing right now, in her new world…
~~~
Mio awoke with a cat-like yawn, initially unperturbed at her surroundings as she brushed her long hair out of her face. Sitting upright in her bed, she looked around the wooden room curiously, and was tempted to check her Iris to find out where she was-
Hold on, Iris? I… I still remember Aionios?!
Rushed now, Mio tapped her left temple in an attempt to activate her Iris…
…only for it to not appear.
I don’t understand, Mio thought. My Iris being gone should mean we’ve returned to the two separate worlds, but Nia told us we wouldn’t remember what happened there. Has something gone wrong?
Well, there was only one thing for it. Mio grabbed her jacket, which strangely had also remained the same, and opened the door apprehensively. But what she saw outside only made her more confused.
There were certain traits that Agnians possessed, unique from their Kevesi counterparts. In particular, the crystals located somewhere on their bodies, like Mio’s just below her collarbone, were so common they could be mistaken for a universal feature. Beyond that people were incredibly diverse, though blue lines through their body were also relatively common.
All of that was thrown out the window for a crowd of people that all looked exactly like her. Well, perhaps that was a slight exaggeration. Their hair tended to brown instead of her white hair, but they all had the same fluffy ears on the top of their head. And in Agnus that would have been unthinkable.
There wasn’t a trace of Fiona’s pink horns, Nimue’s crystal hands, or Teach’s blue skin. Even the crystals seemed to be absent… at least until she saw the most unique thing she had seen in the crowd so far. An armoured man, the closest thing she had seen to the abundant soldiers of Aionios, standing side by side with something that, somehow, looked positively alien. She had seen so many people in Agnus, but none of them sported that almost metallic appearance of dark blue skin with grey features.
Despite also having those familiar blue lines, and that familiar crystal in the chest… And despite having more similarities with Sena than the entire crowd put together.
She was suddenly painfully aware of her very visible crystal, and quickly turned around to go back inside the room. It was an unfortunate fact that her favourite jacket was lacking a zip to hold it together, so she went back to the wardrobe she found it in hopes of finding something that would hide her suddenly rare crystal. Thankfully, there was a similar, black jacket with the necessary zip, which she grabbed immediately.
Well, it goes with the leggings, at least, Mio mused as she put it on. Now… to deal with this miraculously regrown hair.
After what must have been 15 minutes of brushing that felt like an hour, Mio opened the door once more to get a better look at her surroundings. The strange place she had found herself in, whether that be a colony or something like the City, was filled with wooden buildings similar to the one she had left, and the occasional appearance of more military architecture. Though a far cry from Agnus’s traditionally white colour scheme, the grey metal of installations such as the water tower and the conspicuous military base seemed almost out of place.
It was, however, relieving to see Nopon still around. Though the first one she had seen, a very large Nopon with stripy fur, had made her wonder if they were somehow different in this world, he appeared to simply be an outlier. The rest she had seen were a much more normal size.
Unfortunately, she wasn’t immune to stares with her new attire. As far as she could tell it was due to the noticeably different style of dress, but there was hardly a way around that, so she kept up her search. What she was searching for was rather… nebulous, or perhaps overly optimistic, though. After all, she was yet to see anyone who looked like Taion or Sena. So, despite her search, she sincerely doubted anyone else she knew would appear-
“Mehmeh! Mio?!”
Or she could suddenly run into Manana. That was a surprise.
“Manana?” Mio asked, hopeful. “Is that really you?”
The Nopon, for her part, looked overcome with emotion. “Yes! Thank goodness, Mio remembers Manana!”
After getting the initial happiness out of her system, though, she looked notably pensive. “Does Mio remember Riku, too? …Mio?”
For a few seconds, Mio responded only with a sigh of relief. “Thank goodness… You remember Aionios, too.”
It didn’t take long after that confirmation for Manana to be jumping with joy. “Manana can’t believe it! Manana thought she would never get to cook for her friends again! After waking up in place full of people with fluffy ears, yet no one she knew, Manana was so worried she’d gone crazy!”
Now there was a sentiment Mio could understand. “I’m glad to have found you, Manana.”
“Because of Manana’s incredible cooking?”
“No… I’m glad to have found you, because now I can have hope. Now I can hope to see our friends again, even if just our Agnian ones.”
“Ah, of course! If both Manana and Mio are here, then Sena and Taion must be too!”
Mio nodded. “Right. Either way, though, we’ve got to figure out what’s going on here…”
As Manana nodded enthusiastically, Mio’s thoughts wandered to her Kevesi friends… to Noah. How was he doing, in his new world?
…Did he still remember her, like she did?
Dismissing that selfish thought for now, she wondered aloud where all her friends had ended up. Manana, naturally, had no clue, so they decided to team up in their search for their lost friends, starting by figuring out what this world even was. That would do for now, before she started dreaming of another one.
~~~
In that other world, near the head of the Bionis, one such Kevesi friend had a rude awakening.
“Where the snuff am I?!”
Eunie didn’t remember the last time she had woken up in such a foul mood, but could you blame her? The memories of Aionios were fresh in her head, yet she’d woken up in the most bright white room she’d ever seen. Her mark was still gone, thank the Queen, but for a second she was legitimately worried she’d ended up back in snuffin’ Agnus Castle.
That thought didn’t last long. Walking out into a very strange City-like place revealed people of all ages…all with the Queen’s white wings and grey hair. A Colony worth of Melias was already bizarre enough, but weirder still, everyone looked at her like she was the weirdo, for spark’s sake! And sure, most of the people she’d seen had bigger wings than she’d ever seen, but they didn’t have to shame her for it! It’s not like she decided how she was born.
They even talked like the Queen. It was almost insulting… Scratch that, it was insulting, because while Melia was graceful and dignified, these muppets were the most stuck-up people she’d ever met, and that group included the sparking Consuls! Eunie stormed through the strange residence, looking for someone to blame, when she saw a building at the centre of the whole structure. A building that was somehow… familiar.
Once she walked up the moving path, a strange feature in her own right, she walked through the grand doors to find a monument that she knew she’d seen before. Behind a fountain surrounded by curved staircases, a stone mural was inset into the wall… the same mural she’d seen in Keves Castle. Except that it looked remarkably good for its age, like it had been somehow restored.
Or… maybe it didn’t need to be restored. Maybe this is the original… but then, wouldn’t that make this place- Oh, for spark’s sake.
Maybe she wasn’t in Agnus Castle, but as far as Eunie could tell, she’d wound up in Keves Castle instead… just a very different version of it.
Well, I hope the boys had better luck than I did…
~~~
Lanz wasn’t sure what to make of where he’d ended up. Not many things would make him miss the days of pointless war with Noah and Eunie, but here he was, in an empty City whose metallic buildings gave him uncomfortable reminders of Keves Castle and its surroundings. He’d take anything that wasn’t these sparking automatons at this point! Oh, right, the automatons were stupid, too.
When he first saw them, he’d said out loud “Levnises?!” and pulled his Shieldblade from his back, but after they refused to attack him he stopped hitting them in vain. It didn’t help that the sword he’d ended up with wasn’t doing as much damage as he’d like, but considering he’d just found it next to him when he woke up in the empty room, it wasn’t exactly his Blade. But he couldn’t summon his Blade at will any more, and his Iris no longer worked, so he guessed he couldn’t be picky.
As another patrol of the automatons walked past him without turning his way, Lanz yelled at them in frustration, “Come on! At least look at me!”
He’d started calling them automatons because, despite a very similar construction to Kevesi Levnises, none of these were piloted. It seemed rather weird to him, if only because Agnus was the nation to employ Auto-Levs, that this city would be crawling with more automatons than he’d even seen the City pull out. He’d half a mind to find the person who made them and ask where the spark they’d been-
-And then he was suddenly somewhere else? Okay, sure, the platform he’d walked onto looked weird, but what just happened? Was that some sort of… instant elevator?! Ah, this science stuff was way over his head. He left anything like that to Valdi… or Riku on a good day. Anyway, as that was all rushing through his head, he turned around to see a monument before him that somehow drew him in.
It was… a woman, as far as he could tell. Well, that’s what it represented, as Taion would say; there’s no way a girl would actually be as tall as your average Ferronis. But, more than anything, she looked like nothing he’d ever seen. The dress she was wearing looked almost mechanical, and that seemed to extend to the rest of her too. Yet he had this nagging feeling she looked kinda like he-
“Well, now. It has been far too long since I’ve seen one of my people in this city.”
But he didn’t get to finish that thought before a booming voice interrupted him. He turned around to see a large golden Levnis, weird metal face and all, land behind him. From it, a man with a face not unlike his own dropped to the floor, staring at him with piercing eyes.
“Yet I don’t remember your face at all. Has it been so long that children have been born and matured in my absence?”
The man, whose outfit reminded him of the automatons patrolling the city, gazed at him as if to look straight into his head.
“Hmm… perhaps not. You look as if you’re trying to appear closer to a Homs than a Machina. How pointless.”
That finally got Lanz to talk. “Hey, watch it! I’m not trying to look like anyone. Meanwhile, you look like you’re trying to dress up as your automatons!”
The man had the gall to laugh. “Either I have missed far too much, or you’re no simple man of our people. This manner of dress has been synonymous with the Machina for millennia, yet you look upon it as if it were alien.”
Something about the way he said that put Lanz right on edge. Not just that he sounded dismissive of his ignorance, but that he was dismissive of millennia. Not three months ago, 10 terms was all he would ever get, yet this man talked of thousands of years?!
“Who… who the spark are you?”
He gave a strange smile. “I am Egil, leader of Mechonis. Although, you were surely aware of the name of your homeland?”
Lanz suddenly felt that he was way out of his depth here. And, unlike Taion, he couldn’t plan his way out.
~~~
Taion’s experience in the new world so far had been tiring at best, and frustrating at worst. Being separated from his friends was an understandable, maybe even predictable turn of events, but remembering Aionios certainly was not… And that was just when we woke up!
Walking out into a city on a dusty landmass, he endeavoured to swiftly learn about where he’d ended up. Unfortunately, it quickly drained his enthusiasm for a new place, especially when it became readily apparent that said landmass was home to a notably militaristic nation. Shades of Keves and Agnus was something he had hoped to avoid, but that was soon becoming the least of his worries.
While the location he’d ended up in was the first thing that caught his attention, soon the people drew his eye. Notably, the lack of variety in their appearances quickly began to worry him, especially when he realised he hadn’t seen a single crystal. Well, not on a human, anyway…
Taion’s meticulous research eventually concluded that these strange-looking creatures were Blades, whose naming similarity to the universal weapons of Aionios immediately raised his hackles. With the book’s explanation of Core Crystals, the lack of them on the people of Mor Ardain (as he discovered the landmass was called) was reasonable… which left his own as a concerning outlier. Considering that the weapons that Blades summoned also seemed to be the best analog for his own Mondo, he’d be easily mistaken for a Blade if given the chance.
Naturally, he wouldn’t give them the chance. As someone who already dressed to cover his Crystal, Taion had little doubt in his ability to hide it. As long as he didn’t summon Mondo by accident (which he discovered was still possible - another point for the Blade connection), he would convincingly fit in as an Ardainian citizen…
But what if he wanted to find his friends?
Sitting in the small room he’d woken up in, Taion tried to find a better solution to the one that was staring himself in the face, but couldn’t. As much as he had begun to abhor pointless conflict, he had little better options than to join the Ardainian military. With posters for recruitment visible around the city of Alba Cavanich, he doubted it would be difficult to get an appointment, and better still, they were asking for Drivers. As the name of people who control Blades, it sounded like his best bet to get a new means of defending himself.
The term also made him remember Ino’s fascination with Noah being her ‘true Driver’, which was a strange connection he would have to evaluate later.
Taion supposed military duty could at least get him travelling and supporting himself… but his thoughts were with Sena. He’d found himself in a place where, despite limited resources, he could probably reach a self-sufficient position with means to find others. Not only that, but thanks to his preference for long clothes, he’d luckily avoided potential issues with his apparent Core Crystal.
But Sena could be much less fortunate. The prominent circular Crystal, flaming hair, and blue lines on her skin would look positively alien in a crowd of Ardainians, especially considering her lighter outfit. Chances were she’d get mistaken for a Blade, but after that? Would she have to call someone Masterpon, like Ino did to Noah?
…Well, all the more reason to find her quickly.
~~~
You know, despite everything that’s happened so far, I think Taion would love this place. Well, that or he’d get a bit emotional when we weren’t looking.
The abundant Saffronia trees were a welcome distraction from Sena’s crazy morning. After all, it’s not every day you wake up in a tent you didn’t set up, alone, and in the middle of a beautiful but monster filled locale. After discovering her Blade wasn’t gone, she at least got to defend herself, but solo wilderness camping wasn’t her idea of a good time! That was muscle training.
…Even if her partner wasn’t with her any more.
So, after beating off some monsters, and doing some therapeutic training, she’d immediately started walking down a path in hopes of finding somewhere nicer to stay. Perhaps it was silly to go this way, but she’d sworn she’d heard some people in this direction, so she kept walking. And, to her surprise, she did find people!
“Welcome to Garfont Village, girl. What’s a Blade like you doing out here by your lonesome?”
But she almost immediately wished she hadn’t. Walking through the wooden doors at the entrance, a man came up to greet her with a pointed question. Ignoring the fact that this gatekeeper’s accent sounded vaguely familiar for the second, Sena had absolutely no idea why he was calling her a Blade. Maybe… that’s just what they called people in this new world?
…Okay, so maybe that wasn’t helpful, considering she wasn’t supposed to remember the ‘old world’ of Aionios anyway, but it was the best chance she had!
“Um, what do you mean by that?” Sena asked pensively.
The man looked at her like she was crazy. “Well, where’s your Driver?”
There was a beat of awkward silence, before Sena remembered she was probably supposed to know what that was. “Oh! Uh, well…”
Dang it, where’s Taion when you need him?! Come on, think of something… Hold on, didn’t Ino call Noah something like that?
“…That’s… why I’m here, actually!”
“What, is your Driver with the Mercenaries?”
She resisted the urge to ask what a mercenary was, in favour of more thinking. You’re in for your gold now, Sena. Just roll with it!
“…They might be! Any chance you’ve seen them?”
“Wouldn’t know off the top of my head, but if you tell me about them I’ll take a look.”
Well, there was nothing for it. If she needed to find her friends, and needed someone to pretend to be her Driver, then her best bet was…
“Her name’s Mio. She’s got white hair and these, uh, fluffy ears on her head. You can’t miss her!”
The man looked at her with new understanding, somehow. She almost sighed in relief before he spoke up again.
“Ah, a Gormotti, eh? I’ll take a gander, then. In the meantime, feel free to look around… oh, sorry, I didn’t catch your name earlier.”
“Oh, right! I’m Sena. Nice to meet you!”
The man, who now she looked at him reminded him of the scale-like features some Agnians had, offered a hand to her. “Name’s Zuo. Pleasure to meet you too.”
As she took it, she thought to herself, Oh thank the Clock, I got through that alive!
…Just in time for her to accidentally hurt Zuo’s arm with the handshake.
~~~
What a day, Noah thought to himself as he walked through this new Colony 9. After a brief exploration of the Colony, he had gone out to the surrounding area to practice with his Blade, now that he could no longer summon it the same way he used to. He was relieved to find he hadn’t lost his edge, and neither had Lucky Seven… or rather the Sword of Origin, as it was later called.
He could even use Arts just as he once had, although he could no longer call on the Blades of others. That had been something to get used to; it had become central to their fighting styles, and yet now it was like he was back to being a standard foot soldier. Which… he supposed he was. Ouroboros had no meaning in this world.
Having just completed the brief training, however, he was compelled to check out the Weapons Development Lab that Shulk and Reyn had mentioned. From some helpful citizens, he had learned of its location in the military district. As he walked across the bridge, though, a familiar voice seemed to call out to him.
“Hey, what are you doing out here? There’s an assembly at the- Oh, never mind.”
Confused at the stopped train of thought, Noah turned around to spot a surprising face walking towards him… enough to leave him speechless for a few seconds.
“Sorry about that, saw your fancy sword and assumed you were from the defence force… Um, are you okay?”
That forced him out of his shock, as he finally asked the question stuck in his throat, “A-Ashera?”
The former Commander of Colony 11 looked proud at his recognition, and yet felt unfamiliar. “Oh, so you’ve heard of me? I’m honoured… Though, as the next Hero of the Homs, I would start getting noticed eventually, wouldn’t I?”
“I… suppose you would, yeah.”
Noah resisted a sigh. She’s got a different outfit on, much more reminiscent of what Reyn was wearing earlier, but that’s definitely her… without her memories of Aionios. She doesn’t remember me at all. Though, in her case, maybe it’s for the best that she doesn’t remember her past life, considering what Eunie told me.
“You know, if you’re good with that thing we could probably use you on the force,” Ashera commented, waking him up from his thoughts. “It may have been a year since the battle on the sword, but I don’t believe peace is ever permanent.”
Joining the military again? After he’d fought so hard to end a pointless everlasting war? The thought was rather uncomfortable… but he also didn’t know what other course of action he had. Maybe it’d be best to figure out what they were fighting first.
“I’ll think about it,” Noah answered, before he suddenly remembered something. “Wait, didn’t you think I needed to attend an assembly? Why aren’t you there?”
She laughed at his observation, in a way that was very Ashera. “Well, you’re not wrong. But old Square-Tache doesn’t scare me… I can live with missing one pointless assembly.”
“But… you thought I needed to go?”
“Well of course! Apparently Dunban was something of a ‘leader,’ as well as an unmatched fighter, when he was still on the front lines. Can’t be the next Hero of the Homs if I lead my sheep astray, can I?”
Noah’s flashbacks to his time in Colony 11 were somehow both humorous and frustrating, but he ignored that to reply.
“…I guess so.”
Looking as amused by herself as ever, Ashera began to walk away from the military district. “Well, hope to see you again soon… uh, whoever you are.”
“Noah.”
“Right, right, Noah. Farewell!”
As he watched her leave, a great many thoughts were running through his head, but the main one was the confirmation he wasn’t alone in coming to this world…
…though he hoped his next meeting wouldn’t be as awkward as that one.