Chapter Text
"I have to kill the Commandant before the world is destroyed. This is for the sake of everyone in this world." Said the mysterious cloaked girl. She has long black hair, a cloak that covers her clothing. She was outside of Daath staring at the Cathedral. She quietly entered Daath if there weren't any Oracle Soldiers patrolling in the city.
She looks around and sees no oracle soldiers in the city. She was a little surprised that no soldiers are patrolling in the city, but she doesn't have time to think of that. The assassin hides in front of the monument as she sees oracle soldiers patrolling outside of the Cathedral.
The place crawling with oracle soldiers. She took the chance to look around to find a place where the oracle soldiers wouldn't see her. She sees where she can sneak through. The mysterious girl jumped to the roof then silently took out the oracle soldier who was guarding the door, opened the door, and dragged the body inside to make sure not to be suspicious of the dead body lying on the floor.
She left the dead body and continued her search to kill the Commandant. She hides behind every pillar to keep the oracle knights from seeing her. She made it to the Commandant room. So, this is where the Commandant room is. She thought, frowning.
As she was going to enter the room, she heard voices coming from the hall not too far from her. She quickly hides and stays low.
"Any news from the Commandant, Legretta?" The large man carrying his scythe asked.
"We shouldn't be worrying about the Commandant, Largo. He knows what he is doing." She replied.
"Yes, you're right. I shouldn't be worried about the Commandant. We just have to wait until he returns."
They walked past the pillar where the mysterious cloak girl was at. She narrowed her eyes on them.
Two of the Six God Generals. Legretta the Quick and Largo the Black Lion. Where is the Tempest, the Wild, the Reaper, and the Bloody at? They are probably on their mission. Hopefully. Anyways, it seems that the Commandant isn't here. Well, I guess I should go in the room and assassinate him as he enters the room. She thought as she left the pillar quietly and entered the Commandant's room.
As she entered the room, she turned around and noticed that the Commandant wasn't in his room. She smirks and hides in a spot where she can see him and assassinate him.
It has been 4 hours and the Commandant hasn't returned but she was patient to wait for him to return. It is the key as an assassin to be patient for their target to come to them.
As she was waiting, the door opened. Her target has appeared in the doorway. She was about to assassinate him but someone else was with him. It appears to be Largo behind him. She has to wait a bit longer for Largo to leave.
"Largo, keep an eye out today and make sure the mouse doesn't run away." Van whispered.
Largo was dumbfounded by what the Commandant said to him. "Of course. I'll keep an eye out." He follows Van's orders.
The mysterious cloaked girl couldn't hear what they were saying. If she was closer to them, she could hear them. After their small talk, Van leaves the room. Leaving Largo to guard the room. This confused her.
Was she in the right room? How is she going to go after Van while Largo is guarding the door? How can she pass the Black Lion without him noticing her? She has to think of something to distract the Black Lion.
She places her hand inside of her cloak and takes out a sleep bomb. She throws the sleep bomb on the floor to roll towards Largo. Largo looks at the floor and sees the sleep bomb rolling to him. He was wondering what it was then white smoke appeared out of the sleep bomb.
The Black Lion's eyes widened. "What is this?" He questioned as he fell asleep from the sleep bomb.
The black haired girl comes out of her hiding spot and leaves the room. When she opens the door to leave, she sees the Oracle Soldiers with the Quick.
"Van was right. There is a mouse hiding." She said as she pointed her guns at the black haired girl. The mysterious cloak girl quickly runs towards the Cathedral. "Stop her!" The Oracle soldiers follow the mysterious girl to the Cathedral.
She appears in the Cathedral and looks around to find the way out. She saw the way out but soldiers were coming through the entrance. She quickly runs to the large door and enters the Chapel. She opened the door to the Chapel and noticed that she was safe and closed the door from behind. She looks around once again to be sure that she is safe.
She feels that she is not alone in the Chapel. She took a step forward then suddenly someone was coming down from above her. She took out her twin daggers and blocked the attack. He was wearing a yellow and red bird-like mask on his face. He jumped away from her and she stood her ground.
"So, you're the mouse that Van told us. I'm surprised that you made it this far." He smirked.
"You're one of the Six God-Generals. Sync the Tempest. Chief of Staff and the Commander of the 5th Division of the Oracle Knights." She said.
"You know a lot about the Oracle Knights, don't you."
"Everyone knows about the God-Generals of the Oracle Knights. You don't have to be surprised about it."
"Of course, I'm not. Now, enough with the stalling and fight." He said coldly towards her.
The door opened and oracle soldiers surrounded the room. Legretta appeared in front of the soldiers and pointed her guns at the mysterious girl. "Why are you here?" She asked.
The black haired girl smirked. "That should be simple. You should know that I was hiding in the Commandant's room for quite a while," she replied.
"You came here to assassinate him?"
The mysterious girl shrugs. "Who knows." She changed her expression. "But it seems they did it again." She frowns.
"What are you talking about?" Legretta narrowed her eyes.
"Sorry. That doesn't concern you."
Legretta starts to shoot her bullets at the mysterious girl. She flips backward to dodge the bullets then she jumps in the air. The Quick shoots in the air but the black haired girl uses her daggers to bounce the bullets away. She landed on the floor and chuckled.
"I thought the Adjustment Commandant would be stronger but it seems I was wrong. It seems that you're not quick enough to shoot me down." She smirked.
She throws something at the floor at the Oracle Knights then black smoke appears out of the smoke balls. She took her chance to run past them and head in the Cathedral. She slightly turns to the Chapel and sees that no one is chasing her.
"Now, this is my chance to leave Daath." She grinned.
Suddenly, a shadowy figure appears behind her and tries to pin her down with his hand. She quickly turned to move away but it was too late. Her arms were behind her back being pinned down by a lion.
"So, you came here to assassinate the Commandant. That's why Commandant told us to keep an eye out for a mouse here." Largo held her down on the floor making sure she didn't escape.
"I'm surprised that you were able to wake up that fast. No one has ever woken up from that sleep powder in 1 minute." She said as she struggled from Largo's grip.
Legretta and Sync came out of the Chapel and saw that Largo had the assassin pinned down. They walked up to Largo and looked at the girl.
"Take her to the Commandant. He knows what to do with her." Legretta looks at Largo. The Black Lion nodded and dragged her to the Commandant's room.
In the Commandant's room, Stella was with the three God-Generals behind her. Largo was still holding her arms behind her back to make sure that she didn't assassinate Van. Van was still in his chair looking for the mysterious girl. She stared at him wondering what he was doing.
"So, who ordered you to assassinate me?" He asked.
"Hmph! Like I would tell you." She said, frowning. She feels something on the back of her head. It was Legretta who had her gun pointed at her head.
"Answer Commandant's questions! Or I'll shoot you." She threatened her.
She sighs lightly. "I don't know."
"Don't-"
"Legretta!" The quick looked at the Commandant and stood quietly. The gun was still on the back of the black haired girl. "You don't know who sent you here." Van looks at the young girl.
She nodded. "Yes. I was told to assassinate the Commandant by a messenger then he said that he will send a letter the next morning that the Commandant will be assassinated. It seems that I was tricked again."
"Tricked? What do you mean?"
"It's a long story. But I have always been sent on a mission to do other people's dirty work. After all, I'm nothing but a test subject to them."
"You have been through alot in the past. I'm sorry about that."
"No, it's fine. I have been a test subject for a long time. Although, they've been treating me and the other kids like worthless trash. It doesn't matter how many missions we complete. We're still going to be experimenting on them." The black haired girl was angry at how the laboratories treated her and the others.
Van noticed that she wanted to do something about it. Like she wants to stop them from treating little kids as test subjects. He had an idea to make them stop but to do so he needed someone that could locate the laboratories.
He stood up from his chair. "I can help you."
She was dumbfounded. "What do you mean?"
"I can help you stop them from using those little kids as test subjects for their experiments. But in order to do that..."
She understood what the Commandant was telling her. "You want me to join the Oracle Knights, righ?." She finished Van's sentence.
He nodded. "It would be easier in numbers than just one assassin."
"Are you sure you want to trust me? I came here to assassinate you, Commandant."
Van walked away from his table and put his hand on her shoulder. "Of course, I trust you. Even if you came here to kill me, you would feel disappointed in yourself." He grinned.
She starts to think about it. Why would Van trust her? He just met her and he already trusted her. She didn't know what to think. It was strange to her but this is the first time someone trusted her in her life. She feels pleased. She gave a serious look on her face and looked at Van. "Alright, I'll join the Oracle Knights."
"Before I welcome you to the Oracle Knights, what is your name?"
"My name is Stella."
Van nodded. "Welcome to the Oracle Knights, Stella. I'm going to assign you under one of the Six God-Generals."
I have a bad feeling about this. I think I already know who I am going to be commanded by. She thought, knowing who Van was going to pick.
"You will be commanded under Sync."
I thought he would choose Legretta. I guess I was wrong. She was shocked by Van's choice.
"But Commandant, she will slow down Sync during his missions." Legretta commented.
"You saw her. She was able to sneak into the Cathedral without being detected. What else did you see?" The Commandant asked his subordinates.
"She has a fast reaction, great speed, and skills. She was able to block my attack. She also dodges and reflects Legretta's bullets." Sync spoke with the answer.
Van turned to Stella and glanced at her. "You have been trained well. You can catch up with Sync's speed during all missions."
Stella blinked as she narrowed her eyes. "Is that why you want me to pair with Sync? Because of my speed? Don't be stupid. Not everyone can match other people's skills. It is a lot harder than you think, Commandant Van."
"That might be true, but you can't judge a book without its cover."
The assassin chuckled and understood what Van told her. "Well, I'm used to doing missions alone. Maybe I don't understand some things that well. I'm still young, you know."
"For an 11-year-old, probably." Largo stared at Stella, frowning at her.
She rolled her eyes and sighs annoyingly. I'm not 11. she thought loudly to herself. Van turned to face Legretta and nodded. Legretta moves her gun away from Stella's head and Largo let go of her arms. Stella was confused about something else. "Van, can I ask you something?" She asked curiously.
"What would that be?" He asked, grinning.
"I was wondering how did you know I was here the whole time?"
"When I was coming back, I saw one of the guards disappear from its post. That's when I noticed that someone was in my room to kill me." He smirked.
Stella was surprised that he was able to notice that. She moves her hands to the hood of her cloak to remove it from her head. Then she moves her hands to the back of her hair to spread it out. She has long black hair with purple eyes.
"I'm quite an idiot to leave something like that noticeable." She chuckled. "Anyways, I should go and head to the Inn. I'm getting tired."
"Yes. Get some rest and tomorrow I'll assign the two of you on a mission." Van went back to his chair and sat down. Stella nodded and left the Commandant's room.
Stella was in the bathtub to clean herself from her long day from each of her missions. She sighs deeply and places her hand on her forehead.
"So, I'm under Sync's command. I never thought I'd be commanded by him. I turned 12 last week too. I hope Sync will be an interesting person to talk to. Hmm? But the way he looks seems that he doesn't get along with other people." She gets out of the tub and wraps herself with a towel to cover herself.
She walks out of the bathroom and into the room. Stella changed to her black sleeveless nightgown then headed back to the bathroom to air dry her hair. As she was drying her hair, she heard a knock on the door. She stops what she is doing and runs to the door. "Coming!" She shouted. She opened the door and saw Legretta holding something in her hands. It was confusing to see one of the six God-Generals here in the Inn late. "Why are you here, Legretta?"
Legretta hands Stella the clothes. The assassin was puzzled as she looked at the clothes.
"Here are your clothes as a member of the Oracle Knights." Legretta said.
Stella grabs the clothes and nods. "Thanks, Legretta. I hope we get along with each other as members of the Oracle Knights."
"And don't forget about the mission that the Commandant will assign tomorrow with Sync." The quick reminded the assassin.
"Don't worry. I'll arrive there in time." Legretta walked away from the door and left the Inn. Stella closed the door, walked to the bed, and sat down. She glanced at the clothes that were given to her and tilted her head. It was a long black jacket trimmed in purple, black sleeveless shirt with white collar, white short pants, black fingerless gloves, and long black boots. "These clothes resemble the God-Generals, but I am not a God-General. Plus, becoming one is going to be difficult."
The assassin put the clothing down on the table and lay down on the bed and looked at the ceiling. She put her left arm to cover her eyes and sighs lightly. "Man, such an exhausting night. I would never think the Commandant would make me a part of the Oracle Knights. Well, I made that decision to one them to stop those laboratories. And when that is over, what am I going to do? Stay in the Oracle Knights or leave?" Too many things were going into Stella's mind. She doesn't know what to do next when she does destroy the laboratories. "I think I'm going to go to sleep now. It is getting pretty late and I have to go on a mission with the Tempest." She turns off the lights and starts to go to sleep.
Meanwhile, when Stella was taking a bath. Sync was in the Commandant's room discussing Stella and the laboratory.
"What are you going to do when we destroy all of the laboratories, Van?" Sync asked.
Van turned to Sync and answered. "We will find any data that was used on the kids and then we will use that data to help with our goal."
"So, you want me to keep an eye on Stella? From stopping you from stealing the data from the laboratories."
"Of course. And make sure she doesn't know anything about it."
Sync smirked. "I can handle that easily."
"You should be careful around Stella. She is no original human and we don't know much about her yet. She may be an assassin, but she can easily fool you, Sync. Like I said, you can't judge a book without its cover." The commandant frowned.
"There's no way I would get fooled by the likes of her. She's just a kid." Sync scoffed that he won't be fooled by Stella. "But what happens if she knows about our plan?"
"If she interferes with our plan then you have to kill her." Van was serious about letting Stella die in the hands of Sync. "But if she joins us to help our goal then she will be a God-General. For now, she will be in your command."
The tempest sighed. "More like babysitting some kid." He muttered coldly as he turned around to leave the room.
Outside of the Cathedral, a figure was listening to the conversation from Van and Sync. The eyes started to glow red and walk away from the Cathedral. It doesn't want to get noticed by the soldiers that are still patrolling. The figure quickly flies away back to the Inn.
The next morning, Stella woke up from her slumber as she sat up on the bed and moved to the edge of the bed. She started to stretch and smiled.
"I slept like a log last night. I never thought I would be that exhausted." She stood up from the bed and walked to the restroom to get ready. Something was pecking on the window. Stella stopped, turned to the window, and it was a phoenix. Stella went up to the window, opened it from the phoenix to come in, and it flew on her shoulder. Stella chuckled and placed her finger under the chin to pet it. "You made it, Ace," the phoenix has red feathers with tainted black on the tip of the feathers, yellow beak, brown eyes, a chain around its left leg, long red tail, armors on the wings, talons, and neck. "So, why are you here?" she asked. Ace turned to its master and cried softly. The assassin frowned then narrowed her eyes. "I see. I guess I'll just play along with them and pretend not to know anything about it. Now then, I have to change into my new clothes and meet up with the Tempest. I hate to keep him waiting." Stella went to the table to pick up the clothes that were given to her from Legretta and put them on. Ace flies off of his master's shoulder and waits for her to change.
Stella walked to the mirror to check and see if the clothes were in the right place. She noticed that the collar needs to fit and adjust it in the right place. She nodded. "Alright, that should do it." Ace flies back on Stella's shoulder and shakes his feathers. Stella walks out of the room and exits out of the Inn. She looked around to find Sync if he was in the city. "Where am I going to meet him? I wasn't told any location where to meet Sync." she crooked her eyes in confusion.
"I have been waiting for you." a voice from behind called.
The assassin turned around where the voice was at, it was Sync with his arms crossed on his chest. "How long?" she asked.
"Since this morning," he replied coldly. "It's already noon."
"I wasn't told to meet you in the morning. I was told to go on a mission with you, numbskull," She said, frowning. "So, what is our mission?"
Sync sighed. "We're going to the laboratory and going to destroy them. You are going to show us where all of them are located," he answered.
Stella turns around and starts to walk away. "Alright. We'll go to the closest one."
The tempest followed the assassin from behind. He sees the bird on her shoulder wondering what it is. "What is that thing on your shoulder?" he asked.
Stella slightly turned her head and replied, "It is not a thing. It is Ace, my loyal subordinate. He has been in the same laboratory with me. I was able to free him from those pathetic scientist doctors. Ace has been with me since I saved him." She turned her head back and exited out of Daath.
The martial artist wasn't interested to hear the backstory of a bird and the assassin. He just wants the mission to be finished soon. He does need to know more about Stella and her past. Maybe he will learn more about her when they arrive at the laboratory.
"Where is the closest laboratory located?" he asked.
"There is one far west from Keterburg. It is a great hiding spot away from Keterburg, because of the snowstorm. A lot of children are placed there for the first time as a test subject. That is where I was sent when I was a kid. I didn't like what I saw in that laboratory." she replied, telling about her past.
"Why were you sent to the laboratory?"
The black haired assassin didn't respond to Sync's question. She just sighed. Sync noticed that Stella didn't want to talk about how she was sent to the laboratory as a kid as a test subject.
"You ask a lot of questions as a God-General. Not many people would like to tell their past to someone else. Some rather keep it personal to themselves. I'm sure that you have a past too, Sync. But I wanted to keep it a secret from others to know who you are."
Sync chuckled. "It's like you know me too well."
"I was using it as an example. I don't know anything about your past. By the way, why do you have a mask on?"
"You have no business knowing about it." he answered coldly.
Stella huffed. "Well, you don't have to give an attitude reply. It was a simple question but if you don't want to talk about it then you should at least say it nicer. But I can tell that you are not the type to be nice to anyone just by looking at you."
They didn't talk as they continued to go to Daath Bay.
They arrived at Daath Bay. Sync went towards the dock and headed to the Oracle Soldier to talk to him. Sync stays silent. Stella doesn't know that she is talking to one now. He turned around to go inside the boat. The assassin noticed that the Tempest left by the footsteps. She tilted her head in confusion then shrugged and looked back on the ocean.
"At least I have some time alone. Although, I have to be careful around the Tempest. He'll know everything about me and tell the Commandant about me," she looked at Ace and petted him. "So, what did you learn when you came to meet me, Ace?" He started to cry softly to his master's ears. The phoenix scratched his head with his claws. Stella turns around to go inside the boat.
As she walked inside the boat, she went to the bridge and saw the Tempest standing in the center of the bridge. The oracle knights were operating the boat to Keterburg. She signals Ace to get off of her shoulder. Ace flies off of his master's shoulder then goes to Sync's shoulder. Sync glanced at the phoenix wondering why Ace is on his shoulder. He turned to Stella as she was leaving the bridge.
"Where are you going?" he asked, frowning.
She waved her hands back and forth as she left the bridge. "I'm going to find something to eat. We didn't eat anything when we left Daath and watched Ace for me. He won't do anything to you if I order him too."
Sync chuckled and turned back around. He crossed his arms as they went to Keterburg.
Stella walked down the path to find the kitchen in the boat. The soldiers watched her as she walked past them.
"Who is she?" the Oracle knight member 1 asked.
"She is the newest member of the Oracle Knights and under Sync's command." Oracle knight member 2 answered.
"Really? Not everyone would be lucky to be under his command."
Stella rolled her eyes as she sighed. I'm not fond of his command. I thought he would be interesting but I was wrong about him. Although, I'm curious what his face looks like. Why is it important that he hide his face? No one is going to make fun of it. She thought as she turned to the open doorway. She walked to the counter and looked at all of the counters to see if everything was there. She nodded. "It looks like everything is in place. That's good. Now, where is the food?" She starts to search for the food in the kitchen. She opened the counter and chuckled. "Well, I should start cooking. It has been awhile since I cooked food." as she walked to the counter, grabbed a knife, and spun it.
It has been a couple hours to Keterburg. Sync noticed that Stella isn't back. He leaves the bridge to find her. He walked past the soldiers and doors to search for Stella. Ace flies off of Sync's shoulder to go where Stella is . The Tempest followed Ace knowing that the phoenix knows where his master is at. Ace flew turns to the far right door to enter the kitchen. When Sync arrives at the destination, he sees Stella sitting on the counter eating. Ace landed next to the bowl of meat and started eating the meat. She smiled at Ace then she turned to the entrance of the door and saw Sync standing at the doorway.
"You should eat, Sync. It would be best if you eat something before we arrive at Keterburg. You can't go on an empty stomach." as she takes a bite of the food.
Sync walked into the room and sat down at the counter. He glanced at the food then turned to Stella. "You made all of this?" he questioned.
"Of course, I did. When I was still in the laboratory, someone taught me how to cook. She was nice and caring to me. She was like a mother to me and taught me a lot of things. I never have a mother and what it feels to have one. It made me warm inside to have someone who is a motherly figure to me. I enjoyed those days back then." she replied, as she took another bite. She looks at Ace and pet him under his chin. Ace enjoys being petted under his chin. He started to call happily from being petted. Stella remembered something and turned to Sync. "We should set up a strategy when we reach Keterburg. The laboratory is set up with traps and fonic artes. So, it would be wise to do one, Leader."
The Tempest agreed with the assassin for once. "We just need to know where the traps and fonic artes are located. It would be hard to just run in the entrance and let the soldiers die instantly. Although, we can use the soldiers as bait to lure out the traps and fonic artes." he smirked.
Stella rolled her eyes then frowned. "That would be stupid. The traps and fonic artes never stop coming if we use the soldiers as bait. Why would you do that to your own soldiers? They are your men under your commands." She was not fond of Sync sacrificing his own soldiers just to destroy one laboratory.
Sync chuckled. "What do you mean? In this world, everyone dies for no reason just by reading the score. People read the score, they follow the score's purpose, and then die from the score. That's how the world works just by following the score."
"Maybe. But what if people don't follow the score? The world would be a better place without the score. No one doesn't need to read the score anymore. So, tell me, Sync. Do you hate the score so much that you want to destroy it?"
"Of course. I hate it so much that I wanted to see it destroyed and see the world free from the score."
"Is there a reason why you hate the score?"
"You have no business knowing that too."
"You do keep a lot of secrets from others." Stella picked up the glass of water and drinks it.
"And you? Do you hate the score?"
The black haired assassin moved the glass of water away from her mouth and answered, "I do. The score is nothing, but like a god to others. I wish there was a way to destroy the score so people can live happily." as she places the glass on the table. The room became silent for a few minutes. Stella stood up from her chair and left the kitchen. "You should hurry and eat. The food will get cold if you don't eat. Besides, we're almost there in Keterburg." as she leaves the kitchen.
Sync watches as Stella leaves. He looked at the food that Stella made then started to eat. Ace glanced at Sync as he was eating. He is making sure that Sync doesn't do anything suspicious. The green haired God-General noticed that Ace is watching him eating. Although, he doesn't know what is going on Ace's mind. He ignores the phoenix and continues to eat.
They arrived at Keterburg Bay. Sync and Stella walked out of the boat. Ace was on Stella's shoulder scratching his head with his claws. Sync glances at Stella and sees that she isn't wearing anything warm in the cold.
"Why are you not wearing anything warm? It is cold in Keterburg." he crossed his arms.
Stella sighed, walked forward towards Keterburg. "I'm fine. I'm used to the cold. I was trained in the cold for a long time. So, this cold is nothing to me." she replied. Sync followed her from behind to Keterburg.
They walked out of Keterburg Bay and followed the trail to Keterburg. As they continued to go to Keterburg, they heard a voice not too far from them. The voice sounds like it was excited and depressed about something interesting. Sync and Stella looked at each other and followed the sound of the voice to see who's voice it was. They arrive at the source of the voice and see someone on an ostentatious chair. Sync frowned as he knew who it was.
"I need to get into that laboratory but it is impossible to get in! It is set up with traps and fonic artes. How can I get in without getting notice?" The ostentatious chair turned around and saw Sync and Stella. "Oh, why are you here?" he asked Sync.
"You must be Dist the Reaper. A God-General of the Oracle Knights." Stella said, lifting her eyebrows.
"It's ROSE! I'm Dist the Rose! Not Reaper! And who are you?" he demanded as he glanced at Stella.
"This is Stella. She joined the Oracle Knights yesterday by Van's orders and she is under my command." Sync answered.
Dist narrowed his eyes at Stella and glanced at her, "Why are you here?"
Stella replied, "We are here to destroy the laboratory here. It is ordered from Van. He sent me and Sync to destroy it. We also need to plan to go to the laboratory."
"Oh, let me handle the entrance of the lab. I have a plan to destroy the entrance." Dist rubbed his hands together as he smirked.
The Tempest and the assassin ignored the reaper as they looked at each other.
"Do you know any shortcuts or other entrances to the laboratory?" Sync asked Stella.
"Hey?" Dist tries to get their attention.
Stella crooked her eyes as she is trying to remember any entrances or shortcuts. "There is one but it is far from the laboratory and Keterburg."
"How long until we arrive at our destination?" Sync crossed his arms on his chest.
"Since I know the way there. It would take us about an hour but if a storm appears then it would take 3 hours more. So, what is the plan?"
"Hey! Don't ignore me!" The reaper calls them out again to get their attention. They kept ignoring him.
"We should head to the hidden entrance to sneak into the lab. Next, we would need to disarm the traps and fonic artes in the control room. Then, we will attack the laboratory. Lastly, you will save the kids and take them to Keterburg."
Stella chuckled. "Sounds like a plan. But it would be fine with the two of us doing this mission alone. I doubt the soldiers will be able to catch up with our speed. We can let the soldiers wait for us at the entrance of the laboratory once we start the attack. Now, we should head to Keterburg. I need to talk to the Governor of Keterburg after that we can discuss other matters while we are there."
They walked away from Dist who was still listening to them and they continued to ignore him. He got upset and said, "I'm putting this in my revenge journal! Or maybe you guys are just jealous of my stunning beauty." he started to fly off into the sky.
"Is he always like that? It is quite annoying." the assassin asked, confused about Dist's personality.
"Just ignore him. It's boring to hear him talk about things like that." Sync stated.
"Surprising, that he is the 2nd Division Commander of the Oracle Knights as well Conductor and Locrian Colonel within the Oracle Knights. He doesn't seem too interested to follow any orders. Although, I can tell that he is going to the laboratory by the look on his face. I wonder." she started to think.
"Just forget him. He is only interested in data and the Necromancer."
"Necromancer? You mean Jade the Necromancer. Why would he be interested in him?"
"It dwells in his past. That's all."
"I forgot that the God-Generals never talk about their past. It's understandable." Stella closed her eyes. "Anyways, we should be close to Keterburg."
Stella and Sync walked through the entrance of Keterburg. They see little kids playing in the snow, throwing snowballs at each other. Stella watched as the kids played together in the snow. She wished that she was playing with them now, enjoying the snow. She feels jealous of the kids. Sync glances at Stella and sees that she looks jealous.
"You seem jealous about something," he said.
Stella sighed, crooking her eyes. "I'm jealous of the kids here. They are having fun and enjoying themselves as they play with each other. I have been in the lab for my whole life as a test subject." she turned to Sync and asked, "Do you have a childhood, Sync?"
Sync doesn't know what to tell her. He can't tell her his past. She doesn't know anything about him. He tells her a simple answer. "No. I don't have any childhood memories."
"I see. I'm sorry for asking." Stella closed her eyes and sighed deeply. She nodded at Ace. Telling him to leave her. He flies off of her shoulder and goes to Sync's shoulder. "Anyways, I'll go to meet the Governor of Keterburg." as she turns to her left.
The green haired God-General watches as she walks further away from him. He turns to Ace seeing what he is doing. Ace glanced at Sync as he cried softly. Sync turns to the opposite way and walks away.
"What do you think of Stella, Ace?" he asked the phoenix. Ace cries out loudly. Sync didn't understand what Ace is saying but he could tell that Ace enjoys being with her as his master. He chuckled. "She and I have something in common. She wants to destroy the score. She also has a good strategy. Maybe she does have the potential to be a God-General, but there are still some things we still don't know about her yet." Ace stared at Sync and cried angry at him. "What's wrong with you?" Sync hissed the phoenix. He could tell that Ace isn't happy with him. He doesn't know what it is but there was something about Ace that Sync noticed. This bird seems a little suspicious. He's protecting Stella from something. What is he protecting her from? he glanced at Ace once more.
Ace became silent after being angry at Sync. He spreads his right-wing and starts to scratch it with his beak then puts it down. He starts to sit down on Sync's shoulder and takes a quick nap. The Tempest has to wait for Stella to return from Governor of Keterburg.
The assassin arrived at the home of the Governor of Keterburg. She stood in front of the door and took a deep breath. She looked determined to talk to the Governor. Stella knocked on the door waiting for someone to respond to her knocking. A voice was called behind the door.
"Come in."
Stella opened the door, walked in the house then closed the door from behind. She looked around and saw that no one was there. Someone walked out of the other room and appeared in the office. Stella turned and saw a professional-appealing black and white outfit with a brown belt and reading glasses. She has very light brown hair, nearly blond, which is part of it. She wears it in a bun, allowing the rest to fall down. She does like to look at the Governor of Keterburg.
"Oh, my. Stella is that you?" the Governor was surprised to see Stella alive.
Stella nodded. "Yes, it has been a while, Governor Osborne."
"Please, call me Nephry. No need to call me governor when we are alone." Nerphry said gently.
"Alright, if you say so. Anyways, have you noticed anything that the laboratory has been doing lately?" Stella asked.
Nephry shook her head. "No. I haven't. They have been doing a lot of illegal things on those kids. I'm worried about the safety of those kids. I wish there was a way to save them but we don't have enough soldiers to do it."
The assassin smiled. "No worries, Nephry. I'll save them."
"How? You can't do it alone. You need help to save the kids." Nephry was worried about Stella.
"I have the Oracle Knights to help me."
"The Oracle Knights? How did you get the Oracle Knights to help you?"
Stella sighed lightly. "It is a long story. I'll tell you later once we save the kids."
Nephry nodded. "Alright. So, where is Ace? He is always with you."
"He's with Sync."
"Sync? You mean one of the Six God-Generals is here in Keterburg." Stella nodded. "I see. So, he is here to help you save the kids from the laboratory?"
"Yeah. We are going to destroy the laboratory. We can't let no one step in that lab and we need to destroy any evidence from the lab."
Nephry nodded in agreement. "Yes. We must not have anyone go to the laboratory once it is destroyed. Stella, you must be careful around the Oracle Knights. We don't know what they are up to either."
"Right. I'll be careful around them. Well, I'm heading out and saving the kids." Stella turned around and walked away.
"Be safe and make sure that the kids are fine once you save them."
Stella waved as she walked out of Nephry's office. The assassin opened the door, walked out of the house, and closed the door as she stepped out of the house. She leaves the area to meet up with Sync. She stopped walking and sighed deeply. "I know you there. You can come out of hiding, Sync."
Sync came out of his hiding spot and smirked. "So, how did it go?"
"It went well." the black haired assassin narrowed her eyes as she frowned. "Did you eavesdrop on our conversation?"
The green hair God-General shrugged then chuckled. "Of course not. Why would I do that? I'm sure that conversation isn't important at all."
Stella couldn't tell if Sync was lying or not through his smirk. "Anyways, we should go to the hidden entrance to sneak into the laboratory. I'm sure we are going to see Dist there as well. He is going to be hungry for that data." as she walked away to leave Keterburg.
Sync followed the assassin out of Keterburg and headed to the hidden entrance. "Before, we leave. We should tell my division that they need to go to the entrance of the lab."
Stella rubbed the back of her head. "I forgot about it. I guess I am rushing into things." She walked back to Sync. "So, where should you meet your men?"
"Outside of Keterburg. It's easier for us to tell them our plan." Sync turned around and started to walk away.
"Whatever you say, leader. Just make sure you don't lose your men during this mission. It is important to keep them alive for the next laboratory." She followed the Tempest from behind.
Sync turns to Ace who is napping on his shoulder. "How come Ace isn't going back to you?" he asked.
"Is there something wrong with that?" she questioned.
"Not really. It's bothering me that this bird is annoying me." he frowned.
Stella smiled as she chuckled. "I guess he is fond of you."
"Fond of me?"
The assassin nodded. "This is the first time that Ace is fond of someone else besides me. So, what did you do to make Ace fond of you?"
"I didn't do anything. I just asked him about you then he got angry at me."
"Really? About what?"
"It's nothing important."
Stella was confused. She looked at Ace and giggled softly. "Alright, if you say so." she started to frown. What did he say about me? I have to ask Ace what Sync said about me. After all, they don't know that I can communicate with monsters. I can't let them know that. Arietta, one of the God-Generals, can communicate with monsters too. So, I have to keep mine a secret from the Oracle Knights and Van. I was able to learn how to communicate with monsters during my experiment in the lab. There are a lot of things I can do without the Oracle Knights noticing it. she thought, talking about her past experiments as a test subject in the lab.
The fifth division soldiers were waiting for their commander to arrive to get them orders. Sync and Stella appeared in front of the soldiers. Sync started to tell his soldiers about their plan. Stella turned around and walked away from the fifth division. She walked to the mountain and looked up at the sky. The sky was turning dark soon. It's perfect for an assassin like her to assassinate anything in the night. But she wasn't looking at the sky. She was looking at something else in the sky.
Sync finished talking to his soldiers. He turns around and sees that Stella isn't around. He looks down on the snow, sees her footsteps, and follows the footsteps to where it leads him too. The footsteps led him to the mountain where Stella was standing. He looked at Stella and noticed that she was crying, staring at the sky. He never saw someone cry just by looking at the sky. He walked closer to her and crossed his arms.
"Why are you crying?" he asked.
Stella turned to the voice behind her, wiped her tears, and sign lightly. "You ruined the mood. Anyways, I was thinking about my past, that's all. There's nothing more to it. I'm sure that you don't want to hear it."
Sync shrugged. "Who knows. Is there a reason why you were looking at the sky?"
"I was looking at the stars. It's nearly dark. It is possible to see stars this time. Also, that's what my name means in Ancient Ispanian." she answered.
"'Star' is what your name means in Ancient Ispanian."
Stella nodded. "Mhm. Anyways, we should get going." She glanced at Ace and was about to call him but he was sleeping. "Do you mind if you tell Ace to lead the soldiers to the entrance of the laboratory?" she looked back at Sync.
"Why do I have to do it? He is your pet." Sync said coldly.
"Didn't I tell you. He's fond of you. So, I don't want to hear your complaining." Stella said as she walked past Sync.
Sync sighed annoyingly as he followed her from behind. "I never agreed to do this for you." he frowned.
Stella ignores Sync as she heads to the mountains. Ace woke up from the commotion and turned to Sync then turned to his master. He flies off of Sync's shoulder and goes to Stella's shoulder. The Tempest sighs happily that Ace is off of his shoulder. The assassin chuckled softly at Sync then glanced at Ace.
"Ace, show the oracle soldiers to the entrance of the lab and wait for my signal," she told him. Ace took off into the skies and headed back to the oracle soldiers. Sync and Stella watch as Ace leaves. They turned back and continued their path to the hidden entrance.
Stella stopped in her tracks and hid behind the rock. Sync followed her behind the rock and crossed his arms. The assassin sees the guards guarding the hidden entrance. She frowned as she saw the guards.
"Damn. I didn't know they found the hidden passage to the laboratory." as she stares at each guard.
"Should we fight them to clear the path?" Sync asked.
Stella turns to Sync and answers, "We could but we don't know if they are watching us from here. We don't have anything to disrupt their cameras."
"You're thinking too much, Stella. There are ways to trick them," he said.
"Like what?" Stella lifts an eyebrow.
"Speed. They can't see through our speed. They don't have those eagle eyes to see us going in."
The assassin closed her eyes and sighs lightly. "Who knows. They may have something for us waiting in the lab. It won't be an easy fight." She opened her eyes and turned back to the guards. "We should knock the guards unconscious and sneak in the hidden passageway. Unless you want to kill them, Sync."
The Tempest smirked. "Of course. We can't let them run away and tell their companies about this. They are the evidence of all of this if we make them unconscious. Like I said, in this world, everyone dies for no reason, because of the score and they are weak."
"I don't think people die for no reason. People die to fight what is right, to defend themselves, and protect others. It's not the score that causes them to die. There are some weak humans but they have the heart to do what is right for their loved ones. You are one of them, Sync." Stella takes out her daggers under her jacket. She started to clash them together and sharpen their blades to each other.
Sync watches her as she sharpens her daggers. He didn't know what to say. That was the first time someone called him human. The Tempest chuckled. "Well, let's get started. We should hurry with this mission." he fists his hand onto the palm of his other hand and is ready to fight. They looked at each other and nodded.
They quickly spread out to kill the guards. Stella sneaked up behind one and instantly killed him. She continues to assassinate her targets. Sync kicked the guard multiple times then goes to the next guard. They were done killing the guards and stood in front of the entrance of the hidden passage. Stella went to the wall, placed her hands on the wall, and it opened. She leads the way in the hidden passageway and Sync follows her from behind.
As they walk in the path to the lab, the fire lids up when they pass each lid flames. The wind was blowing cold towards them as they could feel it through their skins. Stella can feel the pressure when they are going closer and closer to the lab. She doesn't know what will happen when they arrive there. There was no original pressure. It's like they are being watched from above.
The assassin started to feel uneasy as they got there. Sync turns to Stella and sees sweat falling down from her cheeks. It was noticeable that she was not ready to go to fight.
"Something the matter? You look uneasy about this mission," he said.
Stella shook her head. "No. I have a feeling that someone is watching us. Something is probably waiting for us when we arrive there. It will be dangerous to save the kids with that in the way."
"And what makes you sure if that is right?" he asked.
"I can feel the pressure as we are getting closer and closer to the end of this path. It gets stronger and stronger every time I feel it. It feels like the sudden chill running through my skin. The cold wind is like touching every inch of my skin." she replied.
"Once we arrive at the laboratory, make sure you disarm the traps and then save the kids."
"You don't have to tell me twice. I know what you're going to do. Just be careful." Stella stops walking and places her hand on the door. The door slowly opened. The assassin moved her hand away from the door as it was opening. They entered the open door and appeared in the camera monitoring room. They looked around to see if anyone was there. There was no one in the room. "Surprisingly, no one is here. They are usually guards here. I wonder what will happen to them." she started to think.
"This is not the time to think, Stella. We have to complete this mission then head back to Daath." Sync walked to the camera's screen and looked at each one of them. "Why would a camera room be here next to the hidden passageway? This is utterly stupid whoever build this laboratory."
"I said the same thing too but apparently they didn't know about the hidden passage when I escaped." Stella walked up beside Sync and glanced at the camera's screen. "This will help us find the kids, the control room, all the guards' locations, and other things that appear in these cameras. I see the kids in the center room and the control room. It seems far away from the center room."
"We might have to shut them down just in case one of the guard's returns. Otherwise, they will alarm the whole lab."
Stella sighed. "No. We will put fake images on these cameras. They will never know that we are in there if we place a fake scenery.` She walked to the camera controls and started to press buttons to add fake images on each camera.
"You think you can place all the fake images in all of the cameras?" Sync questioned.
"Are you doubting me as an ally or a rogue assassin? I thought you have to keep an eye on me from Van's orders." Stella mocked Sync.
"Hmph! I can't disobey orders from Van. I'll get in trouble if I don't watch you."
Stella lends away from the camera controls and turns to Sync. "I never thought you were the type to follow orders from Van. Although, you are a God-General of the Oracle Knights. Of course, you do have to follow orders from the Commandant." she smirked in a mocking way as she walked past Sync.
"Are you mocking me?"
"Who knows. You tell me if I am or not, Mr. Tactical Leader."
Sync was getting annoyed by Stella's mocking. "Let's hurry up and finish this mission. I'm getting tired of this place. We should have been done with this place a long time ago." he frowned.
"Stop complaining. These things take time, Sync. If you make one mistake on your mission then you can't redo it over. You just have to continue with the mission with that one mistake. I can tell that Van won't be happy if we did make one mistake." Stella crossed her arms as she stood in front of the door. "Anyways, I'm done with the cameras. Let's commence the mission. I'll go through the vent and disarm the traps. You wait here until I disarm traps then you can do whatever you want here."
Stella jumped to the vent and screwed the nails off. When the nails were off, she opened it and entered and started to crawl to find the control room. Sync watches as she leaves when she enters the vent. The Tempest stares at the door and waits for the assassin to disarm the traps.
The black haired assassin quietly crawls in the vent from getting noticed by the guards. She crawled past small vents to reach the control room. Suddenly, a small voice was heard. It sounds sad and seems desperate for help.
"I want to go home." said the young boy, sadly.
All of the kids in the room wanted to go home and see the parents but they couldn't do anything. They wish they had someone to save them from the so-called "doctors". They are scared and wish to forget how they are treated in the laboratory. Stella was listening and watching the kids from the vent. She wishes she can save them now but she has to go and do her mission.
"Don't worry. I will save you guys from this nightmare," she said quietly. She continues to crawl the vent to search for the control room.
In the control room, there was a guard guarding the control room against the outside. Stella arrives at the control room and looks around in the control room through the vent if anyone is around. It was cleared and she opened the vent and jumped down. She stood up and walked up to the controls. The buttons look simple. She starts to press the buttons to disarm the traps then she looks up on the screen and sees that she disarms the traps. She sighs in relief.
Now, she has to get out of the control room and tell Sync that she disarms the traps. Voices were coming closer to the control room. Stella looks around to hide, then quickly hides in a locker. Two guards appeared in the control rooms to watch and guard the room. Stella quickly dashed out of the room and sneaked away from the control room. She goes to save the kids but it won't be easy to pass through the door that is guarded.
She hides in every corner to see if any guards are guarding the area. The assassin stops at the last corner and looks to see any guards. There were two guards guarding the center room where the kids are. Stella quickly killed the two guards silently preventing the other guards from hearing them. She opens the door and looks to see if it is safe. She dragged both of their bodies in the center room then closed the door as she was finished.
She looked up and saw the kids gathered around when they saw Stella enter the room. They start to smile and Stella walks up to them.
"Stella is that you?" the young boy with the brown hair asked.
Stella nodded her head. "Of course it is. I'm here to rescue you guys from these bad guys." she smiled at them. "We have to be careful as we leave." She went to the wall and saw the pile of junk. She moves the pile of junk out of the way and finds a hole for the kids to go through. "Alright, let's get going."
The kids nodded and walked into the hole. Stella waits for all of the kids to go in the hole. The last kid got in the hole and Stella turned around to see if anyone was watching them. She walked into the hole and followed the path where it leads too.
Sync was waiting for Stella to come back. He glanced at the cameras and looked at each one of them. The cameras showed where every room was located. Suddenly, he heard something from behind and turned around. The wall was about to crack open. He stood his ground if any enemy appeared out of the wall. The wall cracked open and Sync waited for the smoke to clear.
Stella appeared out from the cracked wall and started to cough with the kids. "Damn! I think that was too loud. Now, they are going to be alerted about the sound." she turns to Sync who was standing there watching her. "Sorry about that."
"Did you disarm the traps?" he asked.
She nodded and answered, "Yes, and I got the kids as well." she turns to the kids behind her. "Since everything is done. It is time for the grand finale."
"Grand finale?" Sync was confused but frowning.
"You will see." she snapped her fingers. The lab started to explode.
The Tempest chuckled. "Since when do you have time to set up traps in the lab?"
"An assassin never tells their secret to others." Stella put her finger on her lips as she smiled.
She put her middle finger and thumb in her mouth and whistled. Sync was wondering why Stella is whistling for.
"Who are you calling?"
"You will see." Suddenly, a large liger and Ace appeared in front of Stella. She petted the liger and smiled. "Can you guys take the kids to Keterburg?"
The liger and phoenix nodded. They went to the kids to lead them out of the hidden path. The kids looked at Stella. The assassin nodded. The kids were not sure if it was safe to go with the monsters but they followed them out of the hidden path.
"You know how to communicate with monsters?"
"No, I can understand how they feel." She lied. She doesn't want anyone to know that she can communicate with monsters.
"That sounds like you can communicate with them."
"Don't be stupid. Anyways, we can't waste time. We have to finish this mission. I thought you wanted this mission to be over." Stella walked up to Sync. She faced the door and was ready to complete the mission.
"Hmph! Whatever." he scoffed. "Let's just finish this." as Sync leaves the camera monitoring room. Stella sighed deeply and followed him from behind.
The laboratory was getting destroyed. Smoke everywhere coming out of the lab. The Oracle Knights ran through the open door from the explosion and killed the guards and scientists they saw. Dist was looking around to find the room where they put the children to experiment with them but there were no signs of the experiment room anywhere.
"Hmm? Where is the experiment room located? It is impossible for me to find it like this." Dist stops and thinks of a way to find the room. He got his idea and started to smirk. "I think I know someone who knows the location. I just need to find that person." as Dist searches for this 'someone' that he is looking for.
Stella can feel the same pressure as before when they were in the secret passage. It was getting stronger and stronger as they got closer to it. Her body started to feel fear through the course of her skin. It isn't normal for Stella to be afraid of the intense pressure. She looked at every spot of where the pressure was.
"This pressure is getting intense as we are getting closer to it. Something isn't right here."
"You have been saying that ever since we entered the secret passage. Is there a problem with that?" Sync sighed annoyingly.
"It looks like someone hasn't been trained to feel other people's presence. It is your job to feel the surrounding area with your presence. If you don't then a lot of bad things can happen to you." Stella glared at Sync. "You can't win fights just by going head on against your opponents. It is important to know what your enemies are doing. Understanding their movements, style, and more. I can teach you if you don't tell Van." She offered to teach Sync but she knows something is coming from his mouth.
"No thanks. I don't want to be taught by a child like you. I'm fine the way I am." he declined.
She chuckled then shrugged. "Okay. If you say so. I have a feeling that you will ask when you get defeated by your opponents multiple times."
"Hmph! Like that is going to happen." The assassin stopped walking and heard something from afar. She slightly turns around to see who it is. Sync turned to Stella to see what she was facing in the opposite direction. "Something the matter?"
"We better keep going and get to the experimental lab. I fear something is waiting for us." Stella turned back and walked past Sync. The Tempest followed Stella to the experimental room.
"The experimental lab is far from the rest of the labs from here."
"That is right. It is the largest room out of the other rooms here. That's where the data is located and that intense pressure is there as well. I don't know who is going to be there. We have to be on guard once we enter the room."
"How hard would that be? It will be easy with the two of us against whatever we are up against." he scoffed.
Stella rolled her eyes and sighed. "Will you stop underestimating your opponent? You don't know who will face us."
"And why are you being so reckless?" he asked coldly.
"I'm not. It's just that you don't understand a damn thing about these things." she sighed. "Just forget what I said but you should think about these things more carefully. Anyways, once we are at the bottom floor of this laboratory, there will be a big door that leads to the experimental lab."
Stella sees the stairs that go down to the lower level of the lab. They both stood in front of the stairs and glanced at the dark area of the lower level. The assassin walked downstairs. They reached the lower level of the lab and it was dark. It was hard to see when there was no light anywhere.
"It's hard to see down here and there is not a single light at all." Sync looked around in the dark.
Stella turned to Sync and said, "Don't worry. I can see in the dark."
The Tempest turned to Stella and asked, "How can you do that? We don't have anything to see in the dark."
"I'm an assassin. I can see in the dark. We will be fine. Just follow me and you will be fine." Stella turned back and started to walk forward.
Sync doesn't know if he should believe in Stella's ability to see in the dark. Although, he doesn't know anything about her. It's best to see her ability and what it does.
They finally appeared at the large door and looked at it. They are ready to go through the big door and prepare to fight whatever it is behind it. Stella took out her daggers and started to sharpen them together. As they were sharpened, she put on her clothing and glanced at Sync.
"Are you ready?" she asked curiously.
"Maybe," he replied sarcastically. "Just make sure to watch your back. I'm not going to save you if you get attacked."
She chuckled. "Whatever you say, Tempest." She went to the arc of the door and typed in the password to open the door. The big door opens slowly as the bright light shines through them and kills the darkness behind them.
The door was wide open and they stepped into the big room. They look around in the experimental lab. There was nothing waiting for them at the experimental lab, but they were still aware that someone would attack them out of nowhere.
The black haired assassin went ahead to the room behind the door. She started up the machine and looked at the experiment. She stared at the data that the scientist gathered on the children. The data seems decent enough to be used for Van's plan. Stella can't let Van have the data in his hand. She presses buttons on the machine to delete the data completely so no one can use them for their own needs. Once the data was completely deleted, she started the self-destruct to destroy the lab. There will be no evidence of this lab. She sighed and quickly left the room and went towards Sync.
"I self-destruct this place in 5 minutes. We should hurry and leave this place."
"What about the data?"
Stella sighed lightly and answered, "I deleted the data. So, no one can use it for their own plans. Anyways, let's go before this whole place is going to be destroyed." as she walked past Sync and headed to the large door.
Sync took a step forward and saw something at the door waiting for the assassin to come closer. As Stella gets closer to the door, a large sword swings out of the shadow to attack Stella. The assassin quickly took out her daggers and blocked the attack and pushed her back into the room. She used her feet to land her fall from the push and it created a small cloud of dust.
Stella looked at her hand and saw that she got a cut from the surprise attack. Blood was coming out of her hand. She didn't mind the cut on her hand and looked at the door in front of her.
"I suggest you come out of the shadows." she demanded.
The figure appeared out of the shadow into the light. It walked in the experimental lab and stood in front of Sync and Stella. It appeared to be a muscular man carrying a large sword on his shoulder, a gray and red shoulder pad on his left shoulder, gray cloth armor to the length of his ankle, gray boots, gray and red gloves, and gray pants. He glanced at the two Oracle Knights in front of him then he started to laugh.
Stella was confused and Sync just frowned. Why is he laughing at them? There's only one way to find out.
"What's so funny? And who are you?" Sync asked coldly.
The muscular man stopped laughing and faced Sync. "I'm laughing because I'm fighting against two kids that sneaked in my lab," then he frowned. "And why should I introduce myself if you don't tell me your names?" he pointed at them.
Stella narrowed her eyes. "You don't know who I am, Raven."
Raven turned to Stella and widened his eyes. "I'm surprised you're not dead from your mission. How did you survive?"
"I see. So, you were the one who sent me to assassinate Van."
"I wasn't the one who sent you to assassinate Van. You just have to find the person yourself."
"Tell me who sent me to assassinate Van?"
"Why should I tell you, little girl? You just have to find him."
Sync turned to Stella and asked, "Who is he?"
"That is Raven. He is the commander here. He's known as The Dark Bull." she replied.
"Under whose orders?"
Stella rubbed her temple and sighed. "I'll tell you that later, Sync."
Raven heard a familiar name and said, "Sync? You mean Sync the Tempest is here. I see. You join the Oracle Knights. Is there a reason why you join them and not us, Stella?"
The assassin frowned. "Sorry. I'm not going to tell you why I joined them."
The Dark Bull smirked. "Since, I can't make you talk. Let's make our weapons do the talking for us."
"We don't have time to fight." she mumbled.
The Tempest smirked. "What do you mean? Are you scared?"
Stella shook her head. "No. Do you forget that I self-destructed this place? We probably have 3 minutes left. We have to get out of here but we can't because Raven is in our way."
"We could just use our speed to get out of here but it won't be easy."
"He will keep chasing us. It doesn't matter how fast we use our speed. We just need someone to distract him."
Raven narrowed his eyes. "What are the two of you whispering about? Come here! So, my sword can taste your blood from its blade!" he chuckled.
Raven charged forward to start his attack. Stella and Sync waited from the Dark Bull to come closer to them. They quickly dodge his charge when he charges forward and crashes into the wall.
"There is no way he could survive that." Sync glanced at the wall where Raven ran into.
The assassin crooked her eyes as she closed her eyes. "No, I don't think so. There is a reason why he is called the Dark Bull. He'll keep targeting us no matter what he ramps into. It doesn't hurt him at all. He can even break down a rock with his charged attack." she turned to the door behind her. "Let's go before he comes at us and we need to get out of here before this place self-destructs itself." as she runs to the door.
Sync quickly follows Stella out of the door to leave the room.
The figure appeared out of the smoke and watched as Stella and Sync left the room. He growls lowly and punches the wall. The wall burst open from his fist. "Damn! I let them escape. However, we will meet Stella again. So, you better watch out." Raven turned to the wall that he punched and left the laboratory.
Everything was coming down, because the laboratory is getting destroyed. The oracle soldiers were waiting outside of the laboratory watching it being destroyed. Stella and Sync came out of the entrance of the lab. The whole lab self-destructed as it exploded.
The assassin looked around and noticed that Dist isn't around. She turned to the soldiers and asked, "Where's Dist?"
One of the soldiers pointed at the sky and replied, "He's up there."
Stella looked up at the sky and saw Dist. He looked rather upset then came down to them. He glances at Stella and growls at her. Stella blinked in confusion of why Dist is mad at her.
"Is there something wrong?"
"Of course there's something wrong. I was close to getting the data from the laboratory and you had to destroy the lab! Now, the data is gone. The research cannot continue without that data in my hands. I need that data at all costs!" Dist pointed at her.
"You have no idea what that data contains. It is dangerous to use that data for your needs, Dist." Stella became angry at Dist. She turned away from Dist then crossed her arms. "We're done here. Let's go back to Daath and report this to the Commandant." as she walked past the soldiers. Everyone watched Stella as she left.
"What's her problem? Why is the data important to delete? And what does it contain that can be so dangerous?" Dist shrugged. "Oh well. I guess we will find out soon. Plus I hate this place. It's cold here." as he took off into the sky.
Stella walked in Keterburg and headed to Nephry's office. She walked past the children that were free from the laboratory. They were happy to be back together with their parents. A sudden soft call was coming from behind. Stella turned around to the call and saw Ace and the liger together. She walked up to them and pet them both and smiled.
"You two did a good job. Now, we should head to Nephry's office and tell her that the children are safe and the lab is destroyed.'' She walked to the direction of Nephry's Office. Ace and the liger followed their master.
Sync was at Keterburg Bay waiting for Stella to return. He thought she would be at the bay waiting for them to come but she isn't here. The oracle soldiers are getting on the ship and ready to go back to Daath. He crossed his arms as he waited for the assassin to appear at the bay.
"Where is she? She's supposed to be here," he mumbled.
"You called?" a voice from behind.
The Tempest turned to the voice. It was Stella with Ace on her shoulder and the liger beside her. He walked past her and headed to the ship. Stella tilts her head and crooked her eyes. She heads to the ship with him.
It turned nighttime as the ship was heading back to Daath. The calm waves from the ocean and stars lit up from the night skies. Stella walked off the ship and headed to the front of the ship and to feel the wind blowing through her hair. The liger walked up to her and said that he wanted to be petted. The assassin turned to the liger and smiled and started to pet him.
"You like being petted don't you, Apollo." Stella petted his soft spot. Apollo starts to purr softly as Stella pet him. The assassin started to yawn and stretched her arms. "I'm getting tired. We should get some rest." as she stops petting Apollo and heads inside the ship.
Stella walked to the room, took off the jacket, placed it on the bed, fell into the bed and fell asleep. Ace sleeps next to Stella and Apollo sleeps on the floor. She was so tired that she couldn't keep her eyes open.
Sync was on the bridge with his arms crossed. The soldiers were controlling the ship back to Daath. He noticed Stella isn't on the bridge. So, he left the bridge and walked outside to go to the front of the ship. She wasn't here either. He walked back to the ship and headed to the room. He walked past all of the doors to go to the end of the hall. He opened the door to the room and saw the assassin asleep on the bed with Ace and Apollo. He walked up to her and picked up her jacket and used it as a blanket to prevent her from getting cold. He looked at her once more.
"She looks peaceful and innocent when she sleeps. I never thought she would look like this. She's always serious. She did say that she was serious and used to do missions alone." he whispers softly.
He leaves the room and lets Stella sleep in peace.
Chapter Text
The next morning, Stella woke up and looked around. She sees that Ace and Apollo are in the room with her. She got out of bed and noticed that she wasn't on the ship. It seems that she is in Daath. Probably, in the Oracle Knight HQ where the oracle knights rest at. She went to the bed and saw her jacket and put it on. Ace and Apollo woke up and went up to their master. Ace flies to Stella's shoulder and stretches his legs, as Apollo, did the same thing.
Stella smiled and said, "Good morning, Apollo. You too, Ace." as she pets them both. They both greeted her back. "Come. Let's go. I want to see the rest of the God-Generals. Oh, I want to see Fon Master Ion and his guardian as well. It would be interesting to see the Fon Master here." Stella leaves the room and heads to the Cathedral.
As Stella was walking the big hallway, she looked lost. She couldn't find the way to the Cathedral. The place was so big that she will not remember these at all. It hurts her head too much like she was getting dizzy or something.
"Just great. I'm lost. I don't know the way to the Cathedral." she rubbed her temples and started to think but she was lost in word of where to go next. "I think I should ask someone for directions to the Cathedral." then bumped into someone. "Oh, I'm sorry." as she looks at the person she bumps into and reaches her hand out. "Are you okay?"
"Yes, I'm sorry about that." as he reached out Stella's hand.
Stella pulled him up. It was a boy with green hair and eyes. She noticed immediately who it was. "Fon Master Ion? Are you the Fon Master?"
Ion looked up at Stella and smiled. "Yes. That's right. I'm Fon Master Ion but please just call me Ion."
Stella nodded. "Of course, Ion. I'm surprised to see this. This is the first time I see you in person."
"I have never seen you before. May I ask what your name is?"
"I'm Stella. I joined the Oracle Knights two days ago."
"You join the Oracle Knights, Stella?" Stella nodded. "That's good to hear. The Oracle Knights are followed by the Order to guide humanity to unprecedented prosperity."
Stella was dumbfounded. "What do you mean?"
"IOOONN!" a voice shouted in the halls. Stella and Ion turns to the shouted voice. It appeared to be a young girl with twin ponytails wearing an oracle knight clothes. She stops running and looked at Ion. "This is where you were at. Grand Maestro Mohs needs you at the meeting as soon as possible."
"I'll be there, Anise." Ion turned to Stella and bowed. "It was nice meeting you, Stella." he turned around and left to go to the meeting.
Stella waved them goodbye then she remembered something. She desperately needs to tell them before they go too far away from her. "Wait, Ion," she called.
Ion and his guardian stopped, then turned to Stella. "Yes? What is it?" he asked.
"Well um... I'm lost. I don't know where the Cathedral is." Stella replied as she rubbed the back of her head.
"Is this your first time being in the Oracle Knights Headquarters?" Anise asked.
Stella nodded. "I guess you can say that. And who are you?"
"My name is Anise. I'm Fon Master Ion Guardian." Anise introduces herself to Stella.
"I'm Stella. I'm a member of the Oracle Knights under Sync commands." Stella wasn't fond of saying Sync's name to Ion and Anise.
Anise was shocked. "What? You're under Sync's command. I'm sorry about that."
Stella waved her hands back and forth defensively. "No, no. It's okay. I'm not fond of him. He is a pullover." Ace started to call softly to his master. The assassin looked at Ace and nodded. "Anyways, we should go to the Cathedral. We don't want Ion to miss his meeting."
"Yes. Let's head to the Cathedral." Ion led the way. Anise and Stella trailed behind.
They arrived at the Cathedral. Stella waved both Ion and Anise goodbye as they went to the meeting. She was happy to meet the Fon Master and his guardian. She never thought that Ion would be nice and never thought Anise would be the same age as her. Ace scratched his head with his claws from his feet. Apollo walks up to Stella and tells her that he is hungry.
The black haired assassin glanced at Apollo and nodded. "Alright. Let's go and find something to eat." Stella remembered something and glanced at Apollo once more. "I forgot that you can't come with me to the city. I'm sorry, Apollo. You have to stay here until I return. Just stay with Sync, alright." as she petted his head. Apollo whimpered softly.
She heads to the door to go out. Suddenly, she bumped into someone. "I'm sorry. Oh." She looked down and saw a young girl with long pink hair and eyes. She was wearing a God-General clothing.
"I'm sorry." as she hugs her doll. Stella reached out her hand to the young God-General. She glanced at the assassin's hand then reached out for it and grabbed it. Stella pulls her up to make her stand up. The pink-haired God-General looked at Stella and hugged her doll again. "Th-Thank you."
Stella chuckled and smiled. "No problem." She was surprised by who she saw in front of her. "Oh, you're Arietta the Wild. You're the Third Commander of the Oracle Knights. Am I corrected? She is hoping that she is right.
"Y-Yes. And who are you?" she asked curiously.
"My name is Stella. I'm a member of the Oracle Knights. I joined not too long ago. Although, I am under Sync's commands." she sighed as she didn't want to repeat the same thing over.
"You're Sync's subordinate?"
The assassin shook her head violently. "No. You can say that he is my commander of some sort." she laughed nervously. Arietta tilts her head in confusion. "Anyways, do you want to come with me to the city, Arietta?"
"Does anyone know about this?" she asked.
"No. Are we supposed to ask someone before we go out to the city?"
"Well-"
"Arietta! Stella!" a voice interrupted Arietta. The two girls turned to the voice and it was Legretta. Legretta sees Ace on Stella's shoulder. She was wondering why it was on her shoulder. "Stella? What is that bird on your shoulder?" she asked.
Stella glanced at Ace and replied, "This is Ace, my subordinate. I saved him during my missions on those scientists in the laboratory in Keterburg. I do want to know what he is saying." She can't tell them that she can communicate with monsters. She pretends that she doesn't understand them.
"I can help you with that," Arietta said.
Stella turned to Arietta. "Really?" The pink hair God-General nodded as she hugged her doll tightly. The assassin blinked then bent down to her knee and smiled. "Thank you, Arietta. I would be happy if you would help me. Although, it is going to take a while to learn to communicate with monsters." She doesn't really need help but she can't let them know. She just has to go along with it until they will figure it out soon.
"What about this liger? He looks like one of my liger friends."
"It's the same with Apollo as well. He was a test subject to the scientists.`` She lied about Apollo being a test subject. "Anyways, what did you call us for, Legretta?"
Legretta put her hand on her waist and answered, "We have a meeting with Van and the other God-Generals. Come to the meeting room. It is going to start in 5 minutes." as she turned around and headed to the meeting room.
Stella sighed lightly. "And I thought I had time to go to the city of Daath. Let's go and meet with the God-Generals and the Commandant, Arietta. So you know the way to the meeting room?" The Wild nodded. "Alright, I'll follow as you lead the way. Let's go, Apollo."
Arietta leads the way to the meeting room and Stella follows behind along with Apollo.
All of the God-Generals were waiting for Stella, Arietta, and Van to show up in the room. It was quiet in the room. None of the God-Generals didn't talk to each other until Largo turned to Sync to ask him something.
"So, how did the mission go, Sync?"
"It took longer than I suspected. Stella took her time and I was getting bored of the mission. However, I was able to get some information about her." Sync replied.
"What kind of information?" Legretta asked.
"She hates the score. She said that it is like a god to people of this world. She has a good strategy, sees in the dark, feels other people's presence, calls monsters and sets up traps. That's all the information I got from her. I'm sure that she has more secrets that she will show when it is needed."
"For a young girl, I never thought she would have the potential to do that. I can see why the Commandant wants her as a God-General." Largo crossed his arms on his chest.
"Anything else about her past?" Legretta places her hand on her waist.
The Tempest turned to Legretta as he crossed his arms. "She told me that she has been a test subject for her whole life."
"She doesn't know anything about her parents or what happened to them." The door opened. All of the God-Generals turned to the door to see who it was. They saw Arietta with Apollo and Ace at the door but they didn't see Stella anywhere. They glanced at Arietta. "Where is Stella, Arietta? She should be here."
Arietta answered, "I don't know. She told me she has something to do but her monsters are here with me." as she turns to Apollo and Ace.
"We don't have time to play hide and seek with Stella. The Commandant is about to be here and she disappeared without us noticing." Legretta frowns.
A figure was moving in the darkness to be sneaky. It took a step forward and waited for the God-Generals to not notice that the figure was here. It was targeted at Sync. It charged at the Tempest and used its legs to attack him. Suddenly, someone dashed into the room. Everyone was wondering who dashed into the room. They turned to the source of the dash and saw daggers blocking something. It was Stella that stopped the unknown figure from attacking from behind. The mysterious figure quickly jumped and dashed out of the room to leave the Oracle Knights HQ. Arietta walked in the room with Apollo and Ace. Ace flies towards Stella and lands on her shoulder. Apollo goes to his master and lays down on the ground.
Stella watches as the figure leaves then puts up her daggers back in her jacket and turns to Sync. "You could get attacked by that mysterious cloaked figure. I'm surprised that none of you guys saw it there." She was a little angry at the God-Generals for not paying attention to their surroundings. She sighed deeply then leaned on the wall and waited for Van to come.
Dist stared at Stella and pointed at her. "Why are you here? This meeting is only for the God-Generals."
"I was told to come here by Legretta." she didn't look at Dist. She has her eyes closed facing towards the floor.
"Is there a reason why she is here?" Dist asked.
"Van needs something from her," Largo replied.
A God-General with red hair and green eyes glanced at Largo and asked curiously, "What does he need from her?"
"You will see when the meeting starts, Asch," Legretta answered.
Van finally appeared in the meeting room. He looked around to see all of the God-Generals are here. He turned to Stella and saw that she wasn't too happy at all. He is wondering what happened while he was gone then turns back to the God-Generals. "Let's get started with this meeting." Stella leaned away from the wall and walked up to the table and sat down on the chair. All of the God-Generals did the same thing and waited for Van to speak. The Commandant glanced at Stella and saw Ace on her shoulder but he ignored Ace and looked at her. "Stella, can you tell us where the rest of the locations of the laboratory are?"
Stella stood up from her chair and looked at the map. She pointed at all of the locations. "There's one in Keterburg. That's where Sync and I went yesterday to destroy the lab as well as Dist. It was the closest one to Daath. Next, there is one somewhere in Meggiora Highlands. Then, there is one somewhere in the Desert Oasis. Another one in that small island where Belkend is. And lastly, there is one behind on the mountain where the Cheagle Woods is. Although, I did hear that they are another lab but I don't know where it is or if it is true or not."
Van moved his hand on his chin as he looked at the map of the locations of the labs. "Hmm? I'm surprised that these labs were built during the war."
Stella nodded. "That's right. They use the war as an advantage to build labs all over the world. So, no one doesn't know about them besides the children that were sent there."
"Where do they find the kids?" the Black Lion asked.
"They usually find them in abandoned alleys. That's where all of the kids go when they are abandoned from their parents or have no parents." The assassin replied.
Legretta glanced at Stella. She was wondering if Stella remembered anything in the past. "What about you? Were you abandoned when your parents left you?"
"I actually don't know. I was 4 years old. So, I don't remember my parent's faces or how they look. I was told that they were killed. It's told from their Scores."
"You lost your parents from the Score. I see. I'm sorry about the loss of your parents." Van apologies to Stella even though he didn't do anything. It was getting interesting to Van. Now, he knows some things about Stella. He needs to think of something that will convince her to join him as a God-General.
"There's no need to, Commandant. It was told from the Score and they die from the Score. Everyone follows their birth score to make their lives better. I see the Score as a god to fool people's lives. I hate the Score as it is. I wish there was a way to destroy the Score."
Van started to get interested in Stella words against the Score. "Stella, I have something to tell you after the meeting. Stay here until everyone leaves."
Stella turned to Van dumbfounded. She was wondering what he wants from her. "Sure thing."
"Now, we should attack the next lab. Stella, what should be the next lab we attack?"
The black haired assassin looked at the map and pointed to the next location. "My best bet would be the Desert Oasis. A lot of children from Chesedonia were there. I'm sure the parents are really worried about their children disappearing."
"Any suggestions on who you should take?" Asch asked.
Stella looked at all of the God-Generals and already chose one to come with her to attack the next lab. "You could come with me to the Desert Oasis to destroy that lab, Asch. I don't know the exact location of the lab, but we can find it." She turns to Van. "Is that fine with you, Van?"
The Commandant nodded. "Yes, that would be fine. You know that Sync will also have to go along as well."
"Yes, I know." she sighed annoyingly.
How does she know my name? I never introduced myself to her. Stella is her name right. Just who is she? Asch thought in his mind, curiously.
"Now, we got all the labs' locations out of the way. There are more things I need to discuss with you guys. Before we discuss any further, does anyone have any questions?" as Van looked at everyone in the room.
No one didn't response. It was silent for a minute then Dist broke the silent.
"I don't trust her. She destroyed something that I needed from the lab."
"Well, I am sorry that I destroyed the one thing that you wanted from the lab. Are you hurt now?" Stella said sarcastically.
"Don't mock me."
"Hmph. Who knows. You tell me." She smirked.
"Why is it important to save those kids from those labs? They are nothing but the test subject to them. The kids are a waste of time to save th-."
Something interrupted Dist. Everyone in the room was a little shocked by what just happened. There was a dagger on the left side of Dist's ostentatious chair. Dist was lucky that it didn't hit him. He was a little scared of what happened. Stella had her left arm out as she narrowed her eyes on Dist.
"Next time, I won't miss. You got that?" Stella was serious. Dist responds with a slight nod. "Ace, if you don't mind." Ace files off of her shoulder and goes to Dist's chair to grab Stella's dagger. He flies back with the dagger on his feet and gives it back to his master. Stella grabs her dagger from Ace's feet and looks at it. It was still sharp and shiny. Ace goes back to Stella's shoulder and waits. "Sorry about that Commandant. You may continue." she apologizes.
"No. That's fine. It was interesting to watch. Now, let's discuss other matters."
All of the God-Generals leave the room. Leaving Stella and Van alone in the meeting room to discuss other matters. Asch turned back to the door and stared at it for a minute then left.
"That was an interesting turning event we saw from Stella." Largo frowned.
"Yes, it was. I'm sure that the Commandant wants her as his subordinate. A God-General." Legretta agreed.
"She was serious about killing Dist. I could tell by looking at her eyes." Sync added.
The Black Lion glanced at the Tempest and nodded. "Yes, I have to agree with that. Her eyes were serious like an assassin ready to assassinate their target with one blow. She isn't the type to be messed with and very dangerous."
"That's why Van wants her to stay in the room with him. He needs her skills but not only that. He is interested in Stella's hatred of the Score." Legretta said.
"Will she accept his offer?" Largo asked.
"Who knows. We just have to wait until he announces it to us."
"We did get more information about her. Thanks to Dist and the talk about the parents." Sync added as he smirked.
"Hopefully, we get more information about her. We are still in the dark." Largo said, picking up his scythe and placing it on his shoulder. "We still don't know her fonic artes."
"We will soon enough, Largo."
Asch was behind the three God-Generals listening to the conversation. Although, he doesn't know much about Stella. He knows that Van is planning to use her for his plans. Asch needs to figure something for Stella to understand that Van is going to use her for his plans.
Stella was curious to know what Van wanted her for. Why did he ask me to stay here? Wait! Don't tell me that he-
"That was interesting on what you did on Dist, Stella." Van interrupts her thoughts about what she was going to say. "I never thought you had the potential to do that. Your skills are unique, unlike any other God-Generals."
"Um, thanks, Commandant." she didn't know what to say next but it came out of her mouth. "So, what do you need me for?"
Van grinned. "I want you to join me as a God-General." he pointed.
Stella was dumbfounded and nervous. She doesn't know if she wants to be a God-General. She doesn't know anything about the God-Generals or Van at all. It is risky to join the God-General as Van subordinate. "Is there a reason why I should join the God-General?" she asked curiously.
"I fully understand that you have been through alot and I can help you achieve your dream. We can make a world without the Score with your help, Stella," he answered.
She started to think about it. "A world without the Score? Is it possible to destroy the Score?"
"There is a way to destroy the Score with your help. I know we can achieve that goal. I just need you to join me and we can make the world a better place without the Score. Do you wish for a world with or without the Score?"
"Well, I want a world without the Score's purpose. People have been relying on the Score too much and I want everyone to stop reading the Score and live their own lives."
"You have an interesting response against the Score, Stella. I was right about you."
All of the words are going through Stella's mind. Van wants to help her achieve her wish, but is it possible to make that wish come true? But what Van is saying is right, she does believe what Van is saying. If he is planning to destroy the Score then her wish will come true. The only thing she has to do is to join him and he will help her realize her dream, a world without the Score.
"Can you give me time to think about this offer, Commandant?" she asked. "I'm not sure yet if I want to join the God-Generals."
Van nodded. "Of course, you have all the time you need to think about this, Stella. I have faith in you." he grinned as he put his hand on Stella's shoulder. "I have to go now. I have some things to do. Come and see me when you have the answer to our talk." as he walks away and leaves the room.
Stella watches as Van leaves the room. As he left, she slowly sat down on the floor. All of the things were running through her mind. She started to chuckle softly then frowned. She placed her hand on her face and sighed lightly. "I don't know what I should do. I mean I do want a world without the Score but there is something strange about Van's words. It's like something is telling me to not join them. I think I need to sleep again." She stood up and looked at Apollo and Ace. "I'm going back to bed. You guys should go to Sync or Arietta while I'm sleeping, alright." as she walked to the door and opened it.
Apollo and Ace looked at their master worried about her as they followed her out of the room. They watch as she heads back to her room to sleep again. Stella looks exhausted. She has been working too hard on her missions. The two monsters leave to find Sync to stay with.
Sync was waiting for Stella to appear from the meeting room. Suddenly, he sees Apollo and Ace coming towards him. He looks around and sees that Stella isn't with them. Ace landed on his shoulder and Apollo stood beside him.
"Where's Stella?" he asked.
Apollo starts to communicate to Sync but he doesn't understand what Apollo is saying. Arietta sees Sync with Ace and Apollo and wonders what they are doing. She walks up to them and hears the conversation from Apollo.
"He said that Stella went back to sleep. She had a lot of things in her mind." Arietta told Sync what Apollo said to him.
Sync crossed his arms and sighed. "Why did she go back to sleep in the morning? We have a mission to do."
Apollo started to growl lowly at Sync. He wasn't too happy about Sync.
"He is not happy. I think he is protecting Stella."
"I'm going to check on her. It's my job to keep an eye on her." as Sync walks away from Apollo and heads to Stella's room. Ace flew off of Sync's shoulder and landed on Apollo's back.
Arietta looked at Apollo and Ace once more and was curious about them. Apollo turns to Arietta and walks up to her and purrs on her. The Wild felt warm against Apollo's fur. She never thought that he would be nice to her.
Asch appeared behind Arietta and asked, "Where's Stella?"
Arietta turned to Asch and answered, "S-she went to sleep when she was done talking with Van. She had a lot of things in her mind."
What did Van tell her about? What does he want from Stella? Is it because she is a-
"Is there something wrong?" Arietta tilts her head as she interrupts Asch thoughts.
"No. There's nothing wrong." Asch answered, turning around and leaving. Arietta was confused as she watched Asch leaves.
Sync was in front of Stella's room. Her room was the farthest from the other rooms. He hears someone talking in the room. It sounds like Stella talking to herself. He decides to hear what she is saying in the room.
Stella was sitting on the chair still thinking about the talk with Van. It was a little frustrating that she had to think about this decision. She moves her hand on her forehead and leans on the chair. "I'm thinking too much already." she sighs deeply. "How long are you going to stand there, Sync?" she called him out.
The open door and Sync walked in the room and saw Stella a bit under the weather. "You have a lot in your mind."
"Of course, I feel a little homesick, that's all. I'm not used to this place."
"What did Van ask you?"
"He asks me if I want to join the God-General. He said that he promised me that he will make a world without the Score. I'm not sure if I want to join, because of that one promise. I joined the Oracle Knights two days ago. I don't know why he wants me to join you guys."
The Tempest chuckled softly. "I think you should join Van and realize your dream. Alongside us the God-Generals."
Stella moved her hand away from her forehead and stood up from the chair. "I don't know much about the other God-Generals' past. So, how should I know if I should trust you guys? It would be comfortable if all of the God-Generals told me their past. Wait," Stella noticed why the God-Generals joined Van. "Did the God-Generals join Van because they hate the Score?"
"That's right. All of the God-Generals join up with Van because of the Score. They hate the Score like you do." Sync answered.
"It must be from their past that made them hate the Score. They probably lost something important to them or whatever caused them to hate the Score." the assassin turned to Sync and narrowed her eyes on him. "Since, you know my hatred of the Score. What made you hate the Score?"
"I was thrown into the mouth of Mt. Zaleho volcano to survive on my own. It was told from the Score."
"That's it. I don't think you told me everything. There is something missing from that." Sync didn't respond, turning his head away. "Sometimes, I don't understand you. You're a secretive and persistent person, Sync."
"I would say the same thing about you, Stella. You're serious and secretive." as he turns back to Stella.
Stella blinked then chuckled. "That makes two of us."
"Something that we both agreed on," Sync smirked.
"An assassin never tells their secrets." Stella stood up from the chair and walked past Sync. She stops midway and turns to him. "Anyway, we should head to the Desert Oasis. I'll go and tell Asch," her stomach starts to growl. She blushed in embarrassment. "After we eat."
After lunch, Sync, Stella, and Asch left Oracle Knights HQ to go to the Desert Oasis for the next lab. Ace was on Stella's shoulder while Apollo was behind them. Stella stretched her arms out and was ready to start the next mission.
"So, we have to take a ship to Chesedonia from Daath Bay." She turns to the two God-Generals. "How long does it take to get to Chesedonia from the sea?"
"We will arrive at Chesedonia in the afternoon," Asch answered. "I suggest we should ask the people of Chesedonia about the children that are disappearing from home."
Stella nodded. "Yes. It will give us clues about where the lab is located. Hopefully. Anyways, let's go." as she turns around and walks ahead of them to Daath Bay. Sync and Asch followed Stella to Daath Bay. Apollo went to take another route to prevent the people in town from panicking.
The Tempest turns around and sees that Apollo isn't behind them. He turned back and asked, "Where is the liger?"
"Oh, you should know that the townspeople will be terrified to see a monster walking around in town. Apollo took a different route out of Daath. We will meet him outside of Daath." she answered.
"How did you meet with Apollo?" Asch asked.
"It started when I was 6 years old. I found him injured in the woods and took care of him when he was still a cub. I had to hide him every time I returned back to the laboratory. I couldn't let the scientists kill the first friend I made. I enjoy the things I did with Apollo." Stella answered.
"I'm surprised that you were able to hide Apollo for so long."
"Well, I was able to hide him during my missions. So, it wasn't that hard." They are out of Daath. Apollo appeared out of the woods and walked up to Stella. She started to pet him and smiled. "He is still a young liger. When I got older, he became my loyal subordinate alongside Ace."
"So, you're their master to them," Asch said. "Do you understand how to communicate with them?"
"No, I don't." she lied, trying to hide the truth. "Anyways, we can talk more when we are on the ship." as she continued to walk to Daath Bay.
The Oracle Knights arrived at Daath Bay. The ship was on the dock waiting for them to come. They head toward their ship to Chesedonia. The ship starts to sail to Chesedonia.
Stella was at the back of the ship and sitting down on the floor with Apollo lying down behind her supporting her leaning. Ace was on the floor beside Stella, scratching his neck.
Asch walked out of the ship to find Stella. He went in front of the ship but didn't see her. He went to the back of the ship and saw her relaxing with her monster as her hair blew from the wind. Stella sees Asch coming towards her. She was wondering what he wanted.
"Is there something wrong?" she asked.
"I was wondering what Van told you after the meeting," he answered.
"He asks me if I want to be a God-General. He promised me that he will make a world without the Score. I don't know if I want to join up with Van. I feel like he is hiding something."
"I see. I have to agree with you. He's hiding something but I don't know what he is hiding."
Stella was curious about something and asked, "What about you, Asch? Why did you join with Van?"
Asch turned his head away from Stella. He doesn't know if he should tell her the truth about him but he has a feeling that he can trust her. "I was replaced by a replica during my childhood. It took my family, my name, it stole everything that I had." He clenches his fist.
The assassin sees Asch clench his fist tightly. She was surprised to hear Asch's past was taken by another person. "I never thought that a replica of you would take everything from you. Is there a reason why there is a replica of you?"
He turned back to Stella, "7 years ago, I was kidnapped by Van to create a replica of me, who took my name. That's when I returned back to Van, because of that replica. I don't know what Van plans are. Everything is still unknown."
"It must be hard for you. Are you planning to go back?"
"No. I won't return home. I'm a servant of Van and I have to take any orders from him. The reason I became his servant is because of the Score. He did say that he will change the world without the Score. Although, I have to be careful around the God-Generals. Some of them know my true identity."
"When you say that, that means you are being watched. They are watching you because you're suspicious. I can't blame them," Stella stood up and cleaned off the dirt on her clothes. She started to whisper. "Hmm, I can help with that."
Asch was dumbfounded. "What do you mean?"
"We don't know anything about Van's plan. We just have to follow his order until he shows his true intentions. I'm not fond of what his plans are and being watched under Sync's command. I don't know why Van needs me. I'm the fourth fonist."
"The fourth? That means you use water."
Stella nodded. "But I heard that I can use the second and third fonons."
"That's impossible. No one can use three fonons."
The assassin shrugged. "Who knows. They don't know if I can use three fonons. It's just a rumor from the scientists. If it is true then I have to be careful around Van. We don't know what he can do to use me." She remembers something about the newly discovered fonons. "Oh, I remember that the seventh fonons have been recently discovered. I heard there aren't many seventh fonist."
"That's right. You don't see many seventh fonist." It became silent for a few minutes. "I like to ask you about something."
Stella raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Um, sure. What do you want to ask, Asch?"
"It's about your powers. You haven't shown them to no one, have you?"
Stella put her hand on her chin as she tried to remember if she did show her powers to any of the God-Generals. "Well, you see some from the meeting. I did show some from the last mission. Luckily, Sync didn't see them at all besides me telling him that I can see in the dark, set up traps, and sense other people's presence. I can communicate with monsters, cast different artes, change my weapon, summon other creatures and other things."
"I see. You have to be careful around the other God-Generals. They will tell Van about your powers and he will use you for his plans."
Stella sighed. "Yes, I know. I have to lie to Arietta that I don't understand Apollo and Ace. I don't want to do that to her. She looks innocent and young. Although, she is a God-General."
"She may look innocent but she can fight."
Sync walked out the ship to find Asch and Stella. He doesn't see them at the front of the ship. He went to the back of the ship to see if they were there. As he got closer to the back of the ship, he heard mumbling. He sees Asch and Stella talking to each other. What are they talking about? I can't hear them besides the mumbling. He thought curiously.
Stella senses Sync nearby and she nods at Asch. Asch was confused on why she nodded but he slightly turned his head and turned back to Stella. He understood what she meant and nodded back.
"Well, it was nice meeting you, Stella. I hope we work together as God-General in the future," he said, making up something to think that he was introducing himself and to know Stella more.
"Yes. Same thing to you, Asch," She chuckled. Asch turns around and leaves Stella to return back to the ship. He walked past Sync as he was leaning on the wall and watching Asch walking away. The Tempest leaned off the wall and walked up to Stella, who was staring at him. "Is there something you want, Sync?"
"What did Asch want from you?" he asked.
"You sound curious." she said firmly.
"I'm not." he said coldly
Stella puts her hands on her hips as she frowns. "Sure, whatever you say, Mr. Tactical Leader," she said sarcastically. "Anyways, Asch wanted to know about my past." She lied.
Sync crossed his arms on his chest. "Is that all?"
She closed her eyes as she crooked her eyebrows. "My, you are a one curious God-General and yes. That's all he told me." Ace flew to Stella's shoulder and cried. Apollo growls at Sync to tell him to leave his master alone.
Sync glanced at Apollo and sighed. He reached out his hand and tried to pet him. Apollo turned his head to the opposite side, refusing to be petted by Sync. "It looks like he doesn't like me." he frowned.
"Don't worry about it. You have to understand Apollo more until he likes you. He is different from Ace."
"I want to ask you about that assassin in that meeting room."
"Oh, that assassin was under orders from someone else. He is probably there to assassinate Van but instead he tries to assassinate you."
"Again? Who wants Van assassinated?"
Stella shook her head. "Don't know. I was never told about the name of the mastermind who wants Van dead. All they are doing is following orders from someone that was ordered to tell the assassin their mission. I was like that too back then. I thought following orders from them would let me be free but I guess not. Thanks to Van, I was able to free myself from their dirty work."
"You wanted to be free? How long have you wanted to be free?"
"For a long time," Stella looked up at the sky and narrowed her eyes. "We should go inside the ship. It is going to rain soon." as she walked passed Sync while Apollo followed her from behind.
Sync looked up at the sky and saw that it was clear. He doesn't know if the assassin was telling the truth or not. He goes back inside the ship to invade the rain. Stella stood in front of the ship and watched afar to see how close they were to Chesedonia. Sync appeared and saw Stella standing at the front of the ship. She turned around and walked inside the ship. Sync walked inside the ship and went to the bridge. Asch was at the bridge standing. Sync and Stella appeared beside Asch and waited until they arrived at Chesedonia.
It was late afternoon, the oracle knights came out of the ship to the dock of Chesedonia. Stella looked around her surroundings to see that she was in Kimlasca again. She sighed deeply and waited for Asch and Sync to appear. Apollo stretches his legs and lets out a big yawn. The assassin turned to Apollo and chuckled when Apollo yawned. He looks bored and tired. Stella starts to daydream in her own world as Sync and Asch walk out of the ship. They see Stella waiting for them to come. She didn't hear them coming to her as she was daydreaming.
"Stella, we are ready," Sync called her.
She didn't hear him call her. She was too focused on her own world. Asch was wondering what was going on in Stella's mind. Sync sighs and decides to call her out louder.
"Hey! Wake up!"
The black haired assassin snapped out of her daydream and turned to the two God-Generals who were staring at her. She bit her lips and said, "I'm sorry. I didn't know you guys were here."
"We just came out of the ship." Sync frowned.
"Oh," she blinked. "Alright then, we should ask anyone in town if any children have disappeared from Chesedonia recently."
Asch nodded. "That would help us know what happened to them."
"The soldiers should stay in the ship for now until we need them."
"I'm fine with that. As long, we stick with the mission." Sync doesn't want to do anything else besides the mission only.
"Don't worry. We will stick with the mission, Sync. But it will take a while to finish the mission depending on what is going on. Now then, we should split up and talk to the townspeople then report back at the Inn once you're done."
Asch nodded once again while Sync was just listening to Stella. They walked out of the dock and headed to Chesedonia. They split up to get any information about the kids vanishing from Chesedonia and the location of the lab in the desert.
A few hours passed, Stella went to the mansion. She walked up the stairs to the entrance of the mansion. As she appeared at the top, she opened the door and walked in. The mansion was big and decorative. Stella never saw a big mansion.
"Ah. Stella, you are here." a voice from behind, surprisingly.
The assassin turned to the voice behind her and smiled, "Astor, it has been a while."
"Yes, it has been a while. How is everything doing?" he asked.
Stella chuckled nervously and replied, "Well, a lot of things happened in the last 2 days."
"Really? It would be interesting to know what happened."
"I joined the Oracle Knights."
Astor choked. "I-I see. I won't go any further. Sorry about that."
Stella waved her hands back and forth. "No, no, it is fine. I'm not here to force you anything, Astor. I'm here for information about the disappearance of the children from Chesedonia."
Astor tries to remember anything about the disappearing kids. "If I remember, I heard from someone that about 5 kids were taken away last night."
"Do you know where the kids were taking it?"
"A traveler merchant came here after he was exploring the Zao Ruins. He went a bit further in the oasis and saw a building but it was surrounded by strange arte. It was preventing everyone from going any further to the building even though the soldiers couldn't do anything."
The assassin places her hand on her chin and starts to think then looks at Astor. "Did the traveling merchant tell you the location?"
"It's southeast of here," Astor said. "Are you planning to go there?"
Stella nodded.
"Well, since you have the Oracle Knights on your side. I'm sure that you can return the kids back to their homes."
"We will return the kids back home safely." Stella bowed. "Thanks for the information, Astor. I have to return to the Oracle Knights."
"No problem. You are welcome. Feel free to come back for anything else. Hehehe." he smiled.
Stella laughed nervously as she crooked her eyes. She heads to the door to leave the mansion. When she is outside, she sees someone familiar waiting for her and sighs deeply. She never thought he would be here waiting for her. It was getting annoying but she can't do anything about it.
"Why are you here, Sync?" she asked.
"It's my job to keep an eye on you," he answered. "So, did you get any information?"
The black haired assassin walked past the green hair God-General and went down the stairs. "I'll tell you when we are at the Inn. Anyways, we should head towards it. Asch is waiting for us." as she was at the end of the stairs and headed to the Inn.
Sync walked down the stairs and went to the Inn to report their information.
The three Oracle Knights were at the Inn to tell their information on what they found. Stella was sitting on the edge of the bed with her arms crossed on her chest. Asch was standing beside Stella. Sync was leaning on the wall with his arms crossed. The assassin turns to Asch to hear what he found.
"What information did you find, Asch?" she asked.
Asch turned to Stella and replied, "No. I didn't get any information from the townspeople here."
Stella turns to Sync. "And you?"
He just replied, "No. Not a thing."
"What about you, Stella?" The Bloody asked.
"I went to Astor's mansion to ask him if he got any clues. And he told me a traveling merchant was exploring the Zao Ruins and went further in the oasis and saw a building. It was surrounded by some kind of arte to prevent anyone from coming closer to it." she answered firmly.
"That's probably where the lab is. Where is it?"
"Southeast from here."
"Should we head there now?" Sync asked.
Stella doesn't know if they should go there immediately. "Don't know. It is dangerous and we don't know what is waiting for us once we reach there."
"It would be best that we know what kind of arte it is."
"Maybe." Stella raised an eyebrow.
"We don't have anything to pass through that arte." Asch frowned.
Stella stood up from the bed and said, "Alright then, let's go and see the arte."
A figure was outside far from the Inn looking through the window. It glanced at Stella and gasped. I was surprised to see her. The figure bit its lips. It seems that the figure wasn't happy to see her here in Chesedonia. Although, it was confusing that she is here.
"What is she doing here? She promised me that she won't come back here again. What is going on here? And who are those guys with her?" It glanced at the two God-Generals with Stella. "They look fishy. I have to keep an eye on them to keep Stella safe from danger."
The assassin turned to the window and stared at the roof of another building. She has a feeling that someone was watching them but no one was there. Stella kept staring at the window wondering who was watching them. This made Sync look at her wondering what she was glancing at.
"What were you looking at?" he asked.
Stella turned to the green haired God-General as she crossed her arms over her chest. "It's nothing. I thought I saw someone watching us. We have to be careful as we head to the oasis."
The two God-Generals agreed with Stella. They leave the room, walk out of the Inn, and head to the desert oasis to find the lab.
The three oracle knights were walking in the desert oasis. The desert was getting hot by the minute, but they seem to be fine in the hot desert. Stella stopped and turned around. The two God-Generals stopped and glanced at Stella. They were wondering what is the holdup.
"What are you doing, Stella? We don't have time to goof around." Sync frowned.
The two God-Generals continued to head to the southeast to the lab's location. Stella keeps staring at the oasis for a few minutes then turns around and continues to go to the lab. A figure appeared out of its hiding spot and sighs deeply.
"Phew! I thought I was caught by Stella. But where are they going?" The figure watches them as they go southeast. "Don't tell me they are going to the lab. There is no way they can destroy the arte that is surrounding the lab. No one was able to break through that powerful arte. I have to follow them and be careful not to be seen by them." he followed the three oracle knights from behind.
They arrive at their destination. Asch reached out his right arm to see if anything was there in front of them. His hand touches against the invisible barrier that was blocking the way to the lab.
"It looks like it is true. There is an arte blocking the way. But what kind of arte is it?"
Stella narrowed her eyes as she stared at the barrier. "Asch, can you move your hand?" Asch moved his hand away from the barrier. Stella places her hand on the barrier and starts to concentrate. The barrier started to dissolve into the air. As the barrier disappears, Stella moves her hands away and sighed. "It is done. We should be able to go in without the barrier in our way."
"What kind of arte was it then?"
"It's water arte."
"Water artes? Why use water here?"
"By using water artes, it was able to keep the temperature around the lab cool from the heat in the desert. And it is to prevent the heat from destroying their machines and making the kids heat up."
Asch glanced at Stella and narrowed his eyes on her. "How did you dissolve the arte that was surrounding this one place? No one has any artes to dissolve it."
Stella was dumbfounded and replied, "I am the fourth fonist, Asch. Since there is water everywhere including the air. I can manipulate water at will but not only that, I can create ice as well. That's how I can dissolve this barrier because it was using water artes." She turned to Asch. "Don't tell me you were planning to use fire artes on that barrier?"
"Maybe if you didn't dissolve the barrier then it would have been our only option." Asch frowned.
"So, you rather have everyone get hurt or killed during the process of the flames distinguishing the water barrier, is that what you want?" Stella frowns back as she narrows her eyes.
"What do you mean?" Asch was dumbfounded by what Stella was saying.
The assassin closed her eyes as she sighs. "Fine. I'll show you why. Follow me but before we go. How long are you going to stand there and listen, mister?" she calls out the eavesdropper as she glances at the rocks behind them.
The two God-Generals turn around to the rock behind them. The eavesdropper came out of his hiding spot and glanced at them. It appears a young boy who looks like he is 15 years old. He was wearing all black clothing, boots, fingerless gloves, pants, and jacket are black. He has blue eyes and short brown hair. It seems that he looks like an assassin like Stella but more mature.
"Oh, it's you, Zeke. Why did you follow us?"
Zeke rubbed the back of his head as he crooked his eyes. He doesn't know what to say to Stella. "I was... curious." he laughed nervously.
Stella's face palmed. She knows that Zeke is lying to her and wasn't fond of it. "Not this again," She said.
"You shouldn't be here. It's dangerous for someone like you." Sync said coldly to Zeke.
"He is right. You need to leave and forget what you saw." Stella said.
Zeke narrowed his eyes on them. He doesn't know what they are doing in the Desert Oasis in the first place. "And if I don't." He tried to threaten them.
"We just have to kill you." Stella quickly responded as she wasn't going to fall for Zeke's threatening voice.
Zeke's eyes widened surprisingly. He never would guess that Stella would be rude. "What happened to you? You have changed since we last met, Stella."
"We don't have time to stand here. We have more important things to do." Asch scolded as he walked ahead while Sync and Stella watched him as he left.
Stella sighed lightly. "Never thought Asch would be bossy. Anyways, let's go." as she walked past Sync. The Tempest follows from behind as they head to the lab.
Zeke watched them as they left further and further away. He noticed something from their clothes. "Those clothes. They look familiar." he started to think. For a few minutes, it clicked him. "Don't tell me they are the God-Generals of the Oracle Knights. Impossible. Why are they here? What do they want? Why did Stella join them? I need to know what made her join the Oracle Knights." he wants to go and stop them but he might get scolded by Stella. He turns around and heads back to Chesedonia.
The three oracle knights stood in front of a big rock. It was far away from the lab and well hidden. Stella walked forward to the big rock and took a deep breath. She moves her hands in her jacket and takes out her daggers. They were still sharp like knives. She starts to cut the big rock into tiny pieces and it opens an entrance to another route. She placed her dagger back in her jacket and walked in the entrance to lead the way. The two God-Generals followed the assassin in the entrance. As they were walking the path, there was another rock blocking the path. Stella crooked her eyes and stared at the rock. She sighed. "You're joking. How did this rock get here? This path is impossible to be blocked."
"Where does this path lead?" Asch asked.
"It's a secret entrance to the lab. No one from the lab doesn't know anything about the secret entrance." Stella answered. "Since this path is blocked, we should discuss a plan before we enter the lab."
"We need to know what the place looks like." Asch turns to Stella. "You know how it looks, Stella. So, you have to tell us the plan."
The assassin was getting annoyed by Asch's attitude. And I thought Sync is the worst but Asch is twice as worse than Sync. Are all of the God-Generals like this? she thought, massaging the bridge of her nose. She leans down to her knee and starts to draw something on the dirt. The two God-Generals watched as she drew. As she was finished, she stood up and took out small daggers from her jacket and set them on each of her fingers to hold them. "We are here," as she uses her foot to show their location. She throws one of the small daggers on the ground for the next room. "This is the entrance of the lab. Although, we have to be careful as we enter the lab. It's heavily guarded."
"Why would they have the entrance full of guards?"
"Because of this room," Stella throws another small dagger to another room. "I don't know what is in that room and they are being secretive about it. Anyways, here is the rest of the locations and the plan."
A few hours have passed.
Stella's hands were on her hips and said, "Now, we can start with the mission as long as you guys stay with the plan," she turned to Sync. "Unless, you have something else in mind, Sync." as she picks up her small daggers on the ground.
Sync turned to Stella and answered, "I have nothing in mind."
Stella finished picking up her daggers and turned around to the big rock. She threw the daggers she picked up at the big rock and it crumbled into tiny pieces. "Let's go. We have no time to play around during the mission." as she continues to walk through the hidden path. The two God-Generals follow her from behind to continue their mission.
They arrive at the end of the path. It has a ladder that goes up. They start to climb up the ladder and enter the lab. As they were done climbing the ladder, Stella walked up to the door and placed her hand on it. She closed her eyes and started to concentrate. She sees an aura in the next room. It seems there are a lot of guards guarding the next room. She moves her hand away from the door and turns to the God-Generals.
"It looks like I am right. There are a lot of guards guarding the next room," she said.
"How many are in the next room?" Asch asked.
"There are about 20 guards guarding the entrance."
"There seems to be a lot of guards at the entrance."
Stella nodded. "We just have to kill them silently without alerting the other guards." she looks around to find something to sneak up on the guards. The assassin sees something on the wall and walks up to it. She touched the wall and it feels colder than the rest of the wall.
"Did you find anything?" Sync asked.
Stella turned to the two God-Generals and replied, "I can feel the cold wind blowing from this wall. Something is behind this wall," she opened it and moved the steel wall next to another wall. "There is another path. I didn't know this path existed here."
"We can use this path to sneak up on the guards." Asch stared at the new path on the wall. "So, who is going down this path?"
Stella turns to Asch and replies, "Sync and I will go on this path to kill the guards while you distract the rest."
"What about your monsters, Stella?"
"They can go with you. You need the backup from Apollo and Ace." She turns to Sync. "Come. Let's go before they notice that we are here." as she entered the path.
"Tch! Don't order me around." Sync scowled as he followed Stella.
"Say whatever you want, Sync. I don't have time to be insulted by you." she scowled back.
Asch scowled from Sync's and Stella's conversation. This is getting more annoying. He thought as he watched them go further into the new path.
Stella and Sync arrived at the end of the path. They looked around if anyone was around the area. It seems that no one was around. Suddenly, Stella hears footsteps from above and follows it, Sync as well. They followed it everywhere it went from the sound above them. Suddenly, a burst of light appeared in front of them and they walked to the light. The light burst into their face causing a flash.
As the flash of light vanishes, they are in the experiment room. It was a big room to do an experiment. Stella turned around and glanced at the way they came out. The door suddenly closed from behind.
The assassin was surprised to see the door closed. She never knew it would close that quickly. "Well, there goes our only way out of here." Stella turns back around and sees the only way out of the room. "I guess we have to go through there to kill the guards to get the mission to start."
Stella and Sync head towards the door. Suddenly, they heard voices coming. The voices were coming closer and closer. Stella looked around the room to find somewhere to hide and fast. The voices were close to the door. Stella found a place to hide from the scientists. She pulls Sync to the hiding place and quickly hides. The door opened and two scientists appeared in the experimental room. They were talking about the new experiment they were working on.
"How long does the experiment take until it's finished?" Scientist one asked.
"All of the children we experimented on, it seems that only one was able to handle the extreme test we did on him." Scientist two replied.
"Surprisingly, that only one was able to make it through." Scientist One went to the cabinets and opened it. He takes out some kind of drug out of the cabinets then turns to his fellow scientist. "What are we going to do with the rest of the children that fail the experiment?"
"We will put them in the basement and feed them to the monsters that we captured in the desert."
"I see. I'll contract Lord Raven to send the children to the basement."
Stella and Sync were in the locker together. They were close to each other from the small locker and listening to the conversation.
"That would be wise. Now, I'll go grab the things we need in the locker."
Stella gasped quietly. They can't leave the locker and there is no way out of the locker. The other scientist heads towards the locker to get something. He was coming closer and closer. Stella couldn't help but be scared to get caught. The scientist's hand was getting close to the handle to open. A drop of sweat was coming down from Stella's cheek. Suddenly, the alarm turned on. Everyone was alerted.
"What is going on?" Scientist one asked surprisingly from the alarm.
"Forget that! We need to hurry and continue our experiment!" Scientist two replied as he left the room. Scientist one followed from behind.
As they were gone, the locker door opened and Sync and Stella appeared out of the locker. Stella sighs in relief that the alarm saved them.
"That was close. I thought we were going to get caught." Stella said. "I wonder who did it?"
"It must be Asch. He probably started to attack the guards." Sync replied. "Now, we should leave and continue our mission here."
The assassin nodded. "Yes. Let's go. We can't let Asch have all the credit." Stella leaves the room as well as Sync.
The guards were being attacked by Asch, Apollo, and Ace. Asch attacked the guards and cut one of them down. Apollo leaps into the air and pounds the guards. Ace flies high and spreads his wings and flaps them to send out multiple feathers at the guards. All of the guards are dead. Asch advanced forward to the next room.
Stella and Sync were running in the halls and attacking any guards that were in their way. They bump into Asch and the two monsters from the corner.
"Where were you guys?" Asch asked.
"We ran into trouble," Stella replied.
"What kind of trouble?"
"Um... don't worry about it. You don't need to know about it, Asch." Stella laughs nervously. "Anyways, let's hurry on this mission. Sync, go and get the Oracle soldiers here. Asch and I will stay here and continue the mission."
"It should be the other way around. It's my job to keep an eye on you. Let Asch get the oracle soldiers here while we continue the mission." Sync scowled.
Asch and Stella looked at each other and Stella sighs deeply. She wanted to talk to Asch more, but Sync insists on switching to keep an eye on Stella.
"Fine! Asch will go and get the oracle soldiers. You and I go and continue with this mission. Is that better?" Stella scowled.
"Hmph! As long as I can keep an eye on you then it's fine."
Stella turns away from Sync and looks at Asch. "Anyways, be careful on the way to Chesedonia from here."
"I can handle myself when I return back here." as Asch heads to the entrance to leave the lab to get the soldiers.
Sync and Stella watch as Asch leaves, then they look at the left side of the hall. It looked empty and the alarm is still going on. They head to the left side of the hall to find children and delete the data. Suddenly, a group of scientists was running away from something. The assassin was confused. Why would the scientist run away? What could it be that caused them to run away? There was only one way to find out. They continue their march to the next room. They arrive at a small room where the scientist does a small test on the children. Stella looks around the room and sees that the room is empty. They leave the room for the next one.
After they went to all of the rooms, Stella remembered something that the scientist said back at the experimental room. It gives her an idea of what to do to use the lab.
She turned to Sync and said, "Let's head to the basement."
"For what?" he asked.
"Don't you remember what one of the scientists said? He said that there are monsters in the basement. We can use the monsters as our advantage to assault the base."
"We can't communicate with monsters. We need Arietta to talk to them."
"But Apollo and Ace can. They can tell the other monsters to help us to attack this place. It would be easier for us to complete the mission faster." Stella looks around the 4-way path. She sees an elevator not too far from them. "I see an elevator up ahead. That will probably take us to the basement."
"Now then. We can't afford to waste our time here." Sync scowled, heading to the elevator.
The assassin sighed lightly. "I hate being ordered around by him. It's so frustrating," she mumbled, following the path behind Sync.
They head towards the elevator to go to the bottom level of the lab. The Tempest reached the elevator, found the button, and pressed the button to open the door. Stella entered the elevator with her monsters. She places her hand on the buttons on the elevator then she presses the button to the lowest level. The door starts to close and the elevator starts to go down to the basement.
It was silent, but the sound of the elevator going down. Ace flies to Stella's shoulder and cries softly. Stella moved her finger under Ace's chin and petted him there. The red phoenix was enjoying being petted under his chin. Stella moves her finger away from Ace and sits down on the ground. She took a deep breath as she leaned on the elevator wall. She feels a little tired for some reason.
"How long will this thing go?" Sync asked.
"Who knows. It could take 5 minutes to reach the lowest level of this place depending on how deep it was made. But I can feel that we are close to the basement." Stella replied. "For some reason, I feel sleepy."
"There's no time to sleep."
"I know that but it is hard to keep my eyes open." The assassin sighs lightly. "Maybe coming down here is a bad idea."
"Hmph! It was your idea to come here."
"Blaming on me. I see how it is."
The elevator stopped moving and it opened the door. Stella stood up, the two oracle knights walked out of the elevator, and headed to the basement. They walk to the one and only path that leads them to the monsters.
The assassin felt something was watching them again. She didn't like that feeling at all. It was the same feeling from the lab at Keterburg.
Not this again. We're being watched again. Is it Raven? Or is it Zeke? Or is it someone else waiting for us? I guess we have to wait and see. she thought, nervously.
They arrive at the basement and see monsters in the cells locked up. It was quiet for a while until the monsters saw Stella, Sync, and two monsters at the entrance. They look hungry and frustrated. Stella went to a cell and looked at the wolves who were growling at her. She bends down to her knee and reaches her hand out to them. The wolves were still growling but they stopped, slowly walked up to her hand, and sniffed her hand. She smiled as the wolves were curious sniffing her hand. Stella put her hand on one of the wolves faces and started to pet it. The wolf enjoyed being petted by Stella. The pack of wolves started to like Stella and they wanted more. Stella moved her hand away from the monsters and stood up. She looked around to see if there is a control to release the monsters from the cells.
Apollo called his master from afar. The assassin turned around to Apollo and saw Sync at a machine. She approaches him wondering what he is doing.
"You're releasing the monsters from their cells?" she asked, staring at the machine. "Do you know what to do on the machine?"
Sync glanced at the machine. He was thinking if the machine contains the data they need to help them with their plans. Stella notices something was fishy about Sync staring at the machine.
"It would be best that Dist handles the machine," he replied as he walked away from the machine.
Stella shook her head. She doesn't want anyone to get their hands on the data. She walked up to the machine and started typing. Apollo turned to the entrance of the prison and started to growl. Stella stopped typing and looked at Apollo. Sync turned to Apollo then turned to the entrance.
"Is there something wrong, Apollo?" The assassin asked. The liger kept growling. Stella turned to the entrance and waited for someone to appear in the room. "It seems we have an unwanted guest. We should hurry and leave this place."
"There's no way out of here. The only way we can leave from this place is the entrance." Sync looked at Stella and walked up to her. "Unless you want to do it in a difficult way."
Stella looked around the basement to find a way out, but there was no way out of the basement. "Well, since there is no way out. We have to force our way out. We can't leave any evidence behind."
They stood their guard as they waited for the footsteps to come closer to them. Stella quickly turns to the machine and starts to type the code to unlock the monsters free from their cells. Suddenly, a sword was thrown at Stella. She quickly dodges the sword and the sword turns and hits the machine. It causes the machine to break but the cells were open and the monsters walked out of their cells. The monsters glanced at Stella and walked up to her. Stella bends down to the monsters and starts to talk to them.
Sync watches as she is talking to the horde of monsters. He couldn't tell what Stella is it Stella saying to them but he knows that she is telling them to help us. Stella stood up and turned to Sync.
"Once the footsteps come closer, we'll strike and attack them."
"As long as we get the mission over with then I'm fine with it for now."
"Likewise," Stella turns to the entrance and waits.
The footsteps were coming closer and closer to them. The figure came out of the dark and it was Raven with Zeke. Stella sighed deeply. She can't believe that she is seeing Raven and Zeke again. She started to rub her temples.
"I can't believe it's you again." she rolled her eyes.
Raven started to laugh. "I never thought I'd see you here, Stella. As well as Sync the Tempest. So, tell me, what made you become a member of the Oracle Knights?"
"And why should I tell you that?"
"Because he wants you back. Your skills are more unique than anyone else." Raven reached out his arms to Stella.
Stella rolled her eyes. She doesn't like when people say she has a unique skill. "Why am I so special? Van wants me and now him too," she sighs deeply. "Sorry. I will not go back to him. He is going to use me as his pawn to do his dirty work."
"What are you talking about, Stella? He opened my eyes and I understood his words." Zeke said. "That's why I joined him."
The assassin scoffed. "You're joking. He's just using you, Zeke."
"No. I'm not. I'm serious. And you should join with you. He will change you into a different person." Zeke took out his sword and pointed at the two Oracle Knights.
"Enough talk! We have some business with you and your Oracle Knight friends!" Raven shouted as he was ready to fight.
"We don't have a choice but to fight you two." Stella takes out her daggers. Sync was ready to go as well as the monsters.
They looked at each other face to face waiting for each other to make a move. Zeke took the charge to attack Sync while Raven was behind Zeke and swung his big sword at Stella. The assassin dodged Raven's attack and jumped. She landed on the ground and cast an arte.
"Splash!" The arte appeared on top of Raven and the splash of water came out. It covered Raven with water then Stella looked at the floor and saw that it was covered by water. She starts to cast another arte. "Frigid Coffin!"
The arte followed the water on the ground and froze it. Raven turns to the ice and watches as it comes closer to him. The ice reached Raven's feet and froze him in place from moving. It covered his entire body like a coffin. Stella looked at Raven inside the coffin and turned to Sync and Zeke.
Zeke swings his sword swiftly at Sync. Sync used his feet to block Zeke's attack then used his other feet to counterattack. Zeke used his arm to block Sync's counterattack. Stella was a little surprised that Zeke blocked Sync's attack. The Tempest jumped and used both feet to attack Zeke and hit his left wrist. The swordsman dropped his sword as Sync hit his wrist. It started to hurt. Now, he can't use his sword to attack or defend himself. Sync starts to cast his arte. Zeke turns to Stella and sees that she is watching them.
"Why? Why are you doing this? Is it because you hate laboratories for experimenting on children as a test subject?" He asked.
Stella closed her eyes and answered, "Of course. You don't understand, Zeke. The kids are in pain, scared, and don't want to be a test subject for those bastards," she opened her eyes and turned her head away. "I experience the same pain as they did."
"That doesn't mean you have to go to every laboratory to destroy them all."
"You're such an idiot. Whatever he told you, it's a lie. Now then, I don't have time to talk to you, Zeke. I have important things to do with the Oracle Knights." The assassin glanced at Sync. "Make sure you don't kill him."
"You said leave no evidence behind. That means we have to kill them." Sync said, frowning.
"I remember what I said but Zeke needs to know what is going on in this world. I'll leave Raven alive as well."
Sync stopped casting his arte and walked away from Zeke and walked past Stella. He stopped beside her and said coldly, "I'll let him live for now but next time I'll kill him." He walks away and leaves the basement.
"Yes, I know. I won't stop you next time." She cast a fire on the Frigid Coffin to melt it. The ice starts to melt and Raven is free from the ice. Raven was on the floor exhausted. He stared at Stella wondering why she freed him. The assassin turns to the monsters. "Everyone, let's go." She leaves the basement as well as the monsters.
Raven and Zeke watch the two Oracle Knights leave. Raven stood up and picked up his big sword on the floor and put it on his shoulder.
"Let's leave this place. It's going to be destroyed if we stay here." Raven heads towards the entrance. Zeke picked up his sword and put it on its sheath and followed Raven out to the lab.
Asch and the oracle soldiers were already destroying the lab. The Bloody looked around and noticed that Stella and Sync weren't around.
"Where are they? They're supposed to be here." he scowled. Sync and Stella appeared on cue. Asch turns to them and watches as they come to him. "Where did you guys go?"
"We went to the bottom level of the lab," Sync replied.
"Is there something at the lower level of this place?"
"There were monsters locked up in the cells but we were able to save them." Stella turns to the monsters behind her.
Asch glanced at the monsters then looked at Stella. "Well, we were able to destroy the lab and free the children."
"Did you set the time to self-destruct the place?"
"I set it to 5 minutes. It will give us enough time to leave this place."
"Then we should leave before it explodes." as Stella starts to run out of the lab. Asch, Sync, and the monsters followed suit.
The lab starts to explode. All of the Oracle Knights stared at the fallen lab. Stella turns to the monsters and petted one of the monsters. She starts to talk to them and tells them to be careful next time and return back home safely. The horde of monsters leaves as they go back home. Stella turns to the two God-Generals and sighed deeply.
"Time to go back to Daath and report this to Van." The oracle knights went back to Chesedonia to return to Daath.
In the Oracle Knights HQ, Van was in the office doing his usual things. He was thinking about the conversation he had with Stella. He is hoping that she will join him with his plan with her unique skills then suddenly someone knocks on the door.
"Commandant Grants, it's me," Legretta called out through the door.
"Yes. Come in," he ordered.
Legretta opened the door to Van's office and walked in and stopped in front of his desk. She noticed Van had something in his mind and was curious what he was thinking, but she stepped aside and told him why she was here.
"We found the other labs that Stella located. It seems they are well armed and we can't find a way to get in the labs. The only person that knows about the surroundings of the lab is Stella. We need her to get in the labs and get the data we need for the plan."
"Yes. I know. Sync told me she deleted the data when they were at the lab near Mt. Roneal."
"What was her reason to delete the data?"
"I don't know what it contains. All she said was it's dangerous to use for another purpose. That tells me that she knows that we need that data or she deleted it to prevent others from using the data for their own purpose," he glanced at Legretta as he stood up. "When they return from their mission, have Sync and Stella come here to my office."
"As you wish. I'll meet them at Daath Bay and bring them here." Legretta leaves the Commandant's Office.
Van watches as Legretta leaves his office then sits back down. "I wonder what's in Stella's mind. There are a lot of secrets we don't know about her. If she plans to join us then Sync has to watch her more closely. But knowing that she hates the score is more than enough for me to use her."
It became nighttime, the ship arrived at Daath Bay and the oracle soldiers walked out of the ship. Legretta was waiting for Sync and Stella to appear. Asch walked out and saw Legretta.
"Where's Sync and Stella?" she asked.
"They're still on the ship. They will come out of there." Asch replied as he walked past Legretta and headed to Daath.
Sync and Stella walked out of the ship and noticed that Legretta was waiting for them. They walk to Legretta wondering what she wants.
"Legretta, why are you here?" Stella asked.
"The Commandant wants to see the two of you," she replied. "I'll take you to Van."
The Tempest and the assassin followed the Quick back to Daath. Stella was wondering what Van wanted from her. She can tell it for her that Sync is going to be there as a bodyguard or make an argument about Stella. She hates being watched by Sync. It feels like he is a stalker watching her all the time. Well, she has to wait until they reach Van's office and see what he wants from them.
They arrived at the door of Van's office. Legretta took her leave. Leaving Sync and Stella at the door. Stella approaches the door and knocks on the door.
"Yes. Come in." Van called out.
Stella opened the door and walked in along with Sync as well. Van was glancing through the window then turned around. Stella felt uneasy and was ready for Van to speak.
"What did you call us for?" Stella asked.
"We can't find a way to get into the other labs. Legretta and Largo can't get in without you there." Van replied.
"Is that it? I'm sure you have more in mind than just that."
"Of course not, I have more to discuss with you, Stella." Van sits back down on his chair and glances at Stella. "So, did you decide to join the God-General?"
"I still haven't decided on it yet. Anyways, there is a secret passage to get in the labs. Each secret entrance is hidden from letting the scientists know that they are there. They are either far or near the labs depending on the area."
"I see. I'll tell Legretta and Largo about the secret entrance later. So, how did the mission go?"
"It went well. Asch did everything while Stella and I were in the basement." Sync told Van.
"The basement? Was there anything in the basement?"
"We decided to go there because they kept monsters there. We wanted to free them so we could use them to attack the lab but we had some company."
"Who were they?"
Stella decided to tell Van everything about what happened during their mission. Van wasn't surprised, but he was curious to know who Raven and Zeke were. Stella didn't want to tell Van about Raven and Zeke but Sync was there and she couldn't hide it. She didn't have a choice but to tell him. Sync noticed that Stella wasn't fond of telling Van everything about what happened to them.
"I see. I never thought they would have bodyguards to protect them. It must have been troublesome for you and Sync."
Stella shook her head. "No, we taught them a lesson but..."
"But what?" Van asked curiously.
"Well..." Stella didn't know what to say that they kept them alive from their battle.
Sync sighed annoyingly and said, "We kept them alive because Stella suggested it."
Van looked at Stella and saw that she didn't snap. "I understand her reason why she wants them alive. I think she wanted them to understand what is going on in this world and not fight at all. They need to understand that the Score is controlling them to do anything they want if it was foretold from their Score."
"I doubt it. They are following someone else's orders to do their dirty work. He wants the world to be controlled by the Score, but at the same time he wants to destroy it. Honestly, I don't know what is going on in his mind. I guess he is waiting for someone to appear to change the world."
"He seems to be an interesting person, but why wait for someone to change the world?"
"Maybe he has some kind of plan when the world changes, then strikes when the time is right."
"We just have to wait until the world is changed without the Score."
Stella stared at the floor and started to think about what Van told her. She doesn't know if she wants to join them just to create a world without the Score. How can he change the world without her noticing what he is planning? She decides to move aside the conversation and glances back at Van.
"Is that everything you want, Commandant?"
Van nodded. "Yes. That is everything. You may leave," he turned to Sync. "Sync, I have something to discuss with you. Stay here until this talk is over." Sync didn't respond as he just gave a nod.
Stella felt something fishy but decided to move away from it for now. "Alright. I'll see you later. I'm going to sleep." as she turns around and leaves the room.
As the assassin left, Sync turned back to Van and asked, "So, what do you want to talk about?"
"Were you able to get your hands on the data?"
"No. Asch did everything while Stella and I were fighting. I don't think Asch knows about the data we need for the plan." Sync replied.
Van puts his hand on his chin and starts to think. "He destroyed the lab without knowing the data. That's fine. We have 3 other labs we can steal the data from."
"Do you think she will join us?"
"If she does join us then she will be useful to us but you have to keep a close eye on her. We still don't know what she can do. She seems to be a dangerous young girl. Don't underestimate her, Sync."
"And if she doesn't?"
"Then you just have to find a way to kill her with your own hands. We don't need anyone that doesn't want the world to change our way. Although, she did tell us about the existing laboratories."
"Don't worry. I'm sure she will join us. But she does want to know about the others' past. Is it wise to tell her about the other God-Generals' past?"
"No. If we tell her then she will leave Daath and won't return."
"Who knows. It would probably make her join us, because all of the God-Generals hate the Score just like she does."
"It's best that she doesn't know their past. We have to wait for her answer." Van said. "You may leave. You need some sleep from that long mission." Sync turns around and leaves Van's office to get some rest. Van turned and glanced through the window hoping Stella will make her decision soon.
Stella walks into the Cathedral as she is heading towards the room to sleep. Ace and Apollo see their master coming and walk towards her. Suddenly, someone came in front of Stella to defend her from the monsters. She was wearing an oracle soldier uniform, blue eyes, and long brown hair. She was holding her knives and throwing them at Apollo. Apollo dodges the knife and growls at her.
"You should run. These monsters were going to attack you," she said.
Stella was dumbfounded. "Umm... no. They won't attack me."
She didn't listen and threw more knives at Ace and Apollo. The two monsters dodged the knives and didn't attack their attacker. She was confused about what was going on.
"How come they're not coming to attack me?" She asked. "Then I'll make them attack."
"No, wait," Stella called her out. "Oh, this girl."
The oracle soldier jumped and threw her knives while the monsters dodge them. Then she charged forward to attack Apollo head on. Stella was about to take out her daggers to stop her, but a voice called out.
"That is enough, Tear!" Tear stops and turns to the voice as well Stella. It was Legretta who stopped Tear from attacking Stella's monsters.
"Major!" Tear was surprised to see Legretta. "These monsters were about to attack her." Tear turned to Stella who was frowning.
"I think it's best if you don't attack those monsters."
"These monsters are dangerous and should not be here."
"They didn't attack you, did they?"
Tear remembered that the two monsters didn't attack her at all. "No. They didn't do it," she turned around to Stella. "I'm sorry."
Stella closed her eyes and sighed. "It's fine. You didn't know if they were friend or foe," she opened her eyes and walked past Tear. "Anyways, I'm going to bed now. It's late."
"Wait." Tear called Stella out.
The assassin stops and turns around. "Yes, what is it?"
"May I ask who you are?"
"My name is Stella. I joined the Oracle Knights three days ago."
"I see. I'm Tear Grants."
"Grants? Why does that name sound familiar?"
"She is Commandant Grant's young sister," Legretta answered.
"Well, it's nice to meet you. Now, I'm going to bed now." as she walked away with Apollo and Ace. Tear watches as Stella leaves the Cathedral.
Stella walks to the halls of HQ then she reaches to her room and opens the door to her room. She walks up to the closet to change her clothes into her white sleeveless nightgown. As she was done changing, she went to Apollo and Ace to wish them good night. She goes to her bed, lies down, and starts to fall asleep. The assassin was exhausted from a long day's mission.
The sun has risen up in the sky, indicating that it is morning. It shines through the window of Stella's room. The sunlight disturbed her eyes. She turned away from the window as she slept and continued to sleep. She feels at peace when she is sleeping. Apollo and Ace were still sleeping as well. Suddenly, someone knocked on the door to disturb her sleep. She starts to squirm on the bed as she hears the door knocking. She hates being disturbed when sleeping. She sighed annoyingly and stood up from her bed and walked to the door and opened the door to see who it was.
It was Arietta. She looked upset and was hugging her doll tightly. Tears were coming out of her eyes. Stella was a little shocked when Arietta was crying.
"Can I come in?" Arietta asked sadly.
"Of course. Come in." Stella replied.
Arietta walked in the room and Stella closed the door. The Wild went to Stella's bed and sat on her bed. Stella also sat on the bed wondering why Arietta was upset.
"What's wrong Arietta?"
"Ion."
"What about Ion?"
"I used to be a Fon Master Guardian. I have so many memories of being with Ion and I was happy to protect him. But then I resigned from Fon Master Guardian and became a God-General all thanks to Anise. She stole Ion away from me, that is why I want her to stay away from him."
Stella was surprised. She didn't know that Arietta was a former Fon Master Guardian. She starts to think about how Arietta resigned, but she couldn't think of anything.
"I'm sorry, Arietta." Stella apologizes. She didn't know what to say to her.
"I won't forgive Anise."
Stella stood up from her bed and went to change into her oracle knight clothes. Apollo and Ace wake up from their sleep and see Arietta. Apollo stood up and went up to her. Arietta watches as Apollo comes to her. Ace flies on Apollo's back and stretches his legs. Arietta reached her hands on Apollo's face and felt warm from his body heat. The assassin returns back wearing her oracle knight clothing. Apollo and Ace turned around to Stella and walked up to her. Stella smiled and petted Apollo's soft spot, under his chin was his best spot to pet at.
She turned to Arietta and said, "I don't know what happened between Anise and you, but you shouldn't be angry at her. I'm sure there was a reason for them to resign you as Fon Master Guardian."
"Van promised me that he will recreate the world where everyone can be together. He said if I help him with his plan then I can unite with Ion again."
I see. Van is using Arietta as well. Not just her, everyone else is being used by the Commandant. That's why Asch is being cautious around the God-Generals and Van. Hmm, I wonder if I should join the God-General to help Asch and the secret behind Ion. Is it possible for me to do this when Sync has his eyes on me? Maybe I can, I just have to be careful around Sync when I'm doing this behind his back. It will be risky but I'm willing to take that risk if it means to take my life. The assassin thought, joining the God-General will be the best bet to do this plan without anyone knowing it. "I need to talk to the Commandant. I have decided my choice. I'll talk to you later, Arietta. Apollo stays here with Arietta to keep her company." Arietta was confused about what Stella was talking about. Stella leaves the room along with Ace flying to her shoulder.
Stella walked in the Cathedral and saw Tear talking to Legretta. She continues towards the Commandant's office. Legretta turns her head and sees Stella walking by them. Tear did the same thing and was wondering where Stella was going.
"Oh, was that Stella?" Tear asked.
"Yes," Legretta put her hand on her waist, frowning. "I wonder if she made up her mind."
"What was that?"
"It's nothing. Now then, we should continue your training, Tear." Tear nodded her head as she was ready for her training.
Stella walked by Largo as he was walking down the hall. He glanced at her. She looked serious about something. The Black Lion was wondering if she is going to join the God-Generals. Another member to work with. He watches her as she walks towards Van's office.
She arrives at Van's office standing in front of the door glancing at it. She was ready to tell Van her decision whether she wants to be a God-General or not. As she was about to knock on the door, she heard voices behind the door. Its voices sound like Sync and Van are having a conversation about Stella. She took a deep breath and knocked on the door to interrupt their conversation.
Van turned to the door and called out, "Yes, who is it?"
"It's me, Stella. I have something to tell you, Commandant." Stella called out back.
"You may come in."
Stella opens the door and walks into Van's office. She stares at Van waiting for him to speak.
"What do you want to talk about?"
"Well, I have been thinking about the conversation we have and I have decided to join with you as a God-General."
Van stood up from his chair and welcomed Stella with open arms. "I'm glad that you decided to join us, Stella. Welcome to the God-General as my subordinate. What decides you join us?" he grins.
"Well, since every member of the God-Generals hates the Score. I decided that I want the world without the Score. The Score is a twisted sign to everyone who is born with the Score." Stella frowned, hiding her plans, but hated the Score with a passion.
"I see. I'll tell all of the God-Generals that you joined us to create the world without the Score. Such, you're the newest member of the God-General, Sync will teach you."
Stella closed her eyes and sighed. "I don't think I need a teacher to teach me. I know what to do against my foes. I told you I have been trained as a highly skilled assassin. So, don't underestimate me, Commandant."
"Is that supposed to be an insult?" Sync asked, scowled.
"And if it was, what would you do?" Stella narrowed her eyes at Sync.
"It seems that the two of you are getting along with each other well," Van smirked.
The two God-Generals glanced at Van thinking that he was joking around.
"You must be kidding me. There is no way that I'm getting along with her." Sync turned his head away.
"I have to agree with Sync, Commandant." Stella folded her arms across her chest.
"You guys agreed on something together. That is odd," Van walks around his table and stands in front of them. "How about the two of you guys fighting each other?"
"Fighting each other? For what?" Stella asked curiously. She wasn't happy where this was going.
"Since, the two of you don't get along. It would be best to see if you're worthy to be God-General. It will start in the afternoon in the Oracle Knight Headquarters. The rest of the God-Generals will be there watching you, Stella." Van explained.
The assassin rubbed her temples and sighs deeply. She turned around and headed towards the door. It looks like she doesn't mind a match against Sync, but she has to be careful of using her powers around them. Asch is the only one that knows what power she has.
"Where are you going?" Sync asked.
She stops and slightly turns her head to Sync. "You are really stupid. I'm just gonna eat besides we're going to fight soon. So, you better be ready. I won't hold back." She turns her head and leaves the office.
"Stella is serious about this fight," the Commandant turns his head to Sync and frowned. "Be careful. We don't know what she can do with her powers in battle. Make sure you do everything you can to force her to use her powers."
Sync chuckles. "Of course. I'm curious what kind of powers she is hiding from us. If her power is strong then she is more useful to you than all of us."
Stella was in the cafeteria eating her food with Ace eating his food. Suddenly, someone called out to her.
"May I sit here?" she asked nicely.
Stella turns to the voice. It was Anise. She smiled and replied, "Of course, you can."
"Oh, Stella, it's you. How are you?" Anise smiles back.
"I'm good," the assassin replied. "And you?"
"I'm fine, but something unexpected happened today."
"Really? What happened?"
"Gloomietta came and wanted to talk to Ion, but he didn't want to talk to her."
"Gloomietta?"
"It's Arietta."
"Oh. So, why didn't Fon Master Ion want to talk to Arietta?"
"I don't know. He is always smiling and happy to everyone he talks to, but he doesn't seem like he wants to speak to her."
"So, that's what happened this morning," Stella mumbled as she looked down on the table.
"Is there something wrong, Stella?" Anise asked confusedly.
Stella snapped out of her thought and turned to Anise and shook her head. "No, nothing is wrong. Anyways, I wonder what happened between Arietta and Ion?"
Anise shook her head. "I was thinking the same thing, but Ion is harmless. He would never do that," she sighs lightly. "I don't get it."
"We will figure it out sooner than later, Anise. Ion will tell you when the time is right."
"Yeah, you're right," she sees Ace on the table eating. Anise was confused to see a monster here. "Is that a monster?"
Stella turned to Ace and nodded. "Yes. This is Ace, my loyal partner. I saved him from a group of scientists. They were trying to use him as a test subject."
"I never thought he was going to be a test subject. It was a good thing that you saved him."
"Yeah," Stella stood up from the chair and picked up her tray. "Well, it was nice meeting you, Anise. I hope we see each other again." as she turns around and walks away. Ace was done eating and flies to Stella's shoulder.
"Yeah, it was nice meeting you too." Anise starts eating her food.
The assassin leaves the cafeteria and stops as someone appears in front of her. It was Largo. She knows what Largo is here for. Largo turns around and leaves. Stella followed him to the Oracle Knights Headquarters.
They arrived at the Oracle Knights HQ. Stella was surprised to see the HQ to be that big. She appeared in the big area where Sync was ready to fight. The other God-Generals and Van were on the sideline to watch the fight. Largo heads to the other God-Generals to watch the fight with them. Ace flies off of Stella's shoulder and heads towards Apollo and lands beside him. The God-Generals were ready to see Stella's power in action. Sync and Stella stared at each other face to face. They were serious and ready to fight. Stella took out her daggers and sharpened the blades.
"I'm wondering what kind of powers she has," Legretta said. "This is our first time seeing her in action."
"Yes. Sync is the only person who has seen her powers but he hasn't told us what her powers were." Largo said as he crossed his arms.
"Maybe he hasn't seen her powers at all when they were fighting on their missions." Van said. "He told me that Stella is the fourth fonist. I wonder what powers she has as a fourth fonist." he glanced at Stella.
The assassin was done sharpening her blades and glanced at Sync. "Are you ready?" she asked.
Sync chuckled and replied, "I'm ready when you are, Stella."
Stella charged at Sync using her speed and appeared behind him. Sync was surprised to see Stella behind him. The daggers started to glow and lightning appeared on the daggers. She throws her dagger on the floor and it causes the lightning to explode on the floor. Sync was able to dodge it in time. The God-Generals were a little surprised to see Stella's speed and her powers.
"I never thought that Stella would be faster than Sync. I can see why she was highly trained to be an assassin and a test subject." Van chuckled. "Whatever they did to Stella, they did a good job of making her the best assassin in the world."
"Commandant, what about the other assassins?" Legretta asked.
"Those other assassins are skilled, but not skilled enough as Stella."
Sync waited for the smoke to disappear. He doesn't know where the assassin is or where she is going to appear next. He stood his guard waiting for her next move. Small knives appeared out of the smoke and he was able to dodge easily. A glowing light appears in the smoke. Sync couldn't see what Stella is doing in the smoke. She was casting her arte in smoke preventing Sync to see what she is doing.
"Tidal Wave!" she shouted.
The Tidal Wave appeared out of the ground and covered the entire room. Sync jumps to the higher ground from getting drowned from Stella's arte. The Tidal Wave stops and leaves the water on the floor. The assassin takes her chance to use the water to her advantage. She jumps to a higher ground and glances at Sync.
"What's the matter? You're not going to attack me."
Sync didn't respond. He starts to cast his arte. Stella was ready for his attack.
"Turbulence!"
A gust of wind appears below Stella. She quickly raises the water on the floor and moves it below her. She cast another arte on the water she is standing on.
"Absolute!" It froze the water and created a shield below her.
The gust of wind was being blocked by the ice shield from above. Then the black-haired assassin bends down her knee and casts another arte.
"Raging Mist!" a fury of flames appears on the ice shield.
She uses the heat on the ice to create steam. The steam spread out and covered the entire field. It was hard to see through the steam.
"Interesting. She uses fire arte on the ice shield below her to create steam. I could never think she would plan this ahead of Sync." Van said.
"She is using the steam to her advantage to lower Sync's guard. This is going to be hard for him." Asch said.
Suddenly, an arrow came to target Sync. He sidestepped the arrow and landed on the floor. In the steam, it is difficult to see where she is shooting from.
Sync looked forth and back as he was being cautious in the steam. It was too quiet. He doesn't know what she will do in the steam. Multiple arrows came through the steam to prevent Sync to dodge them all. The Tempest jumped high to prevent from getting hit by the arrows. Stella appeared behind and attacked him using her bladed bow. Sync sensed her nearby and attacked her using his feet to block her attack. The steam disappeared as they clashed into each other.
As the steam vanished, the God-Generals and Van were looking for Sync and Stella. They couldn't find them anywhere.
"Where are they?" Arietta asked as she looked around the entire room.
"They're in the center of the field," Van replied, frowning.
They glanced at the center of the field and saw Sync and Stella were face to face with each other, out of breath. They launch their final attack to finish the fight. Stella swings her bladed bow and Sync uses his hand to decide the last strike of the match. As they get closer to each other, they strike to end it.
"That's enough!" Van shouted to stop the fight. The two God-Generals stop their attack and move away from each other.
The assassin took a deep breath and chuckled. "I never thought I would have a worthy opponent."
"It was fun fighting you, Stella. Worthy to be a God-General." The Tempest chuckles back.
Stella scoffed. "Right."
Van and the other God-Generals arrived to welcome Stella as a member of the God-General. It didn't feel like she is an official member of the God-General.
"That was a stunning battle, Stella. I'm quite surprised to see you planned ahead of Sync during that fight and your artes are truly amazing. No one hasn't been able to use artes to fuse together into one powerful arte." Van said as he is amused by Stella's skills.
"Thanks, Commandant. So, what now?"
"Now, since you are a God-General. We should give you a title. Every God-General has their own unique title from their battle styles, where you are born, or other things."
"I think the title of assassin would be fine. Besides that's the only thing I'm known for. I assassinate anything that is a threat. And I was trained as an assassin in the past."
Van nodded. "That's fine," he turned to the God-Generals and decided to tell them. "I have to tell all of you something. It's about my plan to recreate this world and destroy the Score." all of the God-Generals were all ears to the Commandant's plan.
As he told his plan, he leaves, because he has something else to do. The God-Generals watch as Van leaves the Oracle Knights HQ. Stella turned to Sync and grins.
"Say Sync, I have something to say about our fight."
The Tempest turns his head to Stella and asks, "What is it?"
"Well, it was about our final strike when we were about to end it. You should pay attention to where your opponent attacks you from." she smiles.
He was confused about what she meant then he felt something on his cheek. There was blood on his cheek. He didn't notice the cut on his cheek or how she was able to cut him. The other God-Generals were surprised.
"How is that possible?" Legretta asked.
"How should I put this? Well, I slightly turn my bladed bow to cut Sync. I'm surprised that you guys didn't see it." The assassin replied. Stella walks up to Sync and uses a healing arte to heal his cut. She turns to Legretta wondering what is next. "What do we do now?"
"Since two of the laboratories are destroyed. We should go to the rest of the labs and destroy them as well. They are the source to interrupt the Commandant's plan."
The assassin crossed her arms and frowns. "I'm fine with that. As long as we destroy them, we won't have to deal with them in the future."
"We should split up into 3 groups." Everyone agrees. Legretta told them who is going with who to destroy the labs.
As Legretta finishes, all of the God-Generals leave the Oracle Knights HQ. Stella walks into the Cathedral and sighs lightly. It was already evening and barely had any free time. She went to the library to read for the rest of the day and doesn't want to be interrupted by anyone while she is reading.
"I have the entire day of free time to read in the library," as she picks up as many books as she can carry. She carried them to the table and set them down then sat down and started to read. "I never thought there would be so many books here in Daath." She was enjoying her free time reading in a quiet room.
Although, I'm curious to know what is going to happen next. Stella thought, looked through the window and stared at the skies wondering what came next.
This came from fanfiction. I'm moving some of my stories here. I'm still writing my other stories. Most of my stories will be posted in here instead of fanfiction, but I'll still post some there too. Thanks for everyone for reading! :3
Chapter Text
In the Cathedral, all the oracle knights were in a state of panic. The Fon Master was nowhere to be found. All the Oracle Knights were told to find Ion and return him back to Daath.
Mohs was in his office with Legretta. He looks like he is worried about the Fon Master. "Send all the God-Generals to Malkuth and bring back Fon Master Ion. We must not let the Fon Master reach Kimlasca."
"As you wish, Grand Maestro. We'll bring back the Fon Master to Daath." Legretta turns around and leaves Mohs office.
Stella walked out of the library and see the commotion. She sighed deeply and said, "They need to calm down. Yes, Fon Master Ion isn't here in Daath, but panicking isn't going to bring him back."
The assassin was about to leave the Cathedral but then someone called her.
"Stella!" She turns to the sound of the voice. It was Legretta along with the other God-Generals. "We have to bring Ion back to Daath. Mohs is worried about the Fon Master safely."
"I'm sure that Mohs doesn't want Ion to reach Kimlasca, because whatever reason, why Ion left Daath must be important to both Kimlasca and Malkuth."
"That's right. We're going to Malkuth. They will tell us where the Fon Master is."
"How are we going to get there?"
"We're going to use Arietta's monsters to get to Malkuth Territory."
"Alright then. We should get going before the Fon Master reaches Kimlasca Territory."
"Yes, let's go."
They left the Cathedral to leave Daath. Stella was thinking why Mohs wants to stop Ion. Sync noticed that Stella was in thought. He decides to interrupt her train of thought.
"What are you thinking now, Stella?" he asked.
"I was wondering why the Grand Maestro wanted to stop Fon Master Ion. It sounds like he is desperate to follow the Score, but the Fon Master is going to stop whatever was on the Score," she replied.
"He's such a fool. He dedicated only to the Score and the Score only. He thinks that the world is best to follow the Score. We, on the other hand, reject the Score because it is controlled by the Planet's Memory. That's why Van is destroying the Score."
"What about Ion? Does he think that the world should follow the Score?"
"Of course. He believes that the Score is one possible future." Sync frowned.
"He is not like Mohs who wants to follow the Score completely."
The God-Generals were out of Daath waiting for Arietta. Arietta called her monsters and seven Griffins appeared. Each God-Generals jump on the Griffins back beside Dist who hates riding on Arietta's monsters. Apollo appears out of the woods and jumps in the Griffins back. Ace goes to Sync's shoulder. The Griffins took off to the skies and head towards to Malkuth.
A few hours passed, in Malkuth Territory, the east Rugnica Plains, at an army post, the soldiers were during their usual things. Suddenly, a group of small shadows appeared on the ground. One of the Malkuth soldiers at his post looked at the ground wondering what it was. The shadows were getting bigger and bigger, the soldier looked up at the skies and saw a horde of monsters were coming. The Malkuth soldiers start to panic as the horde of monsters appears at the army post. Stella jumped down from the griffin's back and killed the soldier with one slice. All the God-Generals jumped down from the monsters and landed on the ground. They start to attack the soldiers without even giving them a warning.
One of the soldiers was in the corner and surprised to see them. Largo walked up to him. "Kuh...! Y-You're...!" The Black Lion swings his scythe and kills him. A painful scream from the soldier as he falls down.
Sync smirked. "Pretty cruel, ordering us to kill anyone who sees us. How hypocritical, coming from an order that's supposed to inspire the people."
Arietta was running towards the other God-Generals. It seems that she found something important. "Re... Reporting...! The ship that Ion is on...is heading south towards Kimlasca."
"I can't believe that all seven of us were assigned to this mission," Dist commented.
Largo slightly turned his head to his fellow God-Generals and said, "We can't afford to have any witnesses!" as he attacks another soldier.
"... This is our duty. We have no choice." Legretta said. "If we obey the orders that we were given, there should be no problem-!"
A soldier walked quietly behind Legretta to attack her. She slightly turns around and sees that she is getting attacked from behind. Suddenly, Asch appears and kills the soldier and saves Legretta's life.
"... Stop babbling," he said as he sheathed his sword. "Let's go!"
The God-Generals leave the army post and head south to capture Fon Master Ion.
"Commencing our mission to capture Fon Master Ion!"
In the Tartarus, Ion was sitting holding something in his hands. Someone appeared, he has brown hair, red eyes, wearing a blue Malkuth uniform, and glasses.
He walked up to Ion and said, "Ion..."
"I understand. I don't want war either..." Ion looks down at his hands. "I promise, I'll deliver this letter safely...!" he squeezed his hands tightly on the letter he was holding.
An oracle soldier was running to the Chapel. He sees Mohs and immediately goes to him and bows down. "Grand Maestro Mohs. It seems like Master Ion is under the protection of Jade the Necromancer. They're currently heading towards Kimlasca on the Tartarus!"
"Damn...those Malkuths...! Thinking they can pass one over me...!" Mohs said. He starts to go into deep thoughts. I must start the war, just as the Score prophesied...so I can lead humanity into unprecedented prosperity...I must protect Yulia's Score... I must protect it, with my own hands-! "Hmph... fine then. It's only a matter of time before Fon Master Ion is back in my hands. The elites of the order...I've sent the Seven God-Generals after him!"
Arietta calls her monsters. The monsters fly past a small town. Everyone in town was shocked to see a horde of griffins flying by. They never see that many monsters as a pack and have no idea where they are going.
"Wh... What are those things?" The townsman asked surprisingly.
"Are they monsters!?" as the townswoman shouted in fear as she grabbed her child.
One of the townsmen sees something on the monster's back. "That someone's riding one...?"
Largo, Asch, Legretta, and Arietta jump on the Griffin's back heading south to catch up with the Tartarus.
"Alright!? We absolutely must capture Fon Master Ion within Malkuth Territory!" Legretta shouted.
"I'll leave the front line to you." Dist waved his hand back and forth.
The Tempest smirked. He watches as the horde of monsters head south. "Good luck." he turned around and noticed that Stella wasn't around. "Where is Stella?"
Dist shrugged as he didn't care about Stella. "Don't ask me. I didn't see her when she jumped down and killed the soldier in the army post."
"You guys left me at the army post. That's nice of you guys to do that to me. I feel hurt already." a voice from behind. Sync and Dist turns to the source of the voice. It was Stella, dragging a dead body on the ground. The assassin pretended to sound like she was hurt when the God-Generals left her behind. She looked up and saw the horde of monsters far away from them. "It seems they found where Ion is. I guess we're done with the killing. So, what are we going to do now?" as she drops the dead body on the ground.
"We just have to wait until they catch Ion," Sync answered.
"Alright. I'll head to St. Binah to see if Fon Master Ion is there." as Stella leaves the two God-Generals and heads towards St. Binah.
Ace appears and lands on Sync's shoulder. The phoenix has grown attached to Sync lately. Apollo appears behind Dist and watches as his master leaves to St. Binah. Dist moves away from Apollo, he didn't want to get near or touch the monster.
Stella arrived at St. Binah. She never knew St. Binah would be lively and full of crowded people, but she doesn't have time to enjoy herself. She starts to look around the city to find Ion to see if he appears.
A few hours have passed, Stella searches for Fon Master Ion and has not been found. There was no sign of him in St. Binah. Suddenly, she saw a group coming out of the Malkuth Base, where Field Marshal McGovern is at. They were heading out from St. Binah. She sees Fon Master Ion with the group, but it seems that he is being protected. She's seen Tear, a red-haired boy, a Colonel from Malkuth, and a blonde haired guy with Ion. She doesn't know who the other three were with Ion besides Ion, Jade, and Tear. She walked up to them and crossed her arms.
"There you are, Fon Master Ion." she said.
The group turned around to Stella. They were on their guard when they heard Stella calling for Ion.
"Who are you?" the red-haired swordsman asked.
Stella turns her head to the red-haired boy. 'He looks like Asch, but different. Wait, is this...?' she stopped her thoughts and replied, "That is none of your concern."
"What?! Why you!" he said angrily.
"We can't cause a scene in St. Binah. So, I suggest you should calm down, Luke." said the Malkuth Colonel.
"He is right, Luke. We need to stay calm." Guy said as he turned to Luke.
Luke turns his head away from Stella like he didn't care about anything.
Ion walked forward to Stella and said, "There is something important I must do. I can't go back to Daath until I give this important letter to Kimlacsa. So please, I'll return to Daath once I'm done." he begged.
Stella glanced at the young Fon Master. She couldn't deny the Fon Master and sighed deeply. "Fine. I'm going to pretend I didn't see you and your group here. I must return to the others." She walks past them and heads out of St. Binah.
"Do you know who that girl is, Ion?" Luke asked.
The Fon Master nodded. "Yes, that's-"
Tear turned around and saw something unexpected at the entrance in St. Binah. "Quick, hide! It's the Oracle Knights!" she said quietly, to avoid being loud. The group went to hide from the Oracle Knights at the entrance.
At the entrance of St. Binah, Legretta, Largo, Sync, and Arietta were at the entrance to find any information about Ion whereabouts. Stella stopped in front of them as she came out in St. Binah. Legretta talks to the oracle soldier who was guarding the entrance.
"Have you found Fon Master Ion?" she asked.
The oracle soldier answered, "It doesn't appear that he's entered St. Binah."
"And you?" Legretta asked Stella, who was standing in front of the God-Generals.
Stella shook her head slightly. "I searched the entire city and didn't find him." She lied.
Arietta turned her head to the ground and said, "Those people with Ion are the ones who killed Mommy... My liger friends told me." She hugs her doll tightly. "I'll never forgive them."
Stella glanced at Arietta. She didn't know that Arietta was raised by monsters. It was shocking, but she feels sorry for Arietta for the loss of her mother. She never saw the Liger Queen in person. She can understand the wild pain of losing the Liger Queen, the monster that raised her.
"What about the Fon Master Guardian they said was hanging around?" Sync asked the soldier.
"She appears to have made contact with the Malkuth military. But Malkuth is saying it's "classified" and is refusing to provide any useful information." the oracle soldier replied.
"If I hadn't let that Necromancer get the better of me, Anise would've never gotten away. I'm sorry." Largo said as he turned his head to his fellow God-Generals and apologized.
"Ahh hah hah hah hah! That's why I told you!" a voice from across the God-Generals. They turned around and saw Dist. Dist seems to be smiling about something. "The only one who can defeat that beastly Jade is the elegant servant of the gods, the esteemed member of the Oracle Knights' Seven God-Generals, yours truly, Dist the Rose!"
"You mean "Dist the Reaper"." Sync reminded Dist's real title name.
Dist became unhappy with his real title name being called. "How is one so beautiful as myself a "reaper" and not a "rose"?!" The God-Generals turn back around and to ignore Dist.
Stella crossed her arms on her chest and chuckled mockingly at Dist. "I guess someone isn't going to get his attention."
"Hey! I heard that!" Dist pointed at Stella for mocking him. "No one dares to mock me! I don't want to be reminded by that pathetic Jade, who mocks me!"
"There's no point in dwelling on the past." Legretta turns to Sync to ask for their next course of action. "What do we do now, Sync?"
"Hey." Dist tries to get the God-General's attention. But they ignored him and continued on discussing.
"Withdraw the troops from Engeve and St. Binah." he answered.
Largo turned his head to Sync. He was shocked by Sync's choice to disengage the troops. "But...!" The four God-Generals turn to Largo, who protest Sync's orders.
"Your wound still hasn't healed. The Necromancer almost killed you. Why don't you take a break? And besides, the only way for them to cross the border is through Kaitzur. If we stay here and antagonize the Malkuth military, it could spark a diplomatic incident."
"Once we return to the Tartarus, I'll check your wounds and heal them since we don't have any healers on the Tartarus beside me." Stella was worried about his wound. Largo turns to the assassin nodded. "Although, you will experience something "entertaining" that you will enjoy." she glanced at Largo, smiling at him.
Largo feels like he doesn't want to know the "entertaining" thing that Stella mentioned. He feels uneasy about it. "Umm...right. As long as I'm healed and able to come back to fight again, then make this "entertainment" short notice."
"Well, to tell you the truth, you will be the first person to experience it. So, I suggest you have your hopes high." The assassin clasped her hands together and was excited to show it off to her first customer. "This is going to be fun. And I promise you won't forget it if you get "injured" again."
The God-Generals never saw Stella so happy to heal Largo's wound. They are curious to know what this "entertainment" thing is, but experiencing Stella's enjoyment. It seems that they rather not see it at all.
"Hey! Stop ignoring me!" Dist tries to get their attention again, but they continue to ignore him. The other God-Generals turn to the quick as she starts to speak.
"So next comes deciding how to deal with them at Kaitzur. Let's return to the Tartarus for now and consider matters there."
The Black Lion started to shout out his orders to his troops. "Inform the troops! First Division, withdraw!"
"Yes, sir!" the oracle soldier said. He left the entrance of the St. Binah to inform the other soldiers to withdraw back to the Tartarus.
All the God-Generals besides Dist abandon the entrance and head back to the Tartarus.
Dist, on the other hand, was upset that his fellow God-Generals didn't want to listen to him even though they ignored him completely. "Grrrrrrrr! You're all just jealous of my intelligence and beauty!" he abandons the entrance and flies off.
Back to the group in St. Binah, they came out of hiding when the God-Generals left the entrance.
"Damn... Largo survived." Jade was a bit surprised that Largo is still alive.
"This is the first time I've seen the Six God-Generals," Guy said.
Luke was confused and asked, "Who are the Six God-Generals?"
Ion turns to Luke and answers, "The six executive officers of the Oracle Knights."
"There's Largo the Black Lion, Dist the Reaper, Sync the Tempest, Arietta the Wild, Legretta the Quick, and... Looks like the one missing was Asch the Bloody." Guy tells Luke the God-Generals names and their titles.
"But what about that girl? It looked like she was part of the Oracle Knights." Luke mentions Stella when she encounters them in St. Binah.
"Oh yeah, I heard that someone recently joined the God-Generals a year ago. I think her name was Stella, Stella the Assassin." Guy remembered.
"Then that means there are Seven God-Generals instead of six," Jade added.
Tear glanced at Luke and said, "They're Van's immediate subordinates." She turned her head away and became curious about Stella. "But I didn't know that Stella became a God-General. Major or anyone else in the oracle knights never told me that she joined as a God-General."
"Same here. I never thought she would join the God-General." Ion was surprised to know that Stella is a part of the God-Generals.
Guy puts his hand under his chin and starts to think what will happen when Stella joins the God-Generals. "She probably has a reason to join as a God-General or something else."
"Master Van's?!" Luke changed the subject as he was surprised to hear his master's name.
Tear turns to Luke once more then she lifts her right arm up and her other arm below to her lifted arm. "If the Seven God-Generals are taking action, then the one who's trying to cause a war is Van..."
"The Seven God-Generals side with the Grand Maestro. Mohs is likely giving orders to Van." Ion said.
"Grand Maestro Mohs would never do something like this. My mission for the Grand Maestro is top secret, so I can't divulge any details. However, I assure you it is one of peace." as Tear glanced at Ion.
"Wait a minute! Master Van wouldn't try to cause a war, either!" Luke started to argue with Tear who opposed her brother.
"It's just the sort of thing my brother might do." Tear wants to argue and tries to act calm as she turns to Luke.
"What are you saying?! What about you, huh? How do we know you're not a spy working for that Mohs guy?!"
"Please, settle down." Ion tries to calm down the situation.
"He's right. Now's not the time to be worried about Van or Mohs. Right now, we have to get past the Seven God-Generals and prevent this war." Guy said.
"You're right. I'm sorry." Tear apologize.
"Humph. I'm not accepting the apology of anyone who badmouths Master Van." Luke scoffed.
Jade shrugged. "Well, now that THAT's over, let's head for Kaitzur, shall we?"
"You're unbelievable." Guy knew that Jade didn't interrupt the conversation to think he was enjoying it.
The group leaves St. Binah and heads to Kaitzur to avoid the Oracle Knights. Ace was listening to Luke and others' conversations. He takes off and heads back to the Tartarus.
In the Tartarus, Stella was in the room with Largo healing his wounds. She was bandaging his chest where his wound was. She finished bandaging and stood up. The assassin put her arms around her waist and gave the black lion a serious look.
"Make sure you stay on the bed and get some rest. You need your strength."
Largo nodded. "Of course, I'll rest until my wound recovers."
"And also, did you enjoy the "entertainment" I did?" the assassin asked as she smiled mockingly.
"Umm... no. Don't ever do that again." Largo didn't want to see Stella's entertainment again.
Stella chuckled softly. "Alright. Have a good rest, Largo," she said as she left the room.
She went to the other room next to Largo to meet up with the other God-Generals to discuss other matters. The assassin opened the door to the other room and walked in. The other God-Generals were waiting for her to appear, the last one to appear.
"How is Largo's wound?" Legretta asked.
Stella turned to Legretta and replied, "He's fine. He just needs some rest and he is good to go."
"Now, we can start- '' Legretta was interrupted by a loud pecking sound nearby.
The God-Generals look around the room to find the source of noise. Stella knows who it is, walking towards the window and opening it. Ace flies in through the window and is in the room, turns around, and lands on his master's shoulder. He cries softly to his master. Stella nods her head, closes the window and goes back where she was standing.
"It looks like Fon Master Ion and the group are heading to Kaitzur right now," Stella tells the God-Generals where Ion is heading now.
"I'm heading there now...!" Arietta and her monster rushed out of the room.
"Wait...! Arietta! You can't just...," Arietta ignored Stella and headed out to Kaitzur. "...Rush out there." the wild was already gone from the Tartarus.
"Don't worry. I'll have one of us get her later. Now then, we need to discuss what we should do to get the Fon Master." Legretta turns back to the God-Generals.
Stella has an idea to get the Fon Master. "We should bait Fon Master Ion to force him to come to us. It would make it easier for us then just chasing him around."
"You know a place where we can lure him?" Sync asked.
"No. We just have to wait until Asch or Arietta or both of them return. They might know a place where we can lure Fon Master Ion."
"Since we don't know where we can lure Fon Master Ion. We'll wait for Asch and Arietta to return." Legretta glanced at Stella and told her to get someone. "Stella, can you go and get Arietta from Fubras River?"
Stella nodded. "Alright. I'll go and get her and bring her back here."
The assassin walks out the room with Apollo behind her. She went to the Tartarus and opened it. The hatch opened and the stairs elevated down to the ground. She walked down the stairs and went to close the hatch. Suddenly, a voice appeared at the hatch of the Tartarus.
"Don't forget that I have to watch you!"
Stella sighed lightly. "Yes, I know that, Sync. Now, can you get out of the hatch so I can close it?"
Sync jumped out of the hatch and landed behind Stella. Stella closed the hatch of the Tartarus and headed to Fubras River.
"Would it be easier for us to use Arietta's monsters to get there?"
The black-haired assassin stops walking and turns to Sync. "That's what I'm going to do next. Unless you want to call them."
Sync whistled to call Arietta's monsters, three monsters appeared to pick them up. Sync, Stella, and Apollo jumped on the griffin's back and the monsters took off to fly to Fubras River.
They arrived at Fubras River. They looked around to see if Arietta was still around. Apollo jumped down from Giffin's back, landed on the ground, and started running to search for Arietta. Stella and Sync looked at each other wondering if Apollo found her. A sudden howl was called from afar, that howl call was calling for help. The griffins follow the sound of the howl and arrive where the howl is located. They see Apollo standing beside someone. They jump off the Griffin's back and see Arietta and her monster on the ground unconscious.
"What happened here?" Stella asked.
"It must be the earthquake that caused it. But not only that, the miasma appears when the earthquake causes the shakiness. Arietta and her monster probably inhale some of the miasmas that appear below them." Sync answered.
"We better hurry and take her. The earthquake will return if we don't leave." Stella picked up Arietta in a bridal style and carried her to Griffin's back. Apollo picked up an Arietta's Liger friend and carry him on his back.
They jumped back on the Griffin's back and left Fubras River.
They were in the forest to let Arietta rest. Stella and Sync keep watch to make sure that no one comes to the forest. Arietta starts to squirm and Stella walks up to her and smiles.
"Are you alright, Arietta?" she asked.
She nodded and answered, "Yes. What happened?"
"You inhale some of the miasma in Fubras River. Luckily, you are able to inhale a small amount of it. So, you're fine." Stella told Arietta what happened.
"I see. Oh, that's right. What happened to Ion and those bad people?"
"We didn't see them. They are probably in Kaitzur."
Suddenly, a noise behind the bushes. The three God-Generals stood their guard waiting to see who it was. The figure came out of the bushes and glanced at us.
"Asch?! Where did you go?"
"I was in Kaitzur and was attacked, but I managed to flee in time," Asch replied. "I have something to ask you guys."
"What would that be?" Stella was curious.
"I'll tell you the details in Choral Castle. I see you in Choral Castle." as he leaves the woods and takes Griffin to Choral Castle.
Stella and Arietta look at each other. Stella was curious to know what Asch wanted to say.
"Should we go to Choral Castle?" Stella turns to Sync.
"We can't let Asch do anything on his own. We will get in trouble if we do." Sync replied, frowning.
"I guess we have to go to Choral Castle and make sure Asch doesn't do anything fishy. Arietta, let's hurry." the wild nodded. They got on Griffin's back. Stella glanced at Sync. "Are you coming?" Sync jumps on Stella's Griffin and they head to Choral Castle.
They arrive at Choral Castle. It seems to be abandoned. They entered the castle to find Asch. They enter a room and see Asch with Dist. Stella was curious to know what Asch wanted. Sync wasn't with them when they entered the castle. She notices that he wasn't here with them. She forgets the tempest and turns to the bloody.
"So, what do you want us to do?" she asked.
Asch tells his plan on how to get Ion and Luke to Choral Castle. Stella was a little surprised, but it seems it's the best way to lure Ion to them. Asch leaves the room and heads out of Choral Castle.
The assassin looked at Arietta and smiled. "You will be just fine, Arietta. Just be careful not to hurt the engineer."
Arietta glanced at Stella and nodded. "Okay. I'll be going on." the wild leaves to do Asch's plan.
As she left, Sync appeared in the room being the same as usual.
"Where the hell have you been, Sync?" Stella frowned as she saw him coming into the room.
"That's none of your concern." he answered.
Stella sighed lightly. "Whatever you say. Now, we just have to wait until Arietta returns with the hostage."
Dist laughed mischievously. "Yes, I can't wait to do my research on that replica. I'm willing to know what fonons he has."
Stella crooked her eyes like she is surrounded by one idiot, no two idiots. "Anyways, I'm just going to head out to see if Arietta has returned with the hostage. I don't want to stay here to hear Dist little obsessed." as she leaves the room.
Stella climbs to the top of the castle to catch Arietta to see if she is coming. She sees something from a far coming towards Choral Castle. It looks like a monster flying towards Choral Castle. She sees Arietta holding on to monster feet. The monster comes to the top of the castle and safely lands Arietta on the ground. She turns to the monster and sees the hostage.
"Welcome back, Arietta." Stella smiled.
"Thank you, Stella." Arietta never thought that Stella would be nice to her. "I got the hostage. Now, we have to wait until they come here."
"Do you think they are going to come?"
"Ion never refused the offer. He will come with those bad people too. Now, I can get my revenge on Mommy." Arietta hugs her doll tightly.
Stella crooked her eyes, worried about Arietta and getting her revenge. "Arietta, you shouldn't think about revenge. You think killing them will bring back your mother?"
"Of course. Mommy will be at peace once I kill them all."
"Anyways, we should hurry and continue with the plan. They will be here at any minute." Stella turned around and went inside of the castle. Arietta did the same thing, but with the hostage. She went a different route to reach the top castle.
As Stella walks in the castle, she hears footsteps at the entrance of the castle. She quickly hides and peeks to see who it is. It was Luke and the others that came to Choral Castle. Ion was with them too.
"So, this was our vacation home, huh?" Luke said as he looked around the castle.
Guy appeared and said, "Luke, don't stray too far from the group."
Luke turns around to Guy and waves his arms like he knows everything. "I know, I know. Shut up already."
The statue monster turns to Luke as he wasn't paying attention from behind.
"Luke!" Jade called out.
"Luke, behind you!" Tear shouted.
"Huh?" as Luke starts to rub his head in confusion.
"He is such an idiot. Lowering your guard when a monster was standing across from you. Well then, I should leave before they see me here." Stella said, mumbling as she quickly went to the room where Sync and Dist are.
She appeared at the door and opened it. She sees Sync glancing at her with his arms crossed.
"Is there something wrong?" she asked curiously.
"No." he answered.
"Then what is with that glance?"
"It's nothing." as he turns away from her.
"Ssssure. Anyways, they're here. They saw them at the entrance of the castle. We should get started." as she turns around to the door and leaves the room. The tempest followed suit. "What happened to Dist?"
"He went ahead with Arietta to get the one with red hair."
"Oh? Him? The annoying one?"
"You can say that."
They went to the lower level of the castle and saw a fon machine. Stella stared at the machine. She started to think when she was a little girl, she was sent to go to the machine just like the one they were looking for. Luckily, the machine was broken. So, they couldn't replicate the children in the lab.
Dist came with Luke on his legs. He places Luke on the Fon Machine, goes to the machine that controls the Fon Machine and starts to move his fingers on the keys. The Fon Machine is turned on and it seals Luke's hands and feet in place to prevent him from moving.
"...Ah, I see. Even the fonon frequency is the same. This is a perfect creation." Dist looks at the machine.
"That's not important. We have to erase the data before they come back." Sync said as he was typing the machine where Luke is.
Luke woke up from the commotion and slightly turned his head to Stella and Sync.
"If the data here is that important, you shouldn't have had Asch use Choral Castle in the first place."
"That idiot came here on his own. We'll have to have Van punish him later...Oh, look. This idiot here is finally coming around."
Dist was finished playing with the machine. "No matter. I've already opened his synchronized fon slots." He flies to Sync and Stella and continues. "I'll be going now. I can't wait to analyze this data. Heh heh heh heh." The reaper leaves Choral Castle to analyze the data.
"And there he goes." Stella sighs lightly.
Sync starts to walk away from the Fon Machine then Luke starts to ask.
"...What the hell did you do to me?"
Sync stopped and slightly turned to Luke. "I see no reason to answer that question." then Sync slightly turned his head as he heard someone coming.
Guy appeared with his sword in his hand to attack Sync. Sync was able to dodge Guy's attack with his hand on his chest.
"No."
Stella stared at Luke, who is still on the Fon Machine while Sync and Guy started to fight.
"Hey! It's you!"
"Man, you're annoying." Stella crossed her arms.
"W-What did you say?!"
Suddenly, Sync's mask came out, then Guy attacked his mask. The mask landed on the ground. Guy was surprised to see what he saw then someone called Guy.
"...What? ...You?"
"Guy? What is it?" Anise called out Guy.
Sync kicked Guy and made him land on the bottom floor. The tempest went to get his mask and put it on.
"Damn it! They're here!" he walked up to the ledge as the group came.
Anise and Tear see Stella at the Fon Machine. The assassin turns to the group as they were coming for Luke. Tear didn't want to attack Stella but she had to get Luke out of the Fon Machine. She took her spear and swung it. Stella jumps to dodge Tear's attack then lands beside Sync.
"Stella? Why are you doing this?" Anise asked.
"There's no need to tell you," Stella replied.
"Why did you join the God-Gene-"
Sync interrupted Tear to change the subject. "This was an unauthorized mission. It's too bad I can't kill you myself, but I'll leave it in Arietta's capable hands." Sync turns to leave the castle. "She's on the roof with the hostage. Hope you enjoyed our little game."
Stella glanced at the group then turned around to leave.
"Wait! Stella! Come back here!" Anise calls her out.
Stella stops and sighed lightly. "If you guys want to go back to Baticul then I suggest you should go and fight Arietta to get the engineer back. I have no time to talk to you guys and that annoying kid." she whistled to call Apollo and Ace.
The two monsters appeared from behind the group as they went to their master. Apollo starts to growl at the group to leave his master alone. So, they can leave peacefully. Stella continues to advance forward to leave the Choral Castle then the two monster suites from behind. Jade freed Luke from the Fon Machine.
Luke stood and said, "Whew...What the hell was all that...?"
"What is it, Guy?" Ion asked as he walked up to Guy.
Guy turned around and replied, "Oh...nothing. I got hold of a strange fon disc, so I was just wondering what it was."
"Let's have Jade look into it later."
Stella was outside of the entrance of Choral Castle. She sees Sync waiting for her and walks past him.
"I guess we are returning to the Tartarus," Stella said.
"No, let's head to Chesedonia," Sync said.
"Why Chesedonia?" Stella was dumbfounded.
"The only way they can go to Baticul is by taking a ship from Chesedonia. We need to take back the disk they stole from us."
"Us? You mean 'you'. You were careless to lower your guard."
"So, you're blaming me for not getting the disk." Sync hissed.
"Of course it is. And now we have to get it from them in Chesedonia." Stella continued. "Anyways, let's go to Chesedonia. I'm not going to waste time on a failure." Stella whistled to call monsters.
"Failure." Sync mumbled.
"Did you say something?" Stella asked.
"No. It's nothing. Just remembering something from the past." the tempest answered.
Stella has been wondering what Sync's past is and how he met Van, becoming a God-General, and more. Although, she didn't see his face when his mask came off. There's definitely something that he is hiding from her. She doesn't know what is going within the Oracle Knights. Mohs wants to follow the Score while Van opposes the Score. She's hoping that the answers will come when the time is right.
The griffins appeared and flew down to them. The two God-Generals and Apollo jumped on Griffin's back and Ace went on Stella's shoulder. The Griffins took out into the skies and headed towards Chesedonia.
They appeared above Chesedonia. They jumped down from the Griffin's back and landed on the roof of the house. The Griffins continued to fly away from Chesedonia and vanished. Stella walks up to the ledge and sees that Luke and the others haven't arrived in Chesedonia yet.
"They're not here," Stella said.
"They won't arrive at Chesedonia until tomorrow morning. It's getting late." Sync crossed his arms.
Stella started to yawn and said, "Well, we have been doing a lot of things today and it's getting dark. We should rest in the Inn. I'm getting exhausted from all the work we did." as she jumps down from the ledge.
Sync turned to Apollo and saw him leaving in the opposite way to the Inn. He walks to the ledge and jumps down to go to the Inn.
The two God-Generals walked into the Inn and Stella went to the counter and paid for the Inn. As she was finished, she walked to the stairs to head to the room. Sync followed suit from behind to the room. They appeared at the door and Stella opened the door to the room. She walks to the bed and lies down in the comfortable bed. She stood up from the bed and looked at the window. She walked up to the window and opened it wide. Apollo jumped through the window and lay down on the floor to sleep. Ace sleeps on the bed with Stella. Stella closed the window and sat back down on the bed.
Stella sighed deeply. "I think I'm going to pass out."
"Then I suggest you sleep until they arrive here tomorrow." Sync frowned.
Stella stood up and took off the jacket and threw it on the side of the bed. She takes off her boots on the side of the bed. The assassin lay down on the bed and covered herself with the blanket.
"Well, if you insist, Syncy. Good night." she said.
"What the? Who's Syncy?" he was dumbfounded by the name 'Syncy'.
"Good night, Syncy!" Stella repeated it louder as she closed her eyes to sleep.
Sync went to the other side of the bed to sleep. He turns to Stella to see if she is asleep. It looks like she's fast asleep. "There's no way she fell asleep that fast. She is not human. Hmph. Whatever." as he went to sleep on the other side of the bed.
The sun starts to rise and the light hits the window. Stella woke up and stood up from the bed. She starts to yawn and stretches, then turns to Sync who was still sleeping. The assassin got out of the bed and put on her boots then stood up and walked to her jacket and put it on. She turns to Apollo and walks up to him, who is still sleeping. She bends down and starts to pet him gently.
"Stay here with Sync and keep an eye on him." she whispered.
She stood up and walked to the door to leave the room. She walks down the stairs and heads out of the Inn. She walks around Chesedonia and sees a lot of people walking around Chesedonia. As Stella looks around, she hears a small noise from the corner. She follows the sound of the noise and looks around for it. She sees a big yellow ear from the corner of the building. Stella walks toward it and sees a yellow cheagle who is whimpering. She bends to the cheagle and reaches her hand to the cheagle.
"Come on, little one. I won't hurt you," she said softly.
The cheagle looked at Stella if it should trust Stella then it reached out for her hand. Stella smiled and picked up the cheagle and looked at it. The cheagle was dumbfounded by what Stella is doing.
"Are you hungry?" she asked.
"Mieu. Mieu." the cheagle said.
"Alright. I'll go and buy some apples for you. How does that sound?" as she put the cheagle on her head for it to hold on to.
"Mieeu!"
Stella laughed softly. "Then let's get going." as she turns around to buy some apples.
The assassin appears in the shopping area where they sell food, weapons, and more. She looks around to find any apples in Chesedonia. She sees an apple's stack and walks up to it and grabs two apples. She was about to pay for the apples, then someone appeared behind her.
"So, this is where you have been."
Stella turns around to see who is behind her. It was Sync who was behind her with Ace on his shoulder.
"Oh, it's you."
Sync sees the cheagle on Stella's head and asks, "Why is there a cheagle on your head?"
"I found him hiding behind the building. He seemed to be hungry. So, I'm buying apples for him." she replied. "Do you want any?"
"We don't have time to eat." he scowled as he left.
Stella sighed deeply. "He is such a jerk. Why does he have to be my babysitter? Whatever." as she turns around to pay the apples. She followed Sync from behind. She gives the cheagle the apple and the cheagle starts to eat the apple. Stella stops as she hears voices from behind. She saw Luke's group getting robbed by some group that looks like pirates. "So, here they are. I guess I have to tell Sync that they are here."
She looks around to find Sync and sees him from the top of the building with Apollo. Stella jumped to the buildings to reach Sync.
"They're here." as she moved the cheagle from her head and was about to put him on Apollo's head. The cheagle got scared when he saw Apollo. Stella smiled and pets the cheagle. "No reason to worry. It's alright, he won't eat you. Trust me." The cheagle looked at Stella and trusted her. Stella puts the cheagle on Apollo's head and the cheagle feels comfortable on Apollo's head.
"Do you know where they are going?" Sync asked.
"They might go to Astor's Mansion to scan the fon disk that you didn't protect." Stella scolded him. "So, what are you going to do when they come out of the mansion?"
"We're going to take the fon disk back from them."
"Don't fail this time." as she took a bite of the apple.
A couple of minutes later, Luke's group walks out of Astor's Mansion with the fon disk and books. Stella went to the dock to stop them there. Sync jumps down and starts to run towards the group. He runs past the others and casts something on Guy's arm, which causes Guy to drop the things he was carrying. Sync caught the fon disk while Guy quickly grabbed the book on the ground and stood up.
Sync points to the book and said, "Hand those over!" he slides to trip Guy but Guy was able to dodge it.
"We shouldn't cause a scene here. To the ship!" Jade said as he started to run.
"Damn it! They just don't give up!" Luke said as he started to run away as well as Guy from behind.
"You're not getting away!" as the tempest starts to run after them.
Stella stood at the top of the building waiting for the group to appear. She sees them running to the ship and jumps down from the building and stops them from advancing.
"This is as far as you go!" Stella stood in front of them.
"We're surrounded!" Tear said.
Jade starts to cast his arte and move Stella out of the way. "Energy Blast!"
Stella quickly dodged the arte. The group quickly runs to the ship as the path is open. Luke came running with Mieu in his hand. Luke told the soldier to hurry up to start the ship. They run to the ship and the ship starts its engine and leaves the port.
Sync made it to the port, but it was too late. "Ow! They got away!" as he watches the ship leave the port. Stella walks up to Sync and stands beside him.
"Well, that didn't go too well as we planned." Stella watched as the ship set off into the sea.
"Ahhh hah hah hah hah!" Dist laughs from above then flies down to the ground. "Looks like you blew this one, Sync, Stella!"
"Oh, it's you." Sync said.
"I would like to see you stop them." Stella scoffed at Dist.
"Leave the rest to me! With my ultra super hyper high-grade fonic technology, I'll flay that conniving, long-haired, four-eyed- '' Dist noticed that no one was listening to him. Sync and Stella leave the port, ignoring Dist. Dist turns to them and continues. "Stop! Stop! Come back! I'm not done talking!" Stella and Sync stop as Dist tells them to stop.
"I marked the one named Guy with a curse slot. I can make him my puppet at any time. As for you, make sure you properly dispose of the documents from the fomicry project." Sync starts to walk away.
Dist starts to pout. "Now, who do you think you are? Just you wait! I'm putting this down in my revenge journal!"
Stella sighed deeply. "You are such a child! I can't believe you're a high rank God-General." Stella leaves the port to follow Sync from behind.
"I'm not a child like you!"
"An old man like you pouting like a child then yes you are!" Stella shouted. "I'm more mature than you are, Dist the Reaper!"
"It's R-O-S-E! Dist the Rose!" he pouted again.
Sync and Stella walked out of Chesedonia to leave Dist to get the Fon Disk. They decided to head back to the Tartarus and think what they can do to get Fon Master Ion from Luke's group.
Chapter Text
Stella was able to take the cheagle back to the Cheagle Woods when he truly belonged. She said goodbye to the young cheagle and left the woods to go back to the Tartarus. She rides on the griffin back to the Tartarus.
The assassin arrived back at Tartarus. She walked on the ship and noticed that Legretta, Largo, and Arietta were not in the Tartarus. She thinks they were sent to another mission. She went to the bridge and saw Sync standing in the center of the bridge.
"What now? We still need to get Ion." Stella stood beside Sync as she crossed her arms over her chest.
"Asch has a plan to get Ion. So, we'll leave it to him. We'll meet him at the rendezvous point." Sync said.
Stella starts to think about what is happening to the ship that is heading to Baticul. Dist is probably getting the fon disk from them and fails to get the disk. Ace and Apollo appeared on the bridge to go to their master. Ace flies off to Sync's shoulder and feels comfortably on his shoulder.
"Ace is really fond of you," Stella said.
"I don't know how I made him fond of me."
"Maybe Ace has his own feeling of who he likes. Apollo is more difficult to get along with than Ace." Stella continued. "So, where do we go next to take Ion?"
"The Zao Ruins."
"Why are we going to the Zao Ruins? Is there something important?" Stella was dumbfounded.
"You will see when we get there with Ion."
"Van is at Baticul. So, do we wait until he is done in Baticul?"
"Van already knows what we are doing. He told us that he is going on the baited ship while the group goes to Deo Pass to get to Akzeriuth."
Stella put her hand on her chin. "Akzeriuth? Is that city covered in miasma?"
"That's right. Many people are dying from the miasma. That's why the group is going to Akzeriuth."
"Wait? Didn't the Score say that Akzeriuth is going to be saved by a hero?" Stella understood what the Score meant. "I see. By using the annoying kid powers to neutralize the miasma in Akzeriuth. But the power is going to destroy the city into the Qliphoth."
"How did you know?" Sync was dumbfounded.
"I overheard Mohs talking about it. He wants to start a war between Kimlasca and Malkuth really badly."
"That bastard thinks the world should follow the Score."
"You already told me that yesterday. So, are we at the rendezvous point?"
"Of course. We have to wait until Asch brings Ion here to the rendezvous point." as Sync turns around and leaves the bridge.
The oracle soldiers walk out of the ship and wait for the orders. Stella leaves the bridge and heads to the hatch of the Tartarus. She walks down the stairs and waits for Asch to return with Ion.
The weather was about to change. Clouds were coming to cover the open skies. Stella looks up and sees gray clouds coming towards them. She heard something coming to them. There was Asch with Ion. Two oracle soldiers have him hostage to prevent him from leaving. The assassin stared at Ion. She wanted to ask some questions to the Fon Master. It started to rain.
"We should hurry before they come." Stella turns around and walks to the stairs.
Suddenly, Luke's group appears out of the abandoned factory. He sees the 3 God-Generals, oracle soldiers, and Ion being held captive. Luke took out his sword and charged at Asch and shouted.
"Hand over Ion, NOW!"
Asch turned around and took out his sword and blocked Luke's attack. The two swords clashed into each other and they looked at each other. Luke was shocked to see someone with the same face as his.
"It's you!" Asch said.
Natalia and Tear were shocked. Anise and Guy started to run to Luke.
"LUKE!" Guy shouted his name.
Asch pushed Luke back and they stared at each other and put their swords down. The sound of the rain was pouring, disturbing the silence of the fighting. Stella turns around as she hears fighting and walks back to the hatch. The oracle soldiers took Ion into the Tartarus and put in a room as the fighting was going on. Jade just simply stared at the scene.
And the replica meets his original. Stella thought as she glanced at Luke and Asch.
Sync turned to Asch and said, "Asch! Ion takes priority right now!"
Asch glanced at Sync and replied, "I know!" he slightly turns and looks at Luke. "Aren't you the ladies' man?"
The 2 God-Generals went to the Tartarus and headed to Zao Ruins. Stella went to the room where Ion was taken too. She knocks on the door to see if Ion is still in the room.
"Come in," Ion called behind the door.
Stella opened the door to the room and closed it from behind. She walked to the chair and sat down in front of Ion.
"Stella, it's been awhile since I last saw you. How are you?"
The black-haired assassin smiled and replied, "I'm doing well. And you?"
Ion nodded. "I have been wondering about something. You don't mind if I ask you?" Ion was curious.
"Of course, Fon Master. What would it be?"
"Is there a reason why you join the God-Generals?"
"Well, it's because I hate the Score. The Score is twisted and it's controlling the world with it. That's why I joined the God-Generals."
"You shouldn't hate the Score. The Score guides you to the correct path to your future."
The assassin scoffed. "Yeah, a future that kills people based on what is foretold in their Score."
"Whatever made you hate the Score, I have no business knowing the rest."
Stella sighed deeply. "It's fine, Fon Master Ion. I don't mind telling you, but can you keep it a secret from the God-Generals and the Commandant."
Ion nodded. Stella told Ion everything about what happened to her past, how she tried to kill Van, how Sync became her watcher, what powers she has and what made her become a God-General under Van's commands.
"I see. You have been through alot in the past. I wish I could have helped to prevent that."
Sync was looking for Stella then he heard voices behind the room. He stood in front of the door and listened to the conversation between Ion and Stella.
Stella waved her hands back and forth. "No, no, Ion. It's alright. Not everyone can prevent anything from happening. Not even the Order of Lorelei could stop it. So, how are Anise and Tear doing?"
"Oh, the two of them are doing well. Although, they were surprised that you are a God-General."
"I did tell the Commandant not to tell anyone about me joining the God-Generals."
"What about Mohs?"
"Of course. He is the Grand Maestro. So, why are they capturing you?"
"They didn't tell you." Ion was surprised.
Stella shook her head. "No. They didn't tell me anything. I was told to capture you and bring you back to Daath."
"They are taking me to the Zao Ruins to open the Sephiroth."
"Is it the Sephiroth, the tree that supports each Outer Lands afloat from the miasma?"
"That's right. Each Sephiroth Trees are pillars in the shape of large, glowing trees that support the Outer Lands above the Qliphoth. They support each region to keep the Outer Lands afloat from the Qliphoth."
Stella noticed that someone was eavesdropping. "How long are you going to stand there, Sync?"
Sync opened the door and said, "You noticed I was here the entire time?"
"Of course. I didn't want to interrupt the Fon Master."
Ion didn't notice that Sync was listening to the conversation. He was surprised that Stella noticed Sync was here.
"We're here. Largo is waiting for us at the entrance of the Zao Ruins." Sync said as he turned around to leave.
Stella stands from the chair and looks at Ion. "Alright. Let's go. I'm sorry that I can't do anything to stop this." She apologized to Ion.
"No, it's fine. At least I was able to talk to you again, Stella."
The assassin smiled. "No problem, Ion."
Ion and Stella walked out of the room and headed out of the Tartarus to go to the Zao Ruins. There was Largo waiting for them at the entrance of the Zao Ruins as the Tartarus stopped in front of the Zao Ruins.
They are in the Zao Ruins heading to the Sephiroth. Stella looked at the surrounding ruins. It seems to be old and destroyed, but still able to stabilize the underground ruin. It's surprising that a ruin is underground as well as the Sephiroth.
"So, what did you and Ion talk about?" Sync asked.
Stella narrowed her eyes slightly. She would never think that Sync would ask a question like that. "You sound jealous when you say that."
"Who said that I'm jealous?!" Sync scowled.
"You are. And besides, you heard the non-important conversation."
"What do you mean by non-important conversation?"
"That's none of your business."
Sync didn't respond back. What did they talk about? What is so important about it? Whatever, that's not important right now. We have more important matters than some pathetic conversation. He thought as he didn't care about the conversation at all.
They arrive at the Sephiroth. Asch and Ion walk to the door. Ion raised his arms at the door with his powers to the Sephiroth. Stella noticed that Ion is weak if he overused his powers. Luckily, he stopped as someone shouted his name.
"ION!" Anise shouted.
Asch and Ion turned around to Luke's group and saw they were running to them to take Ion back from the God-Generals. Largo and Sync stop them at their track to prevent them from going any further to the Fon Master. Stella stood her ground as she watched.
"The Fon Master is in the middle of a ritual. We'll have no interference from you." Largo said.
"The Seven God-Generals!" Tear shouted.
"Such impudence, after kidnapping the one you're supposed to serve!" Natalia shouted.
Anise walked up and said, "Sync! Largo! Give Ion back!"
"I think not. We still have work for him." Sync frowned.
"Then we'll take him back by force," Luke said as he took out his sword from its sheath. The group was ready to fight Largo and Sync.
Largo moved forward as he was ready to swing his scythe. "This should be fun. Let's see how you've grown since I last saw you, cowering on the Tartarus."
"That's nice, coming from someone who was half-dead after one shot by Jade."
The Black Lion started to laugh. "Yeah, well, we won't lose so easily this time, boy..."
"Sync the Tempest, God-General of the Oracle Knights, shows no mercy," Sync said.
"Neither does Largo the Black Lion. Prepare!"
They clash and the fight has begun.
Stella was watching the fight. She didn't want to get involved in the fight, but suddenly, someone appeared before her. The assassin turned to a figure who was ready to fight her. She leans off the pillar and walks up then stops.
"Stella, why are you doing this? What is my brother doing?" Tear asked.
"Sorry, I can't answer that for you, Tear. You just have to ask him yourself." Stella replied as she took out her daggers from her jacket.
Tear was ready to fight Stella. Stella turns her head slightly to Sync and Largo. They were fighting the others. They are at a disadvantage in numbers, but it looks like they are determined to fight them all.
Guy charged at Sync to attack. Natalia starts to shoot arrows from her bow to attack Sync. Stella put her two daggers together to change its form into a different weapon. It changed into a bow. She raised her bow and aimed it at Natalia then an arrow appeared in her hand and placed it on the bow and pulled the string back. Tear was wondering what Stella is doing. She turns where Stella is aiming and gasps.
"Natalia! Get out of there!" she shouted.
Stella quickly switches targets as Natalia turns to the assassin. Stella lets go of the string and the arrow goes to its target. It was straight towards Guy who was attacking Sync. Sync smirked, then jumped out of the way from the arrow to hit its target. Guy sees the arrow coming towards and quickly dodge it. Stella started to cast her arte to the group. Natalia shoots another arrow towards Stella. Sync blocked the arrow from interrupting Stella casting.
"Cyclone!" she shouted.
The Cyclone surrounded Jade and Luke and attacked them. Jade was able to move out of the Cyclone. Luke took the hit and flew him back. He manages to get back up and attack Largo again. Largo swings his scythe and flames appear out and hit Luke to push him back. Tear casts her arte to attack Stella. The assassin was able to dodge it.
"So fast." Tear said.
Stella cast lightning on her dagger and threw it on the ground next to Tear. Tear glanced at the dagger and noticed that the dagger was surrounded by lightning and dodged out of the way. It exploded on the ground as Tear dodged out of the way. Guy and Natalia continue to attack Sync while Largo and Luke are fighting. Anise went to attack Stella. The assassin turns to Anise to block the puppet attack.
Jade started to cast his arte. "Thunder Blade!" The thunder blade came down and hit Largo.
The Black Lion was on his knees when he got hit from the Thunder Blade. Guy charged towards Sync once more and swung his sword. Sync blocked it with his arte, but he was getting pushed back. Guy swings his sword many times to break the arte. It broke and pushed Sync back. He was facing the ground and stood up a little. Anise keeps attacking Stella and Tear throws her knives at her. The assassin dodged them all.
"Stella is too fast. We can't land our attacks on her." Anise said, struggling to hit the assassin.
Tear sees Stella's pattern and turns to Anise. "Anise! I got an idea."
Anise turned to Tear and nodded. Anise charged back to Stella to attack her again. Tear cast her arte.
"Nightmare!"
The arte appeared around Stella and hit its mark. Stella takes the hit of the Nightmare. As the arte disappeared, Anise attacked Stella with Tokanaga's arm and caused her to fly back to the two God-Generals. She lands on her feet to weaken the force of the attack. They stood back up and fought again. Jade casts his strongest arte to finish the fight.
"I, who stand in the full light of the heavens, command thee, who open the gates of hell. Come forth, divine lightning! This ends now! Indignation!"
The powerful arte appeared above the 3 God-Generals and struck them with a powerful lightning coming down. The 3 God-Generals were down on the ground. Largo had his hand on his other arm as he was on knees. Sync used his hands and knees to stand up a little. Stella has her hand and knee on the ground. They groaned from the powerful arte and were exhausted from the fight.
"Aah..."
"Argh..."
"Ahh..."
"The three of you together STILL can't handle them? Pathetic!" Asch shouted.
Asch took out his sword and charged at two of them started to fight each other. They fight with the same style of fighting and arte.
Luke was shocked by what he saw. "That was... That was one of Master Van's moves! How did YOU know it?!"
"What are you, stupid?! It's because we trained in the same style, how else?!"
Stella and Largo stood up on their feet as they watched.
Sync stood up and put his hand on Asch's shoulder as Asch glanced at him and shouted, "Asch! Stop! You get carried away when left on your own. Put away your sword. Now!" as Sync turned around the group and walked up to them. Asch sheaths his sword away and walks back to the stairs. "Let's make a deal. In exchange for ending the fight here, we'll let the Fon Master go."
"We won't need any deals if we just wipe you out," Guy said.
The God-Generals turned to Guy.
"Don't forget that we're standing beneath the desert. We can bury you along with us."
"We'd die, too, of course, but that is a sacrifice we're willing to make," Largo said.
"If you don't want to die along with us then I suggest you take Ion." Stella crossed her arms.
"Luke, let's agree to their offer." Tear said as she glanced at Luke. "Right now, we need to recover Ion and hurry to Akzeriuth."
Jade sighed lightly as he turned to Luke. "We're already late from traveling by land."
"All right." Luke agreed.
The God-Generals set Ion free as he walks to the group. Largo watches Ion as he walks past him.
"Ion! I was worried about you." Anise said.
"I'm sorry for the trouble I've caused." Ion apologized.
Sync faced the other away from the group and slightly turned his head to the group. "Turn around and leave this place. If you come back, we really will bury you."
Jade, Tear, Anise, and Ion leave while Natalia, Luke and Guy stay.
Guy slightly turns, then looks back at Sync and starts to mumble. "They really are the same."
"I can't stand being ordered around by filth like him." Natalia scowled.
Guy snapped out as he turned to Natalia. "What? Oh...yeah. But you need to deal with it, for now, Natalia."
"I know that. On this journey, I'm not traveling as the princess." The two of them turned around to leave.
Largo was surprised to hear a familiar name. "Natalia...?"
Natalia stops as she hears her name, then slightly turns to Largo. "...What is it?"
Luke stops and turns to the princess. "Natalia, let's go!"
Natalia turned back and said, "Right..."
Luke's group leaves their presence.
Sync glanced at Largo and said, "That's Princess Natalia? It must be fate, Largo."
Asch turns to Largo and asks, "Are you connected to Natalia somehow?"
"...It was a long time ago. I've forgotten." Largo replied.
"There's no need for the Seven God-Generals to know each other's past." Sync slightly turns to Asch. "You should be painfully aware of that. You, of all people-the leftover ashes of the "holy flame."
Asch stared at Sync. "...Tch!" then his closed eyes as he knows.
Sync glanced behind him and said, "That one, Guy...he knows."
Stella was confused about what the other 3 God-Generals were talking about. Apollo walks up to his master as he was worried about her injury. Stella smiled and petted the Liger. Ace goes to Stella's shoulder and he was worried too. She petted Ace too under his chin. Suddenly, her vision started to get blurry. She put her hand on her face as her vision was getting blurrier by the minute. Sync turns to Stella and sees that she doesn't look too well.
"Is there something wrong?" he asked.
Stella was too weak to look at Sync. She started to faint. Sync manages to catch her in time before she hits the ground. Stella used Sync's arm to stand up a bit as she closed her eyes while her hand was on her face.
"What happened?" she asked confusingly.
"You nearly fainted," Asch answered.
"I don't remember fainting." Stella was getting a little dizzy.
"It looks like her memories are being hazy." Largo looks at Stella.
"That's strange. Oh well," she fainted.
Sync quickly went to her. "This is no time to lay down on the ground!"
"Just leave her be, Sync. Stella just fainted. She needs her strength for the next fight. For now, we should leave this place." Largo said.
"I'll take the Tartarus," Asch said.
"I'll go back to Daath. And you Sync. What are you going to do?"
Sync turned his head to Largo and answered, "I'll head to Chesedonia and take Stella to an Inn to rest."
"Alright. Let's leave this place." as Largo starts to leave.
Asch followed Largo from behind. Sync picks up Stella in his arms. Ace goes to Sync's shoulder and Apollo waits for Sync to follow the other God-Generals. Sync starts to walk to follow Largo and Asch out of the Zao Ruins.
Sync appeared in Chesedonia and headed to the Inn for Stella to rest. He arrived at the Inn and went to the innkeeper and paid for a room to sleep. The innkeeper sees Stella sleeping in Sync's arms and watches as Sync heads to the room.
Sync opens the door to the room and walks in. He reached to the bed and placed Stella down gently on the bed. Stella slowly opens her eyes as her vision was blurry as first then became clear. She stood up slowly from the bed and looked around. She sees Sync leaning on the wall and sees why he is here.
"Where are we? And what happened?" she asked softly.
"We're in the Inn in Chesedonia. And you fainted in the Zao Ruins." Sync replied.
"Where's Largo and Asch?"
"Asch went back to Tartarus and Largo went back to Daath."
"I need to eat something."
"What? You didn't eat anything in the Tartarus."
"No, I was too busy talking to Ion."
"That's what made you faint."
"Yeah. I was so focused on the fight that I forgot that I was hungry." Stella closed her eyes and sighs deeply. She turned to Sync and smiled. "Thank you for carrying me."
Sync turns around away from Stella. "Yeah... no problem." Stella couldn't tell if Sync was embarrassed or not. Sync slightly turned his head and decided to joke around with her. "By the way, you were heavy when I carried you here."
Stella chuckled lightly. "Is that supposed to be an insult?" Sync walks away from Stella and heads to the door. Stella watches as the tempest leaves. "Where are you going?"
"I'm going to get you something to eat. So, stay here until I return." Sync opens the door and leaves the room to get Stella some food.
Stella never thought that Sync would be nice to her. He is usually persistent and secretive around her. She lay back down on the bed and stared at the ceiling.
"Well, I guess I'll sleep for a bit until Sync comes back. Apollo, can you wake me up when Sync returns?" Apollo glances at his master and watches as his master sleeps then he lies down and waits.
A few minutes later... Sync entered the Inn and headed towards the room to give Stella food. He arrived at the door and opened the door to the room. Apollo lifted his head as he heard the door open. The Tempest looks around the room to find Stella. Ace flies off of his shoulders and flies to the table and turns to his master on the bed. The Liger stood up and turned to Stella and nuzzled at her to wake up. Sync walks up to Stella's bed as he watches Apollo nuzzling on Stella to wake up. Stella wakes up from the nuzzle from Apollo and stands up from the bed. She turns to Apollo then to Sync who, glancing at her.
"Oh, you're back." she said sleepily as she rubs her eyes.
An apple was thrown to her. She caught the apple and stared at it, then looked back at Sync.
"Is that all you got for me?"
"That's all they were selling in the shopping area," he replied.
"Thanks, Sync. I appreciate it." She starts to eat the apple and smiles as she chews the apple.
Sync leans on the wall. Stella finishes eating the apple and licks her hand to taste the juice of the apple she ate. The assassin got off the bed and looked at the tempest.
"What else did you do?"
"I followed the group and they were in the Malkuth Consulate. I used my curse slot to control Guy but he is more resistant than I thought."
"So, they are heading to Akzeriuth where the Commandant is at," Stella said. "So, what do we do now?"
"I'll head back to Daath," Sync said as he leaned off of the wall.
"I'll go to the Tartarus to make sure that Asch doesn't do anything to reveal himself." She walks up to Ace and the phoenix climbs to her arms. She lifts her arms and turns to Sync. "Take Ace with you. I'm sure that Ace wouldn't mind going with you. I'm going to take Apollo with me. He doesn't trust you."
Ace flies to Sync's shoulder. "Are you sure?" as he crossed his arms.
"Of course. Well, see you later." as she turned around to the door to leave the room.
Apollo jumps through the window to leave the room. Leaving Sync in the room with Ace.
"Is it a good idea to leave her alone?" Ace nodded. "If you say so, Ace. We should leave and head to Daath." as he leaves the room.
At the Tartarus, Asch was alone taking the Tartarus to Akzeriuth. He sees two monsters heading towards the Tartarus then the two leave the Tartarus. He didn't budge and stayed on the bridge. He knows who was on the monsters and continues on to Akzeriuth. Someone walked to the bridge with a monster on its side.
"You came just in time, Stella. We're close to Akzeriuth. Van is also there. He's planning something, but I don't know what he is planning." Asch said.
"Actually, Van is going to destroy Akzeriuth using that replica's power than when it is gone. Malkuth and Kimlasca are going to start a war." Stella crossed her arms.
Asch was shocked. "What?! Van is going to destroy the whole city! We have to go and stop that reject!"
Stella is something from afar and tilts her head. "What's going on over there?"
The bloody head straight towards the commotion on the hill. He stops the Tartarus and runs out of the bridge and heads to the commotion. Stella and Apollo leave the Tartarus and follow suit. The two God-Generals appeared on the hill and attacked the oracle soldiers and killed them. Stella turns to a familiar person.
"Tear? Why are you here?" she asked.
"I was told that this was the seventh fonon stone, but it was a fake." Tear replied.
"You got tricked. You need to hurry back to Akzeriuth and go back to stop Van."
"What are you talking about?" She was shocked by what was going on.
"He's going to destroy Akzeriuth!" Asch answered.
Tear gasped. "What?!"
"Now hurry and stop the Commandant." Stella turned around to attack the oracle soldier. Tear nodded and left.
Asch turned to the assassin and said, "Stella, I'll go ahead and stop Van. You stay here and fight off the soldiers."
Stella just nodded. "Alright. If we fail, I'm joining you in Yulia City."
"No. Go back to Daath if it falls. I don't want you to get involved in this."
"You know that Van is using me for his plans."
"I know. Just go back to Daath when it falls."
Stella lightly sighed. "Fine!"
Asch leaves and heads to Akzeriuth to stop Luke from destroying the city. Stella watches as Asch leaves an oracle soldier charged at her, but she dodges and kills the soldier. She continues to kill the other vanguards alongside Apollo. Apollo jumped to attack the soldiers. The assassin continued to attack the soldiers until all of them were dead.
They are now all gone. Dead bodies lying on the ground cold. Apollo walks up to Stella and starts to rub on her arms to get her attention. Stella turns to Apollo and starts to pet Apollo gently, then she takes out a piece of meat and gives it to Apollo. The liger grabs the meat and starts to eat it. Suddenly, a soldier comes out of hiding and runs towards Stella with the sword in front of him like a lancer. Stella quickly turns around to dodge the attack, but the ground starts to shake causing her to lose her balance. The oracle soldier stabs Stella on her hip with his sword. She groans in pain as she gets stabbed. Apollo heard Stella got injured and killed the oracle soldier to save her. She slowly takes the sword out of her and throws it away. Apollo goes up to her and makes a worried whimper sound.
"I'm fine, Apollo. We have to get out of here. It seems Akzeriuth is falling." Stella tries to stand up, but the ground above starts to crumble causing her and Apollo to fall into the Qliphoth.
She whistled to call monsters. Two griffins appeared and swooped down to catch Apollo and Stella on their backs. Stella groans as her cover hip prevents more blood from coming out.
"We have to go to Yulia City for now. I don't think I can make it to Daath." The Griffins take Stella and Apollo to Yulia City.
They arrived at Yulia City. Stella went to Apollo to ride on his back. The two Griffins take their leave and head back to the Outer Lands. Apollo takes Stella to Yulia City hoping that someone will save her. Apollo sees 3 people at the entrance of Yulia City and runs to them. As he got closer, there was Asch and Luke fighting while Tear watched them. The fight was over and Luke fainted as he found the truth about him being a replica of Asch. Apollo went up to Tear and tried to tell her about Stella's wound. Tear was about to attack Apollo but Apollo didn't want to fight her. He turned his head to his back to tell Tear that something was on his back. Tear walks up to Apollo's back and sees Stella unconscious on Apollo's back as she gasps.
"Stella?!" she said.
Asch sees Apollo and walks up to him. "What happened?" he asked as he glanced at Stella and saw the wound on Stella's hips. He picks up Stella from Apollo's back and takes her to Yulia City. "Apollo takes him as well." Asch means Luke, who is lying on the floor unconscious.
Apollo goes to Luke and picks him up, puts him on his back and carries him to Yulia City. Tear followed them from behind.
Stella woke up and slowly stood up on the bed. She looked around and saw that she was in Yulia City. She looked at her wound and noticed that her wound was healed. The assassin gets out of bed and walks out of the room.
"Stella!" a familiar voice called her.
Stella turns to the source of the voice and sees someone she knows. "Anise. Tear. It's been a while." she smiled.
"Yeah, it has. So, Stella, may I ask you why you're helping the Commandant?" Anise asked curiously.
"The truth is that I don't know what the Commandant and the other God-Generals are doing. I was told to capture Ion and bring him back to Daath." The assassin answered.
"Should we keep our guard up?" Jade asked coldly.
"Colonel!"
Stella sighed lightly. "That's all up to you, Jade. I'm not here for you guys to trust me."
"Do you know my brother's next move, Stella?" Tear asked.
Stella shook her head slowly. "No. I don't. So, what are you guys going to do now?"
"We are going to Belkend. That's where Van often goes." Asch walks up to Stella.
Stella turns to Asch and says, "I see. Are you guys leaving now?"
"That's right. Are you coming with us?"
Stella scoffed at him. "You know that I can't do that."
"Why?" Natalia asked curiously.
"Well, I'm being watched by Sync. So, I can't be around you guys that much." Stella turns to Natalia.
"Is Van being suspicious around you?" Guy asked.
"No. The reason I'm being watched is because of my powers." Stella crossed her arms.
"Your powers?" Jade was confused.
"What is special about your powers, Stella?" Anise tilts her head.
"It's a long story, but he seems interested in my powers that's why I'm being watched by Sync."
"If you don't mind, what kind of powers do you have?" Jade asked curiously.
Stella glanced at Jade. She doesn't know if she should tell him what her powers are, but decided to tell them. "I can communicate with monsters, summon other creatures, shapeshift my weapon, and more. I didn't show too much to the God-Generals and Van."
"You too can communicate with monsters! But how?" Anise was shocked.
The assassin turns her head away from them. "It's best if we don't talk about it." She doesn't want to remember her past and doesn't want to be reminded of what happened.
"Anyways, we should go to Belkend," Asch said as he left.
"I need to go somewhere before I go back to Daath. So, good luck to you guys." Stella turned back to the group. "Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Stella. Stella the Assassin, God-General of the Oracle Knights. It's nice to meet all of you. Asch, I'll keep you updated on what the God-Generals and Van are doing." as she looked at Asch.
"Don't worry. I can do that myself." Asch sounds a little angry. He doesn't like having others helping him.
"Sure." she scoffed. "Anyways, see you guys later." Stella goes to Yulia Road.
She arrived at Yulia Road and saw Apollo was waiting for her there. He walked up to her and nuzzled on her. Stella smiled and petted him gently.
"Hi, Apollo. Are you ready to go?" Apollo is ready to leave Yulia City. "Let's go and head to Mt. Zaleho. There's something I want to see there." Stella and Apollo step on the circle and transport them to Aramis Spring.
She is ready to go to Mt. Zaleho to find something about the original Fon Master.
Chapter Text
In Mt. Zaleho, the temperature started to get hot. Stella and Apollo can feel the heat when they enter Mt. Zaleho. Stella looks down and sees lava in a mountain. It was her first time seeing lava in a mountain.
"I'm shocked to see a mountain that has lava from the inside. The further we walk, the hotter it gets. So, we have to be careful." Stella continued to walk on Mt. Zaleho with Apollo behind her.
There were monsters living on Mt. Zaleho. Stella starts to communicate to the monsters to ask them about what she knows about what happened 2 years ago. All monsters don't know where it is.
Stella sighed and inhaled deeply. "No luck. None of the monsters don't know what it is." Apollo starts to communicate with Stella as she turns her head slightly to him. "You're right. It is hard to find a monster that lived here for 2 years." The assassin continues to walk further in Mt. Zaleho to find what she is looking for.
A few hours passed, Stella reached the end of Mt. Zaleho but she couldn't find it as she looked around. She closed her eyes and leaned on the wall to take a break from walking too long.
"It's been 3 hours and I still can't find it. My legs are getting exhausted as well."
It's starting to get hotter and hotter by the minute. Stella started to sweat as it was getting hotter. Apollo went up to Stella to call her. The assassin turned to Apollo wondering what he was calling for. She stands up, the liger leads the way, and she follows him from behind where he is leading her to. Apollo leads her to the deepest part of Mt. Zaleho.
They arrived at a dead end of Mt. Zaleho. Apollo shows her something interesting. It caught her eyes as she looked at it. She was dumbfounded at first as she stared at it, but she sensed something familiar about it.
"There's something weird about this place, but what is it?" she started to think. "Standing around here isn't going to help at all. We should leave and head back to Daath. There's something I want to know about the original Fon Master." She climbs on Apollo's back and Apollo starts to run to leave Mt. Zaleho.
They appeared in Daath and arrived at the entrance of the Cathedral. Stella gets off of Apollo's back and enters the Cathedral. She walks in the Cathedral and heads to the library. As she walks in the library, she starts to look for books that involve formicry but there were no books that contain formicry. Suddenly, she saw a book that was different from the rest of the books. The assassin grabs the book from the shelf, walks to the table, sits down on the chair, and starts to read it. Something caught her eyes as she read it softly.
"The original Fon Master Ion knew he was going to be sick, it was foretold from his Score. That's when Arietta resigned as Fon Master Guardian and became a God-General for his sake. He doesn't want her to know he died if he did then Arietta would have killed herself. I'm still confused. I need to figure out more about the original Fon Master Ion. Hmm?" she started to think then she had an idea. "Maybe I should ask Arietta. She was a former Fon Master Guardian to the original one. I'll ask Maestro Tritheim to find where the other God-Generals are." as she stands up from the chair and places back the book where it belongs.
She walks out of the library to find Tritheim. Stella goes to the Chapel and sees Tritheim.
The assassin walked up to him and asked, "Maestro Tritheim, do you know where the other God-Generals are?"
Tritheim turns to Stella and replies, "Sync and Largo went to Theor Forest. Legretta went with Van to Belkend. Dist went to St. Binah. Mohs went to Baticul. But I don't know where Arietta went."
Stella has her hand on her chin. "I see. Thanks, Maestro Tritheim. I'll be heading out now." She turned around to leave the Cathedral.
She heads out of Daath and calls her monster friends. She jumped on the griffin's back and told the monster to go where she wanted to go. The two griffins took off into the sky to take Stella to her location.
The two griffins arrived at the location where Stella wanted to go. She jumped down from the griffins back and landed on the ground perfectly. She looks around her surroundings and sees Malkuth Soldiers. She has to be careful to not hurt them.
"Let's go, Apollo. We're going to find Sync and Largo. They should be here in Theor Forest." she said as she turned around to look for them. Apollo followed Stella to find the two other God-Generals. "Try not to bring too much attention."
She walks further into the forest and invades being caught by the Malkuth Soldiers. A Malkuth Soldier caught Stella, passing by and called her out.
"Hey! You! You're passing through the Malkuth Territory. I suggest you turn around and leave. If not, I'm going to take you into the Malkuth Military." as he walked up to her and warned her.
Stella stops and turns to the soldier. "Don't worry. I'm leaving this place. I just got lost, that's all but I know the way out." She lied. She continued to walk in the forest to find Sync and Largo.
As she got deeper into the forest, voices were going on further ahead of her. She followed the voices to see what was happening. She arrives where she heard voices. Stella sees Luke's group and the two God-Generals talking to each other, ready to fight each other. Guy was being controlled and attacked Luke. Luke was able to block Guy's attack but was shocked. Natalia aims her arrows at Largo. Anise is protecting Ion. Tear were on her guard to fight back. Suddenly, an earthquake appeared and started to shake. Everyone takes cover from the earthquake shakiness. Tear tells Natalia to shoot her arrows on the tree near to them. The princess shot her arrow at the tree and hit its mark. Sync falls down from the tree as he gets hit by Natalia's arrow. His right arm was bleeding from the shot from Natalia.
"...The earthquake gave me away," he said as he covered his upper right arm to prevent more blood from coming out.
Luke turned to Sync and asked, "Are you after Ion or something else?!"
"What's ordering you? Grand Maestro Mohs? The Commandant?" Anise demands an answer from the God-Generals.
"Either way, it's the same. We need Fon Master Ion." The black lion said.
"We thought he'd perished along with Akzeriuth, but I guess he's tougher than the town." the tempest said.
"How dare you speak so shamelessly! You destroyed an entire city!" Natalia accused them.
"Don't accuse us. The one who destroyed Akzeriuth was that replica there." Sync stood up a little glancing at Luke.
Suddenly, the Malkuth Soldiers appear from the commotion.
"What's going on here?" he asked confusedly.
Sync turned to Largo and said, "Largo, we're retreating for now!"
Largo puts down his weapon and says, "I guess we have no choice..."
Sync throws the arrow at Tear but she was able to block the arrow with her knife. Largo swung his scythe and dust of dirt was swept towards their surroundings like smoke from them to leave Theor Forest. Everyone covered their eyes to prevent the dirt from coming in their eyes. Stella gets on Apollo's back and tells him to go to the entrance of Theor Forest. Apollo takes off and runs to the entrance of Theor Forest. At least the group was fine and didn't hurt. Stella is glad that they are fine and didn't get hurt.
The two God-Generals run out of Theor Forest then a liger jumps out of the forest and lands in front of them to block their path. They stopped as the liger blocked their path. The two of them stood their guard and waited to see who stopped them. Ace flies to the liger and flies down behind the liger back. Stella gets off of Apollo's back and glances at the two God-Generals.
"Stella? You're alive?" Largo was surprised to see the assassin alive.
"Of course, I am. What? You thought I died in Akzeriuth." Stella retorted as she crossed her arms over her chest.
"That's what we thought. Surprisingly, you're here in front of us." Sync said. He was still injured from the arrow from Natalia.
The assassin walks up to Sync and glances at his wound. "Move your hand. So, I can heal you." Sync moved his hand away from his wound and waited. Stella places her hand on his wounded arm and starts to heal his injury. His wound is completely healed. "You should be careful next time. I don't want to see my comrades getting hurt."
"Stella, are you a seventh fonist?" Largo asked, frowning.
"Who knows. I was told that I'm the fourth fonist. But since I can use healing artes, I have no idea." Stella answered.
"Only seventh fonist can use healing artes."
"I don't know much about myself. I know that I was cast alive in the mouth of Mt. Roneal freezing cold winter when I was a kid. That's how I met Apollo when he was a cub." Largo and Sync were surprised to hear a little bit of Stella's past. Sync never thought she would be the same as him.
"So, you told us a lie about how you met Apollo." Sync retorted.
"I have my reason to do so. I don't know if Van knows my past. And I know he is using me for his goals." Stella turns around and walks towards Apollo.
"You don't mind being used to free the world for the Score. If you betray the Commandant then we have no choice but to kill you." Largo was making sure if he can trust Stella.
Stella stops and slightly turns to Largo. "You can trust me or not, Largo. If I did betray him, I wouldn't be here to heal Sync's wound."
Largo glanced at the assassin then walked forwards as he passed Stella. "We should head back to Daath. The Commandant is waiting for us for our next mission."
"Sorry, but I can't go back to Daath yet. There's something I need to do before I go back to Daath."
"Are you curious to find out?" Sync asked, crossing his arms over his chest.
Stella nodded. "I have to know it myself."
The black lion noticed Stella was serious about it. He didn't stop her decision to go somewhere else. "Alright. I'll tell the Commandant that you have something important to do." as he leaves to go to Daath.
The assassin turned to Sync wondering if he was going back to Daath. "Are you going back to Daath?"
"I can't do that. I let you go once and you nearly died in Akzeriuth." Sync retorted.
"It sounds like you were worried about me. That's pretty rare." Stella said, sarcastically. She walks forward to the following path to leave from Theor Forest.
"Who said that I was worried about you. I'm not concerned about you." he frowned.
"It was just a joke, you idiot. Now then, we should leave before the Malkuth Soldiers catch us standing here."
They all leave to get away from Theor Forest to get as far as possible from getting caught from the Malkuth Soldiers.
As soon as they were far away, Sync stopped walking and stared at Stella. The assassin noticed that Sync stopped walking. She stops and slightly turns around to face him. It looks like he was unhappy about something like she did something wrong. She raised an eyebrow confused about what he was doing.
"Is there something wrong, Sync?" she asked.
"You said that you were thrown into the mouth of Mt. Roneal, right?" he asked, making sure he was correct.
The black-haired assassin blinked a couple of times then sighs lightly. "Yeah, what about it?"
"Does that mean you're a replica?"
Stella shook her head. "No. I'm not a replica. I remember my parents and siblings' faces but I don't want to talk about my past. However, if I was a replica, I would be curious about human emotions, what is my purpose, and other curious matters about being a real human."
"We don't need to know each other's past. It would be best to forget about it, Stella." Sync said as he crossed his arms.
"I can't. I'm serious about it."
Sync chuckled lightly. "Then I won't stop you. However, if you do anything suspicious I won't hesitate to kill you."
Stella turns around and walks away. "Do whatever you want. I won't stop you from killing me if that's what Van wants, but I highly doubt he wants me killed." She doesn't care if she gets punished.
"So, where are we going?"
"Where everything all began." She stops and turns back to Sync. "If you don't mind calling the monsters, we can solve our puzzle."
Sync whistled to call the monsters. Griffins appeared above them and came down from the sky to land in front of them. They climbed on the griffin's back and the monsters took out into the sky. Stella tells the monsters to go to the place where it begins. The Griffins fly to the location where Stella told them to go.
The Griffins appeared at the location. The 2 God-Generals and Apollo jumped down from the Griffin's back from a high fall. They landed near a cliff softly, because of the snow and safely landed on the snow. Stella walks to the cliff to look at the surrounding area around them. She spots something from a distance then starts to crouch down behind a big rock from being seen. Sync and Apollo went to the cliff and wondered why Stella is crouching. They too see something from the distance and crouch down to a big rock beside Stella.
There were soldiers pushing cages of monsters somewhere. The 2 God-Generals watch as the soldiers take the monsters away. Suddenly, Raven and Zeke appeared out of the woods with someone in front of them. Stella narrowed her eyes as she saw a familiar person with Raven and Zeke. He looked like a businessman, who was waiting for his payment.
"Why is he here? I never thought he would be here at all places," she whispered. Sync glanced at Stella and was about to ask her who he is then Stella blurted out, whispering. "Wait, is that...?"
A large cage appeared out of the woods. The cage has a liger and a young girl trapped inside. Stella gasped as she saw a familiar person in the cage. Sync just frowned as he saw soldiers push the large cage out of the woods. Then the soldiers stop pushing the cage in front of the businessman and he walks up to the cage.
"Who is this girl in this cage?" the businessman asked.
Raven stared at the young girl in the cage and answered, "That is Arietta the Wild. She is a God-General of the Oracle Knights."
"A God-General?" he put his hand on his chin and grins. "Interesting. I never thought I would see a God-General here in person. Are there more of them?" he was curious to know if there are more members of the God-Generals.
The dark bull nodded slightly. "Yes. They're in Daath, part of the Order of Lorelei."
"You don't mind telling me who they are?"
"There's Dist the Reaper, Legretta the Quick, Largo the Black Lion, Asch the Bloody and Sync the Tempest," Raven told the businessman the God-Generals names.
"What about her?" he asked, curiously but doesn't seem to care about her.
"I thought that you don't want to speak about her." Raven was dumbfounded.
"It has been 9 years since I last saw her."
"Then why do you care about her if you hate her?" Zeke retorted.
The businessman chuckled softly. "Who knows. Just wondering if she is still alive."
Sync glanced at Stella to see her reaction. She didn't look too unhappy or rather disappointed. Stella decided to forget her past and glanced at Sync.
"We should go and save Arietta from those guys. We can't let them take her away."
"Do you have a plan to get her back?" Sync asked.
Stella starts to think how they can get Arietta back. "Well, I know this place in the back of my head. This place was my home and can't let them destroy my home."
"And how are you going to stop them?" he questioned.
"That's the difficult part. I don't want to use the monsters here. They will capture the monsters and use them for their own dirty work. And we don't have soldiers here. So, this is the only way until we free the monsters and Arietta."
Suddenly, a shadow appeared behind Stella. She turns to the shadow behind her and it is a soldier, who has his sword in the air to attack her. The assassin took out her daggers to block the attack. The soldier had the advantage as he pushed her down. Apollo runs to the soldier, grabs his neck then uses his paws to cover the soldier's mouth from screaming out loud, and kills him. The soldier groans in a scream but Apollo's paw prevents him from screaming loud. As the soldier dies, Apollo moves his paw away from the soldier's mouth. Stella sighed lightly and put her daggers back in her jacket.
"We should get started. If we stand here too long then they will capture us." Sync glanced at the dead soldier.
Stella nodded slightly. "You're right. We should start immediately before they leave."
The assassin takes out her daggers then puts the hilt together to change it into her Bladed Bow. 4 arrows appear in her hand and place it on her bow to pull the string back. She aims them at the soldiers, who are standing at their post then lets go of the string from the bow. It killed the soldiers on their neck, their vulnerable spot. Raven and Zeke turn around to the dead soldiers and see that they were under attack. They went into attack position as well as the soldiers.
"You should leave. It's going to be dangerous here. We will take it from here." Raven said as he lifted his sword on his shoulders.
"Of course but I leave," the businessman turns to the cage where Arietta is. Arietta hugged her doll tightly scared. "I'm going to take this as a prize."
Apollo jumps out of hiding and runs towards the businessman to attack him. Zeke blocked the attack to prevent Apollo from attacking. Suddenly, two different artes appeared: Thunder Blade and Ground Dasher. The Ground Dasher was distracting the soldiers while the Thunder Blade hit the cages to break free the monsters. The monsters jump out of their cages to attack the soldiers. Arietta was free and climbed on her liger friend, they jumped out of the cage and started to attack. Stella and Sync appeared out of their spot and jumped down from the cliff. Arietta sees Sync and Stella and runs up to them then hugs Stella tightly.
Stella starts to smile and hugs her back. "It's fine, Arietta. You're safe with us." She turns to the businessman and gives him a serious look. "Why are you here? Shouldn't you be at home taking care of your family?" Stella retorted.
"I'm busy with my experiment. I don't have time to take care of some pathetic family," he smirked. "However, I'm surprised that you're still alive."
"Of course, I am. You don't need to be surprised." as she narrowed her eyes slightly.
He chuckled. "I should've know that you would live through all of the blizzards in Mt. Roneal. However, you're still a worthless child. It's told in your Score that you should of die in Mt. Roneal as a young child."
"You're wrong!" Arietta shouted. "Stella isn't worthless! She's a good friend of mine! You don't know anything about her!"
"I don't have time to talk to a child like you." as he turns around and leaves to get to safety. "The next time we meet, Stella, I won't let you go. Now then, I have some business to do. Commander Raven, teach these kids how to not mess around with the adults."
Raven nodded. "Of course, Mr. Valkyrie. We will guarantee your safety."
Stella watches as Mr. Valkyrie leaves the area. Zeke pushed Apollo back and the liger returned back to Stella's side. Soldiers started to surround the 3 God-Generals to prevent them from chasing Mr. Valkyrie.
"We should get out of here. We got what we need here." Sync glanced at Stella.
Stella nodded. "Alright. We're leaving. Arietta, call off the monsters." as she climbs on Apollo's back.
Arietta called off the monsters to leave. The monsters leave from Arietta's call and head back home. Arietta climbs on to her liger friend and waits for Stella if she is ready. The assassin turned to the tempest and looked him into his eyes to tell him to get on Apollo's back. Sync got the message and climbed on Apollo's back. Stella signals Apollo to leave the area. The ligers leave to go to a safer place away from the soldiers.
The soldiers watched as they left. Raven signals the soldiers to not to chase and leave them be.
"We did our job here! There's no need to go after them! Let us return back to the ship!" he ordered his soldiers.
"Yes sir!" said all of the soldiers. They head back to the ship.
Zeke sheaths his sword away and sighs deeply. "She came here at the wrong time."
"Yes, she did. But why is she here?" Raven stared at the distance.
The swordsman shrugged. "Who knows. I'm sure she has a reason to come to Mt. Roneal."
"Hmm. I wonder..." Raven mumbled.
Zeke glanced at Raven wondering what he thought. "Is there the matter, Raven?"
Raven turns around and walks toward the ship. "No, it's probably my imagination. Come, we should leave." Zeke watches as Raven leaves then he turns to the distance where the God-Generals went. He stood there for a few seconds then turned around to go back to the ship.
The God-Generals were away from the soldiers, Raven and Zeke. They got off of the monsters and waited. Stella looks around and feels a familiar presence around her. She walks to a cave and looks at its surroundings. Apollo, Arietta, and her liger friend followed Stella into the cave. Sync watches as they enter the cave then follows them from behind.
Stella walked further into the cave to find a familiar location. They continued to follow Stella whatever she goes. The cave was cold and covered in ice. Most monsters come into the cave to invade the heavy blizzard. Then a sudden noise echoed in the cave. Everyone was alerted to the noise wondering what it was.
"What was that?" Arietta asked.
Stella turns to Arietta and answers, "I don't know. It's been too long since I lived here."
"Stella, who was that man?" Stella didn't look at Arietta as she stared at the ground. "You know the man that was talking to you rudely."
Sync sees that Stella doesn't want to talk about the way she looks. Stella lets out a long sigh then turns around to the two God-Generals behind her.
"That was my... father."
"Your father? Why is he mean?" Arietta was curious.
"I can tell you that later." She looks around the cave to find anything suspicious. "It's been a long time since I've been here."
"Did you live here, Stella?"
The assassin nodded. "I lived here for 9 years. I used this cave as a shelter to avoid snowstorms."
"What about the monsters who live here?" Sync asked as he frowned. "You are an easy target for the monsters."
"Not exactly. I met Apollo in this cave when he was a cub. He was able to help me through the monsters."
Arietta glanced at Apollo and walked up to him. She petted him. "Thank you for helping Stella. If you didn't meet Stella, she wouldn't be here." Apollo purrs softly on Arietta.
"Let's get going. We have to walk through this cave to get into the other side."
"The other side?" Sync was dumbfounded. "To where?"
"Where I was originally born." as Stella started to walk through to the cave. The others followed her lead out of the cave.
The three God-Generals walked out of the cave and stopped at the cliff. Stella sees something from a distance and walks down from the cliff. They continue to follow Stella down the hill. Stella sees a familiar place and walks towards it. Arietta tilts her as she sees where Stella is going.
It was a house that looked like a mansion. She never sees a house so big. She runs up to Stella and appears beside her.
"Um... Stella?" Stella turns to Arietta wondering what she wants. "Who's house is this?"
The assassin didn't feel like answering that question. "This was originally my home before I was sent to Mt. Roneal to freeze to death. I never wanted to come back here at all. But something inside of me wants me to come back."
"We should go back to Daath. Van is probably waiting for us." Sync didn't care much about Stella's past. He wanted to go back to Daath for their next mission.
"I thought all God-Generals knew each other's past but they would rather not talk about it. Especially mine."
"All of us rather forget their past. That's why we want to destroy the Score."
Stella sighed annoyingly. "Whatever. Let's leave."
A sudden scream was heard from a distance. The God-Generals heard the scream wondering who it was. Stella followed the scream through the woods. Apollo followed suit from behind. Arietta looked at Sync wondering if they should go and help. Sync scoffed and headed towards the woods. Arietta didn't want to be left behind and followed them.
A pack of monsters was growling at a young woman with a young child with her, protecting her around her arms. She was protecting the child from getting an injury from the monsters. The young child was scared and shaking under the woman's arms. The monsters took a step forward to attack the defenseless woman and child. They started to jump to attack them. The woman and child closed their doors hoping someone will save them. Suddenly, a voice was heard from afar towards the monsters.
"That's enough!" Stella jumped in front of the woman and child along with Apollo at her side. The monsters turn to Stella and growl at her. They didn't seem to be happy about that. "Why are you attacking these people?"
The Leader of the monsters started to talk to Stella of why they are attacking the defenseless woman and child.
"I'm sure that didn't mean any harm to you. They're probably passing through your territory. So, there's no need to attack them." Stella tries to calm down the monsters.
The monsters start to growl at Stella then Apollo tells the monsters that they won't come to their territory again. The leader tells them to be careful next time then tells his pack to leave. They all went back home leaving them be.
Stella turned to the woman and child and smiled. "It's alright. They're gone."
The woman and child stood and bowed to Stella for helping them. The woman has long black hair, purple eyes, wearing warm clothing from the cold. She looks like Stella but older. The child has long dark brown hair, purple eyes, and is wearing warm clothes from the cold. The assassin was surprised to see a young child who is still young. She looks like she is 6 years old.
"Thank you for saving us. We appreciate your help. My name is Serena. And this little one is Mina." The woman said, smiling introducing herself and her child. She looks at Stella and tilts her head.
Stella noticed that Serena was staring at her. She has a feeling that Serena will say something to her.
"Is there something wrong?" she asked.
Serena shook her head and answered, "No. You look just like me when I was young. It reminds me of my other child."
The young God-General is curious to know if she is right. "May I ask you who the child is?"
"She no longer exists in this world," she replied with a sad smile. "She was thrown into the mouth of Mt. Roneal at the age of 4. Her purpose was to freeze there to death. It was foretold on her Score. I wish I could have gone and saved her. I'm a terrible mother who can't save her own daughter."
Stella feels a little sad knowing who it is. "I see. Sorry about the loss of your daughter. May I ask her name?"
"Her name was Stella. She was an adorable child that I adore. She looks exactly like me when I was young but her birth Score changed everything. I can never forgive myself for not stopping it."
Stella bowed to Serena. "Thank you. I need to take my leave. And be careful next time."
Serena and Mina nodded. "No, thank you for saving us."
"Thank you, miss for saving me and mommy," Mina said, smiling.
Stella and Apollo turned around and headed back into the woods. The mother and daughter watch as Stella leaves them then they head back home. Stella watches them head back home.
"Did you find your answer, Stella?" A familiar voice asked from behind. It was Sync.
The assassin turned around to the God-Generals. She folded her arms and chuckled. "I did. I met my mother and surprisingly have a little sister. It's nice to see my mom again."
"We should head back to Daath. Van is waiting for us to return back from our little trip." Sync said, staring at Stella.
Arietta went up to Stella and hugged her. "It's okay, Stella. You have us, the God-Generals, as a family."
Stella smiled and hugged Arietta back. "Thank you, Arietta. I appreciated it."
A young man was walking by and heard voices from the woods. He quickly hides behind a tree to hear the conversation as he hears the name, Stella. He sees the 3 God-Generals from a distance far from the home.
Who are they? Wait, they're the Six God-Generals. Why are they here? he thought. He glanced at Stella. She looks familiar. She has hair and eye colors just like mother.
The assassin sensed someone was nearby and turned to the tree. "You can come out of hiding. You know you're there."
He was shocked that Stella knew that he was here listening to their conservation. He comes out of hiding and faces the God-Generals. He seems rather nervous to talk to the God-Generals. He was wearing oracle soldier clothing, short dark brown hair, and green eyes. Sync noticed who he was.
"Oh, it's you." he said, crossing his arms.
"Do you know who he is, Sync?"
Sync? Sync the Tempest is here. the young man thought, surprisingly.
"He is a soldier under Largo commands," Sync replied.
"Really? I never thought Largo would let his soldier take a break."
"Well... umm," he speaks nervously. "Commander Largo told me to take a break for a few days to take care of my mother and my little sister Mina. Father left them to take care of themselves. So, I have to take care of them."
"I see. Well, you should go and take care of them." He nodded and left. They watch as the oracle soldier leaves.
"We should leave," Arietta said. "Van is probably waiting for us."
Stella nodded. "Yes, let's go back to Daath."
Sync whistled to call the monsters. The Griffins appeared and landed on the ground waiting for them to get on their backs. The God-Generals, Apollo and Arietta's Liger get on Griffin's back and the monsters take off flying into the sky.
Arietta glanced at Stella. The assassin was too focused staring in front of her. The Wild wanted to tell her something. So, she decided to call her out.
"Stella, do you know that man?"
Stella didn't turn her head as she heard Arietta. "He is my older brother Ren. I didn't know he joined the Oracle Knights."
"Everything is just full of surprises," Sync commented.
"I might have to agree with you, Sync." as Stella closed her eyes.
Ren arrives home, walks to the living room, and sees his mother and young sister sitting on the couch near the fireplace. He walks up to them to talk to them. Serena turned around as she heard footsteps from behind.
She smiled as she saw who it was. "Oh, Ren, you're back from Daath."
Mina sees her older brother and smiles. "Welcome back, big brother!"
Ren nodded. "Yes. So, what did you two do?"
"Well, Mina and I went to Keterburg to shop. As we came back, we were attacked by monsters. We didn't have anything to defend ourselves then a young lady came and saved us."
"Do you know who this person looks like?"
Serena tries to remember how Stella looks. "She had black hair, purple eyes, and was wearing black and white clothing with purple trims."
"I met her in the woods with the God-Generals not too long ago."
"You did?"
"Yeah. She looks just like you, mother. But how?"
Serena shook her head. "I don't know myself. I wish I could see her again but Stella is no longer in this world." She looked at the ground, saddens her smile.
Ren doesn't want to remember that day. It was shocking and surprising that his father would do such a thing to her younger sister Stella. Mina tilted her head, being confused about who they were talking about.
"When I was walking back home, I heard someone say Stella's name."
Serena quickly turns back to her son with a surprised look on her face. She stood up from the couch and stared at her son. "Seriously?! You think she is still alive?!"
"I'm not sure. I have to keep an eye on that young girl if she is Stella or not." Ren was hoping it was his younger sister.
Serena stared at the floor again. "I hope it is her but I wasn't too sure. But it was nice to see her again if that was her." she smiled. "She looks mature and all grown up. Although, she had a monster with her. I never thought she would have a monster."
"A monster? Why does she have a monster with her?"
"I don't know."
Ren puts his hand on his chin and thinks. "Whatever it is, she has someone to protect her."
"Having monsters is dangerous. You know how monsters are. They will attack you no matter what."
"Yeah, you're right, mother." Ren rubbed his neck. "Where's father?"
Serena shook her head slightly. "I don't know. He has never returned since Mina was born."
"Mother, you should know that father isn't coming back. He only cares about his research."
Serena turned to the window and stared at the sky. "I know. I wish he can stop thinking about it all the time and care about his family for once."
In the Cathedral, the 3 God-Generals walk to the Commandant's Room to talk to him about what happened during their trip. Van was with Largo and Legretta waited for them to return. The Commandant glanced at the 3 God-Generals who returned back from their trip. He was glad that they were alright. They started to tell Van and the other God-Generals what happened. He had his hand on his chin and started to think.
"I see. That seems an unfortunate turning event for you, Stella. At least you were able to figure out what happened to you."
Stella stared at the floor and said, "Y-Yeah. Not really fond of seeing my family again. Especially my father mostly."
Van stood up from his chair and looked at the God-Generals and nodded. "Now, everyone is here. We can continue with our plan." The God-Generals were waiting for their orders. "Arietta, head to the Absorption Gate. Sync, go to the Radiation Gate. Legretta, we're going back to Belkend. Largo, you stay here in Daath. And Stella, I want you to go and find Asch and bring him back. I still need him for his hyperresonance."
Stella nodded. "No problem. Finding him will be a little difficult." She didn't feel like bringing back Asch. She knows that Asch opposes Van's plan.
"Alright. Head to your signed mission that you were giving." Van ordered.
All of the God-Generals nodded and left for their mission. Stella decided to stay in Daath to clear her mind from what happened. She heads to the Chapel and stares off into the distance. Suddenly, a familiar voice calls her name from behind.
"Stella."
The assassin turned to the source of the voice. "Fon Master, why are you here? I thought you were with Anise and the others." She was surprised to see Ion back in Daath.
"It's a long story." as Ion walks up to Stella.
"Where did Anise and the others go?" Stella asked, curiously.
"They went to the next Sephiroth, the Zao Ruins."
"Is it to lower the Outer Land in Chesedonia?"
Ion nodded. "Yes. We are lowering the Outer Lands to prevent the destruction like Akzeriuth and to save the people."
"I see. I don't know what is going on. I have been in the dark for a while now from the Commandant and the other God-Generals. I don't know what I should be doing. Am I doing the right thing?"
"You should figure out what is the right thing. Just follow the path that you think is right for you. The answers will come when the time is right." Ion smiled. "Well, I have to go back to the room. It was nice meeting you again, Stella." Ion leaves the Chapel and heads back to his room.
The black-haired assassin started to think what is the right thing to do. She sighed deeply then turned around to leave the Chapel. Someone was standing at the entrance of the door. Sync was standing at the door with his arms crossed on his chest.
"Why are you here? Shouldn't you be at the Radiation Gate, Sync?"
"I was but you seem depressed about something."
Stella stared at the floor with a sad smile. "Y-Yeah. A lot of things have happened. I have been wondering why I was born to freeze to death. I know that Score is nothing but a god to control the people." she sighed lightly as she placed her hand on her face. "There's too many things happening all at once."
"Just forget about it and just do the mission that was given to you." Sync retorted.
Stella glanced at Sync and narrowed her eyes. "Are you stupid? You can't say that to other people who are depressed. I'm a human being. I have feelings like a living being. You don't understand human emotions." she continues. "For example, when replicas are born, they have no idea why they are born. They're like babies, who have no idea why they're here in this world. They don't understand emotion or anything, they don't know what is going on. That's why they go along with the life they have like nothing happened to them."
"Are you implying that I'm a replica?!" He exclaimed.
"You sound like one but I'm not saying that you are one. I don't care if you are a replica or not. You're a human being. It doesn't matter how you look like or how you were born into this world even if you are a replica. Your face doesn't matter even if you have the same face as the original." Stella walked past Sync. "We have to go and do our mission. You need to go to the Radiation Gate. I need to go and find Asch." She doesn't want to bring Asch back. Stella turns back to Sync and chuckles. "Thanks. I needed that. I feel a little open to you." She turns back around and leaves the Chapel to find Asch.
Sync scoffed. "What the hell did I do? All I did was for her to forget everything that happened." as he leaves the Chapel.
In Chesedonia, Stella arrived at the Desert Oasis. She looked around and saw Asch waiting at the lake. Asch saw Stella from a distance and nodded. Stella walks up to Asch and chuckles.
"Well, you know why I'm here."
"Does he want me back?" Asch asked.
Stella nodded. "He wants your hyperresonance for the plan."
"I'm not going back to Van. If he wants someone else hyperresonance then use the replica."
Stella chuckled. "You must hate your replica. I can see why the two of you don't get along. So, who are you waiting for?"
"I'm waiting for the replica and his group to come here to the Oasis. We needed to talk."
"To talk about how to lower the Outer Land here in Chesedonia."
The bloody nodded. "That's right. So, where did all of the God-Generals go?"
"Arietta went to the Absorption Gate. Legretta went to Belkend with Van. Sync went to the Radiation Gate. Largo is staying in Daath. And I don't know where Dist is."
"That means the place is going to be empty soon."
"What do you mean empty?" Stella was dumbfounded.
"Mohs is heading for Baticul. Dist is probably with him."
"I really don't know what is going on. What happened while I'm gone?" Stella crossed her arms.
"No one told you what has happened?" Asch was surprised.
The assassin shook her head. "Van nor the God-Generals never told me anything that has happened. I was too busy thinking about my home and my family."
Asch crossed his arms. "I see. Well, we have to wait until they come here."
The two God-Generals were waiting for Luke and the others to come to the oasis. Stella glanced at her reflection in the water, looking at herself. She hears some footsteps coming towards them. She turned around and saw Luke and the others had arrived.
Asch turned around and said, "It's about time you got here."
"Stella, you're here too?!" Anise exclaimed, dumbfounded.
Stella chuckled. "It's a long story."
"What do you want?" Luke asked, curiously.
"Has anything strange happened? Like you mind being mixed with something else?" he replied.
"Huh? What are you talking about?" Luke was being dumbfounded by what Asch meant.
"Nothing weird happens other than when you connect with me."
"I see."
"Asch, has something happened? Are you ill?" Natalia asked, worried about Asch.
"No." as he turns away from Natalia.
The assassin chuckled. "Someone is worried about you. I never thought you have someone that cares about you, Asch."
"W-Will you shut up?" Asch started to fluster.
"Aww, look. Someone is blushing." Stella starts to tease Asch.
"Tch! Whatever!"
Guy turned his head slightly and asked, "Is that all you had to say?" He was being cautious around Asch.
"Engeve has begun to fall. The battlefield will likely fall soon after."
"No!" Tears said, surprisingly.
Stella was surprised too. "What?! Are you serious?"
Anise looked at Stella and asked, "You didn't know anything about this?"
She shook her head slightly. "No, I haven't. The Commandant nor the God-Generals didn't tell me anything about the Outer Lands going to fall into the Qliphoth."
Everyone was surprised.
"Master Van never told you at all?" Luke said, making sure if he is corrected.
"Neither the Major?!" Tear said.
Stella shook her head once again.
"At this rate, everyone on the battlefield will die!" Natalia said, worried about the people on the Outer Lands of Engeve.
"Damn it! You will, too, if you stay here, you idiot!" Asch shouted.
"I'm well aware of that. But we intend to use the Sephiroth stream to safely lower Chesedonia."
"Can you do that?" Asch asked as he turned to Jade.
Jade started to shrug. "Who knows?"
"I can never tell what's going on in that head of yours." Asch turns back to the group. "If what Natalia just said is true, then can't you lower the battlefield as well?"
Tear answered, "We may not make it to Shurrey Hill in time."
"You will. The Sephiroth are connected inside the planet. Naturally, the passage rings are connected as well. Once the rings are activated, you can remotely control one ring from another."
Jade put his hand on his chin and repeated what Asch said correctly. "So if we activate the Zao Ruins passage ring, we'll be able to control the Shurrey Hill ring as well?"
Asch turned back to the Necromancer. "That's what Van said." he starts to walk forward as Luke moves out of the way then stops when Natalia starts to talk to him.
"Asch! Where are you going?" She was curious and worried about him.
The Bloody slightly turned his head to the princess and answered, "To find out what Van's up to. We need to know what area he plans to drop next. Well, if you fail, I'll just die here along with everyone else."
Natalia walked up to Asch and said, "I promise we'll lower it safely! I'll swear to it!"
Asch closed his eyes. "What, you want to pinky swear? Don't be absurd."
"Asch!" The princess was shocked.
"There are no guarantees in this world. That's why, before, I..." Asch opened his eyes and changed the subject. "I'm going now. You all should too. Stella, are you coming?"
Stella sighed lightly. "You know that Van is going to be fishy about me being with you. He will know that I disobey his orders. For now, I'll stay with the group for the while."
"Alright. I'll contact you when I need you." Stella nodded. Asch leaves the oasis.
Everyone watches as Asch leaves. Anise turns Stella and walks up to her, smiling.
"It's been awhile, Stella."
Stella started to smile. "Yes, it has."
"How have you been?"
"Fine. And the rest of you?"
"We're doing just fine." Tear said, smiling. She was happy to see Stella again.
Luke looks at Stella and starts to bow. "I'm sorry."
The assassin was dumbfounded. "What are you talking about? Why are you apologizing?"
"The things I said to you back then. I want to apologize for my childish act."
Stella noticed that Luke had cut his hair short and differently. "It's fine. We should head to the Zao Ruins."
"She's right. We have no time to talk and lower the Outer Land." Guy agreed with Stella.
Luke nodded. "Alright. Let's head to the Zao Ruins."
The group continued their journey to the Zao Ruins to lower the land of the battlefield. Stella wanted to know why Van is destroying the Outer Lands and what he is trying to achieve by destroying the Outer Lands. There is still a lot of mystery that she doesn't know what is ahead of her. She wanted to know herself and see what Van' accomplishing.
Chapter Text
As they traveled to the Zao Ruins, Stella started to think about what happened. She was surprised that Van hadn't told her anything. Maybe because she has been with Asch lately. She has been giving him information on what is going on. Does Van not trust her? She wants the Score to disappear from this world for a long time. The assassin gave a long, deep sigh.
Tear sees her falling behind. She walked back to Stella and noticed her struggles. "Is something the matter, Stella?"
"I'm just shocked that Van has kept me in the dark. I don't know what is going on now. Everything is just upside down." Stella applied.
"Does my brother trust you with anything else?" Tear was curious to know.
"To be honest, I don't know. I have been just following orders from Van."
Anise hears the conversation and decides to join in. "What made you decide to join Van in the first place?"
"The reason I joined Van is because I hated the Score." Stella told them the truth.
"That was your reason?" Tear was utterly surprised.
The assassin nodded. "Yes. That is why I joined the God-General. Even though he is just using me for his plans."
"I see."
Anise was dumbfounded about Stella on the Score. "But the Score is supposed to lead people to the right path for their future."
Stella sighed annoyingly. She hates hearing the same thing over and over again. She wants the Score to really disappear.
"Should we be more aware of you? I won't hesitate to fight you here." Guy frowned.
"Guy!" Anise said.
Stella shrugged. "Do whatever you want. I'm not here to fight. I'm here to know my purpose."
"Your purpose? What do you mean?" Luke was puzzled.
"Ion told me that I should find my purpose from all of this. Van has been hiding me in the dark." Stella folded her arms on her chest.
Natalia tilted her head. "Is it because you were with Asch most of the time?"
"Probably. He and I are being double agents for you guys and the Oracle Knights. I'm sure they are still aware of me, because of my powers."
"I think we should be fine with Stella. She isn't a threat for now." Jade pushed his glasses.
"We need to go. We're wasting time here. We won't be able to save Chesedonia." Stella walked past them inside the ruins.
"She's right. Let's get going before it is too late." Tear said as she trailed behind the assassin.
Everyone else followed behind them.
They arrived at the entrance of the Sephiroth. It has been a long while since the incident happened here. It felt like yesterday to Stella.
A distance call was heard from afar. Stella turned to the source of the sound. There was nothing. She senses something dangerous around the Sephiroth. Apollo and Ace aren't around to sense the danger.
Luke sees Stella behind them. He couldn't tell if she was thinking about Van or something else. The red-haired replica walked back to Stella.
"Is there something wrong?" He asked.
The assassin didn't turn to Luke, but instead responded to him. "There's something here, but I don't know where. Whatever it is. It's dangerous. Keep your guard up."
Luke nodded. "Right."
They went to catch up with the group. The group were waiting for them to arrive. Stella sensed something coming and quickly pushed Luke out of the way. Luke was surprised by what Stella did. Until a large scorpion attacked Stella.
It swung its pincher to strike. Stella quickly took out her weapon and blocked the attack.
"That creature!?" Jade said.
"It is probably aggressive from the shaking of the Outer Lands." Tear ready her weapon.
"We need to take it out and help Stella." Natalia started to shoot her arrows.
Everyone takes out their weapon and starts to fight the large scorpion. The arrows were a distraction to get the monster away from Stella. It backed away from Stella and went straight for Natalia. The princess shot another arrow but the armor was too thick.
Guy quickly blocked the attack to get Natalia away. She runs from a distance and starts to shoot more arrows.
Tear and Jade were casting their arte. Anise goes in and attacks the monster to help Guy. Luke arrived and helped out Anise.
Stella observed the monster. The armor is too hard to break. Attacking the front is too dangerous. Maybe fighting on the side could work. She looked up at the tail. The tail doesn't have any armor. It was vulnerable.
Tear and Jade called out their arte, but the armor reflected their attacks.
"Its armor is too tough to cut. None of our attacks are working." Guy backed away from the monster.
"Is there a way to break it?" Anise asked.
"Natalia shoot the tail," everyone turned to Stella. "That is its weak point!"
"Right." Natalia nodded as she readied her arrow.
The princess shot her arrow to the tail. The tail fell down on top of the monster and scattered its armor.
"Now, it was defenseless! Attack it!" Jade shouted.
Everyone went in to attack the monster. The monster launched its full on attack being defenseless without its armor. Stella casted her arte and stopped it from its track. Luke finished it off. The monster is now dead.
Jade was surprised how Stella was able to know its weak point. There was something more to her than he thought. He observed the assassin wondering what she was. Maybe that's why Van needed her.
Tear noticed that Jade was in his own world. "Is there something wrong, Colonel?"
"No. It's nothing." Jade replied as he pushed his glasses.
Everyone made it to the Sephiroth. It was shockingly beautiful and yet massive. How could something this big fit under the Outer Land? Stella looked around the place. But not knowing what the Sephiroth does. She waits for the group to do what they are supposed to do. The assassin watched as Luke removed the seals by Jade's directions.
She was surprised to see how Luke was able to control his power. After Luke was done, Chesedonia has started to ascend down to the Outer Land. The land was slowly going down into the Qliphoth.
Stella starts to have doubts about Van's decision in the current world. Can she trust the God-Generals? All the pieces were coming together. She wants to talk to Van about his true goal. He should be in Belkend with Legretta. This is a good chance to talk to him while all of this is going on.
"Now that Chesedonia is descending down into the Qliphoth. We should stay inside just in case." Jade said.
Everyone did want Jade instructed and waited for Chesedonia to land into the Qliphoth safely. It looks like it landed safely.
Stella turned around to leave the group. The group noticed that the assassin was leaving.
"Where are you going? You aren't going back to Van." Guy frowned.
"Guy, you don't have to be so rude to Stella. She probably has a lot in her mind now." Anise remarked.
"Anise is right, Guy. Although, she is part of the God-Generals. She hasn't done anything to hurt us." Natalia feels sorry for Stella.
"Master Van and the God-Generals are hiding things from her. I can't hold a grudge on her. After all, she was forced to do what she was ordered too." Luke said.
Stella sighed deeply. She has decided what her purpose was. If it means leaving the God-Generals. They will be hunting for her and killing her. Asch already made up his mind.
"So, what are you going to do now, Stella?" Tear asked curiously.
Stella turned back to the group. "I'm going to ask Van personally about his goals. If he wanted me to help him, he should at least tell me. But they haven't fully trusted me. Asch already made up his mind. So, it is time to do the same. I have figured out what my purpose is. Even if I leave the God-Generals, they will come after me and kill me."
"It seems you made up your mind. That considers us as allies." Jade smiled.
Stella feels somewhat strange from Jade's smile. "You know. I have no idea what is going on in your mind, Jade. Anyways, I'm heading out. I don't want the God-Generals that we have been together. I'll contact you guys if I have any information regarding the Score and such."
Luke nodded. "Right. Thank you Stella for helping us." He bowed to her.
"You certainly changed a lot, Luke. Glad to see that. I'll see you later." Stella left the Zao Ruins.
She walked out of the entrance of the ruins. Stella sees Apollo and Ace waiting for her. They went up to her all worried about her.
Stella let out a chuckle. "I'm sorry. I didn't want you two to get hurt. Anyways, let's go to Belkend. I need to go and talk to Van about his plan in all of this."
Stella whistled to call in the monsters. Griffins arrived. She jumped on their backs along with Apollo. They ascended up and headed straight to Belkend.
Stella arrived at Belkend. She goes to the Replica Laboratory where Van is there with Legretta. She asked the researchers where she could find Van. They told her he is at the end of the laboratory behind the doors.
She arrived at her destination. Stella sees Van and Legretta together. Van was looking at the papers on the desk. He heard the door and turned to see who it was. He wasn't surprised to see who it was.
"Did you find Asch, Stella?" Van asked.
She shook her head. "Asch has been dodging me every time I find him. He knows why." Of course she was lying to him. Who knows if Van noticed it or not, but he is no fool.
Van observed her. "I see. But it seems you are here for something else. What do you want to know, Stella?"
The assassin sighed lightly as she folded her arms on her chest. She feels nervous asking him his plan, but she needs to know what he is really after. Legretta can see Stella is lying to the Commandant. She won't hesitate to kill the assassin.
"Your plan. I did join as a God-General to destroy the Score with you, but I have been hiding in the dark too long now. I need to know what your plan is."
Legretta jumped in. "You don't need to know anything. You're a -"
"Legretta," Van stopped her. She stopped as she was ordered. "Before I tell you my plan, are you willing to follow my commands? This is beneficial to the plan."
"I haven't deceived you. I'm still with the God-Generals," she continued. "My whole reason why I joined you is to destroy the Score. Is it not? Then why hide something that is valuable from me? Is it because you don't trust me? I'm not a fool that you are using me for your plans."
The Commandant looked at her eyes. They aren't lying to him. "Alright. Have you heard of Lorelei?"
Stella never heard of Lorelei besides minor rumors. "Is that the seventh fonon inside the Planet's Memory? There aren't many remnants of Lorelei within the Planet's Memory."
"Of course, there are some remnants of the seventh fonons in the Planet's Memory. It is the sole reason that I need to absorb Lorelei and destroy the Score."
"What about the present world? Humans are still going to follow the Score. They are still going to die if they continue to read the Score."
"Humans are useless so they are. Replicas will suffice."
Stella widens her eyes. "You're planning to destroy the real world. How are you going to destroy it? There aren't enough replicas to make your replica world."
"There is. With enough data of replicas I can recreate the world with replicas without the Score."
"Do you have any care for the original world?"
"No. This world is nothing but a ghost of Yulia. Humans will continue to read to Score in its support of Lorelei."
The assassin understands what Van is planning from what he told her. She put the pieces together. "So, you want to absorb Lorelei to recreate a replica world to destroy the Score. Everything will be replicas, including the world. Now, that sounds like a foolish plan. There has to be another way to destroy the Score."
"Are you saying you don't agree with my plans?" Van frowned.
"As ridiculous this plan is, I have to disagree with this plan. I know there is another way to destroy Score without destroying the present world."
Van hummed as he knew that Stella would no longer be under his command. "I see. You made up your mind. You know what happens to traitors when they don't disagree with the plan."
Stella wasn't stupid. She knows what he means. "Of course, but this isn't the place," the assassin looked at Legretta. "I'm sure someone has a place for me for my coffin."
"That I would agree. Next time, we meet Stella. I won't hesitate to kill you nor the God-Generals." Van promised.
"I thought Sync was supposed to kill me. Anyways, I shall take my leave." Stella leaves the laboratory.
"Commandant, it would be better if I kill her. Now, she is no longer part of us. She can't let her go wild as she pleases." Legretta commented.
"Don't worry. If Sync is able to comfort her then it won't be a problem, but I can tell that she isn't coming back. I shall have Sync kill her unless you want to do it yourself."
Legretta crossed her arms on her chest. "She has been a thorn to the God-Generals for a long time. I shall put her out of her misery. I promise she won't interfere with the plan."
The assassin leaves Belkend as Apollo and Ace arrive. She doesn't know what to do now. She is no longer part of the God-Generals. She could visit Sync at Radiation Gate. He doesn't know that she left the God-Generals.
"Let's go to the Radiation Gate and say goodbye to Sync. He will get the message that I left the God-Generals. Now, I'm a lone wolf surviving to live. But if I can convince Sync to switch sides then we can stop Van together." Stella sighed deeply as Ace transformed into a large bird.
She got on his back as well as Apollo. They went to the Radiation Gate to meet with Sync.
Stella arrived at the Radiation Gate. She walked in to find Sync. She sees him standing on the passage ring. Of course, he doesn't know that Stella left the God-Generals. Van will probably tell the other God-Generals soon.
"What brings you here, Stella? Should you be finding Asch for Van?" Sync asked.
Stella rolled her eyes. "There's no need for that. Asch will go to Van himself. He isn't dumb. Also, I just want to come here to see the Radiation Gate." She lied.
Ace flew past his master to Sync's shoulder. Sync turns around and sees Stella in a puzzled state. He was confused why she was making that expression.
"What's with that expression? Did something happen?"
"Not really. Just thinking about the plan." Stella glared from the distance.
"What do you mean?"
"Do you really want to go through this plan, Sync? This plan is ridiculous."
He didn't know what was going on with Stella. "What are you talking about?"
"There's no need for any explanation. I'm sure you know what I'm talking about." Stella turned to Sync.
Sync figured out what she meant. "You mean Van's plan of absorbing the seventh fonons. As long as it is erased from this world. The world can be free from the Score. That is why I'm here to realize my dream. I know that Van is using me for his plan. But as long as there is no Score and Lorelei, my existence won't mean anything."
Stella walked up to Sync and said, "Your existence? Are you saying that you haven't gained anything when you were born?"
"Nothing. I was born as a piece of meat." He responded straightforwardly.
"Don't say that. You're not a piece of meat. You're more than that. I see your potential. Who cares what anyone else says about you. Replica or human, you have feelings like me. We can work together." Stella was very passionate with her words with Sync. She wants him to understand not for himself but for her too.
Sync glared at her then turned away. "Words are too complicated to understand. No one can understand me."
"Your heart doesn't lie, Sync. It knows the right path. Besides, I already have my purpose. That's why I must move forward. And see my purpose. I will protect what I love." Stella looked at her hands and clenches.
"Don't forget your helping Van to achieve his goals."
Stella chuckled. "If they don't see the shadow, then they are fools. The prey is always running from the predator. It won't stop until it catches its prey. That's where you are blinded by the foolish king himself."
Sync was confused with words Stella said. "What do you mean by that?"
"That's something for you to find out. I'm sure the Commandant will give you the full details." She smirked as she played along. "I should be going on. It is going to be very busy without their eyes."
The assassin leaves the Radiation Gate. Apollo followed her behind while Ace stayed with Sync. The tempest watched as Stella slowly got further away. He folded his arms thinking what Stella was talking about.
"The predator always chases its prey until it is caught. Without their eyes? And what is going to be very busy?"
Chapter Text
Stella has been busy for a whole week searching for answers to find a way to destroy the Score without destroying the current world. Her next stop is to Sheridan. She needs to pick up something from Ashton. She called in the monsters. The griffin arrived to her call.
She arrived at Sheridan. Stella needed to meet him at the meeting hall. That's where Class M is. There's Aston, Iemon, and Tamara. The trio of Class M. Not surprising that Belkend has Class I. Rivals of the two classes.
The assassin arrived at the meeting hall. She sees Luke's group here as well. This was surprisingly interesting. She didn't think she would run into them.
"Stella!?" Anise shouted in surprise. "What brings you here?"
"I'm here to get something from Aston, but it seems that Class M is busy with something. And you guys?" Stella walked away from the door.
"We're entering into the Planet's Core using the Tartarus to neutralize. Once we neutralize it, we're aboard on the Albion to get out of the core." Anise told Stella everything.
Stella understands the gestures of their plan. "I see. By neutralizing the core, it would stop all of the earthquakes to prevent everything from above from falling."
Jade adjusted his glasses. "Yes. We're about to leave Sheridan and head to the core in Akzeriuth."
"Do you need any assistance?"
Guy was still aware of Stella. "Why? So you can report back to Van."
Of course, the group doesn't know that she left the God-Generals a week ago. They are still cautious around her. She can't blame them.
She sighed. "Not to worry. I have no intention of going back. Besides, the prey is still being chased."
Jade and Guy understood what she meant. It didn't surprise them. Luke was confused.
"What do you mean?"
"I hate to interrupt but you guys need to hurry to the Tartarus." Iemon intervened.
Luke nodded. "Right. Stella, do you want to join us?"
"I'll just meet you guys at the port. I'll be waiting there." Stella leaves the Meeting Room.
The assassin arrived at the port. She sees Class I and Aston here. It seems they were waiting for Luke's group to arrive.
Aston sees Stella and calls her over. "Stella! You are here!"
"Yeah. Do you have what I need?"
Aston nodded. "Yes. I'll give it to you when this operation is over."
Before Stella was about to speak, she heard clanking armors coming to port. She took out her weapon. Aston and Class I were confused why she took out her weapon.
"What's going on?" Hencken asked.
"Oracle Knights are coming this way." Stella ready herself in battle.
"Wait. We can use this fontech sleeping gas. We keep the knights asleep if they inhale the gas." Cathy said as she started the tank to fill the area with sleeping gas.
"Make sure you cover your nose from inhaling it. You too will be asleep." Hencken said.
Stella chuckled. "Will do. I'll wait inside the Tartarus."
She went inside the Tartarus as she waited for the gas to fill up inside the port. The Oracle Knights appeared. They were heading towards the ship but they inhaled the gas and passed out.
Stella sensed someone coming to the port. They arrived but the gas was neutralized. It was Luke's group who arrived.
Suddenly, Van appeared at the port. It didn't surprise Stella. There was no way he knew all of this was going on. Someone probably told him all of this.
She was about to get out of the Tartarus. She sensed something else was in the ship. Did Van come to the port to distract Luke's group while another God-General got on the ship?
Luke and the others arrived in the Tatarus. They see Stella. They didn't have time to talk. Jade quickly went to the bridge while everyone else was on the deck. They set sail to the Planet's Core. Guy noticed something strange going on, but ignored it for now.
They entered the Planet's Core. It was an amazing sight to see all of the fonons in the planet core. Where the seventh fonon is.
"We have enough sightseeing. We need to go to the port that Iemon setup. We're delayed on schedule." Jade said.
The alarm was turned on.
"It looks like there is an intruder on the ship." Stella said.
"Damn. We don't have time either." Luke said.
"We don't have time to worry about anything. Right now, we need to stop the Planet's Core." Jade stood up and left.
Everyone trailed behind Jade.
They arrived at the deck of the Tartarus. Anise looked around and noticed the glyph left by Iemon was gone.
"Where's the glyph?" Anise asked.
"It's supposed to be here. What happened to it?" Tear said.
A voice responded. "I erased it for you."
Everyone turned to the source of the voice. It was none other than Sync. Sync sees Stella with the group. It was no surprise Stella knew it was Sync.
"Sync!" Anise said.
"So, Van sent you here to stop us. How troublesome will he go to stop us from neutralizing the Planet's Core?" Stella frowned.
"I could say the same to you. Leaving the God-Generals was a mistake. Do you know what happens to traitors?"
Everyone glanced at Stella. They didn't know she left the God-Generals. Jade and Guy knew she told them that the prey was being chased.
"Wait?! You left the God-General!" Luke was surprised.
Stella sighed lightly. "We don't have time to worry about that. We should focus on getting the glyph back."
"She's right. We need to get rid of the roach here." Jade said.
"You leave me with no choice. I'll bury you along with the Tartarus. It will be your gravestone." Sync smirked.
"You too will be buried." Anise readied her Tokunaga.
Sync scoffed. "It's a sacrifice I'll make. Taking all of you with me makes it easier."
Everyone readied themselves to fight Sync. Stella didn't want to fight him, but she had to get him out. He is delaying the mission. She needs to get him on her side.
How can she do that? Getting through him isn't going to be easy. Probably one of the hardest person to deal with.
Luke was the first to charge to attack. He swung his sword forward. Sync quickly dodges it. Guy was behind and swung his sword. Sync blocked the attack. Anise charged in to stop him. Sync dodged it.
Anise was getting a little frustrated because of Sync dodging so much. "Stop jumping around!"
Sync chuckled. "If you can't hit me then I suggest you keep trying." He casted his arte. "Absolute Zero!"
Stella quickly casted her arte. "Flame Arrows!"
Multiple flame arrows came down to melt the ice. Everyone was surprised to see Stella cast an arte quickly. No human can cast arte that fast. They don't have to talk about what is going on.
"Why are you willing to help these guys and not us?" Sync asked as he frowned.
"Van's plan isn't what I want. That plan is ludicrous. Why would he do that to the current world? Why are you going along with this plan?"
"This world can rot. Everything in this world is nothing to me."
"You don't mean that."
"I am. I don't care about this world. As long as Van's plan is a success, I don't have to worry about this world."
"It sounds like you don't have any feelings for the current world." Jade said.
"The world we are now can change. Everyone can change." Luke said.
Luke charged in for another slash. Sync was able to block it, but Luke used his strength and broke through his defense. Luke was able to hit the mask from Sync's face. Sync was on his knees. Everyone was shocked to see what they saw. Jade already knew.
"What the?"
"There's two Ion's!" Anise couldn't believe herself.
Stella was surprised herself. She didn't know that Sync was a Fon Master replica.
"I was right. You are also a replica of the Fon Master." Ion said.
"What do you mean?" Luke asked surprisingly.
Ion took a deep breath. "I'm the Fon Master's 7th replica. The last one. I became a Fon Master 2 years ago."
Anise remembered. "That's when I became your guardian. Wait, is that why Arietta resigned as your guardian?"
Ion nodded. "Yes. I have no memories from 2 years ago."
Sync growled under his breath as he stood up. "You were the closest one to the original, unlike us trash."
"Don't say that. You and I are the same." Ion reached out his hand.
Sync slapped his hand away. "No. We are not," he turned to Stella. "What? Are you going to say something?"
"I told you before. It doesn't matter if you have the same face as the original. You are you, Sync. I don't care if you are a replica. You are human." Stella told him again.
Sync scoffed. He thought Stella thinks of him as a puppet. "You can't fool me. You are thinking that I'm nothing but trash."
Stella shook her head. "I never think of you as trash. You are human just like the rest of us."
Sync started to walk backwards towards the ship rail. "Stop lying. You're just saying that to make me feel better. I don't care if Van is using me for his plans. As long as this world disappears, I don't mind sacrificing myself for his plans."
Sync falls down from the Tartarus. Everyone watches as he falls down into the Planet's Core. For some reason, Stella felt something drop down from heart. She never felt waves of feelings running in her veins. This is the first time she feels this way. She couldn't get what it was.
Anise looked at Ion. "Ion, are you crying?" She had never seen him in tears before.
"I'm not crying." Ion replied as tears were coming out from his eyes.
"Then why are you crying?"
Ion reached to his eye and touched the tear in the corner of his eye. "Am I sad?"
"It's like losing a brother. It is okay to cry, Ion."
Stella left the deck as she headed inside. She didn't want them to know what she felt. Luke noticed Stella left.
"Where are you going, Stel-"
Luke was interrupted by Guy. "I think it best to leave her alone. She feels the same as Ion. She didn't want to show her feelings."
Tear know how Stella feels. Van is using people for his plan. That's probably why Stella left. Whatever his plan was made her upset.
Few hours later, they returned back to the surface. Stella can't stay sad forever. She took a deep breath. She walked to the deck of the ship. Everyone was there getting off.
Tear turned to the assassin. "What are you going to do?"
"I don't know yet. The only thing I'm doing is being Asch's agent since he and I are no longer consider God-Generals. So, I can't stay with you guys. I'm still getting chased by the God-Generals." Stella replied.
Tear understand what Stella is doing. She can't blame her. "All right. Be careful. I don't know who will come after you since Sync is gone."
Stella knows who is coming after her. "I wouldn't say that. There is another person that has a grudge on me."
Tear tilted her head. She was confused. "Who would that be?"
"You will see soon enough. All I can say is that it is someone that you up too for so long. You have your answer there. I shall be leaving. Take care." Stella leaves the group as she journeys on.
Stella arrived back at Sheridan. The place has quite down now the Oracle Knights are gone. She needed to get the thing from Aston. She arrived at the Meeting Hall. Aston was there doing his work.
"Aston, I came to get it." Stella spoke.
Aston turned to Stella. "Ah Stella, welcome back. Yes, I have it right here," he walks towards the assassin. "Here you go. Are you sure about this? It's dangerous."
Stella glanced at the thing in her hand then clenched her hand into a fist. "I am. It is the only way."
"All right. I don't know what you are doing with it, but be careful."
Stella nodded. "Don't worry. I won't do anything reckless."
The assassin leaves Sheridan as she continues her journey. She doesn't know where to go next. Maybe meet up with Asch to ask what to do next. He might get a little grumpy but overall he is a good friend.
As Stella was meeting up with Asch, a sudden gunshot from behind. The assassin quickly reflects the bullet from her dagger. She sighed lightly knowing who it is.
"You can come out! I know where you are, Legretta!"
Legretta comes out of the shadow as she has her gun pointing at Stella. "So, you know what is going on with the Commandant. He is going to change the world into a better place without the Score."
"Didn't you hear me in Belkend? This isn't the plan I want. It will replace the people with replicas. I don't want a world that replaces humans with replicas. I want a world where people can live freely from the Score."
"That's why Van's plan is going to change everything."
"You are ludicrous. Why follow someone like him who is willing the destroy the original world with replicas," Stella knows why Legretta is doing this. "Is it because you love him? Is that why you are willing to go through this plan of his?"
Legretta shot her bullet and missed Stella. It landed on the tree bark with a mark. The assassin knew that she was going missing her shot. It probably has a soft side for Van.
"Shut your mouth! You know nothing about me!" Legretta hissed.
"That is true. The God-Generals don't talk about other's past. Sometimes you need someone to tell you about your past."
"You haven't told your past to the Commandant."
'What? I thought Sync told Van about my past. I guess he does have a soft spot.' Stella was shocked. She straightened her face. "There's no point since I betrayed him. Anyways, are you here to kill or convince me?"
"You have been a thorn to the Van and the God-Generals. Now, we are alone. This will be your grave. You won't interfere with Van's plan."
"We will see who comes out on top." The assassin readied her weapon.
They both were having a staring contest to see who will move first. Legretta slowly moved toward. Stella watches Legretta every move. The Quick started her first move. She starts shooting her gun at Stella. Stella reflected the bullets with her daggers. She dashed toward and struck her slash. Legretta was able to dodge it. Then she cast her arte.
Stella sees an opening, but it could be a trap. She starts to cast her arte to counter it.
"Searing Flame!" Legretta shouted her arte.
"Hurricane!" Stella shouted her arte.
The Searing Flame clashed into the Hurricane, but the Hurricane absorbed the flames and turned into a flaming hurricane. The Hurricane caused the surrounding area to terrorize into flames. Legretta got sucked into the hurricane.
Stella turned her daggers into a bladed bow. She summoned an arrow in her hand and placed it on the bow. She pulled the string to aim at the hurricane. Then let's go off the string and the arrow went inside the hurricane.
Legretta couldn't see anything inside the hurricane. She can't tell where Stella is attacking. Something shiny was heading towards her way. She was able to catch it with ease with her hand, but then multiple arrows came through. She used her gun to shoot the arrows down. The Quick got all of the arrows, but a single arrow from behind hit her. Legretta was careless. She didn't see the arrow from behind.
"Damn it! She knows where to hit the blind spot! I need to know where she's shooting at, but first I need to get rid of this hurricane."
Stella stopped shooting her arrows. "The only thing to get rid of the hurricane is to attack the user."
Sudden bullet hit Stella's left shoulder. Her shoulder started to bleed from the bullet. Legretta lands a bullseye. The assassin was on her knee as she covered the wound from bleeding out.
The hurricane disappeared and Legretta already had her gun pointing at Stella. Stella was groaning from the wound.
"It seems I was correct. Attacking the user made the arte disappear. That is a risky arte. Anyhow, this will be your grave, Stella. Say goodbye." Legretta was about to pull the trigger.
Then Ace and Apollo came from the woods and attacked. Ace distracted Legretta while Apollo grabbed Stella on his back and ran. Legretta was getting frustrated and shot a bullet, but Ace dodge it. As Apollo left, Ace followed from behind. Legretta watched as Stella and her monsters left.
"She got lucky, but next time she will be dead. I need to stop Tear and convince her to join us." Legretta leaves the area.
They arrived at the Cheadle Woods. Stella was still grunting from the pain. She never had this much pain. Thanks to the bullet, it made the wound bleed.
"Damn! I didn't think she would shoot from the inside," the assassin took out her dagger and dug it inside where the wound is. She grunted from the dagger from the inside. It was like something was slowly digging inside. She used the tip of the dagger to find the bullet. Stella found the bullet, stabbed it and took it out from her shoulder. The bullet was on the tip of the dagger. "That damn hurts." She healed the wound with her healing arte.
A few hours later, she was able to close the wound. She tore a piece of her jacket and used it to cover the wound. Apollo and Ace were very worried for their master. Apollo licked the blood from her wound.
Stella smiled. "I'm okay, Apollo, Ace. It's going to take a months to heal this wound. For now, we will stay here in the Cheadle Woods. We wouldn't cause any trouble for the Cheagles. This is where the Liger Queen was nesting when she got killed. Poor Arietta. I need to convince her that Van is just using her for his plan, but she continues to kill Anise and the group."
Apollo whined at his master. Ace did the same.
She petted them. "Don't worry. We just have to hunt for some food. I don't want to disturb the Cheadle. We are not here to hurt. A months is long. Asch will be upset if he heard this," she looked at the sky. "It is getting late. Let us get some sleep."
Stella laying herself down on the ground. It wasn't the most comfortable, but the grass makes it up for the softness. Apollo goes behind Stella and cuddles her. Ace went in front of Stella and cuddled her. The assassin chuckled. She cuddled with her monsters to stay warm.
The night was restless. Stella was still thinking about Sync. She was worried that she wouldn't be able to see him. He is in the Planet's Core.
"It is the same as Legretta. She is willing to do anything for her love for Van. Maybe I am the same. I'm willing to do anything to stop Sync from calling himself trash and such," she laughed softly. "I can't believe I'm risking myself to save him from dying, because he is special. Now, he is gone. I have nothing but to continue my journey."
The assassin's eyes were getting heavy. It was a long day for her. She need some sleep after all of this.
Chapter Text
A month has past, Stella thanked the cheagles for helping her. During her time in the Cheagle Woods, they were afraid to approach her, because of the monsters with Stella. A familiar yellow cheagle approached her and called. Stella turned to the call and smiled. She remembered the cheagle she saved. He remembered Apollo and approached him. The liger led down as the cheagle climbed on his head.
The other cheagles was shocked to see the yellow cheagle approach the monster with ease. They don't know if Apollo will attack them. So, they approach them. Stella chuckled as more of them appeared. They glared at Apollo as he stared at them. They flinched and shook as the liger glared at them as food. The yellow cheagle told them that Apollo isn't dangerous like the other monsters. They got closer to him and Apollo didn't react. For some reason, they were no longer scared. They started to cuddle on Apollo. The liger was covered by cheagles like a fluffy blanket.
Stella and her monsters were able to stay with the cheagles as she recovered. The cheagle elder told her that something dangerous is coming.
The assassin knows that. She doesn't know what is going on right now. The cheagle elder can't tell either, but he felt Yulia's Score is still here.
Stella said that she could help Ion and the others free everyone from the Score. She doesn't know where to start. The elder suggested that she go to Yulia City. The assassin nodded.
Stella goes to Yulia City. She walks in Yulia City as she looks around to find Tear. Tear sees Stella coming to Yulia City. She was worried about the assassin.
"Stella, what happened to you? It has been a month since we last saw you."
Stella sees Tear coming to her. "Did Legretta tell you anything about me?"
Tear remembered what Legretta told her. "She did. She said that you were a thorn to my brother and the God-Generals. She also said that you won't be able to fight for a while. I thought you were dead for a month. Major did try to kill you."
"She tried to kill me, but I survived thanks to Apollo and Ace. I got shot on my left shoulder. Her bullet got me good. It left a scar." Stella placed her hand on her left shoulder.
"But the bullet is still inside." Tear hesitated.
"It's okay. I took it out. The wound took a month to heal. Thanks to the cheagles. I stayed with them when I was healing."
Tear sighed in relief. "That's good."
"So, what happened when I was gone for a month."
"Well…" Tear tells Stella what happened while she was healing for a month.
"I see. The other God-Generals got buried alive in the snow at Mt. Roneal. And Van die in the Absorption Gate. Did he fall into the Absorption Gate?"
Tear nodded. "Everything is over. Van is gone. The Oracle Knights have been reformed by Mohs."
Stella feels like something isn't right. There's no way Van would fall into the Absorption Gate if they killed him. "You said he left his sword at the Absorption Gate."
Tear didn't know what Stella was thinking. "What are you saying? Are you saying that Van is still alive?"
"It is a possibility. There has to be a reason why he just fell into the Absorption Gate. I don't know what Van is planning to do when he is out."
Tear remembered something. "That's right. Van's sword wasn't in the Absorption Gate. It was gone. Not only that, he fell into the core. You don't believe someone else took my brother's sword."
"Probably. Who knows who took his sword. That remains a mystery," Stella continued. "How is everyone?"
"Everyone is doing fine, but I'm not good at making contacts."
"But the Score is still exists. People are still reading the Score."
"Ion ceased all reading the Score. There are still people who would still want to read the Score. Ion declined them from doing so."
"It is the right choice, but the Score isn't destroyed is the problem."
"Oh," a voice appeared in the scene. Tear and Stella turned to the source of voice. It was the red haired Luke. "Did I come at the wrong time?"
They both looked at each other then turned back to Luke.
"No." Stella replied.
"What brings you here?" Tear asked.
Stella didn't want to stay here. She needs to go and see Ion. "I'm heading out. I'm going to Daath to talk to Ion."
Luke doesn't know why Stella doesn't want to stay, but he understands. "Right. Be careful."
The assassin left Yulia City and headed to Daath.
She arrived at Daath and headed to the Cathedral. Inside the Cathedral, it was empty. It was surprising that the place was empty. She walked to the hall to get to Ion's Chamber. She arrived at his room and knocked on the door.
"Come in." He called from the other side.
Stella walked in. "Ion, glad to see you."
The Fon Master smiled. "Stella, what happened to you in a month?"
Stella told Ion everything that happened to her in a month.
"I see. Legretta was trying to kill you because you betrayed Van. I'm glad that you survived."
"I'm surprised myself. So, I heard that you cease all reading of the Score."
Ion headed. "Yes. It would be best that people don't read the Score for a better future. People can live without reading the Score. I'm sure that would make you happy."
For some reason, she doesn't seem happy. The Score is still around. "Not really. The Score still exists. The people will still be able to read the Score even if you cease it."
"I know how you feel because this is the only way we can stop people from reading the Score."
The assassin sighed lightly. "All right. Oh, I heard what happened in the month with Van and the other God-Generals. I don't think Van is gone. He probably had a plan when he fell in the Absorption Gate."
"Perhaps. The Planet Storm has suddenly grown more active. That was probably Van's plan. To reverse it to increase it."
"Doesn't the Core have a massive amount of Seventh Fonons?"
"It does. That is what is inside the Planet's Core."
"Do you think that Van's plan was to absorb a massive amount of Seventh Fonons into his body? That is probably why he reversed the Planet's Storm and grew more actively."
The Fon Master never thought of that. "You might be right, Stella. If Van absorbs all of the Seventh Fonons, that means that he can control it at will. Lorelei is also in the Planet's Core."
Stella understands what Van is doing. "It all makes sense. He fell into the Core not to absorb the Seventh Fonons, but Lorelei himself. Lorelei is the Seventh Fonons."
"With Lorelei inside of Van. He is going to be difficult to fight."
"You might be right. Who knows what they are doing now."
"What are you going to do?"
"That I don't know yet. Luke and Asch are Lorelei answers. I'll go around the world helping people and them." Stella can't figure out what to do now. She is helpless. "Although, I have been looking for answers about the original Ion too. The only person who knows him is Arietta, Mohs and Van. I don't think they won't give answers about the original. Maybe Arietta."
"I see. How are you going to get Arietta at your side?"
"That is something I don't know yet, but I will figure it out. I don't want Arietta to lose her life. She can live a better life."
"Are you going to tell her the truth about everything?"
"I have too. We can't keep her in the dark forever. Van is only using her. Not just Arietta. Sync too."
Ion knows what Stella feels. "You like him, do you?"
Stella didn't want to lose Sync. She feels close to him. He is a jerk, but he is a good person on the inside. She needs to figure out how to convince him to join her side.
She put her hand on her chest. "I do. If I lose him, then I don't know if I can move forward with my purpose."
Ion smiled. "I believe you can. If you are able to convince him, make sure to keep him safe for my safety. I don't know how long I'm going to be around."
"Are you predicting your death, Ion?"
"I have a feeling that I won't be around too long. I hope you will be safe Stella and remember your purpose. You will be able to get Sync on your side. I have faith."
Stella smiles softly. "Thank you. I will remember my purpose and keep him safe. I shall take my leave. Remember that you are not alone, Ion. You have us and your guardian."
"Thank you, Stella. May your journey protect you."
Stella leaves Ion's Room. She goes on her journey to help the people and find clues.
The assassin appeared at Belkend. She goes to Spinoza's research laboratory. She arrives and sees a familiar figure.
"Asch."
He turned around and saw the assassin. "Stella, what happened to you? I have been looking for you for a month."
Stella told him everything that happened to her in a month.
"You were coming back to me and stopped by Legretta. You got injured in the process and stayed in the Cheagles Woods to heal for a month. How is your wound?"
"It's all better. Thanks to the cheagles who cared for us. Tear and Ion told me everything that happened. So, you don't need to explain. You are looking for something." Stella knows that Asch is desperately searching for something.
"I'm looking for the Jewel." He replied.
"A Jewel? For what?" Stella was a little confused.
"The Jewel of Lorelei. Lorelei gave me and that other replica the key to free him," he showed Stella one of the keys. "This is one of the keys. I don't know what happened to the other one. The replica is supposed to have one but I don't know where he put it."
"A sword. And the other one is a jewel. I can go and find the jewel as I go around and find some clues. Should we go together?"
"No. We will be easy targets to the God-Generals. Legretta will kill you if you are with me. We will go our separate ways here. I should be going now. I'll contact you if I need anything." Asch said he walked away from the research laboratory.
Stella shrugged. "Same old Asch," she turned back to Spinoza. "Spinoza, I have something to ask you."
Spinoza adjusted his glasses. "What would that be?"
Stella shows him the item. "I want you to upgrade this."
Spinoza grabbed the item and examined it. "Is this what I think it is? You know this is a dangerous device. Your body won't be able to contain this much high fonons."
"I'm aware of it. I know the risk. If I die then it is the only way I can find any clues." Stella doesn't mind if she dies in the hands of this dangerous item.
Spinoza can feel that she made up her mind. "All right. It should be done by tomorrow."
Stella nodded. "Thank you. I shall rest until tomorrow. See you then." She left the place and decided to relax until tomorrow.
"I need to figure out how to get Arietta on my side. I need to tell her that she has me by her side. She isn't alone."
She walked out of Belkend and watched the sea. A griffin came by and stopped by Stella. It was the griffin that she rode on to Chesedonia. It started talking to her.
"I see. Arietta is going to fight Anise and the others for revenge in the Cheagles Woods tomorrow. For her mother and Ion. She does know that she is being used by Van. Whatever the original Ion did cause all of this," the assassin petted the griffin. "Thank you."
Griffin tells her something else. Something Stella didn't think it would say. The assassin got worried.
"Are you sure? It is going to be a dangerous road," the griffin nodded. "All right. I won't stop you. Do you have a name?"
The griffin shook its head. Stella started to think of a name for it. "You are a female. Hmm… Rythala?" The griffin squeaks happily. 'Welcome to the group, Rythala."
Ace and Apollo arrived behind their master. They greet Rythala with a warm welcome. They exchange their names to her. Rythala was never happy to see other monsters with a human. They told her that Stella is their master. She was surprised herself. Rythala told them that she was the runt of the horde. They didn't want her in the group because of how small she was. They bullied her and called her names. She was amazed with Stella and how she treats Apollo and Ace. She wanted to be part of them. She told her mom that she wanted to leave and find her own purpose. Her mom told her it is best for her to leave. Rythala was happy. She told her mom she will leave the next day to find Stella. So, she left the horde to find the assassin. It took her a month and finally found Stella here in Belkend.
"Now that's quite the story, Rythala. We are now your family. We treat each other with respect."
Rythala nodded. She was happy to have friends that treat her like a family.
"Now, we need to rest. Tomorrow, we have to go to the Cheagle Woods to stop Arietta from throwing her life away."
All of the monsters agreed with her. Stella glanced at the sun setting down into dusk. She will do anything to save Arietta even if she has to fight in between them.
The next day Stella grabbed the thing from Spinoza and he told her to be careful when using this device. Stella leaves Belkend.
"I need to head to the Cheagle Woods. That is where Arietta and Luke's group are at. If I don't hurry, Arietta will be gone."
Stella quickly jumped on Ace's back as he transformed into a big phoenix. He was flying towards the direction of the Cheagle Woods.
Stella arrived at the Cheagle Woods with Apollo and Ace. She runs to the Liger Queen's Lair and hears a battle going on. She quickly runs inside. She sees the fight between Arietta and Anise's group. But Largo is also here. But he isn't fighting. Maybe it is a fight between Arietta and Anise for Ion. Largo is known to respect people's wishes.
Stella needs to stop the fight. She has no choice but to use it. Although she is no longer with the God-Generals. She can use her power freely now.
"Apollo, Ace and Rythala covered your eyes. I'm going to flash everyone's eyes then I'm going to save Arietta during the flash." She whispered.
They nodded. Stella started to cast her arte. The battle roars is loud that they can't hear Stella casting. She casted a blinding light flash above the battle. Everyone got blinded by the flash of light. This is a good opportunity to get Arietta out of there. The assassin quickly goes down and grabs Arietta out of there. They leave the Cheagles Woods and move far away from them. Arietta was injured from the battle. She fainted. She could die from the final blow from Anise. Luckily she was able to save the young pink haired girl from death.
As the flash disappeared, everyone looked around to see what happened. They don't see Arietta anywhere, but Largo is still here.
"W-What happened to Arietta? She just disappeared." Anise looked around.
Luke turned to Largo. "Is this one of your tricks?"
"Of course not. I would do no such thing. I respect people's wishes. If this was Arietta's idea then I have to respect it. I shall take my leave. But remember I will kill you the next time we meet." Largo walked away from the group.
"Here Largo." Luke throws something at Largo.
The Black Lion caught the item and glanced at it. "Where did you get this?"
"I found it. It seems it belongs to you, Badaq."
Largo was shocked. "That name died a long time ago. I shall thank you for returning it, but I won't go easy just because you return something of value to me." Largo leaves the Cheagles Woods.
They watched as Largo slowly disappeared from the distance.
"What happened during that fight? We were about to finish Arietta until a bright flash of light appeared." Tear was confused.
"Did a third party interfere with the fight?" Guy asked.
Jade knows who did it but decided to leave it alone. He knows that Arietta is greatly injured from the battle. "Who knows. They didn't want anyone to know they were here. So, they decided to flash everyone. I don't know if this is Arietta's idea, but we don't need to bother with her. She is too injured to fight again."
"Well whoever it is. They didn't want Arietta to die. Anyways, we should go. We have other things to attend to." Luke said.
"Luke is right. Let's go." Natalia returned back.
Everyone left the Liger Queen's nest. Anise was still thinking about Arietta. She wanted to apologize to her for everything. Maybe Arietta will be alive and come back to avenge them again.
Stella arrived at St. Binah in a inn with Arietta who was resting in the room. She already performs her healing artes on her. Now, she needs a long rest. The battle took a toll on her. Who knows how long she will rest.
Arietta woke up and looked around her surroundings. She was confused about where she was. "Where am I? I was fighting Anise in the Cheagle Woods."
"You're in St. Binah. I took you away from the battlefield. Arietta, you shouldn't throw away your life. I'm sure that Ion wouldn't want that." Stella was worried for Arietta.
"Why did you betray us? Why did you leave us? I was alone! You were the only friend I have. Ion is gone! Same for my mom and my siblings!" Tears were coming out of her eyes. "Why? Stella why?"
This is the perfect time to tell Arietta how Stella feels about her. She can't leave. Her monster friends are dead. She had nowhere to go.
"The reason I left is because Van's plan isn't what l in vision. His world is different using replicas. Mine wants the original world without the Score."
"Van said that he will bring Ion back using the fomicry machine. That means the people you lost will come back."
Stella shook her head. "No. Van doesn't care about anything. That's why I didn't return. He is using the God-Generals for his plans. Did you know that the Ion that is with Anise is a replica of the original Ion? The original Ion that you were fon master guardian died a long time ago. Mohs and Van used fomicry to create replicas of the original Ion. They created seven replicas of Ion. That's why you disbanded as fon guardian and became God-General."
Arietta didn't want to believe it. It was a lot to take. "What about the Ion that Anise is with? What replica was he?"
"He was the seventh one and final one. He has the closest abilities to the original. There is another one who is also a replica of the fon master."
"Who's the other one?"
"He has been with the God-Generals for a long time. He is helping with Van's plan for destroying the Score and recreating the new world with replicas," Arietta was listening very carefully. "His name is Sync."
"Sync is also another of Ion's replicas. I don't know that. Did Van keep that a secret from me too?"
"He did. If you knew about the original Ion death, you would have killed yourself. He did that to protect you from doing that. That is one kindness from Van," Stella sees that Arietta was taking a lot in. "Are you okay, Arietta?"
"It's just a lot to absorb. I don't know what to do now. Van was lying the whole time. My Ion is gone. Mommy and my siblings are no longer here. I have nothing left."
Stella sat down next to Arietta and hugged her to comfort her. "It is okay. Let it all out."
The pink haired girl started to cry. She let it all out.
A few minutes later, Arietta stopped crying as she wiped her tears.
"How do you feel?"
Arietta hugged Stella. "Better. Thank you, Stella. You were always here for me. You're like a sister."
"You're welcome."
The assassin released her hug and stood up. Arietta looked at her.
"Where are you going?"
"To the Chesadonia. There is a rumor that someone is giving readings to the Score. They are probably in Chesedonia." Stella folded her arms. She was a little frustrated.
"Where did you hear that?"
"The people in St. Binah were talking about this fake Scorer. They have been going around reading people's Scores. Stay here and recover. I'll have Apollo stay with you. I'll return once it is over. Ion ceased all reading to the Score. I must keep that promise to Ion."
"Let me go with you." Arietta was worried about Stella.
"No. Anise and the other's might be there. It's best you stay low for now. Apollo will protect you from danger."
Arietta pouted. "Okay. Be careful, Stella."
"I will." Stella leaves the inn. Arietta watched Stella from the window as she slowly disappeared.
The black haired assassin arrived at Chesedonia. She noticed the miasma has covered the entire world.
"They have made their move." Stella glanced at the skies.
A voice echoed the world for everyone to hear.
"Everyone in Aldurant! I, Fon Master Mohs, will recreate the order and form the New Order of Lorelei! Everyone who opposes the new order will get served down from god! I'm god to all of you! But those who follow the New Order of Lorelei will get their wish of the Score! The Score is what leads us to prosperity! As Fon Master, I will take us to a world where everyone can be one of us!" Mohs was slowly losing his mind.
"That damn Mohs. That man is too clingy to the Score. He will do anything to follow Yulia's Score. He becomes the Fon Master when Ion is gone." Stella sighed lightly.
"Hey! The Scorer is here!"
"I want to know my Score!"
"Let's go! They are Score reading for other people here!"
The group of people went to the crowd of people who were getting their Score read. Stella never thought some fake Scorer would do this. Ion halted all reading of the Score from the Order of Lorelei. She followed where the crowd was gathering. She is curious to know who the fake Scorer.
"Everyone gather around! This is where you get your Score reading! Follow me if you want to know your Score!" The fake Scorer announced.
The voice was oddly familiar. "That voice. Don't tell me…" Stella followed the voice as it got closer. She gasped who it was. "So, you survived, Sync. I didn't think you were the fake Scorer giving people Score reading."
"Surprised to see me alive. Well, it's your lucky day. Are you here for your Score reading?"
"What do you think? You think I came here to get my Score reading by some fake Fon Master who is hungry to follow the will of the Score. Don't be ridiculous. The Order of Lorelei ceases all reading of the Score." Stella narrowed her brows as she was getting upset.
"Sorry but the Score reading is now under The New Order of Lorelei Fon Master Mohs."
"That fatty has no rights to be a Fon Master. The reason he wanted to be a Fon Master is because wants to control people to read the Scores and have the power of Yulia. He doesn't have any Seventh Fonons in him."
"Oh, I guess you don't know. He has Seventh Fonons flowing in him."
"It is the secret arte from the Seventh Fonons that gives Seventh Fonons but it's dangerous to use it. It will cause the user to go into madness and unable to control themselves. That is what happened to Mohs."
"Guess I don't need to explain it. You already know about the Seventh Fonons and its secrets."
"Why are you doing this if you hate the Score as much as I do?"
"I'm doing this because I was told to. You're on the wrong side, Stella. Come back to us and Van will recognize our world without it."
"You're wrong. There is nothing wrong with this world. If it doesn't exist then everyone will be happy. It's clearly you who is on the wrong side, Sync."
Sync clicked his tongue. "Don't waste my time. I have a Score reading to do. You should sit and listen. All who desire a reading of the Score, follow me! All who come shall have a reading!"
"You know better than this, Sync. You are throwing your life away from some ludicrous plan by Van. You can live a better life without going through Van's plan."
"Stop it right there! The Order of Lorelei has called the cease to all Score readings!" A familiar young girl's voice appeared in the crowd.
"That hurts, Anise. From now, it won't be the old Order of Lorelei reading the Score. The Score will be read by the New Order of Lorelei and its leader, Fon Master Mohs."
"Sync," Anise turned and saw the assassin. "Stella! Why are you here? Are you back with the God-Generals?"
"Now, what kind of question is that, Anise? There is no way in hell I'll return back to the God-Generals after everything has happened to me." Stella frowned.
"Oopies! I think I hit a nerve on Stella." Anise smiled.
"If Sync is alive then Van too survived along with Lorelei inside of him. It seems Stella's theory was right. I don't know how you know of this but it helped us a lot." Jade commented.
"Shouldn't you be looking for the Jewel a bit harder? If no one finds it, we get the advantage." Sync mocked them.
"Sync, what's this New Order of Lorelei? What do you mean by Fon Master Mohs?" Anise was getting frustrated.
"Didn't Mohs tell you, our little traitor?"
Stella rolled her eyes. "That sounds the same as me being Anise's position."
"I wasn't working for him because I wanted to!" Anise shouted.
"Look, I'm not here to carry that deadweight Mohs around. Now, as I was saying before that interruption, all who Score readings, follow me."
Sync was about to leave with the people who wanted a Score reading from their Score. Anise couldn't let that happen. She couldn't let Ion's wish suffer like this.
"Hold it right there!"
Sync changed his voice to Ion's. "Anise, please let me go. You, of all people, should understand."
Everyone was surprised to hear Ion's voice from Sync. Stella never thought Sync would do something like.
"Ion?" Anise emotion changed.
Sync just laughed it off. "Don't forget. Fighting me means fighting Ion."
The assassin folded her arms. "Now, that was an asshole move you did. Mocking the dead isn't something to laugh at. Ion fought his life for peace. Just because you think Ion and yourself are the same doesn't mean anything. You two are two entire different people. Why can't you tell yourself that you are different from Ion? Is it because you are afraid?"
"Hmph! I don't need a lecture from you, traitor." Sync leaves the area with the people behind for their Score reading.
"I can't believe him. How cruel." Luke was a little bit mad.
Stella sighed deeply. "Now, we figure who was the fake Scorer. It would be best if you guys tell Astor all of this."
"That would be wise," Jade adjusted his glasses. "Now, Natalia takes Anise to a bazaar to cool herself."
"Of course," Natalia walks toward Anise. Anise was upset by what Jade said. "Let's go, Anise."
The two of them went to the bazaar as they disappeared from the distance. Stella decided to leave as well.
"Wait," Luke called out. The assassin stopped her tracks. "You should join us when we tell Astor about the fake Scorer."
Stella turned around and sighed. "All right. Let's go to Astor Mansion." She left to go to Astor Mansion.
Guy looked at Luke. "What are you thinking about, Luke?"
"I can tell that Stella is struggling and trying her best to convince Sync. I can feel what she is doing. It is a place where it hits the most. I know that she won't give up on trying. So, I think she should talk to someone about it." Luke replied.
"Luke, when did you become so generous?" Jade asked sarcastically.
"Shut up." Luke blushed lightly.
Guy knows who Stella can talk to. "I think I know who Stella can talk to. She too is depressed from losing Frings. Maybe both of them can talk freely about it."
"That might be a good idea. Stella has been wandering around finding clues." Tear said.
Luke nodded. "All right. We'll ask Stella about it."
Chapter Text
After the talk with Astor about the fake Scorer, Luke asked Stella to go with them to Baticul to talk to someone. The assassin was wondering what they were doing. He says that it could be important to you. Stella didn't mind talking to someone about her feelings. Luke said they are taking her to General Cecille.
"Oh, I know General Cecille. We ran into each other a couple times during my missions as a solo. Is there a reason why you are me to her?" She asked curiously.
"Miss Cecille lost someone dear to her during that attack of an enemy Kimlascan replicas from Mohs. Her marriage date was set and now General Frings is gone." Guy replied.
That was shocking news to Stella. "What? General Frings died. Is it because Mohs wants to cause the war between Kimlscan and Malkuth again?"
Natalia nodded. "He is using replicas to cause the war again."
Stella sighed lightly. "Mohs is very desperate to follow the Score as he wants. Now, he is the Fon Master. He can do anything but I have a feeling that he won't last long."
The Albion landed outside of Baticul. Stella got off of the airship and walked in. Everyone watched as the assassin disappeared from the distance.
"Shall we get going? We need to head to the Malkuth Empire." Jade said.
Everyone nodded as the Albino left the area.
Stella walked in the city and saw Cecille who was commanding her soldiers. She walked up to her hoping she could find the answers she needed.
"You must be General Cecille."
The Kimlscan general turned around and saw the assassin. She remembered her. "Oh, I know who you are. You were the assassin from before. What brings you here? I hope it isn't another assassinate attempt." The general was ready to launch her attack.
Stella raised her brow. "Now, why would an assassin walk up to a stranger and tell them that they are going to assassinate someone? I wouldn't do that. Anyways, I'm not here for that. I'm here to ask you something."
Cecille observed Stella. There is no threat or aura that she is here to assassinate. It is rather calming and depressing. She can feel the waves of emotions coming from Stella, but she can't like her guard down.
"What would that be?"
Stella took a deep breath and let it out. It was a little too nervous to tell her feelings. Maybe some private talk would help her. "Can we go somewhere more private?"
Cecille noticed what Stella was feeling. She smiled. "Of course. Follow me."
Cecille led the way. Stella trailed from behind.
They arrived at Cecille's Office. The place was well organized. They sat across from each other.
Everyone outside was worried about their General. They stood on their guard just in case.
"We are alone. So, what do you want to say?" Cecille continued from the conversation from before.
"Well… I have been going on a loop. My feelings for him aren't going through. I don't know if I can get through his feelings." Stella replied.
Cecille blinked in surprise then laughed. Stella looked at her confused.
"Did I say something wrong?"
Cecille shook her head. "No. I never thought an assassin would ask something like that. Sorry, I didn't mean to hurt your feelings."
"No. It's fine." Stella was enjoying the conversation.
"I understand how you feel. It was the same with Frings. We were enemies at first. I didn't have a relationship that wasn't something that I wanted as a general, but our relationship grew once we knew each other more. That was when we had our wedding date set. Now, Frings is gone. My waves of emotions hit me when I heard he was gone." Cecille depression was hitting her when she talked about Frings.
Stella feels sorry for Cecille. She lost the man she loved to the Score that Mohs wanted. "Did you and Frings have any fun time together?"
Cecille blushed heavily. "That's something personal between me and him."
Stella laughed softly. "If you are carrying his child, I'm sure he would be happy to see his child too."
Cecille smiled. "Thank you, umm…" She doesn't know the assassin's name.
"My apologies. I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Stella Valkyrie, a former God-General."
Cecille widened her eyes. She didn't think Stella was a God-General.
"If you were thinking I was God-General before we first met then I wasn't. I was a solo assassin before I joined the God-Generals."
"I see. We're going off topic. To answer your question, the answer is here." Cecille placed her hand on her chest.
Stella tilted her head. "My heart?"
The Kimlscan General nodded. "Your heart has all the answers you need. You need a little push to tell him how you really feel. If it doesn't go through him then you just need to figure out what you can do. Do everything you can to get his feelings out. He'll probably do the same."
The assassin started to think about it. She doesn't know who her heart is saying to her. She doesn't have the answer yet. "I don't know how my heart feels."
"Don't rush. It takes time for you to understand your heart. Once you know what your heart wants then you can tell your feelings to him." Cecille smiled softly.
Stella understood what Cecille was saying. "I think I understand," she stood up and bowed to her. "Thank you, General Cecille."
"You are welcome. Anything to help a friend of Princess Natalia."
A voice echoed the entire world to hear.
"Damn fool who have forgotten the Score!"
Stella and Cecille perked from the voice. They run out of the office and head outside to hear the rest.
"It's Mohs." Stella said as she glanced at the sky.
"It's me. Mohs again! Your new Fon Master of the New Order of Lorelei!" He started to laugh. "Swallowed by the Qliphoth, shrouded in miasma, the world today lies on the verge of destruction. And why is that? It is because both Kimlasca and Malkuth have abandoned Yulia's Score! False messengers have deceived both into ignoring the Score! It is my duty to protect the Score, To establish the New Order of Lorelei! We, the New Order of Loreiel, have created the Glorious Land of Eldrant from the Isle of Hod. From here, we will see that the world once more follows the Score." He laughed once again. "Furthermore, we demand reparations from the surrender of Kimlasca and Malkuth." Mohs's mind was slowly losing its control. He started coughing. " If you d-don't accept… these conditions- we will… use force! The Order shall dispatch a messenger to both nations. I eagerly await your responses. C-citizen, I say it is y-your duty to r-rise up against a-any who rejects the Score! Justice lies innn Yulia's Score alone!"
Mohs laughed as his voice disappeared from the skies.
"That bastard. He is causing a panic to the world to bring back the Score. So desperate to follow the Score until the very end. Both nations will reject the Score and will not follow the New Order of Lorelei."
Cecille glanced at Stella. "I shall return to my duties and make sure nothing happens to Kimlasca. Stella, I hope you find your answer and be careful." She leaves Stella, returning to her duty as general.
Stella sighed deeply. "I should leave and head back to St. Binah to check on Arietta." The assassin leaves Baticul and calls Rythala.
The griffin arrived flying down. Stella jumps and lands on Rythala's back as she heads to St. Binah.
Stella returned to the Inn where Arietta was waiting. Arietta heard the door opened and see the assassin walk in. She was happy to see her.
"It seems Mohs has made his move. Now, he is a Fon Master. He can do whatever he wants." Arietta told Stella.
"Yeah. I know. This isn't what Ion wants. He wants a world without people reading the Score. We're going to help Ion archive his dream." Stella promised Ion.
After all, he is the one who helped Stella. She can not forget what he did to help her move on with her purpose. A purpose to find the truth of the world and Van's plan.
Arietta nodded. "Same here. I want to help Ion's dream too. He did everything to help make the world a better place. I know what he wanted."
A sudden knock on the door. Stella wasn't aware of any visitors coming.
"The Dark Wings are here from Asch's order." A voice said from the other side.
Stella blinked. "Oh, what did he say?"
"He said he is going to the Tower of Rem to save the world from the miasma. He wanted to tell you to go to Mushroom Road."
"I was planning to go to Mushroom Road after this, but I don't know what he wants from there." Stella was a little confused about what Asch needs in Mushroom Road.
"He said that it is probably something you are searching for. After that, he wants you to meet with him at the Absorption Gate. I shall take my leave." The Dark Wings leave the inn.
Stella was curious now. The Mushroom Road is full of aggressive monsters. That place was once where the laboratory was located, but it was destroyed thanks to Van. Who knows if Van kept that laboratory active or not. He could have lied to the assassin.
Stella has no choice but to go see it for herself. Van is known for manipulating people's emotions.
"Shall we get going, Arietta?" She asked.
Arietta nodded. "Yes, but I don't have my doll with me. I can't fight with it."
Stella casted something from her hands. Arietta watches as the assassin was casting. A doll appears and Stella grabs it. The doll looks brand new. It looks different from her old doll. It is all black, the eyes are blue, the mouth has a creepy smile, small wings behind its back, little devil horns and devil tail. Stella gives it to Arietta and smiles.
"This is a gift from me. I hope you like it."
Arietta grabbed the new doll and smiled happily. This is the first gift she ever got. "Thank you, Stella. I will cherish this gift forever. Now, I can help Stella and defeat Van."
"Let's go." Stella leaves the inn. Arietta trailed behind her. They appeared out of St. Binah. Apollo and Rythala were waiting for them. Ace was on Stella's shoulder.
Arietta noticed a new friend. She walked up to the griffin and examined her. The pinked haired girl sees scars on Rythala's back. She feels sorry for her.
"Who is your new friend here? She has scars on her back."
"That's Rythala. She wanted to join us before we saved you." Stella told Arietta Rythala's story. "That's what happened to her."
Arietta petted Rythala. "You're going to enjoy your new family now. So those bullies won't hurt you anymore." The griffin squeaks happily. "Sorry. We should get going."
"It's fine. Mushroom Road here we go."
Ace transformed to his original form. Arietta didn't know Ace could transform. He was a beautiful phoenix. Apollo went up to the pink haired girl and she climbed on his back. Everyone climbed on Ace's back. The red phoenix started spreading his wings and took off into the skies to Mushroom Road.
They arrived at Mushroom Road. The place was covered in deep purple mist. It was hard to see and can easily get lost. The monsters in the area are really aggressive due to the mist. Either Arietta and Stella can't convince the monsters to not attack them.
They walked in through Mushroom Road carefully. Anything will attack them. They went deeper in. They heard voices like someone shouting at something. The both of them went behind a rock and peek their heads out.
Stella knew immediately what it was. It was the laboratory. One of the laboratories she mentioned to Van, but it seems that one is still around. Probably the last one.
"No surprise that Van left this one alive."
Arietta said. "Van said he will keep this one alive to further his research for Hod and replicas."
Stella sighed deeply. "Of course. Desperate to change the world his way."
"This is the only one left. Since it is hidden in Mushroom Road."
"I'm surprised they were able to get monsters away from the laboratory. They're probably some sort of barrier to keep monsters away, but it won't last long," Stella looked at Arietta. "Have Van been able to communicate with them?"
The pink haired girl tried to remember. "Umm… Van contracts them for data when he needs them. I don't know if there are any Oracle Knights."
"Interesting. I know a way to get inside. Follow me." Stella led the way.
Everyone followed Stella from behind. She found a hidden entrance behind some ivys. Stella glanced at everyone behind her. They nodded. They were ready to go. Stella lockpicked the door. She immediately unlocked the door and opened it. They started to sneak in.
Stella looked at every corner. There she sees a few Oracle Knights standing on guard. She quickly deals with them silently with needles. It puts them to sleep for a while. As the knights fell asleep, they sneaked deeper in the laboratory.
They went to a dark room. Stella observed the area. It was a big room. It was odd that this laboratory had a big room. She sees something slowly moving in the darkness. It was no original monster. They need to find light to see the creature. She quickly looked around and saw a red button glowing.
"Arietta, moved away from the door and ran to the right. Apollo, u do the same and protect Arietta. Ace with me. Rythala, distract the creature in the middle." Stella ordered.
Arietta didn't know what Stella saw but obeyed. Apollo followed Arietta. Rythala did as she was instructed. Stella and Ace went through ahead to the button. Stella quickly pressed the button. The lights turned on the room. The lights reveal the creature. It was a wyvern. Wyverns are rare. It is impossible to find them unless they created one.
Wyvern roared through the entire area. It caused the whole place to shake.
"How is it possible?! There's no way we're able to capture a wyvern," Stella was shocked. She thought of one possible way they were able to get one. Her dad. He is a mad scientist who only cares about his research more than his own family. "Why would you capture a rare wyvern? What are you planning, father?"
The wyvern started to attack as if it was on a rampage. It is probably due to being in the facility for so long. It was trying to get out of the place but it was protected by a barrier. Arietta and Stella couldn't communicate with it. Maybe it was a language barrier. Wyvern has an ancient tongue where only dragons can only communicate with each other.
The wyvern started to breathe out fire. Causing the facility to be on fire. Everyone inside started to run. The laboratory was starting to fall down.
Stella quickly got Arietta and escaped. The laboratory was completely burned down. The wyvern either was buried or escaped. The barrier is gone. They don't need to worry about the laboratory anymore.
"The laboratory is gone. We don't need to worry about it anymore. Now, we need to go to the Absorption Gate. Asch said that he will meet us there." Stella was facing the direction of the Absorption Gate.
Arietta asked. "Is that where Van and the others will be?"
"Who knows. There is one way to find out. Ace!" Stella called out. Ace transformed into his phoenix form. Arietta, Stella and Apollo climbed on his back. Ace started to fly off. Rythala followed suit from behind.
They arrived at the Absorption Gate. They see Van who is alive and back, Legretta, Mohs and a replica of Ion at the entrance. The replica Ion started to read something from a stone. Stella searched around for Sync who wasn't there. Probably still inside.
Stella couched as she whispered to Arietta. "Stay here. I don't want anyone seeing you alive."
Arietta clutched her hands on the doll. "I don't want to see you hurt, Stella. You're my friend. I'll help too. I'll come in when you are in danger." she promised.
Stella can tell that Arietta made up her mind. "All right. Wait here, until the right time," Arietta nodded. "Apollo with me. Ace and Rythala stay with Arietta."
Stella took out her daggers and fusion them together into a bow. She used her ice arte to turn it into an arrow. Then aimed at Van and the others and shot her arrow. Van quickly turned around and cutted down the arrow. Van turned to the source of the shot. Apollo growled.
"Stella. You are alive. I was told that you die. No matter. How about you join me?"
"No thanks. This world doesn't need to be replaced, but by judging you. It seems that you absorbed Lorelei inside of you. Are you going to use it to control your replica world?" Stella hid her weapon as she moved her hand.
They were confused about what she was doing. Van smirked. "So, you're going to use your real power against me. The power you hidden from us."
"There's no point in hiding it. I'm no longer a God-General. I'm free to do anything. You guys will be the first to see the power," the assassin snapped her finger.
Van and Legretta readied themselves. Mohs can feel seventh fonons on Stella. He wanted powers like her. Maybe he absorbed her seventh fonons to gain her powers. Stella summoned circles at her side. It casts light artes without the user casting it. Van was able to block it. Legretta dodged it.
Van was interested in Stella's power. "Your power is intense. I'm curious to know where you got it from. It would help me with my replica world. "
Stella scoffed. "Save your words for another time, Van. You will never get your hands on these powers. Your replica world won't see it."
Legretta immediately attacked Stella. Stella casted ice arte from her hand to block the bullets. The quick decided close combat against Stella. She thinks that Stella doesn't know any. Stella knows that Legretta is wanted. Legretta swung her leg towards Stella. The black haired assassin grabbed her leg then twisted Legretta's leg to lose her balance. Legretta was shocked that Stella knows hand to hand combat. She underestimated her. The light arte was created again. Legretta gets hit as she steps back from Stella. Legretta shots more bullets at Stella. The assassin sighed lightly. She snapped her fingers and stopped the bullet mid air. Then send the bullets back to them. Van reflects them all. Legretta dodged them. Apollo charged in. Van swung his sword against Apollo. The liger was able to dodge it.
"Your power is incredible. It is an unfortunate waste to kill you. If you show this power beforehand, I would of treat you like all of us here. I'll just have to make a replica out of you too, Stella."
"I would like to see you try, Van. My power isn't your toy to play with."
As Stella is focused on Van, Sync appears and attacks her from behind. Stella was able to block his attack with her arms. Sync didn't think that Stella could do close combat. She pushed him off of her then she kicked back at him. The tempest was able to dodge it and landed next to Van.
"Didn't think you would know hand to hand combat. You are really something, Stella. It would help with Van and his plan." Sync said unfazed.
The assassin stayed quiet then sighed lightly. She was tired of telling them that she wasn't going to help them. She likes the world they are in. One without the Score and able to live freely.
"Don't waste your breath. She isn't going to join us. I'm planning to make a replica of her once I get her DNA. That replica will be more sufficient than the original." Van reminded Sync.
Stella frowned. "Are you trying to clone me just like Ion? Create as many replicas of me to find the one who has the closest abilities to the original. It would be the same situation as the other Ion replicas. They will be cast away the same as them."
Sync didn't think much about that until Stella mentioned. If Van creates replicas of Stella, it would be the same as him. All of the replicas will be thrown away. He doesn't know if he wants Van to create replicas of Stella.
Stella glanced at the replica of Ion. 'Using another Ion replica. How low can these guys go?'
Mohs stared at Stella. "You! Yyyyour powerz izzzz immenzzz! You havveeeee the seventh fononzzz power! Give it toooo meeeee!"
"A desperate man who wants to be Fon Master with the power of greed. You can't handle Seven Fonons. Look at yourself. Your body can't handle it. You still can't read Score. Using a replica of Ion proves that you are not a Fon Master. I will never submit you and your humble clutch to the Score, Mohs." Stella scowled at Mohs.
The group appeared out of the entrance. They see Stella and Apollo face off against Van, the God Generals and Mohs. Stella launched another attack as she took out her dagger. Van was readied himself. The assassin swung her dagger. Van quickly sidesteps the attack. Stella quickly swung back from his direction. Van did another side step to attack. Stella got an ankle break from him. Van took the chance to grab her by the throat. Everyone watched as Stella struggle to get out.
"Stella!" Tear called her. "We need to help her!"
"We can't. He is using her as a shield." Guy said as he had his hand on the hilt of his sword.
Jade couldn't believe himself. "When in the state he is in, he was able to predict her movement. Then took a chance to get her where her weakness is."
Luke shouted. "Stop it! Let her go, Master!"
"She is a threat to me and my plans. Killing her is necessary. Then I can create a replica of her with her immense powers. Her powers are very useful to the plan." Van tightens his grip on her throat.
Stella groaned in pain as she couldn't get out from his strength. Arietta gasped as she saw Stella in trouble. She quickly cast an arte.
"Bloody Howl!"
The arte appeared in between Van and Stella. It caught him by surprise that he let go of Stella. The arte was familiar. Anise knows whose arte it was. Natalia quickly went to Stella's aid and healed her. The pink haired girl appeared before them. Everyone was surprised to see Arietta alive.
"Arietta?!" Anise said, still shocked.
"Arietta, you're alive too. Largo told me you died. Anyhow, you're alive. Come back to me and I will give you what Ion wanted." Van reached his hand to her.
Arietta shook her head. "No. You're a big liar. You lied about everything. About Ion and using me for your plan. I'm not your puppet, Van."
Van glanced at Stella then sighed. "You are really a nuisance. Once my plan is completed, you guys won't be able to do anything to stand in my way."
Mohs chuckled. "III'll beee takinggggg heeer."
Luke stepped in to stop Mohs. "Stop it!"
Something triggered from Mohs. His mind was like it was going to explode. He started to float away as he moved around like crazy.
"Hyperresonance? But I can't see how that…" Legretta was confused about what is going on.
Van walked up to Luke. "Lorelei is growing restless inside of me. Something else is causing it," he grabbed Luke's arm then something triggered from inside his body. He groaned to keep Lorelei from getting out. "No! It's the Jewel of Lorelei. It's awakening Lorelei!"
Van shouted as he couldn't handle Lorelei's powers. It caused a flash and pushed everyone nearby. As the flash died down, Van was out of breath to keep Lorelei from being released. He was able to suppress him.
"It would seem that Van was unable to contain Lorelei's power within his body." Asch said.
Legretta was worried about Van. "Commandant! What happened to Lorelei?!"
Van catches his breath. "I'm fine. I was able to suppress Lorelei's power."
"We should return to Eldrant for the sake of your body."
Van agreed. "Let's return to Eldrant," he stared at Asch and Luke. "Come after me to the ocean of death. I shall ask you once more to join me."
Tear called out to her brother. "Wait, Van!"
"The next time we meet, I will show no mercy, Mystearica." He promised.
Stella glazed at Sync. She promised that she will do anything to get him on her side. Even if it risk giving her own life. She doesn't want to lose him. He was important to her.
"We will meet again, Stella. Next time, I won't hesitate to kill you." Sync whistled to call the monsters to get them to leave. Carrying them back to Eldurant.
Stella watched as they leave. She mumbled. "That won't happen. I'm going to do anything to stop you from sacrificing yourself. If it means getting myself killed."
"Now, they know where the Jewel is located. You should be careful. They won't hesitate to kill you." Asch said to Luke.
"But where was the Jewel. It is impossible for the Jewel to appear out of nowhere to cause this much power." Jade said.
Asch turned to the group. "He had it with him. The idiot absorbed the Jewel inside of him," he glanced at Stella. "What are you going to do?"
Stella stood up and replied, "You know the answer to that. I'm going to Eldrant. We all need to stop Van from creating his world." Arietta agreed.
Asch walked away. "I'll see you later."
As Asch left, Anise went up to Stella. She was curious about how Arietta is alive.
"Stella, how is Arietta alive? We were battling at the Cheagle Woods for a final battle then she just disappeared from the flash."
Stella crosses her arms. "I didn't want Arietta to lose her life from something that Van kept hiding. Knowing that Van is just using her for her communication with monsters and controlling them is what he wants for his plan. That is why I saved her. Not only that, she is the only friend I made when I was God General."
Arietta nodded. "Stella is my friend too."
Anise understands what Arietta went through. With this, she can understand Arietta and be friends with her too. She turned to the replica Ion.
"Should we take him too. He has nowhere to go."
"Let's take him. Mayhap to Daath?" Luke suggested.
"You should come with us, Stella." Tear said.
Stella shook her head. "I think it is best for us to part ways. We will meet in Eldurant later. Let's go, Arietta." The young pink haired girl followed from behind.
Stella called out her monster friend. Ace and Rythala appeared. Ace transformed into his form. They leave the Absorption Gate. Stella needed time to adjust herself as she gets ready to fight Sync in Eldurant. It is going to be a hard fight to get through him. A sacrifice herself is the price she will pay to get him on her side.
Chapter Text
Stella and Arietta stayed at Belkend for tomorrow. It is going to be a big and final day in Eludrant. Night has fallen. The assassin glanced at Eludrant. It is her only chance to tell Sync that he isn't a pawn in a chess game. She was afraid that if he was gone, what would she do. She would make a mistake for not telling her feelings. She will carry that burden forever for the person she loved. She can't fail this. Getting Sync is going to be a difficult one to convince.
Arietta sees Stella looking at Eldurant. She goes up to her to get her some company then sits next to her. Stella noticed Arietta's presence.
"You should be sleeping. Tomorrow is going to be the final day." Stella said.
Arietta hugged her doll. "I do but you look sad and lonely, Stella. Is it because of Sync?"
Stella stays silent for a few moments then speaks. "Mayphas. He is one of the hardest to get through. He doesn't care about anything, even himself. I'm going to remind him that he isn't Ion and he is himself."
Arietta understood a bit what Stella was saying. "It's kind of like me with the original Ion. I was always close to him. But there were some things I wish I knew what was going on in his mind. I remembered he treated me like some kind pet. I didn't understand what he meant. Now, I understand. He was his pet."
Stella was shocked. The original Ion wasn't nice. He was wearing a mask to hide his other personality. Being nice to the public then changes once he is alone. Calling Arietta his pet can mean one thing. He too hated the Score. It was just a guess from Stella, but what made him hate the Score. Was it because the Score is a lie to the world? Did that also mean Ion was helping Van? To create a world without the Score.
There was not much about the original Ion. That was her original plan. To find the truth about the original Ion. With Arietta talking about him, she got a few hints. If she could go back in time to know about him, but that is impossible.
"You have been through a lot. I'm happy to meet you too if Van and Ion didn't take you in." Stella smiled.
Arietta smiles then nods. "Yeah. I wanted to see the world Ion wants. I'm going to help him."
Arietta has started to change. She understands what she needs to do. Now, she knows the truth about the original. She will do anything to achieve the goal that replica Ion wanted. A world that is peaceful and without the Score.
"Mayhaps, helping Anise. She is aiming to be a Fon Master for Ion's sake. You two need to make up and become friends. That is something Ion will be happy to see. Two of his previous fon guardians working together as friends."
"Yeah. If Anise and I become friends then everyone will be happy."
It was getting late. Sleep is important for them once they go to Eldurant. They need to replenish their energy for the last battle.
Stella stood up and headed inside the inn. "Let's go and get some sleep. Tomorrow will determine whose world will deter the faith of our lives."
Arietta did the same as she followed from behind.
In Eldurant, Van, Sync and Legretta were the last survivors. They were waiting for the group to come. They did one last gathering until tomorrow. It is going to hell in Eldurant.
"Commandant, how is your health?" Legretta asked.
"It is much better. Now, I'm absorbing Lorelei's power within me. My new body will take awhile to get used to. The only thing stopping from my plan is Luke, Asch, Stella, Tear and the others. This will be our last battle for my plan to rise against them. I promise I will have a world without the Seventh Fonons. Everyone can live in peace with our replica world."Van glanced at the moon once last time. He knows what he must do. It is either his world or Luke and Asch's. "Sync, make sure that Stella is dead. She won't see my world once she is gone."
Sync crossed his arms. "Don't worry. I'll make sure she won't. Once the Score vanishes, everything will restart their lives."
"Good. Tomorrow is going to be our last. Be prepared."
"Of course. Anything to stop them from seeing your plan." Legretta promised.
Sync stays silent. He was thinking about what Stella said earlier. If the original Stella is gone, replicas are going to replace her. He doesn't know if he should kill her. Nothing is going to change. It would be like him. A replica that is going to be Van's pawn in his chess game. He needs Stella's power to keep the balance of the world. But if Stella isn't going to join them then she needs to vanish. Sync promised Van that he would kill her.
The next morning everyone is getting ready for the final battle. Stella is ready to go. Arietta was too. They leave Belkend to meet with Apollo and the others. They were waiting for them to arrive.
"It is time. The final battle against Van. Are you guys ready?" Stella asked with confidence. Everyone nodded. "Let's go. To Eludrant."
Ace transformed into his form. Everyone jumped on his back. Ace took off into the skies.
They arrived at Eludrant, but for some reason, Eludrant was on the ground. It seems that the other arrived before them. Ace ascended down. Everyone jumped off his back. There was a horde of replica Oracle Knights guarding the entrance. It won't be easy to get through.
"We have to fight to get through these replicas. Not only that, there are a horde of them. Fighting these off will slow us down but this is the only way in," Stella turned to the group. "If the situation is dire, leave. We can't lose any more lives."
Everyone nodded. They all charged into attack the replica Oracle Knights. They didn't hesitate to kill them. The Oracle Knights charged in to attack them.
Stella was so fast that she was able to wipe a third of the knights. More Oracle Knights keep coming out of the entrance. It is like an endless loop of them. They endlessly attack like ants. An Oracle Knight was able to stab Stella from the back on her left hip. Stella groaned from the pain then killed the knight that stabbed her.
"Damn it! That was careless of me!" Stella covered the wounded as she heals.
Arietta saw Stella injured. "Stella, are you okay?"
"I'm fine. Worry yourself."
For a few minutes, all of the Oracle Knights were all dead. They were exhausted. Arietta didn't have any energy to keep going. Stella noticed that Arietta was tired. She turned to Apollo.
"Apollo takes away Arietta and takes care of her."
Apollo obeyed his master as he picked up Arietta on his back. Arietta shook her head.
"No. I can keep going. I don't want to leave you."
"I'm sorry. It looked like you were about to pass out. You won't be able to make it to Van," Stella paused. "Airetta promised me this. Watch over Sync and Apollo."
The pink haired girl was afraid of Stella losing her life. She didn't want to lose her friend. Arietta glanced at her eyes and saw that her eyes were serious. This is something Stella needed to do alone. Arietta can feel that Stella needs to talk to Sync alone. She clutched the doll Stella gave her.
"O-okay. I promise."
As Arietta was ready, Apollo left the area. Stella turned to Ace. Ace got the message and got on her shoulder. Stella turned to Eldurant and took a deep breath.
"Let's go. I need to hurry before Luke and the others reach him." Stella and Ace run inside of Eludrant.
The assassin arrived at the top of Eludrant. It was filled with monsters but for some reason the monsters let her through. Arietta told them beforehand that Stella isn't a threat. She can hear voices as she gets near. It is probably Tear and the others talking to Sync. Stella needs to stop them before they fight each other.
She arrives above them. They were about to fight. Stella jumped down from above and got in between them. Everyone stepped back as they saw the assassin.
"Stella!" Tear called.
Stella was too focused on Sync. She knows what she needs to do. "Let me handle him. You guys go ahead and stop Van."
"Let's stop Sync together." Anise said.
"No. You're going to waste your time. You guys need to free Lorelei. This is my problem to deal with." Stella's voice was sharp and serious.
Jade understood her. He can see through her. "Let's go. We can't let this opportunity go to waste."
Luke nodded. "Right. Be careful."
Stella slightly turned her head to the group. "I can't guarantee I will make it alive."
With that, the group left. Leaving Stella and Sync face to face. Ace gets off of Stella's shoulder and flies around. The silence between the two as they stared at each other. Stella didn't want to fight Sync. She wants to settle this without conflict but in Sync's eyes. He doesn't care if he dies or not.
"Why are you helping Van with this project? Is it because you are a replica of the original?"
Sync resorted. "No. Not just because I'm a replica. I'm not like Ion. He is the naive one. He thinks following the Score believes in people's future. I'm the opposite. That is why I followed Van with this project. To erase the Seventh Fonon. I don't care who it was as long as the Seventh Fonon truly disappears."
"Everything we did was nothing to you. You should at least gain something from it."
"I told you before. I am nothing. Nothing but a ghost of the original Fon Master."
That made Stella's heart sting. "You didn't really mean that. Everything we went through together met something for me. It was like I had someone with me. Someone close to me that I care about the most. Like you, I thought the same thing. I thought I was nothing too. Killing is what I did. Throwing myself into danger because I wanted to die. But when I met the God Generals, Ion, Tear, Anise and everyone else. That changed me. I gain my purpose to continue to live. You are the same Sync. You can change too."
Sync scoffed. "Say what you want. Nothing you say will go through me."
Sync started to attack Stella. Stella quickly responds to his attacks. She was still wounded from the Oracle Knights. She didn't completely heal the wound. Sync noticed Stella was slow. He took advantage of her slow movement. He kicked to the side but Stella was able to block it with her he kicked from the opposite side when the wound was. Stella couldn't block that as she got hit. She groaned from wound slowly reopened. She endured the pain for now. She took out her weapon and swung it. Sync dodged it as he leapt back.
"What happened? You're not yourself." Sync smirked.
"Why do you care? I thought you don't care about these things. It sounds like you do care." Stella can feel the pain from the wound rising.
"Save your softness excuses. I don't have time to play games with you. Ending you will make it quick. After that, I'll go and stop them."
"So, you are going to forget what I said to you. Back in the Chapel and Radiation Gate." Stella wanted Sync to know that he isn't just a replica but a human being.
Sync remembered what Stella said back in the Chapel. A minor echo in his mind. "I don't care if you are a replica or not. You're a human being. It doesn't matter how you look like or how you were born into this world even if you are a replica. Your face doesn't matter even if you have the same face as the original. Don't say that. You're not a piece of meat. You're more than that. I see your potential. Who cares what anyone else says about you. Replica or human, you have feelings like me. We can work together." He ignored it then laughed it off. "Mayhaps I should remind you that I don't care about anything, even you."
Stella knew this was going to happen. She took out a rock she got from Spinoza and Aston to upgrade. It is a stone that Dist used on Mohs to gain Seventh Fonons."It looks like I don't have a choice. If this is able to convince him then I would rather die for it." She mumbled.
The tempest was confused about what was going on. "How long are you going to stall? You're wasting my time to kill Anise and the others from reaching Van!"
Stella gives a small weak sad smile. "Even if I kill myself to reach you. I won't regret it. But mayhaps you will. You will understand the feeling of human emotions when I'm gone and you are still alive," she showed the stone to Sync. Sync narrowed his eyes. He knows what it is. "You know what this is. And you know what I'm about to do with it."
"You wouldn't use it. You know how dangerous it is. Your fonons will go out of control. You will lose your life for it."
Stella glanced at the stone as she clutched it. "I know the risk. That is why I'm going to use it if it kills me. You're not going to stop me."
"You're joking. You are a fool if you do that." Sync was getting a little worried. Something that Sync never felt but he ignored.
"Foolish I may be but I'm following my heart. Because I care about you, Sync. I wouldn't be using this if you would listen." Stella absorbed the Seventh Fonons from the stone. She can feel the Seventh Fonon inside. It was too much to handle but managed to control it. She doesn't know how long she can hold it. "Crimson Flare!"
The arte created a huge sphere of fire above Sync. Sync quickly dodged it before it engulfed in a pillar of fire. He never saw such powerful arte. Stella is a dangerous person to deal with. He can see why Van wants her power and why Stella left. She doesn't want her powers to be used for someone's goals.
"Divine Saber!"
Stella was casting a lot of powerful artes. Sync dodged them all but he can't dodge forever. He needs to find an opening to attack her. Stella threw her dagger to Sync but instead of hitting him it landed next to him. He was wondering what she was thinking. The dagger casted lightning on the ground as it spread then exploded. Sync covered himself from the attack.
He took advantage of the smoke as he disappeared. The smoke disappeared as Sync was gone. Stella looked around the area to find the Tempest. A shadow appeared above her. She used her hand to block Sync's kick then grabbed his leg and threw him. Sync collides on the pillar then falls down to the ground.
Sync was out of breath. He can't find any opening. The Seven Fonons are rising stronger. Stella can feel the fonons inside of her slowly separating. She looked at her hand as it was disappearing. Sync can see her hand slowly disappearing. He can see Stella isn't afraid of dying.
"The fonons inside of you are separating you. Are you not afraid of dying?"
Stella sighed lightly. "To be honest, I wanted to die when I was younger. Being a slave to do their dirty work. Killing anyone that is a threat to them. I was tired of being a puppet. It is the same with Van. Using me as a puppet. I don't want to be treated as one. All I wanted was to be free from their grasp. But I do have to thank Van for giving me some freedom. But he too was seeing me as his pawn. Now, I'm free. All of the friends and people I met," she glared at Sync. "And I don't want to lose something that is precious. He thinks he is garbage to be born into this world. But what I see in him is a human who wants someone to see him as who he is. The face doesn't matter who you are. You are you. You don't need to be like the original. Who cares what others think. Just be yourself. You have a heart like a human. You breathe like a human. You can feel emotions like a human. You are a human. I don't care what people say and think about you. As long as you have someone who cares who you are then that is all it matters."
The assassin's emotions were dwelling from all of that. She doesn't know if it will go through him. Sync didn't know what to say. He never had someone who cared about him. Something in him wants to apologize. His body never felt this much wave of emotions. After a few minutes, Stella's body was rising up like it was going to explode. She fell down to her knee as her vision was getting blurry. Her body was kicking her stomach as if she needed to puke. Then she puked out blood from her mouth. It is from the massive fonons she absorbed from the stone. She was at her limit.
Sync sees Stella cough out blood. For the first time, he felt fear. Something he never felt before.
"Damnit! I don't think my body can hold on much long. If I use this last powerful arte then my body will slowly disappear. Final Judgement!"
A powerful arte was cast down from the skies. A large pillar of light came down to the area. It widened itself to cause an area of effect. This made everything inside break. Not only that, Eldurant started to shake. The place is about to fall. It seems that Luke and the others were able to beat Van.
Sync was injured from the powerful arte. Stella was out of breath as her body slowly disappeared. One of the piece structures fell from above as it was going to crush Sync. Stella quickly got up, pushed Sync out of the way and crushed her from below. Sync watched Stella get crushed. He didn't know what to do but his instinct kicked in to save her. It was impossible when Eludrant was falling. Ace was still there, flew to Sync and grabbed him away from the place.
As Eludrant was falling, a strange aura appeared around Stella. It was absorbing the massive fonons inside her. The power removed the large pillar above her. Stella woke up as she looked around what happened as Eldurant was still falling. The aura called to her. She knew who it was.
"Lorelei? You saved me? Why?" Lorelei spoke to her in an ancient language. He gave her another chance of life. "Thank you, Lorelei. Take care of Luke and Asch."
Lorelei disappeared in thin air. Stella stood up as she needed to get out. She was still injured.
Outside of Eludrant, everyone got out of Eludrant. Arietta sees Sync with Ace but Stella isn't around. Arietta was feeling lonely without Stella around. She goes up to Sync.
"Are you okay, Sync?" Arietta asked.
Sync didn't respond to her. He glanced at Eludrant to see a sign of Stella anywhere.
A voice called from afar. "Sync?!"
Both of them turned to the source of the voice. It was Anise who called him. The group was surprised to see him alive. They looked around and noticed Stella isn't here.
"Where is Stella?" Natalia asked.
Sync didn't know what to say to them. He knows that Stella is gone. It is going to haunt him forever. Apollo picked up a familiar scent and ran. From a distance, they see someone coming to them. As the figure got closer, Sync gasped. It was Stella. She survived. Apollo ran up to the master and rubbed his affection towards her. He missed her. Arietta gasped happily as she ran down. She gave Stella a hug then tears were coming out her eyes. Sync slowly walked toward her. Stella sees Sync coming to her.
"How are you still alive? I saw you got crushed." Sync was worried but hid the voice of worries.
Stella shrugged. "Lorelei saved me. He gave me another chance at life. The world is free."
A pillar of light appeared from Eludrant. Lorelei is free. Releasing himself from the world of the Score.
Anise goes up to Stella. She was curious how she was able to get Sync not to kill himself. "Stella, how did you do it?"
Jade smiled. "That is something that only the two of them know."
Anise pouted. "That doesn't mean they can't tell me anything."
"I'm glad that you are safe." Natalia said.
"I hope you didn't sacrifice yourself to save the one you loved." Tear said with a worried voice.
Stella nodded. "Thank you everyone. I'm fine." Out of the blue, Stella fainted. Sync quickly caught her in his arms.
"Stella!" Arietta and Anise called out.
The assassin was so exhausted that she fell asleep. Everyone was relieved that Stella was only sleeping.
"Everyone here is exhausted from the fight. We earn ourselves a rest." Guy said.
"We should take her to Belkend to examine her body." Sync suggested.
Everyone was confused why Stella needed to go to Belkend.
Jade adjusted his glasses in curiosity. "Is there a reason why she needs to go to Belkend?"
Sync sighed lightly. He told them everything that happened during their fight. Natalia, Anise and Arietta were shocked. Tear understand what Stella did. She did it for the one she loved. Jade and Guy never thought Stella would do something extreme. Jade knows that Stella already knew the risk.
"It would be wise. We don't know if her fonons are stable or not."
"I'll take her here. It is my fault. She wouldn't be in that state if I did listen." Sync was blaming himself for everything. Stella risks everything to get him from throwing himself away.
Anise never saw Sync blaming himself. He's never like this. He is usually stubborn and doesn't care about anything. It seems that Stella was able to get through him.
"I'll go with you. I promise Stella to watch over you." Arietta glared at Sync.
Sync didn't stop her. He lifts Stella into his arms in a bridal style. Arietta asked Ace to transform. The phoenix transformed to his form. No one would ever guess Ace would have a big form. Sync, Arietta and Apollo got on Ace's back then he took off into the skies. Rythala followed from behind.
At nightfall, Belkend was restless. The doctors examined Stella and her condition. The doctors said that her fonons are stable. She just needs to rest from the wounds and exhaustion. The doctors also told Sync to rest to heal his injuries. Sync didn't decline the offer. He wanted to be with Stella who is sleeping peacefully.
He watches Stella asleep from the side. Ace was on Sync's shoulder. Apollo is with Arietta who is sleeping. Sync doesn't want to sleep until Stella wakes up.
Stella started to move around. Sync got his attention. He was hoping she would wake up.
Stella slowly opened her eyes. Her vision was blurry at first then it got clear. She sees someone next to her. It was Sync. He had a worried look on his face.
"How are you feeling?"
Stella stood up slowly as she used her arms to raise herself up. "I'm fine. Where am I?"
"Belkend. To examine your body to see if your fonons are stable. The doctor said that you are fine. Just need to rest from your wounds."
Stella observed Sync. "You said do the same. You took some serious damage."
"I'm fine. These injuries don't matter to me." Sync ignored his wounds.
Both of them glanced at each other's eyes. Stella turned away. As she smiled, "Don't be selfish, Sync. We need to rest."
Sync usually declined everything. He hated things like that but now, he slowly started to change.
"All right. I won't make you worry." Sync promised as he stood up and toward the door. He stopped mid way then slightly turned his head. "Good night."
Stella chuckled. "How unusual for you. You never say that."
Sync would scoff here but shrugged. "I could be blaming you." He backfires.
"Likewise."
That is all he needed to hear. Sync leaves the room. Ace leaves Sync's shoulder and flies to Stella's shoulder. As it got quiet, she looked at her hand then turned it into a fist. She can't stay here. She feels like she needs to leave.
"Ace, can you stay at his side? I know you will protect him on my watch," Ace nodded. "There is something I need to do. I don't know what it is. But I need to do this alone. Promise that you don't tell Arietta about this."
Ace can't deny his master order. He promises her he will protect Sync for her sake. He told her that it will make it worse if she leaves them both behind.
"I don't think they need to worry about me. This is something I need to do. Like something calling me."
Stella got off of bed. Her wounds weren't fully healed. It was stinging her like a thousand needles. She decided to write a letter.
For a few minutes, she was finished and gave it to Ace to hold it. Ace worried for his master. Stella told him that she will take Apollo with her. Stella gave Ace one last pet before setting out.
Stella leaves Belkend. She whistled to call Apollo. The liger arrived as he bows to her. Apollo was curious why his master called him.
"Do you want to come with me, Apollo? There is something I need to do." Apollo nodded. He will follow his master anywhere she goes. He asked about Ace. "Ace is going to stay with Sync. I'm sure that Ace will keep an eye on him. Sync has Ace to remember me. Let's go."
Stella walked toward her new adventure with Apollo. She doesn't know what she will encounter.
The next morning, Sync went to Stella's room and noticed she wasn't here. He sees Ace holding a letter under his talons. Sync walked towards the bird and grabbed the letter to read it. Then he crushed the letter.
"Why? Why would she do this?" Sync mumbled.
Ace gave him a soft cry as he was telling him that Stella has something to do. Sync slightly understands him.
Anise arrived with Arietta. They noticed that Stella was gone. They asked Sync. He told them he didn't know, then showed them the letter. Anise grabbed it and read it. Arietta read it as well.
"She left because she had something to do. Why didn't she tell us?" Anise glared at the letter.
Ace flies on Sync's shoulder and tells Arietta what happened. Arietta held her doll tightly.
"He said that it is important. And shouldn't worry about her. I-I don't know if that is the right call," she looked at Sync who was about to shout. He held his emotions. Shouting isn't going to help him. He doesn't know what to do. "Stella told me to watch Sync. We have someone we care about."
Anise doesn't know what to do. Sync has nowhere to go. Same with Arietta. Then she had an idea. It might work. She just prays it does.
"So… I have something for you two," Arietta was listening. The same with Sync but he didn't care much. "Since I am going to be Fon Master soon. I want you guys to reform the Oracle Knights with your help."
Sync sighed lightly as he folded his arms. "I have no reason to help you nor the Oracle Knights. Everything is in the past. There's no point for me to join."
Anise shrugged. "But you have nowhere to go. It is the same with Arietta. The only one who will take you in is probably Emperor Peony. Overall, Stella doesn't want to see you like this."
She isn't wrong. If Stella was still around, she would tell him to be nice to Anise. He would have obeyed her. He wants to find Stella but he doesn't know where to start. He has only one way to find her.
"Fine. I'll help you. But this doesn't mean my search for Stella isn't gone."
"It won't. You can come and go as you please. Since both of you know the Cathedral more. I already have an idea of your role in the Order of Lorelei."
The story is now complete. There will be a sequel from this. It will be called New Purpose. I hope you guys enjoy the story. Srry that it took so long to finish. Overall, I will leave it as a cliffhanger at the end. You guys can guess Arietta's and Sync's new role in the Order of Lorelei. See you guys in the new story! :3