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[Chevaleresse]

Arturia looks slightly startled by its abruptness, as she often was in the past, but only slightly. She squeezes again, letting the kiss last for a moment, then pats Lilith's head back when it ends. "It's okay. You'll be alright." She tries to force a smile, despite the worry and anguish still clearly behind her eyes. "She's, she's not here, so we won, right? And I made it back."

[Sutoratosu Akira]

Eilyth simply gives a nod of approval to Allia. It's time for this mess to end. She says nothing as a certain dog girl finally finds her way back home, nor the emotional reunion that follows, until the topic of Kallisto comes up.

"She's gone." Eilyth confirmed. "It's over."

[Takosher]

"I'm ready to be done." Allia says.

I am sorry
Lilith
I hurt you a lot
But
I do not want you to die

Lilith looks warmly at Arturia. "Okay." she says, "I think I like this world the way it is. I'm not ready to leave yet."

I am glad to hear that

The woman steps to the front of the room and it begins to crumble. She speaks again, but her voice is different, more hollow. Only Eilyth and the Stewards fully understand why. "This... I... This world is not longer me. B... But... But... But that doesn't mean either it or I have to end." she says, "I... Will repurpose the tools of the game. To better protect the way things are. No... No more trying to find the way they should be. The world is yours now, Steward it well." She looks at Lilith directly. "I'll alter your existence to reincarnate properly, with no interference from alternate souls. So your memories of your fractured lives will be made distant, but I won't take them away entirely. Is that okay?"

"I would like that." Lilith answers.

"I'd like that too." Farore chimes in, "Can we stop having new Ns? I'm fine to be N from now on."

The woman thinks for a moment before answering, "Then I will make that the way for all of you. If you ever tire of your duty, return to this place with a willing replacement. I will leave the tools to pass on behind."

She turns to each person in the room and through what seems to be great effort, meets each of their eyes. "I know it was difficult, but thank all of you for playing with me."

~~End~~

Eilyth

Glinting orange from the light of the sunrise, water crashed against the shore of the Stone Ocean. It was over, all that remained was to go home. Miraculously, the only person who hadn't returned from below was Lily. Although given what the mysterious woman had said, it was simple enough to conclude that she and her Martyr had been reincarnated elsewhere. Eilyth might have checked the words to confirm exactly what had happened, but it seemed she no longer possessed that ability. Things really were going back to normal.

Allia stepped up beside her. "This place is kind of beautiful now. I can almost forget all of the pain it caused." Cautiously, in case Eilyth didn't actually want to be touched, Allia hugged her former Knight. "Thank you, Eilyth. If it weren't for you, I might have wasted away in violent anguish after losing Brigitte." And looked back out at the ocean. "And thank Æ for letting this finally come to an end."

[GodofGamingRWBY]

Fate

... And like that, the game was over. At least this round was. Monika didn't know every specific, but she could tell that this was the end. So, standing up from the couch and retrieving her Halberd, Monika gave one last look to Kirari, giving the later a smile... One that was, unbeknownst to her, slightly saddened, "Well, looks like you've got another huge promotion Kirari. We'll have to catch up when you got some time away from whatever duties you have, alright?" Monika stated, before casting her gaze over the rest of the room, taking in a deep breath...


Monika

... And when she opened her eyes, she was back at the edge of the Stone Ocean, gazing off into the sunrise. Instinctively, Monika patted her stomach, noticing the distinct lack of a wound there. Her uniform was back to normal, thank goodness, but even with her duty complete, she felt like something was... Off. Like something was missing.

It didn't take long for her to notice the slip of paper jammed in her breast pocket though, mostly since she almost never kept stuff in there. And what she found was a short note, one detailing a specific location back in Katria, and a request to share what she found with Miru. What was most odd though was how it was signed simply as "Your loyal friend". That was where Monika had to pause.

... Who wrote this? And why couldn't she remember?

... She needed to return to base and find whatever it was that the note directed her towards. She didn't like having a gap in her memory.

[Sutoratosu Akira]

Eilyth

"No more sight eh? I'd say I'm a little disappointed but well, I don't think I'll be needing it anymore anyway."
{It's finally over.}

Leah's hug was a strange feeling as she watched the dawn. One she'd only felt a handful of times before. For just the briefest moment she was back in that dark hallway crying over a corpse, weeping not just for herself but for all of them. Had she done the right thing back then? Had she done the right thing now? She didn't know, but it felt like it. History refuses to be forgotten, but it doesn't have to be repeated.

Leah's arms around her also confirmed that yes, the tentacles were still there. Fuck it, she'd gotten used to them anyway. But she still chose to return the hug with human arms. "Don't mention it. That's what friends are for after all; hell I wouldn't even be here if you hadn't come to save me from Lillith."

Eilyth let go first, turning to look for the others. Patty and Jane had been no shows, as had most of Mack's crew, so it wasn't hard to imagine they'd probably been punted back to the surface. But what the hell had happened to Fairy? "Ya know... I promised myself that I wasn't gonna let her stay in that dusty shithole of an outpost. Wanna find her somewhere nice, or at the very least get her home to mom. After that, well... I've got a few ideas for places we can fuck off to, let the world continue thinking we're dead. I think it's high time Allia and her unruly Dragon finally faded into legend, don't you?"

[Takosher]

Mirka and Estela

Estela's distraction seemed to be working. "She won?" Ginevra tried to confirm, "You're sure?" She sounded deeply relieved. Also not the best negotiator, given she didn't suspect for even a moment that Estela was lying. She also didn't notice Mirka sneaking around.

Eilyth

Allia looked down for a moment, and Eilyth didn't need to guess what she was going to say next. She shook her head sadly. "Your legend ends here, but I still have a duty to fulfill. I wish I could go with you, but this is where we part ways. Take good care of Patty. And take good care of yourself."

Monika

Monika's return to Katrespite was met with fanfare and celebration. After all, she was the hero who killed both Saro Ven and Marionette. She was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel and awarded three different medals for her exemplary service. Unfortunately, that meant it had taken several days for her to find some time to herself. But she'd finally been able to steal away and find the location detailed in the mysterious note.

Yava

"Not her." Siren shook her head, "Your golden queen, I saw her tormenting people. She torments people in all of my dreams about her. But this time was even worse, it was so much clearer." Siren looked extremely disturbed, "She... The princess, her chained knight, she... It was so vivid, like it was happening right in front of me. That's only happened once before, right after I got my weapon." Siren started to tear up, "I'm so sorry, Yava. Your dear friend, she's facing unimaginable suffering."

Lunete

Ishma pinched her nose in exasperation. "Mirala, I'd very much like to set this right without making a public incident of it." she said.

"As would I." Mirala responded. She was holding out Lunete's weapon, which Ishma gladly retrieved. There was a meaningful look attached to the eye's return, a suggestion and a question all in one.

Isham rolled Lunete's eye between her fingers as she thought for a moment. "Lunete is far from reliable, but she is powerful. I will permit her to fix her mistake. The two of you can go together to find Shinko and Silvia."

"Then you must have some idea where we can start looking." Mirala prodded.

"No, but I know who to ask. Would you take Lunete to the infirmary? I'll have someone bring the eye and whatever intel I can gather by the end of the day."

"I suppose that wouldn't be any more trouble than she's already made." Mirala turned to Lunete, "Any objections?"

[Chevaleresse]

Lunete

Lunete mustered up the effort to scowl at Mirala for just a moment. She was well aware that her "permission" was an order. It was difficult to maintain this, however, given just how badly her (justified and due) concern had messed things up here. "Very well." She made a halfhearted attempt at a dramatic flourish. "I'll lend my strength as I am able to our ally in need. We owe them a debt, of course. . . and I need to determine what kind of influence has seized Shinko." She trailed off, muttering something mostly incoherent to herself about who to trust. She began to leave for the infirmary herself, albeit rather crookedly, attempting to take back some sort of initiative in this awkward situation.

[Sutoratosu Akira]

Yava

It clearly took Yava a few moments of mulling that over in her head before she fully processed it. Perhaps it was that she couldn't believe. Perhaps, or more likely, it was that she didn't want to believe. She starred at the steel riveted floor for what seemed the longest time, fingers bone white as they curled into her palms leaving angry red fonts that dripped into the denim of her jeans.

"You wanted me to kill tyrants so badly, Yorshka? Fine. You were right, I was wrong. Are you happy, dear teacher? I see now I can no longer run and hide. Perhaps had I ovaries to just listen to you from very beginning, none of this would've happened. But when have I ever been anything but foolish, softhearted coward?"

"I need more time before I can kill Kallisto," Yava stood up abruptly, not bothering to wipe away the blood on her hands. Her heart was in her throat, but for once it wasn't out of fear. Not anymore. "But when I do, it will be horrible death worthy of royal swine like her. If you know anything more about Seer that can narrow down my search, I must ask you tell me now."


Eilyth
Even if Eilyth saw it coming, she still blinked for a few seconds as she tried to process it. For the first time in a long time her heart was in her throat, and she didn't quite know why. She didn't know why it had been this way when she found out Amicus had died for her, or when she'd buried Brigitte. Was this what it felt like to lose someone who actually mattered? Did it only hurt this bad because there were so few people like that to her?

"T-that really what you want?" Even as her voice quavered, she did a remarkable job keeping her composure. She even did her best to smirk it off like it was nothing. "I mean... come on, you don't have to keep going through all this. You.... you heard her back there. You finally have an out, we can find a replacement!"

[Twinwolf]

Estela

Estela shrugged. "Was pulling back to go deal with you and keep my girls safe, there was a lot of lightning, then when we turned to see what happened, Damnation was the only one left standing. Unless her goal was to die there, yeah, I'd say she won." Estela said. She didn't look to see if Mirka was doing what had been asked - she knew she would. She just had to keep the lady talking and firmly distracted, and it seemed Lily of Damnation was just the subject for it. "Like I said, she was just kinda standin' around crying when I came back here, but crying means alive."

[GodofGamingRWBY]

Spackle slowly groaned to her feet, but that was as far as Astarte's plan got. Rather than advancing, she simply took up her guard position and held herself in a ready stance. As boorish as she looked, Spackle was clearly experienced as a guard and knew better than to take up the offense without good cause.

"You can consider that a warning." she said, "Now get lost, both of you!" She waved the cutlass threateningly again.

Astarte

"Oh dear. You've managed to cut my ankle ever so slightly. How terrifying" Astarte said in a completely deadpanned tone, narrowing her eyes at Spackle, "As someone relegated to secretary duty more than I cared for, I get wanting to do your job. But now you're just being stubborn" she added shortly after, right before taking a step forward, swinging her ice sword at Spackle's cutlass, attempting to knock the weapon away before she went in for a proper blow. Spackle's refusal to go at her instead simply gave her more time to center herself. Soon enough, it wouldn't matter what the pirate did: she'd be knocked down, without a doubt.


Monika

Monika honestly couldn't remember the last time she had such a warm reception coming back home. It helped that she was the one who killed Saro Ven (and was attributed to Marionette's death as well... Somehow), but it was a shock nonetheless. Still, Monika was a natural party girl, and she dominated the festivities with flying colors. The promotions and medals were a good touch as well.

But, after all was said and done, Monika still had another task to do. Once she was free, she was quick to hunt down to location described to her in the note, finding several journals that she took back to her office. Unfortunately, Miru was currently on hospital leave, thus, Monika simply made due with reading through the journals herself, trying to wrap her head around the words within.

Kirari Arceneaux. Something about that name felt like it didn't want to be in her head, but Monika committed it to memory regardless. And with that name, she could feel holes in her memory, a face she could quite make out. Was this supposed to be her "loyal friend"? And if so, why was her memories trying to expel the name from her head?

... Odd...

[Takosher]

Astarte

Spackle didn't budge, her missing hand holding the cutlass that replaced it perfectly steady in its threatening position. Much like how she had no intent to attack so long as her job was handled, speaking to intruders wasn't her job past telling them to leave, so she kept her mouth shut and waited to see what Astarte would do next.

Monika

Monika's office had been upgraded significantly with her promotion. Even beyond her actual increase in rank, she now answered directly to Lieutenant General Harriet Scotch as the leader of the Wrath of God, which had been promoted from a small strike team to a small battalion she had to manage. Fundamentally they were still that same strike team from before, the additions were almost entirely support staff, but it was still a huge shift from the small scouting company she'd been shuffled off to. Apparently her insubordinate tendencies were finally less of a problem than her abilities.

What this all amounted to, was that she had a really cozy chair to read through "Kirari"'s journals in.

One of her new amenities, one sorely needed since otherwise nobody was around to handle her paperwork anymore, was a secretary. A buzz from Monika's intercom heralded Pamela calling for her attention. Such buzzes were usually followed by a need for Monika to work, but the notification that, "I know you asked not to be disturbed, Lt. Colonel, but I thought you'd like to know that Colonel Kellen Sydow is here to see you."

Yava

"I wish there was more I could tell you, but all I can say for certain is that she'll meet her end in Lanica." Siren looked down apologetically. Knowing that Yava's impatience came from a place of righteous anger made her feel bad that she couldn't do more. "I don't know what kills her, there's a shadowy haze in the way, like something there is weakening my power. She might be able to fight my dreams somehow."

Lunete

Lunete's health was marked as a priority for the Lanican government's sole healer and she was back on her feet in a matter of hours. With only the hint of a lead to follow, she and Mirala headed out into the city. The Cult of Eden was active even in the wake of revolution, and finding some of their awful ilk around prosthelytizing wouldn't be too difficult. They may have had their differences with the rebels, but they at least outwardly supported the new government, so they had no reason to try to hide.

It was hard to tell how much of the disrepair around was a result of carnage and how much simply came from Lanica's tarnished history. Lunete knew, of course. She'd been a part of every battle over Lanica's capital for as long as she could remember. The greatest source of her anger was the fact that the horrors of war couldn't hold a candle to the devastation wrought by corruption and foreign interests.

Mirala was silent as she scoured the ravaged storefronts for signs of culty life. Except that wasn't what she was doing, as evidenced by her sudden vanishing as she teleported across the way to offer help to a woman carrying food get past a pile of rubble. As urgent as their situation was, she simply wasn't the type of person who could completely ignore suffering on this scale, and she repeatedly got sidetracked helping civilians with minor tasks, never once informing Lunete that she was about to do so before suddenly disappearing.

Eilyth

Tears dripped to the ground, but Allia didn't look up. "I hated the fighting and the pain, but that's over now." she said, "But that's over now. And I still have to-" she finally raised her head, determination in her teary eyes, "No, I still want to make a difference. Sure, I could find a replacement, but if I'm willing to be the one who safeguards the future, then there's no reason to try to pawn that duty off on someone else." She smiled bittersweetly. "Go and rest, Eilyth. You've earned it. And if you ever need anything, well, you know how to pray."

Mirka and Estela

A huge sigh of relief drained the tension from Ginevra's body. She didn't say it out loud, but she wasn't entirely convinced that Lily wasn't trying to die right then and there. That being her ultimate goal made it hard to trust that she'd stay alive long enough to fulfill it's true form. "Thank goodness." she said quietly. It seemed like she had completely forgotten that she was standing on a battlefield. Lady or not, she clearly wasn't used to fighting at all.

[Sutoratosu Akira]

Yava
"I see...Lanica will be good enough start then." Yava stood from the bed and began making her way to the door. She stopped just at precipice though. "I will find way to kill her. If one does not exist, I will make it. Tell your mother I will be back to uphold my end of bargain. I will expect this back when I do."

From her pocket she fished out a necklace and dangled it from her fingers for Siren to see. It was a cheap, trashy little thing. The gold paint on it's chain had nearly completely rubbed off, leaving the entire thing a length of dull silver with a few glimmering specks here and there. The fake gems almost looked real under the ship's lighting, but there was something distinctly off in how they reflected that light through them. She draped the wretched thing over the door handle before seeing herself out, looking the girl in the eye one last time.

"Do not throw it out, and do not wear it openly. I will need this later on to tie up loose ends."

Eilyth
That was it. Her shoulders dropped in defeat as she gazed out over the ocean in silence. She stayed like that for several moments, not bothering to wipe the tears from her face. But the sun was rising over that sea, and there would no longer be any eyes on her once it did. She finally made her peace with that. As she told herself in the trial, this world had no need of Dragons. Whether she liked it or not, her watch was at its end.

But even knowing it to be inevitable did nothing to make it easier.

"I guess there's not much I can say then. Good luck. And thanks for coming back for me."

[Chevaleresse]

Lunete

The woman's face was set in a grim scowl as they walked around. They'd triumphed, for the moment, but all she saw was the devastation. She'd resolved long ago to see this through to its end or hers, but that didn't stop her from being angry at the rest of the world for continuing to tear hers apart for its own amusement.  How many more times would this have to happen for Lanica to be free? How many more bloodsoaked revolutions? How many more random people was this Katrian going to help?

"Have you seen any of our traitorous friends?" Lunete asked pointedly. She wasn't annoyed with the woman for doing what she did - Lunete wasn't sure quite what to make of it, and it showed - but they were supposed to be looking for someone. She wanted to get to the bottom of this as much or more than Mirala did.

[GodofGamingRWBY]

Monika

For the past hour, Monika had been shut away in her office, reading through the journals, feet kicked up and resting on her desk and a long emptied cup of coffee with her. She had been scouring the journals for some time now, slowly but surely making sense of them. Kirari... The name seemed familiar to Monika, but her memories couldn't put a face on it. But she looked back at the various events the journals recalled, realizing how accurate they were... And the fact that something felt like it was missing. Like someone who was supposed to exist didn't.

Of course, her trip down memory lane was, unfortunately, halted when her intercom buzzed to life, causing the Major to lean her head back with a groan before activating it herself, "Yes Pamela?" she asked, letting her secretary speak as she placed the journal down on the desk, picking up her mug once again and inspecting it for a few moments. At least until Pamela brought up who wanted to see her... Colonel Kellen Sydow, her own mother.

In an instant, Monika froze, eyes widening at the name. As fast as she had initially put them up, Monika's feet were off the desk, "Send her up, I'll meet her on the way" Monika said quickly, right before standing up and stepping away form her desk, quickly moving to her door to meet her mother. It had been some time since they last spoke, and to be honest? Monika was looking forward for the chance to speak with her again.

[Takosher]

Monika

A slightly more formal pair might have met with salutes, but the Sydows weren't the type for that. Kellen's response to Monika was hug-on-sight.

Kellen clung to her daughter as though Monika would be recaptured by Neridus the instant her mother released her. "You had me so worried." she said warmly, "I'm glad you're safe. I was starting to worry I wouldn't ever get to praise my daughter for getting her own sick nickname on the battlefield."

The nickname in question was "the Roar" an obvious play on her mother's title, given in honor of the cacophony she had channeled against Saro Ven. It was significantly less cool-sounding than Kellen's nickname, but just being recognized as a great hero like the Hush was an honor in itself.

Lunete

Mirala paused in her helping adventures long enough to say, "Of course I have. You can help people and gather information at the same time." She then immediately warped off to prevent a boy carrying a large wooden plank from slamming it directly into the temple of his companion.

When she returned, she added, "Three of them have been following us for about an hour. They're waiting for us to get somewhere secluded before they confront us. I'm waiting for the same thing, I don't want any innocents getting caught up in this." Based on what Lunete knew of the cultists from the rebels' dealings with them, they were not nearly as concerned with innocents as Mirala was. If it came down to it, they would definitely choose risking their reputation with a public altercation over letting Mirala choose the location of their confrontation.

Eilyth

Allia shook her head. "No." she said. She struck a rigid pose and saluted sharply. "Thank you for your service. You were the best CO-slash-dragon-slash-octopus a sister-in-law could ask for." Despite the hilarious list of labels, Allia held a completely serious expression. This was a final commendation for all of Eilyth's hard work, likely the only real recognition she would ever be given.