Disclaimer: Otaku-Sage-of-Llamas does not claim to own Tales of the Abyss and its characters. Rather that privilege belongs to Bandai-Namco.

Summary: The single thread that ties all together. One that does not carries the name of Fate but of a person.

Warnings : The authoress' horrible attempt at writing, major spoilers, mild AUness but mostly adheres to canon, bad language, Van (yes, he is a warning because I make him kinda creepy), semidark!fic, mild gore, and implications of sexual situations of dubious consent.

Genre: Drama/Tragedy

Pairings: Van + Legretta?

Rating: M

Authoress' Other Notes: Each chapter is an oneshot focusing on a particular character and all the oneshots relate to each other in some way. The next oneshot will be Cantabile. I am debating as to whether make one for Dist or not since he does play a minor role in the events of the story.

The Domino Effect

In embracing death, do you finally find yourself?

The puppet has overtaken the puppeteer and cut the cord that binds.

Gone are the conflictions of emotion and the chains of so called Fate.

With your remaining legacy, do you pass on your lingering hope for the future that you had lost so long ago?

Legretta: Resolution

She made her move as soon as darkness blanketed the sky over Daath.

Legretta did not look back as she hurried down the stairs of the Cathedral with her renowned speed while carrying a precious cargo covered in blankets close to her chest. It made small noises of protest as she moved to meet up with the carriage driver waiting at the entrance of the spiritual town that she had bribed to take her to the bay, where a ship was waiting for her.

Her identity was concealed by a dark cloak as to not draw the curiosity of the other God Generals to her late night disappearance as she snuck past their quarters to the warp. She passed by her effeminate fontech loving comrade, who observed her silently with knowing eyes.

In his crazed state of mind, she was surprised when one day Dist revealed to her that he seen past her deception. Legretta reacted in worry and concern as she reached for the small dagger she always kept in her brassiere but he insisted that he would remain silent as he regarded her with a serious look.

In the Commandant's absence, they continued to follow his plans faithfully and Legretta knew it would not be too long before he joined them again. And she feared for that day. That is why she had to make her move now before the Commandant returned, lest he discover her well kept secret.

And through weeks and weeks of deliberation and debate with herself, Legretta arrived at only one option.

"Ready, ma'am?" the driver greeted as he held open the door for her to enter. She sat down on the red cushion seat as the driver closed the door shut behind her. She slid the blinds over the windows with one hand to grant herself some more privacy as her other clung to her cargo.

The horses snorted at the prodding of the driver's whip and took off with incredible speed. Their hooves clanged briefly on the stone entranceway before becoming transitioning onto the soft earth of the woods towards the bay.

More cries made its way through the blankets of her cargo and she tried to soothe it by rocking gently, singing an old lullaby that her mother used to sing her to sleep. It was difficult for her to deal with such soft feelings as she was trained strictly as a soldier to be stoic and hide all emotions. Emotions were a sign of weakness.

Yet, it was hard to dismiss the natural instincts taking over her body.

A sudden stop of the horses as it shock the carriage a bit before resting told Legretta that she had arrived at her first location. Jumping out of the carriage without waiting for the driver to open it, she quickly glanced over the quiet bay before tossing a pouch of gald up to the driver.

"There's a little extra. Keep it," she said briefly before making haste towards the ship. Though, it made no sense for her to be in such a rush. There was no villain chasing after her, threatening to interfere with her task.

The life of the Daath Bay at night was silent, save for the crashing of waves against the shore and the soft humming of ships. The captain of the ship greeted her with a friendly handshake.

"Not many request Nam Cobanda Isle as their destination. Though, who am I to question your intentions? Frankly, I am just happy for any opportunity to sail across the sea. Unfortunately due to their high defenses, I will have to drop you off on the nearby outskirts, if that is alright," Nam Cobanda Isle was the home base of the Dark Wings, a land that was not governed by any authority figure. The kingdoms of Kimlasca and Malkuth had let it be because it was so small and was worthless to fight over such a territory that provided no benefit to them. Daath was meant to reside as a neutral territory and an attempt to annex another would go against their constitution founded in Yulia's times.

"That will be fine. Here's your first payment. I will give you the rest when we arrive back in the bay," the arrangement with the captain was that he would provide a round trip to Nam Cobanda Isle, or as close as he could get to it, in exchange for a nice lump of money. It was difficult gathering so much gald for this secret mission of hers as she did not grow up in a wealthy family. The pay as an Oracle Knight was meager, at best, even at the higher ranking levels.

The only person who really made any profit in the Order of Lorelei was Grand Maestro Mohs and he spent it all on such frivolous things as elaborate and expensive clothing while claiming that as Yulia saw fit to grant him such a title then he ought to dress the part effectively. That man was disgusting, clinging so tightly to the Score and using it as justification for his actions.

Van would change this world, Legretta knew it as she sighed, closing her eyes. The sea breeze caressed her face as she stood on the deck looking out onto the watery horizon.

Although, she had not always sided him. Legretta had been distraught when her older brother Marcel was sent out to the Battle of Chesedonia to abide by the Score, one that Van had read, and only his corpse returned.

She vividly remembered that day as if it was yesterday.

Giselle had been assisting her mother cook dinner in her childhood home in Daath. Despite her duties as an Oracle Knight, she had still made the effort to spend time with her mother, who was probably very lonely with her brother out at war and her father long dead. The two of them had become very close as they bonded over cooking meals together and discussing various subjects.

Though not as close as Giselle was to Marcel. Her brother taught her how to fight when she was younger, back in her early teens, and he had been shocked to find how quick she was in combat, hence how her nickname was later born.

"Man, Giselle, how did you get so fast?" Marcel yelped in shock as he barely managed to block her lunge of the sword.

"It's not my fault that you're so slow," she teased him, sidestepping as Marcel pushed his blade forward at her.

"They should have called you Lightning or something," he grunted as he was forced to backstep to avoid her blow.

"Don't be so corny, brother," she let out a small giggle. In front of anyone else, she would have restrained such emotions and stopped such laughter but she did not hold herself back in front of her brother. Marcel was fine with her just being herself. She did not have to put on a front for his sake.

And on the day that he was called into battle, Giselle did not want him to leave.

"Brother, why do you have to go? What if you end up just like father?" she tugged on his arm as her brother stood in the doorway ready to depart.

"Giselle, that's not going to happen. Have some faith in your older brother. I will come back, I promise," Marcel patted her on the head reassuringly as he smiled.

"I hear the battles are just getting worse and worse. Some are calling it a sea of blood out there," her mother said to Giselle as she cut the potatoes with a knife. Any response that Giselle could think of was interrupted by a knocking on the door.

"Can you get that for me, sweetie?" her mother requested and she nodded. Giselle wiped off her wet hands on the white apron covering her civilian clothes and walked through the dining room, set just for two despite the presence of four chairs, to open the door.

An Oracle Knight stood there with two other soldiers standing behind him carrying a long dense black bag.

"Is Mrs. Oslo here? We have some news…" he spoke grimly and her mother came rushing in from the kitchen.

"Is my son alright! How is he?" she exclaimed in hope but deep in Giselle's gut she had a bad feeling. What was in that bag…

"I'm sorry, ma'am…your son has died in the line of duty," he bowed his head in respect.

"No…it can't be! Why! It's bad enough that war claimed my husband and now it takes my only son!" Giselle's mother sobbed as she collapsed onto the floor.

'You lied, brother…' was the only thought that came to Giselle's mind. Her face turned to stone, shedding no tears as to not make herself weak in front of the other soldiers.

"Is that him in the bag?" Giselle demanded coldly.

"Yes, miss…He never had any instructions for how to handle his body if he died so we thought it would be best to bring him to his family for that decision…"

Ultimately, after her mother ceased sobbing, they decided that it would be best to cremate her brother as the same was done to their father, whose ashes were contained in a small vase resting above the mantel.

Swallowing down her own grief, Giselle paid visit to the Cathedral to discover who gave the word for her brother to be sent into battle. Giselle even went as far to attempt to gain access to the Closed Score secretly and read it.

All fingers were pointed at the Commandant, Van Grants. She plotted her revenge against the man she held responsible, instead of mourning the death of Marcel.

At this point, Giselle gave up all dreams of the future. She was willing to abandon her life so long as she was able to avenge her brother.

And on that faithful day, Giselle drew out the steel training sword she used to spar with Marcel and took aim to kill the Commandant. He skillfully blocked her rage driven blow and with amazing strength pushed Giselle back until she fell down onto her knees, scowling that for the first time in her life that her speed had not grant her an advantage.

"I hate you! You betrayed my brother's trust and sent him to Chesedonia when you had read the Score and knew that it would only end badly!" she screamed, her tightly wound mask finally broke down as tears finally poured down her face.

"The reading of the Closed Score is only permitted to those of high rank within the Order of Lorelei. Going against this is a crime punishable by death," Van spoke in a low tenor, and in an odd way, almost soothing to listen to. His face was calm and collected as he gazed down at her crouched figure.

She looked so pathetic to him as tears uncontrollably streamed down pale white cheeks, that remained largely untouched by the fierce rays of the sun in contrast to his own.

"Your point is? My soul has already died beside my brother's side. This body of mine means nothing to me anymore. There was no need for Daath to have intervened when Kimlasca was clearly losing the fight.," Giselle said fiercely, full of spite. Bearing her teeth at him like a ravenous monster, she struggled to get back onto her own two feet.

"The Score dictated it so and its authority is absolute," the Commandant replied but his words did not seem that convincing to himself either. The subtle trace of resentment lingered in his speech despite all his masterful attempts to keep his emotions in check. His feisty assassin could probably detect it as well.

"You used Marcel for your schemes! His blood is on your hands!" Giselle's legs trembled beneath her, not out of fear but of anger. She threw out her hands in front of herself as she shouted at the man, who still had his blade raised to her neck.

"He made his decision with his own free will. No one forced him to take a blade into his hand and rush into battle," Van replied logically. Giselle could not really argue with his statement and settled to respond with a loud growl.

"Do you loathe me?" Though he did not need to hear an answer to figure it out. The death glare directed at him spoke volumes along with her failed attempt at ending his life.

"Then, join me," Van lowered his sword down to his side and held out a hand to her.

"Are you trying to make a mockery out of me?" Giselle spat at his feet, slapping away the offered hand.

"You can become my aide and you will have a better chance in finding a way to murder me," he brought his hand out in front of her a second time. She stared at it in disbelief at a loss for words. Was this man crazy?

"I don't understand what you are trying to accomplish," Giselle eventually replied in a quiet voice.

"Hehehe…I am tempting Fate by trying to defy the Score," he chuckled, sheathing his sword back into its scabbard after no longer seeing this woman as a threat.

"I swear, one day, I will kill you," Giselle vowed venomously as she reluctantly accept his hand at last. From that day on, she parted with her birth name and took on the name of "Legretta".

The sound of seagulls flying overhead brought Legretta out of her reminiscing and soon the sound of soft cries from the bundle of blankets she held brought her full attention. She pulled back the smooth cotton fabric to reveal the cherubic face of a baby, its sea green eyes opened wide as it reached for her.

For his mother.

Legretta sighed, undoing the top of her dress to nurse the child and briefly felt soft tufts of dirty blond hair before gently holding his head. She winced as the baby roughly clung onto her already sore breast.

Motherhood was the last thing she ever expected to partake in. Perhaps as a young naïve child, Giselle may have dreams of one day growing up and having a family with the man of her dreams but this was reality and not some deceptive fairytale. And as a soldier, she restrained all emotions, including those of wishing motherhood.

But she knew something like that was bound to happen as long as she visited Van's quarters each night. Once Legretta had gotten over her initial hate and discovered more about his past through instructing his younger sister Tear, she started to develop feelings for the Commandant.

She had refused to speak of such sappy emotions, pushing it all back like everything else in her life. The only thing that mattered was Van's goal and nothing else. The mission would be jeopardized if the relationship between them did not remain purely professional.

Legretta had attempted distancing herself from the Commandant, only appearing before him in his office to give her report. However, one day, he had cornered her in the almost forgotten section of the Daath library that held books of lore and myth and pinned her against the massive wooden book shelf that towered over at ten shelves high.

"You seem quite distant lately," Van had spoke into her left ear as he rested his head on her neck. She shivered as his breaths made contact with the sensitive skin of her cheeks.

"Commandant…" Legretta started softly until she was interrupted by the man hovering over her much shorter frame. She was not a short person by no means but Van put everyone else to shame when it came to height.

"Just call me Van. You don't have to be so formal with me when we're in private," Legretta tried averting her gaze, embarrassed by the current situation and one-sided conversation. However, the Commandant raised his head up off her shoulder and grasped her chin a bit too roughly. She let a small whimper before biting down on her lip, berating herself for her slip up. His eyes narrowed for the briefest of moments before turning into a look of concentration.

"Are you afraid of me? You never showed such fear when you first lunged your blade at me," he spoke coldly and almost mockingly at her.

"That's not it…" Legretta replied weakly as he searched her eyes to tell if she was telling the truth. It appeared to Van that she was indeed telling the truth but there was too much tension emitting from her.

It was entirely different from when she first desired to take his life months ago. Legretta had sent him death glares when she was in his presence and purposely misfiled important Order documents amongst other small acts of rebellion that was meant to incite him but never did. No, it definitely was not anger that consumed her now.

"Are you PMSing then?" Van raised an eyebrow at her, releasing her chin, as he spoke and she instantly blushed.

"No! Why would you ask something like that!" she replied, the old stubborn Giselle briefly emerging in front of him. She had not emerged in a long time after being submerged completely underneath Legretta with so much force.

"Well, don't you women discuss these sort of matters with each other all the time? Speaking of which, did you ever have that conversation with Arietta?" Van smoothly changed the topic so that Legretta would regroup herself, although disappointed that he had not found the answer behind the tension surrounding her. She took a deep breath, closing her eyes.

"Yes, I did. She understands fully," Legretta answered calmly, opening her eyes. Giselle's wrath was no longer in sight, for now.

Van just stared at her. Her lips were bleeding lightly from when she had bit down onto it. He reached his hand out again, not to grab her chin, but caressed her pale cheeks. Upon the soft touch, he was greeted by immense heat radiating through her skin.

With focusing so much on plans to bring his goal to fruition, he had grown quite frustrated and unable to find any way to release such pent up energy. Many people would play a friendly game, read a book, spar, or do some artistic activity to find peace but none of those appealed to him.

He had briefly considered finding a cheap prostitute to do the job but his whole reputation would be tarnished if discovered. It was bad enough that he spotted strange young scantily clad women leaving the quarters of Grand Maestro Mohs at late hours of the night when he was meant to remain abstinent as per his oath when he took the position as Grand Maestro. Such oaths of chastity only applied to the high religious leaders of the Order and as the Commandant, a military figure, it did not apply to him. Though, the last thing he wanted was to be compared to that disgrace of a man for having relations with random licentious women.

Van tentatively licked at her lower lip, the coppery taste of blood entering his mouth, before moving on to explore the inner caverns of her mouth. She gasped loudly, her eyes widening far beyond possible capacity, before pushing weakly at his broad shoulders.

And despite her adamant protests to stop, he did not abide to her whims even as she screamed out in agony and pain as her virginity was roughly snatched away. At some point, Legretta had ceased struggling and submitted like a lifeless doll, unresponding to the environment around her.

Afterwards, she sat abandoned on the floor of the rarely frequented section of the library, blood pooling beneath her. It stained the bottom of her dress and started to dry onto her thighs. Legretta was too shocked to even manage tears.

The sound of approaching footsteps made her body tense up and her bruised limbs were frozen in place so that she was unable to move. The figure turned around a corner and it was not the Commandant returning to aid her. Pale white hair laid neatly over equally matching skin and dark red eyes widened opened widely. His dark purple lips set into a thin line, practically frowning at the sight before him.

With his quick intellectual mind, he had no need to ask his fellow God General about what happened to her. Moments ago, Dist had witnessed Van leaving the library in a hurried pace, his clothes wrinkled upon his body and stained with some odd specs of blood. And now, here was Legretta was in a far worse state.

It reminded me of when Jade as a child used to take poor defenseless animals and tear their limbs apart by hand then discarding the broken pieces onto the ground haphazardly. Blood would be everywhere and he used to close his eyes to get the cruel image out of his head. Thankfully, Nephry was spared the sight of her brother committing such horrors but regardless she knew he was a monster. The whole incident with her beloved doll told her everything.

It has his scientific curiosity that brought him inside of the rarely visited section of the library, wondering as to what Van was running from. Or in this case, from whom.

Despite Dist's position amongst the God Generals, he held a lack of respect towards the Commandant after observing his horrid treatment of other people. Granted, he was no saint either, looking down on others that he thought were insignificant and experimenting upon various life forms but he would never treat women with so much disrespect that Van did. He had exchanged some words with Cantabile before she was driven out of Daath by Grand Maestro Mohs and she was quite blunt about Van.

"Have you come to laugh at me?" she said spitefully, her eyes affixing itself into a harsh glare.

"Don't be ridiculous. How bad is it?" his eyes were serious and for once, he did not seem as crazed as everyone else led her to believe.

"It hurts like hell."

"Come with me," Dist helped Legretta rise up from the floor and had her rest her weight against him to aid in her walking. He guided her back to his rooms and inspected her wounds. Like Jade, he had also been trained fully in the medical field before conducting fomicry research in a professional capacity. Even though Dist focused more on fontechnology, it was still important to understand the workings of the human body.

Unfortunately, he could not use fonic artes, let alone the seventh fonon, so he called in his assistant Reiner to heal her. Dist could have called Largo to do the task but he was too loyal to the Commandant. He would probably stay silent at first but eventually cave in and tell Van. However, Reiner was very loyal to him, taking orders from him rather than obeying Van, which is why he was placed underneath his care.

Yet, this experience did not stop Legretta from returning to Van's side. Dist tried telling her multiple times that Van did not love her but it fell on deaf ears.

No, she knew it was true but she had already swore that she would follow this man to the ends of the earth, no matter what should befall her body. And so, her nightly routine became visiting Van every night and returning to her own quarters after the deed was done.

Every time, the flamboyant God General would stand along her path with sad eyes.

Legretta had discovered that she was pregnant about a month before the fight at Mt. Roneal with the replica and his friends by visiting a healer outside of Daath in disguise. However, Dist recognized the signs of pregnancy right away. He was rather observant and without her saying anything to him, he had figured out what was ailing her.

She was pretty far along when she visited the healer and just recently she gave birth a couple weeks ago. Dist and Reiner had assisted in delivering the baby. What was harder than disguising her pregnancy from the rest of the Order of Lorelei was the baby spawned from it.

He resembled his mother a lot but it did not take much effort to figure out who the father was, Legretta realized after briefly holding her newborn son in her arms. And until now, that was the last and only time she held her son. Legretta knew that she could not keep the baby around Daath with Van's impeding return and she did not want to grow too attached, knowing it would only make it harder in the long run.

The sun was already starting to rise by time the ship arrived at the desert area near Nam Cobanda Isle. The temperature was much warmer than Daath as the sun was pouring heat onto the back of her cloak even when not at its full peak over the horizon. A long wooden plank extended out from the deck allowing Legretta to cross over the water and onto the desert. With a flask of water tied onto a rope around her waist, she trekked the barren desert filled with mountains. The geography gave the desert a maze-like feeling as she navigated herself towards the Dark Wings headquarters with the babe in her arms crying endlessly.

Moments later, Legretta knew she had arrived at her destination as another cloaked figure stood before the huge metal door permitting access to Nam Cobanda Isle. The figure pulled back the hood to reveal long strands of dark violet hair. Cantabile regarded her silently as Legretta approached. She would hear the other woman out before taking any action.

"Well, I was quite surprised when you sent me a letter about wanting to meet with me. Does Van know that you are fraternizing with one of his enemies?" Cantabile tilted her head at her in amusement.

"Van isn't around at the moment," Legretta replies coldly and it sends the former sixth division commander howling in laughter.

"Ah, you must feel so confused without him around with the way you trailed behind him like a lost puppy," she mocked her. Legretta just gritted her teeth to prevent herself from spewing out an insult in return. This woman always knew how to get on people's nerves easily. It took just one wrong statement to send the Grand Maestro off the handle and demand that she be banished from Daath. And it did not help that Cantabile was not secretive in her support of the Fon Master faction within the Order.

Van did not do anything to stop Cantabile from being exiled either. The two had apparently known each other for quite long before Legretta ended up as the Commandant's adjutant. The rumors were that she was also a resident of Hod. Yet, Van and Cantabile could not tolerate each other, which had escalated into verbal sparring matches between the two in the halls of the Cathedral and everybody else had been too scared to try to mediate the dispute for they were fearful of the consequences for interfering.

"Can you get serious for just a moment?" Legretta scowled and the woman ceased her laughter.

"So? What is that you want? I imagine it must be some sort of secret since you decided to seek me out rather than anyone in the Order," Cantabile crossed her arms expectedly. Legretta handed her son over to her, his body still covered in blankets.

"What is this?" she raised an eyebrow at the object placed into her arms. Tentatively, she pulled back the blanket and let out a loud yelp of shock at what she saw.

"Where did you get a baby from? Don't tell me that Van is abducting more children these days," Cantabile frowned.

"No, that is my son," Legretta decided to just come out with the matter directly. While Cantabile enjoyed playing games with people, she did not take pleasure in the favor being returned.

"You, a mother? I find that hard to believe. That fruitcake of a God General is more mother-like than you," the former commander spoke in disbelief at the truth brought before her. Legretta groaned at the insult.

"Anyways, why have you brought this child to me?" Cantabile asked as she closely inspected the features of the baby boy. She could see the child's resemblance to Legretta and had a pretty could idea of who the father was without her saying anything, which surprised Legretta that the other woman did not press onto the matter of the child's paternity.

"I…I want you to raise him for me…" Legretta managed out, averting her gaze away from the other woman.

"Does it look like I am running an orphanage here? Why me?" Cantabile persisted, not resting until she found the answers she wanted.

"Like you said, I am unfit to be a mother," she replied bitterly. Though, Legretta knew that it was not what the former commander was looking for.

"That's not enough. Why did you not just abandon it?" Cantabile raised her hand toward the baby, dark energy materializing in a sphere within her palm.

"Stop it!" Legretta shouted, snatching her son back from the woman's arms. Was she crazy?

"So, you truly do care about this baby," Cantabile chuckled, the energy vanishing immediately from her hand.

"You attempted to kill my son just to figure that out!" she shrieked, clutching her baby to her chest tightly.

"How else was I to determine that you were sincere? You could have easily just put up an act and lied to me. Your actions spoke volumes, more so than any words could. If you cared not for the child's life, then you would have not saved him. Although, I assure you that your son was in no danger to begin with. I don't murder innocent people," Cantabile answered coolly, a mild bitterness lingering in her voice. From what, Legretta could not discern.

"I will accept your request and this child will be raised as if he were my own flesh and blood. The people of Nam Cobanda Isle are always welcoming to newcomers that have nowhere else to go," she held out her arms, awaiting for the baby to be given back into her arms. However, Legretta was hesitant for she knew that once she handed her son to Cantabile, she would never see him again.

A gut feeling pooling in Legretta's stomach told her that her end was approaching as long as she continued down this path of helping Van achieve his goals. The avalanche on Mt. Roneal would have been a close call if it were not for Arietta's monsters. But she had resolved long ago that her son would not be safe in her care for many reasons. And Legretta was willing to cast her life into despair of being apart from her son as long as it guaranteed him a long and healthy life.

The mask she had firmly placed on herself broke as she handed him over to Cantabile, who did not mock her tears but met them with a sincere frown.

"You do not have to do this. It's your choice," she offered to her grimly, rocking the boy in her arms.

"No, that would be selfish of me," Legretta replied softly.

"But you have chosen Van over your own son," Cantabile's uncovered eye narrowed at her.

"You're weak. Why must you live for someone other than yourself and own blood? Do you have any will of your own anymore?" she scolded Legretta, anger pouring out uninhibited. However, Legretta refused to listen to the berating woman any longer as she turned her back towards her and headed for the waiting ship.

Her hands were already tied, she could not change her fate now. It was far too late.

Legretta stood firmly in a hall of Eldrant, armed readily with her guns in anticipation of the replica's arrival. Red hair shot down from the stairs before her.

"Give me the Key of Lorelei," she said coldly as she sent a bullet flying towards the area around the replica's feet.

"No, we're going to set Lorelei free," the replica drew up his blade from its sheath.

"Major…why are you doing this?" Tear said to her, frowning. Legretta had acted as the instructor of the Commandant's sister until she entered Daath and was placed under Cantabile. That was just a couple of weeks after she joined Van reluctantly and still harbored such hate towards him that she had intended to use his sister as a tool against him. But ultimately, she could not do that to Tear or Van. She would be no better than Van and Marcel would not want her to be so petty.

"For what reason does free will exist if the planet's memory remains as it is? No, I refuse to accept that my will was that of the planet's memory! That right should belong to ourselves!" Legretta shouted, her words not filled with as much conviction as she hoped.

"Even if it requires destroying this world!" Tear replied. She sounded just like Cantabile now. When she had been younger, Tear had been so optimistic about going to Daath and joining Van's side but now that her illusions were torn apart and the truth bared itself before her, she refused to accept the world that Van was going to create.

"If it is necessary, then so be it," Legretta answered robotically, the words did not truly reflect upon her own being. She no longer wished to destroy the world as long as her son lived in it.

"Why? Don't you care about anything in this world!" the Commandant's sister yelled, her emotions flowing out without restraint despite her rigid training. Yes, she cared about her son that she wanted to provide a safe place to live in for, her mother that she had not seen recently due to her pregnancy, and…

Did she love Van? Maybe she once did but Legretta was not sure anymore. The only reason she stuck around now is because she had already pledged her soul and body to Van and his goals. Legretta was not a person to go against her word. And there was no point of return for her now.

She had already dug her own grave and now she had resolved herself to lay in it.

"You talk of free will and here you don't have any of your own!" Tear said as the conversation with Cantabile echoed in her head.

Faced against entire party of six, whom had grown quite powerful to contend with, Legretta did not have a chance at victory. She fell onto her knees, blood seeping out of the wound from her stomach.

"You're all wrong…It is my will that desired to die for him," Legretta put pressure over her stomach, coughing, though knew she was inevitably bleeding to her death. Yet, she refused to accept Cantabile's words. She was not some mindless puppet.

And as her body finally plummeted to the floor, Legretta finally found her freedom.