"...Princess?"
Rele lifted her head at the quiet call from behind her. She rubbed at her eyes hastily, and started to turn when she felt a human hand rest on her shoulder.
"You okay?" her eyes fell from Shute to find Genkimaru at his side, the child musha looking back with a worried expression.
"Yes, I'm fine," she let a smile spread across her features, though it didn't seem enough to fool either of the boys.
The two shared a glance between themselves before Genki piped up, "You worried about LaCroa?"
Rele's smile didn't falte. As a princess she had more than enough practice keeping her emotions in check when in public. Despite the usual political reasonings for such a skill, it still worked just as well at times like this.
"Not at all," she shut her eyes gently, reminiscing the Chief's debriefing earlier in the day, "I know that once we have finished assisting Ark we will return to my homeland and help my people as well." Silence met her words, and a bitter satisfaction rose her chest at the thought of how easily it had been to suade her friends.
"It's about the Royal Knights then?"
The princess startled at the question. Immediately she looked to the culprit. Shute. She shouldn't have been surprised, after all he had been with her inside the fortress the Dark Axis called home. Or rather… She had been with him, as it had been her who risked herself in helping him when he had jumped to rescue Genkimaru. And yet, even in the face of their enemy having failed to escape, with the remains of her beloved knights piled up in front of her, he had stayed by her side.
Rele turned away from her companions, the carefully crafted facade she wore vanishing. "Yes," her voice came out low, choked to the brim with sadness. She said nothing more as the boys came around to sit on either side of her.
"They were your friends huh?" the kid gundam to her right spoke first, prompting a weak nod in response.
"Zero told me a lot about them…" the voice now belonged to Shute, "They sounded like they were really great people..." The mention of an "even Deathscythe" hanging at the end of his words went unspoken.
"I'd known them since the day I was born, they were chosen to protect me. They did their jobs very well," she forced herself to quiet a sniffle.
"What makes you think it was a job to them," Genki huffed, then quickly muttered a quiet apology for sounding rude.
"Genki's right! The knights were your friends, they loved you, I doubt they even thought twice about taking care of you!" the other human backed their younger friend up. Rele sniffed in reply, but when she reached her hand up to rub at her cheek it wasn't to wipe away tears.
"Y-ya know…" Genki began, an unsure tone to his words, "I dunno how it goes in LaCroa, but here in Ark… When a musha gundam dies their gunsoul leaves the body and waits to pass onto its' next life. ..I guess it kinda helps to know we don't really die, like mom's not really gone."
Rele nodded absently, "It is similar in LaCroa. Our souls never truly die, but we return to the Spirit Tree as mana where our energy will take on a new shape. Gundams, humans, and spirits alike."
Genkimaru looked relieved and he offered the princess a crooked smile before leaning forward. Following his example she too shifted her gaze to their other friend, curious about what he'd say.
The boy, having been lost in thought listening to them, startled when he found he was being watched rather expectantly. Shute rubbed the back of his neck, a trademark gesture of his nervousness, "Um, well I guess some people from my world believe that people can be reborn." He chuckled weakly as their stares took on looks of confusion. When still neither of them said anything he sighed, and allowed his shoulders to droop.
"Hey-..." Genki raised a hand, hesitant about his cheerful friend's change of attitude, but ready to reach out to him.
But Shute shook his head, "See where I come from we don't really know what happens when you die. We aren't even too sure what a soul is or where it comes from. I guess it'd be nice to think about coming back as something else, but people are more likely to think that when a life passes it doesn't come back return to Earth."
"Shute?" Rele reached for the younger boy's hand, grasping lightly at his fingers. He was a smart kid, but somehow the knowledge he seemed to have about death was tainted with familiarity.
The boy smiled sadly back at his friends, "My dad said that people who pass away go to a beautiful place where they can always watch over us. So maybe it's not too different?"
"Yes," the princess smiled back, "I'm sure they're happily keeping an eye on you."
"You guys too," Shute nodded his words coming out confidently, "Your mom and the knights. They're watching you proudly before moving on."
Genki frowned at that, "Gee I hope not, I don't wanna be scolded by a ghost!" Giggles broke out amongst the children, and for a moment the burden they each carried felt lessened by the shoulders of friendship.
As the laughter died down Shute laid back, watching the stars twinkle above them with a smile, "Grandpa always said life was beautiful because we had death."
"He was a wise man," Rele hummed, folding her hands, neatly into her lap and letting her gaze drift skyward.
"It's still sad to think about, but… When you think about how they're at peace, it doesn't hurt as much," Genkimaru muttered, allowing his rare insight to poke through.
A comfortable silence spread across the group and the children remained still. Watching the night sky and finding solace in each others' company.