Come Back to Me...
A Ciel/Zero love story

It had been hours since Zero had been transported to Ragnarok's main area to put an end to Dr. Weil's maniacal plans. The zeitgeist of Neo Arcadia had officially been eradicated. The number of lives lost was unimaginable. So many families misplaced, so many Reploids obliterated—the truth was too horrifying to bear. But at least it was over now. With Zero there by their side, with his unwavering dedication to their cause for worldwide harmony between Reploids and humans, their dream was so close to being realized. Area Zero was safe. Everyone was safe. But...at what cost? Ciel stood there staring at the mission screen, lost in her thoughts, not saying a word. Her heart was beating so violently, she felt it was going to explode in her chest.

"Zero... Is he okay?" Ciel asked the coordinator, teary-eyed.

There was silence.

"..."

"Rouge, please answer me! Is Zero okay?!"

Rouge might have just been in charge of the missions, but she was also Ciel's friend. Let us not focus on what might be, but on the here and now. It was a lesson universal throughout time and space, constant for generations of people who strove for peace and happiness. So many fought and died for the very same principles, so many pointlessly, only to never see their dreams fully realized by their own eyes, but through the eyes of their children and future generations who would be instilled with similar beliefs. "The communication broke, Ms. Ciel. There's no signal. All I hear is static..." she solemnly announced.

Should she have just lied? Would it have been better to fudge the truth to spare the emotions of her commander? What would that have solved? She didn't know. She hadn't a single clue. Only silent tears that could answer her heartfelt deliberations.

"Oh, God..."

"Though hopefully I can bring you peace with this. Ragnarok's descent has been averted. The destruction of Area Zero has been successfully halted. Zero...saved us all."

"Yes...he did..." Ciel replied, choking back crying anymore. She needed to save her tears for the right moment. She felt so embarrassed. If Zero was truly gone, she couldn't let the sorrow show—at least not in front of Rouge, Colbor and all the soldiers who looked up to her. She fought for a brighter tomorrow and took the actions to bring that tomorrow to all. She was noted for being brave, a true heroine, someone to look up to. This was why so many looked up to her. She couldn't cry over spilled milk. Oh, God, why would she think that? She should have been happy. She needed to be happy! Without Zero, all their efforts would have been for naught and even more casualties would have piled up. She clasped her hands together and put them to her chin, like she was praying or was going to pray. "Sacrifices have to be made to ensure peace of mind for all. Without sacrifice, how can we truly know how strong we really are inside, to do the things other would not to protect the lives of others?"

"You're right, Ms. Ciel."

"This is what Zero would have wanted. I believe it."

Just then, a soldier dashed in the base, chattering about shooting stars in the sky. Ciel knew what it was, so did Rouge. They both knew what it was. "Zero!" Ciel rushed out the base and past the fields of Area Zero where human children and their parents, as well as Resistance soldiers, were watching the bright streaks of light fly across a starry night sky. 'Ooh's' and 'aah's' were being emphatically expressed with the utmost sincerity at the natural display. Little did they know that it wasn't natural. They didn't see Ciel run by them. They were too entranced by the beauty of the light show to worry about anything else. They had temporarily forgotten about their concerns about any dangers of the future and focused on the splendor of today, this day they were still alive to experience this one moment. However, Neige saw and became immediately worried herself. "Ciel?"

"Zero... Please... Come back to us... Come back...to me..."

At last, Ciel was by herself, in a large field of Area Zero, away from most of the Settlement and any notable traces of human contact, though she was not so far removed that she didn't know how to get back to the Resistance Base. She could finally cry as much as she wanted.

And so she did. Without holding anything back, she fell to her hands and knees and let it all out. She let out a deep cry that reached all the way down her stomach. It hurt her all over, in ways she'd never felt before as a scientist and as a human being. This was probably the hardest thing she'd ever done. However, this was not the first time she'd said goodbye to a close companion before. She couldn't ever erase Passy from her thoughts, nor could she forget Milan's bravery. Both of them were permanently engraved in her heart. Without them, she probably would never have found Zero and the world have been a much bleaker place. Passy's sacrifice truly meant more to her than even her own life. She couldn't be selfish when thinking about that brave Reploid, that wonderful Reploid, that...beautiful Reploid.

Could it be? Could the young scientist have fallen in love? But...how could a human fall in love with a Reploid, a machine? A machine had no heart to feel. It couldn't process emotions even close to love or anything like it. Was it even possible? Did she not have any shame? She knew what Zero was. She knew what he went through, what she did to awaken him from his slumber so long ago when a day like this seemed so far our of anyone's reach. Maybe Zero didn't want the same thing she wanted when they first met. She was merely a scientist with a dream and ambitions like everybody else. Damn her empathy. He didn't have to lend his saber to her. He didn't have to destroy Copy X. He didn't have to wolf down the megalomaniacal Elpizo. He didn't have to endanger his life for the Resistance without asking for anything in return. How in the world could she possibly repay him for his generosity? She didn't know. And yet he gave up everything—maybe even his life. After she finished crying, she didn't even know how long it had been going on, she looked up to the sky and smiled. "Zero, if you're out there...wherever you are, I'll strive to maintain the peace you've brought to us all. And if you are somewhere out there, I'll be waiting for you to come back to us. To come back to me."

Shortly after, she was surprised by Neige. "I know how you feel."

Ciel gasped. "Neige...! H-how long have y-"

"Zero did what he had to do. He was the bravest one. Words cannot express how grateful I am that you came here today."

"Really?"

"Yes."

"How?"

"Without either of you, we wouldn't have been shown the light. We would have still been walking blind with the wool Dr. Weil forced over our eyes. We would be stuck in our stubborn ways and this momentous occasion wouldn't have been a reality. So..."

"Oh. I'm glad you realized we were only trying to help you."

"So am I. And so did Craft..."

She heard the regret in her voice. She couldn't hide it, as much as she tried. "Neige, I believe that Craft had the best intentions, but he just went about them in the wrong way."

"I know. But that's not who Craft was. That's not the same Craft I fell in love with. The Craft I befriended was loyal, kind, proud. He was like a lion, Ciel. He was strong and brave and believed in freedom. He wanted to protect the world from people like Weil. Then...something happened. I don't know how, but he was somehow swayed by Weil into believing the world was an infection that needed to be cleansed, purged, and deleted. All the evil in the world was too great to be erased and the only way to solve the problem was to eradicate it at the source. And that source was Area Zero. At that point, I knew something was wrong when I heard we were under attack. I had to confront Craft myself and show him I meant business. I might just be a journalist, but I've got a fire that can scald like nobody else."

Ciel laughed a little at Neige's humorous gesture. She was right. Craft meant just as much to her as Zero meant to Ciel. She was glad they were talking, human to human. It meant so much to her right now, a moment where comfort was the most powerful medicine. "Do you think that humans and Reploids can finally find peace?"

"Sure. Look at what's happening in the Settlement. That's enough proof in the pudding that we can get along. If that's not companionship, then I don't know what is."

"Hee hee hee! Yeah."

"Before I go, I was wondering if I could base my next report on the heroic efforts of Zero and your Resistance forces. Now that things are looking much more promising for the future, it's about time I get back to do the kind of reporting I do best: honest, no bones about it journalism!"

"Oh, um...well..."

They both looked up in the sky one last time. The "stars" had stopped falling. They could hear the various reactions from the Settlement not too far away. They took the time to hold hands and laugh as they thought about their lost loves and what the future would hold.

Several months later...

Ciel ran through all the tests one more time. She promised she was going to bed after this time. She said that after the sixth test. Knowing that, she probably wasn't going to cut herself off anytime soon. She'd been awake for hours with her visor over her head, punching in endless amounts of characters, processing mountains of data. She didn't even hear Colbor come in. "Ms. Ciel," he said. "Are you okay? You've been in your lab for days at a time. Are you sure you don't want to take a break?"

She heard a familiar voice. Not too deep, not too trebly. She took her visor off and looked over her shoulder. Was that Colbor? It was. At first glance, all she saw was a blur of green, albeit a familiar blur. "Oh, Colbor. No, I'm okay. Thank you for your concern. I think I've almost got it. Come and take a look."

Colbor was worried about Ciel's health. She was only human, after all. On the other hand, he was always curious about anything in development by her. He stepped towards the experiment tank and inside of it floated a glowing orb of light enveloped in a shimmering outer shell. It shone brightly, like the sun, more brightly than anything he'd seen her work on. "It's a good thing I'm wearing my goggles," he said. It was clear this was a Cyber-Elf, but to what extremes she'd gone to get this was unprecedented, even for her. "What exactly are you working on? Everyone's been trying to get in touch with you, but your door's always locked."

"Well, I've been extremely hard at work in working on a brand new Cyber-Elf, a powerful one, one that's new and unique in so many ways. I've still got some more work to do since it's still very young and not quite complete, but I'm confident that once it's done..." She stopped there, feeling she'd said enough. "I've already come up with a name for it, too."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. I couldn't think of a lot of names, so I settled with Agapi."

"Agapi..."

"Mmhmm. Do you like it? I came up with it myself. I even asked Alouette. She said she liked it, too."

Yes, ma'am. That's, uh, a very pretty name." Colbor felt a lump form in his throat. His tongue got dry and beads of sweat began to form just below the lining of his cap, showering his forehead with sweat. He felt sorry for Ciel. It was almost like she had lost her way. The general sense of perseverance between Reploids and humans was still a long-term goal that she still had in mind, he could tell. She hadn't given up that dream, even though the dream had already come true. She still fought for prosperity, for eternal happiness, forever, neverending harmony. Poor Ciel. What else was there to fight for? All there was now was the news. He could barely bring himself to say it. She seemed so optimistic, so hopeful about this new Cyber-Elf. He cared for Ciel, but he couldn't withhold important information like this from her. It would hurt. It had to be done, though. "Um, Ms. Ciel..."

Ciel heard the slow delivery when Colbor said her name. She remembered the mission to Neo Arcadia she sent them on. Neige also sent some of her Settlement soldiers along, just to be safe. What she was specifically looking for was noted as being classified and she dropped no hints about its importance to her newest Cyber-Elf project, but she did at least tell Colbor and Neige that she wanted to find Zero. Hopefully their search didn't end in vain. But with the way he came in, somber and heavy, she didn't feel so confident they found much of anything.

"...I regret to inform you that after days of endless searching by our team and Neige's team, our best solders from both sides were unable to locate any more survivors from the Ragnarok blast."

"That's good, I suppose. That means we saved everyone we could, after all."

"...but...we couldn't find any remnants of Zero."

Silence lingered in the air for nameless seconds. "I see..."

"Forgive me, Ms. Ciel. We both searched as thoroughly as we could. We searched every rock, cave, laboratory, desert, and landmark we possibly could. There wasn't a single signal of him on either of our radars. Maybe he really is..."

Ciel said nothing. She didn't cry, though. Whenever she wasn't crying her eyes out thinking about her beloved hero, she was working on Agapi; and vice-versa. Why couldn't she stop thinking about him? It was love. That was all there was to it. The only person she was this deeply intimate with about Zero was Neige. As much as she cared for all of the Resistance members, they were all Reploids. Neige was a human. So was she. She could connect with her strictly on an emotional level. She would wait until he was gone to cry some more. "Thank you, Colbor. I think I'll go to bed now."

"Yes, ma'am, definitely. You look very tired."

"I am. This is very big project that won't be finished any time soon. I still don't have the right amount of data to complete it," she said as Colbor helped her from her seat and helped her out of her lab. The computer was left running while the lights were shut off and the door was shut and locked. "Thank you."

"What exactly are you working on, if you don't mind me asking?"

"To be brief, I'm working on a new energy source. Since the previous energy source was complete a few months ago, I decided to get started on another one. That energy source was so successful for both humans and Reploids, I figured the best thing to do was to create another one so we can have an infinitely renewable source that will never need replenishing. That way, we'll have energy forever and peace will exist even after I leave this world."

"Ciel, that's too much, even for you. We'll be okay without Zero. We're always going to be grateful for what he's done for us. Right now, we're in a fantastic position to defend ourselves without him. Trust me, I'd love to have him back, too. I feel like I can move mountains when he's here. But we've got all the firepower and energy we need with our soldiers and Neige's soldiers. Weil's gone, Elpizo's gone, X is gone and at rest—everything is right with the world, Ciel. No need to worry so much."

"I know... B-but I miss him..."

They passed a large containment chamber which held various tubes of energy stored for future use. Some were experimental, others used for combat purposes, others strictly for Ciel's projects. He wondered what the big empty capsule at the bottom was for? To the left, cutting the corner, was Ciel's bedroom. It was very similar to the nicer bedroom where the humans slept in the Settlement. There was a nice two-person bunk in a moderately sized room. The walls were an azure blue, a fine choice for Ciel since she didn't want people to think she was too "girly." Pictures of Neo Arcadia, her and the Resistance soldiers, her and Alouette, and some silly ones by them on the walls and her dresser. There was even one with Zero that was spectacularly framed with a golden frame and a picture of Passy sitting precariously next to Zero's. Colbor liked the feelings he got when he walked into Ciel's room, as rare as it was. He felt at peace. Warm feelings rose inside him and he suddenly wanted to meditate. "I know you do, Ciel. We all do. But we just didn't strike any good fortune, that's all. Maybe he'll turn up and he'll find us before we find him. Anything's possible at this point. Look at all he's done for us. And it wouldn't have been possible without you."

Ciel wiped the tears from her eyes again, sniffling as she looked at Colbor, looking back at her with a smile. She smiled back and hugged him. "Thank you, Colbor...for everything. I know you're kind of clumsy sometimes, but you do your job with the utmost sincerity. You're probably the bravest person I've known since I formed Neo Arcadia and the Resistance. Without your help, I wouldn't have been able to hold on for as long as I have. It feels like it's been years since we've had war. Even though Zero's gone, I believe he's out there, watching over us. Like a guardian angel...just like X."

"The real X."

"Colbor..."

Their embrace was long and emotional, filled with warmth. They soon departed company and Ciel shut the door behind her, blocking communication between them for the rest of the night. Ciel removed her heels and set them neatly against the wall, side by side. On the wall next to her, she slid her finger down a metal strip and the lights dimmed. She stared at the ceiling for a few minutes, thinking of Zero, before closing her eyes and drifting off to sleep. "Z...Zero...I-I...l...l-lo...v...e...you."

The End?