Chapter One

To be honest, Oriivu Pearce had been put together quite roughly, and without much care at all. She had a metabolic rate, and digestive system, but no stomach. One arm was missing from a mix of the Ruin and the weak materials that had been used to create her. Her body reacted to stress in a way that never came in handy; all her systems completely shut down, leaving her no better off that a car with no engine. And to top it all off, her brain circuitry was so badly damaged, it left the nineteen-year-old girl with the mental capacity of a child of ten years.

However, Ohji noticed that the dying girl had grown up to be quite a beauty, with her short white hair (with the subtlest hint of green) and eyes as blue as clear skies. She was short, and skinny, the grace and agility of a dancer. She had always called him "Papa," even though no relation to the two was clear, and she referred to Ringo as her "little sister," and the same went.

But what Ohji didn't know was that deep in Riivi's childish mind was a secret, a dark, burning desire she had confided to no one.

Oriivu Pearce wanted to die.

"Papa, do angels exist?"

Ohji looked down Riivi, who was sitting next to him. "I think people believe in angels to simply give themselves assurance that there is something to look forward to after death."

"Is Luna an angel?"

"Maybe."

Riivi laid her head in the older man's lap. "If she is," she stated in her strange voice, "then angels don't exist."

Ohji looked at her in awe. Never since the Ruin started had he met someone so committed to the fact that Luna wasn't alive. It was somewhat unnerving...but he just shook that thought off. "It is just some crazy person claiming to be someone they're not."

Riivi clenched her fists. "Its all because of Casshern, isn't it? He killed Luna. He started the Ruin. It's all because of him we're going to die. Luna is dead. She is not alive...People die when you kill them. We're all going to die. No one will live."

"I guess not."

She rolled over and looked up at the sky. "I just want to know how I'll die. Will it be painful? Or quick? Will I be surrounded by people, or will I be alone? Will they be people I love?"

"Who do you want to be with you?"

"When I die?"

"Yes. Who do you want to spend your last days with?"

"I...I want you and Ringo to be there."

"Me and Ringo? Why's that?"

"You guys are the only family I've ever known. You're the only ones I can really trust, the only ones I can talk to about anything."

Ohji smiled as he looked over at a sleeping Ringo. "I'm glad you feel that way."

Riivi sat up. "You're my daddy...and she's my baby sister. Of course I feel that way." She walked over to Ringo and laid next to her, wrapping her arms around the smaller girl to keep her warm. "I love you guys, and I know you love me too."

In her sleep, Ringo snuggled up to Riivi, the hint of a smile on her face.

Ohji, seeing the two of them together, noticed how similar they looked. He knew, or at least was pretty sure, they weren't related, but it was eerie still.

But as Riivi, too, drifted off into sleep, he knew that they didn't have to be blood related to be sisters. He knew that Riiviwould kill or die for Ringo, and he was glad for that.

Now it was time to sleep.