AN: Ya… so…*hehe* It's been a while… *hides from annoyed fans* Sorry it took so long. School is hell.

Anywho, I know some of you are going to read this and be like, "Wha? Where's all of the Starling and Ravess planning?" Excuse: it's boring and non-crucial to the plot as long as they get the finished product. Actual reason: I am waaaaayyyyy too lazy to write up more banter for them. I know… the timeline seems weird, since it'd probably take a while for them to build the launcher… but what the hey. Like I said, my timeline's been pretty butchered up throughout this fic, so for you detailed-oriented (**) people out there who try to piece together the time co-relation between the Far Side parts and Atmos parts… well… there isn't one. Hence why I haven't been specifying times on any of the Starling parts. Lol! Ah well… taking one shortcut isn't a crime. I'm sure you peeps understand. ;) I promise: next time I have a fic that follows two separate time lines, I'll plan out the times beforehand. Even then that doesn't always work, since if inspiration hits midway through I might change a detail here or there. (Actually, that is pretty much what happened with this fic… Okay, this AN has gotten WAY too long…)

MidnightSymphony01: wow... Lol! High energy much? I'm so glad to know that my fic can trigger awesomeness like that. Thanks for the glowing review.

Chapter 9: Completion

Starling buckled up her boots as she finished preparations in the bridge of the rented carrier ship. She stared down at the weighted shoes, not really seeing them at all. After all of her planning… after all of her attempts, it didn't really seem like this was happening. It had only been a short time but nevertheless… it seemed to have taken much longer. Starling smiled and laughed to herself as she reflected on the last few days. It had been difficult at times, but she was finally ready. With a determined, excited face, she zipped up her suit and fixed on her helmet as she headed outside onto the landing strip. She knew what she would find outside, yet it still made her gasp in a trill of nerves.

They were flying in the stratosphere. But that wasn't all. After all, they had been up here for some time. It was the finished launcher and Starling's modified ride bound for the exosphere that made her gasp.

Starling walked down the landing strip to where the launcher was mounted. Ravess stood nearby, impatient yet unable to hide her silent excitement as well. Starling examined their finished project, overcome by being able to finally see it completed.

"Any time you want to get in," Ravess said through the radio of her helmet. "I'm not comfortable leaving this ship on auto-pilot for long up here."

Ravess' sneer reminded Starling that she still had her mission at hand. "Right," the knight replied, searching one of her pockets. "Our deal…" Starling pulled out a slip of paper folded crossways down the middle and sealed at the end. She handed it to Ravess who took it gladly yet not without suspicion.

"Give this to the council," Starling said. "And I guarantee you'll be a free person in almost no time."

Ravess examined the note, deep in thought. She would have liked to open it, but of course, that would destroy its validity. "They'll still lock me up," Ravess finally stated in an empty voice. "I've done too much."

"It's what I promised you," Starling said dangerously, thinking Ravess meant that the knight cheated her. "I never guaranteed you could just walk in and out of there. Of course you'll have to pay for your crimes but at least this way-"

"That's not what I meant," Ravess interrupted calmly, taking Starling aback at how solemn she had become. Starling sensed something was different about Ravess. During their work together, she would always be snide and aloof – insulting the knight yet keeping it professional by adding that confident smile at the end. Now… now she was serious.

"Ravess…" Starling started, meaning to say something yet not sure what was wrong.

"Why…?" Ravess whispered to herself, still staring at the note. "I know I have to face up to what I've done," she said, not looking at Starling. "I know… that this will help, but it won't change the past."

There was little wind in the stratosphere, yet it was quiet enough to hear the echoes of the updrafts from down below.

Ravess laughed bitterly. "So much for loyalty," she spoke to the paper in her hand. "I guess I'll never know…. The question is, what will my excuse be?"

Ravess tucked the note away into a pocket of her own suit and looked at Starling coldly. "She killed Snipe."

Starling didn't know how to interpret Ravess' musings, but she looked back into the eyes of the person whom she had only now come to realize she had misjudged. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be," Ravess said, turning away and looking towards the launcher. "I suppose… a little bit of good comes out of everything."

A long silence followed. Starling knew as she looked at Ravess standing before her that it would take a long time for the previous talon to come to terms with herself. Finally, Ravess snapped out of whatever thoughts had suddenly plagued her, and she turned back to Starling, the comfortable mask of aloof irritation returned to her face.

"Are you leaving or not?"

Starling smiled, causing Ravess to frown, but the knight saw her own smile reflected in the bright yellow eyes.


Fifteen minutes later, and it was apparent that this was the biggest mistake of her life. A million things could go wrong. Was she bloody daft? Trusting Ravess…

"No," Starling said. That was entirely the nerves. She couldn't be more thrilled that this was happening.

"You said something?" Ravess' voice echoed into Starling's ear. The knight was sitting in the enclosed space of her recently re-modeled skimmer. She laid back against the seat tensely, feeling the weight of gravity pull her backwards, and knowing it would get much worse in a few seconds once the g-force kicked in.

"…What?" Starling responded, pulled out of her nerves. "Oh…no, nothing."

"Keep your head, knight. You wouldn't want to lose it now."

Starling smiled, noticing an opportunity to get in one last jibe. "Why Ravess," she said in mock flattery. "I didn't know you cared."

A brief pause as Ravess was taken aback and then a smile as she thought of her retort. "As if," she said fiendishly. "I just want to make sure you stay alive so if you did rip me off with this letter, I can hunt you down and punish you myself."

Starling laughed, knowing the threat was completely idle. "You won't have to worry about that."

Ravess was silent for a bit, meaning she was probably fuming silently. "You ready?"

Starling nodded, then remembering that Ravess was back on the bride and not able to see her face, replied. "I'm ready."

"Right. Launching in 10…9…8…7…6..."

Starling took a steadying breath. This was it. No turning back now. It was the Far Side or bust.

"…4…3…2…1…"

There was a pause, but no expected launch. Everything went silent and for one second, Starling felt that horrible plummet in her gut at the thought that Ravess had somehow betrayed her. But then radio silence was broken, and Ravess' voice echoed quietly through the helmet. "…Thank you, Starling."

And then the launch. Starling's surprise had left her unprepared, and the sudden jolt put her into stunned shock. She was on her way.

Higher and higher she climbed, but the sky had blurred together and she could have just as easily been falling if it wasn't for the force flattening her against herself. She would have taken in a gasp of surprise if she could, but her chest had pressed in against itself and she couldn't breathe. She wanted to close her eyes through the strain, but she couldn't even do that. The g-force paralyzed her and she feared as she gained more and more height that she would pass out. She began to feel the dark boarders at the side of her eyes, but then the skimmer finally slowed and levelled out, all force gone – and much to Starling's amazement – completely gone. She had been expecting it but still…

"Ravess, are you still in radio contact?"

Static. There was no response, but Starling didn't expect one. Whether she was in contact or not, she wouldn't reply. Starling didn't blame her – she understood why.

But it was time to leave that behind her. There was work to be done. Starling looked around herself, unable to keep the smile off her face as she gazed at the wonders of the exosphere. Time to sight-see later, however. There was something in particular she was looking for…

And there it was… the Boarder Mountains. Starling knew she risked flying right around them and missing the Far Side completely, but that wasn't really an option. She wasn't going to land until she found the Storm Hawks. Activating the thrusters and turning the joystick control, Starling positioned herself towards the mountains, and set off for the Far Side.


He moved slowly through the city streets. Aerrow had been more badly damaged in the fight than he initially thought, and as he half-limped past the ancient stone buildings, the feeling of numb shock at his own survival stayed with him.

Yet Aerrow knew he still didn't have much of a chance. He continued to bleed, some of his wounds too large to clot right away. A trail of blood dragged behind him, and he knew the Night Crawlers would be on the scent – a pack of vicious hounds sent out to tear their prey to pieces. However, he couldn't give up. Not yet… He had to know.

At long last, he came to the place that he felt he had visited so frequently, yet only been there once.

"The temple," Aerrow gasped. He headed inside, feeling as he did so that maybe it could offer him some shred of safety. The place was filled with green light, and Aerrow opened the inner sanctum doors, knowing he was on the right track. He approached the statue, still standing solid and firm. It was reassuring.

"Spirit," Aerrow called. She came right away, fading into existence once again.

"You have returned," she said calmly, yet as always, her voice rang with the tone of sadness and lost ambitions.

"I know you know more than you initially led us to believe." Aerrow said, a little angry with the spirit and unable to seal his emotions due to the recent events. "And you may even know about me."

The spirit smiled sadly but remained silent.

"Tell me!" Aerrow demanded, his voice breaking into a weaker pitch. "Who am I? I know you know!"

Aerrow couldn't hold on anymore, and fell to his knees, dropping Lightning's blade to the ground. The excitement had caused a strain on his system, and he coughed up blood, dripping slowly away from his beaten face. "Tell me…" Aerrow said, only able to make it come out as a whisper as he hung his head and stared down at the ground before him . "I know you know…"

The spirit gazed down at the boy before her. For the first time, her stoic expression was replaced by one of uncertainty, for he was not a boy anymore.

"They hoped…" The spirit said. "You could find out for yourself."

Aerrow didn't respond. He continued to kneel on the ground, hands outstretched to support his beaten frame. The spirit continued to gaze warily at Aerrow but then finally came to her decision. She stretched out a hand.

"Come," she said. "You are ready. It is time you learned the truth, Aerrow."

Aerrow's head rose, and as he saw the honesty in the spirit's face, his resolution strengthened. He looked down and grabbed Lightning's blade before him, using it as a makeshift crutch to support his weight as he stood and limped to the spirit's side. She could not offer him aid as she was only a spirit, yet she looked down at him kindly as he stood weakly before her.

"Do you recall the events I informed you of when you first came to this place?" the spirit asked.

Aerrow nodded. "The warriors of the Far Side locked the door and hid the key so Cyclonis couldn't take over Atmos." Aerrow summarized.

"Correct," the spirit said. "But think more on the details. Have you noticed the dilapidated state of the city? Those are not wounds made by time. Didn't you wonder why it was the Far Side that fell into ruin and not the Atmos? And most importantly of all, once the door was locked, what happened to the Far Side warriors whom were left behind in the Atmos?"

Aerrow looked up at the spirit in awe, not realizing really how much was still left unsaid. "What did happen here? Really?"

The spirit sighed. "Everything I told you before was true. The people of the Far Side fell into ruin, but not simply because they were separated from Atmos. The weapons and beasts they had created in retaliation against Cyclonis remained in their domain, and without an enemy to fight, they turned on the land from which they came."

"They're still here," Aerrow suddenly concluded. "Those flying beasts that attacked Domiwick… and the weapons that Cyclonis found before the battle… they're here and they're still ruining this place."

The spirit nodded sadly. "Slowly but surely."

"Couldn't they fight back?" Aerrow asked. "There had to be something… somebody who could fight against them."

"Ahh… but that is the second answer to the many questions appearing," the spirit responded. "The wise guardians of the Far Side were bound to the realm of the remaining Cyclonis. Though she was no longer much of a threat, it was a new code that they were forced to abide by so she could never return to power.

"Also, several of the Far Side warriors had fallen in battle. Others belonged to those whom were locked out and dwelled in Atmos. One of these warriors was the ruler of the Far Side."

Aerrow's eyes narrowed in intense concentration. Something here was missing…

"The Far Side ruler along with his few remaining followers knew they could never return home, so they decided to protect the place that they had offered to give their lives for. They formed a group dedicated to protecting all of Atmos. They tried to teach their descendents to follow their footsteps and the truth of the Far Side, but eventually only one bloodline was left, one which remained true with the secret knowledge of the Far Side – it was the ruler's bloodline. The Far Side secrets were passed down from father to son, no detail ever being lost along the way.

Aerrow looked away and shook his head, confused but somehow making sense. "Why does all this seem so familiar?" Aerrow asked.

The Spirit smiled. "It should because you, Aerrow, are the last descendent of the Strike bloodline – the Far Side bloodline."

("…the last descendant…"
"…Lightning Strike…"
"…protected all of Atmos…"
"…aren't the Storm Hawks… not really…"
"…do something about it…"
"…much to live up to…"
"…along came the Sky Knights…"
"…let's find out…"
"…Aerrow… of the Storm Hawks…")

Aerrow eyes widened, and he stared into the empty, white eyes of the spirit. He panted hard, and he blinked in confusion and shock at what the consequences meant. "But…" Aerrow stammered. "This doesn't make sense."

"Doesn't it?" the spirit asked. "Think on it, Aerrow, Lightning Strike formed the Storm Hawks – a group dedicated to protecting all of Atmos."

"No," Aerrow said quietly, gripping his head in his hands and shaking it slightly. "No… we came from Nimbus…"

"He lived on Nimbus," the spirit replied. "But he could have chosen to live on any other terra."

The shock forced Aerrow to his knees again, but this time he was able to stay upright, hands still gripping at his head in disbelief.

"You are the last descendent of the ruler of the Far Side," the spirit said. "And being so makes you such. It is your duty, Aerrow, to protect this place. The Far Side has been waiting for its saviour many years now, and the time has finally come to give this place life again."

The spirit ended yet remained present, awaiting Aerrow's acceptance. He remained kneeling, but eventually he was able to stop his body from shaking, and he lowered his tear-covered hands, staring past them at everything that had ever happened to him.

"How…?" Aerrow was eventually able to mutter. "How could all of this been left up to chance?"

"It is far from chance," the spirit replied. "The guardians had more than one task. They were meant to keep a close eye on the to-be ruler of the Far Side as well, although unable to aid for their own safety. However, when they saw you were left as a boy, not yet aware of the destiny before you, they took it upon themselves to set you on the course that would lead you to greatness."

"The guardians?" Aerrow looked up in numb surprise. "Of course… how did I not see it before?"

Aerrow fell back into his own silent musings, the spirit looking down at him. "Now that you know all of this," she said, "my purpose is served."

Aerrow was slow in realizing what she meant, and as he looked back up he saw her disappear. "No…" he said slowly. "Wait!"

But the statue crumbled into dust. She was gone.

Aerrow stared blankly at the spot where the statue fell, then his gaze turned to the sword before him. Lightning's sword… his sword… Aerrow took it in his hands and stood. He looked at the dulled ancient blade, thinking on all that this meant… Thinking on how things could have been different…

He held it to his face, and began to cry.


He didn't know how long he stood there with the shock and pain pouring out of him. It could have been hours but it may have been minutes. All he knew was that this changed everything. He wasn't who he always thought he was, and he didn't know if he was able to accept the responsibility of what he was destined to be.

He sat in his trance, the light of the temple slowly fading to nothing. It was footsteps that brought him back.

Aerrow gasped and looked around, fearing it was the Night Crawlers who had found him. But no… it wasn't them.

"Remember me, kid?"

Aerrow smiled through his tears. That voice was unmistakable, and besides, he was done with being surprised anymore. "Arygyn."

Sure enough, the guardian emerged from the shadows, a smile on his face but one filled more with sympathy than his customary flamboyant teasing.

Aerrow laughed coarsely and embarrassed, wiping away his tears. He faced the man before him but didn't approach. "Where are the others?"

"Well, that's the downside to this whole affair," Arygyn said in his annoying way of speaking offhand about such serious matters. "They seem to like our look but don't act policy – something I never really stood by myself."

Arygyn smiled and Aerrow couldn't help but smile back. "It's good to see you, Arygyn."

"You too, kid. Although, it would have been nicer if I could find you weren't torn apart half to death. Mind explaining what happened?"

Aerrow laughed again as he looked down at himself. "Where to begin… but… what are you doing here?"

Arygyn averted his gaze for a moment and walked towards where the statue once stood. "She told you, didn't she? Where Cyclonis goes, we go."

Aerrow remembered vaguely his last meeting with the guardians. "Our tine on Atmos has come to an end…" That was shortly before the battle began. They could sense Cyclonis was headed for the Far Side…Aerrow decided to turn to the questions that really mattered. "You knew all this…" Aerrow said. Arygyn turned to him, curious. "Why didn't you tell me?" The questions wasn't an accusation, it was just sad disappointment.

"We couldn't," Arygyn replied. "It's something you had to find for yourself."

Aerrow nodded. 'I understand." Together, him and Arygyn stared at the rubble of the statue. "Besides," Aerrow said with a sideways smile. "Since when have you ever been clear about anything?"

Arygyn laughed. "Well, that's true." He turned to Aerrow, but the red-head had quickly become solemn again.

"Arygyn, you've watched all of the Strikes, correct?"

"Yes."

"Did you know my dad?"

Arygyn's smile finally faded, and he looked down, closing his eyes in thought. "Yes," he said. "I knew Lightning. We were actually fairly close friends."

"Then…" Aerrow said hesitantly. "Do you think he would have approved of me?"

Arygyn looked at Aerrow sadly, yet a smile marked the edges of his mouth. "Aerrow, you're the spitting image of Lightning. If I were to speak on his behalf, I'd say that he couldn't be prouder."

At this, Aerrow beamed and he turned back to the rubble, not so sad any more. "Thanks, Arygyn."

The pair reverted back to silence then – Aerrow taking his time with his thoughts and Arygyn letting him. Some of the temple's light had returned, but it was only a faint echo of the brilliance before. Still… it was better than darkness.

Finally, Aerrow spoke.

"Cyclonis won't stop, will she?"

"No she won't…"

"Then… it's my job to protect this place… no matter what trails await me."

"Yes… but remember, Aerrow, you always have a choice."

Aerrow remained silent for a moment. He closed his eyes in thought and Arygyn awaited his response.

"I choose… I choose to fight. There's still hope for the Far Side yet."

Arygyn grinned. "I wouldn't expect anything less from you."

Aerrow held Lightning's sword firm in his hand, and activated the blade. He expected the energy to come out red, but miraculously, it came out blue.

"Another war is coming," Aerrow said. "The Storm Hawks and I have to do everything we can to stop it." He turned to Arygyn, determination resurrected and will reborn. "I suppose you can't help us?"

At this Arygyn smiled hugely, glad to be able to give a good response. "I made that mistake once, kid. I'm not making it again. I say forget the code of the guardians. I'm coming with you."

Aerrow smirked, bemused. "Can you do that?"

"I was never one to play by the rules." Arygyn gave his staff a flourish to emphasize the point. Aerrow beamed at the realization of a new powerful ally, and he turned for the exit, looking towards the city streets.

"Well then in that case," he said, "Let's go find my team."