Kairi: If the section with Lee, Crow, and Kairi is confusing, it's because this is part of a series that's not all that Yu-Gi-Oh oriented. (V1 is original Yu-Gi-Oh, V2 is Yu-Gi-Oh 5d's (obviously), V3 is Tales of the Abyss, V4 is Kingdom Hearts, V5 is Final Fantasy XII, V6 is Fullmetal Alchemist... (And I don't think Heylii is done YET)) Sorry, didn't mean to ramble. Here's Chapter 28!
Chapter 28 - Ceasefire
Silence reigned over the battlefield as everyone stopped fighting. Heylii's forces were disoriented, while the men and women who had been fighting against her were relieved. All around Kiara, people started to look around, just now noticing the destruction they had wrought.
About half of the 'army' that had followed Heylii was dead. Of those remaining, most were confused, having been controlled, either by blood or through the darkness. A dozen or so demons flew off before the magic-casters in the group could shot them down, and Kiara was too tired to bother with her bow.
Kairi patted her sister on the shoulder before her calm mask finally broke, letting tears fall quickly and quietly. The blonde ran over to her younger sister, where Zale and Halldor were doing their best to comfort each other. Kitsuna's head was buried in her knees, but it was obvious that she was sobbing.
Rosalie and her friends started rounding up the people who had been with Heylii. It didn't take them long to separate enemy from friend, and Esmé immediately started running around, Lara on her heels, to heal as many as she could. Bela, likewise was running about, though she stopped repeatedly to cry and glance over at one of the fires.
"Kalin…"
The half-Angel turned to look at Odin, who sighed and shook his head. The younger twin grabbed his brother's arm, dragging him over to Valkyria. Laid out in front of her were Reighn and Aerith. Kalin clenched his jaw as Matthias limped over, Danté leaning on the boy as much as the boy was leaning on him.
Lillith walked around, gazing at all of the death and blood, as if in shock. She herself was covered in blood, but she didn't seem to notice it.
"She never did care how much damage she did."
Crow jumped and looked over his shoulder. The woman standing there bore herself like a warrior. A red trench coat covered far more than the sleeveless, midriff-baring denim top and denim shorts she wore. Short brown hair faded to black tips, hiding one of her violet eyes, save for one braid that hung in front of her left shoulder, which was a bright red.
Black biker boots completed her outfit as she sat down next to the Fallen Angel.
"Who, Heylii?" he asked. The woman nodded.
"My sister. Well, my older sister," she replied. Crow looked at her cautiously, and she smiled almost sadly.
"It's a big, complex family. Most of us are related by blood in some way. Heylii's my older half sister, the triplets my younger half-sisters. They aren't actually related to Heylii by blood, but they were born before she left, so they see her as a sister. Or at least, they did. Before Heylii lost it," she told him. Then she looked over at him.
"You realize I don't have a clue what the heck you're talking about, right?" Crow said. The woman nodded, and Crow sighed. "So why are you still talking?"
"Because. You remind me of one of my daughters. She left with Heylii the last time I saw her. And besides… I figure, you can tell Kai I was here, without me having to do it myself," she said.
"Little late for that, don't you think?" Kairi asked. She sat next to the woman and bit her lip, while the woman sighed.
"I'm sorry about Miyoku," she said. Kairi nodded.
"And… I'm sorry. About Axel, about your daughters… and… about what I said before…" she told her. The woman held a finger up to Kairi's lips.
"Don't apologize about that. You had every reason to be angry with me," she said. Crow stood quietly and left, not wanting to get between the two.
Kairi just sighed. "Thanks, Lee. I… I missed you," she said. Lee wrapped an arm around her sister's shoulders and held her close.
"I know. And, for what it's worth… I'll follow you anywhere," she told her. Kairi smiled.
"Thanks. It's about time we start rebuilding the Guardians, huh?" she replied. Lee smiled.
"Yup. You, me, your sisters… if you can drag them in on it, that is…"
"Our brothers?"
"…Might want to leave them out of it…"
Kairi just laughed.
It was a large, relatively quiet gathering. They meant to mourn, not only for those dead among their own, but also those dead among their enemies. And amongst those in mourning was a large group, standing in a circle, arms around each other.
Lillith and her 'daughters' stood together, Jocelyn looking ashamed, Deirdre guilty, and Arylwren sorrowful. The elder vampire herself seemed as if in shock, her face almost expressionless as she held Jocelyn on one side and Yusei on the other.
Yusei, in turn, had his jaw clenched, while tears slipped down his face. Similarly, Halldor couldn't seemed to look at anything but his feet as his left hand rubbed the raven-haired man's back. Kiara supported him to the right.
Next to her, Trudge and Mina stood with Leo and Luna between them. Akiza's hand held Mina's, and Misty was quietly rubbing Andre's arm next to her. Next to Andre was Broder, and Crow, and then Devlin and Trudy. Kalin stood next to Arylwren, with Jack and Carly between him and Trudy.
"Why?"
Yusei's head shot up, looking toward Devlin. The man's eyes were downcast, and for the first time, Yusei could have sworn he looked older than twenty-six.
Kiara sighed. "It's not her fault. She was just trying to save Uro," she muttered, though it sounded like she was trying to convince herself of that more than him. Devlin barked out a laugh.
"This is the second time I've watched her tear apart the fabric of my life, Kiara. I don't especially care right now," he shot back. She just closed her eyes.
It was Kalin's turn to sigh as he noticed the people around them starting to walk off. Yusei frowned. "Okay, what's that supposed to mean?" he prompted warily. Kalin bit his lip, and as the crowds started to part, the group caught sight of Danté, Odin, Valkyria, and Matthias standing a ways off.
"Go." All eyes turned to Kiara. "Rose will take care of them," she added. Kalin examined the ground quietly.
"They're your family, Kalin. I think you've spent long enough without them," Trudy added. The blue-haired Aegyl nodded.
"I know," he replied, looking up. "I'm just not sure I'm ready to leave. I've… never actually been off-world."
Crow chuckled. "That's right, we're not exactly bound to this world, are we?" he joked. Lillith smiled.
"You should probably go talk to Princess Elyon, on Aegyria. If I'd known about Devlin I'd have sent him, but…" she trailed off. "At any rate, it may be worth your while."
Kalin snorted. "Crow? In front of the Council? I'm not sure if I'd want to take a camera or just flee," he said. Lillith gave him a look that clearly said she wasn't as amused as he was. Meanwhile, Kiara smiled.
"Well, if a visit to Elyon is in order, then I suppose I could consider volunteering as a guide, since Crow wouldn't have a clue where he was going at all…" she said, pretending to look thoughtful. Kalin rolled his eyes.
"You just want to go make your little sister's ex-boyfriend uncomfortable again," he muttered. Kiara grinned.
"Yup. Now, you'd best be off before Matthias tries to develop laser vision," she replied. Kalin looked over at his family and smile.
"Right. Thanks, Kiara," he replied, breaking away from the circle and running over to them. Devlin smiled, then looked over at Trudy.
"Hey… You wanna walk to the old graveyard with me? Find a few old friends?" he asked quietly. She nodded, and the two walked away. Likewise, Lillith and her daughters slipped away without a word. Kiara and Crow exchanged a look before the two of them moved away as well. Trudge and Mina, feeling out of place, dismissed themselves to move off to one side.
Yusei raised an eyebrow and looked around. "Sheesh… Well, that's one way to cut a group in half…" he muttered. For the first time in days, Halldor cracked the slightest of smiles, but it didn't last. Broder smiled sadly himself. If a comment like that had gotten Halldor's humor to pull through again, it was a good sign. He would recover.
And, after all they had been through, that was a good thing. Sure, it would be a slow process, and no, the scars would never really fade…
But they would recover.
Kairi: So, Chapter 29 is the last actual chapter, and then there's the Epilogue. I'm working on... well, kind of a sequel to this. Have I mentioned it already? It'll be more Yu-Gi-Oh based again, thankfully, now that Heylii's gone. She's not coming back, so the only people who have any reason to are Kiara and Kanan... and Zale and her androids, but that's beside the point. Anyway, please review. Since Chapter 29 is due tomorrow, I'll be posting it tomorrow... Unless I forget again... (Try not to let me forget, people!)
