A/N: Apologize for the long wait but assignments have been keeping me pretty busy and those come first. We're reaching an end though so I thought, why not release two rather beefy chapters at once. Both flashbacks, but very important flashbacks. Also, some pretty big developments pertaining to this story in the A/N at the bottom so be sure to check that out once you've finished reading.
Chapter 83
The Tale Of Two Sisters
Outside The White Queen's Castle, Wonderland
Astra spun around after she cut through the Wraith, not letting her guard down immediately even though there were only Card Soldiers around her. The battle had been won but it always took Astra a while to settle down from its highs.
Doing this over and over again, teetering between life and death… it couldn't be a good thing. However, she was aware that there were those who lived for it—the rushes of dopamine that they could find only by throwing themselves into danger again and again. She wondered whether she was one of those people.
But then she couldn't say those people had goals. They lived on battle, thus sought to encourage it. She wanted no such thing. She admitted it gave her a purpose she had been seeking since her grandmother's death, but she hardly wanted it to continue. Luna had re-entered and become a part of her life again. Protecting her had become her goal, her purpose. And yet, she wondered if that was enough on its own.
"Astra!" she looked up, hearing Donald's cry as he ran towards her.
She stretched and craned her neck. "I am not used to fighting so many of these things. Agh!"
Something was dripping from her right hand. She brought her arm down in front of her and stared at the blood with a grimace. Rolling her sleeve up, she found trickling from an open wound on her forearm. She hadn't even noticed it up until now.
Donald raised his staff upwards. Before Astra could object, she felt a warm tingling sensation across her body. She looked back at her arm to see the blood had travelling upwards back into her wound. When the wound resealed itself, she was just about wishing she hadn't seen the entire thing.
"That's just wack," Astra said, turning her arm about to examine it. She then looked to Donald. "Thanks. I owe you one."
"You're not used to saying that, are you?" Donald leaned forward with a smug look on his face. "Or asking for help."
"From you, no. And don't push your luck, duck. This is a one-time thing," Astra said.
"I hope you don't make it a thing," Donald grunted.
The sounds of heavy breathing filled their ears and they both turned around to see Goofy running towards them.
"Did you place the device, Goofy?" Donald asked.
"Well, yes, but we've got bigger problems on our hands! Luna's been kidnapped!"
There was a brief pause as Astra struggled to parse what she was hearing. "What? What do you mean she was kidnapped?"
She didn't wait to hear an answer Goofy however. She charged forward on her own, all the while calling out Luna's name. Card Soldiers across the field looked her way, but she didn't care. Her hopes were fading fast as she crossed the field but she kept hold of what little of it she had, believing that somehow, Goofy must have missed something.
She must have done a full lap around the area when it finally began to sink in. She crouched low and placed her hands on the sides of her face.
Goofy and Donald eventually caught up, both seeming as downcast as her.
"I heard a commotion over by those trees. When I went over, I saw a bunch of shady looking people pulling her into a corridor of light," Goofy said. His doleful eyes seemed to convey that he felt he was partly at fault. "I couldn't reach them in time. I'm sorry."
"Aw, it's not your fault, Goofy," Donald tried to lift his spirits. "Luna wouldn't have wanted you to have gotten hurt."
"Yeah, don't beat yourself up over it too much," Astra added, giving him a small smile. "Do you remember what they looked like? Anything we can go on?"
"Hmm, let's see…" Goofy scratched the bottom of his chin. "The one closest to Luna was a woman with pink hair. They all had their backs turned so I didn't see much else."
"The only one I know with pink hair is Lightning," Donald said. "But she doesn't have a Keyblade."
Astra bit her lower lip and frowned. "I have one person in mind. Was a pain in the ass for me and Riku once. She was Horus too so if it's her, it makes sense she would do this."
"But wait… does that mean someone's been following us this entire time?" Goofy asked. "The forest has eyes today… could that be what the Cheshire Cat meant?"
"And Luna was the only one who worried about it. I should have been more supportive," a gloomy Astra said as she resumed her tall stature and looked up to the sky. "I finally have the chance to make things right with her again and I still let her down. What a friend I am."
Donald walked next to her and looked up. "It's alright. You, me, Goofy and Sora will get her back!"
"Sora?" Astra whipped around so quickly that Donald backed away quickly.
"Well, yeah. He would want to know," Donald said.
"That… sounds like a bad idea actually. I'm sure he has far too many things on his plate at the moment to have to worry about this too," Astra quickly made something up on the fly. She certainly wasn't worried about whether he had too many things 'on his plate' or not. "We can handle this by ourselves."
"But Astra, don't you think another hand to help out would be better than taking a risk? We don't even know how many people we're up against!" Goofy countered. Astra winced. Why did he have to make so much sense?
"Well… one extra hand or not, I don't think it's going to make a difference against many of them. Look, Luna could be suffering right now. We don't have time to wait for Sora to rendezvous with us," Astra argued.
"To be fair, we don't even know where Luna is," Donald pointed out.
"Please tell me you weren't this pessimistic with Sora. Look, we can do this, the three of us! We find the place, we go in, we sneak Luna out, bada-bing bada-boom. Well, maybe not quite so bada-bi- look, we've just got to keep our heads on the task and do this," Astra said. And if they still said no, she would do it herself, she quietly added in her mind.
Goofy smiled and looked over at Donald. "We understand ya, right, Donald? It's not up to if we can or can't. We have to!"
Donald seemed swept in by Goofy's enthusiasm and unfolded his arms. "Yeah, Luna's counting on us!"
Astra gave them both warm smiles. She was under no illusion that what she was doing was selfish. She didn't dislike Sora like she used to for the pettiest of reasons, but she also wanted to prove, both to Luna and herself, that she could still be relied upon—that she was still needed.
A groan escaped Luna's mouth. Her head occasionally rose only to drop seconds later. She could feel the grogginess starting to wear off... only just. Her head felt heavy as she moved it, so she closed her eyes again and waited for the dense fog to clear.
It was probably another minute before she opened her eyes again. The effects of her scrambled brain seemed lessened on her mind. It was enough for her to take a look at her surroundings. She was seated at a round table in a rectangular room with the floor, walls and ceiling all of a polished wood. There was also a door to her left and three large windows in the room, from which Luna could see trees outside. That she could almost see their tops told her that she definitely wasn't on the first floor of the building.
Turning her attention back to the inside, she saw several shelves stacked with books, giving her the impression that she was in some sort of study or small library. She groaned again, not because she was tired, but because the rays of light peeking through the window were almost blinding.
The sound of a lock clicking on the other side of the door brought her attention away from the window. The door opened and June Caster hopped into the room with more excitement and energy than Luna could handle right now.
"Good morning! I hope I didn't disturb your sleep but we have oh so much to talk about, don't we, Luna?" June took a seat on the opposite side of her and held out her hand, showing Luna a red apple. "Care for a bite?"
Luna chose not to speak. Not until she could at least figure out some sort of agenda. She kept her lips glued together and continued to glare at June.
"Oh, don't give me that miserable expression. What, you think I'd poison my niece? I'm not some jealous wretch next in line for the throne or something," June said, sitting back in her chair. She took a bite out of the apple as if to show Luna it was completely fine and set it down on the table.
She waved a finger over the apple, continuing to speak. "See, I always used to have my mom peel the apple skin away. I couldn't stand to eat it otherwise. In comparison, my sister was never so fussy. It was only much later on in my life that I found out the beneficial aspects of apple skin and from then on I began eating it as is. Still, it's weird to think of all the extra effort I'd made my mom go through back then. Maybe she even found me a nuisance. Not that she'd ever say that. She was far too kind."
"Why are you calling me your niece? Who are you?" Luna asked. She had called her that right before putting her to sleep as well.
"Well, perhaps I should start off with how I found you. Well, we'll just say that as a Keyblade wielder, you were expected to know certain skills that could help you better in the field. Intelligence gathering for mission planning was one of them. That knowledge led me to David Xanatos and his research files. Xanatos' files led me to Alexander, and Alexander led me to the family register and to you but more importantly my sister. Kaylah, huh? Interesting moniker she chose. Our mother's name… Well, if you don't want to be found, don't leave breadcrumbs as you walk."
Luna finally took her eyes off June, looking at the apple. "Then mom was-"
"A Keyblade wielder like you and me? She sure was. Moira Caster. The sister who walked out of my life… or ran is more accurate," June said. She looked up from the apple, but kept her finger hovered over it. "So you won't eat? I promise I'll tell you more about her if you do."
With a push, June rolled the apple across the table. It landed in front of Luna, who looked at June and saw not the faintest trace of intent to deceive her. If anything, June seemed amused that Luna was so paranoid about it. Luna grabbed the apple and brought it to her mouth, taking a quick bite out of it. As the juices flowed freely, she couldn't help but feel they left a more sour taste in her mouth than sweet.
June's smile told Luna that she was satisfied. The pink haired girl sat up straight and with a satisfied smile began her story without so much as a lead-in.
June had always loved singing. Ever since she could remember, when something had made her happy, she couldn't help but dance and sing her elation out loud. But this did not just extend to moments of joy. Even in moments of sadness, she tried her best to cheer herself or others up with a song. She had even stated as much to her mother:
"Why are you always so rowdy? Girl, I can barely keep you still for a second!" her mother told her one morning while they were out shopping at the town's grocery store. She was of a fuller and curvaceous shape, with wheat brown hair and the first onset of wrinkles forming around her mouth and eyes.
"I can't help it, mom, really! I just can't help singing—"
But her mother had never meant to stop her anyway. To her, June's skill had been inherited from her mother, or June's grandmother, who would often sit out on the prairie after a day's working of milking the cows, and would sing the dulcet tones that had eventually drawn her husband to her.
All June ever wanted was to share her own happiness and make others happy in return. It was her own special superpower and one that she had been incredibly proud of.
In comparison, Moira was quieter. She was more engaged with reading books and writing, whether it was actual stories or in her diary.
June had never been able to find out if Moira had been able to sing or not. Chances were that had she given it a try, Moira probably would have been able to, but as for who loved it more, there was no doubt. Moira was happy enough anyway to hear her sister sing. They would go to that same prairie their grandmother had gone too, about a fifteen minute walk from their house, and June would sing and Moira would write. Sometimes she would even write songs for June to sing.
At the time, it was impossible for June to imagine being estranged from her sister. They had even received their Keyblades at roughly the same time. There used to be a story in the age of fairy tales, of the Keyblades being bestowed on those deemed worthy by special messengers who had worked under the founders of the Keyblade.
These messengers were fairies, who watched without intervening in the world's affairs. Their job was to find a home—a safe pair of hands—for the souls used to make the Keyblades. It wasn't like the Keyblades of modern day, which chose of their own accord and those of their previous masters who were worthy and who weren't.
Of course, these fairies could not stay invisible to those they had chosen. June and Moira were owed an explanation, and when one of the fairies who had chosen them appeared to speak, he told them about the academy that would allow them to hone their talents.
"You, of course, do not need to come if you do not wish to. I revoke your awakening, but you'll have to forget all I have told you thus far," the fairy told them. His name was Puck. "It is a huge commitment, but waiting for you at the end is a whole wide world for you to explore. You'll laugh at the boundaries of your imagination as they are now."
It was, of course, something that needed serious consideration. Puck had not expected the answer from the immediately. He had given them three days to make their decision. June had warmed to the idea almost immediately.
Her mother had always told her that her talent should be heard by as many people as possible. It was a childish idea, thinking that she could bring people together through the power of song alone, but then again she was a child. She could not have known then of how hard it would be to accomplish such a feat.
In contrast, Moira was reluctant. She was happy and content with the friends and family she had in the town and was sceptical, rightly so, about giving that up. Leaving mom and dad especially, Moira wasn't sure.
Still, the more June thought about the idea, the more she became enthralled by it. Not many people truly had the chance to make a difference in the lives of others, and that aside…
"We can come back and visit mom and dad whenever we want. That's what that fairy said. Come on, Moira, we have nothing to lose," June tried to convince her on the second day. "And if you don't like it there, then you- we can leave. But at least we tried."
"We? I- I wouldn't want to take you away from something you love, June," Moira rejected with a frivolous shake of her hands.
But June shook her head. "No way, you're my little sister. I'm not gonna leave you behind. Us Casters stick together."
"You might come to regret that, Juniper," Moira said with a slight giggle.
"Oh, trust me, it's not worth it without you," June said, rubbing Moira's head playfully.
Of course they also had to tell their parents about their decision. That hadn't been easy at all. Their father had been supportive, as best as he could given his limited knowledge of what his two daughters were getting into. Truth be told, not even the sisters fully understood it all. If it had just been June it would have been easy to dismiss, but both sisters? That was a different story.
It had felt like such a mountain to climb to convince their mother, which is why June had been surprised when her mother had suddenly pulled her into a hug and changed her opinion completely on the day that Puck was scheduled to reappear. Tears flowed from her mother's eyes and June, in the best way she knew how, launched into a sweet lullaby in an attempt to soothe her.
Thus began their lives as Keyblade Wielders. Moira had started to warm into her new role more as a treasure trove of information that she had never even imagined in her wildest dreams was made available to her. June wasn't even sure she would be able to drag her sister back home with her during their free days.
Their lessons were divided into practical and theory. It wasn't really the case where one of them excelled at the thing the other didn't and vice versa. They helped each other out when they could and, for the most part, had the same pool of friends at the academy.
Then came graduation day. After a year of being observed and tested, the day had come when leaders of the factions would come to recruit the students into their own. June and Moira had been hoping they would end up in the same faction, but their performances may have been more different than either of them had thought.
They were in the dormitories when one of the masters came in to announce that they would be called into the office one by one to meet their faction leader. Throughout that entire time, June kept her fingers intertwined with her sister's.
It didn't take long for June's name to be called. They were going in alphabetical order of last name, which meant that Moira would be right after her.
"Good luck," her sister whispered into her ear, giving her hand a quick squeeze. June smiled but it was a complete front. She could only hope Moira hadn't seen her knees trembling as she left.
At the office, she was given a fancy yellow envelope with the seal of the academy on it. With unsteady hands, she opened it and slid the piece of paper out. Her fate was sealed. Well, unsealed now. Horus. And it even showed her the location to meet its leader. From what she knew of Varin Torvald, he was a practical kind of person who had led several campaigns in pushing the darkness back. It wasn't exactly the most romantic of choices, but she would give it a chance.
Before heading to the meeting point to meet the people who she would be spending a lot of her time with, she had to know her sister's faction. Only a few minutes passed before she saw Moira approaching the office. Another minute later and the door opened, Moira walking out with an open envelope in her hands.
"So? What did you get?" June asked nervously, after leaping out from her hiding place.
"Th- the Lunarians?" Moira said, as though she wasn't sure whether to be happy or not, or more like, it depended on how June felt.
"Oh. I mean, that's really amazing, Moira!" June exclaimed, pulling her sister into a hug. She eventually backed away and waved her envelope in the air. "I got Horus."
"Oh, that's… I know you were hoping for the Lunarians. I'm sorry…" Moira said, lowering her head.
"No, that doesn't matter. I'm just glad one of us got in," June said. It was true she had been favouring the Lunarians over the other factions. In contrast, Moira hadn't much minded where she would end up—only that it would be in the same faction as her sister.
"Maybe you can apply for a change. We can even swap if you want. I don't mind," Moira suggested.
"No, there'd be no point then if everyone just chose whatever they wanted. That's what they'll say. I can't blame them either. Hey, maybe it won't be so bad. I mean, fighting alongside the Shiva of the Winds is cool and all but I hear Horus has a prodigy of its own too. Varin Torvald's son too!" June said.
"Well… if you really are okay with it…" Moira said, slowly.
"Ugh, how many times do I have to say it? Yes! Hey, as long as we can still see each other, and I don't see anything in the rulebook saying we can't, then who cares?" June said, trying to discard her disappointment with a quick wave of her hand.
But the different beliefs of Horus and the Lunarians proved to be a constant strain on their friendship. It had started off simple enough. There had been nothing preventing members of one faction working together with others.
Moira had found herself a small circle of friends with whom June had worked alongside with on several occasions. Even though she didn't have many friends and even though June's peppy personality had attracted plenty, June still found that she was surprisingly lonely at times. During the missions where she collaborated with Moira and her two friends, she had found herself sometimes watching them from afar, wanting what they had.
June couldn't help but feel she was in the wrong faction, but rather than let that deter her, she saw it as a challenge. If she could work her way up in Horus, then perhaps one day she could bring the factions together. It wasn't exactly as easy singing to her but it gave her something to look forward to. A reminder that whatever she was feeling at the moment was all going to be worth something.
A couple of years had passed since June had first joined Horus and she was now seventeen and Moira fifteen. Relations between the factions had always been competitive before, but certain disagreements as of late between its leaders had brought tensions to new highs, certainly not ones experienced by June in her time with Horus so far.
But instead of letting them dominate the conversation, she did what most of her fellow students did—kept her head low and focused on her missions and the little projects she had been doing, arranging festivals and other events with her peers and the teachers. Hearing anything about heightening tensions that could suddenly erupt only made her miserable and served to highlight just how terrible politics was and how selfish adults could be. It was one of the things she wasn't looking forward to when she finally reached the higher ranks.
As the talks dragged on, naturally most of the faction began to pay little mind to it. The idea that an all-out conflict was possible seemed incredulous. It was just leaders being leaders—or in other words, boosting their egos and trying to appear tough. June paid no mind of it, at first.
And then one day, something came completely out of the blue that ground the gears to a halt. She had been chatting with her classmates when she had heard a large commotion coming from the hallway. Suddenly, one of her classmates opened the door and leapt through.
"What's happening?" one of the students asked, standing up from her desk.
"Cephadalus' leader has been assassinated!" the boy said through heavy breaths.
There was a sudden movement of bodies as everyone suddenly scrambled out of the room to become a part of the stampede. Everyone understood the implication of an assassination, especially when it concerned the great-great-granddaughter of the founder of Cephadalus. She pushed through the sea of bodies as best she could and soon reached the front to see a most marvellous sight.
Varin Torvald sharply drew his Keyblade diagonally, parrying an attack from his adversary. June knew the man to be Eckhard, the leader of Cephadalus' right hand man. From what she understood, he had been incredibly loyal to the deceased Master Helena to the point where he had considered himself more of a tool to be used by her than an actual person.
As their blades met, June felt as if she had just been blasted by hot air. She could feel intent—the murderous intent—coming from just the clash of their blades as they slammed into each other again and again. She feared that if the fighting were to go on any longer someone outside of their narrow perception of the world would get hurt.
There was one other person who felt the same way, it seemed. As Varin lunged forward like a snake poised to strike, a blue haired woman suddenly stepped in and threw up a barrier, both their attacks rebounding off it.
"Seren? What are you doing? Stand down!" Varin growled at her. His voice was low and resonant, easy to pick out in a crowd.
"I cannot. Lord Irva does not wish for this to continue," Mari Seren said, keeping her arms spread. Varin looked to his side where his son stood, who in turn cast his gaze elsewhere. As Varin drew his eyes away from his son and to the other students, June felt her suspicions had been confirmed. He had been too caught up in the fight to notice the others there, just as she had heard from the stories about him.
Mari looked to both sides as she slowly lowered her hands. Only when she was sure that there would be no more aggression between them did she finally lower the barrier. Even still, it did little to disrupt the malice emanating from the two parties.
"So now you hide behind your pupils like a coward. How the mighty have fallen," Eckhard said, banishing his Keyblade.
"You'd do well to remember on whose ground you stand, boy. I had nothing to do with Helena's death. Your claim is comparative to mud-slinging at best."
Eckhard watched as Varin chuckled, though he hardly found it amusing. "Oh, it's more than just a claim. We've known of your secret pet project for a while now. Your little terrorist group hidden in the shadows."
Varin glowered at him. "I have no idea what you're talking about. Listen, Eckhard, you normally have a good head above your shoulders. I respect that. I'm sorry for what happened to Helena but-"
"Don't you dare talk as if you cared about her! Otherwise you wouldn't have done what you did," Eckhard said through gritted teeth. "The truth is that you can't stand that Master Helena was the one to inherit the χ-blade. You've let the shadows of jealousy overtake what love you ever had for my master, if you had any love in your heart to begin with."
June didn't understand what was going on. The Keyblade? As though there were only one?
Varin scowled and lowered his head. "You can talk all you want but if you have no evidence then don't be surprised when no one believes what you say. And I don't take kindly to you calling me liar either."
"You don't need to take kindly to it. Our deliberation over the next few days will determine your judgement. Even you should know once the Inquisitors make a decision, there's no stopping that," Eckhard said. It seemed some measure of composure had returned to him.
"To which I would tell them to think wisely and then think again. I won't take any form of aggression lightly." For a moment, the two men stared at each other, engaged in a contest of wills and dominance. June doubted even Mari Seren would want to say anything this time.
Then, Eckhard turned and left. It seemed all so nonchalant. Too much so for what had just happened.
"Well? Don't dawdle. Back to studying with the lot of you!" Varin's voice travelled across the courtyard as he stormed off in a huff.
As the congregation of students turned to leave, murmurs and all, June tried to call out to Irva. Usually, he was quite receptive to conversing with her—a bit quiet, for June mostly found herself talking while he listened, but receptive all the same. Now, as she reached out to him, June saw the side of Irva that she had only seen on rare occasions. A pain and anxiety that he struggled to hide at times. She was sure it was related to his father too.
It was a few days later when Cephadalus officially declared Horus to be a threat to its existence and banned any co-operation between students of either class. Naturally, it prompted Horus to do the same. Previously, missions had to be cleared with other factions so as to prevent conflict of interest and maximize the success of the mission. Now that communications between Horus and Cephadalus had ceased, they could no longer make compromises, resulting in the two factions being sent to tackle the same missions. Fights broke out between members of both factions and the hostility had become the normality.
June needed some time away from it all. As on most occasions, although admittedly not as much lately, she found solace in the only person she felt she understood at the moment. One evening as they were preparing dinner in their parents' kitchen, June confided in Moira her fears for the future.
"Well, I don't envy your position. The thing is I can't see it blowing over like previous times," Moira said, as she discarded the onion layers.
"Yeah... I mean there are people in Horus like me who absolutely don't want a war to happen, but I feel as if even though no one is saying it, there are a lot of us that are anticipating it. It's like deliberately walking through a minefield knowing the consequences when the safest way would just be to walk around it."
"And that you're also guiding a group of people into it too and ignoring their advice," Moira added as she turned on the sink to wash her hands.
June couldn't help but laugh at the image formed in her head. "Yeah… how are the Lunarians taking it?"
"Well… you promise you won't say anything to anyone else?" Moira asked, turning away from the sink to look at her sister.
June raised a brow. "Really, sis? My family's always going to come first. You should know that."
"No, I- sorry. Anyway, the Lunarians aren't happy about the situation, obviously. They fear that if it escalates any further, innocent people will be put in danger. They don't want to remain neutral on the situation if that's inevitably going to be the case so they're currently deliberating stepping in," Moira said, gloomily.
"But if they do-"
"Then there'll almost certainly be a war," Moira finished for her. There was silence as they contemplated the worst. That they would be fighting people just like them. That they would be fighting each other. Sisters on opposing sides, caught in the flames of war… no, she didn't need to imagine it because she wouldn't let it happen.
"We should just run," she suddenly spoke the words that had been on her mind for a while.
Moira looked up in surprise. "What?"
"If all we're going to be doing is killing each other then I'd rather not play a part in it," June said. "We should just run. Forget the lot of 'em! They won't be satisfied until they drag us to hell with them."
"You know they have mechanisms in place to prevent deserters from leaving, right? They might even try to hunt us down," Moira said, heading back over to the kitchen counter. She raised her knife and began chopping away at the skinless onion. "And besides which, I'm sure we both have friends we don't want to give up on. What would I say to Kohle, Luther and Pandora?"
"We'll take them with us then. We'll all leave," June said, resuming her work on the bell pepper in front of her.
"With a seer? They won't allow it. And don't say leave her behind because I won't."
"I know you won't. She hasn't… said anything about a war, has she?" June asked. She had been reluctant to ask. From what June had told her previously, a Seer's visions usually came true. It was scary to think that someone had all that power to see into the future, but she did not take it to mean that all of her actions were deterministic. She considered them more warnings than a guarantee.
"I haven't spent much time with her. They're keeping her under lock and key lately. I have a feeling the higher ups are going to be basing their decisions off of her visions," Moira said. She paused her cutting and looked down at the chopping board. June looked around just in time to see Moira shaking. Tears fell from her eyes onto the chopping board. June wanted to comfort her, but she could find no strength within which to do so. Fear was what kept her in place.
A few days later, the war, already a reality in most of their minds, was made a formality. As Moira had said, the Lunarians stepped in, accusing both Horus and Cephadalus of endangering the light in the world. Perhaps wanting to mitigate losses on their side, the Oberian faction refrained from fighting at first. It was a wise choice, but it wasn't meant to be for long. As Horus stretched into Oberian territory that they believed would give them a tactical advantage over Cephadalus and the Lunarians, the Oberians were eventually forced into the conflict.
June, who had been hoping to take a step back from all this, was soon met with an all too tempting offer. She was offered the promotion to lieutenant of the new Hauteclaire division—a division comprised of her class and one other—after her outstanding performance in class. It had come at the worst possible time and yet when the new General Irva Torvald had made her the offer, she had found it impossible to turn down. Why? Because she had been working towards this for a long time? She couldn't deny a sense of pride when being made lieutenant, although with her new role also came responsibility and that, in its current context, she was not looking forward to.
When one doesn't even know what they were fighting for, war—already horrifically ugly—became worse. For June, her purpose came from the bonds she had made with her team, though it had taken her some time to figure that out. Leading them into their designated missions, fighting alongside and relying on them had made that clear.
In the end, she was torn between two worlds—one free of the influences of greedy warmongers exploiting them and the other, willing to put up with those same despots because in the end she could not abandon those she cared for.
In a way, she was glad the choice was made for her. Her calling came one night as she was out for a stroll. Moira had snuck away from the Lunarians' academy to ask June for help. It had completely taken June by surprise. The climate between the factions was practically akin to slamming one's head on a desk and here her sister was, bold enough to sneak into Horus' grounds.
"What are you doing here, Moira? What if any of the higher ups catch you?" June said, as she guided Moira to a discrete location away from any windows in view.
June listened intently as Moira explained her plan. Or at least, she had tried to, for she seemed to have lost track of what her sister was saying by the end of it.
"Pandora's suffering, June, I just know it. She can't live like she is, cooped up in a small room and subject to people trying to abuse her powers. So I've been thinking about it for a while and I think the best chance she has is taking her to the fairies," Moira told her.
"The fairies?" June repeated, astounded that Moira had even suggested such a thing. Fairies tended to keep to their own and for a good reason. Just as humans had come to use the Seers as weapons, the fairies too had been taken advantage of in the past.
"They'll keep her safe. It's the best we can do until this war is over. I know I'm asking a lot given your position but… I need someone I can trust," Moira said.
"What about Kohle and Luther?" June asked.
"Luther is… he's not been himself lately. I'd bring Kohle but then Luther would get mad and…" Moira looked off in the distance with a pained expression on her face.
June folded her arms and took a deep breath. "You do know that if you do this, you'll be considered a traitor among the Lunarians, right? You're really going to throw your life away, just like that?"
Moira finally looked back at her, determination in her eyes. "This is war. What worthwhile life could possibly be waiting for me in that? Besides, Pandora deserves a better life than just being some pawn on a chessboard."
June gave a prompt nod and beamed. "Agreed. Then I'm with you all the way. You do know how to find the fairies, right?"
Moira stiffened and threw her sister a wry smile. "Yeeaaa-no. I haven't figured that one out yet. I was hoping you would have some ideas."
June gave a resigned sigh. "Always in a rush to do things…"
"But let's face it, you like that part of me anyway," Moira said, leaning in with a sly smile. June leaned away from her with something of a mix akin to amusement and confusion. Eventually, she burst out laughing, Moira joining in. It had been a good while since they had last had a good laugh together. It was much needed in a world that currently permeated sadness and wrath.
A/N: So Pandora was first mentioned, no, actually referenced in one of the chapters for Cracks of the Past when Zeus is talking to Lea about the origins of the puzzle box, so surprise! She's more than a reference now. She's lore.
Also, onto the big update I wanted to share with you. Initially, I'd intended on finishing this series up with this one however when I first planned this after the end of CotP, I had hoped it wouldn't go on for longer than 80 chapters. It clearly has. It was really a case of biting off more than I could chew, but at the same time I really don't want to rush important moments. Because I don't want to go past a certain amount of chapters and word count with this story (it's already pretty high), I think I'm going to make a separate Part 2, focusing on the rest of the story.
It won't be as long but I think it will be the right choice in the long run so each story feels self-contained even if they are part of a bigger whole. Technically, the Dual Destinies trilogy is not really a trilogy anyway since Riku and Kairi's stories are also separate stories so hopefully you understand why I came to this decision and let's enjoy Paved With Gold Part 1 to the end.
