Chapter 6: (S)ena

S pulled her arms up above her head in a stretch as she walked through the Kevesian Colony, a Ferronis looming overhead. She did her best to ignore the sight of the burning blue Flame Clock mounted at its core.

As she meandered through the camp, no one gave her any strange looks, or even second glances. It made sense, since she didn't even look like herself at the moment.

Pausing near the Ferronis' leg where a Nopon was busy polishing a section of the metal he'd just repaired, she glanced at her reflection. Gray patterned skin, red eyes, long silver hair tied in a braid down her back - no glowing or flames today - and a standard issue Kevesi infantry uniform.

These days, seeing someone else in her reflection didn't catch her off guard, like it had once. Right now, she looked like Segiri when she was in her later terms.

"Friend need something?"

S blinked, not expecting the interaction. Looking down - farther down than she would if she looked like herself - she smiled at the Nopon holding an oily rag in one wing. "Nope. Just thinking."

Her voice even sounded like Segiri's right now. Things like that used to throw her off, but it was something else she'd gotten used to after a while.

"Perhaps friend is hungry? Got off transport from other Colony, yes?" She nodded. "Must be hungry from long day of transport levnis. If lucky, still find food left in canteen. Colony 18 have good cookypon!"

"Oh, I'm not really that hungry." Moebius didn't technically need to eat. Despite how long it had been, that still weirded her out a little. "Just…wandering around, I guess."

"Friend suit self."

S left it at that, though she did end up wandering over to the simple canteen anyways, if only to pass the time. After all, she'd already gotten what she came here for anyways. She stopped, however, when a familiar shock of white hair caught her eye.

She helped oversee the transfers of thousands of people between colonies (always people, she reminded herself, never just soldiers), but considering how long this had been going on, it was difficult to remember where her old friends were. Without thinking, she started running over to the canteen, weaving through the evening footraffic.

"Hey, Lanz!"

Sure enough, Lanz looked up from his seat in the canteen, torpedo wrap lowering slightly as he frowned at her approach, eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Sorry, do I know you?"

Oh.

Right, he didn't remember. That was last cycle. And she didn't even look like the person she had been then. Should have remembered.

"Oh!" She smiled as she finished her approach, stopping just short of the table. She let an awkward laugh that wasn't entirely faked sneak out. "I, uh, heard about you from my last commander! Said you're this really strong, up and coming defender, and I thought it was…neat. Yeah."

He looked at her strangely another moment, and S was beginning to spin more excuses in her head - maybe this had been a bad idea - before Lanz grinned.

"Oh, yeah?" He rubbed the back of his head in that way she knew he did when was embarrassed, but she also saw him perk up at the praise. "That's cool."

"Well now," another familiar voice came up and plopped down beside Lanz, her leg resting on the stool where she sat. S noticed the brown hair, the white wings on her head and tried really hard not to react as Eunie elbowed him. "Looks like Lanz's got a fan. If only she knew that you only stay alive long enough 'cause I heal you before you can charge off again."

"Oi, shut it, you."

"It's the truth though, innit?"

S smiled at their familiar antics. Looks like they were still getting along fine this time, which was great in her book! A spark of mischief went through her and she leaned forward, squinting her eyes at Eunie, as if scrutinizing her closely.

"Actually, hold on. Blue eyes, brown hair, and…white wings?" S straightened and snapped her fingers. "Oh yeah, you're Eunie, right? A healer in Colony 18's special ops team?"

"Too right!" A smug, very Eunie-like grin appeared on her face, though a moment later it disappeared as she fiddled with her head wing. "But…how'd you know that? Haven't seen you around before. Are you transferring to the Colony?"

"Nope," S shook her head. "Just passing through."

"Ah, I get it," Lanz said, "so you'll be shipping out with the others that aren't staying for Colony 6 tomorrow morning, right?"

"Yup!" S lied. Or, well, she guessed it wasn't completely a lie. She just wasn't going to go to the Colony they thought she was. "Hey, um, do you…" she trailed off.

Abruptly, she felt a little silly for what she was about to ask. After so long, would it even be worth it?

She stopped that trail of thought.

"C'mon, spit it out, love." Eunie was leaning on her hand on her head, pointing towards her with a half-eaten torpedo wrap. "You came this far, right? Might as well ask whatever it is you wanna ask."

There was so much she wanted to say, but couldn't. So much that this Lanz and Eunie didn't know, didn't understand. She missed the ones she knew. Even if it was selfish of her, even if she didn't wish what she'd chosen on them, a part of her wished they had.

It was…lonely doing this.

Just one more day.

She took a deep breath. "Would it be alright if we traded training tips?" She flexed her - or was it really her? - bicep. "I might not look it, but I'm pretty strong!"

Eunie's mouth hung open a moment before her hand met her forehead. "Queen's wings," she muttered, "I should've known she was another meathead."

"Really?" Lanz raised an eyebrow, eying her skeptically. "Well, best way to do that is to put those tips to the test."

"You're on!" She challenged. "But don't come crying to me when you're sore afterwards."

So what if those tips were ones he'd shared with her before lifetimes ago? Tips she'd already given him in countless lifetimes since?

Lanz thumped his chest in emphasis. "Trust me, I can take it." He paused, considering something. "Wanna sit with us? Grub's still on if you haven't eaten."

S blinked in surprise. Usually he was a little more standoffish when he didn't know her. "Really?"

"Sure."

She pumped her fists, smiling. The smile was a real one, right? "I'd love that!"

As she walked away, toward the serving table, S continued listening in on their conversation.

"She's a bit of a weirdo," Eunie mumbled. "Coming up to you like that out of the blue. I mean we're good at what we do, but I didn't think we were famous or nothin'."

"I dunno," Lanz mused, "she seemed alright."

"You're just saying that 'cause she called you an 'up and coming defender,' or whatever." She could practically see Eunie's smirk, "If only she knew you can't tell your arse from your elbow half the time."

"Oi!"

S's smile grew wider on her face as she took the tray back to them. It felt nice, even if it was starting to feel a little pointless.

But no, she couldn't think that.

Just one more day.

"So, you have made your choice."

She averted her eyes, refusing to look at Z. "…yeah."

He chuckled. "Do not be ashamed of it. After experiencing first hand how fruitless the endeavor is to resist the currents, it is only natural."

"Still dunno how I feel about being shipped all the way out to Upsilon. It's gonna be such a pain filling the Clock in such a remote place, don't you think?"

S said nothing to the Agnian soldier seated beside her. She would have figured he would have given up trying to start a conversation after his second failed attempt. Normally, she wouldn't have any problem striking up a conversation, but she wasn't feeling up to it right now.

After another moment of prolonged silence, the Agnian soldier sighed, muttering something under his breath as he gave up again, though this time at least, he didn't try again.

Once the transport Levnis landed, S hung back in the edge of the group as the small group of Agnians filed down the loading ramp. Above them, looming in the mouth of a large cave was a Ferronis, its Flame Clock a stark green in place of the usual Agnian color.

She heard a couple of the soldiers comment on it, but she tuned it out as everyone started to settle in after the Commander welcomed them to Colony Upsilon, going through the usual spiel of squad, teams, roles and duty assignments.

After being dismissed however, her focus was drawn by the bulky figure in familiar red and gold armor gazing on them from a deck up above on the Feronis.

Y.

He said nothing to her, but she could feel his eyes on her as she passed.

If she were Eunie, she would have cursed. So much for getting in and out of here unseen. Most Moebius couldn't tell it was her when she took someone else's form, and that made her life way easier. But Y wasn't most Moebius. His gaze made her uneasy, but she held the shudder in and instead pressed on without acknowledging him.

Even though he wore his mask, she could practically feel his pleased smirk aimed her way.

A moment later she was out of his view, but the message seemed clear to her. So long as it was interesting, he didn't care why she was here or what she did.

Disturbing, as usual. No amount of time made it less so.

Just one more day.

It didn't take long to spot the reason she was here. She knew that familiar fluffy set of ears anywhere. Stepping out of sight, she checked her Iris, sorted through the Colony's roster and added in a card that wasn't there into the team.

Satisfied, she meandered over into the barracks and stopped outside a bunk area where she knew Mimi had gone, but stopped as she heard that familiar voice. A pang went through her heart as she shut her eyes, leaning against the wall just outside the room.

"You might be able to, Mio, but there's no way I can react fast enough for that to work for me. No way I'm trying that."

"C'mon, just give it a go," Mimi urged. "I can walk you through it during today's drills if you'd like."

"And make a fool of myself like last time? Not happening."

Still as driven as ever. Mimi wasn't an off-seer this time, just a simple defender. Out of curiosity, S checked the record, and sure enough, she was in the top of the rankings in the Colony, with notes about accolades and points racked up in recent battles before being transferred here to Upsilon only a few months prior.

Had S known that Y was here, she might have transferred her out, if only to spare her the pain of whatever was coming. But Y did his own thing, and like X, only answered to Z, and rarely ever let her in on what he was doing.

Their conversation went on a little longer, and S had nearly worked up the nerve to walk in when Mimi abruptly went silent.

"Did you need something?" Mimi asked. "It's rude to eavesdrop."

S flushed in embarrassment that wasn't entirely fake, and slowly stepped into view of the bunk room. There were two other people besides Mimi in there. An 'older' male soldier with pale, light blue skin and fair hair, (it wasn't Teach), and a younger girl with brown hair pulled back in a ponytail - maybe fourth or fifth term - with stone-like marks lining her face disappearing under her uniform.

But her eyes focused on the one standing in the middle, amber eyes regarding her warily, though not unkindly. Though her ears pointed forward, her expression was more curious than mad.

"-she's not even the same person-"

-Mimi disappearing in a swath of blue motes-

"-who cares if she's dead, she'll just be reborn-"

-face husk-gray and shriveled, her face barely distinguishable, but the ears on top of her head-

"-see you staring at them, you know-"

-seeing red motes spray, as she was cut by a lethal attack she dodged too late-

"-friends left you behind, you know. If they actually cared-"

-Mimi's hand missing her own by a cetri as she plummeted, screaming-

"-wow, I didn't think you would actually-"

-tears on her face, staring up at the monster above her-

"-the looks on their faces! Hah! Isn't it just hilarious, S-"

-blood on her hands-

"Is…everything alright?" Mimi asked carefully.

S realized she'd been staring and her hand darted behind her head, rubbing the back of her neck, as she averted her eyes. Actual embarrassment now, though probably not for the reason the others thought. It had been a while since she's seen Mimi, and it was hard to face her considering what she had…

S cut the line of thought off and took a deep breath.

"Sorry about that. I'm just a little nervous, I guess. But…um, I'm actually part of your team!"

"Really? Did I miss the update on that?" Mimi's brow furrowed, and she tapped the left side of her head, activating her Iris to look. The other two followed suit.

Their commander hadn't issued the transfer, and the soldier S was posing as didn't exist until a few minutes ago. One of the 'perks' of her position, she supposed.

Mimi tapped her Iris to deactivate it and smiled, though it was a little forced. The kind you gave when you were just trying to make the best of an unexpected situation.

"I guess you're just ahead of the announcement. So, Ghondor, right?"

S nodded. "Yup!" She only looked like her though. Couldn't bring herself to act like the namesake, partly because it was hard to remember after so long. "Even if it's unexpected, I'm happy to be able to work with you all!"

Mimi nodded. "Mio."

"Tilde!" The stone-patterned fifth termer gave a wave.

"Thiedoro, but everyone calls me Edo." The blue-skinned one sighed, lazily leaning back on the bunk he was perched on the edge of. "Hope you like culling wildlife. There's hardly anything else out here that'll keep the flame topped up. Nothing but training and drills to dull the hours in between."

S blinked curiously, tilting her head. "You haven't had any battles recently?"

Edo shook his head. "Haven't deployed for months. Though it's not like there's much of a Kevesi presence out here anyways in the arse end of nowhere. The Commander tries to stay positive, but everyone's saying Upsilon's cursed to stay at Tin forever."

"Mio's going stir crazy ever since she got here," Tilde chimed in, a cheeky grin on her face.

Mimi's ears flattened indignantly. "Am not!"

Tilde rolled her eyes, voice going into a little sing-song. "The fact that you were begging the Commander to go scouting again so soon after our last one says otherwise."

"Why couldn't you?" S asked.

"Probably has something to do with that new Flame Clock our erstwhile consul finished installing today," Edo sighed, stretching. "Everyone was recalled, even the salvaging teams. Thing is, that was five days ago, so Mio there isn't the only one itching to get out again. Not been a whole lot to do the past few days."

"People are getting antsy," Tilde agreed. "We've still got time, but the Flame's still ticking down."

Sounded like something Y would do, even if she didn't know his exact endgame. However, she'd (unfortunately) known him long enough to know that the chance of the timing of this and her own arrival being a coincidence was very small. Z probably had a hand in it.

S smiled even though she didn't feel like it. "Well, I'm sure we'll be fine before long. If you're still feeling a little stir crazy, want to go work it off with some training?"

"Please, can we?" Mio's ears perked up and her eyes were practically begging her.

"Uh…sure!"

The other two snickered, as if sharing a private joke, but S could guess what it was. Mimi took her training seriously, and they probably thought 'Ghondor' was some rookie who wouldn't be able to keep up. They let them go off on their own.

So it didn't look too suspicious, S held back a little. Like everything nowadays, it was a show and she was acting. She could have easily kept up with Mimi, but didn't. Even so, the training was nice, and doing it with a familiar face made it better. Lots of the other Moebius didn't bother with training, but it was one of the only things that kept S centered and sane.

Training brought down Mimi's initial wariness of her, and it didn't take long for a bond to form between them. Before long, S was giving Mimi pointers on her form - things that she'd already learned in past lives but hadn't picked up on here - and Mimi returned the favor by giving S pointers she admittedly already knew. She accepted them nonetheless as if it was her first time hearing them.

While taking breaks in between bouts, they talked about inane things, worries, fears; Mimi complained again about feeling her talents were underutilized in Upsilon. S asked her seemingly innocent questions that told her more than Mimi probably ever thought they did.

It took three days to confirm what she needed to know.

Despite it all, it was nice, but S knew it wouldn't last. She thought about leaving and coming back to recover what Mimi had after whatever Y had in store, but she lingered in the moment. Ironically, time slipped away from her.

Sure enough, on her third day in Upsilon, midway through the night, Y's game began.

S didn't technically need to sleep, but did anyway, both to keep up appearances and because it made her feel normal. She and Mimi woke up to siren blaring, and an emergency Iris messages flooding in screaming about monsters attacking the Colony.

But there were no monsters. When Mimi dived out of the bunk area, slashing through other members of her colony, fighting each other in the hallway, S understood, but she stuffed down the feelings of remorse at the sight of the red motes in the air, and the husks on the ground. Two of them were Mimi's teammates, out on night guard rotation.

Seeing the red glint in everyone's Iris as Mimi cut them down, S wondered if it was because she was Moebius that Mimi didn't see her as a monster.

Out of the bunk area, Mimi stopped at the sight of her colony attacking one another. Horror creasing her face from the wanton slaughter around her. S was almost glad Mimi couldn't see what was really going on, blinded by whatever illusion she saw.

"What are these things?" Mimi asked while they ducked behind cover. "How did they overrun us like this so quickly?"

S remained silent.

Mimi mistook it for shock or fear at the situation and laid a hand on her shoulder to comfort her, "It's okay. We'll get out of this together; promise."

That just made S feel worse, seeing that red glint in her Iris, but she nodded.

Making their way into the center of the camp, S stole a glance at the Flame Clock above. Sure enough, it was filling, feeding off the lives of its very Colony without them even noticing. Already, hundreds had been slain, and she had no doubt that before the night's end, none would be left.

"Ghondor, come on!" Mimi called. "The commander sent out a distress call: he's holed up in the Ferronis' command room!"

Following, S wondered if the distress call was real, or if it was another part of Y's game. Regardless, multiple Agnians surged towards the Ferronis, likely intent on answering the call.

As usual, Mimi was fast. Super fast, and she wove through the perceived monsters with ease, red motes spraying, creating a haze as she worked through the colony and then up through the Ferronis, a trail of 'monsters' in her wake while S watched her back. There was hardly anyone left by the time they made it to the Ferronis and worked their way to the command room.

The commander had shut himself inside. Naturally, when S bust down the door past the piled husks outside it, Mimi didn't know that it was him, likely only seeing a monster poised to fight. S however, could see the fear in his eyes as he looked to Mimi, then S, eyes widening.

"Who are you?" He was looking at S, eyes narrowing with suspicion. "Are you the one who set these monsters on us?!"

Mimi glanced at S. "It's speaking to you?" she muttered, aghast. "What's it talking about?"

S wasn't given a chance to respond as the commander charged at S, but Mimi intercepted. The struggle was quick, tense, and ended with a spray of red motes as Mimi cut him down.

S watched as Mimi searched for the commander, completely oblivious to his husk on the ground. Eventually she looked out the command room's window to the carnage below, an ocean of red motes fluttering into the air as the Flame Clock drank them in.

The whole Colony lay still.

"Are we…the only ones left?" Mimi asked her hesitantly. There was a jitter to her voice, something unnatural beyond what had just happened.

"Verily it is so."

Mimi whirled around to face the command room's entrance, her sundancers held up defensively. She faltered at the sight of a massive frame in red and gold armor filling the entryway, arms folded behind his back, face obscured by helmet.

"Consul Y, sir." Mimi seemed taken aback a moment, before she let her Blade fade away. "I'm sorry, sir. The attack was sudden and abrupt. By the time Ghondor and I woke, the colony was already overrun."

S could practically see his eyebrow raising at her choice of form, before focusing on Mimi. "Worry not dear girl. Tis is not a setback, but progress! A wild success! Bravo for rising to the top of it!"

"Success? How is this a success? The whole Colony was overrun!"

"Permit me to open your eyes."

Taking a hand from behind his back, he snapped. It was unnecessarily dramatic, but S saw the red fade from Mimi's left eye.

"Open my eyes? What-"

Mimi cut off with a gasp as she finally saw the commander for what he was. "C-commander?" She looked out through the window, seeing the husks of Colony Upsilon for what they were. "N-no, but they were-" her hand went to cover her mouth, eyes widening. "Then I…"

"Slaughtered your comrades."

Mimi took a shuddering breath, tears pooling in her eyes. "Why? Who would…? Did Keves do this?"

Y shook his head. "Do not seek to divine some meaning from something that is devoid of it. It is simply the way of this world. You should be proud."

"But…" She stepped back.

And found herself impaled on a Blade.

Red motes leaked out from the wound. Mimi slowly turned her head to face S, expression horrified. She turned, eyes still watering. "Gh-Ghondor?"

S averted her eyes and quickly pulled the Blade out. With a spray of red motes, Mimi collapsed to the floor, her skin turning gray and lifeless, her face forever frozen in shock, eyes wide with confusion.

Y's mask dissolved as he breathed in deeply as her motes fluttered over to him. "Ah, the sweet succor of betrayal. A fitting end to your stay I should think."

If anything, it was a mercy. Y would have drawn the moment out, and even if he let Mimi live, she would have to live with what had just happened.

S let the weapon dissipate, gaze hardening as she glared at Y. "What was the point of all this? They weren't even Gold rank."

"'Twas a trial for the betterment of our lives as Moebius, nothing more." He turned around to gaze through the command room's window to the swath of red motes still being absorbed by the Clock. "A simpler way of harvesting. I would think thy faculties pleased with the result. After all, should it be thy desire, you need not to even lift a finger, S."

It made her feel sick inside, but she held from showing it on the surface. "So they harvest themselves. That's why you recalled everyone into the Colony. But, I don't understand. Why didn't some of them run?"

"An astute observation." The grin on his face twisted with unabashed pride. "'Tis my most recent iteration on this particular variety of Flame Clock. When the signal is sent, it overrides their Iris, both changing the soldier's view of their fellows and heightening their base instincts to fight to a feverish pitch. The more they kill, the more the clock is filled, and the higher that instinct is driven."

So that was why. Y crouched back over to Mimi's husk, hand resting on her head.

"Until anon, only one remains, the brightest of them all."

S grit her teeth but said nothing, shutting her eyes.

She heard him stand again, and looking back, she saw his gaze lingering on Mimi's husk far too long for comfort before looking over to her. "Thus the harvest hath ended. I shall leave the cleanup to thy discretion, high consul."

With that, he disappeared, leaving a swath of purple motes that dissipated into the air.

After a long moment, S warped over to Upsilon's barracks, crouched down next to Mimi's stuff and eventually found what she'd come here for. The Origin shard shone brilliantly in her hand.

A part of her recoiled internally, yet she closed her fist around it, holding it close to her chest.

In another moment, she warped elsewhere, squeezing her eyes shut as her form shifted to look like herself. She felt tears pool in her right eye, but her left one remained stubbornly dry.

Just one more day.

She stepped onto the stage, heart beating rapidly as she neared the image of a path in front of her.

She stopped to look up, then looked back at Z. He still sat there, though there was a smile on his face. Not the happy kind; the self satisfied kind.

It made her stomach turn, but this was what she had to do.

She turned back. Her left eye twitched and it felt tingly in a weird good-but-not-good way. In a rush, her mind flooded with so many memories that she almost staggered at the feeling.

But she stepped forward through into the illusion, noting the sudden change in her clothes. At the end of the path lay her friends. Noah, Mimi, Eunie, Taion, Lanz. She knew it wasn't real, that they weren't real, but she stepped after them anyway.

Waves lapped upon the surf, lapping at S's bare toes, which flexed, feeling the sand beneath her feet. Like the water was trying to tickle her feet. While the view was nice, it didn't necessarily hold any special significance to her. Even so, she made it a habit to come here often recently. No one would question her being here again.

And if there just 'happened' to be black fog here, so what?

Hearing a small, familiar sounding gasp from behind her, she broke out of her thoughts.

She braced herself and turned, smiling and hoping that it looked as genuine as it could be given the circumstances, yet glad of the mask that obscured the upper part of her face. Taion stood there, in a standard Agnian military uniform, mouth slightly agape.

"Hey there!" She greeted him casually.

The lifetime where they fought together with the other Ouroboros was almost impossibly distant, but like the others, his general mannerisms still remained.

Silver boots formed over her feet as she approached, he straightened, cleared his throat and gave as stiff an Agnian salute as he could. Given that in his mind, she was only a step below the false Queen, it made sense.

"What's on your mind?" she asked. He hesitated to answer - understandably, given the rigid structure of his current Colony. "Don't worry, I won't bite."

"…I'd heard of Agnus' Silver Consul, but I always doubted the veracity of your existence until now."

"Really?" S tilted her head curiously. "Why's that?"

"Forgive me, but it would be useless to repeat rumours at this juncture." He seemed to realize who he was talking to and straightened stiffly. He cleared his throat. "I mean no disrespect, ma'am. Lady High Consul."

S rolled her eyes. "I'm not gonna be offended over rumours, Taion. C'mon, you can tell me!"

"It's just baseless rumour and speculation, ma'am, and after even some cursory research, I was unable to completely reject the claims as hearsay. But you can hardly blame them; there's hardly any information on you. You've only a few sentences in the textbook, and that tells us practically nothing."

She put her hand to her chin. "Huh. Makes sense I guess. It probably doesn't help that people usually don't notice me even when I'm right next to them."

S saw his eyes flick to her silver armor, laden with glowing red accents, then up to the glowing blue ends of her visible hair. "I…see."

He didn't, and she didn't miss the frown that came with her comment. It was pretty obvious he was trying to figure out what she meant, but was unwilling to ask because of his perception of their difference in rank. Not that she would ever demote or kill him because he spoke out of turn, but given her reputation, or lack thereof, he was just being careful.

Same old Taion.

He cleared his throat. "In any case, I received your transmission and am here as requested, ma'am." He eyed the remote surroundings, as well as the swirling black fog, cautiously.

"Yup! Let's go."

Leading him into a small alcove further up the beach, she stopped next to a table she'd set out previously, overlaid with paper, blueprints and a map. Nothing transmissible by Iris here.

S looked him in the eyes. "What I'm about to tell you stays between us. Tell no one except those I put you in contact with."

The slight frown on his face deepened slightly, but he nodded.

Taking a deep breath, S laid out a plan: its logistics, the timeframe it would take to complete, manpower and a ton of other things. Taion nodded along, hand to his chin. At her insistence, he asked clarifying questions here and there, and S answered them confidently.

Big operations like this weren't really her strong suit, even after all this time. But this wasn't fully her plan. It was a big collage of ideas organized over time. A different Taion that came up with the initial plan, and others - including Valdi and Taions of other cycles - had revised it through its iterations. She left that detail out for now.

Eventually, he seemed mostly satisfied. "It's a very well thought out plan, and I doubt I could do better myself. As expected of one of the Queen's most trusted."

"It's been in the works for a while."

"Even so…" She heard Taion sigh and looked over to see a pensive look on his face. He seemed to internally debate something before straightening. "Permission to speak frankly, Lady High Consul?"

"Of course!"

S saw him nervously adjusting his glasses. "Even with all of the precautions being taken, salvaging anything from the Great Sea is already tantamount to a suicide mission. And with this, you're essentially searching for a specific grain of salt in the Erythia Sea. Add in the proposed time window, and even with this 'Origin metal reinforcement,' it leaves practically no margin for error once the operation begins."

"I know. But I've seen your work, Taion." More than he would ever know. "If anyone can head this operation and succeed, it's you."

He blinked, staring at her, and she could practically hear his thoughts and questions running through his head. He left them unsaid, however.

"Forgive me if this sounds…improper, but even though I know you said that this is vital to the war effort, I'm still not seeing it. Even if this Blade is like you say, it's only a single weapon. Why devote the resources required to find it?"

"I can't tell you that yet, but let's call it a…beginning for now. In the right hands, I've seen it work miracles."

"Being perfectly honest, ma'am, I don't believe in miracles."

"You did, once," she murmured.

"...Pardon?"

"I'm tired of this endless war." She knew Taion would think he was talking about the fake war with Keves. "If there's a chance, even a small one of stopping the cycle, even just planting the seeds for it, I have to."

Just one more day.

"I suppose when you put it like that, then I cannot refuse."

"Always striving to find your identity in something else," Z continued smoothly, "but what is 'self' if not what you choose to make it? Should you desire it, you could choose to be anyone you wish. This world provides that opportunity. That you are 'here' proves that it is something you crave."

She hated the way he said it. Even after both the Queen's explanations, she didn't fully get what Z was, but wasn't he some form of desire in human form? Did that mean her desire was in there somewhere?

Creepy to think about.

"Maybe it is. Maybe I did just want to be someone else. But…"

A spotlight flashed to life as S appeared in the dark, gloomy theatre. The light wasn't on her, but on another one of the Moebius. R.

"A colony has been freed from the Flame Clock, and P lies dead at its heels," he ranted, pacing back and forth. "Such a precedent is unheard of!"

Another spotlight, another consul. That was C. "Scared are you, R?" He taunted, "It's just one obstacle. Or maybe you're afraid because your Colony is close by?"

"It's unheard of!" R repeated.

"Have you forgotten what happened before the Kevesian Queen's near demise?"

"You and I both know I was not around then," R growled.

"Must have slipped my mind," C said languidly. "We used to have to deal with one of her weapons popping up all the time before. So, even if this one is on another level, it's hardly new. But my question is how would this weapon in particular have resurfaced?"

"What even is it?" R grumbled. "Enough of your riddles and games, C!"

Yet another spotlight. Another consul, with her hand on the chin of her mask. V, if she remembered right. "It is a relic from an era long past. No record of it exists after the world order was nearly undone. Quite a bit before our time, for… most of us."

Another spotlight. This one was…Q? Everyone started looking samey after a while. "You're not seriously suggesting that S has something to do with it? Our glorious high consul? The one who helped restore order and stability to Aionios? An absurd notion."

"She is hardly ever around," C shrugged, "Could be doing all sorts of things, couldn't she?"

The spotlight flared to life above S, and the other consuls took a step back in shock, breathing her name in whispers. It made sense; she made a point to come here as little as she could. S smiled disarmingly, playing along with the act. It was easier this way.

"No matter how it's back, it's back. Why complain so much, R? What, afraid your cushy leadership is going to be knocked down by a few lambs? C'mon, they aren't even Ouroboros."

A shudder seemed to go through those present at the use of the word, a disquieted murmur that transcended the stage echoed throughout the entire theatre.

After all, Ouroboros hadn't been seen since her time.

R fumed, and began to stalk over to her. He didn't like her and the feeling was mutual. "I'll have you know-"

"S is right." The arguing and grandstanding stopped almost immediately as they turned to Z. "After all, what is a drama without a twist to heighten the stakes? It is all part of the flow: simply another stake in the grand game."

Another spotlight bloomed to life, revealing X. "Well there you have it. S would know better than any of you bozos about it. So nostalgic, right, S?"

"You know me so well," S muttered, lacing sarcasm thick in her voice.

"Don't I?" S didn't flinch as X wrapped her arm around her, grinning, before turning back to the others on stage. "So don't you worry your little lackey heads about it." She turned to S. "She'll take care of it. And who knows? I might even join you if I feel like it. It's been a while since I've had a challenge like this."

Just one more day, just one more day.

Gratefully, X let her go. "Now off with you all; skedaddle. You've got work to do."

R scoffed, but said nothing. One by one, the spotlights blinked out as the other Moebius flickered away, until it was just her and X on the stage. X's smile grew larger. "Be seeing you around, S. You're always so much fun to watch."

And she was gone, warped away. Leaving just her and the one who was always watching.

A projection flickered on to the screen behind her on the stage. A piece of a scene from ages ago, but one she would never truly forget. There was no sound, but she remembered it vividly, could hear Z speak as his lips moved in the scene.

"Resist or comply; it matters not what you do. It matters naught who you are. You have seen for yourself that everything in this world merely adds to the grand drama."

S looked away from the scene into the audience, Z gazing with an amused smile on his face. He said nothing, though he didn't need to. The message was perfectly clear.

The feeling that drew her here lifted, and she disappeared as the spotlight winked out.

"And in the end, where did that lead you?

She thought back to Shania, and where her desire to emulate Ghondor led her. How as she watched Ghondor and Shania fight while the City burned around them, frozen in time, that it felt like seeing what she could have become if she hadn't become Ouroboros and met all the wonderful people across Aionios.

"It doesn't matter," she responded, "I'm fine with just being…me. Maybe I won't ever be as smart as Taion, or as fast as or cool as Mimi, but that's okay. I'm…good with that."

"Fascinating, is it not?" Z chuckled smoothly, but it wasn't the good kind of laughter. "In a thousand other lifetimes you would not have hesitated. Would have jumped at the chance."

Imagery of herself flashed on the screen, things she didn't recognize, but felt familiar all the same. But the scene was always similar. Herself, always standing in the background, gazing in wonder at someone else. Imitating them.

She shook her head at the influx of feelings both hers and not. "T-that's…not me anymore…"

"Yet should you deny it, the slate will be wiped clean. Given enough time, perhaps you may even shine so brilliantly again. But in this, there is no guarantee. Your fate, and the fate your friends ever tied to the whims of the tide of fate, with you unable to help them."

It wasn't surprising to S that it was Noah at the head of the group of deserters. They were no Lost Numbers, and compared to the last iteration of the City, it was pitiful. But it was something, a step forward that hadn't come for so long.

She tailed after their ragtag group, watching them from afar in the guise of a Kevesi soldier, mostly in case they looked up. It would be a bad idea to show up looking like a consul right now. And considering it was the arrogance and cruelty of their consul which had finally spurred Noah into action, they would be wary if they saw another one watching them.

Having seen P transform, they knew something was off, but that was all. She had already overheard back and forth debates about reporting it to the Queen.

"What if she's being manipulated by the consuls?"

"If that's the case, wouldn't our report just be intercepted before it gets to her majesty? How do we know another consul won't just come our way and off us right there?"

"How do we know her majesty's not in on it somehow?"

"Come off it! That's our Queen you're talking about."

They didn't really understand anything about Moebius. Most were still wary of the idea of approaching Agnus. At the moment, she still wasn't sure what had driven Noah to both free them from the Flame Clock, and take down the consul at their head.

Watching them pass through the valley below, she spotted an eyepatch covering Noah's right eye; the price of freeing himself from the Moebius' Iris' hold without the power of Ouroboros. He didn't truly understand the power of the sword he held encased in his Blade once again.

But it was the first true wings of rebellion in ages.

True wings of rebellion?

She blanched at her own thoughts. When had her thoughts become so poetic? Was Z's way of speaking rubbing off on her? Blech.

Eventually, when she approached their camp, she did it as a member of the freed Colony that had died to wildlife while scavenging for resources after Noah's group had left. They were initially confused, and had even drawn their Blades at first at her sudden appearance.

But after any easy lie about being inspired to follow them, they dropped their guard. She spotted Noah easily enough and sure enough, there it was. Before it was sheathed, S caught a glimpse of the hilt of Noah's weapon.

She wasn't sure how long it had been since Taion's plan to retrieve the sword had succeeded. Too long it felt. Nopon always moved on whims she still didn't fully understand.

The metal seemed to sing. Noah noticed it, but didn't understand what it meant yet. A moment later, the weapon and the noise were gone, and she was welcomed into their camp.

Dinner came not too much later, and she deliberately sat herself next to Noah by the fire. He chatted with her good naturedly, and it was…nice for a time.

"So why did you do it?" S asked later, as Noah gazed into the distance, past the flames of their communal fire.

He blinked, left eye looking into her own. After a moment, he shook his head, wincing as he rubbed his eyepatch. "I'm not sure, to be honest. It happened so fast."

"Really?"

He let out an awkward smile, then nodded. "Really. I still can't say I know what drove me to do it, but…it just felt right. There wasn't any grand plan or ambition to it, not then."

"So, what are we going to do? You freed us from the Clock, but…"

Noah let out a thoughtful hum. "Everyone's ideas are still a little scattered, but something feels off. About the consuls and about the colonies. When the consul transformed, he called himself 'Moebius.' I want to figure that out. And I want to…understand why the world is the way that it is."

S's hands twisted in her lap, and she wondered if she should say anything deeper. "It's a lot to think about, huh?"

He nodded his head. "Everyone here feels a little differently, but I know I intend to find the truth. Asking the Queen seems as good a start as any."

S smiled, sadly. "You're always such a deep thinker, Noah."

"Really? I didn't think I had that much of a reputation."

"Practically the whole Colony knows. I bet in another life you were an off-seer!"

"Maybe. I'd thought about it a couple times."

S looked away, staring into the flames.

"Something on your mind?" he asked.

"It's, well…you just remind me of someone I looked up to once. That's all."

"I'm honored." There was silence, broken by the flames crackling. "What were they like? If you don't mind me asking."

"He was…an off-seer. Brave, kind, always willing to risk his life for his friends, always looking out for me and my teammates. He wasn't perfect, but it was him and the rest of my…team that helped me realize that I didn't always have to imitate others to be myself. They helped me learn how to just be…me."

"He sounds like a wonderful person. The rest of your team too. Was that in your last Colony?"

S pressed her mouth together, and let the silence hang.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have pried."

"It's okay. I think he's still in here," S tapped her heart," somewhere, along with the rest of them."

"Their memories live on within you, right?"

She nodded.

She didn't mean to stay long, but maybe it was sentimentality, maybe it was that despite the subtle differences, it was still very much Noah. Even if she hadn't been as close to Noah as she was to the others, he had still been her friend.

So one day turned into many. And for a little bit, the spark of hope that kept getting buried deeper and deeper was given a chance to shine among these people.

"It's so hopeful here."

Noah nodded at her comment as they walked. "Before we were freed from the Clock, it was hard to hold on to much. I don't know how much good we'll end up doing with what little time some of us still have left, but we'll certainly try. It's all we really can do."

But time slipped away from her again.

The attack came suddenly and swiftly, in the middle of the night. S knew immediately who the culprit was; she could feel it, even before the call went through the camp as she left her tent.

"Moebius!"

Weaving joyfully through the camp, X twirled her scythe gleefully, slashing through the people S had begun to build a sense of camaraderie with. "No need to let me have all the fun; come on S!"

She hated that X outed her like that. The reveal went over Noah's camp about as smoothly as Levnis on fire, and they turned on her in a snap.

"I don't understand," Noah yelled. "What would possess you to side with them?!"

Even now, Noah was just trying to understand.

It was for all of you, Noah! For Mimi, Eunie, Taion and Lanz too! I did it so you all would have a chance!

She wanted to shout that.

But S said nothing, weaving in and around his attacks, letting X do most of the work. Noah, never backed down, not even to the very end. But Sword of the End or not, he was only one man. And he went down, fighting to the bitter end.

The deed done, and the air heavy with red motes, X leaned on S's shoulder, overlooking the carnage. "Geez, this guy, am I right? Always the source of so much trouble. Who would've thought someone would be stupid and lucky enough to actually find that frickin' sword."

S said nothing.

"Don't tell me you started believing what they were talking about? You're Moebius, you're above that, above all of them. You know that."

"I know," S lied. "It just made it more interesting, right? Added to the drama."

X rolled her eyes. "For you and Z maybe. But that sword. It's just going to keep popping up with him every time he pops up in the cycle. Such a pain," she lamented.

That was the hope.

A moment later, X giggled. "But the look on his face when they all realized you were Moebius? And they all still thought it was one of their own soldiers turning on them?" Her giggling turned into a fit, and she doubled over. "Hilarious! You're always so interesting S!"

"That…what I'm here for," her laugh came out forced, but X either didn't notice or didn't care.

"Welp, see you around!'

And with that, X warped away, leaving S with the aftermath.

A moment later, S did the same.

When she appeared again, no tears came. She wished they would. But she breathed in. One step closer.

Just one more day, just one more day.

"Just hold on a little longer."

"I…don't know how much longer I can keep doing this, your Majesty."

"It is unfair of me to burden you with this, but I cannot allow myself to fall into Z's hands again. Not with Nia imprisoned in Origin. Remember what you are fighting for. Cling to that hope. Bury it if you must, but never forget it. Never forget the love you felt for your friends."

"But they were why I chose this!"

"Then grasp on to the hope of a future with them, outside of this endless moment."

"Please, your majesty! I-I… I can't do this alone."

"You are wrong. You are strong. Stronger than you know."

She felt the Kevesian Queen's arms wrap around her from the side, and for an instant, she froze, holding her breath.

The moment ended, her breath came out in a sob, and the walls she had built fell instantly. Tears flowed from her right eye, and she leaned her head on Melia's shoulder, sobbing.

"Just one more day, every day, until the end," she soothed, stroking her hair. "We will be free of this cycle. We will make sure of it. Cry as long as you must. But when your tears are dry, plant the seeds of a future unknown with your own hands. I entrust it to you."

S sat on a cliff, legs dangling as she overlooked Aionios. There was a tension in the air, almost enough to taste it. She didn't know why, but she could feel it. This was the beginning of the end. This is where it would stop. Not long now and she would be able to make the sacrifice worth it.

She had too.

Her Iris glowed with Moebius' never ending sigil, and she took a familiar form. Warping away, she found herself in an empty Agnian bunk room. Empty, thankfully. She stepped out of the tent and into the bustle. The Flame Clock was still there, weighing down on these people.

But everything was in place. Nopon smiths ready to give her majesty's gifts to the world to those deserving of it. Some weapons from before Melia had gone into hiding to recover, fewer from the long time since.

S stood ready to nudge those wielding them together. She'd lost track of how long it had been thousands of years ago. But now that end approached, she both dreaded and hoped for it. She felt ears on the top of her head flatten in anticipation.

Yet even with the Kevesian Queen's assurance, what if it happened again? What if at the end, her friends just ended up right back in that theatre like she had? What if it really wasn't enough?

"Does it really matter what happens?"

"What do you mean, Lanz?"

He looked her straight in the eye. "You gotta trust yourself. Then we'll do what we do best and smash Z right up. We'll have done our part. Then we just gotta trust everyone else as much as we can to pick up the slack. Not much else we can do right, us 'mighty weaklings?'"

Right.

Just one more day, just one more day, just one more-

"Mimi? Is that you?"

S froze, something gripping her heart in a way it hadn't in longer than she cared to remember. She slowly turned around, not believing her ears. Bright brown eyes, hair that glowed and burned near the end, a pure delighted smile without any guile.

"Mimi?" Sena tilted her head, concern and confusion twisting her features. "Is…everything alright? You're not looking so good."