I have decided to returned my Purpose of Life story. I still have the chapters from the old days of making this story. I did some chances with the story. I hope you guys enjoy rereading again!
"I have to kill the Commandant before the world is destroyed. This is for the sake of everyone in this world." Said the mysterious cloaked girl. She has long black hair, a cloak that covers her clothing. She was outside of Daath staring at the Cathedral. She quietly entered Daath if there weren't any Oracle Soldiers patrolling in the city.
She looks around and sees no oracle soldiers in the city. She was a little surprised that no soldiers are patrolling in the city, but she doesn't have time to think of that. The assassin hides in front of the monument as she sees oracle soldiers patrolling outside of the Cathedral.
The place crawling with oracle soldiers. She took the chance to look around to find a place where the oracle soldiers wouldn't see her. She sees where she can sneak through. The mysterious girl jumped to the roof then silently took out the oracle soldier who was guarding the door, opened the door, and dragged the body inside to make sure not to be suspicious of the dead body lying on the floor.
She left the dead body and continued her search to kill the Commandant. She hides behind every pillar to keep the oracle knights from seeing her. She made it to the Commandant room. So, this is where the Commandant room is. She thought, frowning.
As she was going to enter the room, she heard voices coming from the hall not too far from her. She quickly hides and stays low.
"Any news from the Commandant, Legretta?" The large man carrying his scythe asked.
"We shouldn't be worrying about the Commandant, Largo. He knows what he is doing." She replied.
"Yes, you're right. I shouldn't be worried about the Commandant. We just have to wait until he returns."
They walked past the pillar where the mysterious cloak girl was at. She narrowed her eyes on them.
Two of the Six God Generals. Legretta the Quick and Largo the Black Lion. Where is the Tempest, the Wild, the Reaper, and the Bloody at? They are probably on their mission. Hopefully. Anyways, it seems that the Commandant isn't here. Well, I guess I should go in the room and assassinate him as he enters the room. She thought as she left the pillar quietly and entered the Commandant's room.
As she entered the room, she turned around and noticed that the Commandant wasn't in his room. She smirks and hides in a spot where she can see him and assassinate him.
It has been 4 hours and the Commandant hasn't returned but she was patient to wait for him to return. It is the key as an assassin to be patient for their target to come to them.
As she was waiting, the door opened. Her target has appeared in the doorway. She was about to assassinate him but someone else was with him. It appears to be Largo behind him. She has to wait a bit longer for Largo to leave.
"Largo, keep an eye out today and make sure the mouse doesn't run away." Van whispered.
Largo was dumbfounded by what the Commandant said to him. "Of course. I'll keep an eye out." He follows Van's orders.
The mysterious cloaked girl couldn't hear what they were saying. If she was closer to them, she could hear them. After their small talk, Van leaves the room. Leaving Largo to guard the room. This confused her.
Was she in the right room? How is she going to go after Van while Largo is guarding the door? How can she pass the Black Lion without him noticing her? She has to think of something to distract the Black Lion.
She places her hand inside of her cloak and takes out a sleep bomb. She throws the sleep bomb on the floor to roll towards Largo. Largo looks at the floor and sees the sleep bomb rolling to him. He was wondering what it was then white smoke appeared out of the sleep bomb.
The Black Lion's eyes widened. "What is this?" He questioned as he fell asleep from the sleep bomb.
The black haired girl comes out of her hiding spot and leaves the room. When she opens the door to leave, she sees the Oracle Soldiers with the Quick.
"Van was right. There is a mouse hiding." She said as she pointed her guns at the black haired girl. The mysterious cloak girl quickly runs towards the Cathedral. "Stop her!" The Oracle soldiers follow the mysterious girl to the Cathedral.
She appears in the Cathedral and looks around to find the way out. She saw the way out but soldiers were coming through the entrance. She quickly runs to the large door and enters the Chapel. She opened the door to the Chapel and noticed that she was safe and closed the door from behind. She looks around once again to be sure that she is safe.
She feels that she is not alone in the Chapel. She took a step forward then suddenly someone was coming down from above her. She took out her twin daggers and blocked the attack. He was wearing a yellow and red bird-like mask on his face. He jumped away from her and she stood her ground.
"So, you're the mouse that Van told us. I'm surprised that you made it this far." He smirked.
"You're one of the Six God-Generals. Sync the Tempest. Chief of Staff and the Commander of the 5th Division of the Oracle Knights." She said.
"You know a lot about the Oracle Knights, don't you."
"Everyone knows about the God-Generals of the Oracle Knights. You don't have to be surprised about it."
"Of course, I'm not. Now, enough with the stalling and fight." He said coldly towards her.
The door opened and oracle soldiers surrounded the room. Legretta appeared in front of the soldiers and pointed her guns at the mysterious girl. "Why are you here?" She asked.
The black haired girl smirked. "That should be simple. You should know that I was hiding in the Commandant's room for quite a while," she replied.
"You came here to assassinate him?"
The mysterious girl shrugs. "Who knows." She changed her expression. "But it seems they did it again." She frowns.
"What are you talking about?" Legretta narrowed her eyes.
"Sorry. That doesn't concern you."
Legretta starts to shoot her bullets at the mysterious girl. She flips backward to dodge the bullets then she jumps in the air. The Quick shoots in the air but the black haired girl uses her daggers to bounce the bullets away. She landed on the floor and chuckled.
"I thought the Adjustment Commandant would be stronger but it seems I was wrong. It seems that you're not quick enough to shoot me down." She smirked.
She throws something at the floor at the Oracle Knights then black smoke appears out of the smoke balls. She took her chance to run past them and head in the Cathedral. She slightly turns to the Chapel and sees that no one is chasing her.
"Now, this is my chance to leave Daath." She grinned.
Suddenly, a shadowy figure appears behind her and tries to pin her down with his hand. She quickly turned to move away but it was too late. Her arms were behind her back being pinned down by a lion.
"So, you came here to assassinate the Commandant. That's why Commandant told us to keep an eye out for a mouse here." Largo held her down on the floor making sure she didn't escape.
"I'm surprised that you were able to wake up that fast. No one has ever woken up from that sleep powder in 1 minute." She said as she struggled from Largo's grip.
Legretta and Sync came out of the Chapel and saw that Largo had the assassin pinned down. They walked up to Largo and looked at the girl.
"Take her to the Commandant. He knows what to do with her." Legretta looks at Largo. The Black Lion nodded and dragged her to the Commandant's room.
In the Commandant's room, Stella was with the three God-Generals behind her. Largo was still holding her arms behind her back to make sure that she didn't assassinate Van. Van was still in his chair looking for the mysterious girl. She stared at him wondering what he was doing.
"So, who ordered you to assassinate me?" He asked.
"Hmph! Like I would tell you." She said, frowning. She feels something on the back of her head. It was Legretta who had her gun pointed at her head.
"Answer Commandant's questions! Or I'll shoot you." She threatened her.
She sighs lightly. "I don't know."
"Don't-"
"Legretta!" The quick looked at the Commandant and stood quietly. The gun was still on the back of the black haired girl. "You don't know who sent you here." Van looks at the young girl.
She nodded. "Yes. I was told to assassinate the Commandant by a messenger then he said that he will send a letter the next morning that the Commandant will be assassinated. It seems that I was tricked again."
"Tricked? What do you mean?"
"It's a long story. But I have always been sent on a mission to do other people's dirty work. After all, I'm nothing but a test subject to them."
"You have been through alot in the past. I'm sorry about that."
"No, it's fine. I have been a test subject for a long time. Although, they've been treating me and the other kids like worthless trash. It doesn't matter how many missions we complete. We're still going to be experimenting on them." The black haired girl was angry at how the laboratories treated her and the others.
Van noticed that she wanted to do something about it. Like she wants to stop them from treating little kids as test subjects. He had an idea to make them stop but to do so he needed someone that could locate the laboratories.
He stood up from his chair. "I can help you."
She was dumbfounded. "What do you mean?"
"I can help you stop them from using those little kids as test subjects for their experiments. But in order to do that..."
She understood what the Commandant was telling her. "You want me to join the Oracle Knights, righ?." She finished Van's sentence.
He nodded. "It would be easier in numbers than just one assassin."
"Are you sure you want to trust me? I came here to assassinate you, Commandant."
Van walked away from his table and put his hand on her shoulder. "Of course, I trust you. Even if you came here to kill me, you would feel disappointed in yourself." He grinned.
She starts to think about it. Why would Van trust her? He just met her and he already trusted her. She didn't know what to think. It was strange to her but this is the first time someone trusted her in her life. She feels pleased. She gave a serious look on her face and looked at Van. "Alright, I'll join the Oracle Knights."
"Before I welcome you to the Oracle Knights, what is your name?"
"My name is Stella."
Van nodded. "Welcome to the Oracle Knights, Stella. I'm going to assign you under one of the Six God-Generals."
I have a bad feeling about this. I think I already know who I am going to be commanded by. She thought, knowing who Van was going to pick.
"You will be commanded under Sync."
I thought he would choose Legretta. I guess I was wrong. She was shocked by Van's choice.
"But Commandant, she will slow down Sync during his missions." Legretta commented.
"You saw her. She was able to sneak into the Cathedral without being detected. What else did you see?" The Commandant asked his subordinates.
"She has a fast reaction, great speed, and skills. She was able to block my attack. She also dodges and reflects Legretta's bullets." Sync spoke with the answer.
Van turned to Stella and glanced at her. "You have been trained well. You can catch up with Sync's speed during all missions."
Stella blinked as she narrowed her eyes. "Is that why you want me to pair with Sync? Because of my speed? Don't be stupid. Not everyone can match other people's skills. It is a lot harder than you think, Commandant Van."
"That might be true, but you can't judge a book without its cover."
The assassin chuckled and understood what Van told her. "Well, I'm used to doing missions alone. Maybe I don't understand some things that well. I'm still young, you know."
"For an 11-year-old, probably." Largo stared at Stella, frowning at her.
She rolled her eyes and sighs annoyingly. I'm not 11. she thought loudly to herself. Van turned to face Legretta and nodded. Legretta moves her gun away from Stella's head and Largo let go of her arms. Stella was confused about something else. "Van, can I ask you something?" She asked curiously.
"What would that be?" He asked, grinning.
"I was wondering how did you know I was here the whole time?"
"When I was coming back, I saw one of the guards disappear from its post. That's when I noticed that someone was in my room to kill me." He smirked.
Stella was surprised that he was able to notice that. She moves her hands to the hood of her cloak to remove it from her head. Then she moves her hands to the back of her hair to spread it out. She has long black hair with purple eyes.
"I'm quite an idiot to leave something like that noticeable." She chuckled. "Anyways, I should go and head to the Inn. I'm getting tired."
"Yes. Get some rest and tomorrow I'll assign the two of you on a mission." Van went back to his chair and sat down. Stella nodded and left the Commandant's room.
Stella was in the bathtub to clean herself from her long day from each of her missions. She sighs deeply and places her hand on her forehead.
"So, I'm under Sync's command. I never thought I'd be commanded by him. I turned 12 last week too. I hope Sync will be an interesting person to talk to. Hmm? But the way he looks seems that he doesn't get along with other people." She gets out of the tub and wraps herself with a towel to cover herself.
She walks out of the bathroom and into the room. Stella changed to her black sleeveless nightgown then headed back to the bathroom to air dry her hair. As she was drying her hair, she heard a knock on the door. She stops what she is doing and runs to the door. "Coming!" She shouted. She opened the door and saw Legretta holding something in her hands. It was confusing to see one of the six God-Generals here in the Inn late. "Why are you here, Legretta?"
Legretta hands Stella the clothes. The assassin was puzzled as she looked at the clothes.
"Here are your clothes as a member of the Oracle Knights." Legretta said.
Stella grabs the clothes and nods. "Thanks, Legretta. I hope we get along with each other as members of the Oracle Knights."
"And don't forget about the mission that the Commandant will assign tomorrow with Sync." The quick reminded the assassin.
"Don't worry. I'll arrive there in time." Legretta walked away from the door and left the Inn. Stella closed the door, walked to the bed, and sat down. She glanced at the clothes that were given to her and tilted her head. It was a long black jacket trimmed in purple, black sleeveless shirt with white collar, white short pants, black fingerless gloves, and long black boots. "These clothes resemble the God-Generals, but I am not a God-General. Plus, becoming one is going to be difficult."
The assassin put the clothing down on the table and lay down on the bed and looked at the ceiling. She put her left arm to cover her eyes and sighs lightly. "Man, such an exhausting night. I would never think the Commandant would make me a part of the Oracle Knights. Well, I made that decision to one them to stop those laboratories. And when that is over, what am I going to do? Stay in the Oracle Knights or leave?" Too many things were going into Stella's mind. She doesn't know what to do next when she does destroy the laboratories. "I think I'm going to go to sleep now. It is getting pretty late and I have to go on a mission with the Tempest." She turns off the lights and starts to go to sleep.
Meanwhile, when Stella was taking a bath. Sync was in the Commandant's room discussing Stella and the laboratory.
"What are you going to do when we destroy all of the laboratories, Van?" Sync asked.
Van turned to Sync and answered. "We will find any data that was used on the kids and then we will use that data to help with our goal."
"So, you want me to keep an eye on Stella? From stopping you from stealing the data from the laboratories."
"Of course. And make sure she doesn't know anything about it."
Sync smirked. "I can handle that easily."
"You should be careful around Stella. She is no original human and we don't know much about her yet. She may be an assassin, but she can easily fool you, Sync. Like I said, you can't judge a book without its cover." The commandant frowned.
"There's no way I would get fooled by the likes of her. She's just a kid." Sync scoffed that he won't be fooled by Stella. "But what happens if she knows about our plan?"
"If she interferes with our plan then you have to kill her." Van was serious about letting Stella die in the hands of Sync. "But if she joins us to help our goal then she will be a God-General. For now, she will be in your command."
The tempest sighed. "More like babysitting some kid." He muttered coldly as he turned around to leave the room.
Outside of the Cathedral, a figure was listening to the conversation from Van and Sync. The eyes started to glow red and walk away from the Cathedral. It doesn't want to get noticed by the soldiers that are still patrolling. The figure quickly flies away back to the Inn.
The next morning, Stella woke up from her slumber as she sat up on the bed and moved to the edge of the bed. She started to stretch and smiled.
"I slept like a log last night. I never thought I would be that exhausted." She stood up from the bed and walked to the restroom to get ready. Something was pecking on the window. Stella stopped, turned to the window, and it was a phoenix. Stella went up to the window, opened it from the phoenix to come in, and it flew on her shoulder. Stella chuckled and placed her finger under the chin to pet it. "You made it, Ace," the phoenix has red feathers with tainted black on the tip of the feathers, yellow beak, brown eyes, a chain around its left leg, long red tail, armors on the wings, talons, and neck. "So, why are you here?" she asked. Ace turned to its master and cried softly. The assassin frowned then narrowed her eyes. "I see. I guess I'll just play along with them and pretend not to know anything about it. Now then, I have to change into my new clothes and meet up with the Tempest. I hate to keep him waiting." Stella went to the table to pick up the clothes that were given to her from Legretta and put them on. Ace flies off of his master's shoulder and waits for her to change.
Stella walked to the mirror to check and see if the clothes were in the right place. She noticed that the collar needs to fit and adjust it in the right place. She nodded. "Alright, that should do it." Ace flies back on Stella's shoulder and shakes his feathers. Stella walks out of the room and exits out of the Inn. She looked around to find Sync if he was in the city. "Where am I going to meet him? I wasn't told any location where to meet Sync." she crooked her eyes in confusion.
"I have been waiting for you." a voice from behind called.
The assassin turned around where the voice was at, it was Sync with his arms crossed on his chest. "How long?" she asked.
"Since this morning," he replied coldly. "It's already noon."
"I wasn't told to meet you in the morning. I was told to go on a mission with you, numbskull," She said, frowning. "So, what is our mission?"
Sync sighed. "We're going to the laboratory and going to destroy them. You are going to show us where all of them are located," he answered.
Stella turns around and starts to walk away. "Alright. We'll go to the closest one."
The tempest followed the assassin from behind. He sees the bird on her shoulder wondering what it is. "What is that thing on your shoulder?" he asked.
Stella slightly turned her head and replied, "It is not a thing. It is Ace, my loyal subordinate. He has been in the same laboratory with me. I was able to free him from those pathetic scientist doctors. Ace has been with me since I saved him." She turned her head back and exited out of Daath.
The martial artist wasn't interested to hear the backstory of a bird and the assassin. He just wants the mission to be finished soon. He does need to know more about Stella and her past. Maybe he will learn more about her when they arrive at the laboratory.
"Where is the closest laboratory located?" he asked.
"There is one far west from Keterburg. It is a great hiding spot away from Keterburg, because of the snowstorm. A lot of children are placed there for the first time as a test subject. That is where I was sent when I was a kid. I didn't like what I saw in that laboratory." she replied, telling about her past.
"Why were you sent to the laboratory?"
The black haired assassin didn't respond to Sync's question. She just sighed. Sync noticed that Stella didn't want to talk about how she was sent to the laboratory as a kid as a test subject.
"You ask a lot of questions as a God-General. Not many people would like to tell their past to someone else. Some rather keep it personal to themselves. I'm sure that you have a past too, Sync. But I wanted to keep it a secret from others to know who you are."
Sync chuckled. "It's like you know me too well."
"I was using it as an example. I don't know anything about your past. By the way, why do you have a mask on?"
"You have no business knowing about it." he answered coldly.
Stella huffed. "Well, you don't have to give an attitude reply. It was a simple question but if you don't want to talk about it then you should at least say it nicer. But I can tell that you are not the type to be nice to anyone just by looking at you."
They didn't talk as they continued to go to Daath Bay.
They arrived at Daath Bay. Sync went towards the dock and headed to the Oracle Soldier to talk to him. Sync stays silent. Stella doesn't know that she is talking to one now. He turned around to go inside the boat. The assassin noticed that the Tempest left by the footsteps. She tilted her head in confusion then shrugged and looked back on the ocean.
"At least I have some time alone. Although, I have to be careful around the Tempest. He'll know everything about me and tell the Commandant about me," she looked at Ace and petted him. "So, what did you learn when you came to meet me, Ace?" He started to cry softly to his master's ears. The phoenix scratched his head with his claws. Stella turns around to go inside the boat.
As she walked inside the boat, she went to the bridge and saw the Tempest standing in the center of the bridge. The oracle knights were operating the boat to Keterburg. She signals Ace to get off of her shoulder. Ace flies off of his master's shoulder then goes to Sync's shoulder. Sync glanced at the phoenix wondering why Ace is on his shoulder. He turned to Stella as she was leaving the bridge.
"Where are you going?" he asked, frowning.
She waved her hands back and forth as she left the bridge. "I'm going to find something to eat. We didn't eat anything when we left Daath and watched Ace for me. He won't do anything to you if I order him too."
Sync chuckled and turned back around. He crossed his arms as they went to Keterburg.
Stella walked down the path to find the kitchen in the boat. The soldiers watched her as she walked past them.
"Who is she?" the Oracle knight member 1 asked.
"She is the newest member of the Oracle Knights and under Sync's command." Oracle knight member 2 answered.
"Really? Not everyone would be lucky to be under his command."
Stella rolled her eyes as she sighed. I'm not fond of his command. I thought he would be interesting but I was wrong about him. Although, I'm curious what his face looks like. Why is it important that he hide his face? No one is going to make fun of it. She thought as she turned to the open doorway. She walked to the counter and looked at all of the counters to see if everything was there. She nodded. "It looks like everything is in place. That's good. Now, where is the food?" She starts to search for the food in the kitchen. She opened the counter and chuckled. "Well, I should start cooking. It has been awhile since I cooked food." as she walked to the counter, grabbed a knife, and spun it.
It has been a couple hours to Keterburg. Sync noticed that Stella isn't back. He leaves the bridge to find her. He walked past the soldiers and doors to search for Stella. Ace flies off of Sync's shoulder to go where Stella is . The Tempest followed Ace knowing that the phoenix knows where his master is at. Ace flew turns to the far right door to enter the kitchen. When Sync arrives at the destination, he sees Stella sitting on the counter eating. Ace landed next to the bowl of meat and started eating the meat. She smiled at Ace then she turned to the entrance of the door and saw Sync standing at the doorway.
"You should eat, Sync. It would be best if you eat something before we arrive at Keterburg. You can't go on an empty stomach." as she takes a bite of the food.
Sync walked into the room and sat down at the counter. He glanced at the food then turned to Stella. "You made all of this?" he questioned.
"Of course, I did. When I was still in the laboratory, someone taught me how to cook. She was nice and caring to me. She was like a mother to me and taught me a lot of things. I never have a mother and what it feels to have one. It made me warm inside to have someone who is a motherly figure to me. I enjoyed those days back then." she replied, as she took another bite. She looks at Ace and pet him under his chin. Ace enjoys being petted under his chin. He started to call happily from being petted. Stella remembered something and turned to Sync. "We should set up a strategy when we reach Keterburg. The laboratory is set up with traps and fonic artes. So, it would be wise to do one, Leader."
The Tempest agreed with the assassin for once. "We just need to know where the traps and fonic artes are located. It would be hard to just run in the entrance and let the soldiers die instantly. Although, we can use the soldiers as bait to lure out the traps and fonic artes." he smirked.
Stella rolled her eyes then frowned. "That would be stupid. The traps and fonic artes never stop coming if we use the soldiers as bait. Why would you do that to your own soldiers? They are your men under your commands." She was not fond of Sync sacrificing his own soldiers just to destroy one laboratory.
Sync chuckled. "What do you mean? In this world, everyone dies for no reason just by reading the score. People read the score, they follow the score's purpose, and then die from the score. That's how the world works just by following the score."
"Maybe. But what if people don't follow the score? The world would be a better place without the score. No one doesn't need to read the score anymore. So, tell me, Sync. Do you hate the score so much that you want to destroy it?"
"Of course. I hate it so much that I wanted to see it destroyed and see the world free from the score."
"Is there a reason why you hate the score?"
"You have no business knowing that too."
"You do keep a lot of secrets from others." Stella picked up the glass of water and drinks it.
"And you? Do you hate the score?"
The black haired assassin moved the glass of water away from her mouth and answered, "I do. The score is nothing, but like a god to others. I wish there was a way to destroy the score so people can live happily." as she places the glass on the table. The room became silent for a few minutes. Stella stood up from her chair and left the kitchen. "You should hurry and eat. The food will get cold if you don't eat. Besides, we're almost there in Keterburg." as she leaves the kitchen.
Sync watches as Stella leaves. He looked at the food that Stella made then started to eat. Ace glanced at Sync as he was eating. He is making sure that Sync doesn't do anything suspicious. The green haired God-General noticed that Ace is watching him eating. Although, he doesn't know what is going on Ace's mind. He ignores the phoenix and continues to eat.
They arrived at Keterburg Bay. Sync and Stella walked out of the boat. Ace was on Stella's shoulder scratching his head with his claws. Sync glances at Stella and sees that she isn't wearing anything warm in the cold.
"Why are you not wearing anything warm? It is cold in Keterburg." he crossed his arms.
Stella sighed, walked forward towards Keterburg. "I'm fine. I'm used to the cold. I was trained in the cold for a long time. So, this cold is nothing to me." she replied. Sync followed her from behind to Keterburg.
They walked out of Keterburg Bay and followed the trail to Keterburg. As they continued to go to Keterburg, they heard a voice not too far from them. The voice sounds like it was excited and depressed about something interesting. Sync and Stella looked at each other and followed the sound of the voice to see who's voice it was. They arrive at the source of the voice and see someone on an ostentatious chair. Sync frowned as he knew who it was.
"I need to get into that laboratory but it is impossible to get in! It is set up with traps and fonic artes. How can I get in without getting notice?" The ostentatious chair turned around and saw Sync and Stella. "Oh, why are you here?" he asked Sync.
"You must be Dist the Reaper. A God-General of the Oracle Knights." Stella said, lifting her eyebrows.
"It's ROSE! I'm Dist the Rose! Not Reaper! And who are you?" he demanded as he glanced at Stella.
"This is Stella. She joined the Oracle Knights yesterday by Van's orders and she is under my command." Sync answered.
Dist narrowed his eyes at Stella and glanced at her, "Why are you here?"
Stella replied, "We are here to destroy the laboratory here. It is ordered from Van. He sent me and Sync to destroy it. We also need to plan to go to the laboratory."
"Oh, let me handle the entrance of the lab. I have a plan to destroy the entrance." Dist rubbed his hands together as he smirked.
The Tempest and the assassin ignored the reaper as they looked at each other.
"Do you know any shortcuts or other entrances to the laboratory?" Sync asked Stella.
"Hey?" Dist tries to get their attention.
Stella crooked her eyes as she is trying to remember any entrances or shortcuts. "There is one but it is far from the laboratory and Keterburg."
"How long until we arrive at our destination?" Sync crossed his arms on his chest.
"Since I know the way there. It would take us about an hour but if a storm appears then it would take 3 hours more. So, what is the plan?"
"Hey! Don't ignore me!" The reaper calls them out again to get their attention. They kept ignoring him.
"We should head to the hidden entrance to sneak into the lab. Next, we would need to disarm the traps and fonic artes in the control room. Then, we will attack the laboratory. Lastly, you will save the kids and take them to Keterburg."
Stella chuckled. "Sounds like a plan. But it would be fine with the two of us doing this mission alone. I doubt the soldiers will be able to catch up with our speed. We can let the soldiers wait for us at the entrance of the laboratory once we start the attack. Now, we should head to Keterburg. I need to talk to the Governor of Keterburg after that we can discuss other matters while we are there."
They walked away from Dist who was still listening to them and they continued to ignore him. He got upset and said, "I'm putting this in my revenge journal! Or maybe you guys are just jealous of my stunning beauty." he started to fly off into the sky.
"Is he always like that? It is quite annoying." the assassin asked, confused about Dist's personality.
"Just ignore him. It's boring to hear him talk about things like that." Sync stated.
"Surprising, that he is the 2nd Division Commander of the Oracle Knights as well Conductor and Locrian Colonel within the Oracle Knights. He doesn't seem too interested to follow any orders. Although, I can tell that he is going to the laboratory by the look on his face. I wonder." she started to think.
"Just forget him. He is only interested in data and the Necromancer."
"Necromancer? You mean Jade the Necromancer. Why would he be interested in him?"
"It dwells in his past. That's all."
"I forgot that the God-Generals never talk about their past. It's understandable." Stella closed her eyes. "Anyways, we should be close to Keterburg."
Stella and Sync walked through the entrance of Keterburg. They see little kids playing in the snow, throwing snowballs at each other. Stella watched as the kids played together in the snow. She wished that she was playing with them now, enjoying the snow. She feels jealous of the kids. Sync glances at Stella and sees that she looks jealous.
"You seem jealous about something," he said.
Stella sighed, crooking her eyes. "I'm jealous of the kids here. They are having fun and enjoying themselves as they play with each other. I have been in the lab for my whole life as a test subject." she turned to Sync and asked, "Do you have a childhood, Sync?"
Sync doesn't know what to tell her. He can't tell her his past. She doesn't know anything about him. He tells her a simple answer. "No. I don't have any childhood memories."
"I see. I'm sorry for asking." Stella closed her eyes and sighed deeply. She nodded at Ace. Telling him to leave her. He flies off of her shoulder and goes to Sync's shoulder. "Anyways, I'll go to meet the Governor of Keterburg." as she turns to her left.
The green haired God-General watches as she walks further away from him. He turns to Ace seeing what he is doing. Ace glanced at Sync as he cried softly. Sync turns to the opposite way and walks away.
"What do you think of Stella, Ace?" he asked the phoenix. Ace cries out loudly. Sync didn't understand what Ace is saying but he could tell that Ace enjoys being with her as his master. He chuckled. "She and I have something in common. She wants to destroy the score. She also has a good strategy. Maybe she does have the potential to be a God-General, but there are still some things we still don't know about her yet." Ace stared at Sync and cried angry at him. "What's wrong with you?" Sync hissed the phoenix. He could tell that Ace isn't happy with him. He doesn't know what it is but there was something about Ace that Sync noticed. This bird seems a little suspicious. He's protecting Stella from something. What is he protecting her from? he glanced at Ace once more.
Ace became silent after being angry at Sync. He spreads his right-wing and starts to scratch it with his beak then puts it down. He starts to sit down on Sync's shoulder and takes a quick nap. The Tempest has to wait for Stella to return from Governor of Keterburg.
The assassin arrived at the home of the Governor of Keterburg. She stood in front of the door and took a deep breath. She looked determined to talk to the Governor. Stella knocked on the door waiting for someone to respond to her knocking. A voice was called behind the door.
"Come in."
Stella opened the door, walked in the house then closed the door from behind. She looked around and saw that no one was there. Someone walked out of the other room and appeared in the office. Stella turned and saw a professional-appealing black and white outfit with a brown belt and reading glasses. She has very light brown hair, nearly blond, which is part of it. She wears it in a bun, allowing the rest to fall down. She does like to look at the Governor of Keterburg.
"Oh, my. Stella is that you?" the Governor was surprised to see Stella alive.
Stella nodded. "Yes, it has been a while, Governor Osborne."
"Please, call me Nephry. No need to call me governor when we are alone." Nerphry said gently.
"Alright, if you say so. Anyways, have you noticed anything that the laboratory has been doing lately?" Stella asked.
Nephry shook her head. "No. I haven't. They have been doing a lot of illegal things on those kids. I'm worried about the safety of those kids. I wish there was a way to save them but we don't have enough soldiers to do it."
The assassin smiled. "No worries, Nephry. I'll save them."
"How? You can't do it alone. You need help to save the kids." Nephry was worried about Stella.
"I have the Oracle Knights to help me."
"The Oracle Knights? How did you get the Oracle Knights to help you?"
Stella sighed lightly. "It is a long story. I'll tell you later once we save the kids."
Nephry nodded. "Alright. So, where is Ace? He is always with you."
"He's with Sync."
"Sync? You mean one of the Six God-Generals is here in Keterburg." Stella nodded. "I see. So, he is here to help you save the kids from the laboratory?"
"Yeah. We are going to destroy the laboratory. We can't let no one step in that lab and we need to destroy any evidence from the lab."
Nephry nodded in agreement. "Yes. We must not have anyone go to the laboratory once it is destroyed. Stella, you must be careful around the Oracle Knights. We don't know what they are up to either."
"Right. I'll be careful around them. Well, I'm heading out and saving the kids." Stella turned around and walked away.
"Be safe and make sure that the kids are fine once you save them."
Stella waved as she walked out of Nephry's office. The assassin opened the door, walked out of the house, and closed the door as she stepped out of the house. She leaves the area to meet up with Sync. She stopped walking and sighed deeply. "I know you there. You can come out of hiding, Sync."
Sync came out of his hiding spot and smirked. "So, how did it go?"
"It went well." the black haired assassin narrowed her eyes as she frowned. "Did you eavesdrop on our conversation?"
The green hair God-General shrugged then chuckled. "Of course not. Why would I do that? I'm sure that conversation isn't important at all."
Stella couldn't tell if Sync was lying or not through his smirk. "Anyways, we should go to the hidden entrance to sneak into the laboratory. I'm sure we are going to see Dist there as well. He is going to be hungry for that data." as she walked away to leave Keterburg.
Sync followed the assassin out of Keterburg and headed to the hidden entrance. "Before, we leave. We should tell my division that they need to go to the entrance of the lab."
Stella rubbed the back of her head. "I forgot about it. I guess I am rushing into things." She walked back to Sync. "So, where should you meet your men?"
"Outside of Keterburg. It's easier for us to tell them our plan." Sync turned around and started to walk away.
"Whatever you say, leader. Just make sure you don't lose your men during this mission. It is important to keep them alive for the next laboratory." She followed the Tempest from behind.
Sync turns to Ace who is napping on his shoulder. "How come Ace isn't going back to you?" he asked.
"Is there something wrong with that?" she questioned.
"Not really. It's bothering me that this bird is annoying me." he frowned.
Stella smiled as she chuckled. "I guess he is fond of you."
"Fond of me?"
The assassin nodded. "This is the first time that Ace is fond of someone else besides me. So, what did you do to make Ace fond of you?"
"I didn't do anything. I just asked him about you then he got angry at me."
"Really? About what?"
"It's nothing important."
Stella was confused. She looked at Ace and giggled softly. "Alright, if you say so." she started to frown. What did he say about me? I have to ask Ace what Sync said about me. After all, they don't know that I can communicate with monsters. I can't let them know that. Arietta, one of the God-Generals, can communicate with monsters too. So, I have to keep mine a secret from the Oracle Knights and Van. I was able to learn how to communicate with monsters during my experiment in the lab. There are a lot of things I can do without the Oracle Knights noticing it. she thought, talking about her past experiments as a test subject in the lab.
The fifth division soldiers were waiting for their commander to arrive to get them orders. Sync and Stella appeared in front of the soldiers. Sync started to tell his soldiers about their plan. Stella turned around and walked away from the fifth division. She walked to the mountain and looked up at the sky. The sky was turning dark soon. It's perfect for an assassin like her to assassinate anything in the night. But she wasn't looking at the sky. She was looking at something else in the sky.
Sync finished talking to his soldiers. He turns around and sees that Stella isn't around. He looks down on the snow, sees her footsteps, and follows the footsteps to where it leads him too. The footsteps led him to the mountain where Stella was standing. He looked at Stella and noticed that she was crying, staring at the sky. He never saw someone cry just by looking at the sky. He walked closer to her and crossed his arms.
"Why are you crying?" he asked.
Stella turned to the voice behind her, wiped her tears, and sign lightly. "You ruined the mood. Anyways, I was thinking about my past, that's all. There's nothing more to it. I'm sure that you don't want to hear it."
Sync shrugged. "Who knows. Is there a reason why you were looking at the sky?"
"I was looking at the stars. It's nearly dark. It is possible to see stars this time. Also, that's what my name means in Ancient Ispanian." she answered.
"'Star' is what your name means in Ancient Ispanian."
Stella nodded. "Mhm. Anyways, we should get going." She glanced at Ace and was about to call him but he was sleeping. "Do you mind if you tell Ace to lead the soldiers to the entrance of the laboratory?" she looked back at Sync.
"Why do I have to do it? He is your pet." Sync said coldly.
"Didn't I tell you. He's fond of you. So, I don't want to hear your complaining." Stella said as she walked past Sync.
Sync sighed annoyingly as he followed her from behind. "I never agreed to do this for you." he frowned.
Stella ignores Sync as she heads to the mountains. Ace woke up from the commotion and turned to Sync then turned to his master. He flies off of Sync's shoulder and goes to Stella's shoulder. The Tempest sighs happily that Ace is off of his shoulder. The assassin chuckled softly at Sync then glanced at Ace.
"Ace, show the oracle soldiers to the entrance of the lab and wait for my signal," she told him. Ace took off into the skies and headed back to the oracle soldiers. Sync and Stella watch as Ace leaves. They turned back and continued their path to the hidden entrance.
Stella stopped in her tracks and hid behind the rock. Sync followed her behind the rock and crossed his arms. The assassin sees the guards guarding the hidden entrance. She frowned as she saw the guards.
"Damn. I didn't know they found the hidden passage to the laboratory." as she stares at each guard.
"Should we fight them to clear the path?" Sync asked.
Stella turns to Sync and answers, "We could but we don't know if they are watching us from here. We don't have anything to disrupt their cameras."
"You're thinking too much, Stella. There are ways to trick them," he said.
"Like what?" Stella lifts an eyebrow.
"Speed. They can't see through our speed. They don't have those eagle eyes to see us going in."
The assassin closed her eyes and sighs lightly. "Who knows. They may have something for us waiting in the lab. It won't be an easy fight." She opened her eyes and turned back to the guards. "We should knock the guards unconscious and sneak in the hidden passageway. Unless you want to kill them, Sync."
The Tempest smirked. "Of course. We can't let them run away and tell their companies about this. They are the evidence of all of this if we make them unconscious. Like I said, in this world, everyone dies for no reason, because of the score and they are weak."
"I don't think people die for no reason. People die to fight what is right, to defend themselves, and protect others. It's not the score that causes them to die. There are some weak humans but they have the heart to do what is right for their loved ones. You are one of them, Sync." Stella takes out her daggers under her jacket. She started to clash them together and sharpen their blades to each other.
Sync watches her as she sharpens her daggers. He didn't know what to say. That was the first time someone called him human. The Tempest chuckled. "Well, let's get started. We should hurry with this mission." he fists his hand onto the palm of his other hand and is ready to fight. They looked at each other and nodded.
They quickly spread out to kill the guards. Stella sneaked up behind one and instantly killed him. She continues to assassinate her targets. Sync kicked the guard multiple times then goes to the next guard. They were done killing the guards and stood in front of the entrance of the hidden passage. Stella went to the wall, placed her hands on the wall, and it opened. She leads the way in the hidden passageway and Sync follows her from behind.
As they walk in the path to the lab, the fire lids up when they pass each lid flames. The wind was blowing cold towards them as they could feel it through their skins. Stella can feel the pressure when they are going closer and closer to the lab. She doesn't know what will happen when they arrive there. There was no original pressure. It's like they are being watched from above.
The assassin started to feel uneasy as they got there. Sync turns to Stella and sees sweat falling down from her cheeks. It was noticeable that she was not ready to go to fight.
"Something the matter? You look uneasy about this mission," he said.
Stella shook her head. "No. I have a feeling that someone is watching us. Something is probably waiting for us when we arrive there. It will be dangerous to save the kids with that in the way."
"And what makes you sure if that is right?" he asked.
"I can feel the pressure as we are getting closer and closer to the end of this path. It gets stronger and stronger every time I feel it. It feels like the sudden chill running through my skin. The cold wind is like touching every inch of my skin." she replied.
"Once we arrive at the laboratory, make sure you disarm the traps and then save the kids."
"You don't have to tell me twice. I know what you're going to do. Just be careful." Stella stops walking and places her hand on the door. The door slowly opened. The assassin moved her hand away from the door as it was opening. They entered the open door and appeared in the camera monitoring room. They looked around to see if anyone was there. There was no one in the room. "Surprisingly, no one is here. They are usually guards here. I wonder what will happen to them." she started to think.
"This is not the time to think, Stella. We have to complete this mission then head back to Daath." Sync walked to the camera's screen and looked at each one of them. "Why would a camera room be here next to the hidden passageway? This is utterly stupid whoever build this laboratory."
"I said the same thing too but apparently they didn't know about the hidden passage when I escaped." Stella walked up beside Sync and glanced at the camera's screen. "This will help us find the kids, the control room, all the guards' locations, and other things that appear in these cameras. I see the kids in the center room and the control room. It seems far away from the center room."
"We might have to shut them down just in case one of the guard's returns. Otherwise, they will alarm the whole lab."
Stella sighed. "No. We will put fake images on these cameras. They will never know that we are in there if we place a fake scenery.` She walked to the camera controls and started to press buttons to add fake images on each camera.
"You think you can place all the fake images in all of the cameras?" Sync questioned.
"Are you doubting me as an ally or a rogue assassin? I thought you have to keep an eye on me from Van's orders." Stella mocked Sync.
"Hmph! I can't disobey orders from Van. I'll get in trouble if I don't watch you."
Stella lends away from the camera controls and turns to Sync. "I never thought you were the type to follow orders from Van. Although, you are a God-General of the Oracle Knights. Of course, you do have to follow orders from the Commandant." she smirked in a mocking way as she walked past Sync.
"Are you mocking me?"
"Who knows. You tell me if I am or not, Mr. Tactical Leader."
Sync was getting annoyed by Stella's mocking. "Let's hurry up and finish this mission. I'm getting tired of this place. We should have been done with this place a long time ago." he frowned.
"Stop complaining. These things take time, Sync. If you make one mistake on your mission then you can't redo it over. You just have to continue with the mission with that one mistake. I can tell that Van won't be happy if we did make one mistake." Stella crossed her arms as she stood in front of the door. "Anyways, I'm done with the cameras. Let's commence the mission. I'll go through the vent and disarm the traps. You wait here until I disarm traps then you can do whatever you want here."
Stella jumped to the vent and screwed the nails off. When the nails were off, she opened it and entered and started to crawl to find the control room. Sync watches as she leaves when she enters the vent. The Tempest stares at the door and waits for the assassin to disarm the traps.
The black haired assassin quietly crawls in the vent from getting noticed by the guards. She crawled past small vents to reach the control room. Suddenly, a small voice was heard. It sounds sad and seems desperate for help.
"I want to go home." said the young boy, sadly.
All of the kids in the room wanted to go home and see the parents but they couldn't do anything. They wish they had someone to save them from the so-called "doctors". They are scared and wish to forget how they are treated in the laboratory. Stella was listening and watching the kids from the vent. She wishes she can save them now but she has to go and do her mission.
"Don't worry. I will save you guys from this nightmare," she said quietly. She continues to crawl the vent to search for the control room.
In the control room, there was a guard guarding the control room against the outside. Stella arrives at the control room and looks around in the control room through the vent if anyone is around. It was cleared and she opened the vent and jumped down. She stood up and walked up to the controls. The buttons look simple. She starts to press the buttons to disarm the traps then she looks up on the screen and sees that she disarms the traps. She sighs in relief.
Now, she has to get out of the control room and tell Sync that she disarms the traps. Voices were coming closer to the control room. Stella looks around to hide, then quickly hides in a locker. Two guards appeared in the control rooms to watch and guard the room. Stella quickly dashed out of the room and sneaked away from the control room. She goes to save the kids but it won't be easy to pass through the door that is guarded.
She hides in every corner to see if any guards are guarding the area. The assassin stops at the last corner and looks to see any guards. There were two guards guarding the center room where the kids are. Stella quickly killed the two guards silently preventing the other guards from hearing them. She opens the door and looks to see if it is safe. She dragged both of their bodies in the center room then closed the door as she was finished.
She looked up and saw the kids gathered around when they saw Stella enter the room. They start to smile and Stella walks up to them.
"Stella is that you?" the young boy with the brown hair asked.
Stella nodded her head. "Of course it is. I'm here to rescue you guys from these bad guys." she smiled at them. "We have to be careful as we leave." She went to the wall and saw the pile of junk. She moves the pile of junk out of the way and finds a hole for the kids to go through. "Alright, let's get going."
The kids nodded and walked into the hole. Stella waits for all of the kids to go in the hole. The last kid got in the hole and Stella turned around to see if anyone was watching them. She walked into the hole and followed the path where it leads too.
Sync was waiting for Stella to come back. He glanced at the cameras and looked at each one of them. The cameras showed where every room was located. Suddenly, he heard something from behind and turned around. The wall was about to crack open. He stood his ground if any enemy appeared out of the wall. The wall cracked open and Sync waited for the smoke to clear.
Stella appeared out from the cracked wall and started to cough with the kids. "Damn! I think that was too loud. Now, they are going to be alerted about the sound." she turns to Sync who was standing there watching her. "Sorry about that."
"Did you disarm the traps?" he asked.
She nodded and answered, "Yes, and I got the kids as well." she turns to the kids behind her. "Since everything is done. It is time for the grand finale."
"Grand finale?" Sync was confused but frowning.
"You will see." she snapped her fingers. The lab started to explode.
The Tempest chuckled. "Since when do you have time to set up traps in the lab?"
"An assassin never tells their secret to others." Stella put her finger on her lips as she smiled.
She put her middle finger and thumb in her mouth and whistled. Sync was wondering why Stella is whistling for.
"Who are you calling?"
"You will see." Suddenly, a large liger and Ace appeared in front of Stella. She petted the liger and smiled. "Can you guys take the kids to Keterburg?"
The liger and phoenix nodded. They went to the kids to lead them out of the hidden path. The kids looked at Stella. The assassin nodded. The kids were not sure if it was safe to go with the monsters but they followed them out of the hidden path.
"You know how to communicate with monsters?"
"No, I can understand how they feel." She lied. She doesn't want anyone to know that she can communicate with monsters.
"That sounds like you can communicate with them."
"Don't be stupid. Anyways, we can't waste time. We have to finish this mission. I thought you wanted this mission to be over." Stella walked up to Sync. She faced the door and was ready to complete the mission.
"Hmph! Whatever." he scoffed. "Let's just finish this." as Sync leaves the camera monitoring room. Stella sighed deeply and followed him from behind.
The laboratory was getting destroyed. Smoke everywhere coming out of the lab. The Oracle Knights ran through the open door from the explosion and killed the guards and scientists they saw. Dist was looking around to find the room where they put the children to experiment with them but there were no signs of the experiment room anywhere.
"Hmm? Where is the experiment room located? It is impossible for me to find it like this." Dist stops and thinks of a way to find the room. He got his idea and started to smirk. "I think I know someone who knows the location. I just need to find that person." as Dist searches for this 'someone' that he is looking for.
Stella can feel the same pressure as before when they were in the secret passage. It was getting stronger and stronger as they got closer to it. Her body started to feel fear through the course of her skin. It isn't normal for Stella to be afraid of the intense pressure. She looked at every spot of where the pressure was.
"This pressure is getting intense as we are getting closer to it. Something isn't right here."
"You have been saying that ever since we entered the secret passage. Is there a problem with that?" Sync sighed annoyingly.
"It looks like someone hasn't been trained to feel other people's presence. It is your job to feel the surrounding area with your presence. If you don't then a lot of bad things can happen to you." Stella glared at Sync. "You can't win fights just by going head on against your opponents. It is important to know what your enemies are doing. Understanding their movements, style, and more. I can teach you if you don't tell Van." She offered to teach Sync but she knows something is coming from his mouth.
"No thanks. I don't want to be taught by a child like you. I'm fine the way I am." he declined.
She chuckled then shrugged. "Okay. If you say so. I have a feeling that you will ask when you get defeated by your opponents multiple times."
"Hmph! Like that is going to happen." The assassin stopped walking and heard something from afar. She slightly turns around to see who it is. Sync turned to Stella to see what she was facing in the opposite direction. "Something the matter?"
"We better keep going and get to the experimental lab. I fear something is waiting for us." Stella turned back and walked past Sync. The Tempest followed Stella to the experimental room.
"The experimental lab is far from the rest of the labs from here."
"That is right. It is the largest room out of the other rooms here. That's where the data is located and that intense pressure is there as well. I don't know who is going to be there. We have to be on guard once we enter the room."
"How hard would that be? It will be easy with the two of us against whatever we are up against." he scoffed.
Stella rolled her eyes and sighed. "Will you stop underestimating your opponent? You don't know who will face us."
"And why are you being so reckless?" he asked coldly.
"I'm not. It's just that you don't understand a damn thing about these things." she sighed. "Just forget what I said but you should think about these things more carefully. Anyways, once we are at the bottom floor of this laboratory, there will be a big door that leads to the experimental lab."
Stella sees the stairs that go down to the lower level of the lab. They both stood in front of the stairs and glanced at the dark area of the lower level. The assassin walked downstairs. They reached the lower level of the lab and it was dark. It was hard to see when there was no light anywhere.
"It's hard to see down here and there is not a single light at all." Sync looked around in the dark.
Stella turned to Sync and said, "Don't worry. I can see in the dark."
The Tempest turned to Stella and asked, "How can you do that? We don't have anything to see in the dark."
"I'm an assassin. I can see in the dark. We will be fine. Just follow me and you will be fine." Stella turned back and started to walk forward.
Sync doesn't know if he should believe in Stella's ability to see in the dark. Although, he doesn't know anything about her. It's best to see her ability and what it does.
They finally appeared at the large door and looked at it. They are ready to go through the big door and prepare to fight whatever it is behind it. Stella took out her daggers and started to sharpen them together. As they were sharpened, she put on her clothing and glanced at Sync.
"Are you ready?" she asked curiously.
"Maybe," he replied sarcastically. "Just make sure to watch your back. I'm not going to save you if you get attacked."
She chuckled. "Whatever you say, Tempest." She went to the arc of the door and typed in the password to open the door. The big door opens slowly as the bright light shines through them and kills the darkness behind them.
The door was wide open and they stepped into the big room. They look around in the experimental lab. There was nothing waiting for them at the experimental lab, but they were still aware that someone would attack them out of nowhere.
The black haired assassin went ahead to the room behind the door. She started up the machine and looked at the experiment. She stared at the data that the scientist gathered on the children. The data seems decent enough to be used for Van's plan. Stella can't let Van have the data in his hand. She presses buttons on the machine to delete the data completely so no one can use them for their own needs. Once the data was completely deleted, she started the self-destruct to destroy the lab. There will be no evidence of this lab. She sighed and quickly left the room and went towards Sync.
"I self-destruct this place in 5 minutes. We should hurry and leave this place."
"What about the data?"
Stella sighed lightly and answered, "I deleted the data. So, no one can use it for their own plans. Anyways, let's go before this whole place is going to be destroyed." as she walked past Sync and headed to the large door.
Sync took a step forward and saw something at the door waiting for the assassin to come closer. As Stella gets closer to the door, a large sword swings out of the shadow to attack Stella. The assassin quickly took out her daggers and blocked the attack and pushed her back into the room. She used her feet to land her fall from the push and it created a small cloud of dust.
Stella looked at her hand and saw that she got a cut from the surprise attack. Blood was coming out of her hand. She didn't mind the cut on her hand and looked at the door in front of her.
"I suggest you come out of the shadows." she demanded.
The figure appeared out of the shadow into the light. It walked in the experimental lab and stood in front of Sync and Stella. It appeared to be a muscular man carrying a large sword on his shoulder, a gray and red shoulder pad on his left shoulder, gray cloth armor to the length of his ankle, gray boots, gray and red gloves, and gray pants. He glanced at the two Oracle Knights in front of him then he started to laugh.
Stella was confused and Sync just frowned. Why is he laughing at them? There's only one way to find out.
"What's so funny? And who are you?" Sync asked coldly.
The muscular man stopped laughing and faced Sync. "I'm laughing because I'm fighting against two kids that sneaked in my lab," then he frowned. "And why should I introduce myself if you don't tell me your names?" he pointed at them.
Stella narrowed her eyes. "You don't know who I am, Raven."
Raven turned to Stella and widened his eyes. "I'm surprised you're not dead from your mission. How did you survive?"
"I see. So, you were the one who sent me to assassinate Van."
"I wasn't the one who sent you to assassinate Van. You just have to find the person yourself."
"Tell me who sent me to assassinate Van?"
"Why should I tell you, little girl? You just have to find him."
Sync turned to Stella and asked, "Who is he?"
"That is Raven. He is the commander here. He's known as The Dark Bull." she replied.
"Under whose orders?"
Stella rubbed her temple and sighed. "I'll tell you that later, Sync."
Raven heard a familiar name and said, "Sync? You mean Sync the Tempest is here. I see. You join the Oracle Knights. Is there a reason why you join them and not us, Stella?"
The assassin frowned. "Sorry. I'm not going to tell you why I joined them."
The Dark Bull smirked. "Since, I can't make you talk. Let's make our weapons do the talking for us."
"We don't have time to fight." she mumbled.
The Tempest smirked. "What do you mean? Are you scared?"
Stella shook her head. "No. Do you forget that I self-destructed this place? We probably have 3 minutes left. We have to get out of here but we can't because Raven is in our way."
"We could just use our speed to get out of here but it won't be easy."
"He will keep chasing us. It doesn't matter how fast we use our speed. We just need someone to distract him."
Raven narrowed his eyes. "What are the two of you whispering about? Come here! So, my sword can taste your blood from its blade!" he chuckled.
Raven charged forward to start his attack. Stella and Sync waited from the Dark Bull to come closer to them. They quickly dodge his charge when he charges forward and crashes into the wall.
"There is no way he could survive that." Sync glanced at the wall where Raven ran into.
The assassin crooked her eyes as she closed her eyes. "No, I don't think so. There is a reason why he is called the Dark Bull. He'll keep targeting us no matter what he ramps into. It doesn't hurt him at all. He can even break down a rock with his charged attack." she turned to the door behind her. "Let's go before he comes at us and we need to get out of here before this place self-destructs itself." as she runs to the door.
Sync quickly follows Stella out of the door to leave the room.
The figure appeared out of the smoke and watched as Stella and Sync left the room. He growls lowly and punches the wall. The wall burst open from his fist. "Damn! I let them escape. However, we will meet Stella again. So, you better watch out." Raven turned to the wall that he punched and left the laboratory.
Everything was coming down, because the laboratory is getting destroyed. The oracle soldiers were waiting outside of the laboratory watching it being destroyed. Stella and Sync came out of the entrance of the lab. The whole lab self-destructed as it exploded.
The assassin looked around and noticed that Dist isn't around. She turned to the soldiers and asked, "Where's Dist?"
One of the soldiers pointed at the sky and replied, "He's up there."
Stella looked up at the sky and saw Dist. He looked rather upset then came down to them. He glances at Stella and growls at her. Stella blinked in confusion of why Dist is mad at her.
"Is there something wrong?"
"Of course there's something wrong. I was close to getting the data from the laboratory and you had to destroy the lab! Now, the data is gone. The research cannot continue without that data in my hands. I need that data at all costs!" Dist pointed at her.
"You have no idea what that data contains. It is dangerous to use that data for your needs, Dist." Stella became angry at Dist. She turned away from Dist then crossed her arms. "We're done here. Let's go back to Daath and report this to the Commandant." as she walked past the soldiers. Everyone watched Stella as she left.
"What's her problem? Why is the data important to delete? And what does it contain that can be so dangerous?" Dist shrugged. "Oh well. I guess we will find out soon. Plus I hate this place. It's cold here." as he took off into the sky.
Stella walked in Keterburg and headed to Nephry's office. She walked past the children that were free from the laboratory. They were happy to be back together with their parents. A sudden soft call was coming from behind. Stella turned around to the call and saw Ace and the liger together. She walked up to them and pet them both and smiled.
"You two did a good job. Now, we should head to Nephry's office and tell her that the children are safe and the lab is destroyed.'' She walked to the direction of Nephry's Office. Ace and the liger followed their master.
Sync was at Keterburg Bay waiting for Stella to return. He thought she would be at the bay waiting for them to come but she isn't here. The oracle soldiers are getting on the ship and ready to go back to Daath. He crossed his arms as he waited for the assassin to appear at the bay.
"Where is she? She's supposed to be here," he mumbled.
"You called?" a voice from behind.
The Tempest turned to the voice. It was Stella with Ace on her shoulder and the liger beside her. He walked past her and headed to the ship. Stella tilts her head and crooked her eyes. She heads to the ship with him.
It turned nighttime as the ship was heading back to Daath. The calm waves from the ocean and stars lit up from the night skies. Stella walked off the ship and headed to the front of the ship and to feel the wind blowing through her hair. The liger walked up to her and said that he wanted to be petted. The assassin turned to the liger and smiled and started to pet him.
"You like being petted don't you, Apollo." Stella petted his soft spot. Apollo starts to purr softly as Stella pet him. The assassin started to yawn and stretched her arms. "I'm getting tired. We should get some rest." as she stops petting Apollo and heads inside the ship.
Stella walked to the room, took off the jacket, placed it on the bed, fell into the bed and fell asleep. Ace sleeps next to Stella and Apollo sleeps on the floor. She was so tired that she couldn't keep her eyes open.
Sync was on the bridge with his arms crossed. The soldiers were controlling the ship back to Daath. He noticed Stella isn't on the bridge. So, he left the bridge and walked outside to go to the front of the ship. She wasn't here either. He walked back to the ship and headed to the room. He walked past all of the doors to go to the end of the hall. He opened the door to the room and saw the assassin asleep on the bed with Ace and Apollo. He walked up to her and picked up her jacket and used it as a blanket to prevent her from getting cold. He looked at her once more.
"She looks peaceful and innocent when she sleeps. I never thought she would look like this. She's always serious. She did say that she was serious and used to do missions alone." he whispers softly.
He leaves the room and lets Stella sleep in peace.