(o)(E)(o) EPILOGUE (o)(E)(o)

1913, Autumn, South Manchuria.

He didn't realize he had fallen asleep on the grass. It was the damned voice that woke him. Though the voice spoke softly, Yuri felt as though his head would split in two.

"All right! Fine! I'm going! Just stop yapping in my head dammit!" He swore. Really now, why can't this voice let him be?

Grumpily, because his sleep was rudely interrupted more than anything else, Yuri scowled as he walked towards the station.

The voice suddenly jumped into his head out of nowhere when he was in his early teens, giving him orders. Since he had been saving money so he could start looking for Alice, Yuri had traveled from town to town, directed by the voice. He didn't really complain, for the voice had saved his butt more often than not, if only the damn headaches would stop!

Yuri had become a monster slayer or sort of. He collected the heads of the monsters he fought and bring them to the village mayor who had commissioned him to clear the surrounding lands of the foul creatures in exchange for money. The prize depends on the ferocity and size of the grotesque beings, so Yuri usually go for the big ones. The voice would often lead him to places where monsters run amok, so there's plenty of action for him.

Now the voice had ordered him to protect a certain girl aboard the soon to come train.

"Yeah I can see the train comin, so which girl do you want me to protect huh?" He asked, though he already knew. A Caucasian, petite girl, blue dress, silvery blond hair, and violet eyes. For a moment, Yuri closed his eyes. The description sounds so much like…Alice.

Though he won't admit it out loud to anyone, he still misses her. And even though he could not remember her face very well now, he knew that she was very beautiful. Yuri shook his head, wondering why he couldn't forget the little girl who probably is married now with a dozen of little screamers. He tried to laugh it off, but couldn't. She had probably forgotten all about him. And yet…

He still wanted to see her.

Badly.

The train came to a stop before him, halting his thoughts. It's best that he obeyed the voice for now, who knows what the voice might do to him if he failed to do this one. The voice had been very adamant with this mission, as if his life depended on it. Could it be that the owner of the voice is the one boarded on the train and she is ordering him to rescue her?

Aint that sweet? Yuri thought to himself. And mighty convenient too. He was about to bust his hip to save a psycho lady, but then, life's not so boring when he got something to do. And why the hell didn't she tell me she wanted me to save her in the first place!

Yuri boarded the train. He heard from the other passengers that a girl was being held by the Japanese Army at the VIP car. Yuri sat down, and wondered about his next move. How would he rescue the girl without killing off the soldiers…they might be obstacles to him but they're human beings, not monsters dammit!

Then it happened again. Yuri could only grasp his head as if to hold it in one piece as the voice warned him again.

"Fol.ow…th.t…m.n.Wha…ev.r happens…don't…let…im capt.re…the..girl.."

Yuri managed to raise his head in time to see an English gentleman walk towards the VIP car. Wasting no more time he followed. Soon blood-curdling screams could be heard ahead of him, guns shooting and then more screaming.

When he opened the door that led to the VIP car, only the elderly man and the girl was alive. A windshear monster carrying a sickle flew past him and cleanly severed his left arm. It happened so quickly that the motion of the little monster failed to register to the eye. Yuri did not even wince. He grasped the annoying wind imp by the head and calmly squished the monster's head as if it was softer than sponge. Then he picked up his arm on the floor and nonchalantly reconnected the severed arm to his body. He shrugged as if to say is that all?

The elderly man turned to him and said. "Ahh..I was fond of him." He spoke with a heavy British accent.

Just then Yuri caught a glimpse of the girl behind the man. The one he was supposed to rescue and protect. Yuri couldn't breathe for a moment as though he was hit with a poleaxe in the guts. That hair, those violet eyes…Alice!

He didn't know that he had called her name out loud. She looked at him, her eyes widening in recognition. "Yuri!" She cried.

But before she could run to him, the man grasped her arm and cast a sleeping spell on her. Alice collapsed and the mysterious man caught her and swung her over his shoulder as though she weigh no more than the hat on his head.

Yuri rushed towards them, he could sense the warlock to be extremely dangerous; But what the heck! He had tweaked death in the nose often enough these last few years to be afraid now. And besides, she's in his grasp now…well almost, but Yuri knew he would never allow another shadow of parting come between them again...

(o0o) END (o0o)

Author's notes:
The time line drove me mad! I don't know the when and the where happened. So I think I should put here, what time line I followed.

Yuri was born on 1890, meaning Ben transfered his family in 1893 to mainland China. The same year Alice was born. Assuming that Ben fought Dehuai in 1900, the year this story took place, so Yuri would be 10 years old and Alice would be 7.

I tried to search about the Crimson Thread legend, I first read it in a Rave: Groove Adveture fanfiction site, but I cannot find it now. So basing from what I remember, I tried to portray the time Ben told his son about the Crimson Thread legend.

I know that Yuri's epitaph/talisman was given to him by his father, but I took the liberty to twist this to fit my story. As for Anne's cross, she gave it to Ben who in turn gave it to Zhen's daughter Quihua. It was returned to Yuri after finishing Zhen's pitfights. Though I don't recall anywhere in the first game that Yuri gave it to Alice, he mentioned it in Covenant about all the persons he had ever loved has worn that cross. Again, I took the liberty to 'twist' it to fit my devious idea.

As for the Japanese terms, please don't ask me! I only stole them from a Rurouni Kenshin fanfic, by the talented writer who writes under the pen name Komagata Yumi.

If I forgot to give credits to anyone or anything, feel free to correct me!

"We. Exist."

Puffy.