Chapter -27: A Future That I Decide

Justek woke up to yet another morning. He knew ahead of time that he would be in the company of his daughter alone, and rose from resting against the wall with a stretch and a smile.

His bones let out a crick, his neck was sore, but this irregular sleeping posture barely made a dent in his stature.

"Well, what shall we do today, Lunis?" He asked, tone weary from a yawn.

She was reclusive in her thoughts and struggled to have an idea, "We could…go rest our feet in the creek?"

These were dire straits for her future sanity. Thus, he reached out with a better idea, "Or, we could fly atop the pyramid, lay back, and see if we can spot some birds.

Lunis gasped at his bold idea, "Won't the Sages get mad?"

Justek let out a very light scoff from the side of his smile, then playfully tapped his staff against the side of his head. "Only if we're caught."

"It's only a small diversion, but I will manage however I can." He told himself.

Getting dressed, eating breakfast, such a sterile start to every morning.

The food started to lose its flavor, every bite making his stomach feel sick. It rejected the status quo of mealtime, just as his heart did for his daily life.

The secret spice to liven up a meal nowadays was a pleasant conversation, of which Justek still had many topics to cover.

"Have I ever told you the story of how Sarajin's first fishing experience?"

Lunis' eyes perked up and she popped her fork from her mouth, "No! What happened?"

"He took a spill into the water, nearly drowned in the swelling tides."

"That would traumatize most folk, but he kept on going and eventually, learned how to catch fish on his own."

There was a glimmer of awe in Lunis' eyes only seen when she read stories about heroes in fables, "He never gives up, does he?"

Justek's smile shook, and with a deep breath out his nostrils he whispered, "Never indeed…"

Silence followed, and he knew this was her time to gather her thoughts. Then, hesitantly, she allowed herself a selfish inquiry, "He…hasn't given up on us, has he?"

Justek drifted into his mind and saw his younger self, inseparable from his friend's side.

Their bodies stretched and matured with age, but the gap grew and grew and grew.

And yet, their hearts were intertwined by a red string, with fibers tighter and tougher than the fabric of reality.

Speaking fondly in good faith, he held his head out and whispered, "Of course not."

But the tragedy of their bond was that patience could only carry him so far.

Ever since he first had the ability to see the future he was cursed to see his children victimized into being weapons of death and destruction.

He sought to save them through kindness, and succeeded only in keeping them from hating him.

He wanted to fight against their fate directly only to be beaten back and downright humiliated for his arrogance.

"Time is running out, and ironically, I feel I am the only one who isn't blind to this."

He had two advantages in this battle for freedom, his clairvoyance, and his ability to exploit the "flaws" in their world.

Alone, they were already great, together, they could open the way to possibilities he'd otherwise be blind to.

"It began a few years back…" His mind stirred without disturbing the personal time he spent relaxing with his daughter.

"With but a simple question…'Is this as far as I can see?'"

"My ability to see the future is limited by my damaged eyesight. I presumed I could only look down one branch at a time."

"But then my curiosity was fed by a decision, an experiment if you would."

"If my other powers can pierce the abstract walls between our world and the dimensions beyond…Why would the fog of the Future be any tougher?"

"I concentrated on the visions I saw, and sought to pierce through to another outcome. I tested it on something simple, 'What if I decided not to wear glasses today?'"

"A simple diversion provided immediate results. I saw both a world where I made the decision, and the one where I didn't."

"It was as though I was burning a hole to the future with my eyes."

"In the other world, Sarajin was puzzled by my strange behavior, and that led to a prolonged conversation that stalled him from helping out in Tanglefae."

"So I chose not to consider this, and lo and behold, I happened upon another realization."

"Adhering to this decision completely erased that alternate timeline from being created. Because my resolve was 100% absolute."

"And then, my brilliant mind began to stir unlike ever before."

"The actions of my other self informed the me of the present and denied said future from happening."

"So then I started to ask 'What else can I do with this knowledge?'"

After ensuring neither Gabriel nor Damascus were cognizant to his movements, Justek was able to help Lunis climb the pyramid.

Though it was more appropriate to say that she was guiding him. It was necessary to play up the deception of becoming weak.

His prior stress already turned his hair dark gray and made him appear close to as wrinkled as Sarajin's dad.

All he had to do was pretend to have a hunched stature and a little struggle with his knees.

His jailer's ignorance over his heritage was an easy trait to exploit. A dragon's bones are mighty, they will not topple easily.

And if nothing else it made Lunis feel useful to someone, in a positive way. Though her eyes were hazy with pity towards him.

"I will find a way to return your lost light, my dear Lunis, I am close, I swear it."

The future was the worry of the man he'd become later. For now, he still had plenty to give as a father.

Once they laid upon the glass ceiling they looked up at the blue sky, just in time to see a flock of birds flying overhead.

Lunis was stunned, her face appearing to piece together how this couldn't be a coincidence.

But the innocent wiles that had been suppressed powered through, and she allowed herself to simply enjoy the carefree flight of these distant feathered fowls.

And with her happily distracted, wondering how these birds can fly free, he returned to the inner recesses of his mind, reminded of events pertaining to the sky.

"It all began with happenstance, when a lone vessel crashed down from the sky…"

He could vividly recall when a girl named Catherine came to this world.

As the story goes, she came, had a chance encounter with Sarajin that would enrich both their lives, and left, without her technological genius affecting this world…

But that's only what was perceived on the surface. Look beyond it, and Justek had gained something from this experience after all.

"I could instantly deduce from my visions that her knowledge was invaluable, a resource I would hate myself for if I ignored it."

"I was a little reckless, my sense of discovery overpowering my temperance. It had been a while since I was able to match wits with a wonderful mind."

"My appearance was like a sagely presence appearing from the desert to guide the lost."

"She was naturally cautious, her energetic demeanor hiding a very guarded interior."

"'I am a close acquaintance of Sarajin's' I told her, buying myself the tiniest bit of trust to start things off."

"Fascinating! I couldn't sense you coming! What's your secret, friendly stranger?"

"There is one resource that is easily bartered between geniuses: Knowledge."

"With but a mere gesture of my staff I created one of my rifts and captured her attention like a fish towards a lure, her eyes as wide as one too."

"'This is barely an effort for me. I can show you something greater. A wormhole, a void into deepest darkness and even…a controlled black hole.'"

"I dispelled my rift and my sales pitch was already providing results, as she rubbed her chin vigorously and wiggled her brows my way."

"You want something from me."

"'As do all minds who crave knowledge,' I said in a sly, witty tone, 'You have seen the state of the world. We're very behind the times. I would love to learn how to make your…technology, but alas.'"

"She crossed her arms and turned aside with a smirk."

"Sorry, I can't be going around giving worlds a leap ahead in progress."

"I expected that, my response armed and ready on the tip of my tongue, 'This is just for my personal interest. A way to spice up my rout life.'"

"She had to be pried from her guard little by little. I maintained a polite, approachable attitude. I refused to degrade myself to the manipulative behavior of that demon of light."

"'This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for us both. Studying a black hole could open the way to worlds you never thought possible, and perhaps…a way to help even more worlds.'"

"We were ultimately cut from the same charitable cloth, and it was there our minds began to sync. All she needed was one more gesture to prove my trust."

"'Tomorrow, at the crack of dawn, you will need to adjust the tightness on your steering apparatus. Two twists to the right. If I am correct, you will know my word can be trusted.'"

"She was someone so full of energy that she wouldn't focus on my weird remark until the moment happened."

"Come the next day I returned after she was done, and though her disposition towards science gave her doubts she was quickly able to piece together what happened."

"'You can see the future.'"

"I nudged my glasses up and got right to the point, 'I must request that you keep my powers a secret from my friend.'"

"She folded her arms, and with a knowing smile said, 'Starting to feel like your interest is really, REALLY personal.'"

"I had nothing to say. She had me figured out."

"'Alright, I'll teach ya! The world might be asking too much, but I can definitely help change one person's life.'"

"I smiled warmly and told her, 'Once you return to your ship, I will meet you there. Our time will have to be short, but I plan to learn all that I need to.'"

"At the time of our next meeting I arrived on her main ship through a rift. But it would be appropriate to call it a city, nay, a planet in its own right."

"I helped her conduct research on a black hole and the data she obtained helped her quickly draw up 'blueprints' for a vessel that can move in the presence of this phenomenon."

"And in return she sat me down and ran through the basics of creating working machines."

"Our session had to be short. Too long and I would risk my children's safety."

"I promised to return and continue our lesson but warned that circumstances may lead to me never returning. I thanked her for her time, and returned home."

"...And thus, marked the end of that branch."

Justek observed as the timeline disappeared into the ether, the only proof of its existence being the knowledge he snatched away from it.

And in its place, a new but similar branch grew.

"I had already practiced these steps once, or rather, the 'I' that never will be did. All important information had been memorized, all this new possibility of 'I' had to do is adjust the parameters to achieve a new result."

"When this me approached Catherine, he said, 'This world may be underdeveloped, but I know a thing or two about machines. The basics, mind you. But I would love to know more.'"

"This time my proof of trust came in helping her repair her ship, no need to reveal my secrets."

"I wonder how she would react if she found out this wasn't the first time 'she' taught me."

"More knowledge was gained, and I sacrificed another self to start all over again."

"This time 'You may be surprised to hear this, but I am quite knowledgeable about machines. My friend has told me lots about them in his travels.' was my key to entry in her heart."

"And giving her the means to repair her thrusters faster was my sacrifice."

"Keep looping through future sight, gather more and more knowledge, until eventually, there would be no need for the 'me' I am now to see her."

"...But I did anyways. Her help was repaid with the original promise made to study black holes, and she taught me the final steps I needed to understand how to build machines."

"Months worth of research and development, tackled in the span of a day."

"But next, I would need resources…"

"Father?" Lunis grabbed his attention by gently tugging on his shoulder.

"Yes, Lunis?" He said lovingly.

She was half-awake and hiding her yawn, "I'm getting tired."

"Why don't you run laps around the city for a bit?" He suggested warmly.

"B-but…" She said with a frank sense of fright in her voice.

"You will be fine alone. Trust me. I will go to the library and grab some more books to read."

She hesitated. Over a pure, honest gesture of good faith.

Once she left to go running, Justek did indeed head to the library, but only because he needed to see a certain someone.

And along the way he continued his review of his scheme.

"Pulsa Minoria is a viable resource for wires and metal parts for making machines. But development takes time, which I cannot hasten with my powers."

"But there is another venue…"

"Sarajin's travels have taken him to a variety of highly developed worlds, and I can visualize them through my clairvoyance."

"Slowly I practiced the reach of my rifts until I could reach other worlds entirely."

"I discovered that I can control what comes through, thus avoiding any toxicity from other atmospheres as I snatch the parts I need."

"I have already robbed from the cradle of time, this was mere child's play."

"I then visualize the ideas and start constructing them. My rifts have provided a secret hiding place where I can test and further develop them."

"Full blown autonomy was impossible to achieve in these machines. So instead, I had to learn how to connect my mind to these machines and control them that way."

"It would be stretching one's mental facilities to control more than one. But I have expanded my mind to perceive the vast reaches of the infinite universe. I can handle hundreds, if not thousands of these machines."

"They needed a name. As I create them in the confines of a rift, I have decided to call them Vortexians."

"They will be my army in the final stages of my plot, but by themselves they will be little more than fodder to be scrapped."

"But thanks to one Sky Scourge, I learned of a way to change the tides…"

"My blood, infused with the Anti-Genesis Theorem, can blend into inanimate objects and give them the ability to melt through elemental properties."

"But I was stunned to find that by doing this process in the void, it made the blood diffuse outward to form a cloak that I could mold as I please."

"It was as though it…twisted in acceptance of my rage, it's birth craving to feast upon righteous vengeance."

"I knew this was the right way forward…and yet, one thing still holds me back. So for one last time, old friend, I must know the path you walk down."

He went through the library doors, as he has many times before.

Such a bastion of knowledge, going to waste for the greater masses. Just another crime to pile onto this sanctuary land.

But in this quiet landscape where a great deal of pondering occurred, his friend walked along the higher shelves, basking in the light of the windows.

He was looking at one book and carrying a couple more under his arm. He seemed to be having a tough time getting the right subject he was seeking.

From down below Justek stopped and shouted merrily, "Try the third shelf from the bottom, closer to the window!"

Sarajin was stunned but then flattered by the aid, picking the right back he needed with a smile on his face, "There we go! Thanks Justek!"

A book on how to clean metal, destined to help aid Oreore provide higher quality materials for Pulsa Minoria.

It was hard to imagine a time where such an impossibly deep hatred could be bested, but now it felt like a distant memory…A fleeting dream one could say.

Sarajin floated down from the shelves and landed next to his friend, who immediately cut off any further movement by reaching out to ask, "Do you have some time to spare?"

"Of course!" Sarajin proclaimed, the two taking a seat at their usual table across from one another.

Justek rested his elbow and looked towards the door. A peaceful silence filled the building, broken by his aged sigh.

"I wonder how much more use I can get out of this place." He muttered.

Sarajin remarked, "The library or…?"

Justek turned with a limp smile and whispered, "The library, of course. I feel as though I've gotten everything I could ever need out of it, and yet…"

He drew his hand out and curled his fingers slowly, "So many more possibilities are within my grasp."

"There's still a lot you can experience out there Justek." Sarajin reassured him.

"Of course," He smiled back fondly, "I have not forgotten our promise. But you must ask yourself, old friend…How do you plan to fulfill it?"

Sarajin looked at him longingly while Justek's expression grew serious, along with his tone, "You have begun to put the eon long woes of the Tribes to rest, but their bonds with one another are still fractured."

"And it doesn't need to be said who desires to keep it that way." As he nudged his glasses up, the light cast on the lens really helped set the mood for Sarajin to contemplate what comes next.

He laid his books down and folded his hands up before his face, his expression tight and wrinkled with a deep concentration.

"I know a confrontation with the Ten Sages is inevitable. Borealis especially…" His voice started to trail off, his eyes wincing in disappointment towards himself, "...I still haven't apologized for my behavior last time."

Justek remarked in a blunt tone, "Why is he owed your fealty? It is his negligence that has allowed the other Sages to run rampant."

Sarajin put his hands down and was quick to rush to their defense, "They aren't all bad people, Justek. You know that."

"Hmph," Justek uttered subtly, with a scowl twitching into view, "Maybe…but you've put too much faith into the alleged kindness of Borealis Aurora."

"Maybe I have…" Sarajin muttered reluctantly to himself, "But I don't see a point in giving up when I've come this far. It's Lilith who is undermining his authority and letting the other Sages run free after all. If we stop her, then Borealis will have to realize he was wrong."

"And if he doesn't?" Justek continuously slammed the point down, but with a voice as soft as velvet, "It's a question that has to be answered eventually…How much can you tolerate the stubbornness of a weed…before it's detrimental to the world?"

"...I don't want to kill him," Sarajin immediately whispered, "At least, not anymore…"

He then hung his head slightly and was reluctant to look his friend in the eyes, "Justek, can I confess something to you?"

"Absolutely," Justek whispered back, though his mind was shaken a little, "I…didn't foresee this."

"Mmm…" Sarajin leaned back into the chair and looked towards the ceiling, his gaze distant and fraught with concern, "My body has been feeling…different lately."

"I haven't felt like I need to eat as much, or sleep as much. I'm full of energy, my mind is focused…"

He looked at his hand and began to close it, "It's been incremental but it's almost like my body is going through a change…A-And it scares me to think about it."

"Being able to get tired, hungry, distracted…It's what makes us human. And…if I stop acting like a human, what'll prevent me from no longer thinking like one either?"

"Heh," He cracked a dry smile, "We already know what happens when I lose control of myself. If I decide killing is as easy as breathing-"

"Enough of that," Justek bluntly interrupted, reaching out with a tone ripe with passion and care, "I've known you longer than any other, perhaps even more personally than your own parents…"

"And you've consistently anchored your concerns in one moment in time. If it's not Ophelia, it becomes the fact you killed, and the next time it will be something else."

"But you aren't someone who can be defined by a single moment, but all the ones he has accrued throughout his life, good and bad."

"Amd that type of person…would never abandon their humanity no matter how much they change on the outside."

"You are Sarajin Stratos, a good man…and an even greater friend."

"J-Justek, I…" Sarajin smiled faintly and rubbed the back of his head, "No. I can't make excuses. You know me too well."

Justek's seriousness deflated out of his face, leaving him with a faint brush in his cheeks as he murmured, "It's because I care too much."

Sarajin looked at him and said, "Thanks for being by my side after all this time."

Justek closed his eyes to buff his smile as he whispered, "No, thank you."

Then be said more poignantly, "I had my doubts at times, but I feel confident in saying…That who you are now will finally bring peace to this world."

"We still have a ways to go." Sarajin ssaid, humble to the end.

And with the conversation over, the two went their separate ways.

And while Sarajin left in better spirits, Justek's mind hardened, now completely invested into his personal goals going forward.

"The world shall have use of your kind heart in the coming years, Sarajin, but I know now that you should not be expected to solve the problem at hand."

"Borealis Aurora planted this tree into the dirt, and let his roots spread to and fro without care, forming weeds that refuse to be pulled."

"Because giving hands cannot take away. Only I have the drive, nay, the strength, to rip this tree and it's roots from the ground!"

"And with the fire born from my heritage, the very bloodline you cursed as foul, I shall burn at the roots of evil until it's ash black at the source!"

Justek narrowed his eyes with ferocity as flashes of the future burned into his mind.

"Innocent?"

He saw Carmine desperately cradling his daughter as she was feverish with poison in her veins, Glade standing over them both.

"Those parasites who poison our lands…"

He saw Adderbolt lazily lying in his chair with Rai.

"Who leech off our resources with gluttonous fervor…"

Stonestein stood within a tunnel of amber, motionless as Ezekiel struggled to avoid being crushed.

"And hesitate to save innocent lives…"

In the dead of night, Torren stood on the open seas and extended her hand towards Brine, her gaze inviting only omens of death…

"Cowering in fear, caring only to save themselves!"

He watched Carolina stand atop Cryofloe mountain and observe Colrez preparing to march for war with a massive army.

"Silent…until their 'peace' is perturbed."

Vermilion towered over the shivering Zeno covered in her blue flames, the young boy having to raise his sword alone to defend a near-dead Valflame and his fallen army.

"For in their eyes we are nothing but savages to be hunted down…!"

Nimus walked into Colrez' chambers, persenting him with a haunting crown of dead black winter.

"Toys to be played with…!"

Lilith, as Mother Divine, stretched her arms out, and made thousands of men and women in masks bow to her presence.

"Puppets to be broken and controlled…!"

Atrax stood atop one of Sancturia's outer towers, stretching his arms out as the Khull Drago made its way to the city.

"Deceiving us under the guise of human flesh…"

Finally, he saw himself, standing tall over Borealis on a battlefield that could only be described as a reflection of Justek's own nightmares.

"Clinging to useless, stubborn pride, to the bitter end…"

Justek's hand shook and he held it against the front side of his face, but even half suppressed his hate would kill the flames of the sun.

"There ARE no innocents…!"

"And if I cannot gift you my love, my friend, then let me drench my hands in the blood of the guilty, so that I may gift you peace…!"

"Thus swears Justek…"

"Thus swears my heart…"

Next Time: Secrets Clad in Amber