Epilogue

They were falling.

Velvet's head was absolutely splitting, memories were still crashing together in a disjointed rush. She wanted to go back to forcing her way through it but the several seconds in the air, falling, finally drew her attention back to the world outside.

They were falling: her, Laphi, Rokurou, that blue malak. She couldn't spy the second one, but they were obviously way, way, way up in the air. Landing was going to suck, and so she spun slightly, spreading her arms and legs to slow her descent. Laphi was swinging his arms, before gluing them to his side, shooting toward her. She reached out, grabbing him and they spun in the air, gripping at each other. Rokurou was maneuvering similarly, moving to grab the blue malak. There was a flash of light, and the malak disappeared. Rokurou shifted again, making his way to Velvet, and she reached out. He tried to shout something, but the cacophonous sound of the wind in her ears made it impossible to understand.

Her scope slowly broadened, Laphi burying his face in her chest as she realized more than just they were falling. Innominat's body… that's right… it had been crumbling around them. They had to retreat, and the water malak had cast an arte. Whatever it was seemed only half done, given they were a couple of miles above the surface of Midgand. Rokurou finally made it to her and Laphi, grabbing her hand and they pulled together, Velvet twisting her head around, trying to figure out what she should be doing. There were bits of the structure above them, she could see streaks of fire and rock tumbling through the sky as madly as they were. She growled, uncertain what she was expected to do to fix this.

Then: four lights.

One red, one blue, one green, one gold. They lifted up from distances too far away for Velvet to contemplate as she realized what she was looking at. The other four Empyreans. Those bastards. They finally decided to do something with all their power.

They shot up to the falling debris, encircling it, their colored lights spinning and spinning until it was a halo around the body of Innominat as it descended. The halo's brightness grew and grew, slowly blinding Velvet's gaze, and she turned from it, clutching Laphi closer to her. He tried to say something, she could feel his mouth move, but all of it was drowned out by the wind.

There was a low thmp, something so deep it vibrated through them, and she in turn clutched at Rokurou. Not because she cared or anything, but losing him would make…

No. She cared.

That memory was bright and powerful in her head: lost in the Earthpulse, lost in herself, lost in her heart, and Phi talking sense to her. Eizen. Rokurou. Eleanor. All of them, wishing for her to be better, to heal, to accept everything that had happened to her. The weeks of travel after that had so many long, painful conversations at night, Velvet recounting and processing, opening up and letting herself be vulnerable in a way that she never thought would be safe ever again. And none of them judged her, none of them shamed her, none of them debased or insulted or abandoned her. Her heart mended on that journey, a little at a time, bit by bit. Because of Phi and the others. It was because of them that she was able to face Arthur, face her brother.

She would be damned if she let Rokurou fall to his death.

She pulled him closer.

In his hand was an exquisite bow, and an elegant glove. Neither accessory looked like the daemon's style but he held both close as he tried to maintain his grip on Velvet. She lifted her bandaged hand, trusting her brother to keep a hold on her, and unleashed her daemon arm, hoping its increased surface area would slow their fall even a little.

The halo of light above them was still glowing, still blinding, but below, towards the rapidly approaching earth, was a green light, and a string of white hair.

He was shouting, and a hand lifted, casting some kind of arte as a string of some kind shot up, gripping Velvet's and Rokurou's joined hands, wrapping around them as the wind changed direction - somehow - and they were pulled to the wind malak.

"I'll be damned!" he said, their descent slowing, the wind lessening. "Those two bastards actually did it!"

"Zaveid! Long time no see!" Rokurou said brightly. "Want me to kick your ass again?"

"Oh, no," he said, "Not this time, got too many seraph and shepherds down below. Wouldn't want to embarrass you, am I right?"

… Seraph?

"Where are the kids?"

"Here," Rokurou said, holding out the bow and glove. "They gave it their all."

"Ha! I'll bet they did. Come on, let's get you down." The malak's gold eyes turned, taking in Velvet. "Hey," he said in a low, seductive voice. "It's been a long time. Do you remember me?"

"Not really," she grumbled, yellow eyes flicking to Rokurou. "Is he important?"

"Ouch! Scorned by such a cool beauty!"

The descent was quiet after that, the named Zaveid using his artes to continually slow them down until it was a gentle landing. A fire and earth malak were also th-Velvet blinked, that earth malak could only be Eizen's sister!

"It figures those two would make so much trouble that I have to leave my mountain," she said in a flat monotone, spinning an umbrella. "You must be Velvet. I hope you know the sheer amount of trouble everyone went through in order to get you somewhere safe."

"Edna," the fire malak said as Velvet retracted her daemon arm. "There's no need to be rude. Hello, Velvet, my name is Lailah. It's an honor to meet you. Oh, and who is this young lightning seraph you have with you?"

Velvet gripped her brother tightly, but he turned, brown eyes wide. "... seraph?" he asked.

"Malak," Rokurou corrected. "They're called seraph these days. Well, for now, anyway, before they change the name again."

"Malak? I'm… a malak?" Laphi frowned, pulling some of his hair, and Velvet finally noticed the white tips.

"Oh my," the fire malak said, a delicate sleeve lifting up to cover her surprise. "This will take a lot of explaining. Very well, we can let the shepherds do their job and-"

Velvet grabbed her brother and yanked him close. "Shepherds?" she demanded, pitching her voice low to intimidate. "You have shepherds?"

"Calm down, Velvet," Rokurou said with an easy smile, the only thing making her freeze from drawing out her daemon arm. "A lot of time has passed, and things aren't what they used to be. Don't worry, we'll catch you up."

"Short version is this:" the wind malak Zaveid said, "Shepherds these days ask permission for seraph like us to contract with them. Nobody's will is taken over. Hell, I've even done it myself, there's nothing to worry those pretty little eyes about."

"And why should I believe you?" Velvet demanded, wondering why this guy was being so familiar.

"Wait, do you really not remember me?"

"Am I supposed to?"

Rokurou burst out laughing, fire malak Lilah clapping her hands together as Eizen's sister stabbed Zaveid with her umbrella. "Serves you right," the earth malak said.

"Are you…" Velvet looked down to see her brother watching everyone. "Are you them?" he asked. "The ones the water malak said wanted me to live?"

Eizen's sister stared flatly, umbrella twirling. But above her the fire malak Lailah's face - already gentle - softened more, and she bent forward slightly to meet Laphi at a level. Velvet clutched her brother closer, protective. "You must be the other Laphicet," she said, voice low and smooth. Motherly. She sounded a little like Celica. "Maotelus told us about you before he was called up to join the fight. He asked us to come in case we were needed. We're friends of Sorey and Mikleo. Did you met them?"

"... which one was the water malak?"

"That was Meebo," Eizen's sister said, voice still flat. "A pain by any other name…"

"The other one would have been Sorey," Zaveid said, and something about his confident drawl prickled along Velvet's memory. "Lightning seraph, just like you."

Laphi again looked at the white tips of his hair, and he threw cautious eyes to his sister, asking permission. She grumbled, unwilling to let him go, but unwilling to keep him sheltered either, not after… however long they were sealed away. She took a silent breath through her nose. "Did you see him?" she asked.

"... White scarf?"

"That's him!" Lilah said brightly. "Though it looks like they're both resting right now."

"They gave it their all," Rokurou said, bowing politely to the fire malak. "We all did."

"I'm glad you were there to look out for them," the fire malak said, her voice gentle. Rokurou smiled in response, soft, and nodded in acknowledgement of something.

"Is anyone going to explain any of this to me?" Velvet asked, voice flat.

"Oh!" Lilah said. "Yes, of course! But maybe not here." She looked up, the others instinctively following suit, to see the halo of light, the four Empyreans, still working to destroy Innominat's body. "There's a seraph village on the other side of some ruins not too far from here. We'll explain everything there."

Above them, dozens of smaller lights, that Velvet would later learn were shepherds, flew up to the halo to aid the Empyreans.

Sorey was in his vessel, nestled deep, deep inside, surrounded by purity and warmth, and it lulled the heavy ache in his bones and joints. He had pushed himself beyond the brink, he remembered that, but not the how or why or what. He wondered where Mikleo was, but his tether was still there, and that was all he needed to feel safe.

He heard voices outside his vessel, unintelligible sounds at first, but as he woke more, the sounds started to form into half-made words, and from words to sentences.

"... I see. So you were the first Calamity."

"I guess, if it's been as long as you say."

"A lot has happened in the intervening years. The world is not quite as you know it."

"So I gathered."

"Take the time you need." Lailah…? "Many people put in the effort to free you, so for their sake it makes sense to put yourself together first."

"And what about my brother?"

"He will also need time," Lailah said. "New seraph require a lot of training to adjust to themselves. In the best scenarios they are taken in by a seraph of the same type. Lightning seraphs are very rare, though. The only other one I know is Sorey."

Sorey stirred in his vessel.

"The one with the white scarf?"

"Yes."

"... Are you talking about me…?" Sorey asked, exiting his vessel and rubbing at his eyes. He still felt terrible, he really needed to rest more, but if he was needed to help someone he wanted to know about it. He dragged his hands through his hair and looked up, blinking owlishly. They were in his old home, Mikleo's bow nestled next to him on his bed. Sorey tugged his shoes off quickly and pulled at his scarf, wrapping it around his partner gently as he shuffled to the end of the bed to get up. Lailah was there, kneeling politely and turning to watch his approach.

Beyond was a woman Sorey had never seen before. Rich, black hair tumbled down in waves, tied in a braid so loose as to be nonexistent, a ripped and ragged coat falling off her shoulders and a stay that had obviously been outgrown, barely fitting her. He winced to see no shift or linen underneath, just exposed skin, and wondered how she could be comfortable in such dilapidated clothes. Yellow eyes, too bright to be gold, pinned him with a stare, wary, and he made a polite bow.

"Hello," he said before yawning. Ugh, still so tired. "I'm Sorey."

"I take it you're the lightning malak this woman was talking about?" the woman asked.

Lailah hummed in amusement as Sorey unconsciously pulled at one of his white tips. "Uh, yeah I guess," he replied. "I was born a little over a year ago. Gramps was a lightning seraph, too." He winced, his heart sinking as he missed the man who raised him and Mikleo. He shuffled deeper into the room, kneeling without much grace next to Lailah. "I've learned a lot, and I keep learning more. If there's another lightning seraph out there, I don't mind helping him. Though I don't know how good a teacher I'll be," he added, sheepishly putting a hand behind his head.

The dark woman said nothing, staring without blinking. Sorey met the gaze, taking in the heavily bandaged arm, the ripped hose, the mismatched armor. She was beautiful, but her aesthetic was terrible, he couldn't appreciate her with the bedraggled clothes.

"I might have some old shirts left around here from when I was human," he said, "They might be a little big on you, but I think they'll be more comfortable."

"No."

Uh… okaaaaaaay.

Lailah smiled again. "You have nothing to fear here," she said gently. "You don't have to trust us outright, yet, but you can trust Rokurou, and Zaveid, and Edna, can't you?"

"Sister! Look! I found a treasure!" Sorey turned, tensing as he saw Innomi-but he realized he couldn't sense the power. This was a boy, a lightning seraph, and he realized just who he was looking at. "It's called amancay, look! The petals are the exact same color as your eyes. The malak - I mean the seraph - they say they grow wild here. I didn't see anything like this in all the books I read. It's a new discovery!"

The woman - Velvet - gave a soft, earnestly gentle smile as she took the offered flower. "It's beautiful," she said, voice warm. "I've never seen anything like it."

The little lightning seraph looked up, and Sorey's eyes doubled in size to see Mikleo's circlet on him, mouth dropping open, and he turned to look at the bow, wondering what had caused his partner to part with such a treasured relic of his past life.

"It's truly amazing," Velvet's brother said. "I've been running up and down the mountain for hours, but I have not tired! I never knew it was possible to have this much energy, it's like I can do anything - go anywhere! Imagine the two of us traveling - sister, it's what I've always wanted!"

Velvet dithered, clearly uncomfortable to say anything with strangers about - she was private, much the way Mikleo was, and Sorey realized he knew exactly what to do. He leaned in, offering a soft smile. "You're Laphicet, right?" he asked, drawing the boy's attention to him. The boy turned and looked, also on guard, but unlike Velvet he opened up very quickly. "I remember you," he said, leaning forward. He started to float, much to Sorey's surprise, and bobbed over to him. "You had a white scarf."

"Yes," Sorey said, taking it all in stride. "It's keeping my partner warm right now." He tilted his head to where Mikleo was still resting.

Laphicet peered over Sorey's shoulder, frowning. "There is no one there," he said.

"That's because he's resting in his vessel," Sorey explained. "Seraph like us, sometimes we have to travel through places that aren't safe, or have a lot of malevolence. Sometimes we're really tired, too, and it's easier to rest in one."

"Do I have a vessel?"

"I don't know," Sorey said. "Mikleo found his when we started out on our journey, and mine was made a few weeks ago by Phi."

That made Velvet straighten, her spine jolting up, but before she could respond Sorey felt a shift in the air, and heard the rustle of fabric. "... Sorey…?" Laphicet gasped to see a seraph appear, but Sorey was too busy being happy.

"Mikleo!" he said brightly, hopping to his feet and ow, they were not ready to take his weight. It took a couple of steps for the soles of his feet to adjust and he moved around the bed to take the bow and move it to a small book stand at the head of the bed. Mikleo was drowsy, just like him, rubbing at his eyes and his hair askew, Sorey's scarf falling off one of his shoulders as he finally managed to look around. His violet gaze automatically found Sorey, and he smiled, easing a hundred concerns in Sorey's heart. The water seraph reached out, getting a soft grip on Sorey's blue shirt, and leaning in to press his face into the lightning seraph's shoulder. Mikleo hummed, and when Sorey looked up he saw Lailah beaming in happiness as Laphicet watched in curiosity. Velvet was still on guard, and Sorey realized there was more to talk about.

"Mikleo," he repeated, softer, to his partner's ear. "We have company."

Ever private, Mikleo immediately straightened, eyes blinking away any remaining drowsiness, pulling his hair out to retie it and shifting his weight on the bed. Sorey took his overlong scarf back and wrapped it a few zillion times around his neck, the ends still fluttering out, and Mikleo stood and straightened out his clothes as they both reentered the main room.

"Hello," Mikleo said with a sweep of his eyes, bowing before kneeling down, Sorey joining him. "It's an honor to finally meet you, Velvet. Sorey and Rokurou said a lot about you."

Is everyone awake?

Sorey stiffened, turning inside. He pulled at what he now understood was his second tether. … Yes? He tried to push through.

May I come in?

Sorey looked up, saw Velvet glaring at him. "Yeah, Phi," he said, "You can come in."

Velvet, if possible, straightened even more as a small light bubbled up and appeared, Phi smiling at all of them.

Laphicet stared, obviously overcome with the resemblance, and Velvet outright jolted to her feet, yellow eyes so wide and the amancay falling out of her hand, crumpled. "Phi…" she started to say.

"Oh, my, I think I hear a shepherd calling me," Lailah said suddenly, clapping her hands together. "Yes, I definitely am needed somewhere else. Please excuse me. Sorey, Mikleo, come with me."

"Wait, us, too?"

"Yes, without question," Lailah said quickly, grabbing Sorey's shoulder as Mikleo hastily stood.

Mikleo stumbled a little, still not completely awake, and Sorey helped him - out of his own house, mind - and deeper into Elysia. Sorey looked up and saw the halo in the sky, streaks of light that were shepherds armatized with wind seraph to help in the destruction of Innominat's body. The halo was much smaller now, meaning the work was progressing well.

"How long were we out?" Mikleo asked.

"More than a day," Lailah said softly. "I'm surprised you didn't rest more. You both still look so tired."

Sorey yawned right on cue, rubbing at his eyes. "Just wanted to make sure everyone was okay," he said. "A lot happened up there."

"Yes," Lailah hummed, "Miss Velvet was not particularly forthcoming, and young… Laphicet?... was much too busy enjoying his seraph form. It would appear that he was quite sickly as a child."

"Yeah," Sorey answered. "The twelve year sickness."

"That's what Miss Velvet said, and of course Rokurou helped explain when her story became, uh, thin." Lailah waved to Medea as they moved up the mountain, towards Gramps' home. "Rokurou is back in the Origin Village, of course, handling the malevolence and laughing all the way."

Mikleo snorted. "He would."

"Zaveid and all the other wind seraph are up there, trying to break up the debris, and Edna wanted me to tell you that she was going to punish both of you for making her work so hard as the leftovers land."

Sorey looked up, frowning. "How wide is the area of effect of this?"

"It had fallen quite far before it started to break apart," Lailah said. "I've seen two great meteorites come within striking distance here. We extinguished the flames before impact, of course, and Edna and the others have been healing the craters as they come. We were able to get about twenty shepherds here when Lord Maotelus sent word, but to be honest we wouldn't have been able to handle this without the Empyreans.

Sorey winced. "Yeah… sorry about that. How much do you know about what we were doing up there?"

"Only that Lord Maotelus gave you a missive when you awoke, to free Miss Velvet."

Mikleo and Sorey took turns explaining their adventures: the search for people who remembered Velvet, finding Rokurou, all the training, learning about the would-be Calamities and how they were being generated, meeting Phi in his seraph form, being sent up to the Dawn Star, the fight with Innominat, separating him from Laphicet, and the frantic rush to get out of the station.

Lailah was thumbing her paper, pulling one out once in a while as if about to tell a fortune. "It's amazing," she said softly, with a gentle smile, "to see Lord Maotelus trust a former shepherd after everything with Michael…"

Sorey's eyes automatically went to Mikleo, but his partner smiled. "Phi - Maotelus - he's been through a lot, too. He's smarter than that, and even if he wasn't, Sorey has that way about him after so many centuries of sleep."

"That's true," Lailah said. "I'm going to go see if Edna needs anything. You two should continue to rest, you both obviously need it."

They had been standing at Gramps' door, talking, over the hours it took to articulate the adventure. Lailah moved down the mountain and Sorey looked at his old home, wanting to go back to bed but unwilling to interrupt what was obviously an important and necessary conversation between Phi and his family.

"Come on," Mikleo said, putting a hand on Gramps' door. He paused, feeling the weight, but he pushed it open and the pair entered.

Much like Sorey's home, the space had been lovingly maintained, and in the center of the circular room was a small stand, a very familiar pipe resting on display.

Both of them bowed, moving to the back of the space and sitting down. Sorey rubbed at his feet, still so sore, and Mikleo didn't even have the energy to sit, sliding to one side until his head was resting on Sorey's shoulder. "I wonder what they're talking about," Mikleo murmured.

"Dunno," Sorey said softly, moving to his other foot. "But I hope everything works out for them."

"Mm." A hand snaked around Sorey's elbow, and the other pushed at his back, wiggling room between it and the wall to finally rest as his hip. Sorey stopped massaging his feet, lifting an arm up to wrap around Mikleo's shoulders. If he tilted his head just right, he could rest on the top of Mikleo's head, and catch the summer-sweet scent of his hair. He breathed in deeply, relaxing with each inhale. Mikleo said, "I was surprised, when you armatized with Phi."

"I was too, a little," Sorey said. "When I was asleep, Phi talked to me through dreams. But dreams are… well… dreams, and I don't remember much of it. But we must have made a contract. I could feel the tether when we were up there."

Mikleo shifted, pressing closer. "That makes me jealous," he admitted. "I only want you contracted to me."

Sorey chuckled, nuzzling his partner's hair. "We can ask about closing the contract later," he assured. "I was really surprised to see the circlet on Laphicet."

Mikleo nodded into his shoulder. "I don't need it anymore," he said. "I don't need a reminder of how important it is to live. I have the others. I have you. And even if I didn't, I have myself. Laphicet… he was so tired of living, in the end, that Artorius' deal looked good enough to take. He'll keep needing that reminder as he comes to terms with that, and as both of them relearn how to be alive."

"You always were the smart one."

"... someone had to be…"

His voice was drifting, and Sorey was comfortable, he adjusted a little bit, but he followed Mikleo off to rest.

He wasn't sure how much time passed, but when he stirred he saw Phi watching them. "Oh, sorry," he mumbled, trying to straighten. Mikleo fell off his shoulder, accidentally jolting him awake, and the both of them slowly pulled apart. "Did you need us?"

Phi laughed. "Sorey," he said, "you both have already done more than enough. I didn't think we'd be able to save the other Laphicet, but you did. That was beyond the most wild of expectations. And I thought I would have to sequester myself back into the continent to purify Innominat, but you and Mikleo were able to purify us. I truly can't thank you enough."

Phi bowed, low and formally, and Sorey felt uncomfortable with the gratitude. Mikleo did, too; but he was better at hiding it.

"We're glad we were able to help," Sorey said, not quite awkward but unable to think of anything else to say.

"I wanted you to know," Phi said, "The satellite is destroyed, Innominat's body is gone, and his remains have been scattered across the entire planet. Almost all of the shepherds are outside celebrating, along with all the surrounding seraph. A lot of us remember Innominat, and they'll be grateful to you, too."

"What about the other Empyreans?" Mikleo asked.

Phi made a face. "I'm going to be scolded for this," he said, "They don't like their slumber being disturbed, but given that my power is no longer split between me and Innominat I'm pretty confident I can get them to see things from my point of view." Phi puffed up proudly, patting his chest. "But, the real reason I'm here."

He stood, dusting off his knees and stepping forward. The Empyrean placed a hand on each of their shoulders and closed his eyes, a complicated arte circle blooming underneath both of them. Healing waves drifted over Sorey, he suddenly felt alert and refreshed. One of his tethers shrank to nothing, Phi closing their contract, and Sorey smiled. After that something - a blessing - settled over him, and he saw something similar happening to his partner. No, he felt it, along the tether of their contract, and he reached out instinctively to take the water seraph's hand, Mikleo automatically doing the same.

"That," Phi said, "Is a small fraction of Innominat's power."

"What?"

Phi nodded. "I'm now immune to malevolence, because of eating Innominat. I've given a piece of that to you. You're both still susceptible, but far less so than a regular seraph. I haven't grown enough yet to give this gift to the other seraph, that will take time, but I wanted you two to be the first. There's still a lot for me to learn, and for now it's safer for me to stay in my vessel, but is it okay to visit you once in a while?"

"Of course!" Sorey said brightly. "We're going to see every ruin in the world!"

Phi smiled. "I know someone who might want to join you," he said coyly.

The three of them exited Gramps' home, outside was a brilliant sunrise, all pinks and purples. Further down at the center of the settlement was a bonfire, white stoles and cloaks shifting around as shepherds danced and celebrated, interweaving with dozens of seraph in an intricate folk dance. Sorey heard laughing and singing, small drifting firelights from a fire seraph giving the site a golden glow. It was everything Sorey had ever dreamed: humans and seraph interacting, having fun, enjoying themselves. He turned to share the moment with his partner, and Mikleo was already looking at him, smiling and just as happy. They shared a giggle, and Phi darted ahead of them to join in the merriment.

Sorey started to move forward, but Mikleo held him, gesturing. To the east, staring at the sunrise, was Velvet and Laphicet, holding each other close. Sorey smiled, his partner knowing him so well, and he drifted over, Mikleo omnipresent at his side.

"Hi," he said, trying to intrude softly. Velvet turned, and her gaze was no longer guarded, but she said nothing. Laphicet was resting in her lap.

Sorey fumbled, a little uncertain how to interact with someone so recalcitrant, but Mikleo offered the next words.

"How are you feeling, now that you're free?"

"... you called him Phi," she said.

"Oh," Sorey said, rocking on his feet. "Yes. He gave me permission, when we were asleep together."

"He said that, too. He said that he trusted you with that name." Velvet turned, her intense gaze taking in the merriment down below. "I never thought I'd see the day," she said. "A day where a malak would willingly interact with a shepherd. But Phi showed me…"

Sorey nodded. "It was our dream, even when I was human," he said. "To see us living together in harmony."

"A dream…" Velvet said, eyes losing their focus. "I had a dream. To keep Laphi safe."

"And now he is," Mikleo said gently. "It looks like we've all seen our dreams come true."

"... not all of us," Velvet said, and the softest smile ghosted over her features. "He wants to see the world," she added, turning to her little brother, the lightning seraph curled into her. "To go on a grand adventure."

Sorey smiled. "You can join us then, if you want," he said. "Mikleo and I, we're going to see every ruin in the world, document it and show that humans and seraphim were living together even in ancient times."

Velvet stroked a hand along her brother's shoulder. "... he would like that," she said, her voice curiously sad.

Mikleo understood quicker than Sorey. "You're a part of that invite, Velvet," he said.

She looked up, gold eyes surprised.

And she gave a true smile.

End

Author's Notes: It only took the entire fic to get into the headspace of Velvet, and it wasn't long enough to really get to know her, but we weren't NOT going to do it. :) And now a new adventure starts - three seraph and two deamons wandering the world and exploring ruins. Or something equally sacchrine.

Hope you all enjoyed the fic everybody!