A/N: Hey guys, I bring to you all the new chapter for this story! I apologize for the delay but I was having exams and now that I'm done, I can finally update this story! However I am also sad that during the period of my exams that a fellow author, Nameless Knight, has ended his/her story. When I first started writing this story in the Xillia fanfiction community, I remembered how I wanted to have a story that could compete with Nameless Knight's story "A New Path for History". With our 500,000 words and 70+ chapters, I was keen to try and create a work like that. I'm not sure which of you readers have read Nameless Knight's story, but I wanted to at least tribute Nameless Knight for all his/her hard work.
Now let us continue on! And I have to respond to you awesome readers who reviewed my last chapter!
RKF22: Glad you liked it
Riku Uzumaki: Well F Milla is a Tsun so her being in denial is just part of her character.
-And yes, Bisley is finally preparing to make his move. And while you can see him getting Elle, you should remember that he already HAS the Waymarkers. This story started with him having 4 Waymarkers and Ludger gave Bisley the final Waymarker in around chapter 25 or 26. Basically before the party went on the Hot Springs trip.
MagatsuIza: Yup and I apologize for the delay but now that exams are finally over, I can update this story! Thanks for the wishes
That Mysterious Reader: Yup, that is F Milla's character after all, being a Tsun xD Her being in denial is how she is
-That's true, Jude did all this mainly because Milla inspired him greatly
U-Know Yunho: Lol for once I have to agree with Jura :S
TheAnime4Fan: Yup, spyrite development is finally taking a step forward, a big advance for the project. Of course it's still the beginning but they at least now have visible progress.
-Well Elle is just an 8 year old little girl so she's just speaking her mind... which makes her cute XD
-Yup the main story shall continue, which is the FINAL ARC of this story!
Aldehar: Hoho, once again you made your review before the updated chapter. Ah I wasn't really aware about the strikes but I guess you can learn something new, lol. And stereotyping is fun when done with humour, hehe
-Ah... that's a good interpretation but as you pointed out, in the end it is best to leave to one's imagination as to what really happened at the Kijara seafalls.
-Yeah skits are something that Namco did a really good job. And even if I play a Tales game on my 2nd or 3rd playthrough, I will still listen to the skits because they are just so interesting... and sometimes hilarious xD
-Oh thanks for noticing! I purposely selected pictures that matched the theme of the story and I feel the pictures really suit them well. I'm glad you like them, haha! And yes well, responding to readers review is the least I can do to show my thanks to readers. It just shows that I value all my readers thoughts and I'd like to communicate with them, you know? Comment on what they mentioned and the likes, hehe
-Ah that's true Milla and Muzet are Great Spirits. I guess that's a little blunder by me but on my defence, I can argue that Balan meant a Great Spirit from a spyrite xD Although I think he's already seen Celsius before so my argument sort of loses out :P
-Ah I know you meant about everyone humming the hymn of proof. The only thing I didn't really like that part in the game was that Maxwell highlighted Jude and Milla when I felt Maxwell should have given a little more credit to Ludger. I mean he is a descendant of Milla Kresnik and thus has direct connection to the song. That part disappointed me a little in the game which is why I made Maxwell comment more in the previous chapter about Ludger and F Milla humming the tune.
-That is true... Milla Kresnik could be an old hag for all we know xD but I think Maxwell mentioned that Milla Kresnik was a young human soo... :P But in any case, yeah Elle is just an 8 year old kid so she's just speaking her mind, ahha
-Interesting... I coudl actually make a conneciton of this story to be a prequel of "A New Beginning" as you mentioned but... nah... I already have a planned ending for this story although it could have been a potential prequel xD
-Thanks for your suppport as always! Yup we are now at the FINAL ARC of this story and while it will still take a couple of chapters before it ends, I feel it has been a pleasant ride. However don't fret, I've actually got another interesting idea to write about for a Xillia fanfic BUT I won't be writing it until I finish this story. Honestly writing two stories is hard enough.
-Hope you shall enjoy this chapter!
Well guys that's it for reviews. I hope you will all enjoy this chapter and please let me know your thoughts on the chapter!
CHAPTER 30: SPIRIUS OBJECTIVE
Ludger and Milla watched Jude discussing matters with Balan on how they should proceed with Spyrite research now that they finally had their answer. Milla found herself smiling because now she could see how Jude looked like when he was focused on his work. She had never truly seen him in his work environment so she was glad she could experience this.
"What's going on?" Ludger asked with a knowing smile, "You look… really happy."
Milla turned to Ludger, "How can I not be? Jude's finally found the answer that we have been seeking for… and soon, a world where spirits and humans live together in harmony just might actually happen."
"If its Jude, I'm sure he can do it."
"He most likely will." Milla said and then she asked, "Ludger, are you sure you don't want to head back first? You've already helped us plenty and I'm sure Elle and 'Milla' would appreciate your cooking."
Ludger shook his head, "Its fine. I mean, 'Milla's' cooking is pretty good too… and I did promise Jude I'd help out. I'll head home once I'm done helping Jude."
Once Jude was done with his discussion with Balan, Jude called Ludger over so that they could begin. Milla just watched from where she stood.
"Thanks for agreeing to help Ludger." Jude said gratefully, "I appreciate it."
Ludger merely nodded, remaining silent.
Skit: Two nice guys
Present: Ludger, Jude & Milla
Jude: So I'm going to need you to help me with a little experiment.
Ludger: Okay…?
Jude: So first, I need you to help me get the spyrite over there while I modify this extractor.
Ludger: T-this one? *Hands it to Jude*
Jude: Yeah now you see that other device there? It's to help stabilize the spyrite a little… I need you to make a little adjustment for me.
Ludger: Err… I… I'm not sure how this… *Grunts* *Sound of machine breaking* Ah!
Jude: L-Ludger?!
Milla: *Takes closer look* Oh my… it looks like the device is broken.
Ludger: *Panic* I… I'm sorry!
Jude: No, no, it's okay! I guess I should have told you properly how to handle that device. It's my fault really!
Ludger: Yeah but I should have been more careful.
Jude: Don't worry about it. I'm the one who asked for your help so if anything, I'm to blame.
Ludger & Jude: … *Blush in embarrassment*
Milla: Honestly you two. The two of you just keep apologizing one after the other. The two of you are really… just… too nice.
Jude: *Still blushing* W-well… I've always been called a do-gooder after all.
Ludger: *Laughs*
XXXXXXXXXXXXX
'Fractured' Milla and Elle finally arrived at Trigleph from the Torbalan Highroad and fortunately for 'fractured' Milla, the entrance of the Torbalan Highroad was close to the Trigleph market. She made a quick stop to purchase some ingredients for what she was going to cook. Because she was a frequent customer now, the merchants recognized her and even gave her a discount.
After 'fractured' Milla was finished shopping, they departed for the apartment complex. Throughout the whole way, Elle was happily humming the song Ludger that Ludger taught her. The hymn of proof. The song that was passed down in the Kresnik clan, a song that was composed by Milla Kresnik. 'Fractured' Milla had to admit, she was beginning to pick up on the song as well, humming the tune along with Elle.
"You like the song too Milla?" Elle asked when she realized 'fractured' Milla was humming along.
'Fractured' Milla nodded with a light blush, "W-well, it's a nice song after all. What, you don't want me to sing with you?"
Elle shook her head, "No I just think you sing it really well, that's all." Elle then looked up at 'fractured' Milla with a big grin, "Daddy's still the best though so he's still number one."
"Oh really? And what about me?"
Elle stopped walking and pondered on it for a moment. 'Fractured' Milla waited patiently, amused that Elle was actually thinking this through seriously. After considering her options, Elle said, "You're number three!"
"What?! Number three?!"
Elle nodded and emphasized that by sticking out three fingers, "Yup! Number three! Daddy's still the best and Ludger's a close second. You still need practice Milla, so you get number three."
'Fractured' Milla rolled her eyes, "Even my cooking's still number three. You're just not being fair Elle."
"That's not true!" Elle denied, "I mean, your cooking's getting really good and I said your soup's now like… second best! So erm… if you cook me something great today, you just might beat Ludger."
Elle's stomach chose that moment to grumble and Elle blushed as she tried to hide the noise. 'Fractured' Milla smirked, "Hungry eh?"
"S-shut up!"
'Fractured' Milla giggled in amusement and then gestured for Elle to follow her, "Come on, I'll cook you some mabo curry but this one's going to be better than the one Ludger makes. With this, I'm sure I'll climb to number two. Let's go."
Elle released an excited cheer and rushed into the apartment. 'Fractured' Milla followed closely behind and they entered the elevator, ascending up to the third floor. Once the elevator doors opened, Elle raced through the corridor and quickly opened the door to Ludger's apartment.
However unknown to Elle, 'fractured' Milla had been feeling uneasy ever since they entered the apartments. She was not sure what was wrong but from her experience, her instinct was never wrong. For now, she decided to be on her guard. When she entered Ludger's apartment, she placed the groceries on the dining table but keeping a close eye on her surroundings. So far, nothing seemed out of place but the uneasy feeling was still there.
"Milla, what're you doing?" Elle asked, "You've been just standing there for a while now. Aren't you going to cook? I'm hungryyyyy."
"Just hold on for a little while." 'Fractured' Milla said, taking out the ingredients from the grocery bag and putting them on the kitchen counter. After that she placed the grocery bag on the floor. As she passed by a window, she stopped dead in her tracks. She finally saw it.
Outside the apartment, 'fractured' Milla saw several Spirius agents moving in. Those Spirius agents with their shades and black outfit, there was no mistaking it. She did not know why they were here but from the looks of it, she probably did not want to know.
Without second thoughts, 'fractured' Milla grabbed Elle, "Come on Elle, we need to get out of here."
Elle was utterly confused as 'fractured' Milla pulled her towards the front door, "Huh? What about your special?"
"I'll make it another time, okay?" 'Fractured' Milla opened the door and got out to the corridor of the third floor. What she saw made her realize that she was already too late.
Spirius agents were all lined up in two rows, one row on the left and one on the right, leaving a gap in the center of the corridor. The agents drew their guns, pointing them at 'fractured' Milla and Elle. 'Fractured' Milla quickly pulled Elle behind her, protecting her from harm. Then finally the ring leader revealed himself, walking between the two rows of agents.
The director of Dimensional Affaris, Rideaux, approached 'fractured' Milla and on his side was the former handmaid, Ivar. The two stood in front of 'fractured' Milla and the rest of the Spirius agents lined up behind the two.
"What do you want?" 'Fractured' Milla demanded, her hand on the handle of her sword, ready to draw her weapon.
Rideaux acted like he was hurt, "Is this how you treat guests? But I'll ignore your rude behavior and get straight to business. I'm here on behalf of Spirius and the thing is… we cannot proceed with the final 'act' without obtaining it."
"Final act? What're you talking about?" 'Fractured' Milla inquired. She did not like where this was going.
Rideaux chuckled and made an open gesture, "The way to the land of Canaan of course. What else?"
"So what? You've already got the Waymarkers right? We have nothing to give you!"
Rideaux had an evil grin and he pointed at the little girl behind 'fractured' Milla, "Unfortunately there is one little detail that President Bakur needs…" Rideaux paused for effect, "We're going to need the little girl over there."
'Fractured' Milla gritted her teeth in anger, baring her fangs at the Spirius agents, "What do you need her for?!"
Rideaux feigned regret, "Unfortunately I'm not allowed to disclose that information. Nor do you need to know the reason." Rideaux then threw his right arm forward, "Capture the girl!"
'Fractured' Milla quickly drew out her sword, "Elle, get to the emergency staircase and climb to the rooftop! You need to get out of here!"
Elle quickly ran off and luckily for her, the emergency stairs were behind her. It was the only way for Elle to avoid capture. The way to the elevator was blocked by the Spirius agents and even if it wasn't, there were Spirius agents waiting outside the apartments. So the rooftop was the only safe place for now.
"After her!" Rideaux ordered.
All the Spirius agents quickly moved in but 'fractured' Milla engaged them, acting as a wall. She was soon greeted by a hail of bullets but she managed to block the bullets with her sword and dodge them as well, all thanks to her natural reflexes. When the agents were in melee range, they switched their guns to use the Spirius standard blades that were issued to them. That was their biggest mistake and 'fractured' Milla proceeded to make quick work of them, working through the large crowd of agents as if she was dancing amongst them. None of the agents could land a hit and 'fractured' Milla easily thinned the numbers of the agents, delivering life-threatening cuts and slashes. Soon the whole corridor was littered with Spirius agents on the ground, all alive but heavily injured and groaning in pain.
"Impressive…" Rideaux praised, "Very impressive for a phony Maxwell. But I think we've wasted enough time. Ivar, how about you start being useful and get this phony Maxwell out of the way."
"Y-yes sir!" Ivar said immediately and drew out his dual daggers. However he was still a little hesitant in fighting someone that looked exactly like his Milla.
"And don't worry Ivar, you'll have friends to back you up." Rideaux assured and snapped his fingers. Instantly another group of Spirius agents appeared from the elevator as reinforcements. No doubt more would come.
Now clearly outnumbered, 'fractured' Milla decided that fighting in such a tight space was a disadvantage to her so she made her retreat and ran for the emergency stairway, climbing the stairs that led to the rooftops. Ivar and the Spirius agents quickly gave chase, leaving Rideaux alone in the corridor of the third floor along with the wounded Spirius agents.
'Fractured' Milla climbed the last floor and burst open the door, finally reaching the rooftops. She looked to her left and right, searching for Elle and found the scared little girl standing on the center of the rooftops, clearly not having any idea what to do.
"M-Milla… are the bad guys gone?" Elle asked.
'Fractured' Milla quickly ran to Elle and guarded her, "No, they're still coming. I need you to stick with me, okay Elle?"
"W-what should we do? There's nowhere to go." Elle cried out.
"Don't worry Elle, I'll protect you." 'Fractured' Milla said as she tried to calm Elle down, "We'll just have to wait for Ludger. I'm sure he's on his way back and he'll deal with them."
Their conversation ended when Ivar emerged on the rooftops along with the Spirius agents. Quickly, the Spirius agents surrounded 'fractured' Milla and Elle in a circle and aimed their guns at 'fractured' Milla. 'Fractured' Milla moved into a defensive stance, one hand wielding her sword and the other holding Elle's hand to make sure she was close.
Ivar approached 'fractured' Milla and made a hand gesture. The Spirius agents surrounding 'fractured' Milla and Elle understood and put away their guns although they remained in position. Ivar wanted to deal with this alone and with the Spirius agents around his target, it was basically like an arena for him.
"I'm only going to give you this warning once, and I'm only doing this because you look like Lady Milla." Ivar said, "Hand over the little girl. If you don't, then we'll take her by force."
"What do you want Elle for?" 'Fractured' Milla demanded.
Ivar sighed and picked out his dual daggers, "As Director Rideaux said earlier… that's confidential information stuff." Then Ivar added in with a sweat drop, "And also because I don't know as well."
Ivar ended their chat by starting the fight, dashing forward and thrust both daggers forward. 'Fractured' Milla managed to parry the attack away, keeping Elle close to her. Ivar then swung both daggers in a wild swing, forcing 'fractured' Milla to back away to avoid Ivar's attacks. She then retaliated, thrusting her sword frontward, however Ivar deflected the attack with his one dagger and counter-attacked by attacking with the other dagger. 'Fractured' Milla quickly tilted her body to the side, dodging the dagger and smashed the handle of her sword on Ivar's midsection. The blow stunned Ivar, knocking the wind out of him and 'fractured' Milla finished Ivar by delivering a sweeping kick, throwing Ivar off his feet and landing hard on his back.
"Gah!" Ivar cried out in pain, "You…!"
"If you think I fight like the Milla you know, then you've already lost." 'Fractured' Milla warned with her sword hovering above Ivar's neck.
"W-what do you know?!" Ivar snapped back and kicked 'fractured' Milla away and standing back up, "I already know you're not like Lady Milla. You're nothing like her!"
"Shut up!" Elle retorted, "Milla is Milla so you… you better shut up! You big meanie!"
Ivar released a frustrated battle cry and charged in once more, throwing a flurry of quick attacks but 'fractured' Milla manage to evade or block them with her sword while keeping Elle safe from harm at the same time.
As Ivar fought 'fractured' Milla, it brought back memories of his fight with Jude one year ago. He recalled his frustrations, always trying to prove that Jude was nothing but a phony. And now fighting 'fractured' Milla, he wondered just what was he fighting for now? Was he trying to prove himself? Was this all so that he could become a junior agent of Spirius? Was that what he truly wanted? In the end Ivar had no answer and fighting 'fractured' Milla now was just a reminder of his shortcomings.
'Fractured' Milla sensed Ivar's battle prowess depleting and took advantage of it. She suddenly advanced forward, invading Ivar's space. This surprised the former handmaid and tried to attack 'fractured' Milla but before Ivar's attack could connect, she both of Ivar's forearms, stopping his attack. Ivar cried out in pain and before he even knew what happened, 'fractured' Milla appeared behind him and delivered two more cuts, each cut on both of Ivar's thighs. Ivar dropped down and lost his grip of his daggers. With injuries to his arm and legs, Ivar was now clearly out of the fight.
With Ivar defeated, the Spirius agents drew out their weapons, "Ivar, sir! Request for permission to engage!"
Ivar glared at 'fractured' Milla and she returned the glare. And although he was still unsure of what his purpose was in life, Ivar felt he still had an obligation as a junior agent. "Permission…. Permission granted." Ivar finally said.
At once, all Spirius agents surrounding 'fractured' Milla and Elle charged in at the same time. 'Fractured' Milla had little options on how to deal with them so thinking quickly, she gambled all her chips on one move to end everything.
When the Spirius agents were almost upon 'fractured' Milla, she suddenly disappeared in the blink of an eye, shocking all of the agents. Then a blood curling scream pierced the air when one of the Spirius agents received a clean slash across his shoulders. The Spirius agents all turned to the injured Spirius agent and saw an after-image of 'fractured' Milla. She was moving around the Spirius agents so quickly that she was leaving after-images, wounding a Spirius agent as she moved. The Spirius agents could not attack what they could not see and one by one, they were receiving large cuts to their torso and legs, incapacitating them. This was 'fractured' Milla's mystic arte, "Omnislash!"
All Spirius agents were now defeated on the rooftop, suffering from heavy cuts. 'Fractured' Milla was back next to Elle on one knee, panting heavily. The cost of performing 'Omnislash' was high and it easily exhausts even 'fractured' Milla.
"Milla… are you okay?" Elle asked with worry, staring at the tired woman.
'Fractured' Milla managed a nod, "Y-yeah… I'm fine… come on Elle, we need… to get out of here before more gets here."
'Fractured' Milla slowly got back up on her feet with Elle trying to pull her up as well. 'Fractured' Milla gave a small thanks to Elle and the two started walking away.
"Ivar, you did a good job weakening her. Consider it as a job well done." A voice said.
Before 'fractured' Milla could even react, Rideaux appeared from behind her draped in his level two Chromatus form. With a swift but powerful blow on the head, 'fractured' Milla fell on her front, unconscious. Ivar found it disturbing that Rideaux made it seem so easy.
"Milla?!" Elle cried out in surprise, shaking 'fractured' Milla to try and wake her up but she was knocked out.
Rideaux looked around at the injured Spirius agents and then stared at 'fractured' Milla's unconscious form with a laugh, "This woman was quite a handful, wasn't she? But once weakened, she becomes a delicate little flower." Rideaux turned to Ivar, "You did a good job Ivar. If I had to attack her from the start, it would have been such a hassle but you made her expend all her energy on you guys. When weakened, she becomes… so much easier."
Ivar slowly got up, wincing in pain as he did so, "Just… just happy to complete my mission sir. But what do we do with the injured men here?"
"Don't worry about them, another batch of agents are already on the way to clean this mess up." Rideaux explained. The director of dimensional affairs then turned his gaze to Elle, "You're coming with us…"
Elle stepped away and each time she stepped back, Rideaux would menacingly take a step forward. This process repeated until Elle realized she was on the very edge of the rooftop. If she took one more step back, she would plunge to her death.
"There's nowhere else to go now…" Rideaux said with a grin, his arm reaching out for her.
Elle closed her eyes and she shed a tear, "Ludger… help…"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Ludger, Jude and Milla were at the Torbalan Highroad, having left the Helioborg research facility just a few minutes ago. Despite Ludger accidentally breaking the device earlier, Jude managed to proceed with his experiment. The journey to perfecting spyrite was still a long and difficult one but Jude believes that they were at least on the right track. After that, Jude decided to end things for the day and head back home.
On the way back to Trigleph, the trio had to deal with the monsters in the Torbalan Highroad. After defeating another batch of monsters, Ludger's GHS started ringing.
"I wonder who that could be." Jude remarked.
Ludger wondered that as well and answered his GHS, "Hello?"
"Ludger?" It was Alvin and he spoke quickly, "Where the hell are you?"
"Alvin? Calm down, what's going-"
"The other Milla's been attacked!" Alvin yelled.
Ludger blinked, too stunned to respond. "…What…? What do you mean attacked?"
Alvin sighed, "Just get back Ludger. I'll explain what I know once you're here. Leia's tending to 'Milla' and I'm just trying to clean up the mess over here. And… we can't find Elle anywhere. Ludger… hurry back."
And Alvin ended the call. Ludger stood still for a moment, completely numb. Then without saying a word to Jude or Milla, he sprinted off.
"Ludger?!" Jude called out but Ludger did not stop, sprinting towards Trigleph.
Milla quickly ran after Ludger, "We should follow him."
"R-right!" Jude said and moved into a run.
It took the trio another couple of minutes before entered the city of Trigleph and Ludger rushed for the apartment complex. When he arrived at the compound, he noticed that the place was unusually quiet. Normally there would be people in the area, children playing on the swings and adults loitering around, conversing with friends and family. But now there was hardly anyone here.
Ludger pushed on and rushed into the apartment, using the elevator to climb to the third floor. Jude and Milla could barely keep up and nearly did not make it into the elevator. Of course they could have just climbed the stairs but that would waste time. Once on the third floor, Ludger sprinted through the corridors, ignoring the fact that there was dried blood on the floor and walls.
Ludger burst into his apartment and was instantly greeted with a gun on his head. "Oh it's just you." Alvin said, taking away his gun.
Jude and Milla came into the apartment, breathless. Ludger scanned his living room and noticed two guys he had never seen before tied up with duct tape covering their mouths. Seeing their outfits, Ludger realized they were Spirius agents.
Alvin saw what Ludger was looking at and explained, "Yeah I found a couple of Spirius agents recovering other injured agents on the rooftop. I and Leia were on the way to just visit your place when we saw Spirius agents cleaning the area. They attacked us but we managed to fend them off. When they tried to retreat, Leia and I each grabbed an agent and knocked them out. Haven't woken up since, but once they do, we're gonna have to play a little interrogating game."
"Where's Milla?" Ludger asked, referring to 'fractured' Milla.
Alvin pointed at Ludger's room, "She's in there and Leia's treating her. She knows some healing artes after all. She was unconscious when we found her on the rooftop but Leia said that she should be fine."
"I'll go and help Leia." Jude offered and entered Ludger's room.
Ludger then asked the dreaded question, "Where's Elle?"
Alvin shook his head, "Don't know. We found your Milla at the rooftops. Maybe you can… find something up there that might give us a clue to what Spirius wants."
Without a word Ludger dashed out of his room and made for the rooftop, leaving Milla and Alvin alone. The two of them turned to look at the two unconscious Spirius agents.
"So… Spirius is responsible for this." Milla stated with her arms folded on her chest.
Alvin solemnly nodded, "Looks like it. The only thing is why? Are they trying to bargain with us by holding Elle hostage? Or does the girl have something they want?"
"We don't know anything for sure." Milla said, "The only who might have an idea… would be my other self. The fact that they managed to even defeat my other self means they must have put great effort in achieving their objective. My other self is not so easily defeated."
Alvin glared at Ludger's room where 'fractured' Milla was recovering, "They did. I don't know about the numbers but when Leia and I arrived, there were a lot of injured Spirius agents being treated to. She fended them off when she was alone…" Alvin cursed at himself, "If only I was here earlier… then maybe I could have-"
"There's nothing to gain from blaming yourself." Milla interrupted, "What we can do is help Ludger. Once my other self recovers, we should be able to find out what Spirius wants by capturing Elle. And I'm sure these two agents you captured… will prove to be useful"
Alvin nodded in silence and the two said nothing more. There was nothing else that needed to be said.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Ludger was at the rooftop and surveyed the area, looking for any hints of Elle. Of course he knew that she was not here but a small part of him, a very small part hoped that she was still here.
"Elle!" Ludger called out, "Elle! You… you're here right? Elle!"
Ludger continued calling out Elle's name for a few minutes when he finally gave up when his throat started aching. When he stopped screaming, it was then he noticed a small little object that was foreign to the city. He approached the little object and picked it up.
It was a pebble. A beautiful, blue pebble. And in that instant Ludger knew what this pebble was. It was the pebble that Elle extracted at the Kijara Seafalls a few hours ago, when Celsius was still with them.
Elle got out from the waters and ran to Jude while showing a beautiful blue pebble, "Look Ludger! Look what I got!"
"That's really nice." Ludger said honestly, ruffling Elle's hair, "What're you going to do with it?"
Elle merely gave a wide grin, "I'm gonna keep it of course! Just like my seashell I showed you!"
Ludger clutched the pebble in his hand, as if he was holding Elle's hand. Ludger realized he never knew how much Elle meant to him and now that she was forcibly taken from him, he was at a loss. The pain in his heart was excruciating and his mind was only filled with concern over Elle. He closed his eyes and even in the pitch black darkness, he saw Elle in front of him.
When Ludger opened his eyes, his eyes were wet with tears. But through his thoughts, Ludger was determined more than ever to get back Elle. And to find out why Spirius captured Elle.
"Wait for me Elle…" Ludger said softly with the wind blowing against him, "I promised you… that we'll go to the Land of Canaan together. I will make sure… that promise comes true!"
CHAPTER END