Farewell...

Jennifer: " everyone, thank you for everything."

Ryan: " it was a pleasure meeting you all... well, not exactly. It was a pleasure meeting the younger you."

Elie: " we're really glad to meet you too."

She said giving Jennifer a tight hug.

Elie: " be careful out there, and please, don't go on any crazy adventure without telling your parents."

Jennifer: " technically, they know, considering you're them. But yeah, I will try."

She then looked at the man beside her and hugged him, making him take a few steps back as he didn't expect it.

Jennifer: "see you in a few years, Papa. And take good care of Mama."

It was a miracle he managed to keep his calm face as she said that. What was more surprising, even for him, was that he had returned the hug.

Jin: " you don't worry, just make sure you get back home safe and sound."

Old man: " hurry up now, or do you want to be left behind."

Ryan: " alright! Alright!"

William limped closer to the old man.

William: " will this be goodbye then?"

Old man: " maybe, maybe not. I'm the overseer of time after all, if I'm needed then I'll be there."

William: " can't I get a clear answer from you for once."

He said with a small giggle.

Old man: " there is no fun in a life when everything is clear. Let's go now, Clockmon."

Jennifer: " take care everyone! Bye!"

As soon as they stepped next to the old man and the clock robot. The clock's hands began to spin and in a flash of light, they were gone. Elie and Lilyan then stopped waving their hands, looking slightly down.

Lilyan: " I won't lie, I miss the kid already."

Jessica: " alright, it's time for us to leave too. The Duck Shuttle is waiting in the airport."

She turned to Yuuya, Jin, Ban, Lilyan and Elie who were going back with her. All of them then walked over to their friend, wishing her good luck.

Evangeline : " no more running away, okay."

She said giving Elie a hug.

Elie: " yeah... I can't run away forever after all."

Lilyan: " you're not going back?"

William gave a small smile as he shook his head.

William: " I found something to do here, it's an opportunity I wouldn't be discarding so easily. Plus, I'm pretty sure he is here too. So I'll keep searching for him."

Lilyan closed on him and gave him a hug.

Lilyan: " see you soon, Onii-sama."

William: " take care."

Kirito was waiting for them with Yagami's Van this time in order to take them to the airport. As they drove in the newly rebuilt streets, Elie enjoyed her last moments in Tokio City, taking in the sight of people going about their chores without dreading a near annihilation and the buildings steadily climbing up in the background in place of those which had fallen.

On one of the TVs perched high above the street, a news report was displayed.

" The world now is facing an unpredictable phase of change following the last events. The attacks on several countries and cities, which were led by an AI, were successfully thwarted. Although the world has yet to recover from the after-effect of the whole mess, we were also met with the sudden suspension of CIS' activities..."

The report was played everywhere, in houses, in cars, on phones and CCMs, and even on a tablet held by a certain blond young man.

"... Investigation is yet proceeding on the matter of CIS' involvement in the planning and development of war weapons, which were brought to light shortly after the multiple assassinations of members believed to have ties with said company. Our sources stated the possible implication of world world-renowned terrorist group, World Savers, which we're still hoping for further affirmation on the subject. While awaiting the truth to be divulged, President Claudia Renneton, the president of A nation, and Prime Minister Zeizen Sousuke, prime minister of Japan, are calling for an urgent meeting with all leaders in order to take decisive and crucial settlements for the future of the world."

Elie looked back at the TV screen as soon as they reached the lobby of the airport where pictures of both the prime minister and the president were displayed.

Jin: " they're still discussing it."

Yuuya: " even the Mizel incident didn't draw this much attention."

Ban: " yet again, the damage back then is nothing compared to what Leviathan had done."

Jessica: " not only that, it's also because of who were involved."

Lilyan : " right, CIS and World Savers."

Jessica nodded, her eyes flicked back to the TV screen.

Jessica: " this incident helped to unveil their shady activities. Apparently, there was more than enough proof found in Dream Future's servers."

" Eh?"

She shrugged upon receiving their quizzical looks.

Jessica: " Leviathan was gathering information against them after all to get rid of them. To think it would actually serve to arrest and prosecute them."

Lilyan : " strange... isn't it..."

Jessica: " that the enemy we had been fighting was the cause we could put an end to both most dangerous groups of our time, couldn't even have dreamed of it."

Yuuya: " true, it sounds rather far-fetched."

Elie: " and now, what?"

Jessica gave her a small smile.

Jessica: " now we step back. We did what we ought to do. The rest is up to Papa and the rest to clean after the whole mess now. It's something only they could do from their positions."

Elie mulled over her words before she snapped when Ban placed his arm on her shoulders.

Ban: " just focus on your health, you don't have to worry about anything else for now."

Giving a soft smile, she nodded her head at him thankfully.

Jessica: " would you look at the time! We better get going. Professor Yamano and your mother are already abroad."

With a collective nod, they all headed to the bridge to get on the Duck Shuttle...

Evangeline : " what's on your mind now, Kousuke?"

Kousuke : " what?"

Evangeline : " suddenly inviting me to The Future Vision Musume, what in the world happened?"

Kousuke : " I thought you would like it?"

His eyebrow shot upwards in a questioning manner.

Evangeline : " well... I do! It has exclusive technologies that are yet under development and all but... It sounds so sudden, not to mention it coming from you."

She said jabbing the ticket he had given her towards him.

Kousuke: " coming from me?"

Evangeline : " it's... you know what I mean Kousuke."

Kousuke : " in fact, I don't."

Evangeline : " it's just, so unlike you..."

Kousuke: " well, maybe you don't know me all that well."

Evangeline : " you're not playing that card against me. I've known you for five whole years Kousuke. You're the one I've been closest to."

Kousuke : " then maybe you would notice I tend to reward those who exceed at their work, don't I? And I certainly believe you've been the hardest worker in this company since you joined it."

Evangeline : " I didn't join, I'm just-"

Kousuke : " helping, alright, get it. Still, if anyone deserves that reward it's you."

Evangeline : " but-"

Kousuke gave a sigh, rolled his eyes as he dropped his tablet and pivoted on his chair so he was facing her.

Kousuke : "look, I've been given two tickets for this exclusive museum which happens to be held for the first time here in Japan and I can't think of anyone else who would either accompany me or be interested in this stuff. So either you accept the ticket or it just goes to the bin."

Faced with the threat of discarding such an important ticket so simply, which she thought was evil from him, she had no other choice.

Evangeline : " I accept it."

Kousuke: " cool, we'll meet there in a week then."

And he returned to his tablet.

A week didn't prove to be as long as it sounded, Elie felt it had been just half a day since her feet hit the airport of country A. She kept glaring at the clock hanging on the wall, as though wishing to blame it for rushing the whole week and robbing her of her precious time with her family and friends.

Elie looked down at her wrist where she had wrung her golden necklace, albite a bit loose so it wouldn't bother her when she steps into the operation. She had changed, finished the final checkups, and was waiting to be transferred out of the pre-op area.

She hoped she could see Jin and her brother for the last time before she was taken, but the hospital policy didn't allow more than two people to see her in the pre-op room, which were her parents. Although both Jin and Ban had seen her off before the nurse took her for the final checks, she didn't feel satisfied at all.

Ban: " you're not alone."

Jin: " we'll be waiting here, always by your side."

She tried to focus on their last words, clutching her necklace tightly as though trying to draw courage out of it.

Elie: ' I'll be fine... I'll be fine...'

She thought as soon as the nurse stepped back in there to take her to the operating room.

Six hours, they were told to sit there and wait for six whole hours. Ban wasn't by any means going to sit, he continuously paced the empty waiting room save for the four of them, occasionally stopping by the closed door, as though hoping to magically be able to see through it.

As hours elapsed, Ban was growing restless all the more. Feeling like the brunette was going to smack the door down in a matter of seconds with the sixth-hour passing, Jin decided to pull him out of there.

Jin: " you need to calm down."

He said taking him back to the main lobby.

Ban: " easy said than done."

He said slumping down on a bench, giving up on the attempt of getting past Jin and going back inside.

Jin: " it's hard for all of us, you know that-"

Ban: " yeah, I know...it's just..."

His right leg kept bobbing up and down nervously as he looked down at the ground, pouting deeply.

Ban: " it's just... I've grown tired of waiting on the sideline as she fights for her life."

His face was covered with his hands, and he gave a shuddered breath.

Ban: " since the first time she ever collapsed before me till now... it's just... hard to bear..."

Jin's look softened at that. After all, the one who had seen her suffer the most was her brother.

Jin: " she will be fine."

Ban: " what if she won't."

Jin: " she will."

Ban: " how can you be sure?"

He tiredly looked up at him.

Jin: " because she has you by her side. She always had. And this time is no different. She will wake up again, for sure."

Before he could even retort, his mother came out.

Marie: " they're taking her to her room."...

" 24 hours."

The doctor said facing them all.

Doctor: " we shall wait for 24 hours and see whether her body has accepted the transplanted new heart. Until then, we will have her under strict supervision and monitoring. I'm afraid you won't be able to come into contact with her before she is stabilized, but you can still see how she fares."

He said gesturing to the glass separating them and the sleeping Elie.

Doctor: " now it's all up to her, and of course, time."

Ban glanced over to his sister, sleeping soundlessly on the other side.

Ban: " just a little more, hang in there, Elie..."

Eva gaped at the huge building standing before her, adorned from the outside with holograms displaying technologies and machines she had never seen before.

Kousuke: " you're not planning on standing by the threshold for the whole day, are you?"

She snapped before scurrying off to catch up with him.

Evangeline : " I can't believe I'm actually attending The Future Vision Musume. Not everyone gets to enter it."

Kousuke: " you should be thankful!"

Evangeline : " I'm."

Kousuke couldn't tell if she meant it or not for her eyes were rather focusing on everything else in the exhibition.

Kousuke: " new innovative projects and ideas are usually brought out here to seek out funding and partnership. This is like a wonderland for professors and the like of them. No wonder it's called Future Vision."

Evangeline : " I know."

She stepped before a medium-sized glass box with two small spindles inside. A broken smartphone, one that seemed beyond repair, was passed into the box. It was scanned, and holograms across the glass panels would pinpoint where the damage was and ask for any custom adjustment before it embarked on fixing it.

Evangeline : " how I would like one of these!"

Kousuke looked at the box as it spat out a perfectly repaired phone.

Kousuke : " if we have these, I hardly doubt we would need mechanics anymore. "

Evangeline : " I wouldn't be so sure."

Kousuke raised an eyebrow at her.

Evangeline : " machines have their roles and humans have theirs as well. Even if that box makes it possible to fix anything and tinker with it. Still, it's the human's role to add the final touches and match it to his preference after all."

She looked back at him.

Evangeline : " technology and humanity need each other, they complete each other. If technology is accurate and unfazed, then humanity is bold and creative."

Kousuke considered her for a moment.

Kousuke : " you're being unfathomable."

Evangeline: " maybe... it's not something you easily notice, even if you're the chosen one by god."

She smiled as she went on to the next booth.

Kousuke : " hey, what's the meaning of that!"

He muttered under his breath as he tried catching with her. But her excitement made it all but impossible to keep up with her.

Kousuke : " well, as long as she is in a good mood..."

His face darkened for a moment as he looked back at his watch.

Kousuke: ' it should be any moment soon... please, don't let her notice...'

Although deep down he knew, that asking for that was almost as though asking for her to quit being a mechanic...

Kirito: " you're late."

Mirai: " and you're actually outside."

She pointed as she climbed into the passenger seat and looked at the blond beside her.

Mirai: " how come?"

Kirito: " got kicked out of my little nook."

He said taking out a tablet and passing it to her.

Mirai: " this is..."

Kirito: " it took a whole week, and all I could do was monitor it for any output or input. This is how far I can help. All we can do is wait now."

Mirai's hands clutched the tablet tightly her knuckle whitened.

Mirai: " Mizel..."...

Far away from there, in a special facility. Deep, deep into its network. A cube was floating among the sea of data, suspended by a few cables. From the outside, it was hard to tell. But standing within that cube was none other than a certain green-haired boy, both hands folded before his chest and his head hanging low with his eyes closed.

Mizel: " it's about time I think."

[ ~Insert Song: Kamado Tanjiro no Uta]

He said looking up slightly. The white room was slowly plunged into darkness, the light receded back to the very center while shadows were crawling from the walls and towards the said boy.

Mizel however wasn't interested in what was happening around him, he was preoccupied thinking of a conversation he had about a week ago.

Mizel: " since you've taken it upon yourself to come see me, the verdict has been made."

He didn't need to look back at Yagami at all, his reflection was staring back at him from the glass pane he was looking through at the sun sinking behind the ocean in a swirl of golden and orange colors, gilding everything he could lay his eyes on.

The auburn man gave a nod. The silence that followed was rather predictable as well.

Mizel: " I see."

Yagami: " if it's you, then you can get away. No one would ever be able to find you, not while you don't want to be found."

His eyes bore nothing but seriousness in those words.

Mizel: " we've discussed that before, it's out of question."

The boy's eyes narrowed at his own reflection this time.

Mizel: " if I do that, they will all get caught in the whole mess, not that they would mind it by any means. But they finally earned the right to have a peaceful life, I can't just take that away from them now. Not to mention it will be troublesome for both you and the prime minister."

Yagami: " and yet-"

The boy turned to face him, wearing an annoyed face.

Mizel : " Even I can't guarantee I won't try doing the same thing as years ago again!

Yagami swallowed his words as the boy looked down at his feet.

Mizel: " this is for the best. That's the right call."

Mizel: " to think I'm actually worried about what might have happened to them if I fled... When did I grow soft?"

Back in Tiny Orbit, a dark blue-haired woman took Kirito's usual seat, her eyes rather focused on the screen monitoring a certain network. Her eyes could be seen, even through her thick lenses, unfocused.

Haruka: " Mizel."

The woman called from the end of the hallway, followed by her daughter.

To say the green-haired boy was surprised to be called out by her would be an underestimate. She was the one who was keen on keeping minimal contact with him after all. For her to approach him all of a sudden as he was taken by Yagami that day, was unpredictable even for him.

Haruka: " you know exactly what I'm about so say, Yagami-san, but for the sake of your position, it would be better if you're not around when I say it."

With a short nod, he left them. Haruka leaned forward and, much to his shock, placed both hands on his shoulders as she looked into his eyes, her brown ones visible to him.

Haruka : " you can do it again, right? The trick where you disassemble yourself into data."

Mizel gave a small snort.

Mizel: " even if I do. The program they made will make sure to spread any left data all across the infinity net. There is no way-"

Haruka: " I'll assemble it all myself."

Mizel's eyes widened in utter astonishment at her bold statement.

Haruka: " even if takes me years or decades, I will definitely put you together."

He still couldn't process her words yet. She was offering to help him?

Haruka seemed to have read his thoughts because she immediately answered.

Haruka: " I'm responsible for your existence after all. I won't let them decide your fate like that."

It was the first time she ever acknowledged she was the reason he was there without the slightest hint of regret in her voice.

Haruka: " your place is here, this is your home, with us."

The woman stepped back, allowing Mirai to approach him next. before he knew it, he was pulled between her arms as she squeezed him.

Mirai: " I will be waiting for your return."

Mizel gently placed his hand on her back, allowing himself to register that sensation. Was that what a family meant?

Mizel : " thanks Mom... thanks Mirai"...

Mizel: " ... but I can't..."

The darkness was drawing nearer by the moment, but that didn't bother him the least.

Mizel: " I can't go back, I can't return home."

He felt something tickling his jaw, and as he stretched his hand to it, he was rather surprised to see droplets of water on the tips of his fingers. He hardly could hold back a slightly bemused smile.

Mizel: " I wonder since when, I became able to shed tears like humans..."

As the spot of light around him shrank, he began to glow, green bits of light flying out, and the few drops of tears on his fingers floated up and slowly melted away. He watched them with the small smile still plastered to his face as he faded away too.

Mizel: " farewell..."

It was impossible, he made it so that she wouldn't feel anything until everything was over. But she heard it.

Kousuke stopped and walked back to her when she halted abruptly, her hand on the side of her head.

Evangeline : " I just... thought I heard Mizel..."

Kousuke's eyes betrayed a split second of apprehension and fret. It was all Eva had to see to put two and two together.

Evangeline : " I knew it was very unlike you!"

She said rushing back towards the entrance. She needed to get out. She didn't know how that would help, but the moment she was out of that place she could figure out something, find where Mizel was, and head over to him.

She kept calling out at him in the back of her mind, hoping he would answer her, hoping he would relieve her.

Evangeline : " Mi! Mi!"

And there he was, standing there in their unusually dark corner where they had their conversations.

Evangeline : " thank god! Don't scare me like this! And why is it dark here?!"

Mizel, glowing in green as he was, only turned back to her, a sad smile on his face before breaking down to thousands of dots of light before her.

Evangeline : " Mizel! NO!"

She reached her hand out, but couldn't reach anything for she was forced out of her own mind and out to reality. She stopped wide-eyed a few steps outside the museum, among the throng of people bypassing her and trying to get in. She stood rooted to her place, her heart shaking while everything in the whole world seemed to have paused. Their connection was gone. He was gone.

Faced with the inescapable truth, her eyes swam with tears. Her knees finally gave in as she allowed herself to drop to the ground. Shoulders shaking, she buried her face in her hands, crying her eyes out.

Kousuke was still searching for her among the crowd when his eyes finally landed on her, hunched over and crying on the ground. Slowly he walked over to her, kneeling beside her and placing an arm around her shoulders.

Evangeline : " he was the closest thing to family I had... why did they have to do it..."

Finding no words to comfort her, he merely held her closer as she cried on...

Haruka took off her glasses and bit her lip when no data could be seen uploaded to the infinity net from the network she was scrutinizing.

Not far from there, in Takuya's car, Kirito was rubbing Mirai's back as she haunched herself and cried her heart out. Mizel was not returning home...

Farewell...