Prologue:
A raven-haired girl stood with her back braced against a stone wall. Broken shards of glass littered the floor by her feet. The last few rays of golden sunshine peered into the room with a feeble attempt to warm the chilly evening air. A moment later, a fiery explosion erupted as a massive fireball blew apart the wall along the other side of the window. A high-pitched scream of pain was quickly silenced as her last friend dropped to the floor.
"Mitsuki!" The girl ran over her fallen friend and scooped her arms, cradling her to her chest. "No… not you too. You can't die!"
"H… Hikari." The blonde gently smiled, her maroon eyes beginning to glaze over. She reached up and cupped Hikari's cheek with her right hand. "I will await you.", Mitsuki said, whispering, as her voice trailed off. Her hand dropped to the floor.
Hikari tightened her hold on Mitsuki, she visibly shook as tears poured down her face, soaking her friend's violet dress. Memories raced through Hikari's mind of the many adventures she shared with her best friend, her lover – if she had only had the courage to tell her. But now she too, was gone. Everybody who's ever shown Hikari any compassion, kindness, or love, was now dead, and it is all because of The Cringe – a species of futuristic cyborgs hellbent on harvesting every natural resource for their own determined livelihood.
Her sadness turned to anger – rage. She wished she could steal their life-force and give it back to her beloved Mitsuki. But no, that was forbidden magic, a power abandoned long ago by the High Council of Mages. However, Hikari being the curious girl she was memorized some of the more interesting texts. Memories flooded her mind's eye, many of the teachings of both her mother and father. The Rules of Ethics, Good Conduct of Magics, and various punishments she's endured for misbehaving made her cringe and body tense up. But after a few moments, she forced herself to relax. None of that would be happening now. She had to do something beside sit and wallow in guilt, shame, and sadness. Something drastic beckoned at her.
She glanced up and wiped the tears from her eyes with her sleeve. She could see the tattered remains of her village, fires ablaze, thick black smoke ascending into the twilight sky, obscuring the first stars of their light. The sounds of war had stopped. It was eerily quiet now, and Hikari thought to herself, "Everybody is probably dead now, everybody except me." She looked down at her lifeless friend, her eyes closed forever, there would be no judgment from her – at least, not right now. Hikari reached down and pulled at Mitsuki's dress to reveal an open wound, and she a dark twinkle graced her eyes. She had everything she needed right here. She laid Mitsuki's body on the wooden floor and began clearing a nearby spot.
"Forgive me, beloved. It's our only hope."