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Discord (Vibing Nation) - GZM5HRMntp

Discord Name - Shinnofdestiny

They've been in Solaris for hours by this point and even more thanks to the absence of Shorekeeper.

Throughout that time both had simply kept still, using the other as warmth. The depth of the cave insulated much of the heat within so there was that to be thankful for at least. However, what neither were thankful for was a random hole in the cavern randomly appearing and dropping them into who knows where.

Thus, here they were. Somehow back in the calm but still freezing elements.

"What the heck?" Rover grumbled, holding herself for warmth as they trekked down a small slope. "Why did a hole open up like that? And without warning too?!"

Relon understood her frustrations. She was expressing her own for himself. As bizarre as a random cave-in, erm more so cave-out, was, what was done was done. The only problem they had now was Shorekeeper's questionable return. If they strayed too far, she'd never find them with how things were. If they stayed put, then the cold would definitely get them.

Giving a momentary glance at the direction where they landed, he accepted their unforeseeable fate and continued on.

"No! Stay back!"

Immediately, a voice unfamiliar to the two exclaimed far off in the distance. One glance between them was all it took as they took off. Fighting off the chilling sensation of the descending snow, all struggle immediately left as they hit the corner catching the scene before them.

There were monsters. Humanoid monsters with blade-like arms. Though it wasn't the duo that the monsters had their sight on but rather a girl. In messy rags, both eyes, vermilion and gold, drew to the visible flames that surrounded her as they neared.

"She's on fire," Rover voiced instinctively, awing at the sight.

"What are you-" Then he bore witness.

Not to the majestic flames that flowed seamlessly with sentience, but the girl.

Then it happened.

The flames that danced around the mysterious redhead spurred forward. In an instant, both creatures lunged only to be sliced clean in two before disintegrating into cinders.

"Whoa…" Rover voiced. It was a genuine response. One rightfully so.

As she awed, he only looked on to furrow as only then did the strange girl their age notice the duo. That's when he caught it; the genuine fear in her eyes.

"Wait!" He hadn't known why he called out but it only seemed to frighten her more.

She turned, fleeing deeper into the snowfield-ridden ruins until she vanished. He could only stare dumbly at the now empty field, hand still outstretched.

"She seems similar to Shorekeeper," Rover mentioned, relaxing due to the now absent threat. "Only with fire instead of spectro. She seems capable of handling herself so we should be getting back. Any longer and we may miss Shorekeeper returning."

Hearing the pattering of her steps against the snow fade, he wanted to turn and walk away. He should have and yet, for some reason he moved forward and not back.

"Relon?" He could hear Rover's curious voice call back, her once distant patters quickly catching up.

The fear in her eyes… was something he knew all too well.

It was the same face he recalled when he first met Grace. Dropped off, alone in a new area without anyone to talk to, none to interact over the same topics of discussion. She was terrified, often seen huddling in a corner to play with her robotic toys the workers would give her.

He knew that face all too well for he once made the very same. That look of fright held more; isolation.

"She's alone," he murmured in realization as Rover caught up.

"Say again?" She spoke.

That epiphany alone spurred his feet to move, his heart to ache, his body to refuse to remain still. He himself wasn't thinking, his mind only had one objective; talk to her.

Stupidly, for no fathomable reason, he moved forward. It was at a slow pace, as though a part of himself was trying to stop the intrusive emotions from possibly leading the young child down a more dangerous path than what he was already treading. Bit by bit, his pace picked up passing the scorched spots the two creatures once stood. Then at once, he took off.

"What are you doing?!" Rover called, keeping in line with him. "Why are-"

"She's alone!" He repeated, this time more audible. She flinched at how much emotion he put into those words as opposed to their time together thus far. "I just… I can't leave someone like her alone!" Without thinking, they approached a small cliff and he jumped.

"Relon!" Rover gasped, stopping just from falling over as to her disbelief, he jumped the huge gap to the other side landing in a roll.

Panting, he looked back sporting an equally stunned look.

"I don't… I don't know why, Rover. I just can't leave someone feeling so much pain alone. It was just a glance and yet, I could practically feel it! The pain, the hurt!"

"None of what you're saying is making sense! How did you even jump that?!"

"I don't know but I can't stay here! Get Shorekeeper and follow the path!"

"Relon, wait! Relon!"

He had no clue why he was acting the way he was. No… That wasn't right. He knew why. The same reason why he approached Grace when they first met; to save her, to bring her out from whatever despair she was entangled in.

To anyone, it wouldn't make sense.

This girl, capable of pyrokinesis, didn't know him. She fled at the first sight of him and he didn't know her back. Yet, here he was descending along the frigid snowscape following the obvious path she had tread along.

One scorched marking after another and he kept moving. Out into the opening before descending back into the ruins, he went. Until his eyes caught it, a light around the corner.

His slowed pace quickened once more, daring not to miss this opportunity. Hitting the corner, his body toppled sliding under a careening creature as Relon slid against a wall feet first and the creature into an adjacent one destroying an embedded crystal.

Dumbly looking from the disintegrating creature to the direction it originated, there she stood. Crimson locked onto Vermilion. Even from his awkward position, albeit much closer, he could now make out the distinct scratches and slight bruising atop her exposed skin.

Slowly and carefully, he turned over.

"You're…!" She gasped, stepping away.

"Please," he panted. "Just wait a second!" This time, she stopped mid-step offering a hesitant look. "Are… you okay?" He was worried more than anything now that he had caught up to her.

Now that he finally was up close, he saw more than just wounds. The small dress-like outfit burned with small flames at the seams, likely an attempt at fending off the natural elements. Bandages littered an arm and leg. Judging by the bits of blood that seeped through, he could only hazard a guess those wrappings were covering worse wounds.

"Come on, it's not safe." Without hesitation, he followed as they stepped back into the open tundra. "Why did you come here? No one but Exiles are willing to stay here."

"Exiles? You mean those creatures?"

"You don't know what Exiles are? Where have you been?" At her question, delivered with a raised brow, he stopped. Up his head gestured for her to follow and in doing so, saw the corrupted planet next door to their own.

"There."

Perhaps her next words didn't radiate any exaggeration due to the forlorn expression he wore mixed with his tone.

"You're… not kidding, are you?" A simple shake of his answer came next. "Oh… What about your friend? Where'd she go?"

"I… left her behind," he winced, knowing how bad that sounded. "To catch up to you."

"Huh? Why the heck would you do that?"

"Well, it's because you, um, you…"

"I what? Just say it."

"You looked scared," he confessed. "Lonely too."

Perhaps the bluntness behind his words were the cause for her to stagger back. Though he couldn't discern if it also related to the frown she quickly adopted.

"You don't know me. For all I know, you could be a bad person."

Now he was the one to furrow at the mention. He hadn't thought of how he perceived himself in this situation. From her perspective, he was definitely an odd stranger to find in the middle of nowhere.

"I'm not a bad person."

"That's what all bad people say," she defended. For a moment, her wariness remained before a sigh escaped. "If you're here looking for something, then you won't find it. All that remains are the Tacet Discords and me.".

"Why are you here? It's dangerous."

"This village was attacked by Tacet Discords so there's nothing left. Given I can't control my powers, it's a perfect place for someone like me…"

"Someone like you?"

"Yeah. I can't control my forte so it's better that I stay away from people. Since I'm here, no one's afraid of me. So I can't hurt anyone."

He was wrong.

His instincts, as silly as it was to think, had spurred him to give chase because he believed her to like Grace and himself. He wasn't wrong. Not in the slightest.

His assumption simply paled in comparison to his original hunch, his belief.

"That's not fair." His voice was quiet, yet loud enough to regain her attention.

"Life isn't exactly fair. Who cares? It is what it is."

"But that's-" He tried to explain himself but it seemed the world had other plans.

A screeching sound bellowed from behind. One look in the direction they once came from and both saw it, countless creatures swarming towards them. Without thinking, he grasped the girl's hand while taking off.

"Run!"

Legs moving as fast as they could, the duo ran. Through the glyph-bound doors, down the frigid caverns, past the odd chess-like room and towards the end.

He had given up on questioning the odd phenomena of what he could only surmise as a form of space-time travel like what he's read in sci-fi books. No, all his mind could process alongside his fleeing companion was where to run towards next.

Now, with the signs of danger seemingly vanished. He didn't know whether to lower his guard but the moment the girl breathed a panting breath of relief, he involuntarily did the same on instinct.

"We… made it!"

He couldn't remember the last time he had run so hard, much less so far. Perhaps back when Grace had snuck out of bed to make a human-sized robot and it went haywire.

Oh, how frantic Zhu Yuan and her parents were during the whole ordeal.

"I've never been here before," she mumbled.

Only in lifting his head did his eyes blink at a loss for words. Clearly they were in a chamber of sorts. The diagram-like etching along the liquid floor was reminiscent of some sort of board game. Unevenly shaped stalagmites and stalactites littered the endless space reaching in all directions until only a fog could be seen.

That's when a new fear had settled. A growl manifested ahead of them yet nothing was there. First came a wave of cold that made his body shiver as did the girl's. Then it appeared. A giant gray-blue cat seeped from the water with glowing gold claws and tusks under its jaw.

"What the heck is that?!"

Then it roared, flakes of chill frost blew forward. Seemingly instantaneously, Relon felt his skin become covered in the shiny cold substance.

"C-Cold!" He shivered through chattering teeth.

"Get back!" The girl exclaimed as heat began to dispel.

"I-I c-can't!" One look behind and they found the entrance now completely frozen over. "W-We're t-t-trapped!"

Despite her efforts, the frost attack that wept through only seemed to fan out her flames. With each step, fractures of ice manifested as the beast sauntered closer.

Panic turning to determination, the girl extended her hands forward. Steadily, more heat warped into the red fires he saw previously. Pushed back, they wanned as if struggling to detach from her person.

"I… can't… fight it!" She cried out.

This couldn't be how things ended. He had only just arrived. He had a promise to keep. Not just to his other self or Eina, but to Grace and Zhu Yuan. He couldn't let this be the end!

He wanted to just help! What kind of punishment was that?!

"Not all Relons have good endings. Will yours?"

Then he remembered that distinct sentence that's played in his head all his life.

He made a vow! He wasn't about to crumble here!

"H-Here… Take this, you'll… so need it."

"What… is it?"

"The power to… ack, borrow and enhance. Make it… yours."

"I can't do it! I'm not strong- Huh?" That's when she felt it, a hand place itself atop her shoulder. Sure enough, it was the boy. "What are you doing?! Get back! It's dang-" Then she cut herself off once more.

Only then did she realize it.

The gentle touch of his hand calmly atop her burning form. The burning flames that seemed to transfer from her body to his. But most of all, the radiant blue eyes he now wore.

"How…?" She murmured at a loss for words.

"I promised," he answered simply.

Then the cat bellowed before pouncing.

"Flare Blitz!"

"Flamethrower!"

"Flamberge!"

Vestiges of himself moved forward, declaring their own respective attacks. He recognized the Relon before him. They were variants of him that lied elsewhere within the Relonverse.

It was odd how he knew. His mind was clear, his emotions calm. He felt the understanding of the flames flowing within his core come so naturally. It felt like only a millisecond that passed by.

One moment he stepped past the girl. The next he was embedding his inflamed fist in the creature's abdomen. Then he was walking away as it dissipated into nothingness.

Despite feeling the burning aura around himself, he felt the same as before. Just… normal.

As he walked past her, he approached the frozen wall. With a single hand, it melted in seconds.

"Who… are you?"

Only then did he acknowledge the girl looking on in clear disbelief.

"I'm Relon," he introduced, losing the remnants of her power. "Relon Lucinance." It seemed to be an acceptable answer as she finally eased herself.

"Changli," she finally revealed.

"Changli…" He repeated. "I like that name." His compliment seemed to surprise the girl as they departed.

Once again he shivered at the cold temperature.

"So, was that your forte?"

"You mean my powers?"

"That's what having a forte basically means."

"Not… quite. I can borrow and make other fortes stronger you could say. It was my first time using it. I honestly don't know how I did it."

"Huh," Changli hummed, pursing her lips in thought before it mellowed out. "Well regardless, you saved my life. So thanks."

"I just did what anyone would have done."

"Not anyone would do that though."

Despite the near-death experience they just evaded, his own demeanor furrowed. That was twice she had refuted what he's said into a negative perspective.

"Changli, not everyone is bad. Good people, genuine people exist."

"You say that but you don't know me. You don't know what I've been through. You're not even from this planet."

He wanted to refute what she said but he couldn't. What she said was right. He just met her, he knew nothing of her tragic past. Solaris was not Earth. Still…

"Then let me show you."

"Huh?" That's when she noticed his extended hand toward her.

"I'll show you the beauty of not just the world, but what I call the human heart."

"You'll… show me?"

"Whether here on Solaris-3 or back on my planet, on Earth, there are countless people surely good-hearted. You can't find them here in a place like this. So come with me, with my friends."

"But my flames. They bring nothing but misery and pain."

"Changli?" Lifting her head, she saw his hand still outstretched albeit closer. "Your flames are also my flames. It's because of you that we're alive. I couldn't have fought without you by my side. As far as I see it, your flames are a blessing. They're amazing!" It was a genuine smile, one he had nearly forgotten about doing ever since their trek began.

Those words, full of honesty, seemed to strike a cord within as Changli stumbled back on impulse.

"Do… Do you mean that?" She blinked, clear hesitation apparent.

"I do," he nodded, smile never waning. "I don't like it. Seeing someone like you talk so negatively about the mere aspect of life isn't good. I've… seen it, you know. That side of people, those that look at you but refuse to do anything. When we first met earlier, I acted the way I did because I could feel it."

"Feel what exactly."

"The pain behind both your voice as well as in your eyes. My friend back home, Grace, was the same. Even I was like that at one point. But… I realized that way of thinking wouldn't help. Even if I wasn't wrong."

"So that's why…" She murmured. "You don't seem like a kid. You seem more mature," she noted.

"I get that a lot," he chuckled, scratching the back of his head sheepishly. "Just kinda gained this way of thinking as I grew up these last few years."

"That's weird," she comments.

"H-Hey! Jeez, nothing like a friend teasing. Now that I think about it, I have a weird knack for girls messing with me…"

"Friends?" She blinked, eyes on him as his attention returned to her.

"Well, yeah. We're not strangers and given all that's happened, I just thought we would be friends by now. Friends stick together after all."

"Hmm… Hey, Relon?"

"Yeah?" Instead of receiving an immediate answer, he felt something clasp his hand.

One look down and he saw her hand holding his.

"Do you mean that? About being friends?"

"Yeah, why wouldn't I?" He tilted his head innocently.

"I've… never had a friend. Not one my age at least. So… if what you said is true, then I'd like to stick with you. I mean, you said so yourself. We're better together than apart, right?"

The slow arch of his lips couldn't be contained. Even as both heard the voices of Shorekeeper and Rover call, he was just relieved as he held Changli's hand.

He had made another friend but even more than that, he was beginning to see it. The difference only he could make with the power gifted by his older self.

He could only hope as he was scolded by an irate Shorekeeper that his new life wouldn't be so hectic much less dangerous.