rogue_4

She would be free of sorrow.

Amiya refuses.

The sarcophagus opens. Amiya rises from it, and the space is once again lit up.

The massive machine 'gazes' upon the crown on Amiya's head, as though waiting for something.

'Did Civilight Eterna leave behind the answer to preventing extinction, little bunny?'

Amiya does not reply. She casts her eyes upon the sarcophagus to her side, covered in a soft, white glow, then hard Originium, before finally being completely sealed.

'This is neither an answer nor salvation.'

'Absolute stasis, unaffected by time and external forces. This is enough for my people.'

'But it doesn't change anything.'

'There is always a chance, as long as the extinction is not yet complete... What is your name, little bunny?'

'Amiya.'

'Thank you, Amiya. If you do not think this is the answer, then go seek the answer.

'You will find it.

'I am... tired...'

The massive machine grows silent, and the light fades.

But before it completely fades away, Amiya uses her powers.

A moment later, Amiya sits limply before a massive Originium crystal.

Is robbing one of their future a form of killing?

But if there is nothing but death in that future, is it salvation instead?

Amiya turns around, and temporarily casts the questions in her heart aside as she glances at the innumerable sarcophagi.

Right now, she must do what must be done.

A strange phenomenon is spreading across Terra.

Oripathy patients in advanced stages of Infection would become enveloped in white light before they die. Then, they would be covered by black Originium and turned into a solid, indestructible oval rock.

No disintegration, no dust. Death becomes gentle for those afflicted by Oripathy.

At first, people treat it only as some kind of Originium mutation, nothing worth paying any particular attention to. As it is not causing any more casualties, they turn their focus back to their cruel wars.

But they begin to realize that it is not a natural phenomenon, as enemies shot, allies caught in cannon fire, and Infected about to be run over by battleships all turn to stone the instant before they die.

There must be a conscious will driving this abnormal phenomenon.

After a long search, they finally discover the one behind all this.

A black-crowned Cautus, a ghost of the Sarkaz.

All Amiya wants is to save more lives, yet somehow many now see her as the greatest threat to the land. She is surprised to find that those who have been fighting to the death yesterday are now joining forces, pooling their strength and developing new technologies together—all in the name of killing the owner of the black crown.

Amiya does not mind being the common threat of Terra, if it might bring lasting piece. But she soon notices the malice beneath the veil of false peace—

Under the banner of killing the Lord of Fiends, the Infected are being dissected and studied, commoners are forced into even harder labor, and a single empty slogan decides the life and death of many. Amiya's efforts to save the dying only made some of the living even more fanatical.

She sees Terra's population increase, but also more lives being taken. Death has never left. It has simply taken on another guise, feeding on even more lives.

Amiya wants to save lives, but she has not found a cure, be it for the illness of man, or the illness of society. Yet the spreading sorrow does not permit her to be indecisive.

Passively protecting the dying and allowing malice to create a new disease would only bring more misfortune.

Amiya makes her decision.

She does not believe that individual kindness can change all this. Before she finds the answer to end all suffering—

She would seal it all away.

A gentle light covers the land. The void above the sky begins to congeal. Consciousness and even time itself freeze. Everything on the planet comes to a standstill.

This story has come to an end.

Amiya floats in the void, her story one of the moons revolving around the black crown.

Does the answer lie in the distant stars, in those sparkling stories?

There is only one way to find out. She floats towards them.

In search of the answer.

All she finds, at the end of the long search, is more sorrow.

A Kazdel broken, sunken in the void.

The glory of the Twin Kings, desolate in time.

The halos of the Teekaz, faded as the machine withers.

The sermons of the Anasa, with none left to hear them.

All the stories Amiya experiences become the moons around her.

Suffering after suffering sealed away, none of them holding the answer she sought.

All she can do is take the moons along on her endless journey.

As her exploration continues, Amiya discovers a strange phenomenon.

Certain story fragments emerge suddenly from the void, only to stop just as suddenly.

At the end of each fragment are traces of the same team of Sarkaz.

A team consisting of a Djall, a Lich, a Revenant, a Nachzehrer, a Gargoyle, and two mixed-blood Sarkaz.

They would either be utterly defeated in battle, or suddenly vanish after making a choice.

They seem to be creating, seeking.

Yet they give up so constantly, leaving behind stories that disappear into the void.

Amiya spends a long time sealing these story remnants away, deducing the path that these Sarkaz are taking.

She senses that they may be the key to everything. She exists because of their telling.

Do they understand suffering? Do they understand her perplexity? Do they have the answer?

Or do they tell these stories because they are in pain as well, just like her?

Amiya follows the trail of endings, towards the telling of Nymph and her friends.

Little Amiya was separated from her parents.

Their caravan was caught in a skirmish, with elite soldiers from the allied nations on one side, and on the other... Sarkaz?

The people of Terra had not seen the Sarkaz for a very long time. They were believed to be wiped out following Kazdel's destruction—or so the official narrative claimed.

Who would have thought there would be Sarkaz here?

Amiya was dozing on the back of a burdenbeast when the sound of artillery fire caused it to break free from its restraints and bolt in fear.

She held on to the reins for dear life, but at the end she was thrown off its back.

Lost in a forest and unable to find her way, Amiya was gripped by fear as the relentless artillery fire boomed around her. Terrified and disoriented, she instinctively picked a direction and started walking.

After a while, she encountered an injured Sarkaz.

'All Sarkaz are devils,' said the adults.

But all Amiya saw was a woman with pink-white hair and long horns.

The only thing unusual about her was the little black crown floating above her head.

'Hello? Are you okay?'

The Sarkaz looked up at Amiya and nodded.

But she was in bad shape, her white dress dyed red with blood.

Amiya wanted to try to stop the bleeding, but hesitated out of fear. She took shuffling steps forward, gauging the Sarkaz's reaction.

Seeing that she remained still, Amiya kept walking until she reached her and saw the terrible wound—

'Does it hurt?'

It was the Sarkaz who spoke first, looking at the scrapes on Amiya's arm with a concerned expression.

Amiya shook her head and tried to say something—she wanted to treat the Sarkaz's sword wound, but didn't know how. In the end, all she could do was put her own hand on top of the Sarkaz's hand that was pressing against the wound.

Trying to console her, Amiya did not notice the soldiers approaching, crossbows and wands raised. They had long forgotten how many of their kin they 'accidentally' killed while hunting the Sarkaz. To them, any act of kindness towards a Sarkaz was an unforgivable sin, even if it came from a child's gentle nature.

Originium Arts and bolts flew towards them.

In the face of impending death, Theresa pulled Amiya into her embrace.

May you become the hope—

Pure light emanated from Theresa and covered the entire area.

Amiya felt something go through her chest.

It should have hurt, it should have bled, just like the Sarkaz before her.

But her chest did not hurt at all. All she felt was a warm stream flowing into her heart.

She felt warm and sleepy.

When Amiya woke up again, she found herself in her parents' arms. The burdenbeast had been found, and she was safe.

It should have been a good thing. But where did the Sarkaz lady go? She looked around and saw nothing.

The artillery fire had ceased and the adults were talking about the light in the forest and the soldiers who disappeared, but she heard no word of the Sarkaz.

Bells sounded, reins were raised, and machines rumbled to life. The caravan set out again. All had their eyes forward, hoping for a better future after the war.

Amiya alone looked back at the silent forest.

'...Goodbye.'

The burdenbeast carrying Amiya slowly disappeared on the horizon.

That was the last time anyone ever said goodbye to the Sarkaz.