*
"How long do we have left?" (Sariel)
Arin was layed back against the sofa, her neck stretched high and her eyes faced the ceiling. Clearly neither of them were able to sleep tonight.
"... Perceptive. I think we have until midnight. There's no way he would give us a month to clear out the remnants of his army." (Arin)
" Have you solved the issue on firepower? He'll likely be stronger than before Lastia fought him..." (Sariel)
" There's no sense in compromising at this point in time. We'll do everything at once. Rescue Lastia, gather firepower and defeat the heavenly king causing this apocalypse. " (Arin)
" Will it... Work? "(Sariel)
"What happened to all that bravado? Whether it works or not doesn't change what we have to do. It'd be greatly inconvenient, but if you're too scared you can sit out." (Arin)
She tucks her head back, bent on enjoying the sofa while she still could. Absorbing the comfort through her skin.
" There's no way I can do that at this point... You said we can save Lastia and do everything else at once? Let's do it!" (Sariel)
"That's a good voice. Let's go while it's still dark out." (Arin)
Her palm presses into the armrest, propping her body up in an instant. It took slightly longer than usual just to stand up. Was she nervous? She gazed questioningly at her palm before moving off towards the main door. It'd feel strange to impose on Faramicia's family, and bringing him to this battle was completely foolish. He just awakened. He was weak, he'd die before anyone could even notice.
Reaching the dark skies, they race at the highest speed. They still remained in residential zone 2A, they had never left. So they returned to-
"Where it all began..." (Sariel)
"That's right. The only thing that has a connection to Lastia in this world, would be her corpse. The residue of her magic." (Arin)
"H-her corpse!?" (Sariel)
She stumbled a couple steps back, the despair in her eye evident as if a veil of darkness took root over her facial expressions. Her eyelids rose and her eyelashes fluttered with one strong gust. Her lips were left agape, unable to subconsciously inhale any longer, she almost chokes as she struggles to eke out those words.
"In this world that is. That tree was her true body, and now that tree is gone... She's likely in the underworld now.
... I see, this what what she meant when she said you were the key to solving all of this. It was so upfront, I should have known..." (Arin)
She pondered for a little before finishing her speech, she had been so lost as to what she should do next, afraid that if she got anymore involved it would signal her involvement to Ledaine, and even empower {Cocytus} more.
"What? What! What are you talking about? That prophecy was bullshit, and you know it! She just wanted to sound cool... Don't... Don't make it sound like you arrived at a conclusion all on your own. I'm here to help, aren't I?" (Sariel)
The concern was etched over her weary eyes and stiff cheeks. Cute. Commendable. Envious. At the same time, Arin wasn't envious. This was the last way, the only way it could have went. If only she didn't hesitate. If only she wasn't so guilty that she'd believe perpetuation was her only atonement. Lastia will reincarnate. I will reincarnate. We can all start over, she won't remember a thing anyway. What's the point of worrying? This always happens. What's so different this time?
This time, Lastia became a magical girl. This time, the time period was so tumultuous despite being in the age of abundance, that she just happened to be chosen by the law of magical girls to awaken. She just happened to be birthed with the magic gene in this life. Like such, a long chain of miracles latch onto one another, propping each other up like a sandcastle. As fragile as a sandcastle, this long line of miracles was snuffed out, and Arin accepted that.
She accepted it at first. Her sin was simple. She felt. She should never have felt, she should never have borne emotions from these delicate interactions over the millennia. She should have sat back and observed from the outside, bide her time, gradually build up her strength. At the end of it all, free Lastia and complete her mission. Reality is a mess that could no longer be explained. Her actions run counter to logic, logic ran counter to her. Abandoned by the world, floating past time like a jellyfish.
Never achieving, never winning. 'All that matters is winning', she couldn't borrow her precious person's precepts, she wouldn't have faith in her own strength. Hide away, build up herself, then destroy it all. Everything becomes for naught, and for what? For love, for wanting to give more than she could afford. That's precisely how she has arrived at this point.
"I {Barter} these memories of mine (life). Once more, let me see love. {Barter}!" (Arin)
"ARINNNN!!!?!!!!!" (Sariel)
A coarse cry rings across the illuminated night sky, Arin's body emanates a divine light so bright it flushes out the stars. As if in solemn prayer, the stars remain silent and unseen. In Arin's place was a single body. Arin has short fluffy hair, a tone of black with dark blue at the edges, as if drawn by ink. Lastia had black hair that faded into dark red. Even under the night sky, a magical girl's vision was impressive enough to discern dark colours.
There, laid before her was Lastia. Did Arin die? Sariel's ability was {Swap}, she could tell in an instant... They exchanged places. Trembling, Sariel lowers her knees and reaches over to the unconscious Lastia. She turned Lastia over and checked her wrist for a pulse, as well as her mouth for breathing.
Don't fall for the eyes, there is no end to the opponent's forces, missiles dropped down and they barely avoided the impact. Bleakness is needed, there was no convenient way forward from the start, they had to learn that the only path begets the most difficulty. It referred to Arin's decision, after hammering through how her indecision had messed everything up. Lastly, return to where it all started. The world tree growing at the centre of residential zone 2A...
It's back.