Year 2035, April
2:00 P.M
Kuusamo, Finland
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It was the sixth day after Amathelia announced her intention to ally with Neo Africa, which would ultimately unite the whole world. Of course, after hearing it live through a monitor screen back then shook me to the core. Everyone was talking about it. Though, Gheele didn't want to ally with C.U, obviously.
Neo Africa combining with Great Corporate United was a plan that had been thrown at Gheele's lap for years. The reality of it was not so simple since the C.U's ruler would be the one in charge, instead of a pure alliance between those two superpowers.
"Alright, alright, alright, I'm coming through! Come on, Lady Lily, behind me," said Caesar as he shoved himself into the crowd of people.
On that day, we all gathered in a Teria airship near Kuusamo. Aside from the members of Lutalo, there were Maltyie, Gray, and Agatha as well. Not to mention, the former members of Enkhtuya had also joined the crowd, including Ulii.
"Now that everyone is here . . . Let me present the new member of Lutalo," said Gheele after he stood up.
Most of us had taken a seat in that lounge area, except for a few unfortunate others like Caesar and Lily. When Gheele gestured at Freya who was sitting next to me, she slowly stood up and bowed.
"Freya Nikulaenkov. She's the newest member of Lutalo . . . Freya, I welcome you," said Gheele firmly.
Everyone clapped their hands when Freya received her own Lutalo Uniform when Klaus handed it. Her uniform was plain black with no distinct color since it was a spare one.
"I did want to give you your own official uniform," said Klaus with a sigh. "But, that will have to wait after this war is over."
"Thank you, Klaus . . . And Master Gheele."
Freya bowed at the two of them before she sat back down.
"Wooooooo!" Caesar was the only one still clapping his hands but shortly fell silent when Maltyie glared at him.
'When will he tell Maltyie about his true identity?' I thought. Sometimes, I even want to tell her the truth myself.
"Now, back to the real reason why we are all here," said Gheele with a stern expression. "As you guys have already known, Neo Africa will not enter an alliance with the C.U. The risks outweigh what my citizens will gain from it. Amathelia will surely ask for the governorship to be exclusive to her only, just like what she announced six days ago."
"This . . . This will create a world war, isn't it?" I said.
"No. There are a lot of regions like Canada and Russia, who will not be joining the war. The coup d'etat has affected the military forces there significantly. Of course, those rebels' objective is to place Maltyie Holm as the C.U's next ruler, which I agree with wholeheartedly."
Everyone except Maltyie nodded.
"Alright. I will leave the rest to Agatha," said Gheele.
Agatha took on his role and continued from where he had stopped. "Neo Africa, as of right now, is ready to defend against the C.U's attack. The naval forces had made its way across the Atlantic Ocean in order to intercept the oncoming fleet of battleships. As planned, Master Gheele's Aegis dome will surround the entire Neo Africa by tonight. This will prevent any ballistic missiles and enemy aircraft from getting through our borders."
She continued, "By tomorrow, Caesar and Hope Domitius will be joining Neo Africa's naval fleet. Sofeea would be assisting the ground forces at the northern front of Bulgaria."
"They will deploy Julia, the only remaining member of Melker's Aegis squad on the western or northern front," said Caesar.
"Caesar!" Lily stood up. "I . . . I will not be in the same team as you?"
"No. This is the best way to distribute our fighting strength across the warzones. You will be with Lady Ava and the few members of Enkhtuya here in Finland. Oh, and Big Si--Er . . . Maltyie. Yeah, Maltyie will be here as well."
"Oh . . ." Lily's yellow eyes glittered as if she was about to cry.
"Anyway," said Maltyie. "The People's Light is busy fighting off the remaining forces in Russia, so they will be less likely to participate in this war. We have the coup though on our side. With my ability to strategize, we would head straight to the border of Sweden from here with no difficulty."
No one denied her proclamation. After all, she was an expert in a lot of fields and more often than not, she had proven it. The meeting didn't last long and we all dispersed after that. Though, at that night, most of us gathered outside of another Teria airship that had landed on the snowy ground.
It was time for Hope, Sofeea, Gheele, and Caesar to head back to Neo Africa in preparation for the upcoming war.
"Sofeea, stay focused on your surroundings," I said to her.
"I will. Don't overexert yourself, Mer Ava. I wish all of you who will be fighting here in Finland the best."
"Don't die." That word came out of my mouth unexpectedly.
"You too."
I hugged her tight and she returned it. After that, I watched her board the airship along with Gheele.
"Lady Lily! It's time for me to go . . . So stop pulling my uniform, please!"
Caesar was trying to pry Lily's hands away from his Lutalo uniform, but it proved to be quite difficult even for him. Lily's yellow eyes shed endless tears, no words uttered.
She was like a child holding onto her father.
"I will be coming back here to help you and Lady Ava. Don't worry," assured Caesar.
This time, he hugged her instead and Lily found herself bawling in front of everyone. It took a couple of minutes, but she finally calmed down and let go of Caesar.
"Promise?" said Lily.
"Promise."
They both hugged each other again before Caesar started to board the airship. Though, he did manage to steal a glance at Maltyie. She, on the other hand, looked at him with her hands placed on top of her chest.
"Goodbye to you too . . . Maltyie," Caesar said to her.
"Don't you leave me again, Kurt," she said.
Caesar didn't say anything after that and adjusted his Aegis mask. If he lost his composure right then, Maltyie would've known the truth about him. Still, I was sure that she actually knew about it, but chose to keep silent.
Perhaps that one sentence from her was to crack the shell Caesar had been using to hide himself.
Caesar boarded the ship after that, leaving Hope and me at the forefront of the crowd.
"Ava," Hope said weakly. "I will return as soon as I can."
I immediately hugged Hope, my eyes filled with tears. He smiled and patted me on the head like he always did. "I will come back."
". . . Will you keep your promise from that day?" I said.
"That day?"
"Back in Mansel Island. It was a few years back. You promised to teach me what you learned in school."
"Ah . . . I will. After everything is over, I will teach you. Yup."
I let go of him. "I love you, Hope."
"Haha . . . I love you too."
'No, you don't understand,' I thought to myself. 'You might be thinking it's just a typical sentence from a kid like me. I said it all the time, and yet, this feeling of mine didn't come across. Your love is not the same as mine.'
I watched the Teria airship took off into the dark night. Everyone returned back to their posts except for Odval and Maltyie who stayed next to me. Odval nodded in my direction as if she knew this painful feeling I had.
"Maltyie . . ." I said.
"What is it?"
"It hurts . . . I have this feeling for years now, but I still don't understand it. Hope loves me like what friends would think of each other. But, this . . . Does this painful feeling goes beyond that?"
"Ava . . ." Maltyie looked at Odval. They both nodded at each other.
"It hurts . . . It hurts more so than before," I muttered.
"It's because you have strengthened your bond with him," said Maltyie. "Now I am certain that you truly love him. A romantic love."
I wiped the tears streaking down my cheeks. "I admit that I love him . . . But this particular feeling is something I never truly understand."
"What do you feel when Beatrice sits close next to Hope, and the two of them laughed with each other?" said Odval.
"I . . . I don't like that feeling. Whenever I see them together, it hurts."
"What about when Freya talks with Hope for hours? What did you feel?"
"I . . . I felt jealous. It's because he spent so much time with her, that it feels like I would lose him."
"Ah . . ."
Odval and Maltyie giggled.
"Hmm? What is it?" I asked. "Is there something wrong . . . With my answer?"
"No, Ava," said Maltyie. "Odval and I had also experienced this feeling you have."
"I am convinced now. You have truly fallen in love with Hope. It isn't the kind of love that friends have for each other. It is a feeling of deep affection for someone that you hold close to your heart," said Odval.
My eyes widened. Somehow, her words resonated with me so much that I took solace in it. That painful sensation had dissipated into a mere thump against my chest. My heart calmed down a bit as if it acknowledged Odval's words.
"My true feelings," I muttered absently.
"You love him," Odval said.
Then, I found myself crying as she took me in her embrace. I regretted not realizing it sooner. I regretted not confessing to him this feeling I had when he was just there in front of me.
I didn't care if everyone saw how I expressed myself in front of Hope. I wanted to tell him so much.
I wanted to pour the emotions I have when he was there with me.
"Hope . . . Please, come back," I said between my crying. "I love you! I want you to see me the same way! I love you, Hope . . . I love you."
I kept repeating those words for who knows how long, but Odval didn't let go of me during that time. She hugged me tight and I relished the fact that I could express my feelings to someone that knew it.
"I love him . . ." I said once again, sobbing.
"Tell him that when you meet him again," whispered Odval.
I nodded slowly. "I will . . ."