[main character: Shion]
- But I fit that description. Right?
LILLY: But silly, there is way more to that.
- Like what?
LILLY: They feel something called 'love'.
- I still don't know what it is...
LILLY: Ugh... this is going to be harder than I expected.
As Lilly started a more dense explanation we started moving towards the dining room. The concept of love was something unknown to me: "an estrange and strong feeling towards someone". She said that is something that is not able to be explained completely, that I would know what it is once I felt it for the first time.
My sister Yui never told me about such things during my training. But I didn't know that there would be a feeling that would make people act irrationally.
- Thanks for the explanation Lilly.
LILLY: You know, this was somewhat embarrassing for me.
- Sorry, I've never, ever, heard about such thing as 'love'. Have you ever felt something like that before?
LILLY: No. But my past classmates had. I'm not sure if that was true love, but they were in a relationship like that.
True love? Now there's true and false love? What's going on?
LILLY: Anyways, we have more important things to worry about. Don't you think?
- Yes. Let's go.
As we arrived to the dining room, Kay and Lance were waiting for us while everybody started eating. Hugo, Nier, Maria... everybody we met today were there.
KAY: Hey Lilly! Come here for a moment.
LILLY: Yes Master! What's the matter?
Since when did Lilly started calling Kay 'Master'? Something good must have happened.
ANGELO: Come sit with us Shion! Here take a sit.
- Yeah, sure.
SELLIA: Is it true that they pierce your chest?! Did it hurt? Was Carbon that strong?!
I see everybody seems to know what happened. She looks really excited. Aren't they worried?
- I am fine now, don't worry...
As we started eating some food I realized that Hugo was sitting alone far away from us. Noah was also in a separate table but he had an eye on Hugo all the time. The meal was delicious, Angelo told me that Riven was the one that prepared it.
I wonder what Lilly is talking with Kay. She's been in Kay's table with Lance discussing something.
Oh! Kay is standing up now...
KAY: Listen up everybody! As you all now, we've had a bit of an inconvenience today.
A bit?
KAY: We will prepare ourselves for our next mission. Lilly, Shion, come up here.
- Yes.
KAY: Lilly and Shion will be key to this. Angelo, Noah you two will be coming with them. Any objections?
Wait. That's it? Are we enough to face Coyote and Carbon?
KAY: For now, continue enjoying launch. We will meet in the main hall in 30 minutes.
As she clapped their hands me and Lilly ended up sitting together for the dessert. I still was unsure about all this.
I almost die today, I've proven to be far away from Angelo's level and even further from Coyote's.
I'm not so sure about this.
LILLY: Are you okay? You seem a bit...
- Yeah, it's nothing. Coyote is way stronger than we think. She could've killed us if she wanted to. That's how I feel.
LILLY: Well... remember that Carbon might cooperate with us once we found her. That would make things much easier.
I guess you're right.
LILLY: Don't worry. We will ace our first mission. Together.
- Alright. (smile) Thanks.
As we finished eating together, we gathered the four of us selected for discussing our future movements as a team.
Kay was already there waiting for us, but Lance, that left the dining room with her, was nowhere to be seen.
ANGELO: It will be a pleasure working with you again.
- Thanks Angelo, I would also like to do another mission together.
NOAH: I liked how you fought. You got some scary moves. I like that a lot.
- He, he, he... I guess.
He looks really passionate about it.
LILLY: Well, don't use your power with me again pls.
NOAH: I can't promise you that (smiles creepily).
LILLY: Uhm...
This is getting weird...
KAY: Well! I hope you all behave properly. This mission will be a bit hard for some of you.
Is she talking about Lilly and I?
KAY: But don't worry! I really think that the youth will end up victorious. So keep your spirits!
LILLY: Kay, are you coming with us?
KAY: No, and neither is Lance. We have a little construction work to do.
I know.
KAY: Now! let me explain what this mission is about:
The idea was simple, get to Coyote's current whereabouts, which thanks to Mirai, we discovered 2 months ago. They were located in the United States, in a city called Indianapolis.
An abandoned industrial park was her home and base of operations. We will enter that place and retrieve Carbon to our side. Kay believed that it won't be necessary to fight with her if she sees us with open arms.
Finally, Kay knew that Coyote was expecting us to come soon. But not that soon.
KAY: We will be going tomorrow morning. Classes are cancelled for the day for the four of you. Just get your time to prepare. (smiles)
Well this seems easy.
LILLY: This doesn't look that hard. We still have my healing powers if anything goes wrong.
KAY: Exactly! So honey, don't worry too much. Everything is going to go just as planned. We will give you more detailed instructions during the day.
ANGELO: Understood Master!
Well, if I see it from this perspective, this seems fairly easy. It's four against one, it shouldn't be that hard.
Also, if we bring Carbon back to her senses, things will become even easier for us.
ANGELO: Lilly. It's wonderful to see your progress. You started as a helpless kid inside a lab, to a former member doing its first mission with the ones that rescued you once.
LILLY: Thanks! ( ◠‿◠ )
Between Angelo, Lilly and I, there's nothing to worry about. But...
What about Noah? Why did Kay choose him?
NOAH: Are you looking at me?
- No, No! I was just staring at...
NOAH: You don't think this is going to be easy, do you?
- Ehm... well, I have some doubts. But if we work together I am sure we will be fine.
NOAH: You guys will have me in the team. We will ace's this mission and come back. There's still lots of things here that I need to do...
That Hugo killing stuff?
NOAH: Bye!
- Bye...
ANGELO: I got the feeling that he would be a key member to this operation.
- I can't explain why, but I feel the same way.
As Angelo and I were sharing some anecdotes of what Lilly told me about Veles before, she approached Kay in privacy to talk.
ANGELO: Well Shion, see you later. I will be training a bit more at night, if you want you can join me. Same to you Lilly!
LILLY: Uh?
- Angelo said to train a bit more with him later at night, would you like to?
LILLY: (looks back at Kay).
KAY: Of course honey. Don't worry.
After that, we both went to our rooms, Angelo went first, and I was waiting for Lilly to stop discussing. After a couple of minutes she approached me and we both began to go.
- Is everything Okay? You seemed a bit worried talking with Kay.
LILLY: I was just worried about July. Lance went talk with him.
- He didn't had bad intentions, right?
LILLY: No he did not. I guess he just made a bad decision.
I wonder what July have to say about all this.
A tense silence filled the air. Lilly and I had nothing else to say to each other until we meet our separate ways to our rooms.
- Well, see you later.
LILLY: I will probably go and train a bit with Angelo. Just to clear my thoughts, I'll be waiting for you.
Wait I was supposed to say that.
- Alright then, bye.
LILLY: Bye...
Once we reached for our rooms. I started thinking about July, Carbon, Coyote and Lilly. It was still hard for me to process all that has happened today. There were so many things I couldn't understand.
Lilly is very uneasy after talking with Kay about all this. I'll talk with Yui at night, maybe she knows about all that has happened already.
I want to ask her about all that 'love', 'boyfriend' and 'girlfriend' stuff.
Yui did all she could to teach me the basics of society, but even in Hadoc's teaching no one mentioned anything about that.
Whatever... I'll rest for now. Today's been a tough morning.
I laid on my bed, trying to clear my thoughts. I knew I could accomplish anything with a clear mind.
"Your limits reside on you own believes"
Yui always told me that. It has always worked for her, but for some reason, I'm still very unstable with my powers. I can't get them to a hundred percent, voluntarily.
As long as I am calm...
- Everything is going to be fine. I just need to clear my mind... (yawn).
Everything is going to be fine...
...
...
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...
- Ugh! What was that?! Who's there?!
As I looked to my surroundings, I saw a sheet of paper on the floor of my room.
What is this? Nobody is here, the door is closed...
What just happened!?
The paper was full of text. A clear description of what I had to do. The instructions of the mission where all there: when, where and how to get into Coyote's whereabouts.
All I was supposed to do was written in that paper, like it was all a prediction on a weather forecast. Like a chess play predicted from the start.
Who made this? And why this privacy? It's handwritten, perfectly.
I spent hours reading all the information carefully and memorizing what I had to do. I really wanted this mission to go as smoothly as possible since I still had a sense of guilt for not standing up against Coyote when I had the chance.
"Don't share this information with anyone but yourself".
Why? This is the last sentence of this hole report. Aren't Lilly, Angelo and Noah, getting one as well? I'll go and ask.
I went directly to Lilly's room.
(KNOCK, KNOCK)
- Lilly. Are you there?
...
Maybe she went somewhere.
- Lilly?
...
LILLY: What do you want Shion?
Is she alright?
- I was just wondering. Did you received any information of the mission?
LILLY: Information? No, not yet. Did you perhaps?
- Actually, I found-.
Ugh...
Why can't I...?
LILLY: What's the matter? What did you find?
I can't tell her. I have this feeling that something bad is going to happen if I tell her...
That unintelligible sound, is coming back to me...
In the paper said to not share this information with anyone, maybe a power is restricting me of doing so...
Or is it just a presentiment?
- Nothing....
LILLY: I see...
- Are you alright Lilly, you sound a bit sad.
LILLY: I'm fine.
- Can I, go inside?
I never asked this. Actually, I've never entered Lilly's room. She always gets out of there when she wants to talk with me.
LILLY: No, Shion... sorry. I want to be alone for now. We'll meet with Angelo as I've already told you.
- Oh, I understand...
I don't understand at all!
- See you then.
LILLY: Bye (sniff).
Wait! Did I hear? Is she perhaps... crying?
As I was walking away of the door, this thoughts made me rush towards Lilly's door again in a second.
What made Lilly cry?! I've never seen her cry again since the day we rescued her. Why now?!
My heart was pumping with anger towards something non-existent. I couldn't help myself on opening my mouth again.
- Lilly!
LILLY: You still there?
- Are you...
She said she wanted to be alone. But is it so hard for me to led that slip. I... I...
- Never mind... see you later.
I walked away again with a strange feeling inside of me. I could not understand the situation at all. Lilly was feeling sad. I rushed subconsciously towards her even though I knew she wasn't at any harm.
What is this anger inside me? Nobody has done anything to Lilly but yet I feel like I must do something. I can't ignore anything of that.
I'm going to talk with Kay right now about they've spoken about.
As I rushed towards the main hall, I wasn't expecting to find Kay right away. But there she was.
Hold up. Was she waiting for me?
KAY: Hey sweetheart. Have you talked with Lilly already?
- Ugh? She said she wanted to be alone.
KAY: Oh! I guess she needs time to accept it.
- Accept what?
KAY: What? Honey, you know what we do in here, right?
- Yeah, I guess. But why was Lilly crying for?
KAY: She had some trouble realizing that our job was a bit more, let's say 'radical', than she expected. Yui already taught you that sometimes is it necessary for us to get our hands dirty with the filth of humanity. Are you fine about it?
- Of course. It's the same as with invasive species.
KAY: And that's why I love Yui. Well, anyways, Lilly doesn't think the same way as you do.
Why is that? Yui always told me about the value of life. Everything that strives to live is worth protecting. But sometimes there will be life that cause a greater threat to the rest of living beings.
Yui explained that those living beings are called, invasive species. There are many different types of those creatures: from snails, birds, fish, to humans.
There was nothing wrong about that. The bigger picture is always more important than some destructive beings.
KAY: I had a little talk with her during launch, and after the meeting we discussed it even further. She's got strong morals. But I guess her revenge towards her family was a little bit buried by you.
- By me?
KAY: Yes. I told her that things could get a little messy in tomorrows mission, but she refused to wield her sword towards any 'normal' people. As you know, we are not completely sure if there will be any unfortunate criminals allied with Coyote.
- "There will be no other people around".
KAY: What did you say sweetheart? Speak a bit louder.
- That's what it was written on the paper. It didn't say anything about-.
KAY: DID YOU SAY 'THE PAPER'?
What?!
- Yes, I received a paper in my room. It had the information of tomorrow's mi.-
KAY: Really?!
- It wasn't you who wrote it? I went to Lilly's room but she hadn't received one.
KAY: No, it wasn't me! Oh my god, this is very amusing!
- So, do you want to know what it said?
KAY: Of course not! If you tell me, then everything will be a failure. It has been many years since he wrote a letter of instructions to anyone.
He?
KAY: This mission is going to be more relevant than we can even imagine. I can't wait! (smiles from excitement).
- Who wrote it then?
KAY: Our former strategist and operation leader.
I didn't know this role existed in here.
KAY: Lamorak the Third.