"Please wake up Lyre..." Aoyuki asked the nurse who was behind him with annoyance and, for some reason, in defeat
The nurse entered the room while grinning. She went closer to Lyre and shook her a little bit to gently wake her up
"Mhmm..." Lyre grumbled as she was about to wake up. Then, as if a realization washed over her, she abruptly opened her eyes and her eyes dilated as light entered her eyes and see in front of her
She saw Philip's sleeping face in front of her. She also felt that she was hugging his arm around her arms. She immediately blushed and became flustered as she threw his left arm and sat back up
Her pink hair and clothes are ruffled. She returned back to normal after a night's rest from her appearance of glowing pink hair and ethereal clothing
She looked around and saw Philip on the bed, he hasn't moved ever since from what she can remember. She also saw Yuze sleeping soundly while hugging Philip's right arm. She then saw Aoyuki standing on the door with arms crossed. She became embarrassed
"It's time to wake up, Lyre. The Student Council President is looking for you." The nurse snapped Lyre out of confusion and pointed at Aoyuki
Lyre was a bit disoriented after being awakened abruptly. She furrowed her eyebrows and fixed her hair and clothes. She stood up and slowly walked towards Aoyuki with a flushed face and embarrassment
As soon as Lyre arrived in front of Aoyuki, he clutched her head without any warning. Lyre was alerted and she looked up looking at Aoyuki's eyes. She saw his eyes become vertically slit and her vision blurred
The nurse watched as Aoyuki dashed and blurred in a black streak and disappeared. The nurse walked out of the room and closed the door with a smile
***
Day 2, 10:24 am
"So, what happened the building in the north of here? There's debris and wreckage flying everywhere." Don Scar asked with curiosity and saw the Evaluation Center still being obliterated from the distance
Don Scar was still standing in the middle of the Grand Hall while the tall man and short woman beside him sat on an expensive looking chair that was offered to them while the people behind them has sat on benches and sofas that was delivered. Round tables has also been brought with attendees bringing in beverages and snacks
"Oh, it's just an accident caused by a powerful individual." Yozu said honestly
"Oh? Does this happen to do something with Lyre being in the Infirmary?" Don Scar asked with interest
"Yes, but it's not what you think it is." Yozu said and clarified as Don Scar's expanding aura became calm once more
"I see... I have to ask Lyre later... And that powerful individual-"
Before Don Scar could finish his sentence, Yozu interrupted him and said in a powerful and menacing voice, "Don't even think about it"
Don Scar felt the meaning behind Yozu's words and humbly closed his eyes and smiled, "Alright then, he seemed to be very special for you to become like this"
At this moment, a black streak of blur appeared in front of Yozu to his right. Aoyuki appeared with him clutching Lyre's head. Lyre's back was facing the members of the Comfy Cartel
Don Scar's eyes widened upon seeing Lyre's back, Liliana and Michael stood up from nervousness and excitement, Wanda and Baoab also stood up from happiness after not seeing Lyre for the past two years
Lyre noticed the change in surroundings as she saw the Headmaster behind Aoyuki and the Guardians from her left and right. She then sensed several people behind her as she felt their gazes land on her
She slowly turned around and saw everyone, two were familiar faces and three of them felt nostalgic to her
"It's nice to see you again, Lyre. It has been a long time!" Don Scar broke the silence as everyone behind him was mesmerized at Lyre's beauty and appearance
"Uncle Scar?" Lyre voiced out as her voice cracked as she was overwhelmed with emotions. Don Scar just smiled at her nodded as Liliana and Michael stepped forward pass the Don
"Lyre? I missed... I missed you so much!" Liliana said as she immediately broke in tears in the middle of her sentence. Michael was also a bit teary eyed after seeing her daughter well
"Mom? Dad?" Lyre began to walk slowly towards her parents and eventually she run as she jumped to their embrace
The family hugged and cried tears of joy together as they knelt down on the ground while embracing each other
It was a touching reunion. It's a shame that if Philip saw this scene, he wouldn't feel anything and his eyes will become black as the deepest abyss
After a few minutes, everyone behind Don Scar was watching the family with smiles on their faces while the others became teary eyed. Don Scar then broke the silence and gave thanks to Yozu
"Yozu, thank you for taking care and looking out for Lyre all this time. The Comfy Cartel will be indebted to you!" Don Scar said humbly to Yozu who had his eyebrows suddenly narrow down
Lyre's closed eyes from crying opened abruptly as her tears stopped upon hearing Don Scar's statement
"We'll be taking Lyre today and take care of her by ourselves at home, where her parents are and her origin is." Don Scar said as he decided to take Lyre without consulting Lyre herself and Yozu
Everyone behind Don Scar, Liliana, and Michael were surprised at his statement. They had no discussions regarding taking Lyre home and it was an abrupt announcement
Lyre slowly stood up and left Liliana and Michael's embrace. She wiped her tears of with her hands and looked straight at Don Scar. The tall man beside Don Scar had his eyes widened upon seeing Lyre
"Uncle? What do you mean take me home?" Lyre asked with a quaking voice
"What's the matter Lyre? You don't want to be with your parents and family at the Cartel?" Don Scar asked with a tone
"You didn't answer my question, Uncle!" Lyre said with a raised voice
"Lyre, calm down." Liliana said with a calm voice
"Mom, did you know about this? Why didn't you asked me first and decided it right away?"
"No, you don't understand..." Liliana said while feeling guilt
"Uncle! You didn't asked me first?"
"Well, I can only do what's best for you." Don Scar said with confused eyes
"What's best for me?! How would you know what's best for me when we haven't met for several years?!" Lyre cried out as tears start to fall from her eyes
At this point, an unnatural wave of energy washed over everyone that came from Lyre. Suddenly, their ears started to rumble and disorient their senses
The Guardians started covering their ears while the lower ranks of the Cartel also covered their ears. Don Scarra had his eyebrows furrowed and Lyre's parents looked at her with worry and guilt
"You didn't even asked me how I have been or how my experience is in this academy! You didn't care about me at all!" Lyre cried out once more
Liliana started crying as Michael comforted her with a sorrowful face. It was the same for Wanda and Baoab
Don Scar realized his mistake and he was filled with guilt and sadness. The tall man beside him stood up and whispered to him, "I suggest for you to look at the greater picture and empathize with her. I see that there are hidden secrets around here"
Don Scar understood the tall man's words and tried to emphatize with Lyre
"Is this what is family supposed to be?! Just taking advantage of someone?! I don't want to go home!!" As Lyre shouted those words, her voice reverberated throughout the Grand Hall and everyone became weakened, except for Don Scar and Yozu
Lyre then ran through the hallways and through the Floor Transporter, back go her own room in the Core Academy
"Well, that escalated quickly..." Yozu commented as he saw Lyre ran through the hallways. He then stopped Aoyuki with his hand as Aoyuki was about to stop and fetch Lyre back as this is a show of disrespect towards the Cartel
"What are you going to do now, Scar?" Yozu asked Don Scar seriously
"Hm... I may or may not have considered her feelings..." Don Scar said obliviously as if he doesn't want to admit his mistake
"Well, no sh*t! You don't know what she has gone through and who she met recently." Yozu said with hidden meanings behind his words
"What do you mean?" Don Scar asked with interest
"It's about the powerful individual that was sent to the Infirmary." Yozu dropped a revelation on them
Everyone's eyes widened upon this revelation. A few of them immediately understood this meaning and a few of them had their hearts flutter from excitement
The reason that Lyre became upset is not only because they didn't consider her feelings but because she found the thing that can make a person a human being, love
Perhaps it was fate that she met Philip and she really liked him. She did not want to separate from and this is the only opportunity for her to love someone. She also had a rival and newfound friends. It's also primarily because Philip was the one who fixed or stabilized her ability
Don Scar closed his eyes and lowered his head as he smiled, "I see... I understand now. It's my fault for deciding things on the spot..."
Everyone behind Don Scar looked at him with surprised faces, it's rare that he accepted his mistakes and even apologize for it. Seems like Don Scar really like Lyre as his niece
"Very well then, we'll stay here for a week and watch over Lyre and observe her. We'll also provide manpower to the academy and help them. We want to learn more about Lyre's livelihood in this academy." Don Scar decided once again by himself
Michael and Liliana stood up and returned to their positions as they wiped their tears. Looks like they felt good about Don Scar's decision while the others looked at him incredulously as he decided things for himself without consulting others. Well, he's the Don of the Cartel afterall
Yozu then stood up and made arrangements for the Comfy Cartel's lodgings with the help of Aoyuki and the Guardians. Aoyuki deeply sighed as there will be more papers for him to manage by himself
They then went to the rooms where they will be living at for a week
***
Day 2, 11:11 pm
It's already night out and the lights are off. Almost everyone is asleep and a few Guardians are in patrol and are about to end their shifts and rest for the night
Lyre can be seen on her bed, sitting, with her face burried on her knees as her body is bent. The room is illuminated by the moon and the room is mostly dark with shadows covering most of the room
Suddenly, Lyre's eyes glowed along her pink hair. Her pupils formed a small four pointed yellow star in the center
[Are you ready?]
An angelic voice was heard by Lyre in her head. She pulled her head from her knees from surprise and looked around
[Calm down, I am the guardian angel that talked to you yesterday, remember?]
The voice said to Lyre as she looked around
[I'm going to appear before you, so don't be too surprised. You might catch unnecessary attention]
Lyre could only nod to the voice that she keeps hearing in her head. Then, a swirl of pink mist appeared in front of her bed. The pink mist swirled to the point that it became like a tornado
The tornado of pink mist dissipated and reveal a person inside of it
The person had the similar shape of a four pointed star in its eyes. The person looked like a female with long yellow hair and a feather and fur ear accessory. She wears a sleeveless white long gown, white high heels, white opera gloves, and a white beret. A long white scarf is also wrapped around her neck that flutters behind her back. The ends of the scarf are torn
[Ah! Finally, I could breathe some real world fresh air!] The mysterious person said nonchalantly
"Who are you?" Lyre asked fluently, as if she wasn't fazed at all. She could feel a deep connection coming from her
[Well... Proper introductions are important for first impressions.] The person said with a smile of confidence as she faced Lyre with respect
[I am what most people call the Dream Sonar or the Dreamcatcher. Ancient records call me the Embodiment of Music. While the dawn of human birth call me the Harbinger of Harmony, the Messenger of Insanity.] The person said ominously while her eyes glow upon stating powerful titles that went down through history
[I've been recently named and you can call me Songstress, or simply Sonar.] The person, who is called Sonar, bowed her head and body at Lyre in a grand manner as she lifted her right arm above her back
"Where did you come from?" Lyre asked calmly
[I'll tell you first, it's a long story. Then I'll let you ask more questions later.] Sonar said as she began to tell her story to Lyre
***
During the dawn of Earth, the moment the Earth became calm after its formation and the formation of the Moon, harmony and calmness enveloped the world
At that moment, an entity manifested in a middle of a wasteland. The entity's ethereal, formless hair fluttered around the air. The entity had no clothes and only had a formless body with a defined shape and figure that resembles a female
The entity has a visible facial features, particularly closed mouth, humanoid eyes and star pupils, humanoid nose and ears
The entity looked up at the moon, that is rotating with increased speed and occasional shockwaves coming from small asteroids being caught up by the moon's gravity
The entity narrowed its eyes at the moon and looked away immediately as if it was sulking
The entity walked around the Earth for who knows how many years, millenia, or cycles. She could only remember important parts that mostly affected her, the Comet Bombardment and the Ice Age
After how many years, the entity found a wonderful place that is full of greenery amd creatures. The entity walked around and found two creatures that resemble its figure
Overwhelmed with emotions, the entity tried to get closer to them, only to find out that the unique creatures were approaching an overpowering tree that bears golden fruits
The entity's eyes dilated upon seeing this treasure and wanted to examine the golden fruit. It was about to run forward until it stops in its tracks because it saw a long black creature dangling from the tree's branches, trying to talk to the unique creatures
The entity immediately knew that the long black creature was a bad existence and it shouldn't have existed in this world
Until it was stopped by a very powerful entity by blocking the entity's path
[My, my, what do we have here?]
[Who are you, my child? I don't remember creating you in my own image?]
[You can't speak? Then, I will look into your source and origin from where you came from]
[What is this? I see, I understand... You were an early bird]
[Very well then, once my children has eaten the Fruit of Knowledge, I will show you your purpose]
[See that? Since my children has eaten the Fruit of Knowledge to gain knowledge, they shall be called humans and thet will have the comprehension to see the opposite spectrum of the universe]
[Why would I do this? It was fated! It was his absolute wish]
{𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘳𝘶𝘮𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘶𝘱𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘶𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘥... 𝘕𝘰 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘳 𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘵 𝘪𝘵}
[Now that they have received the basic necessities for being a human, you will now serve your purpose]
The powerful entity touched the entity on its head and it disappeared
The entity opened its eyes and found itself on a space with nothing on it. Only a calm body of water that expands through the horizon
The entity walked through the vast body of water while leaving ripples as it stepped forwards. The entity lost its sense of time and eventually, an entity appeared before her
The entity was a body of a human that was sleeping on the calm body of water. The entity walked closer and touched the body. The body disappeared leaving nothing behind
Then, several bodies appeared around the entity. The entity decided not to touch them since they will disappear when it did
But after who know how much time has passed, the entity noticed that the bodies were somewhat weakening and becoming blue in color. The quantity of the bodies became so much to the point that it became a mountain
The entity hurriedly touched every body and every body disappeared from the vast calm ocean
More time has passed, doors and gates appeared in the space of nothingness. The entity checked every door and found out that every door has a unique world in it
As the entity walked further, it seemed like it reached the edge of the vast calm ocean as a cold hard flat ground manifested and a large door appeared in front of it with someone standing in front of the door
[Yo! Dreamcatcher! I'm glad you found this place!]
[Who am I? I am the Gatekeeper of Dreams! I manage who goes inside the Dream Realm and outside]
[What? You don't know who you are and what your purpose is?]
[You mean that you don't know what you've been doing when you're already doing your job?]
[Haiz, well then, let me voice it out for you!]
[You're Dreamcatcher! The S҉̛̣̱̒͢o҉̧͙͇̩̀̐̂͞ņ̸̬͔͌̂͞g̴̘̯̀͛͢͝s҈̨̛̘͉͑̎ţ̸̖́͂͠ͅr̶̙̭҇͛͢e҈̧͕҇̀s҉̭̰̱͗͜͠s҈̪̗̾̉̄͢͞! Also known as the Dream S҉͙́̇͢͝ǫ̵̬̇̈͡ņ̸͙͆͝a̶̧̳̥͉҇̐̽r̶̡͎͑́̚͡! Your purpose is to guide lost souls in the Dream Realm and wake them up so they won't die here]
[Oh me? Well... Since the material world has a lot of humans living there, there will be a few or hundreds of lost souls that slips past the Dream Gate]
[Yeah, I'm sorry...]
More time has passed and the Gatekeeper and the Dreamcatcher are doing there work while talking to each other... Until the arrival of the Mystical Age
[What's happening?]
The Dream Realm shook and rumbled and the Gatekeeper felt a change in the realm. It was the same for Dreamcatcher
Eventually, the whole Dream Realm bounced that made the Gatekeeper and Dreamcatcher jump high up and lose balance
The Dream Realm then turned upside down and both of them fell to the sky. The Gatekeeper reach her hand, that is full of keys in a key ring, towards Dreamcatcher. Dreamcatcher reached back towards Gatekeeper
Their fingers almost touched until both of them disappeared
The next thing that Dreamcatcher knew is that she was inside of a human who was talking. The human's voice was high pitched and it had an ethereal and angelic voice in it. Dreamcatcher felt bliss upon hearing her voice until her existence began to shake from the sudden transport of her concept to a human
The backlash caused the Dreamcatcher's purpose of waking up lost souls in the Dream Realm to transfer to the human. In this way, the human had the purpose, or ability, to wake up everyone that heard her voice. In other words, death, in a more intense point of view
At this moment, Lyre gained her ability of Songstress from Dreamcatcher, who fell from the Dream Realm. Lyre didn't know she had this ability until symptoms occured from everyone around her
***
[That's my story, any questions?] Sonar ended her story and asked the overwhelmed Lyre
"I don't know... So, how did you manifest in the real world?"
[Well, it was because I manifested through you from you being overloaded by that person. Another reason is for that male individual uttering my real names which helped my existence materialize in the real world and manifest in it]
"Philip? How did he know?"
[I'm not quite sure, but I know that he's extremely dangerous and there is something unknown hiding behind him. Well, I know you like him so that won't change your opinion of him]
Lyre burrowed her face deeper on her knees
[Let me tell you this so you won't get hurt. First of all, the reason that you can hear extra sounds and melody is because I coexist witjin you body and you're borrowing a part of my power. Second, the sound that you heard from that man's unconscious body was not his heart but his brain. Even though it sounded like a heartbeat, it doesn't, because he has no heart, literally]
"What do you mean, no heart?"
[It's not a figure of speech, he literally has no heart. It may have been destroyed since a heart doesn't exist inside his chest]
"I don't believe you"
[I don't blame you since the first time I saw him, he still had a heart. Did something happen before he became unconscious?]
Lyre contemplated first before answering
"He was impaled to the chest by a metal spike"
[What? Then how did he live?]
"That's what we're all saying!" Lyre paused after realizing that Philip should have been dead yet he was alive, "So, is him having no heart is true?"
[Yes, I've confirmed it after you saw him unconscious and during the time when you're sleeping beside him. I tried to listen to his heartbeat]
Lyre became flushed as she covered her face on her knees once again
"Why me?" After a few seconds of silence, Lyre asked
[Huh?]
"Why was I the one chosen for you to possess me?"
[I'm not quite sure... I don't even know what happened to me and the Dream Realm. Perhaps there's a reason?]
"I see... Then what are your primary abilities?"
[I'm also not quite sure... All I know is that I'm Sonar and I was once called as the Embodiment of Music. You would know immediately when you hear that]
"Then you're like the God of Music?"
[Nope, I'm something far more above than that]
"What does that mean?"
[I'd rather not talk about it]
Sonar became quiet as she decided to hide the truth about the Embodiment of Music title. Truthfully, she hated that title but she can go along with it
"How can I use your abilities?"
[Why are you eager to learn?]
"It's because I want to be useful and helpful for once. I want to use the abilities that you granted me to protect everyone that I care for"
[Interesting, what a cliché answer... Very well then, I'm actually interested in you and that man you come to like that you just recently met]
"Wha-?!" Lyre was shocked and embrassed by Sonar's statement because it was all true
[Well, first of all, you can't use my abilities... Yet]
"What? Then how-"
[You have to experience something life changing for you to use some of my abilities]
"Like what?"
[Near death experience, despair, satisfaction... Insanity... Love?]
"Those are some pretty high requirement for an experience..."
[Well, you've aready unlocked a part of my power, remember?]
Lyre thought back for a while and remembered during her tests, when Philip made her feel an extreme sense of relief
[Yes, that time. You unlocked the Songstress Manifestation after your ability was overloaded. Meaning, you have the ability to summon me or for me manifest in your body. That ability was powered up due to overloading it and that's why I could freely manifest without your permission]
"I see... Then what are the full abilities I could have if I unlocked the entirety of your power?"
[You're too nonchalant about this, huh? You won't ask important questions such as if I could wreck havoc around here since I could manifest myself]
"Well, I trust people easily, especially since I feel a deep connection from you. Besides, I believe that there is someone that could stop you at any time, isn't that right?" Lyre said with confidence. Sonar could only shrug at remembering Philip's appearance the first time she saw him
[Well anyways, you will have full control and manipulation to Music once you fully unlocked my powers. And that's just the tip of the iceberg]
"Really? Then I need to unlock your powers so I could be more useful and powerful! I don't want to get left behind and develop my abilities for good!"
[Whoa, don't be too hasty, you already have another innate ability, and that's your voice. With the right pitch and tone of your voice, you can vastly affect almost anyone's thoughts and minds]
"What?"
[Yup! You heard me right. That time when your voice was affecting everyone? It's already an innate ability of yours, you were just not aware that you can control it. When I manifested through your body, I manually adjusted your voice so it won't affect anyone anymore. I just did a little opposite effect to everyone that did you wrong]
"Is that so?" Lyre looked down from learning several information at once
[Yup! It surprisingly suits your ability to mine. I guess this is also fate?]
"So, you're telling me that my voice is a separate ability from yours?"
[Yes]
"I see! That's interesting"
[You don't have any more questions? I'm getting tired just by talking and your time is running out]
"Why are you getting tired? Is there like a limit to the time you can manifest?"
[Not really, there's no timer or sort, it's just that this world is still rejecting powerful beings from manifesting and I'm getting exhausted by countering the rejection just to be here. If I were to manifest in your body, then there's no problem, but you won't have full control if your body]
"I see... Then, I don't have any more questions. Please rest and have a good night!"
[Wow! You're so kind and polite even to an entity living in your body, huh? Very well then, I shall take up your offer and rest. See you next time. I'll be watching and talking inside your head]
Sonar seductively smiled at Lyre and pink mist covered her and dissipated as she disappeared
Lyre couldn't believe what just happened and kept burrowing her face on her knees in the dark room as the moonlight penetrates the windows and slightly lights up the room. The thought about the Cartel taking her back home resurfaced
"I forgot to ask what's her thoughts about me being taken home by the Cartel..." Lyre found it unfortunate that she forgot to ask a crucial question
"I need to experience a life changing event for me to use some of her abilities, huh?" Lyre looked back at what she and Sonar talked about, "Love..."