At the top of Everest Mountain where the temperature bordered on freezing and the amount of oxygen was close to none, there it was. At the ancient Requiem Temple, Katie stabbed her pike into the snow, panting for breath, searching for air this close to space, just barely able to peek through the atmosphere for the sun to blind her eyes. Grunting at the sting then jerking her eyes away from the scenery, her pale eyelids shut over her pupils, utilizing every remaining inch of strength she could muster into her veins, lifting herself the tiniest bit higher to reach that snowy ledge. And just then, she'd made it! The wood of the Temple was right there, reaching out her hand, she could practically taste the water hydrating the desired supply she cried for, but mere seconds away, her vision had faded.
The next thing she knew, it was almost like a dream. The pouring of tea into a cup, the sound of piano's keys touched by a servant in the corner, the warmth signature to flames heating the room to a cozy temperature Katie could just sink into. As she sat up gradually, the audio of cracking joints infiltrated her hearing, a tired moan exiting her pink lips, fingers instinctively drawn to her face as she held her temple. She could feel a pit in her stomach had awakened at the same time her consciousness had. A pleading to be let out; anxiety that could only be cured by the expelling of fluids, and so, without any further control over herself, it came flying out her mouth. Puke. Or rather, her brain must've registered it as such when she abruptly just gagged, but unbeknownst to her, two fingers had touched against her forehead, thus sending out a golden shockwave throughout her nervous system.
Her feet covered by the white robe donned with pinkish outlines, Moon looked up to see the Master, and funnily enough, she'd seen her before- in a distant memory locked away behind her father's vault of experiences. Ironically, though, the key event was none other than this woman's death, so, in all intents and purposes, she was technically looking at a ghost.
"You must be the daughter of Karlo, Katie Moon, am I correct?" Asked the eyepatch-wearing lady, both arms pointed inward for the attire's sleeves,
"That's me. You're 'The Master', aren't you? Miss Hana Saiai," Kaite scratched at her head searching for confirmation, thanks to her old man's cloudy memories,
"Indeed I am. I was informed by your grand-uncle that the time could come when the legacy of the Riveras would be upheld by a worthy successor. Truly, it's an honor to meet you, Miss Moon. However, I don't mean to infer that your destiny lies on the same path as your extended family's, and I mean either of them. Knowing both of them before the start of the Advent, they were both... problematic, to say the least. You are on your own path. And you wish- for me to guide you?"
Everything from whence she was but a child cowering in fear of when a wretched excuse of a father would beat her with fists already decorated in her blood, to the climax when Ace had pushed her into sending them to their punishment. It was like a glass case she was unable to escape, but not only that; there were no holes within that box for her to breathe out of. Like on top of a mountain suffocating, she could hold her throat and beg for someone to help her. Relying on others' strength when she was so powerless to do anything to help herself, a nuisance... that was what she was.
And so, after Hana's question, she stood silent. The sounds that filled this area sent a wave of nostalgia through her being. A chandelier swinging from side to side at an unimaginable slowed pace, golden lights within transparent containers brightening the warm chamber, the consistent flames of a fireplace.
"I'm powerless. I don't want to be anymore. I want to gain enough strength to be able to be confident in who I am. My body. My being. I want to be myself and accept who I am as an individual. I'm tired of relying on others and leaching off their strength, withholding them from their future potential. So... I want to be myself, and I knew you would help me. Please, guide me."
But all the Master could do was chuckle, but there was something off about the way she chortled. Nothing like that of an evildoer's mocking laughter, or the crazed maniacal sounds of a psychotic trapped in a straitjacket with echos of insanity bouncing throughout those padded walls. It was mimicking that of a mother gently laughing at her child's jokes, meekly covering her lips with her pointer's knuckle, pink pupils hidden with eyelids covering that. But as they were revealed, and the eyepatch was discarded, that nostalgia resurfaced, reaching its boiling point the second the tendrils of that sensation converged solely on her heart.
"If that is your wish then: welcome, Katie Moon. Let's get started, shall we?"
April 17th, 2022. The snow started to fade as the patches of footprints grew more apparent over time, vanishing into the grey concrete, the spring's breeze remained as cool as the summer's sun shining on innocent faces, reminding them of beautiful days. Now, as she stood there, those memories flashed in her mind's eye, the time they spent, acting asleep when Kima and Ace helped bathe her. Everyone, the desire to see their happy faces again, she couldn't control it any further, all she could do was stare ahead and smile at the sight of the neon sign.
The Hawk's Nest.
Right behind the secretary's desk was none other than a familiar face. Green eyes, flowing long hair, a black patterned shirt, and a skirt, her fingers moved at breakneck speeds, clacking away at the keyboard below her chin,
"Excuse me," Said Katie, "I'd like to make a reservation."
Peering behind the monitor, the eyes of Convergence widened as they recognized that feminine face. Could it have been her? After all this time, the events that so rapidly transpired, it had to be a fantasy, right? Seeing such an older Katie Moon, beaming like she was as bright as the moon during the dead of night, such a clear contrast to the dejected state she was always consumed in just half a year ago; back when they first met.
"Kay!!!" June leaped right over the desk, entangling her arms over her distant cousin's frame, kissing her face rapidly, Kate giggling following the continuous pecks she received so unapologetically, "It's so nice to see you again! How've you been!"
Katie couldn't help but smile as her younger relative yanked her face out her neck, revealing those tears of joy at her eyes' corner, barely spotting through the hazy vision. How long had it been since she had seen one of these faces? A familiar one back from the summer they spent together not only as friends but as a family. It'd been another minute before she realized what came out of her mouth in reply to Kate's answers was not words, but sobs.
Sobs so uncontrollable, filled with so much agony that it'd become clear, without a shadow of a doubt. The initial assumption that these cries were made of joy had been wrong, for Katie could recognize that look in her eyes. Despair. Moon couldn't help but wonder what June had gone through these past few months. Suddenly, there was this creeping feeling, like a roach crawling against her spine-
Had she really… been alone, for all this time?
"June, hun, are you- are you okay?" Queried Moon of the Wilder sibling, writhing and seething as hyperventilations intruded upon her incessant sobs, "Hey, hey, calm down, now. Just, let's sit down and tell me what happened."
Rubbing her back, Kate guided her cousin to the seats in the main waiting room for the hotel, and so, as she rubbed June's back, she gradually calmed. Workers donning pinkish suits holding plates with cups on them served their superior, not to mention her blue-eyed guest. The clock sat at noon when Katie first went through those doors, and now, it had been two hours since then. As if she'd seen her future through the eyes of a relative, they stood widened. Five months, just a small operation, and yet so much occurred in but one day, but the worst thing about it: the Jester was nowhere to be seen at the scene of the crime.
And so, though three members of the Deck remained demolished at the hands of the Blood Hunter, one in custody thanks to June's ability to hold back her strength, the leader remained at large.
Katie sat back, holding her coffee with both hands, nape resting against the sofa's cushioned arm, the chandelier's golden lighting reminded her of that place. The Temple at the tip of Everest, where oxygen was thin on the exterior but stepping inside those warm halls had led to like being embraced by a mother on the right day. It seemed those peaceful days, despite the continuous grueling training, had come to a close. For this has been her true reality, and just as everyone had anticipated, that darkness, quelled by the sloth hands of the Master, had reawakened.
"Ace is in prison, you said? Why didn't you go and break him out?" That menacing grimace- had it come from Katie, of all people…? Still, even knowing her cousin was capable of such hatred, it sent shivers down her spine to the point she felt like puking.
"I was waiting for you. You're stronger than me plus… I was too pathetic and scared to do anything. Too alone, feeling like garbage-" As June was about to relapse to her past self, a hand touched her shoulder, and the warmth of a friend had enveloped her once more.
"I want to tell you something, June… I'm sorry for leaving you. But I'm gonna take a page outta Mr. Amara and Ace's book and tell you this: you have to be yourself. I know you have issues with feeling wanted in this world because of your parents basically being emotionless dolls, but I need you to try. Grow stronger because of yourself, rely on others when you need to, but when the time is right, it'll always be on your own when you can do the most damage. I'll be right by your side to help you in whatever way I can, alright?" And from then on, Katie heard June say but one thing left, and that was...
"O-okay... whatever you say, Kay!"
It seemed they'd reconvened. At long last, June had been rid of her loneliness, with a friend by her side, there was only one thought on her mind. With Kate finally, here, that meant the chains that ensnared her brother could finally be shattered. For off the coast of the Evolutionary Capital, there he stood at the bottom of the ocean, arms kept together, wrists contained, all he could do was stare down at the ground. Splatters of blood, crazed drawings of a life he'd formerly lived, maniacal laughter not like his own echoing within the deepest reaches of the abyss, Ace could only bring up his head to reveal his blindfolded eyes. Turning his head, there it was, but the slightest glimmer of sunlight peering through the surface layer of the ocean to shine onto his face.
Though he could barely witness this speck of hope fluttering into this miniature speck in existence, he held it within his heart. Hope, and a determined soul that lit aflame just as he could sense it above ground. That presence he couldn't mistake as one of his own. At long last... the Crow's Daughter had returned.
"Welcome back, Kate... I've been waitin' for you."
Carnal Desires Arc - Part One: Phantoms... Start.