A/N: Yay, I finally got a new computer! I got it as an early Christmas present since I needed it for college. My old one had stiff keys, and the screen turned black if you didn't put it in a certain position.
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-??? POV-
I was born from the most beautiful sacrifice—I was born from light.
The Mother's luminous tears fell upon the planet she cherished, bestowing her blessings, her strength, and her very life to its people before she fell into an endless slumber.
Us, the Ghosts.
I still remember my first memories: the stress, the anxiety, the fear of not knowing who or where I was. The only comfort I had was the certainty of a mission—a mission to find someone special.
I didn't know who this "someone" was, but I searched.
Across barren lands, jungles, and forests, I wandered. It wasn't until I reached a small, hidden house nestled within the trees that I felt it—a connection.
I went inside and found a lonely skeleton. Lifeless, far removed from the vibrant existence Mother had protected. Yet, I knew: this was him—the one I had been searching for.
That sense of belonging was undeniable. It pulled me to him, just as my light was.
The process was mostly a blur, but I could still feel it—the sensation of two souls merging, their fates intertwined in a single string of radiant light.
And so, the lifeless corpse became a man.
Through our bond, I felt his emotions. Fear. And yet… excitement.
He was interesting.
-3rd POV-
"So, you're my Ghost, huh?" were the first words he spoke.
He rubbed his eyes groggily as if waking from the sweetest, deepest dream.
{Ghost?} the small, floating machine asked, its voice tinged with confusion. Never before had it been referred to as a "Ghost."
"Huh?" The man matched its confusion, his brows furrowed as a thousand thoughts raced through his mind.
"How long has it been... since the Traveler sacrificed itself?" he asked suddenly, catching the Ghost off guard.
Though puzzled by the abrupt question, the Ghost decided to comply. But what should she call him?
{It's been exactly one month, three days, and six hours,} she replied with precise accuracy.
"One month, huh? Thought it would've taken longer," he muttered under his breath, his words barely audible.
He stood up, stretching his stiff limbs. He had been sitting motionless—dead—for who knows how long. A good stretch and a walk were overdue.
{Um, you do know that you... died, right?} the Ghost asked hesitantly, concern evident in her tone.
Though she hadn't lived long, her observations of humans revealed one universal truth: the fear of death. She had braced herself to comfort him the moment he woke up, but it seemed unnecessary.
"Of course, I know," he chuckled. "But I'm alive now, aren't I?" he said as he moved toward another room in the house.
The Ghost hovered in confusion for a moment before following him.
They wandered through the house until they reached a door fortified with multiple locks. Planting his feet firmly, the man cocked his arm back and struck forward.
*BAM!*
With a single punch, he shattered the hardwood door, sending splinters flying and revealing a staircase leading down.
The Ghost flinched as the air pressure from his punch pushed her back slightly.
'Incredible!' she thought. No ordinary human could destroy a door like that, let alone create such wind pressure.
{Supplies?} the Ghost asked, astonished by what lay below.
The massive basement was filled with food rations, nuclear generators, weapons, and rare Engrams.
From her scans, she confirmed the items were relics from before The Collapse, artifacts of the Golden Age, or at least its twilight years.
{Did you hoard all of this?} she asked, amazed. It was as though he had planned everything down to the smallest detail.
"Yup. Now, come here. I need your help," he said, rummaging through a box and pulling out a bright yellow hexagonal cube—an Engram from the Golden Age.
"Can you decrypt it?" he asked.
{I can!} the Ghost responded eagerly, forgetting to question how he knew about her abilities.
A light radiated from her lens, enveloping the Engram as it began to reshape.
When it was complete, it revealed a sleek black sniper rifle adorned with a leaping fish crest and a white sword-shaped silhouette on its barrel.
It was [Izanagi's Burden], a weapon once belonging to Yuki Satou, a founder of the Black Armory.
{How did you get this? The technology behind it is... incredible!} she asked, already aware of the sniper's capabilities through her scans.
"Before, you know, I went bleh, I managed to sneak into one of the Black Armory's stockpiles," he explained casually.
{The Black Armory?} the Ghost asked, intrigued.
"The Black Armory was a clandestine weapons foundry created during the end of The Collapse by three families: the French House of Meyrin, the Norse Rasmussen Clan, and the Japanese Satou Tribe," he explained.
{I see, but if it was so secretive, how did you obtain this?}
"The Satou family abandoned their base when they realized their weapons couldn't stop whatever the hell was attacking us. That gave me the chance to sneak in and grab the best stuff they left behind. It was mostly due to convenience since we are in Japan right now"
The Ghost nodded, though questions lingered about how he had known such classified information. Respecting his secrets, she didn't pry further.
The man began packing supplies into a large backpack, asking the Ghost to decrypt a few more Engrams as he prepared for his travels.
Finally ready, he stepped outside the house, greeted by the dense forest surrounding it.
"Well, it's time. Let's go. By the way, do you have a name?" he asked the Ghost.
{A name? No, I don't have one,} she admitted.
"Want one?"
{Really?}
"Yup. Calling you 'it' doesn't feel right."
{Hm, if you would...} she murmured, trying to conceal her excitement. But he could feel it—there were no secrets between them.
After a moment of thought, he said, "Then how about Quinella?"
{Quinella? I love it!} she said joyfully. The name, given by her partner, filled her with warmth.
Then she realized something. {Do you have a name?}
"A name? I do, but I don't use it much. Just call me Francis."
{Francis,} Quinella repeated softly, etching it into the core of her being.
And so, the little Ghost and the first Guardian set off together across the fallen Earth for the first time.
-Francis POV-
After all the earlier chaos, we managed to find an inn near the Loki Familia's mansion. Only two rooms were available, so I booked both: one for me and Uriel, and the other for my two brothers and Dante.
Naturally, they complained—loudly—since I was the one sharing a room with a cute girl without being cramped like sardines. But as the eldest brother, my word was law.
Honestly, it's their fault for reincarnating into characters whose personalities practically scream "single"
Anyway, now I'm perched on the rooftop of the inn, sharpening my weapons. A stack of whetstones sits beside me, and I've been working on my new knives from a random weaponsmith.
Sure, I could've done this inside, but sparks and wooden floors don't mix well. Plus, the sound of sharpening metal might disturb the others.
{Hm, the moon looks beautiful tonight,} Quinella suddenly said, appearing beside me.
Her observation was random but not wrong. The moon here did look stunning, though its size—closer and larger than I was used to—made me uneasy.
{It reminds me of the first night we camped together,} she continued, her tone nostalgic. {The night after I revived you in that hidden cabin in Japan.}
...Nani?
Her words made me freeze. That wasn't how I remembered it. Quinella had revived me in the middle of a forest, not in a... cabin.
Shit.
If she's referring to what I think she is, then this situation is about to spiral into an even bigger headache.
'System, explain!' I demanded internally, addressing the interface in my mind.
[When your existence was added to this world, the system made a few adjustments to ensure your integration and preserve your background,] the system replied coolly.
'What kind of changes?' Sweat began forming on my brow as I braced for the answer.
[We incorporated elements of your original fiction into this world. For example, your Ghost, Quinella, retains memories based on the story you wrote, Destiny 2: Ultimate Guardian. Similarly, Dante from Devil May Cry exists here because your brother is Vergil.]
'...That explains why everything feels so off' I thought bitterly.
The system literally rewrote parts of the world to match details from my fiction. But why go through such lengths to conceal our true pasts?
[The gods of this world can see the imprints of your soul's history. They can even have dreams of your past memories. The adjustments were made to shield your original existence.]
So what, pretending to be a god-slaying immortal was somehow better than being an average teenager from another dimension?
[Yes.]
Fuck.
It all made sense now. The version of "Francis" Quinella remembered wasn't me—it was fanfic me. The same Francis who, ironically, had been reincarnated into Destiny 2 as Kazuto Kirigaya. Yes, I named him after Kirito from Sword Art Online because I love the series and can't help but integrate its elements into my work.
Now I had a choice: feign ignorance or roll with it and pretend I remember everything.
After a moment of mental debate, I made my decision.
"Yeah, I remember," I said, chuckling softly. "The moon was the only pretty thing that night, though. When we camped, we didn't realize we were right next to a herd of cows. I couldn't sleep with the horrendous smell of shit in the air."
I leaned back, keeping my voice light and amused, fully committing to this story.
I waited for a response from her, but nothing came through. Not even a single peep.
I began to get nervous from the quietness, but my worries were dispelled the moment she rushed at me with her tiny robotic figure.
{Francis!} She cried out happily as she rubbed her shell against my face with affection.
{I-i I'm sorry, if only I hadn't been shattered during that fight, you....your might have still lived} she cried sentimental tears, not real ones.
Damn, she feels sorry, huh?
In the fanfic I had made, "Francis" had suddenly gotten a revelation from The Traveler that the black fleet would be coming back for a second round.
But of course, the battle would not be without sacrifice...that was what the traveler had thought at least.
Instead of telling the tower about the attack and preparing for it, Francis instead went alone.
And just by himself, he repelled the black fleet.
During that time frame, the [Batte of Burning Lake] was also happening.
And only after it ended did the tower receive a message from "Francis". It explained how the "forces of darkness" were bound for their home once again, and how he repelled it.
But, it came at a cost, It was "Francis" himself. The Traveler wasn't off from its prediction, just not in the way it had envisioned.
In that day humanity lost its greatest warrior, a friend, a teacher, a leader, an iron lord, the strongest, and the First Guardian.
Well, at least that's how it went down in the fanfic.
"It's fine, at least we're together now, right?" I asked.
Quinella backed off from my face, now looking eye to lens. {Of course! And this time well beat whatever bullshit being comes for us!} she declared.
I chuckled lightly at her response.
"Francis?" a voice suddenly called out to me from below. I looked down to see Uriel watching me with curious eyes.
"You're awake?" I asked. I was surprised since she had fallen asleep earlier before I left.
"Mhm, I woke up after you left, I tired going back to sleep but...i couldn't" she said shily, her verdant green eyes looking at me like a kicked puppy.
"Can I come up?" She asked, casting a weary glance to...Quinella?
Don't tell me she's jealous of a flying eye?
...well, I guess she's not wrong for seeing her as a competitor for my affections since me and Quinella are basically soulmates or sum bullshit close to that. Ghost and Guardian are partners for life after all.
Raising my hand, i shifted the gravity around Uriel. She gently floated up on the roof before resting her right next to me.
A deadly silence followed.
I could feel Uriel slowly scooting closer to me, her hand getting closer to mine. And... Quinella as well...
Uriel's hand finally intertwined with mine as we were now shoulder to shoulder, her head rested on my shoulder as the uncomfortably big moon shun its light down on us. And quinella just perched on my other shoulder. Not like she could do much since she didn't have a body.
I could feel she was jealous? and a bit of anger. She feels like she's going to have me stolen away from her.
Hehehehe~ OUCH!
Quinella seemed to have noticed my teasing thoughts and smacked the corner of her Ghost shell on my head. She huffed angrily, but she never moved away from me.
"Uriel?!" Another voice called out to us, although this time it was for Uriel.
'Who the fuck is it this time?!' I thought in annoyance as my sudden romantic moon watching was interrupted.
I look down and saw three...people.
"..."
*INHALE*
*EXHALE*
If these people are who I think they are, I'm gona crash out.
The first one was a boy with short blonde hair and turquoise eyes, he looked like he was around my age. He was also holding a basic sword at hand.
The second blondie was a girl that also looked around my age with blue eyes and a long hair braid going down her back.
And the third blondie looked younger and had a sort of brown honey blonde color hair along with a braid going down her back, she seemed like the younger sister of the first girl.
"Eugeo? Alice? Selka?!" Uriel said with surprise.
'Fuck, fuck, and fuckity fuck' I thought in my mind grimly, Uriel had just confirmed my fears in three words. Now I have even more problems to deal with.
Uriel jumped down from the roof and landed on the floor safely with her monstrous strength.
She rushed at the three, embracing them all in a tight hug as tears ran down her eyes.
huh, maybe they're also survivors of her village?