When I opened my eyes again, the first thing I saw was a white ceiling. Beneath me was something soft and comfortable, like I was lying on something soft. I closed my hand and the feeling of something soft resurfaced beneath my fingers.
A sheet? I raised an eyebrow, then slowly dumbly realized I was indeed in bed. Turning my head to the side, I noticed another person lying on a bed a few meters away. 'Ethan?' I immediately recognized him, his sleeping face turned toward me. I tried to move but failed at first; my arms were too weak to support my body. Slowly, I managed to push myself up and eventually sat upright, though maintaining my balance was a bit of a struggle. I glanced down and saw I was still in my clothes. Good, I don't like being changed without my permission.
"Stelle, you're awake!"
Before I could muster a response, March suddenly appeared in my line of vision. My eyes widened as she wrapped her arms around me in a massive hug.
"Hello… March," I greeted her, squirming under her grasp, unable to move.
March eventually let go. Her face showed worry and concern as she asked "Are you alright? Are you hurt?" I stared at her and that's when she gasped "Oh I'm so sorry, did my hug hurt?"
"Yes, painfully so," I answered truthfully.
"Geez, do you really have to be that straightforward?" March pouted, sending a cute glare my way. I just stared blankly at her, showing it had no effect on me whatsoever.
I shrugged. "It's bad to lie."
"Hey!"
"March, I'm surprised that even inside this room, your voice can still be heard outside," a voice spoke as soon as the door opened, revealing Dan Heng.
"Dan Heng!" March's eyes brightened as she saw him.
I waved as Dan Heng approached us. "Are you alright, Stelle?" he asked.
I nodded, smiling. "I'm feeling better."
"Good. I hope March didn't do anything bad while I was gone," Dan Heng said, glancing at March.
Before she could respond, I cut in, "She did."
"Hey! You two are mean," March crossed her arms, pouting even more. "No, all three of you are mean, including Ethan."
I chuckled, much to her displeasure as she stuck her tongue out at me. I then turned my attention elsewhere. "Is Ethan alright?"
"He's fine, just asleep," Dan Heng replied.
"What happened to him? Did he get hurt?" I asked. I vividly remember pushing both Ethan and March out of the way to keep them safe from the attack, but I couldn't remember seeing Ethan get hurt. I couldn't help but worry.
"Stelle, like I said, he's fine. He has no physical injuries for you to worry about," Dan Heng assured me.
I blinked, tilting my head. "Then why is he hurt?"
Dan Heng shook his head. "That's... unclear for now. I have a guess, but I need his confirmation before concluding anything."
"Okay," I nodded as I attempted to stand up. My legs wobbled, and I nearly lost my balance, but thanks to March and Dan Heng's help, I was able to stand normally.
"You need to rest," Dan Heng suggested with a serious look.
"I'll be fine," I assured him, waving my hand dismissively. To prove it, I started walking but only to stumble and fall after two seconds.
"..."
"..."
I could feel their gazes on me, even without looking.
I stood up, wobbling in the process. I turned my head and smiled sheepishly. "Maybe not."
All I got in response, was facepalms.
+++===+++
Eventually, I stepped outside the medical room to get some fresh air. Dan Heng and March exchanged contact numbers with me as they handed me a phone before both of them left for the Astral Express, attending to matters they needed to handle apparently. Ethan was still unresponsive when I checked on him one last time, so I decided to let him rest and recover. Outside, I breathed slowly, letting the recent events flash through my mind. But the memory was cut short by a sudden sharp pain in my head, stopping that train of thought.
I stood there thoughtfully for a moment before shaking my head. 'I need to find Himeko.' Dan Heng had told me she wanted to discuss something with me, though he hadn't mentioned the reason. Finding nothing wrong with that, I decided to head there as fast as I could, not wanting to keep her waiting.
"Whoa, is that her?"
"That's the girl who fought the Doomsday Beast?"
"Are you sure? She doesn't really look like someone who defeated it…"
I heard murmurs from the onlookers as I walked through the master control zone, searching for Himeko. I glanced at them, and one of them flinched under my stare. I frowned in confusion. 'Was there something on my face?' Instinctively, I touched my cheek. It was as smooth as ever.
As I continued, I finally spotted Himeko near the railings, looking very relaxed with her slender arms resting on the sides. I approached her, and she noticed me right away, turning her head with a smile curving on her lips.
"You're awake. Are you feeling better?" she asked.
I nodded. "Yes, it was a pretty good sleep."
Himeko chuckled. "I can see that."
"So, what did you want to talk about, Ms. Himeko?" I asked, getting straight to the point.
Himeko blinked. "Let's wait a moment; she'll be here soon."
I tilted my head. "Who?"
"I've only been gone, what, a few months? And this space station is already in this state?" A voice interrupted, and I turned to see a small girl with purple hair approaching us. The more I looked at her, the more I felt like there was something different about her. though I couldn't quite place it.
I glanced back at Himeko. "A child?"
Himeko blinked at my words and couldn't help but place a hand over her mouth as she was trying to suppress her laugh.
"Who are you calling a child, twerp?" the little girl snapped, her eyes narrowing at me.
I looked back again at the purple-haired child, slightly shocked "Me?" I pointed at myself
The girl frowned, but before she could say more, Himeko spoke up.
"Welcome back, Herta," Himeko said, then turned to me. "Stelle, This is the true master of the space station—Genius Society member 83, Herta."
The girl, now identified as Herta, turned to Himeko, annoyed. "At least give me a proper introduction! Genius Society member 83… out of all my outstanding achievements, that's what you want to mention?" She huffed in displeasure.
After a moment of staring at her, I finally noticed what was different about her, particularly her shoulders. "You're a robot?"
Herta turned to face me. "What you're seeing here is one of my puppets. I'm using her to talk to you."
'She has more of them?' I thought both equally amazed and surprised.
"So this little twerp has the Stellaron now? Why?" Herta began questioning Himeko.
Aside from being called a "little twerp," which mildly annoyed me, I couldn't help but furrow my brows. 'A Stellaron? What's that?'
Himeko and I remained silent, and that seemed to be enough of an answer for Herta. She inspected me up and down for a few seconds. "Hmm, I'll have to take a good look." She smiled. Somehow I found that smile somewhat malicious.
"Oh, I see. This is truly a discovery," Herta said, her tone like that of a child finding candy. I just stood there as she seemingly scanned my entire body. How? I had no clue.
"What did you find, Herta?" Himeko asked.
"Truly Amazing, I would say" Herta commented with a genuine smile. "I built a whole space station just to contain this unactivated Stellaron and keep the Blue out of disaster, yet somehow someone was able to achieve that with this little twerp body. How did they do it?" Aside from her curiosity, there was a dangerous undertone in her voice that I couldn't quite pinpoint.
"Moreover, The stellaron is still stable inside of Stelle's body" Himeko noted with a look.
Herta nodded in agreement. "You're right. This little one's body is truly strange…"
"Don't call me 'little one,'" I pouted, feeling a tinge of frustration building up in my chest. Why am I treated like a child when there's a literal child in front of me? It's not fair!
Herta laughed at my words. "Hah! Compared to me, you are. How old are you, even?" Her somewhat arrogant tone made me blink in surprise and even wonder 'Is she really that much older than me?'
"Don't judge a book by its cover, Herta. Case in point, that puppet of yours is actually much smaller than Stelle here," Himeko pointed out, seemingly taking my side. I smiled and puffed out my chest in pride.
Herta rolled her eyes. "That's… beside the point," she replied evenly. "Hey, is this one the same kind as… who was that again? March 7th? If that's true…" Her words trailed off as a dangerous glint appeared in her eyes, which I found somewhat scary. "Can I bring her in for some research?"
I looked to Himeko, waiting to see what she'd say. She noticed my stare and shook her head. "That's not up to me to decide. It's your choice, Stelle"
I frowned a little as I turned to Herta. "Study what?" I asked.
Herta looked at me flatly, as if I were an idiot. "Study you of course, what else would it be? Your body contains a Stellaron, which, in some cases, is no different from storing a bomb. Who knows what might happen? Maybe it'll blow you to bits someday."
I shuddered at her words, the image of my body exploding briefly flashing through my mind. Before I could respond, she continued, "You should be grateful that this genius, me, of course, is willing to help you out. I'm very interested now, but once that interest is gone, I won't study you even if you beg me."
Herta's excitement flared suddenly before her expression returned to normal. "Be grateful that I'm offering to help you. This is a service even the IPC, no matter how rich they are, can't buy."
"You understand now, Stelle? It seems Herta here wants you to stay on her space station," Himeko said, amused.
Herta coughed lightly. "Well, I'm going to have to modify that wording: this little twerp can only stay temporarily until the research is done," she emphasized the word "temporarily," "or maybe I'll lose interest halfway through, and then she can just leave."
"And after that?" Himeko questioned her.
"Not my problem," Herta replied indifferently.
Himeko sighed. "Anyway, Stelle, you also have another option. If you're willing, the Astral Express crew still has room for new members. If you want, you can leave with us. The Express has its fair share of experience with Stellarons. The thing you're worried about, and the answers we're looking for, are one and the same. Besides, we can always come back and let Herta conduct her research on you. She's obviously fascinated right now."
Herta shrugged. "Hm, works for me. Keep this subject fresh, too. That way, I don't have to keep worrying about this little twerp all the time. Perfect!" she said, nodding happily.
"What do you say, Stelle?" Himeko asked.
I stood motionlessly, my brows furrowed as I placed my fingers under my chin, deep in thought. "I'll think it over," I finally said, deciding to clear my mind before making a final decision.
Himeko smiled.
"My advice would be to get on with it. You're not doing me that big of a favor by staying anyway. Just remember to come back often and make an appointment with Asta or Arlan in advance so I can make time to study you," Herta pointed out.
"There's no need to rush into this, Herta. Let Stelle have a talk with Asta first and whoever else she wants to see before deciding," Himeko said, turning back to me. "Stelle, I'll be waiting for you on the platform. There's no hurry if you still have things to do or people to see. Come find me when you've made your decision."
I nodded, smiling. "Alright."
Herta glanced at both of us. "So that's it for today. Call me if you need anything." With that, she left. Himeko followed soon after, leaving me alone. I placed a hand over my chest. *tellaron. A ticking time bomb. I thought, echoing Herta's words. It would be a lie if I said I wasn't worried. My thoughts drifted to Ethan. I wonder what he would say about this? There was something about him that felt different like we shared something in common. It could be wrong, but I trusted my instincts more than my mind. And my gut was telling me that there was indeed something going on with him. If I decided to accept Himeko's offer, it would be a shame to leave him behind, right?
I nodded, feeling determined. That's right. I'll do what it takes to bring him with me to the Astral Express. I had a feeling he would be very happy.