“Aaauuu…~ I’m tired…”

The dimension we are before collapses and before I knew it, we returned to at front of the moon statue. The breeze, the mountain, the clouds and even the insignia from before feels like an illusion vanished in the air like a bubble.

Merissa’s golden armor, forging hammer, and the overflowing power disappears like they are not even there in the first place. She sprawls on all four on the ground lifelessly, unmoving like all of her strength left and the glow she has earlier cannot be seen anymore.

Instead, someone else is glowing…

“I was able to fuse yours and the goddess soul together with the soul spar. But to think that I was able to tap…no… I didn’t do anything to that.”

“What did? What are you talking about?!”

“You don’t know?! Other than the power of the goddess the resonated within you now, a new power of a divine activated! Look behind you!”

A golden insignia like what Merissa had earlier floats behind me. I just started realizing that not only magic but there’s something else welling up inside me. The power that I am feeling right now keeps rising.

Also, my soul weapon, the crescent blade, changes its appearance. The blade that it has before completely disappeared but the crescent itself becomes bigger and it is decorated with archaic lines and a big round sapphire stone at its base.

“Merissa…! What should I do?! I became weird!”

“Your twin sister has a perfectly matching glow, together with the insignia behind you. It’s a bit rude to say weird, you know.”

 “B-But…! How can this help with our situation?!”

“Ahhh… I don’t know…I’m sorry…I am too tired to move by my own too…! Why don’t you try doing something?”

“Ehhhh?!!”

Is she seriously telling me to do something about this power that I just got?! What if I blow up this cave by accident!?

But I guess I don’t have much choice and we won’t get anywhere if we keep staring at each other. After witnessing Merissa did her best, I cannot back down now and I have to do my best. This power, I shall use it and become more powerful!

If I am worried of how Hibiscus feels, if I am worried about people around me, and if I am worried about the future, then all I have to do is simple, straightforward and bold!

I am going to hear it from Hibiscus herself and I will have her tell everything to me what she wants, what she thinks and how does she feel! I will do the same to the people around me, without putting up any more airs or unpleasant attitude. I will talk to them with open-mindedness.

For the future ahead, for the uncertainty to come, for the unknown to behold us, I will do everything to best it together with people that truly care for me!

Goddess from another world, for you who have come into this foreign place, to this place that for you, is full of uncertainty and unknown, please, lend me your power and I shall use it to grant yours and my desires!

Please, Goddess Artemis…

WHOOSH

BAM!

I open my eyes from my deep and long contemplation until power gathers in my soul weapon as I slightly float from the ground. Something violent released from my soul weapon that shook the whole place. What entered my view is the sight of destruction as cracks appear from everything around me. The ground beneath was gouged and the walls around me like there’s a transparent spherical thing around me.

“Ca! CA!!! CASABLANCA! S-S-S-S-STOP! You’re crushing me!!”

“Merissa?!”

I immediately deactivated my power and the glow from my soul weapon disappears. Merissa who got pressed on the ground made a slight groan as she looks at me tearfully.

“That hurts! Good thing I am a dwarf with high vitality!”

“S-S-Sorry! I don’t know what I am doing!”

“I am not that young for this kind of punishment…”

“Ueee…”

“It’s a joke, although my back kind of hurt a bit…”

“I don’t have any idea what was that! I don’t understand one bit what kind of power is that!”

“It seems to me that you made everything heavier around you. Applying pressure? No. Is it weight manipulation? Seems not like it either…”

As Merissa started thinking deeply about what kind of power is that, I play with a stone that picks up and practices my power. I made it float up and down from my palm and gleefully swirls it in the air. With great curiosity, I have an idea of crushing the rock under my power, in an instant, contrary to my expectation that the stone will blast from the inside but, from my power, the stone becomes dust.

Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.

The odd situation made me flabbergasted and it caught Merissa’s attention. I look at her with widened eyes as the stone earlier that turned into dust slips into the pit of my fingers as I loosely grasp it.

“That’s it!!!”

“Eh?! Eh?! EEHHHH?!”

“Gravity! You can manipulate gravity!! What astounding power! You’re going to be a symbol of a new hope!”

“What is that?! What in the world is that kind of power?! I never heard of it before! From what happened to the stone earlier…it sounds…scary…”

“Ah…right…It’s scary. It is indeed a scary power…gravity. You hold the power that bends one of the realities of this world, one of its laws, a law that controls the weight and density of everything. With that power, you can virtually destroy everything you desire.”

“I don’t want that! I don’t want to destroy!”

“Good! That’s good!  Keep in mind that you don’t want to destroy using that power. But there are lots of ways to use it too, you know!”

“How?”

“I will teach you. For now, listen to me carefully, okay?”

“Yes!”

.

.

.

Everything around us is parting away.

The soil, the water, and almost everything are being plowed with ease. Riding in my soul weapon, the Crescent Moon, together with Merissa, we made our way toward the surface as I cut through everything with my power.

The power surges inside me like a waterfall as I learn more and more how to use it. I am kind of getting used to it as I learn from Merissa its underlying concepts and rules. These rules and concepts that she keeps telling me is all jumbled in my mind and I don’t understand half of it but she do her best to exemplify to make things easier to understand.

And here it is…

SPLASH!

Merissa and I emerge from the depth of the sea. I rapidly fly straight towards the sky. The glow that I have earlier becomes much brighter and gleams that everything below us, the ships and even the huge devil, stops from fighting.

I raise my hand in the sky, grasping what little knowledge I briefly learned, I gather power at my hand commands that power, gravity. A pillar of light shoots out from my body as I boldly show the brilliance of the Goddess Artemis power.

“[Paradise of Arcadia!]”

My power extends throughout the vast sea at an unimaginable distance.

The violent and raging sea that created so many waves becomes still and the torrents are quelled. Using this power, I also dispel and disperse the whirlpools that were trapping all of the ships. The clouds above us clear away and showed the dusk befalling upon the horizon.

“Amazing! Ca, you’re like a true goddess that calms the storm!”

“It’s all thanks to you! I would not have made such choice because of my worries and burdening indecisiveness.”

“It’s fine! In the end, it’s the strength of you own feelings has made you stronger! Also, remember about our secret, okay?”

“Yes!”

“Okay…drop me off in our ship!”

I quickly descend towards the SS Iowa who is performing a rotation attack at the devil. All the ships are neatly lined up at four directions of the giant devil and fire their attack in quick succession before shifting and sailing into another row.

“Ah! Goodness! Asagao went and did something beyond my expectation!”

As we are closing in our ship, Asagao together with another man who seems to be Merissa’s vice-captain is already waiting for us. Merissa and I land on the ship and Asagao immediately approach us.

“Casablanca! I knew it! That divine power that I felt somewhere came from you! Also, Merissa, thank you for saving Casablanca!”

“I am responsible for the three of you after all…”

“Merissa is so cool!”

“Asagao, did you do all of this?! That complex formation of the ships!? Or rather, isn’t it already a fleet under your command?!”

“Ahh…”

Merissa asks as Ferd assists her in getting down from my crescent moon. Asagao’s face pale as if she remembers something terrible but is able to put up a thumb up towards us with a heart and cute smile.

“Seems like it, huh…with the whirlpools are gone, we can escape now but, how about it, Casablanca? Do you want to defeat that giant devil?”

“I don’t know…! More importantly, where’s Hibiscus!?”

“There…”

A blazing bird with a dark brilliant flame is flying towards our ship.  At the top is Hibiscus riding it. It seems that the bird is Emby…

They land on the ship and the dark flames diminish to nothing. Emby returns to his normal size and Hibiscus eyes focuses on me. She walks towards me at a slow pace with calm and composed eyes.

“Casablanca…I’m…I’m glad that…you made it back…and it seems…you became stronger now too.”

“Hibiscus…”

“I…I am worried… I am so worried that I lost my mind… but your powers have shaken me to sanity.”

“Hibiscus…please…I want to know you more.”

“Where is this coming from…? Haven’t we known each other since we are little?”

“No. Hibiscus…I want to know more…about how you feel, about what you desire…I want to grow up with you and have a deeper bond…so please…stop holding back for me…Right now, please, stop acting like it is fine…”

Hibiscus approaches me slowly. I may be wrong but still, I want her to show more of her true intentions and emotions.

She looks down for a moment as she clenches her fists.

As she lifts her face again, tears flood her eyes and her face is contorted in so much sadness and pain. She then leaps toward me as she let out a sobbing feat. I caught her in my arms and with the weight of her leap has us both falling into the wooden floor.

Her tears drench both my face and chest as she cries. She buries her face on my bosom while trembling.

“Uwaah! *sob* Casablanca!! Casablanca!! I thought I’d lose you! I thought that I will never ever see you again! You are the only reason for me to live!!”

“Hibiscus, I am so happy to hear that from you. But you know, I don’t want you to be ashamed of yourself, I want both of us to shine. I want both of us to further know each other and what changes we will go through.”

“Casablanca…”

“I will protect you and you will protect me. Together, we will grow and explore more of this world! I can’t say that we will be together forever but we connected at heart whatever happens.”

“Even if we find ourselves fighting an enemy like this one…”

“Together! No one will be left behind! That’s why…we will be fighting with hand held!”

Hibiscus smiles at me and I smile back as I confirm that she wanted me so bad that she lost her mind when I was gone. It is a side of hers that I truly didn’t know up until now. I feel warmness in my chest and her warmth colliding together and made me feel everything around me is covered in flowers.

“Then, you two, even if I don’t want to, do you want to fight that thing?”

Asagao came over to us with a smile plastered on her face but she visibly cried a little judging from the soreness of her eyes. She is one of the people I look up to because of her unbreakable courage and braveness but still able to be gentle and carefree despite the situation and a very cute and beautiful existence that made me and Hibiscus closer than ever.

“Don’t worry Asagao. Have you seen Casablanca’s power? It’s super awesome! Also, you’d make a great captain, you know that, Asagao?”

“I refuse that notion but, if Merissa says so, I guess this blooming hunch of mine will also trust the two of you. In return, please, trust me too in the future.”

Hibiscus and I nod from Asagao’s words and we stand up side by side. The devil is already coming for us and we have to hurry and defeat it!

Asagao came to the two of us.

She holds our hands in unison and interlocks it her fingers with ours. Her hand feels so soft and warm. I also hold Hibiscus’ hand and in return, she firmly grasps back mine. And with a relieve and gentle face, Asagao said…

“[Divine Ascension!]”

Pillar of light covers the three of us. Because there’s already an insignia behind me, only Hibiscus insignia reappears. But, I feel like our powers resonated with each other.

My crescent moon glows vividly as power courses the three of us. Emby becomes the gallant and noble Phoenix that fiercely yet amazingly blazes. Our body gleams so much that befalling night sky seems like a bright day.

As Asagao finishes, she let go of our hands. Before she completely parts with it, she brought our hands together and had it clasps each other.

“Take care you two. Come back to me, please.”

“Watch us!”

“Asagao, Casablanca and I will defeat that!”

I look at Hibiscus eyes.

It was full of determination and she is brimming with confidence. Seeing such face, it made my heart bump and fluffy. I lean my forehead to hers and she did the same.

After several seconds, we parted our hands and head. I immediately ride my crescent moon and she climbs up to Emby’s back and together, we fly towards the sky.

The stillness of the night becomes illuminated with our glow.

One represents the Sun.

One represents the Moon.

The devil becomes wary of our existence and directed all of its hostility towards us but, as long as I am fighting together with Hibiscus, I can feel now that our foolishness evolves to bravery.

Together…

“Hibiscus!!”

“Casablanca!!”

“”Together!!””

“[Asterism – Eclipse!]”