“I’ll meet you soon…? But aren’t you… here?” I say.

What is she talking about? Even if I’m meeting her for the first time, I can't just accept it when they say that I’ll meet them soon. It’s weird.

“Exactly. You’ll meet me on your journey to Diacis.” She says.

“So it means that I have now met you and that I’m on a journey to Diacis?” I ask.

She sure has a roundabout way of saying that she’s here to meet me.

“No. you’ll meet another me sometime later.”

Another… her…? What…? She’s going to make my head spin. What does she intend to say? Does she have a twin or something?

“You mean there is someone that looks like you?” I ask.

“Nope. It’s going to be me in this time. I’m from the future.” She says.

From the future? That is a ridiculous thing to say. That is not possible.

“You must be some monster trying to deceive me into being your food. I’m going back.” I say. I turn back on my feet and start pacing back to the campsite.

“You’re looking for a way to put multiple attributes in a barrier right?” I hear from behind.

“How do you…?” I say.

I have never in my life told a single soul about my goals. Not this or the other Research about element infusion. There shouldn’t be anyone that knows about this. This is the secret research I do aside from my public ones.

“I am your old friend in another timeline.” She says.

What does she mean to say…? My old friend?

“The best way to do it is to use a [Manickett] infused with multiple elements. Actually achieving it is another thing though. You’d need your Element infusion to do that. And I doubt that you’ve completed it by looking at you. It was much later when you succeeded in it.” She says.

She even knows about the Element Infusion…? How…?

“How… Do you know all of this…?” I say in a small voice.

I’m trying to be as careful as possible but every time she is catching me off guard.

“I just told you. I’m your Old Friend from the future.” She says.

“But how…?” I say.

“the only solution to your Multiple Attributed Barrier is a multiple Element [Manickett], but a living thing should be able to do it if one has all the elements.” She says.

“I have tried that… But it does not work…” I say.

She is sparking interest in me. I need to talk to her… I feel like it. There is a feeling of nostalgia in my heart, but there isn’t supposed to be anything like this since I met her for the first time.

“Humans cannot do it with their limited intellect and their bodily limitations. But higher beings like Elder Dragons should be able to do it if they possess multiple Elements. Not that I have seen an Elder Dragon with multiple attributes. There should have been one… but…” she says and stops.

“But what…?” I ask.

“I’ll tell you later. Can I please talk to you for a bit…?” she says, her eyes turning to me with a sparkle of nostalgia and regret.

“Is it really true…? That you are from… the future…?” I ask again.

“You once told me that no one knew about these things you were working on. And they were accomplished by me and you together, making me and you co-researchers too. Does that not suffice for you?” she says.

“It indeed is very true that no one knows about my research but…” I stop.

“’ Fervie, Whenever you see a shooting star, Imagine that it’s me looking over you. As I will always be with you, even in the afterlife.’” She says.

These words stir up a storm in my heart.

“How do you…?” I ask.

“These were the words your mother told you when she was on her deathbed, aren’t they?” she says.

“They are…”

A few tears well up in my eyes as I remember my mother’s eyes when they tried to focus on me as she said this.

“Okay… I’ll take you to my tent,” I say.

“Yes! I got in touch with you!” she says flinging up her one arm. She looks overjoyed.

I walk back to the campsite as she flies behind me. A moment passes by.

“You know, Fervie, I’ve been through a lot…” she says.

I can just imagine from looking at her. She must have lost her arm and her eye in a terrible situation. Her wing is also a bit torn. If the damage exceeded she wouldn’t be able to fly.

Why do I not find her size surprising? It’s because I’ve studied about her race in my school before. Fairies are very rare and they seldom come out. They live in the Forest of Alfera and they never show themselves. For her to be out of the forest must be something very dire.

We eventually arrive at the campsite where Gild was standing on guard, looking around for something.

“I can't be seen by someone other than you.” She says and hops into my hair.

“Um. It tickles.” I say.

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

“Bear it until you get to your tent, ‘kay? Not being seen by anyone but you were a major condition. Or it could mess up things.” She says.

How would being seen make things worse?

I walk towards the barrier and step inside. Gild looks at me and immediately run over.

“Miss Fervina! Are you alright? I heard a loud sound around here.” He whispers to me.

“No no. I’m alright. I just took care of a monster on my way.” I say.

“Thank god… I was too worried I guess, he-he…” he says as he cheerfully chuckles.

[Ah. It’s him.]

“Huh?”

“What is it Miss Fervina?” asks Gild.

“Ah. Nothing. I’m gonna go to bed now.” I say.

“Then excuse me for getting in your way.” He says as he steps to one side.

I start walking toward my tent in fast walk.

“How can you speak in my head…?” I say.

[Telepathy.]

“You can do that?” I ask.

[A long life brings many experiences and skills with it.]

“How long have you lived?” I ask.

[2000 years.]

“Huh?!”

[Keep it down, Fervie. Or your man will run over at once.]

“My man…?” I ask.

[Oops. I’m not supposed to say that.]

“What is it? Tell me. Don’t leave it there!” I say.

[Forget it. You’re supposed to live how you should without knowing the future.]

“Future? Do you mean to say…?” I ask.

[I just told you to forget it!]

“Okay…”

We walk into my tent and she pops out of my hair.

“Ah. I’m stuck. Your hair isn’t smooth as they get later.” She says.

“How rude!”

I help her get untangled from my hair and she gets out, flying in the air.

“So what is it you wanted to talk to me about?” I ask.

She flies over to my bed and lands on it.

“Can I lie down?” she asks.

“I don’t mind…” I say.

She touches the bedding with her small hand and then with the support of her arm, she lies on the pillow.

“It’s been so long… since I’ve rested like this…” she says.

Just what happened to her? I can see a wide range of unusual emotions in her eyes.

“What happened to you…?” I finally ask.

“ME? It doesn’t just involve me… the whole world… it was the whole world…” she says.

What involves the whole world? Why did she lose her arm and eye?

“I know what you’re thinking. I’m actually from this world in an Apocalyptic timeline. Well… most of the timelines involving this world are… terrible.” She says exuding exhaustion.

“Do you mean to say that your world got destroyed…?” I ask.

“Yes. And it all happened because you made a wrong choice.” She says.

“Me…?” I say.

Laying down the fate of the whole world on my shoulders or blaming me for it’s fall isn’t fair.

“Well, it isn’t fair to say that since no one knows what will happen in the future. That is why I’m here. I’m here to fix it.” She says.

“Can you tell me what happened…?’ I ask.

“Yeah. When you and I traveled together… We met an Elder Dragon. She was the Earth Element. Her name was Gelda. You got acquainted with her and she liked you a lot. One day, Gelda found out about a portal opening up somewhere and she asked you to come with her to see what it was.” She says and stops.

Her pattern of breathing… it’s changing. What’s wrong? It sometimes becomes extremely low and then goes back to normal…

“Are you… Sick…?” I ask.

“Sort of. But not really.” She says.

She stops for several moments to stabilize her breathing, then starts speaking again.

“You told me to stay behind and wait. I don’t know why you did that but I should’ve gone with you to help you guys. Maybe you did it because you had a bad feeling.” She says and stops again.

“So I met you in the future…” I say, thinking about what she’s saying.

“Then, when you guys got there, you faced an enemy that an Elder Dragon couldn’t even handle. They called themselves The Devils. Gelda got corrupted and before she could be taken captive, she created an egg with her skill. She tries to give you that egg, wanting to leave behind something that was her memory, so that you could bring her back one day. But then….” She stops.

Tears well up from her and they slowly fall on her cheeks, below her ears.

“Then… I saw you… die. A beam shot out of the portal. It hit you in your belly and opened a hole. You slumped on the ground. I saw this all because we were connected through a skill. Do you know what you said when you were on your last breaths? ‘Twixie, Whenever you see a shooting star, Imagine that it’s me looking over you. As I will always be with you, even in the afterlife.’” She says.

“What…?”

“Yes. It’s the line your mother said. That’s what you said to me because you knew I was watching. By the time I got there, your body had been taken by them and I had nothing left. No motivation. Nothing.” She says.

Tears dropped down, as she spoke with her broken voice.

“ Do you wanna know what happened next?” she asks.

I didn’t think that an apocalyptic world would be like this…

“A century later, they came back. One person they had in particular. She was Gelda’s Daughter. The egg Gelda had wanted you to take had been nurtured and turned into a humanoid monstrosity. Her hair was pure silver and white, with strands of colors on their ends. Each color represents her element. Gelda’s Daughter had all of the elements. Her eyes were Ruby-Red, along with her pointy teeth which made her pale skin even more beautiful. But what was opposite to her beauty was that she was cruel and ruthless. She didn’t know Gelda was her mother...” She says.

So Gelda’s daughter was corrupted and then she worked with them…

“They came and slaughtered every single living being in our world. The most terrifying of them were those creatures. They towered as if they were moving mountains. They blared loud sounds to intimidate and blasted beams to destroy everything. We tried everything in our power to stop them but… we couldn’t do a thing against Gelda’s daughter.” She says and stops, her breath now ragged enough that she was now gasping for air.

“Are you okay?!” I ask.

“Water…” she says in her broken voice.

I spring on my feet and run out of the tent. I grab a glass of water from outside and get back inside.

I help her drink it through her small mouth.

“Thanks…” she says.

“It isn’t a problem…” I say.

“I think they killed Gelda when they took her to raise the egg… one thing I had resolved to do was to fix this. They took harvested our world’s mana and left it destroyed. I was the only soul left in that world. Since I had all the time in our world I worked and worked and worked until I somehow found a way. A way to redo things. But every timeline I went to showed me that the world would be destroyed. Until… I saw her. Yes. Her again. Gelda’s Daughter. But she wasn’t with them this time… she was with me… and she was the one who defeated them. But she couldn’t save Gelda… either way, she can save us.” She says.

So This Gelda’s Daughter is the person that will save the world?

“Fervie. Save the egg somehow. Nurture it and save this world. It’s too late for my timeline to be saved but, you can save this world. It all lies on you…” she says.

But… how…?

“I don’t know… if I can do that…” I say.

“Of course, you can. What are you best at?” she asks.

“Magic,” I answer.

“Travel the world as you dreamt of doing in my world. Gather every magic spell you can and put it in a place to nurture Gelda’s Daughter. Me, You, and her are the saviors of this world.” She says.

“ Gather all the magic you say…? Fine. I’ll do it. But how do I nurture the egg…?” I ask.

“You won't be able to do that without a natural source. Magma is the purest and richest source of mana. That is what I learned in my world. Use it. And one thing. Be extremely careful when the time comes, as you try to save the egg.” She says.

“I will,” I say.

I don’t know but I feel I should take this very seriously.

“Unfortunately… I don’t have much time left…” she says.

What? What is she saying? Does that mean she’s going to go back?

So you’re going back?” I ask.

She pauses.

“No. I have used all of my energy, my life force, to travel between timelines. I’m not as young as I look.” She says.

Does that mean…? She’s going to die…

“Fervie… can you say my name one last time…?” she says, tears sparkling in her eyes.

I wonder how much she’s gone through….

“Twixie…” I say as I stroke her blonde hair.

“You know? I’ve lost everyone. But it was quite good to meet you again. Promise me… that you… will fulfill… what I jus…t … said,,,” she says, her breathing now slowing down.

“I promise! Hey! Wait!” I shout.

“Than…k…yo..u…” she says and her breathing stops completely.

“Twixie!” I say reaching out to her.

The moment she closes her eyes, her body glows, then it turns into particles of golden light. The stream of light touches my cheek lightly and fades into the air.

Tears well up in my eyes, without any known reason.

“Huh?” I react to my flowing tears.

It seems that people are connected even if they are from different worlds.

I promise Twixie. I promise that I will do everything you said.

Her voice sparks a new fire in my heart. Afire that burns hotter than any other. I’ll do it. I’ll definitely do it. Wait for me okay?

Surely.