“Do… you want to hear a secret?”

The travels of Terra and Garnet continued. The longer they went, the dirty they appeared. It was hard to tell given the breaches in memory just how much time had passed. However, it was clear they were still working their way down. The two girls were sitting, and for some reason this night they didn’t set a fire.

“What is it?” Garnet asked.

“I… hate dungeons,” Terra spoke uneasily.

Garnet looked up in surprise. “Seriously?”

“The dark, the cramped spaces… they remind me of back then.” She lowered her head, looking like a wilted flower. “When I dragged the clockwork dragon with me down into the underground, I created a dungeon to trap it, but that dungeon wasn’t just its prison. It was mine too. I lived in that grave… the grave of my village, for longer than any human should be alive. The only reason I didn’t go insane was that father had designed the golem to have such a failsafe.

“So, I held on, year after year, isolated, alone, in the dark. Then, Master came. He came and he took me. He spared me from the darkness and brought me into the light. That’s why… that’s why I’ll do anything for him. That’s why I love him so much. He saved me from a living hell, and I can never repay that.”

“But, you’re an Earth Manipulator. You’re at your best underground. You go into dungeons with Master all of the time.”

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A small smile formed on her face, her eyes filled with tears. “I’m just putting on a front. Acting brave. The other girls are so strong and so fearless. If… if I let my true feelings out, then I’ll be left behind. Besides, it never felt bad, because Master was by my side. I could feel the bond, and it was like Master was beside me. I knew that no matter how deep I went into that darkness, that a familiar blue light would appear, and Master would come out and grab me.”

“Was…” Garnet bit her lip.

“The bond was cut. Even if he’s safe, he won’t be able to come down here. He won’t be able to find me. I’m alone.”

“Terra.” Garnet reached out and touched her leg. “You’re not alone. I’m here with you.”

“Y-yeah… I know.” Terra grabbed Garnet’s hand and held it. “I know.”

For the longest time, I had always wondered what the girls saw me. In my arrogance, I had always just put it up to my Charm Up, and my Slave Affinity. I had convinced myself that their love was just a random byproduct of me being me. Even when I came to accept their love, I continued to hold to this belief and instead accepted that charm was a natural aspect of a person and not something I should feel bad about.

I was afraid to take on the responsibility. I was afraid to understand and to listen. Seeing how Miki truly felt, I began to realize just how much these girls had been through. Some were slaves, living long lives of rejection and fear. Others were prisoners, trapped in dungeons and forced into a role they were never prepared to take. I knew their history, but I never focused on it. I was too busy moving forward that I never thought about looking back. Before I knew it, I couldn’t go back.

“Master…” Alysia could feel the emotions I had the strongest due to our body. “We’ll find them.”

I reached out toward Terra’s sad expression, “Don’t worry… I will pull you from the darkness, always.”

Her image disappeared, and new memory began.