PART 1
“Who are you?!”
Crista sternly asked him while carefully retreated toward the living room. She placed herself behind a large sofa.
She tightened her clasp around the knife though one can see it trembling. She knew that the man is not a human, at least what she felt for now.
The mystery man simply followed her slowly and at ease.
“Milady, please put down your knife…violence is not necessary here this time.”
He said it with an occasional clearing of throat.
“Dang it! Who are you? A thief?”
Crista was so perplexed this time that heart beat wildly. She can sense something out of this man.
“Milady. Don’t you know me? Your acquaintance during those good, old days?”
“S-stop it? You’re lying.”
She shouted. The man only stood nonetheless.
“Ah is it because you forget something, Milady?”
“F-forget?”
She trembled. The man chuckled sneakily and summoned a staff hidden from his cloak to accompany his step. The man gave her no sense of danger and alarm anymore for the man was limp on his right leg and must have been forced to use his cane.
Cris’ sight followed him walking around slowly; the sound of the cane made her quiet. She has just realized that she lost her temper earlier and tried to pull herself together.
“Then, what would you know about me?”
Cris said confidently this time but a trace of fear can still be seen in her eyes.
If he knew something about her, then she must know it. She slowly put down the knife for she can felt that this man is defenceless and pitied.
“I knew who you are when you are very young…”
He said gently as possible.
“…but now you are far from the truth, Milady but I can see it… see it clearly in my eyes you still
possessed few of the traits… I am not disappointed at all.”
He said with charismatic voice. The man went thru and fro, his cloaked quivered from his sudden movements.
“Then, please let me know your name and stop calling me ’Milady’.”
Cris exclaimed with her fist curled up like an iron ball. The last sentence made the man paused from his pace and faced her.
“Hehehehe…even you hate your name and ordered me to call you Milady but must I proceed to?”
He chuckled a lot.
"Yes you will.”
Crista gulped some saliva.
“Ok then, Crista Monari-san. Your servant’s name is Hepton, thy pleasure is truly yours.”
The mystery man, Hepton, genuflected before her.
Crista was slightly amazed but kept her guard up.
“Hepton-kun, why are you here?”
Curiousness made her urged to ask questions, especially, his true motives toward herself.
“…what do you want?”
“Eh…simple Mi— I mean, Monari-san. Your royalty must return to the paradise once again.”
“Uh? Paradise? How?”
Cris was so confused this time; she was trying to know whether she was awake or dreaming.
“Monari-san. To prove its existence, the touch of my hand is neatly required.”
Hepton bowed down and offered his delicate palm in front of her.
Cris was awfully tempted, thinking the paradise raced her mind and made her right hand tickled but at the same time her consciousness and awareness toward any potent danger made her refused for a meantime.
The act made her sweat a lot, mouth curled in and hands number than ever. She tried to gather herself up but don’t know that she was shaking all over already.
“Just one touch…Monari-san.”
He reminded her charismatically with a hint of stern. He looked up and saw Cris dubious than ever.
He smiled but hid it under his cloak.
Cris was beginning to felt weird to herself.
At the very start, she had thought Hepton was a completer idiot who have gone mad and suffered severe delusions and broke inside her house to steal and acted before her.
…But her mind told her in the other hand that Hepton’s words are perhaps true and, even more intriguing, he seemed to have a relation to his past.
“What will happen if did it?”
“The answer lies in both of our hands, Monari-san.”
She went on slowly, closer to Hepton’s extended arm. She reached for it with a moment of shaking. A common sight in love shows but very opposite to what actually happened.
She was pushed by her guilt and the feeling of loss.
Upon touching the tip of his fingers, everything went into sudden upheaval. The world melted around her and like a steaming pot, all was stirred into myriads of crazy colors.
Cris closed her eyes in confusion, for she is afraid thoroughly. All of the scenery changed a hundred times in a flash.
When the cataclysm stopped, everything seemed to be paused and rearranged into another but respective order.
Cris opened her eyes and was very awed that she felt no more fear.
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PART 2
Everything seemed to be fuzzy for a while but Cris felt something about this place.
Instead of her house, she found herself sitting on a throne-like chair before a majestic long table laden with various cups, dishes, bowls and etc.
She also surprised that they were in a huge garden of strange flowers, plants and trees.
The sky is brilliantly clear before her.
The place was similar to Alice in the wonderland that Cris was always fond of reading it many times and even dreamt of making it.
The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
She realized that this is a dream come true.
However, one thing is queer among their structures; except for the blue skies, all are highlighted with red, Cris’ most favourite color.
“Where are we?”
Cris wonderingly asked. Everything in her sight seemed to be nostalgic for a mysterious reason.
It made her feel light and relaxed.
Hepton appeared beside her.
“Monari-san, this is the world you created a long time ago, Milady.”
“W-what?”
“Everything is so familiar eh? It is because you didn’t like to forget this wonderful place even though you went to the other world.”
“I don’t know about this, I’m just a human after all.”
“Human?!”
Hepton sneered and mocked.
“…those lowly beings are no more but nothing! Say, Monari-san, why do you consider yourself a human?”
“But it is true! My cousin told me when I—”
“But can you, Milady, know the truth behind those lies?”
Cris gasped. Eyes trickled. She was trembling by the way.
“…Do you know your mother…your father…or anyone your relatives!? Don’t you think she was just lying after all?”
“…………………”
“It is so simple to give you false memory don’t you think? Milady? After you left this precious paradise, everything is sad, forlon and void!”
“How dare you call that to my cousin!”
“It is so unfortunate how you have become like that after you’ve gone to the other world. In order to restore the paradise, I searched everywhere for you.”
Hepton’s voice became miserable this time.
“…most days, I can hear your mourning every day and night and to this grand day I have finally found you!”
Hepton produced something to Cris out of her right hand.
“In order to preserve the paradise, know the whole truth and became the dearest, the privilege of
the queen must be rightly given to you once again.”
He declared.
The object he currently held was a red crystal that glowed numinously on his palm.
“What is it?”
She asked in amazement. The crystal gave off an unnatural light.
Her eyes widened.
“This, Monari-san, is thing you use for creating this this imperfect world and now it seeks for you.”
Cris reached for it out of curiousness and upon touching the crimson gem, it absorbed right into her hand. Cris shouted in confusion as her right hand slowly cracked with red crystalline, creeping into her body and out.
Cris fell right into the ground, twitching violently as she loses her sense of control.
She gagged for air as the crystal slowly coated her slowly.
Strange, countless memories painfully flooded her innocent mind and into her heart. The memories of a being that she knew at the very start filled her mind.
Like a tomb, the crystal covered her entirely until no opening was out.
Hepton, who helplessly watched her, grinned as he was satisfied what was happening right now.
He mumbled something to her while she was ultimately cased inside the bloody crystal.
“The wish of milady has come true…as what you said Milady, you will use it for this Tobe-kun!”
Those are the last word Cris has heard faintly.
She still kept fighting on her consciousness, or perhaps her sanity, until she loses it.
And upon closing her eyes, she will become something that is far more ominous.
…Something that can shake the whole world and destroy.
The bright blood of moon that shines in her eyes before it closes is the start of the revival.
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PART 3
Tonight has a clear sky. The moonlight gently shines over the subdivision but another scene make it clear that something strange occurred.
*BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM*
A menacing smoke slowly rose up to the sky, underneath it glowed a wicked fire.
Many of the houses are destroyed already.
Mysteriously above those houses rose a red metallic sphere that glinted against the moon.
The phenomena happened right on Cris’ house and nearby houses.
Meanwhile inside the [Squairkraw] bay, Maximus and other crews of the ship witnessed the incident outside via the screen. It is also a main cause for the alarm to ring.
Maximus only grumbled slightly; his stern figure hasn’t change at all. Right behind him is a girl who could have been mistaken for a student if not for her commander suit. It was Maximus trusted commander, Ryuuka who is busily watching it as well.
The disaster has happened recently; large puff of smoke slowly filled the atmosphere. This ‘disaster’ is very different from usual.
“Our priority here is Tobe-kun and Yuki-chan, I want them here quickly!”
Ryuuka ordered sternly but can’t keep her hand from trembling in unknown fear. Maximus noticed it.
“Commander?”
“Nothing, Max. It is just this kind of incidence has happened many years ago.”
She said softly to him.
“…This is something where thousand has died and---disappeared like a wind.”
Ryuuka clasp her other hand and hid it behind her back.
“…Now if only I can prevent it this time.”
“I believe in you, commander. No one will fail this mission.”
Maximus complemented her. Actually, he has seen her as a tough and strong commander who is iron-willed. Everything she done is perfectly executed.
But something like this made her bothered enough to left her in a serious dilemma.
“Hurry, if we can’t get this time…the reavers will.”