Dusk fell upon the world as the sun fell behind the distant walls. The smeared, whisks of clouds turned a vibrant orange as they walked down vacant streets, watching families hurry away towards home whilst couples began their dates.
The melody played by the musicians shifted from brisk, excited tones to drawn out, romantic notes, fitting the change in atmosphere. Lampposts powered by Light Crystals, which were yellow crystals that naturally illuminated when exposed to the dark.
It depended on the number of faces that were cut into it. The more faces it had, the lower the threshold of light was required before it switched on. While Jury’s eyes were glued to the road ahead and taking in the mood with her two most precious people by her side, Frost ended up getting lost in how these crystals even worked.
She suddenly followed Nav’s eyes, believing she too was lost in the same train of thought. But to her surprise, it wasn’t the black and red lampposts that Nav was staring at.
“Pink skies are the most beautiful. Dusk and dawn are only temporary, but they have the most serene scenery. Would it not get boring seeing the same thing over and over again? Will it lose its magic over time?” What Nav engrossed over was the sky.
A bubbly sensation filled her chest, but at the same time, it was a weird uncertainty that caused Frost to tighten her grip around her hand.
“I don’t think so. Getting over them feels impossible. At least for me. I’m not sure how someone living for over a hundred years feels.” She answered, looking around as travelers briskly moved indoors, whilst residents leisurely strolled around.
There was a place Frost wanted to visit before they returned to the Golden Index.
It was a certain music store located in the heart of the main H5 strip, owned by the family of the Green Composer. Frost did some digging around the legacy of the legendary Green Color. He was one of the first to pioneer a style of combat from a profession that was largely ridiculed in combat roles.
Conductors, Bards, Composers, Musicians – they never had large roles outside of warfare or as performed, but the Green Composer changed that. What made him soar in popularity was his willingness to side with the masses, rather than with private companies.
Colors in the past worked solely around power and money. There were things the powerful could not do without coins, and vice versa. With both, they were untouchable. He was widely known to be a generous man with songs that inspired countless.
So much so that an Impuritas Group was formed after him – The Maestos of Flesh, or simply the Hearts.
* * *
They eventually reached the double-storied store that glistened like a disco ball. Their wares could be seen through windows so transparent that none would be the wiser to believe there wasn’t any.
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It was closing time, evident by the people leaving in droves as the same pair of Severers from Act X guarded the entrance, carrying their giant weaponized scissors like a spear. Moving through the small crowd of murmurs and people testing out their newly purchased equipment, they eventually reached the glass doors where Frost greeted the Severers with a smile.
“Hello. Did the Script tell you to expect us?”
“Indirectly.” The one on the right answered hollowly, right before the one on the left continued, “We were only informed of your ascension by a Herald just moments ago. The timing was worryingly close… Please, you may enter, Amalgam and company.”
“Worriedly? Do you usually get them earlier?” Frost wondered, thanking them both with a nod as they pushed through, their voices suddenly causing major scuffling to occur somewhere deeper within the store.
“The timing. We receive a weekly Script precisely at 18:50:21. This one arrived at 18:55:50.” One pulled out a Script, detailing only two things – That Frost had ascended into the Nexus to assume control, and that to await the next Script next week.
“It may be a test of our faith.” The other one said with long, thoughtful hum. “To worry is to question. It is punishable by the Missionaries.”
“My faith is not questionable, only guaranteed. Should a Missionary come to sever my string, then so be it.” The other responded, unafraid of losing their life over something so miniscule in Frost’s eyes.
“If that’s all it takes to upset a Missionary, then it’s a miracle that Act X has any personnel left.” Frost sighed, the Severers idly staring ahead. They didn’t take offence to it. Rather, they simply did not care. “Loyal to the bone. Do you enjoy serving the strings?”
She couldn’t even see the light of their hearts. Their flame of purpose and sense of self had long been snuffed out.
“Enjoyment is not a factor we consider. Such a thing is unnecessary.”
“We only consider the necessities. Our wants are not our needs.”
There was no way Frost or anyone else could get through to them. They were a lost cause. The Severers were individuals that served Act X like they were the drones of a hive, embarking on menial tasks, and occasionally severing the strings of Actors and Neophytes.
They were strong, but nowhere close to the Missionaries, the aces of Act X, were able to cut down Heralds and conduct relations with the most dangerous of groups. Jury greeted them too, garnering only a cold stare as they ventured deeper into the store.
Nav, however, stopped in her tracks to look over her shoulder at the two with a curious expression.
“You’re not machines. So why are you anchored to a purpose like one?” She asked. “You were born free.”
Both then suddenly stared at Nav with their hollow eyes as they ominously answered:
“But we were not designed to be free. We Insectids know that the best.”
Nav’s stare lingered on them as she pondered on the difference between birth and design. She wasn’t born like the rest. She was designed with a purpose in mind. To look over the Captured Star long, long ago.
Their answer caused something to bubble in her cold, icy chest as she recalled the Arbiter’s relinquishment of her duties.
She was free. She had confirmation from her creator…
… Nav brought a hand to her eyes, turning away from their hollow ones as she turned back to her closest friends.
They couldn’t have appeared so much further away all of a sudden. She was frozen temporarily, and her mind began to swirl as her gaze fell down to herself. Then, before dark clouds further poison her mind, she felt the ample, warm hands of her friends as they grasped onto hers.
“Nav~” Jury hummed.
“Let’s go.” Frost warmly spoke as the two of them dragged her forward, cleansing all worries like a ray of sunshine.
Nav then smiled, right as a certain blonde-haired girl came barreling down the central isle, her arms wide open as she aimed straight for Jury.
“Yes. Let’s.”
“You’re back Black Dove! And the White Rabbit is here! And… the Blue Caterpillar!”
Nav had been called many things before, but this was certainly a first.