*
"... Lay me down, I can walk." (Taneda)
"Are you not afraid? There was that A grade who was fighting you earlier, before we got to you guys. She seemed quite strong. " (Arin)
"... I got my memory wiped, not lobotomised. If you don't know them, then it's probably one of you predecessors. Our history spans more than a day, I'm well aware of them. Go home. " (Taneda)
" I see. Thank you. " (Arin)
***(Sariel)
"... What... What's going on? " (Lastia)
She awakes as a blank slate, Sariel holds her breath with pressure building up in her lungs. Her lips pursued tightly as she racked her mind, not knowing how to explain that she would lose her memories in a few moments. They've fought late into the night, it was at least 10 pm, maybe 11.
How could she break it to Lastia that... Her existence was more fleeting than that of an insect's? It's not like 24 hours not counting the amount of sleeping hours was longer than an insect's lifespan, but this... It was far worse...
"Pain... You are in pain. Why? My memories... They aren't there, are you perhaps feeling guilt for it? For something you caused? Or something you couldn't protect?" (Lastia)
"... B... Both..." (Sariel)
Her tears inevitably pooled up, she wanted to run away as far as possible into the vast world right now... But she didn't want to cower from facing Lastia either. Thus contradiction caused a friction in her heart, one that's so great it grinded down her emotional integrity and released her sentiments all at once.
She sat over Lastia whom was layed over her lap. Her tears gather and fell gently onto Lastia. She was roughly recovered but she felt it awkward to sit back up and wipe herself. So she cupped her hand and traced Sariel's cheek.
"If you are willing to cry this much over someone else, I couldn't imagine what made you do the sacrifice...
You cherish her, don't you?" (Lastia)
"Yes... She's gone. She's always gone..." (Sariel)
She choked her words out, her heartbeat had regained her calm but her spit had uncontrollably gathered in her throat. Her body worked consciously as she got confused, causing her not to swallow subconsciously.
"Always? You... The best thing you can do, is to treasure the next one then.
It won't be me, wouldn't it?" (Lastia)
She was no longer tearing up, her composure had returned by now having getting all her grievances out. It was like the last hurdle set for her by Lastia. Words carefully laid out like a carpet, so she wouldn't get hurt any longer. It was a inherent kindness found in a blank slate, knowing her time was short and only knowing such, Lastia decided to be kind.
"It won't... It will continue, and I can't stop it. I've only met you this year, but it must feel like an eternity for you who will never meet the other 'you's." (Sariel)
A world foreign to her who couldn't bring up any faces to mind. For she who couldn't empathise, she could only scream into the void. Futility, the pressure of futility crushes her.
"... It's time you stop looking down. Look into the sky, look at the stars. Isn't it beautiful?" (Lastia)
A gleaming smile blooms on her face, outshining the light of the moon and stars. Her narrowed eyes and wide unadulterated grin momentarily took Sariel's breath away. She quickly noticed this lapse and turned to gaze at the sky, observing the individual points burning fiercely amidst the ever expanding void. A crescent moon mostly concealed by clouds peeks through at the edge of her peripheral vision.
What thoughts were swimming through their heads at this moment? Sariel couldn't read her one bit. It felt like Sariel was the only one being helped, despite not being the one who was cursed. The stars and moon... They sure look pretty tonight, but they don't help much at all. They never do. They're so far away, and they're inanimate, how would they help?
However, Sariel had a guess as to what Lastia was trying to tell her.
"Just because it's impossible now, it doesn't mean I have to give up. Things have not ended yet, I shouldn't focus on failure, but I shouldn't forget about it either." (Sariel)
Lastia silently nodded. She was told to look at the stars, ever so unreachable but also useless in her situation. Lastia wanted to take her eyes away from her pain, yet the futility will still remind her of it. The person in question was asking her to move on, and that she should try her best for another day.
"I... Don't know how to thank you." (Sariel)
"Have you been... Worrying for a long time?" (Lastia)
Sariel nodded, firmly looking into Lastia's eyes. With a renewed vigour, she readied herself for any request.
"... Do you know when my curse started?" (Lastia)
" It was somewhere around last year, it was successfully hidden by the first few 'you's, so nobody knew when exactly did it start." (Sariel)
"When did we first met?" (Lastia)
"This year..." (Sariel)
"So someone else knew about the curse before we met, how many people are privy to it?" (Lastia)
"Just me and Arin. Arin was the one who knew about your situation since last year, she must have helped numerous times to cover for you, so the rest of society wouldn't have any suspicions.
She's reckless and suspicious, she's hiding her true intentions and never tells me what they are, all while skirting around it in conversation. It's so agitating!! " (Sariel)
Lastia chuckled, bring her right hand to her lips.
" Fufu! Sounds like you guys are pretty close. Maybe it's just a misunderstanding? " (Lastia)
" No way! She admitted as such, saying she has an objective she wouldn't ever tell me, then acting mysterious for the sake of it! What a pain!
There's also the fact that she doesn't seem all that concern about your curse, taking a very relaxed stance when it came to serious matters. " (Sariel)
Silence fell at her side, Lastia stared intently at the sky without pause. Her lips quivered and her body shifted around. Once she could no longer handle the discomfort, she turned to look at her surroundings, observing the nearby damaged buildings and cracked sidewalks. There were multiple patches of black residue, as if the surface had been burnt off. Yet she sat in a comfortable posture, the girl at her side gave her a sense of security.
"... Who am I?" (Lastia)