"The story of life is quicker than the blink of an eye, the story of love is hello, goodbye."

Jimi Hendrix

****

The morning was dark and dreary, the wind blowing a chill down the spines of anybody unfortunate enough to be up at this early hour. The sun should have been peaking over the horizon, but the mass of dark grey clouds kept the morning light to a dim level. Despite the beginning of what would surely be a dismal day, a few early risers were already up and about, entering and exiting the city proper. Huddled as they were in warm clothes, desperate to keep as little skin exposed to the wind as possible, they paid little attention to the small group to the side of the city gates. Though a few did sneak passing glances at the two attractive women, who seemed immune to the chilly morning air.

"Do you have a change of clothes?"

"Yes dear."

"A fire starter kit?"

"Yes dear."

"An extra blanket?"

"Yes dear."

"A blade for disassembly?"

"Yes dear."

"Your P.L.S.S?"

"Yes, dea-. What? P.L.S.S?"

"Personal little sister security. An essential part of any adventure, I never leave home without one. If you get one now, we'll throw in a second for free."

Nero rolled his eyes at Claudia's joke. A part of him would dearly like to travel with the twins, but at the moment their abilities were too far apart. Either he would spend most of his time on the sidelines because he wouldn't be able to help or they would waste time finding low-level opponents for him. Neither option was optimal. So he was setting off by himself, with only Jorry to accompany him, until he reached a level high enough to not be a burden. Nero figured that as long as he got within fifty or so levels of the twins, it would be okay to travel together.

"How long are you two planning on staying in town?" Rather than respond, Nero decided to change the subject.

"A few more days," answered Octavia. "We'll be heading to Valiskali soon, and we'll be there for a long time, so we are buying a bunch of supplies and the like. It'll be a while before we can be self-sufficient. Anyway, I have a few things for you, I managed to finish them last night." The creator reached behind herself and, seeming from nowhere, pulled out a sack.

"I thought there was no inventory system in Gods' Nature?" Nero couldn't help but ask.

"Don't you know, you're not supposed to ask a lady where she keeps her things?" Octavia said with a wink, drawing another eye roll from her brother. Reaching into the bag, The Banker retrieved a pair of leather boots. "I figured a bit of protection is better than nothing," she said, looking at her brother's bare feet. "I removed the soles and added a few straps to keep them in place while allowing you keep using your skill."

"Thank you," Nero said while taking the boots and putting them on. The straps around the bottom of his feet were thin, not interfering with the vibrations he could feel from the people walking by the group.

"I also made this jacket," Octavia then withdrew a thick leather jacket, there were metal plates around the shoulders, chest and back area. "Both are enchanted to be very durable and flexible. I figured that the reason you weren't wearing armor was that it got in the way of your movements. You won't have to worry about that with these."

Actually, the reason Nero hadn't bought any armor had more to do with price than anything, he wasn't very wealthy, and anything worth a damn was several dozen gold coins at a minimum. That was just for regular armor, anything that was enchanted or gave stat boosts were significantly more expensive. That and Nero just forgot about equipment for the most part, not really having a gamer mindset and desire for better gear. Contrary to what his Nature described, Kaesar saw nothing wrong with using human creations to gain an advantage, he just had not seen the point at the moment as he had focused on hand to hand rather than the use of a weapon. Of course, he saw no reason to tell all this to his sister.

"Thank you," he said again. He discarded his old jacket, well worn and faded in the months since he had bought it to help Jorry get revenge, and put on the new one. It was indeed warmer than the old one and, when Nero stretched his arms, there was much less resistance.

"Finally, this!" Octavia said proudly, drawing out something else from the sack. It was black hoop of sorts, one covered in white and grey lines, about the size of Nero's head. "One of my most magnificent creations! This is going to change the world!"

"What is it?" Asked Nero.

"The Hammer Space Hoop, or space hoop for short. Watch!" Taking Nero's old jacket and folding it up, the creator put through the hoop. As it crossed the boundary of the black material, the coat disappeared. "It's linked with one of the Bank's vaults, in this care ours, and any object that passes through it will be sent there. The only limit is the size, and it doesn't work on anything alive. So if you come across anything you think might be worth something on your trip just toss it trough here and it will be sent to our vault. No need to carry it around like the rest of the plebs."

"How come I've never heard about these before?" Nero stared at the innocuous object in wonder, well aware that the transporting of objects was one of the limiting factors for any major expedition. "Wouldn't everybody have one?"

"The same reason I won't be selling any of these," Octavia said, pointing to the choker on her neck that allowed her to speak to animals. "The material is rare at the moment, though unlike the chockers I know where I can get more, so I've only made ten or so. Once players get to level three hundred or so, we will be able to hunt Void Worms whose hide I need to make them, and they'll become more common."

"I think you are trying to buy my affection here," Nero joked as he put the hoop into his bag.

"Totally! Is it working?" Claudia asked excitedly.

"Sure, I'll just call you Sugar Mommies from now on."

"Was that sarcasm?" Jorry asked from Nero's shoulder, perking up at the thought. The little snake had taken a shine to the verbal art form.

"Did Jorry just talk?" Both twins asked excitedly, never having gotten a word from the snake before besides in a unique situation.

"Can you say my name? Say Octavia, and I'll give you a treat."

"Screw that! Come on Jorry, call me mommy!"

The snake, realizing he had attracted their attention, dove into Nero's new jacket, only his head peeking out from the collar to watch the twins wearily. While he was comfortable enough around the girls to not mind their presence, Jorry was still pretty shy with anybody but Nero.

"Leave him alone you two, he's not a baby. Jorry is just a bit shy. Besides, I thought he told you when I was getting attacked?" The two girls pouted but did as requested and turned their eyes away from the growing snake, allowing him to let out a sigh of relief. Though he didn't emerge from his hiding place, finding it a warm recess from the chilly wind.

"He did, but that was kind of a unique situation. He hasn't talked to us since then," Claudia said petulantly. "We hoped he would be over his shyness with us by now. We'll let it slide now, but you better call me mommy when you get back. You'll be all grown up by then."

"What are your plans?" Asked Octavia.

"Nothing concrete," Nero shrugged, more interested in the journey than the destination. "I'll be heading south first, leveling up as I go. I might spend a month or two around Maqi. I still need to finish paying off Ground Sheer, so I might work for the guild for a while. After that who knows."

"Are you going to the bone wall?"

"Probably, if I head south from Maqi, I'll reach Machy and eventually the bone wall. That area should be around level fifty. If I stop at a few dungeons along the way, I should be somewhere around there by then."

"After that, you should head west to the ocean," Claudia suggested. "Unless you get really unlucky the highest level in that area should be level one hundred. Though there is no holy ground between Machy and the sea, so if you die it will be right back to the beginning."

"I'll do that then." Nero agreed readily, already having had that idea briefly in the past. "I should be able to survive off the land so long as I stick to the forest. Supposedly so long as it isn't the fall, the woods should be filled with game."

"After you get to the sea," Claudia said, getting excited at the idea. "You should be around level one hundred or so, depending on how much you grind and how lucky you are. You should be able to make it to Valiskali at that level."

"We'll see, I would prefer to be a higher level before joining you, so I might take a long way around to level some more. But this is years in the future, who knows what will happen between now and then."

"I guess," Claudia said softly, the depressing prospect of not seeing Nero again for years once more settling in her mind. Kaesar wanted to apologize for ruining the mood upon seeing her downtrodden look. He didn't say anything though as he looked towards Octavia, the creator not meeting his eyes and her mouth turned down into a frown. There was a tense moment of awkward silence, the impending farewell acting as a chasm between the siblings.

Not willing to allow this to be their final memory of each other for a while, Nero opened his arms wide. It took a moment for the twins to realize what he meant but, when they did, they dove into his embrace. Nero hugged them tightly, their heads resting on his shoulders as they enjoyed each other's warmth.

The relationship between the girls and Nero was an odd one, part brother, father, and best friend. He still remembered helping his dad babysit them when they were only infants, playing with them in their early years and holding them as they cried after their parents' deaths. After that, he took on an older brother role, taking care of them and spending time with them. His father, Seneca, had never been the warmest parent, so Augustus had been there to make sure his younger siblings were looked after and got enough attention.

And once Seneca died, it was Augustus who assumed the role of parent. From their early teenage years, to now as young adults, he had been there for them when they needed him, making sure the girls had the clothes they needed, the food and attention they deserved. There had of course been trying times, puberty was a hassle in the best of cases, but with a little bit of help from Sophia the family had made it through, stronger than ever.

In return, the girls had supported him. Made food for him when he arrived late in the evening from one job or the other. When others their age were out with friends, the twins were at home studying, keeping the house in shape and just being there for Augustus when dealing with people got too much. Nero knew he had psychopathic and sociopathic tendencies, but he was well aware that he would be much worse today without these two girls in his life. It was the rare day when they didn't spend time together, either in conversation or in the quiet company of people they loved. For those reasons, they were perhaps his best friends, even more than Sophia.

This would be their first real goodbye. The accident had been sudden, and Augustus wasn't able to talk to the pair afterward. Playing Gods' Nature allowed communication, but it wasn't able to provide them the familiarity of their daily life. Now they would be separating for months, possibly years, Nero felt a bit like a parent sending their child off to a foreign university. There were feelings of melancholy and sadness, but there was also pride, the pride that these two had grown out of their need for his help. They were going to make their own way in the world, and Nero was sure that the pair would make quite an impact.

"It'll be fine," Nero said softly to the pair. "I'll just be a message away."

"You better call," Claudia said weekly, her voice wet. "Every week."

"If you need anything," Octavia said, her voice as choked as her sister's. "Anything at all, just tell us, and we'll fix it. You just need to head to the nearest branch of the Bank."

Perhaps to the girls, it was Nero who was leaving home. They, who knew the ins and outs of Gods' Nature more than most, who were some of the strongest players in the game, were seeing their weak brother making his way in a harsh world. One where death and pain were common. They must have been as worried about him as he was about them. Despite their feelings though, it was not as if this was a permanent goodbye.

"It's time for me to go," Nero said, trying to withdraw from the hug. He was stopped by Claudia drawing the other two into an even tighter embrace.

"Nooooo," she whined piteously. "Just stay with us, never leave. We can be together. Forever!"

"You know that isn't possible," Nero said patiently. "Someday you two will move out and start your own lives, just think of this as practice."

"We'll never move out! Never!" Claudia said forcefully, her arms even tighter, so much so that they were starting to hurt Nero who was much weaker.

"Claudia!" Octavia suddenly shouted, well aware that her sister was treading on dangerous grounds. Her shout was enough to shake Claudia from her obstinacy. Rebuked, she relaxed her hold on her siblings allowing them to withdraw from the hold.

"Sorry," she said meekly.

"I get it, I'm going to miss you two too. But just watch, we'll be back together before you know it. Then we can form a party and go on all sorts of quests together."

"I'd like that."

Satisfied as well as he could be in this situation, Nero gave the pair one last look and turned away. He didn't say goodbye or farewell, because that would somehow make the parting feel more final. Besides, knowing those two, they would call him before the end of the day. Despite that, Nero never looked back, as he knew it would make leaving all the harder.

The girls watched his figure for a while until he was almost wholly lost to the gloom of the morning. They kept watching even as the sky opened up and it started to snow, the first of the year.

Eventually, the pair shook off their melancholy, they weren't weak little girls anymore who required their brother to get things done. They still had the most powerful player faction in Gods' Nature to run and a lot of money to make.