First thing we do is raid the First mansion, and wipe all it’s servers,

That supreme leader needs to go!”

Whang!

Sprite slams her fists against a wooden wall,

“Umm….We?

You can’t even leave the forest Sprite” I counter,

“And……”

….

Pausing I glance across the small wooden shack at Apollo,

His back turned to us, he stares in both admiration and dejection at Emma, who in turn stares back through her tiny crimson eyes,

….

“From here on out I’m taking care of things myself,

I’ve already inadvertently ruined many lives, plus I have control–”

“–chhh” snorts Apollo listening to me

“Is your hair turning white again or is the real Kage I’m listening too?

I speak for all of us, living or dead Kage, if not for you we would never have gotten taste even if it was just a little, of normalcy,”

“Aawww” Sprite emotes affectionately

“Kage with white hair must have been pretty,”

“He…

She was…

Kage spoke like a high-class woman,

Think Himari, but multiply it,

And then there was the Kage with black hair was all dark and obscene, a real macho man,”

Sprite’s eyes glint with funny intrigue, she had bombarded us with questions as soon as we returned,

Even when we told her of Himari’s death, the plant person was more surprised, than sad or horrified by it,

(I suppose death means something different for plants)

“You do know I remember what happened back there too right Apollo?”

“Ok, well tell me how you went from being an asshole to a saint so quickly?” Apollo sticks out his pinky finger, in which the child grabs gently, it’s crimson eyes still locked onto me,

“I, I just remembered differently,

I know a lot of things, maybe it’s things I’ve done personally or maybe it was others that I just remember,

When I think about it there’s no difference in perception for me,

When you say I’m an asshole it’s because I remember all the bad things I’d done or have had done to me,

The opposite is true as well…

Even now….

I–never mind.”

(Even now I don’t know if Himari the person was ever real, or if I’ve always been Himari)

“So when you’re ready to jump the mansion let me know,” Apollo doesn’t press me to know instead turning his focus to Emma, whom he’s been keeping his attention to since we returned here,

The warps to the Velvet Underground were destroyed by the supreme leader, probably the moment after we left out for the city did it,

I still can’t wrap my head around everything,

(But it’s not important to me anyways,

I have control now that’s what matters)

…..

“Why does she keep staring at me” I catch the eyesight of the baby on me again,

It has yet to cry or even make a sound,

Those crimson gem-like eyes stay busy peering at everything however…

“She’s probably mad at you for killing her” Sprite folds her arms looking at me in displeasure

(I really killed all humans huh…)

“…Well

In my defense…

I killed all humans,

Buttt…..

I undid it,”

“You know we can’t forget pain right?” Apollo joins Sprite in scolding

“Imagine how it probably felt for a child to be randomly stabbed,

I have no doubt that she’s probably mad at you,

Isn’t that right baby?

Isn’t that, right?

You cute little….”

(Ughh)

“…..”

Turning away from the young man and his child, I gaze out the window of the cottage,

It may be the only place on Terra I feel safe,

The trees sway calmly overhead the packs and droves and groups of all animal kind in the forest,

The colors of the sky, though they can be seen in this little clearing, can only be eyed through the openings between the thick leaves of the trees in the thicket of the Venus forest,

(What’s next….

I don’t want to get involved with the drama of Terra or even this new earth, Xezus has created by breaking the event horizons…

Nor do I which to undo it…

What’s next…)

“The trees say that you could change everything here if you wanted” Sprite sidles up next to me

“Tell the trees I’m not interested,

I can’t change anything except my own actions, and that will be permanently erase the supreme leader,

But that won’t be to help you,

Only because….

I don’t know, maybe it’s the Lyra inside of me that must get her revenge,

It certainly isn’t because I think Xezus is evil or any of those things, matter of fact,

The man isn’t …..

He’s not bad”

The trees beg to differ Kage,

They say that because of the supreme leader, so many innocent people have died so much meaningless blood has spilled”

“And it was in service of advancing humanity as a whole”

(So stupid)

“But–” Sprite starts

“I don’t want to talk about this more” I cut her off,

“Makes my head hurt to think about”

…..

….

“I can’t wait for you too meet your aunt Zinnia,” Apollo is still talking to the child,

The now painful memories of Himari still like a fresh wound on his mind

But Apollo being Apollo, forces himself to stay in high spirits…

“You know that now that there isn’t anything separating the rings you can basically build a raft and take it down snakeway river back out to the ocean, and eventually to Gaia,”

“Yeah, I already thought about that” Apollo looks up at me removing the goofy expression he was just 'wearing'

“After I’ve seen you to wherever your destination is I’ll go”

“You don’t have to”

“I swear we have this same back and forth every seven seconds Kage..

I don’t care if you can blow up the tallest mountain on Terra by yourself.

I will be there with you no matter what, we are all we have now,

Now tell me Kage, what’s our next move?”

(This guy…)

The way he acts you’d never tell how traumatic his life has been,

Perhaps it’s why I, no–Himari had so much admiration for him…

“Ok, suit yourself~” I drawl

“I guess what’s next is—”