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Lunar drifts. All the sensations she feels are soft and distant, memory and pain eluding her, yet looming near. She breathes, or perhaps remembers breathing, trying to reach something close to awareness. She reaches, trying to find anything to explain what is happening, and remembers...
She hears a scream. “LUNAR!” Nikki. She has no room to dodge Nidhogg's sword, this unforeseen turn to the duel that was her chance to protect Cloud city.
The sword hits and then all she feels is blinding pain. An impact like a comet striking the moon. Her mind racing, struggling to comprehend what Nidhogg has done. What he intends. A shattering of the peace that ruled Miraland, a return of violence unchecked.
She manages to spit out a few words “Nidhogg, you... dare to defy the fate...!”
Nidhogg chuckles. “Do all the Cloud people believe in the fate nonsense?” he derides, “The reality is the strong create fate, the weak obey the fate, so this is your "fate".”
Nikki runs up and, crying, embraces her. Her chosen sister, the stylist to her designer. Lunar had failed her, and says so. “I promised myself to be the greatest designer... to let war cease forever... Sorry... I failed…”
Her breath leaving with those words, the last of her strength gone.
The softness twists to numbness. She had failed, died, and yet... where was she? This was… not death, but how did she know that? Lunar tried to call out for help. Can anyone hear me? What happened to me?
She feels the approach of two beings, perfectly complementary. If one is a shield, the other is a sword. One to boldly defend, one to subtly solve.
The lingering of memory creates ensures the spirit never dies.
The belief in power beyond flesh empowers the spirit.
This is realm for beings strengthened by this memory.
This belief created us, guides of a structureless place, strangers to make things clear.
And your strength is not enough for here.
Not enough to breach the realm of living, breathing things, and it will not allow you to remain aware forever.
It is enough, however, to empower travel to another world, and give you great strength there.
A world of fighting but not violence.
Lingering would not give you anything more than the pain of eternal separation little phoenix.
And going would mean a rebirth, a chance to design a better world.
Lunar hesitates. She thinks of her family, her fiancée that she will never be able to marry, and Nikki, now burdened with a world turning to war. But if Lunar could not return to her world... then she would rather act than wait to fade away.
Send me there.
She would rather bring peace to this other world than slowly fade away here. Maybe this power of spirit would mean she would not fail again.
It will be done.
Good luck.