Chương 88: CHAPTER 86.2 – Before Everything Unfolds

Metallic, luminous insects settled upon the unusual flora. A colourful garden of absurd and extravagant geometric shapes populated the horizon, enveloping a bench beneath the shade of conical and cubical flowers. Seated there, intent on sipping their drinks, sat a pair of women. The first, with two-toned hair, delicately brought the rim of a sky-blue ceramic cup to her pink lips. She wore a light white fabric decorated with a bluish spiral pattern.

It clung to her body, appearing almost translucent without revealing too much. Her companion, on the other hand, was nearly naked from neck to waist, her chest wrapped in a series of soiled, torn bandages. Her skin was slightly darker, blonde hair plastered to her nape and collarbones. She eagerly raised a large mug brimming with frothy orange liquid, her throat swelling with every gulp. A few drops slid down her abdomen, disappearing at the waist of loose trousers made from an opaque, almost scaly fabric.

"AH!! Nothing better than a Blonder after training!" The woman laughed, throwing her arm over the shoulder of her friend, who sat still, her gaze turned toward the colourful horizon.

"Thank goodness it's non-alcoholic… I don't dare imagine what you're like drunk." Lexa smiled, bringing a handkerchief to her lips and setting down the empty cup.

"Oh, come on! You can't understand how satisfying it is to drink something ice-cold after all the exertion of these past few days. I'm not paid enough!!" Monica slammed the mug onto the table, stretching out completely on the soft bench warmed by the little sun that filtered through.

"But you're the boss! Pay yourself, right?" Both burst out laughing, covering their mouths with their hands.

"Still, though… You haven't lost your tomboy habits after a century." Lexa let her eyes drift over Monica's body: toned and sturdy for a woman, yet with certain unmistakably delicate features.

"My sister used to say that women and men can do anything! You just have to want it. All the rest is boring stuff I don't care about. I do what I have to do, and that's enough." Monica laughed, running a damp cloth between the bandages and over her neck.

"Really? And yet you don't seem to have all that much experience… Well, maybe with me it's—" Monica silenced her with a single look, shaking her head as her face flushed.

"We were both drunk… And anyway, nothing happened!" Lexa brought her fingers to her lips, grinning.

"Really? But if we were drunk, how do you know that?"

"LEXA!!!!" Monica lunged at her while rustling and laughter were lost in the aromatic breeze of the garden. Soon the two tumbled to the ground, head to head.

"You've certainly improved!" Monica smiled, sweeping Lexa's heel out from under her. The woman nearly fell, but tendrils of viscous shadow caught her. She recovered swiftly, sighing as the double cleaned the grass and soil from her.

"It's been years. I'd say I had to learn to do something too. Unlike you all, my agency is public to the world, and trust me, there's no shortage of headaches." Monica smiled, waving a hand.

"Yes, yes, you're good and mature now. So stop rambling in search of compliments. You know I already give them to you." Lexa blushed slightly, sitting back down with her legs crossed, and her cheeks puffed out.

"Maybe being like that gives you a certain charm, you know?" Monica straightened up at once, staring at her. She assumed a defensive posture, not taking her eyes off her.

"Lexa… Don't try it." Lexa raised her hands, chuckling.

"I wouldn't dare. But your face right now is priceless!" Monica felt her abdomen, her arms, and her thighs before sighing and lying down on the cold grass.

"What are you doing?" Lexa stood, examining her from several angles.

"Thinking… Is it so strange that I do it?" Monica smiled, half-closing her eyes. The green above her grew paler. Lexa sighed, sitting down beside her.

"Is something worrying you?" Monica hesitated before giving a quick nod.

"I'm afraid I'll die soon." Before she could continue, a slap struck her face.

"Don't you dare say such things!" Lexa brought her face over Monica's, looking her straight in the eyes. The weak sun coloured her unusual hair with new tones. Monica caressed her face, smiling.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to bring bad luck. My sister said that once, thinking about the world changing." Monica got back to her feet, sitting directly across from her dear director.

"Bluette thought she wasn't strong enough to accompany others into a world ever closer to radical change. I thought she was crazy, and that work had made her paranoid, but in the end she was right. She couldn't see that dawn she so desperately wanted." A sigh with a sugary aroma rose from her lips.

"I… I want to give all of NOIR a future! I want them not to live in fear that another tragedy might repeat itself. I'm the commander… I have to make it happen!" Monica's voice shifted, growing fiercer with each word. Her face fell lower and lower. Lexa's fingers caressed her chin, gently lifting it.

"Monica… The world indeed changes, and we can't do anything about that, but it doesn't have a set direction. The world changes, and with it the people who live in it—for better or worse. But there's no guarantee that tomorrow's tragedies won't be met by people strong enough to face them. So you have to be a hope for tomorrow too!" Monica noticed the strange look on Lexa's lips, contracted into something that was neither grimace nor grin, but a genuine smile.

"I didn't know you could still smile…" Monica laughed, stroking her hand. Lexa withdrew it, huffing.

"Sorry if I still remember how to treat friends, unlike a certain man with breasts…" Monica's fingers tightened around Lexa's throat as a purplish vein spread beneath the blonde hair.

"I know you're jealous of Jeanne too…" Lexa blushed, trying to strangle Monica in return. After an almost interminable struggle that saw both nearly collapse, the two burst out laughing.

"Hey, Monica… let's all watch it together…" Lexa murmured, staring at the gap between the leaves the wind had revealed. Monica turned her head, resting it among the blades of grass.

"What? What are we supposed to see?" Lexa returned the look, wearing her usual confident expression, eyes half-closed.

"Tomorrow, of course!" Both burst out laughing, caressed by a storm of petals in a thousand colours and a hundred shapes.

"Lexa…" Monica smiled, closing her eyes.

"I'm glad to be your friend." Lexa also closed her eyes, giving a quick nod.

"Tomorrow may not be as bright as I hope, but I'll make sure everyone can see it. Just as you did for me, big sister." In the distance, on a field of smooth reddish earth, a blanket of dust spread through the air. Three figures fought, each gripping something in their hands. Their steps blurred in the red mist until one of them leaped.

"Got you!" A blade plummeted toward one figure's head, splitting the air. Once the reddish haze dispersed, only a figure with long grey hair remained, the blade floating a hair's breadth from him.

"Oh, come on! Have you learned some new trick again?" The blade's owner smiled, retreating. For a brief instant, the space around the silver-haired man seemed to distort.

"No, no! I'm just learning how my abilities work better! That gentleman, Lance's friend, said it takes practice and time." The boy stared at him and smiled, planting his sword in the ground.

"You're talking about Maliard, Grayson? He's a grump, but his tips are solid. The fact that he didn't criticise you a dozen times is already a good sign." Hoku leaned on his blade, smiling.

"But you still lack experience." The scientist was seized from behind by two powerful arms and hurled straight into the air.

"Nice throw, Noel!" The colossus crouched, catapulting Hoku toward the scientist. Grayson twisted in the air, meeting his gaze. With a snap of his fingers, he vanished before the blade could reach him.

"What?!" Noel looked around as a distorted mass of infinite lines and curves formed in the space behind him. Grayson's torso emerged, pointing his fingers at Noel's back." Fractal!" The scientist's hand brushed Noel and sent him flying toward the edge of the arena. The soles of his boots dug into the earth, leaving a perfect pair of parallel strips as he tried to stop. He managed to halt, planting his heavy black iron hand on the ground.

"Incredible! No wonder you held your own against that monster!" Noel drew his heavy sword and lunged at the silver-haired figure. The two iron blades collided, shattering the ground.

"I'm using Add and NVM, and he can still counter me? The people at NOIR are incredible". Grayson was pushed back, shifting just in time to avoid Hoku's slash. He vanished from their sight. Moments later, a great force slammed the two agents together. The scientist stood in the distance, floating a few centimetres above the ground.

"Now you've really done it!" They launched themselves at him, but a wall of rock suddenly separated them. A muscular, broad-shouldered man appeared at the edge of the arena, a greenish cloth draped over his neck.

"I'd say it's time for a break. Grayson Dirac had only just woken up. Better not to push him too hard." Hoku and Noel nodded in unison, dropping to the ground with a huff. Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

"Here comes the spoilsport." The man scratched his head, turning his gaze toward the scientist seated on the ground.

"Here." He tossed him a silver flask, vaguely ovoid.

"Medical concentrates with a bit of fruit extract. They'll help you recover." The man sat down in front of Grayson, who already had his eager mouth on the drink. He wiped his mouth with his wrist, smiling.

"Thank you, Mr Turner! You're not as grumpy as they say." Maliard looked at him with narrowed eyes, sighing.

"Drop the formalities…" The scientist nodded, handing back the container with a smile.

"I can see you're doing quite well. A rather radical change." Maliard wiped his sweat-damp hair while the scientist lay back completely on the ground.

"I had a dream, and from it I understood many things. I wanted to make myself useful to the people I hold dear. And Lance's friends are my friends too!" Maliard, unsettlingly, let out a laugh.

"You two really are exactly alike. I've never met two such imbeciles." The scientist sat bolt upright, studying him from head to toe with those deep violet eyes. Maliard extended his gloved arm, flexing his fingers with a faint clink.

"Sorry… But I still can't wrap my head around why you were the first to face that abomination." Grayson's expression turned serious all at once. His head tilted slightly as he looked at Maliard, almost curiously.

"I did it because it needed to be done, and I had a score to settle. But I think you would have had a strong chance too, maybe even better than mine." Maliard frowned, resting his metal arm on his knees.

"I don't think you and I are close enough to—""I can see it… that black film wrapped around your body. I don't know what it is, but you're the only one here who has it. I don't want to sound presumptuous, but I think you're holding yourself back." Grayson smiled innocently, lying back down with his legs crossed on the warm sand. Maliard returned the smile, looking up at the false sky.

"You're a good man, Grayson. You definitely have more talent than I do." The agent stood, waving to the scientist.

"Thanks for helping us. We're in your debt." The scientist returned the smile, waving his arm in the air. Maliard returned the gesture without turning, staring at the black scales of his glove. Later, behind a wall of reddish metal decorated with rough black and gold stripes, Maliard fiddled with his watch, gazing at the screen as it flashed purple. He stopped suddenly, vibrating slightly.

"Maliard… Anything new to report?" A muffled, distorted voice emerged from the metallic casing. Maliard stared at the ground, resting his foot against the wall as he scratched his head.

"Lucas… Tell me the truth…" On the other end of the call, the NOIR scientist was silent, running his fingers over the smooth surface of the table in his laboratory. Maliard heard that familiar sigh emerge through the mask's filter and nodded.

"Lance and Jeanne have inherited conditions similar to August and Aline, right?" The scientist's fingers tightened around the table's corner, snapping it off.

"You saw Jeanne in that state?" Maliard nodded as if Lucas could see him.

"It's not the same thing now that I think about it, but it seems she suffers from the same curse as the special cases from Termìe. You're keeping it hidden, aren't you?" Lucas removed his mask, setting it on the edge of the window. The dark, frosted glass reflected the blindfold over his eyes.

"Yes. I can't let Monica or the others know. I can't allow another tragedy to happen. For now, only Lance knows about the problem, though not the details." Maliard bit his nail, tapping his free foot on the ground.

"I trust you. If you think it's best this way, I'll believe it too. Just please, at least fill Lance in. We can't keep letting him stumble in the dark, even in his new life." Maliard brought his finger to the watch, but a faint laugh stopped him.

"You've grown kinder, Maliard. Bluette would be happy." The call cut off, a fresh breeze lifting the sand. At the entrance to a labyrinth of aromas and colours, a couple. A boy in a hospital gown and a girl in a sky-blue blouse chatted amicably as they walked across the lawn.

"These sweets aren't bad at all! The soldier said they came from Sol. I wonder if he could give me the recipe." The boy took one of the colourful, sticky balls skewered on a stick and bit into it, tearing at the chewy white paste with its faint sugary aftertaste. Beside him, the girl held five skewers, three of which were already empty. Her cheeks were full, and she was struggling to swallow the colourful delicacies.

"Jeanne… You're going to choke…" Lance murmured, wiping his lips with a crumpled handkerchief from his pocket. The girl turned, her mouth now empty, though her lips were dusted with flour.

"What… What is it?" Lance stared at her, open-mouthed, and offered her the rest of his. The girl's eyes lit up, and she resumed eating as they made their way into the flower field.

"Ahh… T-this is a very strange place." Lance looked around, observing shapes never seen on flowers: rust-toned iron ladybirds, long violet creepers embracing the roots of trees with violet crowns. The scents in the air were new and old at once, a mix of memories and fresh experiences.

"I think they're plants mutated by Hel. Machinamentum probably uses them for research, just like NOIR does. Now that I think about it, I wonder if we have a greenhouse too." Jeanne stepped ahead of him, whispering something.

"Of course we do… I go there to paint." Jeanne skipped past Lance, leaving him wide-eyed and his neck twitching.

"Hey! I want to see them!" Jeanne shook her head, smiling as she wove sinuously through the plants.

"I can't show them!"

"And why not?!" The two left the path, chasing each other and pleading while their steps brushed the strange pyramidal petals.

"Come on, Jeanne… I'm curious to—" A thud, and Lance vanished from sight. Jeanne spun around, peering into a pit filled with petals and leaves. At its centre lay the boy, face turned upward.

"Who the hell… Put a hole here?" Jeanne smiled, diving into the leaves beside him. She offered her pale hand, helping him to his feet.

"You've been a bit clumsy lately…" Lance smiled, reaching into her hair. He removed a leaf and kept walking.

"I'm glad you talk more now." The girl stayed there, her face lowered. She brought her hands to her cheeks, feeling them burn. The two resumed their walk in silence, drawing closer to forests of classic green.

"Hey, Lance…" The boy stopped, turning with furrowed brows. Jeanne placed a hand on her hip, swaying like a stem.

"… Are you scared?" Lance stopped, staring at a thin beam of dust-light illuminating the motes in the air.

"Yes, of course. I don't know what to expect from tomorrow. I don't know if I'll ever see my sister again or discover the truth. I don't even know if I'll see tomorrow at all, or if I'll be the only one who does. Honestly, the second one scares me more." He scratched the back of his neck, offering his usual smile.

"I don't think I'd be happy if tomorrow didn't have all of you in it." Jeanne tightened her hand around the hem of her blouse.

"I-I'm scared too, just like you! I didn't want to feel alone. It's awful to be afraid, and it's awful to feel helpless. I didn't want to be the only one." Lance looked at her, smiling as he pointed his thumb at his chest.

"Jeanne, no one was born to be alone, not even in fear." The boy turned, taking another step, only to bump into two women. One wore sticky bandages, the other a thin, vaguely sheer dress.

"Well said, boy! I must say, I see you in a new light now!" A laugh so noble and so studied it grated on the nerves echoed through the air. A snort brought the boy back to reality.

"I'm starting to understand why you and Lautre are such good friends." Monica grabbed him by the collar and hauled him to his feet.

"M-Monica and Lexa?! What were you two doing? Why are you dressed like that?!" Monica glared at him, bringing her face dangerously close to his, which was growing redder by the second.

"I was training. Can't you tell?! Or do you think I'm ugly, mean, and poorly kept? Am I wrong, Jeanne?" She turned toward the girl, who was whistling and kicking leaves aside with her foot.

"Come now, Monica, you're torturing a patient of mine. Besides, I owe all of you a great deal!" Lexa stroked his hair, smiling.

"Yes, yes, I get it. Now stop playing nice." Monica tugged Lance away, moving closer to Jeanne. The crunch of leaves and a nearby scuffle stirred the air. A laboured breath and a tired body burst from the plants, clutching its chest. A blue-eyed woman appeared before them, interrupting the comic scene. Lance was the first to recognise her, feeling his face veiled in sadness. Deborah and her oceanic gaze met the boy's. Monica released him with a click of her tongue. Now the two stood face to face.

"Deborah, I—""Thank you so much for saving the agency!" The girl threw herself to the ground, forehead pressed against the earth, back arched.

"Deborah, what are you doing?!" Lexa was the first to try to lift her, but she remained nailed to the ground. Lance approached and knelt as well.

"I'm sorry I arrived late. But thank you for protecting Rea in our place. We owe you our thanks too." Monica smiled behind them, giving a big thumbs-up.

"Winoc was right… You really are a good girl." Deborah jumped to her feet, struggling not to sniffle. Lance smiled, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"We couldn't be at the funerals of all the people who died… But I'm sure he's happy that you can cry now." The girl couldn't hold back her tears and clung to Lexa's chest. The woman sighed, stroking her hair.

"I think this is a difficult time… But thank you for everything and have a safe journey." Instead of saying goodbye, Monica embraced the two women, then, without a word, turned and led Lance and Jeanne away." It's certainly hard to question tomorrow, and maybe it's even annoying. But it's in our nature to do so, because deep down we want to be human too." And so the trio left the forest, wrapped in a peculiar but heartfelt embrace.