At Time's End

Chapter 19 - Serpent Tears

-- AN: not from Jaiden's POV. Technically not from anyone's POV, it's third POV, but it centers on a certain person. I think you're smart enough to figure out who. If not, that's sad.

"So, moving the unit wasn't enough." A woman sighed. "Why did I ever ask you guys to do anything?!" The row of people standing behind her remained quiet. "You know what, just keep quiet. I don't need anything from you anyways. You're dismissed."

"Wait - Mrs-" another woman piped up from near the back

The woman turned around. She seemed significantly angrier. "Say that again. I dare you."

"Miss. Sorry. What if we try a slightly... different approach?"

"Teras, how would your... "business" help with this?" The leader laughed. "Ha, steal a person?"

"..No, steal something from them." 

"Wow, what a new idea, coming from you. Could you actually be any more creative?" She laughed, again. "And besides, how would that help?"

"Well, let's plant you at the unit. I'll go to 1453 and take... something vital. Tell them "my" address, which is 1514, and make a run for it. She obviously follows. You try to trade the item for her watch - if she declines, threaten her with something-" she made a stabbing motion, "- and we get the watch. Easy."

"And what if she escapes? She's not one to just give things to anyone. She needs a reason."

"Recruit the clerk. Or just place one of our apprentices there. We can just take the clerk hostage." She swirled her hair around her finger. "Make them catch her." 

"Alright. If this doesn't work," the woman looked at the younger woman freezingly, "I'm going to report you."

--- back to Jaiden's POV

Great. Another day of working with pretty much no goals whatsoever.

My days are mostly pretty boring. Usually I get up, eat something, isolate in my room while I try to make sense from Ignus' diaries, eat something else, isolate more, sleep. Rinse, repeat. Maybe Eterna and Karmella are having a huge screaming match, but they've been calmer since that reality check a week ago.

The research logs are pretty much just that - research. I'm still going on the false hope that I'll find something from the Immortality Project, but so far I've found nothing... of course. The project never even started formally, why would there be data on it?

I guess I could just ask the man himself, but he's based off of the same logs I'm trying to look through. I suppose it's worth a try.

"Hey, Ignus. It's been a while."

"We talked yesterday."

"I guess, but that's not my point here! Do you have any other info on the immortality project..?" I asked, hopefully.

"No. You've asked that every day for the past 3 weeks. Why would the answer change?"

"Uhh, right. It was a... pleasure to chat with you." I guess I need to start doing my own research... even if I thought there would be any more info on the immortality project - which was also a stupid thought, because the project ended quite literally before it even had a chance to begin.

There's exactly one person I could ask to do this, which I guess I've also been dreading doing - Eterna, the reason why I don't want to talk being the one-sided relationship between me and her. At one point I guess I'll just have to come clean, but I'm pretty sure I'll be dead from that moment on. 

I got up the stairs and into her room. Karmella was there. She seemed dazed about something. "Hi."

She snapped out of it. "Hi. Are you looking for Eterna?"

"..Yeah? How'd you know?" 

"Uh, I just guessed. Anyways, that's kind of the thing. I have no clue where she is either." 

"Ha, why are you trying to find her too? Do you want to get yelled at that bad?" Based on her reaction, it seemed like it was actually true, despite me meaning it as a joke. 

"She doesn't yell at me that much anymore..."

"...Alright, but 'that much' isn't 'never'. So why bother?" She didn't answer me. "Okay, I won't get involved in... whatever is going on." I think I heard a faint 'thanks' from her... maybe.

"Well, my best guess is at her old home. You know, RS 1477."

"Why?"

"You're her girlfriend and you don't know she's extremely sentimental?" ...I guess I really didn't know her that well, in the end. "Besides, why are you just condoning anything between us..?"

This time I was the one who was quiet. I did want to get rid of her, I guess it's crude to just say that, but I still didn't have an answer for that. It's cliche, but the words just wouldn't - couldn't come out.

"...You haven't said something, and yet I think I understand perfectly." I looked up. Karmella was looking me straight in the eye, and I could tell me her words were not just simple filler words, meant to convey sympathy but instead just conveyed empty void.

"Thanks... Karmella."

"So, who's the other one?"

"This is going to be really hard to explain."

"As long as it isn't Lucy..?" She realized mid-sentence. "No."

"..Yes. In the far future, but yes... sorry."

"...Does she feel the same?"

"Yeah."

"Then I have no objection. Anyways, you should probably go to RS 1477 now." I got up slowly. "Go on!"

The drive there was short, but it felt like the longest drive ever. Fair, I had a lot to think of. Mainly, my relationship with Eterna - and not just the romantic aspect of it.

To think that just a couple years ago - or was it 10 already? - I thought I knew everything about her. Then 2728 happened, and everything fell apart - like the vase a week ago. Or was it too?

I guess she felt the same, but neither of us really knew each other that well, in the end. Or did we?  But I guess that all was lost to time, nonetheless.

I could always go back, but knowing what would come later, I know I just couldn't bear to see her smiling face, and smile back, waiting for the inevitable end... that's the problem of being a time traveler.

Everyone seems to think we can fix everything, but we're still Terrans as well... we have memories, trauma, emotions. We can't just go back and play dumb to it all. This is also the reason why I couldn't just go back to RS 1453 before Ignus was killed. I knew Alice was going to get him, one way or another, and just knowing that while everyone else lives in ignorance is too much. 

So what is our purpose? How do we serve the Union of Terra? How do we serve whatever there is beyond our plane of existence?

Those were the last questions I asked before arriving at RS 1477.

--

AN: i kinda wanna do something very evil at this point but i don't really have a reason for it other than "because yes" and i don't want to go full on Ignus 2.0 here (do something without fully having a plan first and suffer later)