(September 24th, 2017)

Alex

The thing I least expected to happen was to get taken by a cyborg to the moon. I've lived my life on earth, never dreaming about traveling to space and seeing the earth from out of orbit. The most shocking thing, however, was that this cyborg who believed herself to be an android who lacks emotions and made to be a war machine, inviting me to her room—which she does not know belongs to her—and sleeping on my lap. Seeing her become more human gives me a great sense of joy, especially after everything I learned about her. However, it pained me to have her enjoy the remnants of her past life without her realizing that what she is experiencing used to be what made her who she is.

I felt really uncomfortable when she invited me to her room. Not because of embarrassment or shame, but because she wanted to show me of all people the room that once belonged to her. I'm not supposed to be the one she shares something so sentimental and important with. But when I realized that it made her happy to find a friend that shared her hobbies made me feel good about myself, and I did not want to take that away from her. But once I got to her room, I felt the presence of someone watching us and felt my spine freeze when I realized that her room was fitted with active surveillance cameras that had their eyes on us. That's when I got contacted by her father. He told me to not mind him and try to forget that he was there. That's when I decided to talk to him in private and excused myself to Alpha-One's bathroom that was in her room.

"Sir?" I asked the director of the space organization.

"You've helped my daughter rekindle her interests in her past hobbies. I don't know how you did that, but I owe you for it. What do you want to know?"

"How long have you been surveilling the room, sir?" I asked.

"For as long as the 'Android' known as Alpha-One was active. I kept this room hidden from everyone but easily accessible. I was shocked beyond belief when I activated the cameras to check on her room and found her on her bed, reading one of her old comic books like she used to. I thought I was hallucinating, but when I checked the other feeds, she was there. This all happened after what your new king called 'The Awakening' occurred." The director communicated through a silent frequency that I did not even know about.

"Does this mean that you felt it, too?" I asked.

"Indeed," He replied. "The rest of my family felt it, too. Including my brother Jason's three kids. One who was in a trainee camp, while the other two live in Japanipon. You were at the center of it all. Tell me what happened."

"It was when our... our late king passed away in Justin's arms. Justin was injured from the attack of the Harbinger of Darkness and fell unconscious. He awoke with his armor on and summoned the four mystical dragons that helped him demolish the imperial forces in the capital. We felt the awakening as soon as he opened his eyes and unleashed his powers. It felt like a surge of power in our souls that boosted our bodies and strengthened us. I guess you felt the same, sir?" I explained.

"I did. But what's more important was the fact that my daughter, who was previously reduced to a soulless war machine started regaining her past self and her emotions along with it. Later, she started reading through her old books and playing her video games, which previously made her mind malfunction and cause her to experience a blackout. Time and time again, our efforts to bring back her memories failed spectacularly. It was when the final attempt nearly killed her was when I gave up. But, after the incident in the capital, she started to gradually change back into her old self. Don't you think that's odd, son?" He explained.

"Yes, sir."

"When we did maintenance checks on her, we gave her false analyses and a fake body report. When we saw what anything of her past life might do to her, we thought that showing her the real data from her maintenance checks as we do with androids will cause her to suffer from her symptoms. Her body is not entirely a complex machine in human form. She had most of her bones and organs replaced, but a significant portion of her body is human. She still has muscle tissues and bleeds human blood when injured. Thankfully, her uniform was created to sustain an immense amount of damage and regenerates itself faster to cover any cuts or holes in it. The Alpha Squad resembles humans in many aspects, you see. I oversaw their creation specifically for Aurora's sake. Their liquid power source is red, similar to human blood. They can consume food and digest it for metabolism. Of course, the food they consume is created specifically for them, so they, alongside Aurora, don't have to interact with human-made meals."

"So you created them to give your daughter the illusion that she is a cutting-edge Android that can rely on human ways of life to survive if need be. But your true intentions were to hide the fact that she's a cyborg, like me," I stated. "Even if she started to show basic human emotions and started to feel familiar with her old stuff, that doesn't mean she will instantly remember who she was if you told her, right?"

"Exactly. And that's why I want you to take care of my daughter for me. You four were the reason my daughter started to feel like herself again, so there is no one more qualified to attempt to bring her back. I know that if anyone can bring me back my Aurora, it's you and Justin. The guy she brought to her old room and is having fun with, and the guy who started this chain of events in the first place. That's why I allowed her to join you and gave her the right to enter and leave her base whenever she pleases. But please. I beg of you, do not under whatever condition, tell her her real name, that she's a cyborg and not an android, that I'm her father, or discuss her past beyond her life as Alpha-One. You got that, Alex?" The director asked me.

"Yes, sir. I'm gonna have to go now. I'll stay in touch," I replied.

"I will leave you two for a bit. I don't want her to know I'm watching. Don't forget what I just told you, son."

I woke up a day later with Alpha-One sleeping like an angel on my chest. One look at her pretty face, and her white hair made my heart melt. I realized that I woke up with my body feeling 'excited,' so I fixed my pants and slowly got up and walked to the bathroom to wash my face and returned back to find the cyborg had wrapped her arms around me and embraced me in a hug. My cheeks turned red in an instant.

"Thank you, Alex," She said.

"I-I, uh, f-for what?" I asked her while stuttering my words.

"For last night. It... It meant a lot to me." Hearing the sincerity in her voice made me feel devastated at her current situation, fueling my desire to help her return back to her old self. That's why I hugged her back.

"Any time. And hey, when this is all over, you're welcome to visit me at my condo and play games for as long as you want. Maybe we'll go buy some new comic books together, alright?" I suggested.

"Sure. I look forward to that," She replied.

I looked at my watch and swallowed my saliva when I realized that it's thirty-one minutes after the usual time that the rest of the crusaders wake up in. It was 6:31 AM, and I was on the moon while they were on earth. A1 immediately realized this and grabbed me by the hand, taking me down a shortcut to her Golden Dawn. We entered her vessel and launched to Earth, activating the warping mechanism and arriving at earth in a few seconds. We entered orbit and dropped to a few miles away from the camp's location. When we reached a safe altitude in the atmosphere, we flew to the camp and landed the spaceship back at the same place as last time. We exited the ship and walked to camp, where we find Mia with a massive grin on her face while having her arms crossed and tapping her foot on the floor impatiently. I realized instantly that she was thinking about what indecent acts we might have done while we were away. I sighed, knowing that there will be no end to the crusaders' questions.

"Good morning, Alex and Alpha-One!" She said with her smug expression.

"Good morning, Mia," I replied.

"So, where were you last night?" She asked while winking at me and bumping my shoulder.

"We were at our moon base," Alpha-One replied.

"Oh, really?!" She jumped at the cyborg girl and embraced her in a hug. "What did you do there?"

"We played videogames and read comics," A1 answered. I grabbed Mia away and took her to the side.

"Can you not discuss with her that? You'll risk causing her to have a blackout if not die," I whispered into the she-devil's ear.

"But what did you do?" Mia whispered back. "You were at the moon all night, weren't you?"

"Yes, but that's because she invited me into her old room and wanted me to read comics and play games with her, silly!" I whispered back.

"Oh. Did her dad know?"

"Yes. He contacted me when I realized that he was watching from hidden security cameras in the room. He explained to me the entire situation. He said that she's slowly returning to her old self because of Justin's awakening and entrusted us with her," I explained.

"Oh, alright," Mia answered before taking A1 to eat breakfast, saying: "A1! I want you to try my new recipe! You can eat, right?"

"So, Alex! I heard you were off-planet all night, huh?" Zack said with the same smirk that was on Mia's face, accompanied by a smiling Justin. "What happened?"

I explained the situation to them, getting Zack to stop looking at me funny and having Justin feeling concerned over Aurora. I informed them about what Benjamin Astralis told me last night and explained to them what they should and should not say or do in front of Alpha-One. They both nodded in agreement and went to prepare for the hunt. I sat down at the table and grabbed my plate. Mia placed the Croque madame she made on my plate and watched as I began to munch on it. It was no secret that I became really obsessed with Mia's food. As I was eating, I noticed A1 eating the food in front of me and felt embarrassed by the way I ate my food. I paused for a second to recompose myself before eating again. I took notice of A1's elegant handling of the knife and fork. She ate her food like a culinary connoisseuse who knew nothing but elegance in every detail of her life. I sat and watched her in admiration as she had her breakfast, making Mia notice my actions. She bumped my arm and got me to continue eating before the white-haired girl caught on.

After the preparations, the five of us headed inside Justin's car. I sat at the usual spot behind Zack, and Mia sat behind Justin, our trusted chauffeur. The one thing that made this ride feel very relaxing while also uncomfortable was the fact that A1 sat between Mia and me. I felt slightly abashed and took out my book while Justin drove. It didn't help, however, when she decided to read with me and lean her head on my shoulder while reading. Mia looked at me and winked with a smile on her face. What helped me stay composed was the many times Mia shape-shifted into Aurora to tease me while the other boys were not looking. It got to the point where she nearly made out with me. I had to violently push her away to get her to stop, prompting her to laugh uncontrollably for a while.

Soon, we arrived at the location of the Daemonsaur and exited the car. I walked to the trunk of the vehicle, where I pretended to be bringing something while, in reality, I was fixing my pants to hide my masculine excitement. I followed the rest of the group through the cave, where we were bound to be jumped by all manner of creatures.

"Have you faced demons before?" I asked A1.

"No, I haven't," She replied. "It'll be the first time I encounter demonic entities and face them in combat. Well, evil demonic entities, to paraphrase."

"Aww! That's so sweet of you!" Mia stated. "It's also the first time we fight together!"

"I hope it's not the last time, either," A1 replied to Mia, making their friendship even more evident and stronger.

Soon enough, we reached a point where the entire cave became a labyrinth of deep dark slopes, narrow passageways, and ledges. With the visible frustration on our faces, Mia decided to fly and look for the right way to go about the traversal. We were lucky that there were holes in the cave's ceiling to allow the sunlight to pass through and illuminate the place. Mia took this to her advantage, and along with her natural night vision, she was able to deduce the perfect path for us. She followed us while flying and helping us to cross. Justin used his night vision to help guide the way, and I used my Emperor Ice to create some bridges where we couldn't cross.

Suddenly, as we were crossing an ice bridge I made, a goblin leaped on Zack's back and dragged him down to the abyss. Justin shot the demon off the king's back, and Mia dove down to grab him while A1 and I got ready to fend off the monsters that blocked both directions of the bridge. A1 rushed at the front with me following after her. I watched in wonder and admiration as she sliced off the demons with excellent proficiency like a ballet ninja and a swordmaster. She used her elegant footwork to spin around and slice after a few attacks and then jump in the air where she'd spin and slice some goblins before switching to her greatsword and striking the ground beneath the demons to unleash a shockwave that cleared the area in a flash.

When more demons appeared, I took the lead and readied my assault rifle, shooting and hitting demons in the head with impeccable accuracy. I didn't notice the demon that jumped at me until A1 sliced him before he reached me. She looked at me and smiled, saying: "Nice shots! I've never seen someone this accurate. Even my squad would have missed a few of those demons if they shot as fast."

"I, uh, th-thanks!"

We ended up getting separated from Mia and the other crusaders, leaving A1 and me on one route while they continued on. Before we eventually lost sight of the other three, Justin gave me a thumbs up with a smile, telling me that everything will be okay. As A1 charged at the front, I took care of the rear demons, punching, kicking, and slicing them away with my sword. At the end of one attack combo, A1 and I switched swords to do the final slice before continuing on and killing more demons. The drone that A1 uses to attack kept assisting me by helping to clear out the enemies with its machine gunfire.

"It's nice to have it around," A1 commented on her drone. "It helps with the enemies and has multiple functions that you can't fit an android with. It has radar and sonar along with medical equipment for both humans and androids alike. It also analyzes data and sends it to me via a frequency."

"It sure looks handy," I stated.

"But it doesn't beat having an actual person around, that's for sure," She replied.

Soon enough, we finished off all demons and possessed skeletons, leaving us with no obstacles in the way, apart from the cave itself and its dangerous falls. I used my ice powers to create more bridges and walked with A1 to the final destination, but before we could reach the other group, she stopped me and sat me down. "Something wrong?" I asked the visibly frustrated cyborg who thinks she's an android.

"I should have sensed them coming," She said. "I could always sense when enemies try to attack us or ambush us. I guided my team through traps and turned many attackers from the hunters to the hunted. Why did I fail to see them coming?"

"Oh, don't blame yourself over it," I stated.

"It's because of these emotions that I'm losing my touch." I grabbed her shoulders and made her look into my eyes when I heard her say that. It came as a shock to me, and I did not like it one bit.

"Listen. It's not your fault that you didn't catch them. I have an ability called 'Presence,' which allows me to sense the presence of any creature, be it human, android, insects, and even plants. Demons are tough to catch," I explained to A1. "You failed to see them because they can spawn in an instant and attack you. I was using my ability even before we entered the cave and sensed every living creature. When I felt the demon's presence, it was already too late."

"So, you're saying it's not my fault?" She asked. "But Zack would've died."

"Of course not, A1. My theory is that they're still in their realm and can only be sensed when they're fully manifested in our world. The goblins are really quick, so neither of us was able to sense Zack before he got caught," I explained. Silence fell between us as I realized that she stopped listening to me and was just staring at me with a tiny smile visible on her face. "What's wrong?"

"I like your eyes," She stated, turning my cheeks red.

"L-L-Let's... Let's go and regroup with the others," I said immediately before getting up.

Finally, we found the rest of the group already engaging the Daemonsaur at the level below us. I paused to gawk at the size of the thing as it roared and charged at my friends with its fangs, wings, and its giant sharp scales and claws. It looked like a demonic t-rex with red glowing eyes and a thirst for blood. Upon closer inspection, I realized that its scales were made of metal. I watched as Justin tried to shoot at it, only managing to damage it on the rare occasion where a scale got cracked from the constant attacks.

"They need real firepower," A1 stated. "They need you."

Fueling my desire to fight, I conjured a machine gun and a rocket launcher and charged at the colossal monster. I fired my machine gun and hit it in the face before firing a rocket at its scales, shattering some of them. I then started running around it and distracting it with my firearms while Justin and Mia sliced at its legs with Justin's enlarged sword and Mia's greatsword. Once it pointed in his direction, Zack conjured his sniper rifle and fired at its right eye, making it scream and wail in pain before A1 sprinted on the ceiling and dove down, stabbing the Daemonsaur in the head. Before it died, it started shaking its head violently to try and throw A1 off of it. The cyborg girl jumped off of the monster but left her sword in its head. I ran at it and watched as Justin grabbed me, spun me around, and threw me at the Daemonsaur's head where I pushed the sword with my fist as I reached it. The monster fell dead, and Justin took a picture of it with all of us in the frame to prove that we killed it before sending it to the hunter's guild.

Mia whipped out her camera as well and set it up for one group picture where the five of us took a photo with the monster in the background. She then took the blood of the beast and used it to make a giant ax with the face of the Daemonsaur adorning it as an ornament that's part of the design.

"That was flawless!" Mia exclaimed as she high-fived A1.

"You did great, Alex," Zack said as he approached me. "You have certainly gotten better at using your gauntlet."

"You think? Thanks, dude! You can say I'm trying," I replied.

Our moment of happiness did not last, however, as the ceiling above us exploded, revealing imperial dropships that started dropping dozens upon dozens of troops. They were nothing but cannon fodder and soon ended, but that's when someone that we couldn't prepare for, dropped from her dropship. It was none other than the female general from the capital. With her armor alone, she struck fear into my heart.

"You!" Justin said before charging at her and engaging in a fight. I watched as the two fought together, clashing swords and jumping from the walls of the cave while striking at one another with their weapons. Soon enough, she got the upper hand when Justin's foot slipped. She hit him with her sword, but Justin blocked. The general ended up propelling my friend away with the force of her blow.

I watched as she looked at A1 and flew towards her. Alph-One jumped away from her attack and retaliated with a strike from her blade that hit the general in her left shoulder. The imperial woman recovered at a glance and started running A1 with her sword, forcing her to block and wait for the right opportunity to strike.

"What a beautiful face! Lucky for you, we'll just turn you into one of us, and I'll personally see to it that you're put under my command!" The general said under her muffled helmet with a voice that was somewhat familiar to me.

"How... How do you speak perfect English, you imperial scum?!" A1 asked the general as she struggled under her blade.

"Oh, me? I used to live in this country!" The general stated, much to our shock. "Deploy more soldiers!"

More imperial robots started to deploy, including assalitore units and bipedal mechs. Alpha-One and the general ended up taking the fight outside the cave through the hole the empire's forces blew. Justin returned to us and started fighting the robots alongside us, apologizing for the mistake he made.

"It's not your fault, buddy!" I stated. "Stuff like that happens to the best of us!"

I aimed my rocket launcher at one dropship and blew it up over the hole, making it fall and land in a way that makes us able to climb it to get to the top. Mia flew after Aurora and the imperial general, leaving us boys to climb the ship and get there ourselves. Justin jumped on the top of the ship and used his crossbow to provide cover fire while Zack helped me get to the top with his winged armor. The boys ran to the top while I used my machine gun to provide even more cover fire than Justin can with his crossbow. As I took aim, I noticed more dropships flying and heading in the direction where I last saw the general take Alpha-One. Justin made it to the top and called for us to follow him.

"Alex! Hurry up!" Zack shouted at me. I realized that I could not just leave the cave and go after my friends because leaving the deployed soldiers in the area would be a grave mistake. I looked at the king and shook my head.

"I can't! Go without me! I'll follow you soon!" I shouted back. I watched him nod at me before throwing a few of his tornado grenades to help me before leaving.

As the imperial forces piled up on me from the bottom, I aimed my rocket launcher at the three dropships above me and blew them up. I immediately ran away from the scene and used the energy in my fist by punching the ground, thus propelling me in the air. The dropships blocked the exit to the cave and left no imperial robot active. With the imperial forces destroyed, I looked at the distance. I saw the general and A1 flying around with wings attached to her armored uniform and fighting the general in a manner reminiscent to jet dogfighting. They flew around and fired at each other with their weapons before switching to melee weapons and back. I ran in their direction and saw Justin and Zack carrying Mia and placing her nearby. I quickly approached them and used my R&R ability to heal Mia's entire injured body. With little energy left, I couldn't completely heal her wounds. Mia healed herself with her potions instead, thanking me for my troubles. I watched as the dropships that flew by when we were in the cave dropped their load of soldiers and left, making way for the general's ship to arrive. Justin and the rest went after the enemies while I watched the fight between the general and A1 for one moment before running after Justin and the rest to help them.

I rushed at the imperial bipedal machines and fired my rocket launchers at them, destroying some of their vital parts before leaving it to Mia, who flew by and dropped magical meteors at them. I rushed to Zack's aid and stabbed one assalitore unit in the chest before blowing his head off with my gun.

"Not again, sucker!" I exclaimed, giving my king a high five before heading towards another group of robots to gun them down with my machine gun.

I spotted A1 flying over the battlefield with the general at her tail. They kept firing at one another with their weapons while avoiding the attacks of the other. I tried to aim at the general, but she moved too fast for me to be able to land a shot, despite my impeccable aim. I decided to aid my fellow crusaders for the moment and decrease the forces of the incoming robots. Justin did not notice an assalitore robot approach him from behind and so I had to fire my own left bionic arm at it. While firing my arm, my original human arm returns, but I retain my white hair and golden eyes. When my golden fist collided with the imperial robot's face, it disappeared and rematerialized back in its original spot. I rushed towards Justin and provided cover fire while he attacked the soldiers with his attacks. I watched as he conjured his new spear and began to use it to control the wind, sending enemies flying in his direction to stab them himself or propelling them away. After I asked him, he used his spear to lift me up to where I dove down from the sky and pounded the ground with my fist, releasing a shockwave attack that destroyed the enemies in our range.

"You're on a roll today!" Justin complimented.

"Killing imperial robots is such fun!" I exclaimed in the air as I shot one robot in the face without even looking.

"Come on, Alex! Leave some for me!" Justin laughed as he killed a few with his spear. "I bet you're a real threat to them at this point!"

"Justin, stop!" I replied. "I'm as big as a threat as you are. You're the one they should fear, not me."

Mia flew in our direction and threw three robots for me to shoot and then landed next to us. With the robots in our vicinity cleared, Mia leaned on Justin to catch some breath.

"Are you okay?" Justin asked. "Well, aside from the bruises and cuts from that general."

"I just need a breather," She replied. Zack arrived and landed next to us. He was ready to take down the general along with Justin while Mia relaxed and watched with me.

"Come on, Zack. We've got a general to take down a general!" Justin exclaimed.

"We're moving up in the world! Literally!" Zack replied before he conjured his armor once more and flew alongside a wingless Justin to fight the general.

Zack conjured his shield and covered A1 from the bullets before Justin flew in and punched the general in the chest. Zack sent spears flying towards the imperial lady after Justin moved to the side, hitting her in the shoulders and sides. Justin unleashed his barrage of fists onto the imperial leader but was not able to dodge her foot that struck him in the center of his chest. Zack moved to aid Justin, who neared the end of his flight time limit, leaving A1 in the open. The general fired her gauntlet guns at the cyborg girl, with the bullet heading towards her head. Justin immediately reacted and shouted: "Taimuzurō!" With time slowed, he moved to A1's position and touched the bullet at the last second of his slowed time, resulting in the bullet grazing the shoulder of A1's armor. Justin then fell to the ground with A1 diving after him.

Alpha-One grabbed the diety and landed safely with him. The general, however, landed a second after them and approached a wounded Justin who managed to grab the imperial commander and strike her with a proper headbutt and pushed her sword away. She tried to hit my friend with her foot, but he grabbed her before she could touch him. She ended up pushing him to the ground and raising her sword at him. Before she could strike, I reached towards her and punched her in the head with my golden fist, breaking her helmet. She held her face in her hand and spoke.

"That was pretty unexpected. You pack a punch there, kid." The second I recognized her voice, I froze in fear and fell on the ground. "You must be the one who annihilated our forces in the capital with nothing but guns, right?"

When she removed her hand from her face and stared me in the eye, I crawled backward as fast as I could while shouting: "BACK OFF! BACK OFF! NO MORE!" My body started to shake violently as the memories of the myriad times I was at the receiving end of her wrath resurged in my mind.

"Huh? Did my face really scare you, little boy?" She asked mockingly, reminding me of the times when she mocked me for crying after every hit. I held my body and prepared myself to be at her mercy once more and waited for the hits to land. I saw how Justin looked at me, realizing what I was going through. Mia covered her mouth with her hands and stared with widened horror as she realized the identity of the general.

"Leave him alone!" Zack said as he dropped on the ground and used his sword and shield to push her away from me and save me from her.

"What's wrong with your friend?" She asked Zack as she clashed her sword with him, not knowing who I was due to the mask that covered half my face along with the white hair and golden eyes. "Why is he shaking like that? My face is not that injured, is it?"

"Back off, wench! It will be when I'm done with you!" Zack shouted before following it with "Sun's Grace!"

Alpha-One rushed towards me and tried to hold my shaking body in her hand, but I pushed her away. I watched as Mia fired her bow repeatedly and violently at the blinded nightmare with the speed of a machine gun, anger being the defining trait present on her face. The woman of my nightmares covered herself with her hands and flew to her ship before leaving the premises.

"Alex! Alex, what happened?!" Zack said as he rushed towards me. "What did she do to him?!"

"It's not about what she did to him now, it's about what she kept doing to him again and again for years," Justin corrected Zack. "It's about the years of suffering he endured. I was afraid of this..."

"What are you talking about?!" Alpha-One asked the blonde boy.

"You two don't know that girl at all," Justin stated. "Mia and me, however, we know her too much."

"Breathe, Alex, Breathe!" Zack said to me as he grabbed my hand.

"This... This monster is none other than the one who beat Alex for years on end. That monster is none other than his sister!" Mia exclaimed.

"His sister?!" Zack asked.

"Yes," Justin replied.

"Nova."

Hearing her name made me scream and burst into tears in an instant. Everything after that was a mesh between the present and the past. Nova's face haunted my mind once again, making me horrified and out of my mind. I shook violently while being cradled in the hands of my friends.

"No... No more... No more..." I cried to myself.

"What's he saying?" A1 asked.

"He's repeating what he always told her, but his words fell on deaf ears," Justin stated. "THIS IS ALL MY FAULT!"

"It's not your fault, Justin!" Mia shouted.

"If I took a moment to listen to him. Just ONE! I would have known about this sooner and put an end to his suffering," Justin stated. "But, I was nothing but a dumb idiot back then!"

One look at Justin's face made my body slowly cease the shaking. He held me in his arms and calmed me down. I did not know what effect he had on all of us, but being in Justin's embrace made me feel safe and away from all harm. My breathing soon returned to normal, and my tears stopped pouring from my eyes. All the feelings of terror and pain ceased, and the scars in my memory slowly began to heal. Soon, I couldn't help but wrap my arms around my god and hold him as tightly as he held me and shielded me from the evils of the world.

"Unwind, my brother. You're safe. 'Tis alright. No one will harm you anymore. Hand over your fears. Hand over your anger. Hand over your grief. I will safeguard you and bring peace upon your soul. The words of your god are absolute. Stay in my arms for as long as your soul feels the unease, and I will cease your misery."

"Whoa... Justin, what did you just do?" Zack asked the diety.

"I showed him the true light of the gods. And now, he will heal. His resolve is powerful, it made me go on the path that I walk today. He brought us together, even beyond death. I will not let harm befall him anymore," Justin stated.

"We... We all felt it..." A1 said. "It was powerful."

"Y-Yeah," Mia continued. "I feel so much better."

"You did that to Ian, didn't you?" Zack asked.

"I did. I learned this after seeing a vision of a man healing the wounded with his power." Justin revealed.

Justin held me in his arms once again and said: "I owe you my life, Alex. I will do what I can to keep you safe. That is a promise."

"Nova..." I looked at my golden arm and clenched my fist. "She wrecked our family. She left my parents broken. I didn't tell anyone because I wanted to be with my older sister and my parents, but she took it too far. I was the only one who stood up for her madness, and I took the constant beating. Not once did I complain. Not once did I speak against it to anyone but her. She'd beat me, and I'd go to hug her right after it all. Why? Because she's my damn sister!"

"How did Ethan know?" Mia asked.

"My parents told him despite my wishes. I did not want anyone to know, especially you, Justin. I knew that you'd take it upon yourself to bring my sister to Justice, but I didn't want to see my sister go to a mental institution. I wanted my family to stay together. I wanted my mom and dad to be happy. One night, she left us, leaving behind nothing but a letter," I explained, pulling out a key from my pocket. "This is the key to her room."

"You... You carried that thing on you this entire time?!" Zack exclaimed.

"I wanted to keep my parents safe from her. If my mom were to find the key and open the door to that cursed room... I don't want to think about it. It was his majesty who helped my parents cope with all of this. Who did I have? I had you, Justin." I looked at my blonde friend with tears falling from my eyes. "Being with you and Mia is the greatest thing I can wish for. I couldn't cope with the fact that you were leaving us forever, that's why I tried to spend as much time with you as possible. I remember looking at your empty room and breaking down on the ground when no one's around. When I was given another chance at life, it was you who gave me that chance. Remember when my parents' car broke down in front of your old town?"

"Yes?" Justin asked, with tears about to fall.

"I don't think it was a coincidence. It was fate that we'd meet each other. It was fate that I found someone like you to be my friend and give me the confidence to face my fears. When you told me that you didn't have a family. I feared for mine. That's why I wanted to keep my sister beside me. In the end, I didn't manage to do that, but at least, I still have you by my side," I stated. I started to hear Alpha-One cry behind me. She hugged me from the back, followed by Mia, Zack, and Justin.

"Now, I have one last thing to take care of before I can rest. I want to end my battle with Nova once and for all."