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Description
Starryai generated!

I forgot tags last time.

But my baby is cancer negative! So yay! That just means recovery from surgery and two more chemo sessions before she is back to full health and I’m over the moon happy with that. I hope everyone celebrates with me.

Also, this short story will be leading to the next batch of lore expansion on the Falos and the setting in general as well as us crossing paths with the Vs Ziegfried crew plot line. I hope you guys enjoy.

Story:

Zwei sat against the door, worried beyond belief. Trois sat down next to her and asked quietly, “Are you okay, sister? You haven’t left here in three hours.” Zwei shook her head and then stared at the floor. “I’m sure he is fine. He said he has done this a lot. How could he not when working for-“

She was cut off when the door opened and the two of them fell backwards. Looking up, they saw him and he seemed to be wearing fresh bandages wrapped in an odd and layered way, almost like it was banded armor. He laughed at their fall and shook his head, “Alright. Up on your feet.” Zwei leapt up and tried to punch him only to have her fist caught effortlessly. He laughed again, no seepage on his bandages, “Please don’t take a swing at a man fresh out of surgery.”

Zwei growled. “You’re lying! You’ve been in your room for hours! There is no way-“

Kuntaret sighed, “He’s fine. I saw to it myself.” Zwei dropped quiet as Kuntaret walked past her down the hall, “He’s selfish but fine. I saw to it myself.” As she watched her sister walk down the hall she stared after her in stunned silence. Had Kuntaret been in there the whole time?

He rolled his eyes at her departing comment and he clarified, “I have a surgeon. Everyone of note in the Falos has a personal surgeon because the backstabbing is that bad. I have an arrangement that allows them to operate on me no matter where I am.” He laughed, “They chew me out every time, but frankly, I wouldn’t have it any other way.” Grabbing Zwei by the shoulder he said firmly, “And now that I’ve been stitched together you are the only one I can train for now. If you are willing to be my pupil, I would love to teach you.”

She punched him in the bandages and was surprised that unlike the ground meat it felt like before, it felt a lot more solid this time. He didn’t even wince or complain. “Fine, but I want the right to stop training at any time I want.”

He clearly had to think about it and responded unexpectedly. “And I want the right to stop teaching you at any time.” She was confused by this but his stern look revealed to her that he was serious. Nodding in response to his question, she was surprised as he grabbed her wrist and began dragging her back to the cargo hold.

——————

“There is one unmistakeable rule about the reality we live in. That those with strong hearts can make even the impossible occur. But there is a lot of subjectivity to the idea of a strong heart.” He motioned to his own body, “I am not a noble or good man. But here I am, mostly back together after having my bell rung about fifty times by hammers heavier than a cargo lifter.”

Zwei sized him up, amazed at how easily he was able to move despite the damage she had just seen. “Why do people make such a mistake? People like you-“

“Are few and far between. And the examples people see around them are usually,” he growled a bit before stating coldly, “usually sociopaths without any remorse. People who spread despair everywhere they go. Pretty much everyone who makes others suffer for their own benefit or amusement. Because despair has the power to bend reality as well and always at someone’s expense.” His anger burned for a moment before he took a deep breath and centered himself. “That fact of reality is why you have more potential than most of your sisters, actually.”

She blinked in confusion, completely at a loss of what he was talking about, she wasn’t special or unique. In combat practice she had felt lackluster compared to what Hepta had been doing, she was useless on the bridge and she was too squeamish for anything beyond basic nursing in the medbay.

He smirked confidently and raised a finger knowingly, “See, those doubts and fears have a secondary effect. The more dire the hour or the more dark your own thoughts become, the brighter the light has to shine to overcome. A guiding light to lead you out of the night. And I see that in you. Fear. Doubt. Uncertainty. It is my hope that I can help you use those like making a diamond in your heart. A diamond that can bear the weight of the cosmos.”

She laughed at him, completely disbelieving his words. He thinks she can handle that? He must think she is naive or childish. Lying to her to try and make her into a pawn in some game of his.

His expression didn’t change. Instead he asserted something she hadn’t considered, “I live in fear daily. Fear from my colleagues sending a robotic hit squad. Fear that if I step out of line I’ll be executed. Fear that one false step can ruin decades of planning. Fear that if I’m too stubborn I’ll die before I can accomplish my task.” He laughed, “And I overcome that fear every day by facing it with courage and relying on the bonds of love to keep my body bound together.”

She thought about this and didn’t know what to do. Still, she had promised she would at least try. “So how do you intend to train me with this?”

He sat down and seemed to have a mild amount of concern in his voice, “There are a few ways to go about that. There is one that will take most of your life to make any major progress with but will dispel the darkness in your heart completely. You will still be stronger than most, but we don’t have the luxury of that much time and I feel we would be wasting a chance at something even greater. I could take you to a Dark Planet and train you there, but that also runs the risk of breaking and killing you.” He sighed, “The only way to cut the difference is to teach you what I can in sessions like this and have you travel with me while promising to simply observe, like you did at the cathedral.”

Zwei jumped in, “I’m not going to watch on the sidelines as you get yourself killed daily. Period. I’m not a monster!”

He nodded, “Fine. Compromise. It will require mutual trust, but you restrain yourself as best you can, back down when I ask you to, and I will trust that the times you step in on my behalf were necessary or at least that you felt they were.”

She nodded before asking curiously, “What’s a Dark Planet?”

He stopped. And he thought. And he silently stared into the distance before answering, “We will have to visit one at some point on my To-do list. The short version is that some entity or force has managed to engulf the entire planet in a cloud of total despair but lacks the understanding, ability, or drive to leave for another one.” He sighed, “I’ve seen more than one and even I don’t want to go there if I don’t have to. Unfortunately, we are going to have to at some point. When we do, try not to kill yourself. It will be difficult in a space like that, but try not to.”

She nodded and asked slowly, “So how do I avoid doing that?”

He nodded, as if understanding her request for her training to move forward. “You remember that guiding light I mentioned before? You need to find the part of your heart that motivates you to move forward when you are scared or sad and nurture it. Emotions are a great way to trace the root of it, but don’t get caught up on them. If you define yourself by your emotions, your power will come and go like a gust of wind. We are looking for something deeper. Something that defines the very fabric of everything you do.”

The lesson began as simply and peacefully as that. Deep breathing, self reflection, and quiet. Despite the many sounds of a crew running around the halls, the cargo hold was dead quiet. Perfect for fishing deep into the calm waters of the heart.

Description
Starryai generated!

I forgot tags last time.

But my baby is cancer negative! So yay! That just means recovery from surgery and two more chemo sessions before she is back to full health and I’m over the moon happy with that. I hope everyone celebrates with me.

Also, this short story will be leading to the next batch of lore expansion on the Falos and the setting in general as well as us crossing paths with the Vs Ziegfried crew plot line. I hope you guys enjoy.

Story:

Zwei sat against the door, worried beyond belief. Trois sat down next to her and asked quietly, “Are you okay, sister? You haven’t left here in three hours.” Zwei shook her head and then stared at the floor. “I’m sure he is fine. He said he has done this a lot. How could he not when working for-“

She was cut off when the door opened and the two of them fell backwards. Looking up, they saw him and he seemed to be wearing fresh bandages wrapped in an odd and layered way, almost like it was banded armor. He laughed at their fall and shook his head, “Alright. Up on your feet.” Zwei leapt up and tried to punch him only to have her fist caught effortlessly. He laughed again, no seepage on his bandages, “Please don’t take a swing at a man fresh out of surgery.”

Zwei growled. “You’re lying! You’ve been in your room for hours! There is no way-“

Kuntaret sighed, “He’s fine. I saw to it myself.” Zwei dropped quiet as Kuntaret walked past her down the hall, “He’s selfish but fine. I saw to it myself.” As she watched her sister walk down the hall she stared after her in stunned silence. Had Kuntaret been in there the whole time?

He rolled his eyes at her departing comment and he clarified, “I have a surgeon. Everyone of note in the Falos has a personal surgeon because the backstabbing is that bad. I have an arrangement that allows them to operate on me no matter where I am.” He laughed, “They chew me out every time, but frankly, I wouldn’t have it any other way.” Grabbing Zwei by the shoulder he said firmly, “And now that I’ve been stitched together you are the only one I can train for now. If you are willing to be my pupil, I would love to teach you.”

She punched him in the bandages and was surprised that unlike the ground meat it felt like before, it felt a lot more solid this time. He didn’t even wince or complain. “Fine, but I want the right to stop training at any time I want.”

He clearly had to think about it and responded unexpectedly. “And I want the right to stop teaching you at any time.” She was confused by this but his stern look revealed to her that he was serious. Nodding in response to his question, she was surprised as he grabbed her wrist and began dragging her back to the cargo hold.

——————

“There is one unmistakeable rule about the reality we live in. That those with strong hearts can make even the impossible occur. But there is a lot of subjectivity to the idea of a strong heart.” He motioned to his own body, “I am not a noble or good man. But here I am, mostly back together after having my bell rung about fifty times by hammers heavier than a cargo lifter.”

Zwei sized him up, amazed at how easily he was able to move despite the damage she had just seen. “Why do people make such a mistake? People like you-“

“Are few and far between. And the examples people see around them are usually,” he growled a bit before stating coldly, “usually sociopaths without any remorse. People who spread despair everywhere they go. Pretty much everyone who makes others suffer for their own benefit or amusement. Because despair has the power to bend reality as well and always at someone’s expense.” His anger burned for a moment before he took a deep breath and centered himself. “That fact of reality is why you have more potential than most of your sisters, actually.”

She blinked in confusion, completely at a loss of what he was talking about, she wasn’t special or unique. In combat practice she had felt lackluster compared to what Hepta had been doing, she was useless on the bridge and she was too squeamish for anything beyond basic nursing in the medbay.

He smirked confidently and raised a finger knowingly, “See, those doubts and fears have a secondary effect. The more dire the hour or the more dark your own thoughts become, the brighter the light has to shine to overcome. A guiding light to lead you out of the night. And I see that in you. Fear. Doubt. Uncertainty. It is my hope that I can help you use those like making a diamond in your heart. A diamond that can bear the weight of the cosmos.”

She laughed at him, completely disbelieving his words. He thinks she can handle that? He must think she is naive or childish. Lying to her to try and make her into a pawn in some game of his.

His expression didn’t change. Instead he asserted something she hadn’t considered, “I live in fear daily. Fear from my colleagues sending a robotic hit squad. Fear that if I step out of line I’ll be executed. Fear that one false step can ruin decades of planning. Fear that if I’m too stubborn I’ll die before I can accomplish my task.” He laughed, “And I overcome that fear every day by facing it with courage and relying on the bonds of love to keep my body bound together.”

She thought about this and didn’t know what to do. Still, she had promised she would at least try. “So how do you intend to train me with this?”

He sat down and seemed to have a mild amount of concern in his voice, “There are a few ways to go about that. There is one that will take most of your life to make any major progress with but will dispel the darkness in your heart completely. You will still be stronger than most, but we don’t have the luxury of that much time and I feel we would be wasting a chance at something even greater. I could take you to a Dark Planet and train you there, but that also runs the risk of breaking and killing you.” He sighed, “The only way to cut the difference is to teach you what I can in sessions like this and have you travel with me while promising to simply observe, like you did at the cathedral.”

Zwei jumped in, “I’m not going to watch on the sidelines as you get yourself killed daily. Period. I’m not a monster!”

He nodded, “Fine. Compromise. It will require mutual trust, but you restrain yourself as best you can, back down when I ask you to, and I will trust that the times you step in on my behalf were necessary or at least that you felt they were.”

She nodded before asking curiously, “What’s a Dark Planet?”

He stopped. And he thought. And he silently stared into the distance before answering, “We will have to visit one at some point on my To-do list. The short version is that some entity or force has managed to engulf the entire planet in a cloud of total despair but lacks the understanding, ability, or drive to leave for another one.” He sighed, “I’ve seen more than one and even I don’t want to go there if I don’t have to. Unfortunately, we are going to have to at some point. When we do, try not to kill yourself. It will be difficult in a space like that, but try not to.”

She nodded and asked slowly, “So how do I avoid doing that?”

He nodded, as if understanding her request for her training to move forward. “You remember that guiding light I mentioned before? You need to find the part of your heart that motivates you to move forward when you are scared or sad and nurture it. Emotions are a great way to trace the root of it, but don’t get caught up on them. If you define yourself by your emotions, your power will come and go like a gust of wind. We are looking for something deeper. Something that defines the very fabric of everything you do.”

The lesson began as simply and peacefully as that. Deep breathing, self reflection, and quiet. Despite the many sounds of a crew running around the halls, the cargo hold was dead quiet. Perfect for fishing deep into the calm waters of the heart.