Chapter 8

As I slowly regained consciousness, my body screamed in pain and my head throbbed with a pounding ache. But as I opened my eyes, I was hit with an unusual scent that immediately sent chills down my spine. It was the smell of damp concrete after a cold rain, mixed with an unmistakable hint of ozone. A scent that always reminded me of her.

And there she stood, looming over me in her black Systems Alliance Specter jumpsuit, the woman who had haunted my nightmares for years. The one responsible for all the darkness inside of me. She gazed at me with her green and yellow eyes, her face wearing a small, seemingly genuinely concerned smile.

I stood up, ready to confront her, but my frustration threatened to spill over. Which version of Sun Jin Kaisara was I facing? The mentor who had once guided me, or the enemy that had caused so much pain? Memories came rushing back: the good times we shared, laughing and joking together, admiring the sunset from a rooftop in one of Amber Krowe's cities on peaceful days. Then the painful memories surfaced - the fury and the sadness, the aftermath of the night her father died, the moment the glass shattered.

That night with Tanuki, the moment briefly flashed, when I saw them together. A moment on the brink of chaos. I watched from the rooftop entrance, the cold wind blowing in my face as they embraced, and she cried in his arms. It was the same night he would die on Amber Krowe.

I growled in anger as she took a step towards me in the darkness, searching for any weapons I could use against her. But I realized I had nothing... I was naked.

"Calm yourself, Forza," she spoke softly, cautiously approaching me like I was a wild animal, her hands up cautiously. "I gave you so much. You can trust me."

But I couldn't contain my rage. "No! You took away even more. You ruined my life," I shouted at her, feeling the scars across my body burn with fury.

"But if it weren't for me, you'd be dead," she countered.

"Trust me," I seethed through gritted teeth, "sometimes I wish it had been that way."

Her next words sent shivers down my spine. "We were there for each other, remember? Remember when my father died?"

As the bedside light flicked on, my surroundings shifted completely. Suddenly, I was on my knees in her room, and she was right in front of me on her bed. It all came back to me - this was where she used to sleep. This was a memory. The night the Kaisara I knew… died. She was shattered and inconsolable, letting out anguished screams into my chest as I held onto her tightly, cradling her head in my arms.

"They did this, Forza!" she cried out in agony.

My heart broke at the sight of her pain. "Sun," I whispered softly as tears welled up in my eyes. "I know. I know."

"He protected us... if he hadn't done what he did, we'd all be dead," she sobbed into my chest.

I held her tightly, kissing her forehead gently. "They killed him..." she whimpered.

"But Tanuki saved thousands more while they did so," I reminded her.

But as she looked up at me with panic in her eyes. "If we hadn't gone looking for him in the first place... we wouldn't have led the Systems Alliance right to him. They couldn't have targeted him with Longinus!"

I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to hold onto the feeling of her in my arms me before it all changed again. The rooftop, the helipad, was back, with its wild winds and familiar skyline of Amber Krowe, the massive city planet I called home. My hand stretched out into the dark sky, pushing against the wind as I watched System Alliance military craft retreat from the city district. Their helicopters and hovering transports lit up the night sky as they slowly moved away. Tanuki was there, holding Sun close while she cried.

Tanuki was also an Amber Krowen like us, but his appearance was unique: soft brown fur with white highlights, swept back ears like Sun's and mine but shorter in length. I would learn more about this man later on and his importance to… everything, but despite his stature and significance, he seemed casual and unassuming. He wore khaki cargo pants paired with an unbuttoned dress shirt, along with his signature orange glasses and short unkempt white hair, similar to my own. He looked like he just rolled out of bed after passing out, dressed, after a long night on the town, and yet he was unknowingly to most of our entire race that he was one of the centuries old fathers to us all.

His two swords were thrust into the concrete. These same swords would later be wielded by Sun, and later myself on Caisteal when I was unwillingly used for experimentation. He placed his hands gently on her shoulders, pressing a soft kiss to her forehead before rubbing his cheek against it. It was true, this was her father. He clearly… loved her so much.

“It's going to be okay, dear,” her father's voice trembled as he held onto her. She clung to him desperately, tears streaming down her face. He, for a moment, kept his eyes locked on me from afar. We locked eyes, the wind blowing in our hair. He took in the smell of her hair, his eyes, watching me… He was silently communicating to me with those eyes.

"Please don't leave me," she begged him, her heart breaking at the thought of losing him again.

But her father gently pulled away, a sad smile on his face. "I have to go, Sun. It's my duty."

Sun's despair turned into anger and she grabbed onto his hand, refusing to let go. "This isn't fair! After all this time apart, we finally have a chance to be together!"

"I know, but I have to do what's right," he said, brushing her cheek with his thumb. "You've grown into such a strong woman."

Tears continued to fall from Sun's eyes as she clung to her father, not wanting to let go. But the small particles of light surrounding them reminded her that time was running out.

As her father took a few steps back, Sun cried out for him not to leave. But he could only offer her one last kiss on the forehead.

"I won't forget this moment," Sun whispered, holding onto the memory as the particles of light started fading, and appearing, more rapidly now, raising to the sky as short-lived beams of light. It was Longinus…

“I’ll protect you, Sun, until the end.” He took a step back but this time she stayed where she was and didn’t try to follow him. He walked backwards toward the ledge of the rooftop and stopped.

I took advantage of the opportunity to quickly approach Sun and place my hand on her back, giving Tanuki a fierce look. What could he possibly do to stop Longinus? The planetary defense weapons platform, designed to intercept potential threats like asteroids or meteors long before they reached Amber Krowe, was stationed in low Amber Krowe orbit. It was aiming the wrong directly - it was aiming at us. The lives that would be lost if…

He gave me a look that said he understood what needed to be done and had come to terms with his fate. Without hesitation, he removed the glasses perched on his head and let them fall to the ground with a soft clatter of aluminum meeting cement.

He threw himself off the edge of the towering building. Sun's heart dropped and she tried to reach for him, but it was too late. A blinding explosion of light… My vision was blinded and my ears deafened with a piercing hum.

The deafening roar shakes the material realm beneath our feet. I felt as if I am standing at the edge of a hurricane, with powerful gusts of wind whipping through my hair and pressing against my body. In shock, I look up and see it. The massive creature emerging from over the ledge. Its enormous form blocking out the moonlight and casting a shadow over us. The dragon. Adorned in shimmering red scales that glint in the moonlight, like liquid fire coursing through its veins. Its long, narrow body covered in thick armor and flames shooting out from between each scale, creating a fiery trail in its wake. With each beat of its wings, flaming orbs of energy dance around it, leaving behind streaks of crimson light. She had told me about them before - a Templar Dragon that I had only ever heard about in Templar legends but this was different. It was so much more beautiful and grander then Kaisara had ever described to me before. As it slowly rises higher into the sky, it fixes its intense gaze upon Sun, almost as if it's saying goodbye. And in that moment, I realize that this is how would defeat Longinus. This is how he would save Sun Jin Kaisara, and the hundreds of thousands of other innocents that would be caught in its attack.

A searing, dark sphere of light burst forth from the creature's body, emitting a deafening screech that rattled our bones. Sun collapsed to her knees, tears streaming down her face as she watched in horror. As the orb expanded and intensified, a blinding beam of light shot into the sky with such force it seemed to rip through the fabric of reality itself, leaving nothing behind as the dragon shot upward into the sky.

"No," Sun choked out, her voice breaking. I could only stand there in shock, my hand still on her back as we witnessed the destruction unfolding before us. Longinus's targeting laser finished locked onto our exact location, the blue beams of light that had been dancing around for a few moments finally solidifying and the blue beams of light converged the city block.

But amidst the chaos and devastation, I saw it. A small glimmer of yellow light, so far away but impossible to miss against the backdrop of the night sky. And then, just as suddenly as it had begun, everything went quiet. The blue targeting laser faded away into nothingness. It was over.

But at what cost? The Systems Alliance had used us all as pawns in their twisted game to take down Tanuki, the powerful leader of the ancient Tanukian Templar Tribe. They didn't care about innocent lives or collateral damage. It was clear the power they sought in capturing Tanuki, but in the face of failure to capture him, they chose destruction. After all, it had taken almost an hour to get to this rooftop from their pursuit, and Tanuki had single handedly destroyed so many of their pursuit craft.

Sun, on the bed, clenched her claws into my back in a fit of rage and despair while we held each other. "I will avenge him, Forza. I promise to Varuna that I will avenge him." She repeated these words through sobs, clinging onto the memory.

"I know, Sun. I know you will fight with all your might for what you believe in," I reassured her softly, placing my hand under her chin and gently lifting it to meet my gaze. "You have shaped me into who I am today, Sun. You trained me in combat and introduced me to the world of Templar. You have given me a purpose in life and together, we have accomplished incredible feats.

She kept her forehead against my chest, which was damp from her tears, and shook her head in a slow motion.

“As a team, we have conquered dictators and rescued entire societies,” I said with a sigh. “You are like the older sister I never had, teaching me important lessons and shaping who I am.”

She continued shaking her head, stronger now. She wanted to say something but somehow let me finish.

“I understand that you have to leave Amber Krowe now, right?” I moved her a bit from my chest so I could eye her at arm's length, looking into her tear-stained face. “Wherever you go, I’m going with you.”

Her eyes slowly open, revealing piercing green eyes that glinted with a mixture of sorrow and despair. Strands of black and green hair hung limply in front of her face, partially obscuring her features and adding to the intensity of her gaze. Her words were firm, but her voice cracked with emotion. I could see the anguish etched into every line on her face and knew that this moment would be etched into my memory forever. "No, Forza," she said. "You'll stay here."

“Why not? We’re partners.”

She took a slow, shaky breath and leaned back on the bed. Tears stained her cheeks, but she wasn't actively crying anymore. “Not anymore. It's time for us to go our separate ways now.”

My eyes snapped open, but I was still dreaming. The scene before me continued to unfold, like an old memory playing on repeat.

“We were always there for each other, Forza...” Kaisara's soft voice echoed in the shadowy dream world as she cautiously approached me. "Remember that night on the rooftop and in your bedroom?" She stopped in front of me, her face serious and determined.

"That was the day you died, Sun." I shook my head furiously, sweat dripping down my forehead. "You were gone."

Kaisara unsheathed her two swords, the same two blades, glowing orange, that Tanuki had left for her that fateful night on the rooftop. She held them with their blades pointing behind her, reverse grip, just like she taught me years ago. She was my mentor, my teacher, my master - the one who trained me to fight and kill.

"It wasn't the end, Forza. It was just the beginning of a new chapter." Her words hung heavy in the air as she stood in front of me, ready for battle.

"Yeah, it was the end of one chapter. But it was also the end of our friendship. You disappeared and I never saw you again." My voice trembled with emotion as memories flooded back.

"My father, Forza. They murdered him. The System's Alliance ruined my life and killed one of the greatest ancients of the Templar. Everything I did with the Nightfall Templar, with Flarion... it was all for him. I became a powerful Redken, leader of the Nightfall Tribe, all for my father. But that night, they took away my chance for a way out. I wanted to protect Amber Krowe at his side for the rest of my life."

"And is this the life you want now? Seeking revenge?" A loud sound, an echoing crunching sound filled my ears. In the dream, it seemed natural and didn't feel out of place at all. "And how do you justify what you did to me? You kidnapped me. Your people enslaved me and turned me into a weapon. This is all because of you. It's all your fault!"

No no no... I could feel it building within me. Anger. The nature of this dream was changing. Darkness was rising and coming for me. Anxiety grew and my chest tightened.

"You were my apprentice, Forza. When I said we should go our separate ways, I knew I still needed you by my side. You wouldn't come willingly so I forced you to join me. I gave you my armor - unique armor forged from my own father's scales that can deflect even the most powerful attacks. I gave you my swords - passed down to me by my dying father - and entrusted them to you. I gave you everything you would need to be protected! We spent years together as trained killers and I wanted you back by my side again."

The memories flooded back, overwhelming me with emotions. Kaisara's words cut deep, lashing at the wounds she had caused. I wanted to hate her for what she did, but a part of me couldn't let go of the love and admiration I once had for her.

My mind was in turmoil as I struggled to make sense of it all. The sliver in my mind whispered its dark influence, amplifying my rage and confusion. But even through the chaos, I couldn't believe that Kaisara would intentionally hurt me like this. There had to be a reason behind her actions, no matter how twisted they seemed. I had to rationalize that this was my dream, not reality. This is only how it appeared to have happened from my point of view.

As I tried to move closer to her, the loud crunching sound shook the dream and my body gave out, collapsing. I looked forward and my eyes widened in terror as I saw myself in front of me where Kaisara had been, clad in the infamous black Gotanenks Armor and wielding the same swords. But it wasn't me as I was now; it was the dark Forza, controlled by Jethro. The embodiment of all my nightmares stood before me, drenched in the blood of innocent lives that I had taken against my will.

“Your frozen memories,” The voice that spoke was my own, but it was distorted and filled malice and blood.

Tears streamed down my face as memories of my past flooded my mind, weighing me down with guilt. In the midst of this, a sharp pain ripped through my chest. The orange blade that had once been used to end countless lives was now impaling me. As I felt myself fading into darkness, the images of my past flashed before me. I saw the fiery dragon on the rooftop, Sun Jin Kaisara's broken sadness, Shiinx's gentle smile, Kaira killing Rafaya, a fist bump with my friend Dare from the Specter Program, a smirk from the snow-patterned feline Amber Krowen Ukatan, Rio Narro's comforting embrace on Caisteal, and the alter ego I had created staring at me with an expression as light passing over its jagged feathered crest.

Then, as I opened my eyes to the real world, gazing up at Tier's sky above me and looking around, I remembered one last face from my past. One’s face that came from an encounter that was so otherworldly, beyond time and space, that there is no way it had been real. I had buried it as just another nightmare - but there it was, before me, in reality in this empty grass field in a forested clearing. The drumming in my ears began to pulsate.

Flarion, with his striking black and red feathers ruffled and wild, landed heavily on the grass in front of me, sending a tremor through the ground that caused upturned dirt and stone to explode into the air. The impact reverberated across the clearing, releasing a wave of energy that threatened to engulf everything in its path. The colossal beast spread its massive wings wide, each feather reflecting its dark-and-red essence, and fixed its eyes on me with an intensity that seemed capable of tearing my very soul apart. Its open black beak emitted a piercing scream, a sound so raw and feral that it overwhelmed my senses and filled the air with primal madness.

The deafening screech crashed through my body, igniting a primal excitement within the depths of my soul. It was as if the sound had come to life, wrapping around me, throttling me, dragging me into a reality so intangible and chaotic that it felt like I was losing myself. The sheer force of its cry shook me to my core, blurring the lines between dream and reality. A dark essence that slumbered inside of me stirred in excitement and exultation. I could feel it rising from the depths, withering and twisting as it embraced Flarion's arrival, dancing to the terrifying music of its scream.

It was a sound I had heard once before, and it haunted me because I knew it meant something beyond my understanding. It left me breathless, but it was more than that. I was exhilarated and petrified. I was alive and dead all at once. I wavered in the midst of this chaos, teetering on the brink of something ominous and inevitable. It was like being reborn into a nightmare that held me in its merciless grip. The embodiment of my fears and desires stood before me in the shape of the griffin, and in that moment, I was both captive and free. The world around me spun, and I was a part of it, entwined with the monstrous vision that towered over me, its vibrant red eyes devouring me.

I gradually stood up, attempting to maintain eye contact with him. As I gazed into his eyes, I sensed the darkness within me more intensely than ever, though it remained under control somehow. I… I understood what this was. I got really afraid. My heart missed a beat. I… I felt as if this had already happened, b…but I was about to see it again.

Jethro.