He looked around. Everything had gone quiet all of a sudden...

There was a serene pool of water he had never noticed before amongst the trees, so he landed beside it and folded his wings once again. He pulled the collar of his shirt down so that the crystal was visible, and knelt down by the pool of water to see his reflection. His Cruxis crystal was the same as it had been since he had received it: green, gold, and slightly shiny. He sighed and sat back on the grass, and wished he could return home, even for a moment, just to see how it was surviving without him. If it was still there and flourishing. For all he knew, Symphonia could've died if there was insufficient mana to keep it alive, and Kratos, Yuan and Genis could've all died with it.

He ran the dual blade along the bark of the tree again, like he had done so many times before. The skin of the plant lay in splinters on the ground as he took his frustration out upon it, and his frustration was fueled by many points. He didn't know where he was. He was alone. His shoes were missing. He growled again, eyes flashing dangerously as his pupils changed to cat like slits at the center of icy blue irises, uncaring as to who's tree this was and if they'd be angry when they found out or not. At the moment, it was his scratching post.

Aeries watched as Flare walked from Simon, sunglasses covering his eyes just like the first time she had met him. She could have sworn she saw him look over at her, even for just a split second, and decided to go and see what was wrong. Nothing good could be happening when Flare looked as moddy as that, or when he wore his sunglasses. Wanting to find out, she jogged after him and followed him to the climbing frames outside the building. 

He was sat on one of them, looking up at the skies above with such a dull look that it was obvious he hadn't spotted her as she walked over. She poked his leg, seeing as he was higher up than her, and he jumped slightly as he looked down at her.

"You're really good at sneaking up on people, you know that?" he said, and she smiled up at him in her usual, innocent way. He moved over a little, and she climbed up and sat down beside him, before looking up as well.

"This place is so pretty, and the people here are really nice. Have you spoken to any of them?" she asked curiously, and he nodded, keeping his gaze on the clouds up above.

"I guess so, but they ask a lot of questions."

"You just need to lighten up a little," she replied, reaching over and taking his sunglasses before putting them on and smiling. "Hey, these are pretty cool!" she said, making him smile.

"At least he's cheering up a little. He really doesn't take to new people very well, does he? Like a dog or something." They both looked down at Simon as he walked over as well, and Aeries smiled down at him as well.

"He was fine when he first met me," she said as the silver haired teenager sat down in front of them.

"Meh, he just likes you," he replied, which resulted with a foot on his head. "Ow..." Flare closed his eyes and leant back against the metal bar with a humoured smile on his face.

He was... confused.

One moment, he was battling a group who wanted to overthrow him, even though he was trying his hardest to get things right, and then... he died. His Cruxis Crystal had been destroyed, his soul had been broken, shattered, with it. Yet... here he was. He had a body, he had his Crystal, but he had none of his former companions. Kratos, Yuan, Martel... He already missed them, yet barely moments ago he felt anger, rage, completely negative to his two remaining 'friends', but now he felt lost without them. He sighed, and decided it would be best to look around the place for now. As he stood up and brought out his wings, he was shocked to find that he was feeling the one thing he hadn't felt in over four thousand years.

He felt bored.

Bloomington, Indiana

Annika was contentedly sorting her many packages. After days of weakness, she was functioning optimally and felt surprisingly cheerful.

Yesterday afteroon, when she'd finally been released from Starfleet Medical, she'd insisted on going to her apartment even before regenerating. It was a depressing sight. It was true--nothing was worth salvaging. Annika had regretted the loss of her photos from Voyager's database the most. Her furniture and even the piano were replacable, as were her clothes (though she did feel a pang for a certain red dress). The doctor had promised to send her duplicates of all the photos that had been destroyed with her computer--and more besides. Annika had brightened at that offer, knowing she'd soon have enough photos to take up a significant number of storage chips. Then Kathryn had taken her to the house in Indiana and installed her in a spare bedroom. Annika found the arrangement quite satisfactory. She felt less alone than she had in months. That evening, her friends had come to celebrate her liberation from Medical, all of them bringing gifts to make up for what she'd lost.

And today, she and Kathryn had gone shopping. It was an entirely unnecessary endeavor. She could easily have replicated what clothes she required without leaving the house. But the completely frivolous nature of the activity had made it attractive and not even the phasers both women carried concealed on their persons could not fully dampen the fun. Truthfully, Seven was willing to admit (at least to Janeway), 'thumbing their noses' at whatever threats might still exist and knowing how infuriated Admiral Nechayev had been when they'd insisted on ignoring the danger had made the experience all the more satisfying.

She smirked even now as she recalled Nechayev's face when she'd learned of Annika's plans. She put away the last of her purchases with satisfaction. She now had far more clothes than she could justify owning, but the thought amused her. She was happy.

A small pinprick of light floated down from the skies, a thin trail of feathers creating a path that slowly disappeared behind it. It seemed to examine the area as it hovered a distance from the ground, like the height of a child, before it grew and two feet touched the ground gently. As the light faded, the newcomer fell weakly to their knees, blond locks falling in front of their face and obscuring their eyes as they breathed heavily. His hands dug into the ground slightly, before he felt well enough to let go and sit back on his feet to inspect his surroundings. Brushing a few golden strands from his sapphire blue eyes, he looked curiously towards the outstretching lands before standing up and brushing grass and dirt from his white and green outfit. He was confused to find his feet bare, and decided to look around for some answers, making sure the green gem between his shoulder blades was well hidden from any onlookers.

Looking cheerful, calm, and a little happier about having no shoes, Simon stepped forward and put an arm around his black haired friend's shoulder.

"Once you actually look around this place, it doesn't look that bad. People look happy too, which is a change," he said, and Flare muttered something that sounded strangely like 'Shut up Simon' before he looked around as well.

"Wait, where did Aeries go?"

"Over there. She seems to be fitting in well with other people," Simon pointed over to their brunette friend talking to a tall blonde haired woman a short distance away.

Annika stood in front of the building to which Kali had led her soon after she first woke here. She was gazing out at the park, her expression somewhat curious but also distant, as if she was more focused on whatever she was thinking than on the sight before her eyes.

She had just discovered something rather strange, which is what had caused the rather odd regard she was paying her surroundings at the moment.

Eventually, she crossed the open area in front of the building, steps slow as if she were wandering at random but her path led directly to the pools Kali had pointed out. Somehow, she knew exactly where hers was. It was nestled within a profusion of Zantedeschia Aethiopica and Zantedeschia Rehmannii--calla lilies. Most of them where the white Aethiopica, but here and there were the jewel-toned purple and deep rose of the more delicate Rehmannii variety.

She studied the water thoughtfully. This was supposedly the way home, but she felt extremely reluctant to submerge beneath the still surface. She imagined herself diving down into the depths, filled with dread at what might lie beneath. One was supposed to travel bodily between realities, but her body was lying somewhere within Starfleet Medical. If she did successfully traverse the pool, she wondered, what then? The thought of being trapped insensate in her damaged body chilled her.

There was a small flash, and a silver, eight point star became visible somewhere between the trees. The shape in the centers was gone before details could be made, and the star grew until three figures fell from the faint light inside. They fell to the ground in an unruly mess, and the first understandable words that were heard were of the utmost importance.

"Flare, get your foot out of my face!"

Current Location: From the Final Game
Current Mood: creative
Current Music: Queen