Tales From The Kronos

Silva and Emely stayed silent, barely able to get a sentence out of their mouths. Neige understood quickly that he wouldn't get anywhere and gave up trying to understand the situation.

"Listen, I'm glad you're getting closer and less... Violent. If you ever need help with anything you can talk about it with us."

"We're adults, we'll manage."

"You can't even look at her in the eyes Silva. I mean it's cute for sure, you're both discovering new feelings and it's normal that you feel shy about it. Though I'll be honest, I wasn't expecting you to be so shy about it."

Silva looked away from Neige, blushing slightly.

"It's different with Emely..."

"It's kinda cute to see you like that, you're way better like that."

"Oh, so now you're into me, huh?"

Silva grinned at Neige's words, exasperating but also amusing him.

"You're still Silva in the end."

Neige was about to take something out of his pocket but was interrupted by the sound of the ship's alarm. The group stood there confused as Emely turned on her computer. Neige went to look at her screen and saw Silva's name flashing in red.

"Is it considering Silva like an intruder? You should repair that."

Neige thought it was an error but Emely was concerned about it more than anyone else.

"That's Silva's old watch. It means that Silv is here. I don't understand why she can use it, I disabled her watch remotely."

"We'll see later, where is she?"

The three others were ready to leave, seriously taking Silv's threat.

"In the cells, I'll stay here and communicate with you, you should hurry up."

"Flipping Silv!" Cursed Silva while standing up from the desk she was sitting on "She'll never leave us alone."

"We'll see later, let's go."

The group hurried toward the cells only to see them completely empty. They quickly received a call from Emely on their watch.

*They left in another world! I can locate them but... Something is strange.*

"What is?" Asked the leader, worried about what their navigator had to say.

*Silv is in between worlds. Not only our watches can't go there normally so she had to modify it, but she also shouldn't exist at all if she's there!*

"So we can't even get her... What about Kairo and Shiro?"

*They're in the world 00000026!*

The three members looked at each other, recognizing the number of the world.

"Let's hurry, we need to stop them!"

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The world is just a ruin, exactly like they left it years ago. The buildings were all made of ice but were only remnants of their former glory. The leader took her sword in hand, prepared to face anything.

"We should go where we first found Shiro, they could be there."

Her two members agreed and followed her steps on the icy roads of this world.

Once they finally arrived, the two men they were searching for were arguing. Kairo seemed fed up with Shiro, who was visibly desperate. They stopped their conversation when they saw the group approaching them, weapons in their hands. Shiro went toward them, with relief in his eyes.

"I was so scared! I didn't know what was happening. Kairo took me and-"

"Shiro, please... Stop..." Neige aimed at his friend, gripping his firearm strongly "I don't want to hurt you, just surrender."

Shiro dropped the facade, trading his lost expression for a more neutral one. He looked back behind him to see that Kairo had already run away, leaving him alone against the group.

"I don't think there's anything I can do anyway."

"Is he really Shiro?" Silva asked, genuinely unsure "His voice doesn't sound the same."

"I guess you weren't important enough for them to tell you."

Silva pouted at Shiro's words, visibly offended.

"So you actually have a split personality? It's not a joke?"

"Don't you have a more pressing matter? Isn't Kairo the one you're after?"

Neige tied him with his handcuffs and took his watch away. He looked at it for a moment before putting it in his pocket.

"I'll keep an eye on you, don't try anything funny."

Knowing that he had no chance against them, all Shiro did was silently follow Neige and the group in their search for Kairo.

Silva and the leader stayed behind, discussing as Neige and Shiro silently led the way. As she was looking at her former comrade, Silva couldn't help but think about the reason behind his sudden change.

"I never saw Shiro acting like that before. I never interacted much with him but wasn't he just a bit socially awkward and full of good intentions?"

"It's a bit complicated." Answered the leader "It's not like he has a whole new personality, it's more like his mood changes quickly. He never talked much about his past, not even to Gwyn. I wish there was something we could do, I can see it's also hurting him."

"So... He's struggling between two sides of himself... I think I can understand."

The group walked a bit and managed to find Kairo, looking at a giant tower made of ice. He was visibly expecting them, as he started talking when he heard them coming, without turning toward them.

"It was me, Silva, and Neige. It was another mission, another new member. I couldn't explain why but... It's nostalgic to me."

"Feel nostalgic? Want to go back to the good old days?"

Kairo laughed at his old friend's words, a laugh full of sorrow.

"You know very well I can't."

Any soft noise seemed deafening in this cold silence. No one dared to move, staring at Kairo's back.

"Have you noticed Neige? Snow... It's everywhere. So many worlds, and yet, most are snowy."

"What do you want me to say? The Goddess likes snow."

"The Goddess... She made all these words, cold and lonely... Do you think it's how our creator feels?"

"Kairo, what are you talking about?" Silva interrupted her old friend's words, with anger in her voice "Why are you like that now? You would find every new world wonderful! You'd smile over the simplest things and ask questions about the most complex ones. Those worlds aren't lonely, they have so much life in them."

"Silva... You changed since last time."

Kairo's sorrowful voice contrasted with Silva's determination. The two former friends both were saddened by the turn of events but none of them was ready to go back.

"You changed too Kairo... And not for the best."

"I know. Knowledge is a burden. We could have continued to work together but what's the point if nothing is real? Are we really living if we obey someone's fate?"

"I don't obey anyone's fate."

Kairo finally turned toward the group and looked at Silva in the eyes, surprised to see her determination through her sunglasses.

"Neige, Silva, Leader, Shiro... I'm happy either way, whether you fall, whether I fall, it doesn't matter to me."

Kairo pointed his firearm toward Neige, ready to fire.

"The snow... It's cold and lonely..."

Neige stared at the sky, feeling the snowflakes fall on his face while taking his own firearm in hand.

"Kairo, did you know? Neige is another word for Snow."

"Aren't you cold and lonely too?" Kairo said with a sarcastic smile.

"I like to think that when the snow falls, it means that Polyetta is with me. It's weird but... I have the feeling that the snow is here because of her."

Polyetta looked at her friend with a soft but confused smile. Neige aimed his firearm at Kairo, both waiting for the other to act first. The snow continued to fall without any signs of stopping. A chilly wind blew, Neige usually hated the cold but seemed comfortable with it this time. Kairo on the other hand was shaking, even if the cold wasn't the only reason. Silva and the leader wanted to also draw their weapons but Neige seemed determined to end it personally. Shiro looked at the scene with indifference, and yet, still felt an uncomfortable feeling in his chest for some reason.

The two men stared at each other, not intending to hold back. The silence suddenly vanished, leaving its place to a loud sound. The white and pure snow on the ground was tainted by the red liquid that splashed over it. like on cue, the wind stopped. A body fell on the ground under the shocked gaze of everyone, letting the silence take back its place.