[attr="class","star2tsu"]You know the excuse well. [break][break]
It's for that same reason you rebelled against your inattentive father, the same reason you deserted the Rockets who dyed your soul black by association, all those terrible things you've done. Freedom. Yes, freedom is the cause of so many of this world's evils. People think that it is a virtue unto itself, even when the pursuit itself could so easily be for the freedom to commit evil on another. The freedom, to have to fend for yourself while you are abandoned by your king. [break][break]
Freedom, that forbidden fruit, tastes so bittersweet and melancholy. It makes you wanna puke.[break][break]
"That's exactly what my father would say." [break][break]
It's impossible to convey the weight in your chest as you realize that fact. He's one and the same, the kind of person to let his subjects, his children, fend for themselves because he's so conceited, so self-absorbed. And he has the ego to call his neglect the righteousness worthy of a king.[break][break]
"You're no king. A king doesn't abandon his people, no matter what. The world's fallen to this state cause you gave up, cause you're weak... that's why we gotta go fix it, isn't it?"[break][break]
All the venom that wells in your heart spills from your mouth, you gaze at him with utter scorn. You turn, beginning to walk away. [break][break]
... At that moment, you're swept off your feet in a huge bear hug. It startles you so much, makes you jump out of your skin, you think the king has retaliated for your harsh words at first. But no, it's simply the excitable man to whom you owe everything, a man who wears his affection like a sword at his side, drawing it at a moment's notice.[break][break]
"H-hey! What're you—? N-Navy!? H-HEY—!!"[break][break]
He picks you up off the ground in a moment, before you can even catch your bearings. You're set atop a large spectral horse, cold and unsettling to the touch. You look down at it, the steed of a so-called king, letting a commoner like you ride atop it without complaint. You sigh, exasperated that the comparison could even be drawn, and yet...[break][break]
Before you can turn to offer final words to the king, you are already headed through a portal. The gut-wrenching feeling of being tossed head over heels is unmistakable. Just like plunging into the Deep, you're submerged, and awaken somewhere else. [break][break]
You find yourself in an industrial city, overtaken by calamity. Puddles of condensed venom lie all over, hands that lead to nowhere like they belong to something bigger stretch from the muck, and smog chokes you, burns your nostrils. [break][break]
You're reminded of home. [break][break]
But it's more nostalgic than even that. The sense of dread that this city sunken into the mire instills in you is something you've only experienced once before. [break][break]
At the bottom of the deep.[break][break]
It's a lot to take in, but you hit the ground running. Rather, Calyrex's steed does the running, while you keep your eyes wide open searching for clues, the source of this dread. Biding your time as you gallop through the streets and alleyways, through tunnels and under bridges, you slowly map it out, get a lay of the land. Navy's chasing a runaway train filled with the stuff, and you're along for the ride. It's a good start as any. [break][break]
Kuchinashi, the flower without a mouth, clings to your back like a bag. She waits intently for your signal. There's a pattern. No matter how fast it's going, trains travel the tracks, which means... As
Navy leaps for the train, as
Melody Miro clambers aboard, you've already set your plan in motion. [break][break]
"Go! Do it now!"[break][break]
You pull at thin air. Like yanking a string taught, you hold it outstretched. That's enough.[break][break]
The flower on your back blooms. Silk strings nearly invisible to the naked eye suddenly all move at once. It's like the strumming of a guitar, beautiful music to contrast these ugly surroundings. Threads interwoven along the path of the tracks pull together like a web, covering the width of an entire tunnel up ahead. And the train is the hapless insect, caught within. [break][break]
"Voila! It's a trap, sprung by your's truly!"[break][break]
You smirk. Self-assured of your success. While the big dumb heroes rush in, do something dangerous, nearly get themselves killed ... you've got eternity waiting, you won't risk it all for a stupid gambit like that. Not here. You prefer something you can count on.[break][break]
And this silk, this
Sticky Webbing of yours... it's not just sticky, perfect for slowing things down, like a barreling train. [break][break]
No, this silk has more tensile strength than nanocarbon fibres. With any luck, it'll crumple up like a tin can. [break][break]
You eye the trainer on the roof. You eye Navy, aiming for the conductor compartment. You can't help but feel a little sorry, if this works...[break][break]
"Better hold on tight!"[break][break]
You call out. But you're afraid your voice will be drowned out. [break][break]
Too little, too late.[break][break]
[break][break]
wibGQUvI
[break][break]
It can't be helped. [break][break]
+Tsubaki tells Calyrex:
"You're no king..."[break]
+Tsubaki's kidnapped by
Navy, in Motostoke riding atop Spectrier and
chasing the train[break]
+Sensing something familiar, Tsubaki hatches a plan to find out what's on the train [break]
+Tsubaki's Ariados uses Sticky Web to slow the train, of even bring it to a sudden stop, by weaving a web in front of a tunnel. Sorry
Navy and
Melody Miro !
THE MEMORY CONFIRMS THAT THE MATTERS ARE CIRCUMSTANTIAL AND NOT A PREDETERMINED ONE: if Selena is correct to assume, then their fate relies on what they do next. If she is to believe the CALYREX and its words, then it is their action that affects the story.
[break]3fpAvaGT
