Oronyx, Cerces, and Nikador's Coreflames have been returned to the Vortex of Genesis. The man destined to be the Strife Demigod took his rightful position, thus lighting up the constellation of Strife.
Only the last two Titans remain: Aquila and Kephale.
Kephale's Coreflame was placed at the Dawn Device, keeping it functioning. It cannot be moved from the time being. Aglaea designated it as the final Coreflame to be returned.
As for the final Titan to be conquered, it was Aquila.
In the Year 4932, three years after Phainon's arrival in Okhema, the campaign against Aquila had begun. The team's composition was rather unexpected:
Phainon, the boy who shoulders the fate of a Deliverer (lit. Savior).
Anaxa, a 'mad scientist' who did many questionable things in pursuit of truth.
Finally, there was Hyacine. A cheerful girl with curled pink and blue twintails. Following her is her Memosprite, Little Ica.
She just so happens to be Anaxa's ex-student assistant.
"Professor! You are here too?!"
"So it seems."
"It's a surprise Lady Aglaea allowed it."
Hyacine's surprise wasn't faked. She was expecting Anaxa to be in house arrest. He never hid the details behind his alchemy's transmutation of the Coreflame and its memories.
Killing a Titan is a grave act—something so heretical every scholar in the Grove would have killed Anaxa for it.
The ones who heard about it are Aglaea's trusted companions—Phainon, Tribbie, and Hyacine.
The strangely quiet Trianne beside Hyacine looked at the skies. Her presence amongst them was overlooked, though she did not mind.
She tugged Hyacine's sleeves and spoke in a low voice.
"I cannot bring you there. Something is interfering with the Century Gate."
"It's alright, Lady Trianne." She added something quickly. "Don't be sad."
"...Mn."
The Century Gate's failure was somewhat expected. Tribbie and the others tried to summon a Century Gate on the Sky Fortress a thousand years ago. It was a success, though it was forcibly 'broken' in the next second.
It spoke volumes of the danger in reclaiming Aquila's Coreflame. Hence Aglaea's concession of Anaxa's arrest. They needed every helping hand present, even if the said man is a killer of Titans.
Hyacine took out an ornamental box. It started to float midair without any instructions. It brought a soft rainbow glow, forming a bridge to above.
Just then, Trianne recalled a certain passage.
'The mad scientist's awakening from his deluded self. Operation Arc Light. It's a fitting scene!'
Her favorite story from Shi Tian's library was the story of the 'Mad Scientist'. He brought upon the troubles of changing the flow of time to himself. It was up to him to fix everything—to save his beloved family who died as a result of doing so.
Operation Arc Light is the scene where he recorded a message to be sent to his past self. It would, in turn, influence him to reach the Steins;Gate, his ideal world where everyone is safe.
"You do not need to affect time. All you have to do is to carry our stories."
Recalling his words one last time, Trianne felt as confused as ever. One thing remains certain, however.
'We must see the tomorrow he spoke of!'
*****
The group in Okhema took the rainbow bridge. The one in Styxia also has their own card.
"Whoa. We are flying!"
Cyrene eagerly held the handrails and looked at the shrinking Styxia below. The space inside this 'hot air balloon' wasn't huge. Similarly, building it was a trifle—for Cerydra, at least.
"Caesar. I have seen that place before."
Hysilens' serene words broke the lively atmosphere. Her blue pupils stared at the faraway fortress, eliciting her frown.
The Sky Fortress was eerily similar to the Nihility space she once entered. It was only 'resolved' when Kiana, the one holding the Cocoon's powers, showed up. Distance does not matter for high-dimensional beings; she exerted the Cocoon's strength despite being only a divine mind. She easily shattered the Nihility mimicked by Shi Tian's memories.
Hysilens did not know of her specific strength, but the dignified feeling the Tuna gave off was strong. She easily dealt with the memory of Nihility manifesting to reality through Remembrance.
"Black Tide, Destruction, and…"
"Nihility."
She completed Cerydra's words.
"The Foreign Gods' essence, the core of their Primum Mobile…"
Almost every single page of the 'Easy Guide Book to Era Nova' is all about Amphoreus. The last page differed greatly from it. It lists down the knowledge of Aeons and their Primum Mobile—the very same simulated Paths every Titan took. The knowledge about these Foreign Gods lit up Cerydra's desire to break free to the starry skies.
Carving a piece of land in such a grand landscape is what constitutes her identity as the Imperator.
The most crucial sentence was written at the book's end:
'Gods cannot act beyond their Primum Mobile.'
Aeons are "limited" by their Paths. They cannot commit to actions beyond their Paths. Although there are relative exceptions, most of it remains true.
Destruction is born to spread destruction; Nihility to act without a purpose in its sorry life. In fact, the latter does not gaze at others. It is the others who approach THEIR shadows, whether intentionally or unintentionally, that they become Pathstriders of Nihility.
Cerydra placed Nihility's danger at the 'unpredictable' tier, comparing THEM akin to a roll of dice. Luck and misfortune can be decided at a single moment.
Unfortunately, they rolled the short end this time.
Even if Nihility does not move nor act, Aquila's Coreflame is within the Sky Fortress.
She looked at the other two people on-board, the atmosphere turning solemn.
"Prepare for a bitter fight. We must reach the Era Nova."
*****
The Wushi Dao Sect's prosperity ensued. The breakthroughs to the Divine Transformation Realm happened one after another, raising its upper echelons' strength by another tier.
Many of them were busy in their respective peaks, be it sect matters or seclusion.
Today…
Fifteen of them gathered in one place.
From the moment they received the urgent summons from Kiana, they dropped whatever they were doing. They arrived at the 'Meeting Hall', a place existing near Mount Tai's summit.
Each of these women has their 'cliques'. None truly interacted beyond formalities… except for the six Shi Tian has special relationships with.
"I called everyone here for one thing." Kiana cleared her throat. "Tian's divine mind is currently outside the solar system. He has encountered one… possibly two Aeons."
Their meeting on the Thirteenth Titan's tomb was very crucial. Shi Tian gave her the entire draft of his plan.
He was supposed to take in all the memories of Amphoreus to reach the same status as Demiurge, Fuli's Emanator who can travel through the Imaginary Tree's "time". It is a real time travel, unlike Otto's creation of a new branch. The power and implications behind it is terrifying.
He resolved to obtain the same through Formlessness, which is why he took this risk.
This problem, however, is bound to encounter a major problem…
He will have a direct contact with Aeons.
*****
A/N: If anyone's confused with the "relative" exceptions part, it's Harmony's fault. The Stellaron, which was said to be Nanook's thing, turned out to be Harmony's doing all along. They really are following through the HARMony schtick…
Random Fun Fact: Operation Arc Light in "Steins;Gate" was mistranslated to Operation Aquila. That was what pushed me to place Steins;Gate in the Amphoreus storyline.