—Cael Lucian
"Why-?" That was all I could mutter , I won? How? No , the true question should be why? Why would the members of "The Family" intervene? I was supposed to lose everything, becoming a mere puppet.
"You undervalue yourself , the fact that someone like Lawrence , Mira and Sorya vouched for you was all we needed." Kiana answered my question as she looked into me
"Huh-?" Both Sorya and Mira looked at her with confusion , while Lawrence only showed a surprised face before nodding with understanding.
"I suppose you won't recognize me like this huh" the Pillar of Conclusion muttered before-
*Snap
For a second the world turned dark as Grey fog enveloped my vision for a split second it was obviously Klein's doing , yet that split second was enough for me to hear surprised gasps
"███-?!?!" They tried to say something yet it was as if I couldn't hear the words , like it was censored from my ears , yet as the grey fog disappeared I only saw the Pillar of Conclusion in her Flamescion form.
"I go by Kiana now , please don't call me by my old name" She said , her voice solemn before returning back to her normal playful voice.
"I see… Kiana, we should definitely catch up with the others." Mira said , her face was showing an indescribable emotion , Sorya was also… quiet , Reynold stayed silent as Reana looked at her as if it was the person they knew?
Yet Diego , Owen and Jovin didn't react as if they didn't hear anything coincidence perhaps?
"We'll see~ Anyhow Cya~" She said before Klein opened an illusory door as Alena , Aldric and Arrodes walked through it followed by Klein , and right before Kiana joined she said something.
"Also Cael , You've become an honorary member , Mom and Dad approved it." She said before also disappearing as the illusory door closed right in front of our eyes.
"Huh. Hah—" I said yet I didn't know what else to say , I couldn't , today had been a rather wild ride for me after all.
—
I stood there in the empty courtroom , Task Force X had dispersed , relief clear on their faces , Mirya and Sorya lingered near the door , waiting for me. Lawrence briefly clasped my shoulder before stepping outside to make calls.
Damage control , obviously , the higher ups were detained by their own security forces , their faces hollowed as the truth had been laid bare. I should feel happy , relieved , honored—yet right now I just feel empty.
An honorary member of their family. I know what it means to be considered one by them. The lengths they would go to protect their own , The crater where The Silentium's original headquarters once stood and countless others were Proof.
It still feels unreal—I'm one of them. Not my blood , but by something else I didn't understand.
Mira caught my eyes in the doorway , her cybernetic eyes glinted briefly yet her expression was soft , maybe the softest I've ever seen in the years I've worked with her , Sorya only gave me a quick nod.
I didn't know what to say to them , 'Thank you' felt too little , 'I owe you my life' felt too dramatic , and what did I do, you ask? I just walked past them , my legs still slightly trembling.
Tomorrow I'll wake up as Director Cael again. There were Vestiges to find , Treaties to uphold , A Pillar at its limit , but tonight at least tonight—I was just a man who was saved.
And for now that was enough.
—
At least that's what I thought as I sat at my office , Hah—Funny 51/49 reminds of the Kim Dok Ja ending scene… Who am I even trying to fool… Just because I won doesn't mean I'm completely innocent.
I might've seen them as Humans or even equals but the others? Obviously not everyone shares the same thought—A question arises from my tired mind , am I a Human or a Remnant?
I consider myself peers with both Humans and Remnants alike as in my eyes , it doesn't matter whether or not they were once fiction , yet the event today made me open my eyes.
Just because I think that way doesn't mean the others agree on my perspective , I wonder… The reason my human colleagues were friendly to me , was it because of status? Connections even with these 'Remnants' ?
I don't even know… I can feel it , things will never be the same anymore , no longer am I a human in their eyes but a Remnant. Would my friends hate me for lying to them-?
—BZZZT—
The systems number had turned back to [3] it was midnight , a new day , a new—
Drip Drip
"Huh. That's funny—System is it a slow acting poison?"
[No.] it went before turning to [2].
"Hey—Do I even deserve this after everything I've done in the past?"
[That is for you to decide.] it went before turning to [1]
"…"
"Will there be any danger for me today?"
[No.] before turning to [0]
—
"…" Silence that was all I received as I walked through my office , those fellow researchers avoiding me like I was some sort of plague , as I walked through my office and sat on my chair.
FSHHHHHH BZZZT
[Cael Lucian.] A holographic screen appeared , it was Lawrence Lim , his face showing a happy expression
[After much thought and negotiations with the World Government , they have decided to promote you into the leader of the Silentium , congratulations]
Clap Clap Clap Clap
[I would love to celebrate it wi—Sir , you have to review these papers—Ah I gotta go Cael , see you friend!]
BZZZT
"…"
Clap Clap
"Congratz , you're finally the leader" Reana's voice pierced through my muddled thoughts as I looked at her and gave a wry smile
"You hacked into it? It could be a serious crime y'know?"
"Eh—Worse case I'll just leave this place , also can you please increase my salary? , I really really need to get E6S5 Sparxie and Yao Guang on their rerun"
"I'll see what I can do"
"Alright thanks boss cya~" she said while waving her hand and chewing on her bubblegum as the door closed and silence returned once more.
"…"
—
Another day had passed , once again I was the Leader of the Silentium , Cael Lucian , no longer a low ranking researcher , no longer a mere director but the leader , the one who pulls the strings , the one who commands everything.
"Hey Boss , how you doing" Sorya asked me in a chill tone , calling me boss like it was the most natural thing to do
"Just chilling , it's quite hard to adapt to this new role though"
"Eh you'll be fine , you always succeed after all"
"Yeah , how are things going between the 2 of you?"
"Good enough anyhow see ya "
WIIIIING
He left , and once again I'm alone with my thoughts—Yeah that's right—
"I'm Okay."
—A few weeks later…
"Hey is it just me or does Cael look different?" Mira asked , her cybernetic eyes filled with worried , it was a private room , to be exact , Task Force X's designated lounge
"…" Everyone was silent , Jovin , Diego , Owen , Reyna and Reana were too , even Sorya was silent as if they had a quiet understanding but choose not to say anything
"Why are you all being like this? We're his friends we should be helping him" Logically her words made sense but the answer given was not what she expected.
"Mira—You don't understand," Reyna said , her eyes glinting in a bizarre manner her snake tail wasn't moving it was just frozen , different than how she usually is , the other members were also silent , even Sorya who'd normally just bicker with me was silent
"I guess it's because you were always a girl but—" Diego wanting to explain but was instantly cut off
"But what?" Mira asked without raising her voice , they had expected her to crash out and be mad but this time she was waiting as if wanting to understand their perspectives
"The mindset of a Man is different—Even if I am now a girl that doesn't mean my mindset would change in a few years , I've lived as a man for 22 years it won't change me instantly" Reana said calmly, her finger tapping on a desk.
"To be strong , to be reliable , to not cry." Sorya continued.
"People need Cael Lucian, the one who'd never hesitate to act , the one who'd do everything in his power to minimize casualties." Jovin's voice stopped for a while waiting for Mira to understand his words.
"Not the one who cries and is weak." Reana said , her eyes carrying an indescribable expression.
"At the very least , in perilous times like this , he knows he can't fall, he can't be weak , not yet at least for now." this time Owen was the one who replied his black eyes looked at Mira
"But what if he falls? What if he cries? Wouldn't it get worse?" Mira asked again , she didn't understand what they were talking about , however she also knew what would happen if Cael were to fall deep in sorrow.
"…" They were all silent this time , no words came out as even Mira was lost on what to do.
"I'm going to call Lawrence." Sorya's voice broke the silence before he left , which Mira followed suit.
—Lawrence Lim
"Hoohh… Finally finished." I murmured as I sat down upright , I had finally finished my paperwork and it was already at the afternoon ,
"I should still have time for a quick gym session…"
RING RING RING
"Hm?" as I looked at my phone the name Sorya Rith could be seen , without much thought I answered his voice call.
"Hey! Sorya! It's been a while! How have you been?"
"Hey Law , it's been a while I'm good , also I'm with Mira right now—Heyyy Laww!!!—Ahem. Anyways , how are you?"
"Ah I'm good! How about you? You've barely called me these days"
"Work eh?"
"Hahaha! Yeah work is really tiring indeed! What's up? Is there something you need me to do?" I asked and went straight to the point , I need to do a quick gym session after all and my schedule's quite tight
"So actually—"
—
"Thank you for your hard work as always , Director Cael" said a timid researcher as she bowed her head towards me
"It is my honor." I gave a professional smile as she left my room with hurried steps.
WIIIIINGGG FSHHHH
"…" "Time to get home." I murmured as the door had opened and closed
Step Step Step
"It's 11 pm now huh." I said to myself as I gazed at my watch , it was something given to me by Herta, Her words appearing in my memories when she gave it to me.
"This is experimental technology , this world is quite literally unstable but teleportation should still be possible , here's a prototype , it can only teleport you to your house but it should be safe enough. Probably."
How was her voice again? Nonchalant as she usually does , Madam Herta is a Peerless Gem after all.
Click BEEEP BZZZT
[CALIBRATING—TELEPORTATION IMMINENT IN 10 , 9 , 8 , 7 , 6—]
"Huh. That delay is quite something huh" I thought to myself , well Herta did say it was experimental technology after all.
[WARNING!!! WARNING!!! DEV⟟⍲⍑⟟⌾☊—] BZZT [0] The system's screen appeared to glitch out and all my questions for the day was instantly used as it instantly went to [0]
"Wha—?!" That was my last thoughts as the teleportation happened