Arc II - Chapter X - Event Horizon

“Are you sure?” Aurora asked, surprised.

“I wouldn’t have said so, if it wasn’t true.” Perkons scowled.

“Sorry.” Aurora said, scratching her scalp. “It’s just that… It's hard to imagine. I don’t know how Tommy is doing, nor about how that other Angel is…”

“Lodestar Glacia,” Perkons impatiently interjected. “You are a Lodestaran. You would do well to remember her name, Aurora. You will be working closely with her in the future. Additionally, another Felicitas will be assigned to her. Being as you are a special case, I will be exclusively working with you outside my scouting duties.”

“She’ll be assigned another Felicitas, just like that? Aren’t you able to handle a squad yourself?” Aurora couldn't help smirking at Perkons.

“....” Perkons eyes narrowed and his furry maw pursed. “You are a special case. Back to the original subject, your fwiend will recover quickly. That isn’t always the case. Lodestar Glacia’s antilight conversion has progressed enough to make her own recovery somewhat difficult. Reports say that your friend, Tommy, should recover from his experience, although his transformation was further advanced. It’s a good thing that you managed to rescue him before he reached the event horizon.”

“... Are we talking about physics now?” Aurora’s lips twisted as she seated herself in the grass beneath. They occupied a room that resembled the hilltop where the Felicitas customarily met, open to the air and for all purposes. It might as well be a remote location on Earth. 

Grass stretched in every direction, no matter where she looked with trees in the distance, implying that this room had whole forests. All was green and untouched as though no human had ever trodden on the verdant hilltop, let alone the rest of this lovely garden of perfection.

“In a manner of speaking, I suppose.” Perkons shrugged. “If we talk about mechanics, you wouldn’t understand half of what I would tell you, particularly when it comes to quantum mechanics. Given that sharing our knowledge would violate our principles of non interference with inferior species, I will not be doing that — ever. Not to mention it would be too bothersome to even try.”

Inferior, indeed! Aurora’s brows lowered, wordlessly glaring at Perkons. She was fuming inside.

“But, I will say this at least: the event horizon, or the point of no return, as someone of your intellect can more easily grasp. Just as though you were falling through a singularity such as a black hole, there is a point where you cannot stop, much less return. Any further and the transformation will complete, no matter whatever you try.” Perkons shrugged. “At that point, all that remains is the Victim’s destruction.”

Shivering, Aurora blinked, eyeing Perkons uncertainly. The way he said that was chilling, beyond freezing even.

Aurora was just grateful that Tommy had been saved, but this wouldn’t be the end, no matter what Perkons said. Just talking about Tommy made her want to see her friend’s smiling face to make sure. It sounded like he had it far rougher than anyone else, except for those poor ones that Perkons made her destroy with his mindhack ability back when the enormous Bear, Tiger, Lion-like Victim caught her unaware. Even though she wasn’t directly responsible for killing them, Aurora still would bear this cross for her whole life. It was her powers that had... 

She didn’t want to see any more people killed simply because the Felicitas commanded it. She didn’t want any more of her loved ones to be harmed or Victimized. She didn’t want any Felicitas to ride on her shoulder and use her as they pleased. 

But at least Perkons had saved her life. More than that, he acted almost like a second set of eyes in combat, an asset that Aurora couldn’t refuse. 

Tommy was crying, his face buried in his mother’s dress’ skirt. The two occupied the family’s living room, alone. His little sister was in her room, playing with her dolls. His mother was gently scratching his blond scalp, the rubbing of her nails soothing him.

Damn it… I’m so fucking weak… I’m fifteen years old and I still…

“Uwaaaaaaaaa!” He couldn’t stop the tears staining his mother’s dress. She was a single mother, raising her children as best as she could, working at one of the city’s most prominent hostess clubs, Club Stella. Though Tommy wasn’t entirely sure of what his mother did to keep their home afloat and their bellies full, he loved her deeply and was sorry that he’d worried her so much. She didn’t deserve that. “I’m sorry… I…”

“It’s okay…” His mother’s eyes narrowed as she stroked her baby boy’s head. “All will be okay, Tommy. I’m glad that you came out to see me, sweetheart… Are you ready to tell me what happened to you?”

Frightening memories and visions flared in Tommy’s mind and he shook like a sapling in a hurricane, shaking his head. “I’m so sorry… Mommy… No… no…”

“Oh, Tommy… it’s okay… w-was it Beppu-kun again? Did he hurt you again?” She grit her teeth, vindictive, eyes flashing in fury. How dare anyone hurt her handsome little boy?! She would hammer on the Academy’s office until they took her complaints more seriously. She would have the police arrest that little scumbag, whatever it took. How could they ignore her child’s pain when his school had such a good reputation, supposedly providing the best education available in all of Stellaris?

Ami lay alone in her room, her eyes closed, her legs spread under her kotatsu, a Japanese heated table with a blanket, nice and toasty. She was in heaven. The blanket was draped over her waist and she had her hands clasped behind her head as her eyes fluttered and she softly snored.

A female figure with tentacles hanging off her head was caressing her. She smiled softly in her sleep. She was murmuring softly, words that Ami couldn’t understand. Who was she?

Interrupting her dream, there was a knock on her bedroom’s door, causing it to rattle. “Ami-chan… are you awake?”

Ami blinked and her dreams faded to the back of her mind as she jerked awake and yawned.

The kotatsu had put her to sleep as soon as she settled in to work on some homework when she got home. She leaned up to study her work and frowned. She’d only gotten a quarter through the worksheet before passing out. At least she hadn’t fallen forward, otherwise she’d have left drool stains on the paper. She’d done that before, afraid that Sensei Koizumi would notice and announce it to everyone, just to tweak her nose in front of the class, but she never had.

“I’m awake, Mother. Sorry. You can come in.” Pulling her legs under her, Ami sat up and watched as her door slid open. The lovely shoji screen opened. There was a motif of birds in flight on it and a ranma above the door, woodwork embedded above the shoji, depicting bamboo and mountains.

Her mother wore a blue kimono. Her hazel eyes, almost perfectly matching Ami's, but older, were fixed on Ami. She wiped a lock of dark hair from her forehead as she quietly entered Ami’s room and slid the shoji behind her and walked over to her daughter’s kotatsu and seated herself on her knees gracefully, adjusting her kimono. “I was worried about you, Ami.”

Ami nodded, bowing her head as she turned and placed her palms on her kotatsu’s surface. “I’m sorry, Mother.”

“Where were you?” Her mother scolded Ami gently.

“It was a problem at work,” Ami explained. How could she tell her mother what she’d been through? She couldn’t yet. The world didn’t know about the anti-light existence yet, but soon they would. For now, she had to make excuses and lie to her mother for the sake of hiding her secret identity.

“What happened? You work at a convenience store.” Her mother was understandably skeptical.

“Um… well…” Ami chewed her lip, her head still lowered. “There was a huge amount of stuff that needed to be organized, and with the Academy having been closed for a week because of an investigation on the campus, I volunteered to work extra.” Ami looked up, having managed to smoothen her expression. She felt a bit more confident now that she’d gotten past the hardest part. “Keeping me overtime for a few days was the most logical choice. I’m their most responsible employee.”

Her mother tilted her head, frowning. “I would appreciate being notified in the future when such things happen.”

Ami nodded, and suppressed an urge to sigh in relief. “I understand. Not telling you and father was a mistake.” She could make a million fake excuses, but decided to keep it simple and sweet.

Her mother nodded in acceptance. “We’re glad that you’re back.” With a smile, not missing a beat, she added, “Dinner will be ready in thirty minutes. We’re having sukiyaki to celebrate your safe return.”

Ami blinked, startled. Her mother was making sukiyaki because she didn’t get kidnapped? The family recipe wasn’t so cheap to make that they could do it on impulse, or so her parents claimed, even knowing that it was her favorite.

“You thought I was hurt?” Ami asked. Should she be so surprised? Wouldn’t any concerned mother, especially hers, think the worst when their child disappeared for a few days?

“.... Yes. There have been many rumors,” her mother said, tapping her lips with a finger, looking concerned. “The news channels report homicides and disappearances every day. I was worried that you were picked up by these serial kidnappers. The authorities have been investigating, to no good end so far. Speaking of which, I want you to be very careful in the future, Ami. The whole country is on alert. It would be best if you didn’t walk alone anymore. Your father has been considering hiring a driver to safely transport you to and from work and school.”

Ami blinked. They would hire a driver because they were worried? She always thought that money was tight, but apparently her family possessed deeper pockets than she had ever suspected.