Chapter Eighteen

It had been a couple hours of walking: the crimson moon providing Dimitri and Kyle their only source of light. They had passed into a calmer part of what used to be Wrensdale. What surprised Dimitri the most was how a few of the houses were completely intact.

“Isn’t Lucelia dead?” he asked.

"I think so, but from what Ametsu said, I can't be sure," Kyle replied. Dimitri wasn't sure what to make of his response. Kyle had been saying she was dead, but now he said he wasn't certain.

“I don’t-- follow,” Dimitri replied, “You are not sure even if you saw it with your own eyes?”

Kyle stopped and turned around to face him, halting their travel. "I saw those angels killing people," Kyle stated, "Every time they did, a small glowing ball appeared from the corpse and vanished into the sky."

“If it was Nyx’s angels,” Dimitri told him, “Maybe the same happened to Lucelia… But I saw the wisps as well: they always flew straight up.”

Kyle shook his head, "Nyx killed Lucelia personally, but something different happened. Two different colored 'wisps' appeared and flew away. Nyx even cursed and said something about them escaping."

“Why two? And why did they fly away? What does that have to do with Lucelia still being alive?” Dimitri flusteredly asked. “Ugh… this is hurting my head.”

"What we normally understand is that she's dead," Kyle explained, "But there is evidence telling me she could be out there somewhere. I can't pass up a chance to save my daughter."

“Well if you think there is a way to save her, I got your back-- not that I can go anywhere else…” He mumbled, “You are my only chance of survival.” He sighed, then found a sturdy wall, sliding down to sit there. They both had been walking for hours, only occasionally taking breaks. “We’re close, right?”

Kyle nodded, taking off his goggles and wiping them. The mechanical suit he was wearing had been producing copious amounts of smoke, dirtying the lenses. "Yeah, my house is going to be the one with metal siding."

“Must be hot in there,” He half-joked, glaring back at the moon and watching it as it illuminated the dark, charred, land. Kyle chuckled at his remark. After a couple minutes of quiet, Dimitri spoke up, “Hey, quick question?”

"Fire away."

“Did you make that suit?” Dimitri asked.

Kyle crossed his arms, looking down at Dimitri with an odd expression on his face. "I did, actually," Kyle answered, "I'm somewhat of a professional tinkerer and made this shortly after Nyx paid my house a visit."

The suit was an impressive machine to Dimitri. He could see multiple small mechanisms moving with large plates of metal when he moved. It truly was a masterpiece of engineering, causing Dimitri to respect the man for his craft.

He gave a quick smile, peering over to his kitchen knives he calls weapons. “Just curious.” With that said, he stood back up. “You said we have little ways to go, so let’s go.”

Kyle nodded, replacing his goggles and leading the way while Dimitri followed behind. After half an hour, Dimitri saw their destination. The house looked like a fortress. It had weapons aimed in different directions, the siding was indeed metal, and he could see various smaller defenses scattered about the lawn. Kyle walked up the path to the door as various little turrets pointed at Dimitri warily. Kyle flipped a few switches and the turrets turned away.

Dimitri swallowed shakily, "That was a bit ominous. Aren't these a little over the top?"

Kyle sighed, opening the screen door and fiddling with the lock on the front door, "Nothing is when you have to fight god and an army, now hurry inside." With those last few words, the door swung open and Dimitri followed Kyle inside, leaving the cold night behind.