A Crack In The Sky

Kori had wondered why his Realm of Desires had been a peaceful snow land. His only association with snow was that his hair was often compared to it due to the pure white color. He turned around to look at the footprints he had left in the pristine snow. It did feel like a waste to soil it, but he liked seeing it.

Walking through the vast snow was all he could do as he had no body to return to. All he could do was traverse through the winter wonderland or close his eyes and observe the real world through his missing earring. He had seen Arcturus traversing through the outskirts and also meeting DUO. It was nice seeing him gain more people around him. A sense of relief came to him, but it washed away the moment he also remembered that he was no longer in Arcturus's safe hands, but in the possession of Virgo's.

When he closed his eyes, he could see what she was doing. She was creating a new body for him and it was identical to his previous one in appearance. His body type information was logged into his earring, so it was inevitable that it could be recreated if given the opportunity; however, recreating a new body would mean he would get a new core. A sense of dread came to him.

He never knew what would happen if a Shiftie got a new body–he was never taught this as his creator wouldn't expect that he'd destroy himself. All he could do was feel anxious for what would result in this. Would his memories be replaced? Would he not become himself?

Despite that, a sense of curiosity came to him. If he got a new body, this would mean he would be able to reunite with Arcturus in the real world. He wouldn't have to sit back and watch his friend go through trials and tribulations anymore. Most of all, if he were to return to reality, he could start over with Arcturus and Nova–he could just be their friend and not just a Shiftie to them. A light feeling came to him. He wasn't sure what this feeling was, but it was a pleasant one. It was as if he wanted to just leap towards the sky with a smile on his face.

Kori looked up to see a huge crack in the sky. It was as if his Realm of Desires was going to be destroyed at any given second. He closed his eyes once again. Other than Virgo, he saw a very unfamiliar woman staring down at his earring. She had pink hair styled in a bob and cerulean blue eyes. She placed a hand over his earring and that was when he heard her whisper something inaudible. He could feel a force in his body trying to remove something from him as if he was being washed from head to toe.

When he lowered his head and opened his eyes, he saw Sayaka staring at him with a bewildered expression. He could read it well; she was shocked about how a wish could be revoked and how he was willing to return back to reality.

"All that you did on the airship would be for naught if you returned back to reality!"

As he recalled everything he had said to her back on the airship, he whispered, "I know…"

"I thought you wanted to prove you aren't perfect! You chose to die for Arcturus! Yet, you have the audacity to be excited at the thought of returning back to reality?"

"It's because I feel this way that I'm not perfect." Kori clutched his hand to his chest. The light, airy feeling from before was replaced with a murky feeling that was growing. "This is selfishness. I now know what this feels. I'm selfish and contradictory. I say and do one thing, but I then retract them."

It was a foreign feeling that he didn't like. "I can see why Nathaniel Hope didn't give us free will. Having this feeling isn't pleasant at all."

Sayaka continued, "Think about Polaris and Souhait. They're working hard to grant wishes of all living beings in the world. They told me many things about how their progress had been slow on purpose because of Nova's aversion to humans yet they still need to go on their mission. It's a long and arduous process and if you return to reality, their progress will be hindered once more."

"I…I still want to go." Kori had made his decision and did not want to regret it.

Before Sayaka could try to get him to reconsider, Polaris showed up next to Sayaka. Because Sayaka and Kori were both short, Polaris looked very tall in comparison.

"Let him do as he wants." He remarked. "There is honestly nothing we can do to stop this."

"Polaris!" Sayaka was shocked.

"To be honest, this sort of situation has never happened before. Not even Souhait and I are sure what will result from this. This is why I want to relay a few messages from him to you."

"Messages?" Kori was intrigued about what they could be.

"But before I do so, there is one question I'd like to ask you."

"That would be…?"

"Is the person reversing the contract a woman named Ri Kuma?"

Kori closed his eyes to see a glimpse of his current location in reality. No one referred to the woman by a name, only calling her titles like 'ma'am' or 'miss'. He opened his eyes and tilted his head to the side.

Polaris then asked, "What does she look like?"

"She has pink hair styled in some sort of bob cut and has cerulean blue eyes."

Polaris's eyes widened as he placed a hand to his chin. "Cerulean blue eyes… I'm certain she's the one. One more question: is her voice shrill?"

"All I could hear from her are whispers as if she's chanting something."

Polaris nodded. "Thank you."

"Who is she?" Sayaka asked.

"The person reversing the wish contract is most likely a woman named Ri Kuma. However, that isn't the name we know her by as she never gave us her name. We suspect that this woman is the Invader, someone from another world who came to this one to seek the power of the wish-granting lavender dragon. For what purpose? I don't know. However, she is a dangerous person and the reason Master Nova and Souhait have been isolating themselves for a very long time."

Sayaka raised an eyebrow. "Just how dangerous is this woman?"

Polaris stared straight into her eyes. "She is the only person in this world who can kill Master Souhait and the reason why he resides inside Master Nova's body."

Her expression contorted into one full of worry. "Souhait is the creator of this world and immortal. To think there's an actual weakness for him."

"It's a small secret that no one else knows because the thought of having someone from another world is a very foreign concept."

"You do make a good point…"

Kori stared at the sky. The cracks have increased in size. He then stared straight at Polaris. "What are the messages you have for me?" He wanted to hear them right away.

Polaris replied, "The first message is to not worry about Arcturus. If there is a chance that he would lose his life with what's currently happening on his side, Souhait will do everything he can to revive him."

When Polaris said that, Kori felt as if he had gotten lighter. His chest didn't feel heavy. He mostly felt a sense of relief. All he wanted to right now was to exhale; he now understood why humans did such things when feeling relieved.

Polaris continued, "And for the second message…Souhait says, 'We will meet again in reality'." He gave him a sad smile. "Souhait himself doesn't know if you will return to reality as this has never happened before, but he is taking a gamble. If you are alive, he wants you to come find him if possible and he'll grant you your wish."

Hearing those words made him feel something indescribable. He wasn't sure what it was specifically, but he was happy that Souhait was supportive of his decision. It made him want to keep hope that he would return to reality alive.

"I'll find you, no matter what."

Polaris kept smiling. He then told Sayaka that they should be returning to the Spirit World as the cracks in the sky grew even bigger. Before they could leave, a blizzard seeped out from the cracks, shrouding everyone in pelting snow. Kori couldn't see what was going on; he stood his ground so he wouldn't be blown away.

He could no longer see the recognizable black hair of Sayaka's and Polaris's green outfit amongst the white snow. When he looked straight at the snow, it looked as if it was trying to erase his realm. In the midst of the pure white, he noticed something erratic. He could see something red heading his way.

His eyes widened when he saw Arcturus frantically trying to reach him. He reached a hand out towards him and Kori took it. However, the wind was too strong for either of them to be able to pull the other towards them. All he could do was grip Arcturus's hand tightly as it could be the last time he had the chance to do so.

Arcturus tried saying something to him, but the wind pressure caused his voice to be inaudible–not even his ears could detect what he was saying. Kori could see worry and desperation on his face and wondered if Arcturus learned about his current situation.

He wasn't sure if his voice could be heard through the wind, but he just hoped his words could reach through. He started blurting out everything helpful to Arcturus.

"Arc! The person doing this to me is a woman with pink hair and cerulean blue eyes! She is the one who can reverse Souhait's wishes! Polaris said that she could be Ri Kuma, a woman they call the Invader! She is someone who can kill Souhait as she's from another world!"

The worried and desperate look on Arcturus's face slowly changed into a serious one, as if he was taking in the information Kori was telling him. While he wasn't sure if that truly wasn't the case, he kept going.

"I'm not sure if I'll be alive or if I'll be myself again! I want to let you know that there is a possibility that we can meet again! I'm sorry for making you go through tough times after my sacrifice and have it be for nothing! I know you are aware I was alive because you've been taking care of my earring! Thank you for taking care of my earring preciously!"

He could feel bits of snow pelting the skin underneath his eyes. Then, more started pelting his eyes, causing him to shut them quickly before slowly opening them back up. He could feel the instantly melting snow trickle down from his eyes. The blizzard got even stronger. He could feel his grip on Arcturus's hand slowly loosening.

Frantically, Kori continued with his rambling. "Arc! I'm positive we will meet again! When we do, I want to help both you and Nova on his mission of granting all living beings in the world! Souhait said that we would meet again if I am to be alive!"

His hand was slowly being pulled away. He could feel his touching Arcturus's. He didn't want to let go, but nothing was in his favor.

One more thing! I need to say one more thing to him!

"Arc! Thank you for everything!"

He was fully blown back Arcturus's scarlet hair was shrouded by the white snow. He closed his eyes, wondering where it would take him. When he came to, he found himself in a black void reminiscent of how his soul was first developed through Sayaka's.

Does this mean I have a new human soul powering up my new body?

He scanned the vicinity, but didn't see anyone.

"Who are you…?" A voice called out to him from behind.

It was a soft voice, yet it made him shocked like a loud, thunderous one. He slowly turned around to see someone who looked identical to him–the only two differences between them was that the boy in front of him had human ears and their clothes were much different. It was as if he was looking into a mirror. The face, hair and eyes looked the same.

"Why do you look like me?" Kori asked.

The boy just let out a chuckle. "I should be asking you that."

Kori was speechless because the boy's voice sounded identical to his. He found himself being less concerned about his surroundings or pondering about whether he was still alive.