Chapter 2

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She woke in a daze, slowly realizing where she was and what was going on. Her spirituality was completely drained, and as such she felt extremely weak and tired, as if she could collapse at any moment. She yawned, before the sound of scratching registered in her mind. 

She forced her eyes open, as she quickly grabbed the pen which had taken to writing on a tissue that had flown into the seat next to her at some point, hidden from the outside world under her robe. She blinked, slowly reading what was written as she woke up. 

0 - 08 had spent the entire time Valerie was asleep battling with a certain 'angel', which was trying to force 0 - 08 back into Tingin. However, 'he' failed-

The line of words stopped suddenly, supposedly the moment when the quill noticed Valerie's awakening as if noticing Valerie's now awake form. She blinked, her eyes narrowing. That angel was trying to keep Valerie in Tingen? Why? She then continued to read the rest of what was written. 

As per Valerie's wishes, she remained so inconspicuous that no one noticed her on the train. Thus, when the trains stopped at Bunkland, no one noticed her or woke her up. Thus, the train continued to several stations, stopping 24 more times before Valerie finally woke up. 

She had slept for 38 hours straight, and now that she slowly came into consciousness and heard 0 - 08—-

The writing cut off, presumably when she had grabbed the quill. She looked around and noticed that the train was moving. She quickly got up. Where was she now? On the other side of the continent? 

She quickly found a worker who informed her that their next stop was Tingin, in about half an hour. After that, they would then go to Bunkland, which would be in about 2 hours. She sighed, and thanked the man, before returning to her seat. The irony of returning back to where she arrived was not lost on her. She did write that she would arrive in Bunkland safely, but not when. It seems she was lucky this time. 

She sighed, sitting down in her seat when she noticed a woman humming a tune across from her. She blinked, feeling something off about her. She wore an expensive and nice looking black dress, with pale features and black eyes, with a strangely happy smile and attitude contrasted with a gloomy aura around her. 

She slightly nervously and quietly pulled out a blank and unmarked book, taking 0 - 08 and holding it to the paper, using the cover of the book to hide her face while pulling her hood low. She mimicked writing, while the quill actually wrote on its own. 

In an unexpected turn of events, the Nighthawk of the Evernight Church Daly Simmone had boarded the train and was heading to Tingin, a favor asked by the Nighthawk Captain of Tingen Dunn Smith. 

This was also done on the orders from Archbishop Anthony Stevenson who managed the Evernight Church in Bunkland, as a new and upcoming Nighthawk Klein Moretti, as he had discovered the 'Acting Method', by which a Beyonder acts in accordance with the name of their current Sequence Potion to 'digest' it, thus preventing loss of control during promotion and better control and use of their abilities. 

Valerie's eyes widened in surprise at this bit of information, which she knew, but failed to remember until now, worried about everything that was happening at the moment. She needed to keep that in mind when she officially became a Beyonder. 

She then grabbed the quill, intending to write something, when the world suddenly came crashing down around her with the realization of something. All that happening in Tingen was facilitated by Ince Zangwill. 

Because he was now dead, the entire storyline would be thrown off. Klein wouldn't move to Bunkland, wouldn't die. Was this acceptable? No. Klein needed to die, to go to Bunkland, and save the world, as she assumed he did in the end. 

He was the protagonist. He needed to be pushed forward by the villain. Did she then have to stand in for Ince Zangwill? Serve as motivation for revenge, to push him further? She lowered her head, lost in thought, the weight of responsibility crushing her.

This was a choice she couldn't make. She didn't have the courage to play the villain and kill people so Klein would leave Tingin. She also was too petrified by the idea that he wouldn't seek promotion and thus not save the world in the end. What could she do?

She felt overwhelmed, drowning under the weight of the world. Did she have the right to decide the fate of others, to ruin people's lives? But this world was so full of death and despair, did her actions and thoughts even matter? Did she really have what it takes to be a Beyonder?

Suddenly, a voice sounded out from in front of her. "You looked terribly troubled my dear." The woman, Daly, spoke with a curious tone. Valerie winced. Did she fail to control her facial expression that badly?

She remained quiet and standoffish for a few seconds, before speaking. 0 - 08 should make sure that no one noticed her presence on the train. However, 0 - 08 was very particular about wording. And she had only specified that no one would notice her on her journey until she arrived at Bunkland. However, did she 'arrive' in Bunkland, or did the protection wear off?

She thought about it for a moment, before choosing to believe the worst option. Such was the safest choice when working with malicious Sealed Artifacts such as 0 - 08. "I recently came to a choice that I feel I am too weak to make." She spoke out, her emotions and pent-up feelings from her sudden life in this world overflowing. 

"If I choose to do something, I will hurt a lot of people. But if I don't, then a lot more people will get hurt. But I don't want to hurt people." She spoke quietly to herself. She looked down, feeling sorry for herself. 

Daly blinked, observing the young woman across from her. She was dressed in an oversized black robe, with platinum white hair, pale skin, and black eyes. She was restless, fidgeting in her seat. She had a look in her eyes. A look Daly once had. A look of innocence. Kindness. 

Daly frowned, a feeling that this young woman across from her wasn't revealing everything easily noticeable. "A problem, yes. A problem everyone faces. The choice between evils. A choice between complacency. You will choose to not act, and by not acting, the blood will not be on your hands. Yet, you seem to be kind." Daly observed her indecisiveness. She seemed nervous, unable to choose one, thinking both were the wrong choice. 

"The fact that you can't choose shows your kindness. And I can tell you now, you will realize that the blood is on your hands for being complacent and not acting in time, because of your kindness. This world is harsh, and being a bystander is common. Yet because you could help, you will come to feel regret for not acting, because you are kind." She spoke, feeling a bit strange as to why she was feeling so emotional and willing to help the woman. However, she dismissed it. She was just feeling nice, as she would be seeing Dunn later today. 

Meanwhile, the scratching in the robes of the woman remained unnoticed by both passengers of the train. 

"It is hard. But only you can choose. You can't make someone else choose so that they can take the blame. Such is a cruelty you also cannot bear because you are Kind." She spoke kindly. "Only you can choose. You must weigh the options and decide. Don't wait until it is too late to blame timing, or try and shift the blame. The blame solely lies with you." She spoke seriously to the young girl. 

Valerie had a vacant look in her eyes as she considered what Daly had said. She realized now what she was trying to do. She was trying to shift the blame. She didn't want to be responsible for death or destruction. She didn't want to cause suffering. 

She wanted to procrastinate and wait until the decision was out of her hands so that she could blame the time. She wanted to get someone else to make the decision for her, so she could live without the guilt of choosing. But both of those situations were fantasies. If she did those things, she would blame herself for not acting faster, or not choosing to defy the orders or advice of the person who chose her. 

She gasped, a revelation of enlightenment coming over her. This was the same problem Klein faced. The problem wasn't that she couldn't choose, or that both options were bad. The problem was she was too weak. In the same way, he felt powerless, she felt the same determination she felt afterward. 

The determination to take revenge on Ince Zangwill. The same desperation that she remembered Roselle possessed from the Diary entries Klien read in the first book. Their desperation, she felt it now. She needed to be stronger, so she could make a better choice. 

She was strong now though. She glanced at the book. She was afraid. But now she realized what she was afraid of, and what she needed to do. She looked down at the book she was holding. 

Valerie Zangwill had come to a decision. She would not be the villain. She would play behind the scenes, be the hidden puppet master who keeps the world running, and make sure people don't die. 

Luckily, the plan Ince Zangwill was already set in motion. Lavenus's child has already been conceived, and corrupted by the True Creator in Megose. She resolved to make sure that Captain Dunn didn't die, and that she would set the world straight to prevent tragedy and destruction. 

She sighed, seeing that she didn't have to be the one to initiate the disaster as Tingen, and that it was already in motion. She planned to go to Bunkland, become stronger, then return before the finale when Klein died. 

She looked up in surprise as Miss Daly stood up. "I hope my advice has been of some use to you, Miss. This is my stop." She spoke kindly, and Valerie smiled at her brightly. 

"It has, thank you a lot." She nodded determination in her voice. Daly smiled at her new resolveand made to get off the train. As she got off the station, Valerie thought of something rushing out into the station, before getting a paper out. 

"Miss!" Valerie quickly pushed the empty piece of paper into her hand. "If you ever need a favor or something of the sort, just write my name down on this piece of paper." She quickly told her. Daly blinked, amused and confused. 

"Write the name 'Valerie', and your request." She spoke calmly. Daly's eyes narrowed, seemingly understanding something had changed between them. "I'll also give you a piece of information I heard on the streets." She spoke quickly. 

She leaned close to her ear, feeling a cold and deathly aura around her, before whispering. "There may be several 'coincidences' around Tingen. 'He' has something planned, something to do with the True Creator. If you leak this information to the Aurora Order, they are not his friend, and will be very interested in what he is doing here." She whispered quickly, before running back into the train before it could leave. 

Daly's eyes narrowed her smile now a sharp frown. She contemplated what to do, before quickly turning around and leaving. She looked at the crumpled paper in her hand, thinking silently. 

That woman wasn't a Beyonder. She knew this for a fact. She had checked with her spirits and found nothing. But that woman knew her. She saw no other reason why she would tell her that information otherwise. And a favor. 

But she also understood the intention. What she said was far more important than investigating that girl. She had been informed to look for 'coincidences'. The involvement of the True Creator only meant that something big was happening, and she needed to find out what. 

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Ironic, how Ince's biggest hater is now Valerie's advisor.