Ordo Noctis

Chapter 11

After a very long, sandy, windy walk, we arrived at the nearest town. It was dusty and quite small, but at least we got enough food there to last a few days. (Our phones contained enough digital money to adequately support us.) Then, fortunately, we were able to find a taxi. Luckily Mars had thought to grab some physical money, so we were able to pay the driver enough to take us to the nearest airport. From there, we flew to...

"Where are we flying?" I asked as we searched through the list of destinations. "We don't have anywhere to go."

"We have to figure out what happened to Base," Mars decided. "Buildings - especially highly protected, heavily guarded ones - don't just explode randomly. So... who would know what could have happened? Or literally any information on it?"

I thought for a moment, then snapped my fingers. "Madam Kobayashi once mentioned a sister - in Japan?"

Realization dawned on Mars's face as he remembered too. "You're right! Her name was Mei, and they became rivals after Madam Kobayashi joined Ordo Noctis. Mei didn't approve of her sister leaving their hometown and family to pursue her dreams of justice. But Madam Kobayashi left Japan anyway to join the organization, and her family hasn't spoken to her ever since!"

"Really? She didn't tell me all that!" I exclaimed. "All I heard was that Madam Kobayashi still wrote to Mei every day, telling her everything she could about life in the United States without betraying Ordo Noctis. Mei never wrote back, but there's a good chance she knows something helpful!"

Mars shrugged. "I... guess we're flying to Japan then!"

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After a lot of bag-checking, passports, and answering questions about why two teenagers were traveling across the world by themselves, we walked out of the Fukuoka Airport and breathed in the scent of cherry blossoms.

It probably sounds cliché, describing Japan as a bustling utopia filled with beautiful architecture and baby pink flowering trees, but that's what it looked like. Even with all of our travels across the world while on missions, neither of us had been to Japan - and it was simply breathtaking.

I double-checked my phone. On it were all of the records of every person on Earth that Ordo Noctis could get their hands on, which included Mei Kobayashi. I made sure we were headed to the correct address, then we made our way down the streets. Luckily, the Kobayashi household wasn't a far walk from the airport.

We arrived at a fairly large house with colorful paint and a hogyo roof. I think my favorite part of Japan was the roofs - so many colors, shapes and sizes.

Mars knocked on the door and, after a moment, it was answered by a short elderly woman in a red patterned kimono. She had the same black hair and skeptical eyes as Madam Kobayashi - this had to be her mother. Mars and I bowed, as was Japanese custom, and I spoke.

"こんにちは、小林さん。 私の名前はスターです。これは火星です。 もちろん、小林美と友達として話をするためにここにいます。 中に入っていただけませんか?"

Ugh, I keep forgetting to translate. Sorry. That meant, "Hello, Mrs. Kobayashi. My name is Star, and this is Mars. We're here to speak with Mei Kobayashi - as friends, of course. May we come inside?"

In Japanese, Mrs. Kobayashi replied in a panicked voice. "Who sent you? How did you find us?" She tried to slam the door, but Mars stopped it from closing. "Please," he said in a gentle voice, continuing to use Japanese. "We have nowhere to go. Give us a chance."

The woman hesitated for a moment, then gestured us in quickly. "Mei!" She called throughout the house.

"In here, Ma!" A voice called.

Mrs. Kobayashi led us down a hallway toward the voice.

Their house wasn't fancy, but it was elegant. I could tell that this family wasn't exactly rich, but they did the very best with what they had. Half-withered flowers adorned every surface, and mismatched wallpaper covered the walls. It was as if someone was trying to decorate the house, but forgot to freshen it once in a while.

Or lost the ability to...

The woman showed us into a small room at the end of the hall, where a lady was sitting on the bed reading a book. She set it down when she heard us enter, and Mars and I both gasped softly. Mei was a striking woman, the mirror image of her sister. She pointed to two armchairs next to the bed, and we sat down. "Who are these children?" She asked her mother.

Mrs. Kobayashi shrugged. "They wanted to see you."

It was amazing hearing native Japanese speakers converse - the words flew by so quickly, and they barely had to think about what they were saying. I hoped, with more training, I could achieve that level of fluency as well.

Then I realized I wouldn't be able to train ever again - not with Base destroyed.

Mei's mother turned to leave, but I stopped her. "Will you join us?" I asked. "I think you should be here too." I would have invited Mr. Kobayashi as well, but I assumed he was at work.

The woman nodded curiously and sat on the bed next to her daughter. "What have you come here to say?" She asked.

I looked to Mars, not knowing where to start. He took a deep breath. "Your other daughter..."

The two Kobayashis jumped off the bed in sync, similar looks of outrage on their faces. "Do not mention that woman in this house!!" Mrs. Kobayashi yelled.

"We apologize," I said, doing my best to keep a calm demeanor. "We have not come here to offend you or your family. Please, sit?"

Glaring at us, the women sat.

"May I have permission to continue?" I asked.

Mei raised her eyebrows at her mother, and they seemed to come to a silent consensus. "Carry on," she said reluctantly.

I nodded. "Your sister," I said, now addressing Mei directly. The Kobayashis tensed, but did not say anything. "As you know, she joined an organization called Ordo Noctis."

I could tell this was another sore subject for the two of them, but they didn't stop me, so I went on.

"She left Japan to go to the United States, to attempt to better the world. She became a trainer for the organization and came to call it her home."

"Why are you reminding us of these bad memories from the past?" Mrs. Kobayashi asked. "You have no right."

"And good riddance," Mei added. "Ichika was helping support the family, and when she left, the house fell to ruins. She is not welcome here anymore, and neither are her friends." Mei scowled at us.

I hesitated for a moment, not knowing how to break the news. I reached over and took their hands. "You... will not have to worry about her returning anymore. As she slept, her home was attacked. We are now the... only two remaining members of Ordo Noctis."

Mrs. Kobayashi gasped, her chest heaving. "My daughter... is... d - dead?"

"She was an amazing teacher, and taught us so much." Mars looked at the floor. "We are so sorry for your loss."

"Ichika cannot be dead," Mei said, shaking her head. Despite herself, a tear fell. "It is... not possible."

"And you are right," Mars agreed. "We have no right to come here, deliver this news, and still ask you for anything at all. And yet, we have done so. We hope you can forgive us."

The two women clung to each other, sobbing into each other's arms. And with all of the emotion that was built up in the room - grief, anger, guilt, regret, confusion, fright - Mars and I couldn't help but cry too. (At this point, she was sobbing so much I couldn't make out the next few words, but it sounded something like "Even now, eight years later, I can't believe everyone is dead.")

I was literally crying writing this chapter lol. Just want to say a thank you for making it this far, this story took me a really long time to write and even longer to edit, so I'm really grateful you're here :)