Shards of War: Eclipsian Secrets

Chapter 70

As the days drew closer to Matsu's return to Ironhaven and the next Unity Clash, he decided to reach out to Calie and Marie. It had been a few days since they had spoken, and he was eager to catch up. He dialed their number and was pleasantly surprised when they both answered the call.

"Hey, you two!" Matsu greeted with a warm smile. "How are things going over there?"

Calie's cheerful voice came through first. "We're doing great! It's been a lot of fun here, actually. How about you?"

Marie chimed in, her tone equally upbeat. "Yeah, we've been keeping busy. It's kind of nice to have a break from everything."

Matsu laughed. "I bet! It's almost time for me to head back, though. I've missed you both."

"We've missed you too," Calie said, her voice tinged with excitement. "Honestly, we can't wait for you to come back. It's been weird without you."

Marie agreed, "Yeah, it'll be nice to have everything back to normal. Plus, we're looking forward to seeing you and catching up properly."

Matsu chuckled. "I'm looking forward to it as well. But before we get into that, I have some news for you."

"Oh? What's up?" Calie asked, curiosity piqued.

"Well," Matsu began with a grin, "Aki and Yumiko are now officially dating."

There was a moment of delighted silence on the other end before the excitement broke through. "Really?" Marie's voice was filled with genuine happiness. "That's wonderful news! We've been hoping for that for a while now."

Calie's enthusiastic response followed. "Oh, that's fantastic! Yumiko deserves to be happy, and Aki's a great guy. I'm so glad for them both."

Matsu nodded, though they couldn't see him. "Yeah, I thought you'd be happy to hear that. They've been really good for each other."

Marie sighed contentedly. "It's nice to see everything falling into place. It's like a little piece of happiness while we're all waiting for the next big thing."

"Exactly," Calie agreed. "It feels good to have some positive news."

The conversation flowed easily as they continued to chat about their days and the upcoming Unity Clash. Matsu filled them in on what he had been up to, and Calie and Marie shared their experiences from their recent activities. The connection they had always felt strong, but during this call, it felt particularly comforting.

As the call drew to a close, Matsu said, "I'll be back before you know it. I can't wait to catch up in person and spend some time together."

"We'll be counting down the days," Marie said warmly. "It'll be nice to have everything back to normal."

Calie added with her usual cheer, "Definitely. And we'll make sure to have some fun when you get back. Maybe even a little celebration for Aki and Yumiko."

Matsu laughed, appreciating their enthusiasm. "Sounds like a plan. I'll see you both soon."

With that, they ended the call, each feeling a renewed sense of anticipation and connection. The next few days would fly by with the excitement of the upcoming clash and the joy of reuniting with loved ones.

As Matsu finished up his call with Calie and Marie, a strange feeling washed over him for a moment. He brushed it off as a fleeting discomfort, attributing it to the long day he had. However, as he moved to adjust a stack of papers on his desk, he felt a sharp sting and realized that he had cut his right arm on a jagged edge of metal protruding from a piece of furniture.

He cursed softly under his breath, quickly assessing the cut. It wasn't deep, but it was enough to draw blood. Matsu took a deep breath and activated his aura healing ability, the warm, soothing energy enveloping his arm and sealing the wound with practiced ease. Once he was sure the cut was fully healed, he headed to the bathroom of the Chancellery to clean up any blood that might have dripped onto his sleeve.