Trails of Cold Brave Sky Chronicle 4: Wrath of the Demons

Day of the Vigil

Bertha and Zeffar both remembered a certain day that the party was supposed to remember.

"Today's the day of the vigil, right? Don't we need to attend?"

Zeffar nodded. "I know that the vigil is today, but I want to check on Phoebe's repairs."

After Bertha and Zeffar left the cafe, they returned to the castle to check on Phoebe. The repairs were almost done, as Agmel had to take control of her body several times just to calm her down and to keep he from electrocuting.

Drake opened his Chronicle, and checked the pages. Not much was said on the pages, as Drake wanted to revive Aki. He wanted to revive him with Ren's help, but nobody knew if he still had his demon powers.

He decided to consult the Demon of Rebirth, and asked him about Aki.

"I was told about this too. I know that the Chroniclers and Sprites need each other to live, but I don't know how to revive a hybrid."

Drake left the room, as he heard Aki's voice.

"I shall return soon."

Selena and Night were in the ballroom, making preparations for the vigil.

"Selena? You never told me what you did to Arius when you saw those paintings. What actually happened?"

Selena closed her eyes and wiped her forehead with her hand. "Well, I'm pretty sure I told you seven times already, or you're and airhead. I'm sure I told Lucina to file a restraining order on your brother, but that has long been expired."

Night thought about food. "So, who's making food for the vigil?"

Selena chuckled. "Not you, I'm sure of it." Night chuckled, knowing that he was a horrible cook. "At least nobody will have to deal with my horrible cooking."

Rean returned to Trista, where he went to high school. He unlocked the auditorium, and looked for something in storage and saw a hologram projector.

Zoe and Leo were sparring in the fields, waiting for the vigil to begin. The spar lasted a while, as Zoe did not give up.

Leo managed to get Zoe in an uncomfortable position, and the spar ended, Leo winning.

Phoena and Yuuri were in the entrance hall, hoping to find a way to revive Aki. After attempting to find a spell book, they gave up and searched for the library.

Skye and Light were in the library, trying to find a spell to revive Aki. "Light, have you found anything?" Skye asked, thinking about food.

Light gave up. "I don't have nothing. Maybe Aki is just in a comatose from the massive sacrifice he made? Maybe we can get Agmel to check?"

Skye looked for Drake. Drake and Zephu were in his room, talking about Aki. "Sorry to intrude, but have you seen Agmel?"

Drake nodded, and then answered. "Agmel is still assisting with Phoebe's repairs. He should be done soon. Why?"

After Skye gave a description, she asked Drake for the Chronicle.

As soon as Skye grabbed the Chronicle, she looked for Agmel. They didn't have long to find out about Aki before the vigil, and had called for Emma and Amatsu.

"Skye, once you tell me you are ready, I will drag you out of the Chronicle. Ready?"

Skye nodded, and Emma put Skye in Drake's Chronicle.

The inside of the Chronicle was quiet, and took the form of a shrine. Skye looked around, and saw Aki resting. After realizing that Aki was just resting, she told Emma she was ready to leave.

Emma dragged Skye out of the Chronicle, as not much time had passed. "Aki is still alive. He's just in a deep sleep."

...

It was now night in Grand Gaia, and people from the three worlds gathered into the ballroom. The room was filled with candles, lit by Vargas. "Let us take this moment of silence, to honor Lucius, Aidios, Yggdra, and everybody who was killed in Camilla's onslaught: heroes, innocent people, and all of the towns destroyed." Night said, before falling silent. He needed this time to think about why he had to turn Arius.

Ren also took time to reflect on the past, why he couldn't defend himself from turning into a Demon, and why he helped Zalburis attack the Agni Empire.

Zeffar remained silent. She thought about Baglis, Hizarbin, Cuniali, and Mizgitari, and why she had to kill them. She felt guilty, and remained silent.

Aster also thought about why he had to kill Rukudes. Sure, he kidnapped Haru, but he began to feel remorseful.

Selena thought about Lucina's death eight years ago, but did not cry. She managed to keep a straight face, as she remembered the reason she kills Demons.

Amatsu thought about Beryl and Benigasa. If he knew the two were working for the Black Army, he would have been able to save both of them.

Zoe thought about the people she killed. Sure, Papa and Mama were her "wings" that lead her to purity, but she just didn't feel right.

Elza thought about the decisions she made. She knew that her decisions resulted in her sister's death, but she wanted to change. She shed some tears, and remembered everybody she killed.

"Would anybody like to say something?" Alice asked.

Joshua stepped forward. "I... joined an assassin group under a promise of restoring my broken heart. I have killed many people when I was young, but nothing helped. I decided to go back to the way I used to be, and joined this group to eradicate the evil that resides within the three worlds."

Night stepped forward. "Sure, you may all know me as a human, but I never told you anything. I am not human, well, no longer human, that is. I became an Awakener, turned by my father after that incident almost ten years ago. I only began this adventure to find myself at peace with who I was."

Alice took the front again. "Anybody else?"

Somebody stepped forward, who Bertha recognized as one of the Three Sages, well, one of the former sages.

"I am Trismegistus, one of the former Sages. Many, many years ago, I stayed in my chamber, making research. I was trying to research how and why people would become Demons, and how to stop it. I defied death, and became a golem."

Everybody there stared at Trismegistus in shock, and stayed silent.

One of the women came up, and began speaking.

"I am just an ordinary girl from the Royal Capital, Tolomea is my name. When Camilla attacked us, Sharon and Helios told me to hide. I hid under a broken house, and hoped that Helios and Sharon would be okay. I was wrong, both of them were killed. I couldn't bear the sight of their deaths. I desired to reach inner peace, through healing others affected by Camilla's attacks."

"Anybody else?"

Nobody went forward. "I guess this vigil is over. Food is in the hallway, don't forget to go single file, as people are also trying to get in. The utensils are in front of the door, don't forget to use those." Alice reminded.

Night saw Elza come through the doors. It has seemed that Elza was fully recovered from when Hizarbin attacked.

Skye grabbed some food, and looked in the kitchen. She saw a pot of curry being cooked, and asked the chefs to cook some more.

Hours after midnight, people began leaving. Everybody began cleaning, and went back to their home worlds.

"We don't have long until the next big day. In three days, the Camilla-relief charity will be held, in order to help reconstruct towns that have been destroyed." Rean reminded.