Journey to a Better End II

Chapter 30

It's hard to believe that this book will be ending soon when I just got back into writing it. Just five or six more chapters to go and I'll have to start planning the next book.
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        Ara silently watched over the girl who slept out of sorrow for having yet again failed to retrieve her dynamos. Ryota Grenore Haan was not her child even in the slightest despite Ara being the doppleganger of the child's mother. Even so, she couldn't help but feel an almost motherly attachment to Ryota especially since she had given the girl permission to address her as such. A mere five days had gone by and Ara felt like she knew a majority of Ryota as a person.

        Ryota was kind and very determined but often times she was reckless and tended to try doing things on her own. Despite that, the nine year old was rather strong both emotionally, physically, and mentally. She had not cried since the day Ara met her although she seemed like she wanted to every now and then. "Ara, we'll try this again one more time. Wake Ryota up in ten minutes," Ciel said before quickly leaving to prepare.

        Surprisingly, it was not Scar who kept Ryota's dynamos hostage. It was instead the former village chief who was protected by the fire priestess Ignia. Apparently Ryota got on their bad side and now couldn't get a hold of her precious invention. Ryota had admitted to Ara that she'd told her to go there as a distraction but Ara still would have been able to recieve help from them. "Ara, what do you plan to do when you take her back?" Eun suddenly asked.

        Ara had been avoiding the idea overall since she had begun to cherish her time with Ryota. She feared that when the girl learned the truth, she wouldn't want anything to do with her anymore. Ryota admired her so much at the moment and Ara didn't want her view to suddenly change like that. "Ryota is not your daughter," Eun reminded. That simple fact alone bothered Ara the most. She wasn't a mother at all but for some reason, it felt so natural to look after Ryota. Ara feared that she wouldn't be able to accept Ryota's rejection when it happened.

        A noise caught Ara's attention sending her on high alert. Without her spear, Ara had beem forced to rely of Eun more and it was taking a tole on her condition. Her hair now had a full streak of white in it and she found herself having sharper senses than usual not that it was a particularly bad thing. The noise that was heard was nothing more than Luciela walking by. The white haired woman never made a sound when she traveled so if Ara heard her, it was because she wanted to be heard. That somewhat frightened Ara at times but she was constantly reminded that Luciela was on her side.

        The woman shot her a look of approval as she left Ara's sight. She and Ciel had asked that Ara look after Ryota when they returned until she found her father. It wasn't a hard task but Ara couldn't help but think of the negatives of returning. Yes, she missed Add and wondered if he was alright. She knew how panicky he could get when she wasn't in a secure location or somewhere within sight. He had only started being that way after they left Hamel. Paradox had also suddenly become protective of her.

        Although Ara knew it was partially due to some of his memories resurfacing, she also had reason to believe that he had ulterior motives for looking after her. "Five more minutes," Ciel announced as he walked by the still open door to Ryota's room. Ara stood up from where she sat at the edge of the girl's bed and looked over to Ryota who slept rather peacefully despite the conflict held within her. It must have been too much to bear at times.

        "How long will you stand there? Get ready. We leave soon and Ryota will be awake so you don't have to look after her. She isn't helpless," Eun said. Ara huffed in annoyance at the fox's words. "I know she isn't helpless but even so, I can't help but feel the need to protect her no matter what. It's really odd," Ara thought. Perhaps this was how Add felt whenever she'd tell him that she didn't need his protection. Thinking of him again tore her mind away from Ryota and the task of preparing for yet another dynamo rescuing attempt.

        How was Add? Was he doing well in the Lanox anomaly without her? Had he gotten himself hurt again? Was Paradox okay? Had there been another incident to cause him harm? Had they even survived? The last question remained stuck in Ara's mind. The three of them were under attack last time Ara was with them and Lanox was apparently a dangerous place. "Mother? Did you need something?" Ryota's voice could be heard saying. The girl was awake now but sleep still clung to her eyes.

        "No. I was just about to wake you up actually. We're going for a second try at getting your dynamos back. Ciel and Luciela are probably already ready to leave," Ara said. Ryota was not aware of Ara's tendacy to watch over her so Ara did her best to make it seem as if she was there on mere coincidence. "Didn't we just go this morning and lose? Why would we go again?" Ryota complained. Ara would have answered her but didn't exactly know what to say about it. Ciel insisted that they try again as if he knew about something that she didn't. It had been a little questionable then but Ara let the suspicions go up until that point.

        "Maybe we'll have a little bit of luck this time," Ara said hoping that her answer was good enough for Ryota. The girl didn't question her any further much to Ara's relief. "Ara, can I speak with you for a moment," Ciel said from the door having just gotten there. Ara was a little unsure as to why Ciel wanted to speak with her but she went with him. Luciela remained just outside of Ryota's room door and out of sight as if she were there to make sure Ryota didn't try to listen in on them. Ciel led her downstairs and turned to face her once he'd reached the spot he wanted to stand in.

        "Are, we need to succeed today. Ryota has to get her dynamos today no matter how many times it takes for us to go back into that mansion. It has to be today so she can leave in the middle of the night. We have half a day left," Ciel said being completely serious as he spoke. Ara simply stared at him. She was a little caught off guard by the information. "Why today? Why can't she stay until tomorrow?" Ara inquired. Ciel shook his head at her.

        "Lanox is destroyed tomorrow. We've warned as many as we can but they refuse to listen to us because we are demons. Ryota is the exception but she didn't know about this. I never intended tell her," Ciel answered. "Isn't there something we can do to stop whatever it is? I don't understand. Why wait until the last minute, still failing to get Ryota's dynamos, knowing that Lanox would be destroyed?" Ara spoke in disbelief.

        Ryota had been less and less determined to regain her dynamos with each loss they suffered and that would only complicate the situation further. "Ryota can't stop a volcano. I wasn't going to tell her so she could try to either," Ciel said. "She at least could have been given an earlier deadline. Why today, the day before it will happen? What are we going to do if we can't get those dynamos? She needed to at least know about all of this," Ara protested. Ryota may have often put on a tough act, but Ara knew how fragile she was at heart.

        "Ryota is still a child. Would you tell her that she has to leave us behind before Lanox is engulfed by the wrath of that volcano? Would you tell her that everyone in this city is going to die?" Ciel asked. Ara was about to quickly answer but she froze thinking better of what she was about to say. Although it was true that Ryota needed to know the truth, it would also be harmful to tell Ryota that the two people who had been taking care of her since her arrival in Lanox were doomed to die. "It isn't right but I somewhat agree with Ciel although you are also correct. He should have chosen an earlier time as a deadline to allow for some mistakes to be made," Eun commented.

        "I couldn't tell her even if I wanted to. I've trained her for what seems like a while to humans. She's grown attached to me and Luciela. Even though I look like a child myself, I cannot help but feel like a mentor, a guardian, a protector. I wanted to spend as much time with her as I could before it happened. Besides, I don't plan on dying here. I planned to leave the city before it happens," Ciel said, avoiding Ara's gaze with a look of concern displayed on his face. Ara knew only a taste of the feeling Ciel mentioned. "So you plan to risk everything this time around when we go back to that mansion," Ara concluded. Ciel nodded in confirmation. "Then I will do my best to ensure that Ryota's dynamos are retrieved and she gets back to her father safely. I'll promise you that."
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I'm almost to the end. Just a bit further to go. Until mext time you spectacular readers!