WHO COULD EVER LOVE ME?

She had awakened something more pure than even herself. Refined. Polished. Perfected. She was going to be legendary. But for now, she was only the precursor to what was going to come. Harnessing the pure essence of that realm, that spirit realm, she attained a new height. She was going to surpass all of them, Even Chi. But with this new path opened, there was a way to ensure the survival of the Manji, while making sure they would remain at the top. There was no cliff to step off from, nor a tower to fall from. They were at the top of their game, and they would only grow higher.

Bodak would lead the new era of them. Soon, all of them would attain the pure form of magic their deity bestowed upon them. This was the gift of Seki-Ya, the girl who wished of power. She would find her way to Dahlia before Chisu, as fated. It was by her darkness that a crown would be crafted and the old era of them would die off.

Chisu lay on the grass, collecting her thoughts. Her fist would ball up, ripping the blades from the dirt. her eyes remained closed. There was much of this world she would never understand. Her own powers would be lost to time. There was no place for her at Shura's side. Even if they lived happily ever after, her own mind would be lost to the nightmares of the massacre. It was never about her, or the man she now knew she loved. It was about her family and protecting what was left of them.

The bloodline would stop flowing, but it would not end. It would be saved, protected, quarantined.  She would be happy knowing that much.

She would rise, only to remember the shrine that remained there. She rose to her feet, the relic slung on her back. She would make peace at every chance. It was no longer for her god, but for all of the lives of Manji lost while their time in Fiore. She knew she had grown. She knew she changed. But it was only more motive to move stronger. She would arrive in no more than fifteen minutes. Trees and brush were all the divided her.

This shrine was lit, and many candles were ignited before she got there. Chi had placed a few of her own. Th shrine was large, and left by itself in a small clearing of trees. ivy and moss grew over the stone but still it stood tall and in a condition as if it was freshly carved. It was unreadable in places only for the foliage. To remove the plants would to risk damage to the shrine.

She didn't pray this time, for she understood why she had no real reason to. Her god was with her, and she meant literally not just metaphorically. What was a prayer when she could physically take her god in her hands. She was no deity, and here she learned her true name.

"Yukirochisu." she thought to herself. "We share the same origins. Or perhaps, I was named after you. I guess we'll never really know."

Nameless had a name, but she would never acknowledge it. Those that held this information would do nothing more than tear up old memories that did not exist. All it did was make her imagine what life she could have lived before. Before all of this.

The rock remained, some foliage begun to spring off of it. The name remained. Daughter-Of-The-Old-Tree. each of their names held a meaning, some of it lost. But everyone had a name for a reason.

"Fleeting Life." she said to herself, looking at the lit shrine. She held a contradictory name. It was why she preferred the name of Chi. She wanted to only think about Life, what could be. Not what should have been.

But there was no time to think about her own past. She was here to relax and prepare herself. It was time to end the era and end the life that claim so many of theirs. She had to be happy.

The Manji have grown strong. And it was her doing. Chi would be remembered, even if she would just be an echo.
706/700