Queen Nia's Story

Nia, standing by a balcony, peered at the distance. A giant semicircle-disc-shaped object that looked like motor lurked in the sky. Let's dismiss the weird-shape mountains and the cloud sea below. On the other side, Melia¹, also on a balcony, looked at the other half of the disc structure.

After Melia returned to her room, on a tiny screen on her table showed two planets, blue and red, attracted towards each other. They were so near that lightning formed in between their gaps. "300 days remain to the Intersection. It seems we might make it."

The screen now displayed Nia on video call. "Yes. It took every bit of our combined intellects... But we built it."

"To prepare for the time our two worlds collide..."

Nia was also in her room, chatting via a round mirror attached to her table, "All that we are is contained within. Memories, and our souls..."²

"We will all be gone, and then reborn. Will it be a new beginning, or our demise...? No one can tell us that."

"Time will run its due course, and show us the true meaning... of our deed." And Melia nodded and cut the conversation.

The day child Noah saw pigeon fluttered, as the clock struck 12, and the rolling of the giant red ball in the distance during the Queen's ceremony... The worlds are coming inevitable, and the Queens await their fates by their balcony. A bright light engulfed all.

"In the distant past, what was once a single world was cleft in twain. Plus and minus... On the surface, they were identical. These two worlds, of opposing nature,... knew nothing of each other as they wended their way, towards their own respective futures. However, the worlds yearned for each other. Against the solitude of existence, they strove to reunite... though it would spell certain destruction. Should the two worlds intersect, they would cancel each other out and cease to be,³ leaving only light."

She continued, "Light... A shining beacon in the darkness. The last common language left to us. Though we inhabited separate worlds, the medium of light allowed us to communicate for the very first time, and so we sought for a way to prevent total oblivion... We pooled our knowledge, and through time, gave birth to a single point of hope..." It showed the engineering design (blueprint) of the giant circular disc.

"Origin. An ark, containing all the worlds' data, recorded in words of light, carrying hope into the future... Origin was a system we constructed to reboot the worlds' states. And then... the time was upon us."

"The reboot process failed to initiate. Instead, in that instant, the worlds became still, by the will of Moebius." Z standing in the middle, accompanied by X and Y. The red moon lurked in the background.

Noah concluded prematurely, "So it's their fault..."

"And at the heart of it, was their ringleader, Z. You could say Z embodies this frozen world."

Lanz don't understand, "But what does that achieve? Freezing everything?"

"Not a thing... He didn't need to do anything after that. Only... to keep everything in its place, in stasis, and create an eternity to abide within,... as was their wish." That's the killing between the two nations.

Noah: "He made our lives their sustenance..."

"Precisely so. In order to gain control of Origin, Z captured the Kevesi Queen." Showed Melia chained in an unknown location.

Mio: "To what end?"

"To access the memories in Origin, to bend them to his will. He needed a key, held only by its creators."

Eunie: "A key?"

"A heart... might be more fitting. Z used the key held by the Queen of Keves,... and seized Origin in its entirety. Controlling Origin... means controlling the world. And having shackled it, he can bend it to his will. Life and death... are his playthings." More and more moebius were created thereafter and joined the ranks.

Noah, looking at his term symbol, "Life and... death..."

While looking at Mio, "No one, not even M, knew the origins of this world." It made Mio breathed out with uneasiness, the statement.

Taion hypothesized, "So I guess... You have another key?"

"Yes, it's in my possession. With its help, I was able to create... the Ouroboros Stones." To her left now emerged the previously undisplayed Ouroboros Stone, glowing incandescent green brightly. "Though most of the power is with Z, I have been able to... resist him, to a small extent." The Stone opened up and showed a triangle metal.

Sena observed it, questioned, "It's a... cogwheel?"

"One of the gears from Origin. Through a process of catalysis, between the Origin substrate and the Core in my chest, I can generate the Stones." A blue-pink diamond-shaped crystal located in Nia's chest.

Lanz: "And thanks to that, we became Ouroboros..."

"Yes, but... not completely."

Sena: "Huh?" That power so immeasurable was still not its full form?

"Remember. Have you not succumbed to Moebius's power before?"

"Urgh..." X's staff that forced these two to cancel their Interlink.⁴

"As I've said before, Z commands the world's very fabric. Unfortunately, my own powers are sorely limited. And yet, you too can break Z's fetters, as you've shown, smashing through the rules he established. With your Ouroboros powers, and the Sword of the End, both."

Noah, looking at his blade, "The Sword... of the End?"

"The sword you hold. It is a byproduct of resonance... between the Kevesi Queen's heart, and Origin."

Taion: "Does that mean... it's like an Ouroboros Stone?"

"The Ouroboros Stones, and the sword... They're mere gimmicks. The crux of them lies with you. You see, there are keys inside of you too."

Lanz: "Inside of us..."

Sena: "Keys...?"

"Finally, my efforts were rewarded. I'm glad... To meet with all of you who embody hope..."

Noah: "Majesty, what is it that we must do?"

"Right. Infiltrate Origin, then free it, and the Kevesi Queen... from Z... From the hands of Moebius, once and for all."

Sena: "If we do free it, will we get to change the world? It's so cruel and senseless... Can we undo that?"

Nia looked down for a while, thinking about the philosophical question. Noah sensed her lack of confirmation. Sena: "Your Majesty...?"

After she gathered her words, "If you desire... to have a future before you...⁵" Mio's eyes widened at the possibility.

Noah pressed on, "I need to know." Mio turned to him, whom continued, "Z and Moebius... Must they be our enemy?"

"Noah..."

"Now that... is something for you to decide. After confronting them, and discerning for yourselves what they truly are."

Noah thought for a moment before agreeing, "All right."

She nodded and urged, "Come this way." Then, she lead the way to the balcony.

===

"Behold... There at the nadir of the vortex... sleeps Origin." In the distance was a tornado clouds that swirls.

"In the sea?!!!" Noah was shocked.

"Deep beneath the sea where none may tread, Z spins his world-spanning web."

Sena: "So you're saying... the Queen of Keves, she's there as well?" Agreed.

Lanz: "Well snuff me... I want to save the Queen as much as the next guy, but how are we supposed to even get there? You can't even get near, without being ripped apart." Ethel once mentioned some Ferronis tried to enter...

Eunie was optimistic "Yeah, but... If anyone were to know the trick, it's Queen Nia! Seeing as, y'know, she's the mastermind behind the whole Origin shebang, yeah?"

Nia summoned the innocent face therefore as the group have high hopes for her. Uneasily, she... "Uhhh.... Urgggghhh... Right... Actually, I... kinda don't."

Lanz released the most shocking and high pitch voice in the whole episode, "Abuh... But you're the Queen! How do you not know that?!"

Eunie dropped her head, "This is shocking..."

Even Taion can't keep his rationality, "Absolute nonsense... I simply cannot believe this!"

"I... I don't know how to respond..."

Mio: "C'mon, you lot. Rein it in now."

Now her voice struck something in Lanz: "Huh...? Hang on..."

"Hm?"

"Mio, don't you... get to use those Moebius powers?"

"Uh? U-uhm, well..."

"Then it should be a snap, right? Peww! We're there. Those clowns were doing it all the time!"

"Actually..."

"Go on?"

"I can't... use them right now... The Moebius powers."

"What?"

"I noticed it... right after we liberated the Castle. I couldn't work out why myself, i-it was so sudden."

Eunie: "Noooo-! Is this why you blew us off saying to ask the Queen ourselves?!"

"Uhhh... Sorry, Eunie..."

"Oh, love..."

Nia: "I suspect, it must be Z."

"Huh?"

"The power of Moebius... It's part of the flow and fabric of the world. What is permitted, and what is prohibited, is subject to Z's whims. Even with Origin, not every Moebius knows of its existence."

"But I was able to use the Ouroboros powers..."

"The power you currently wield is, let's say, external to the flow. Even Z himself cannot grasp what's beyond his reach. Therein is my hope based."

"Hm..."

Lanz: "We're still stuck though. We know where to go, but we're kinda dead in the water here."

Noah, looking at the vortex, tried to think for alternative solutions, "How to tackle the vortex, then... Huh! Mr. Samon...!"

Mio tried recalling, "Mr. Samon was, uh... That Nopon from the City?"

"Yeah! Recall what he said? About a ship that could brave the Great Sea."

"Ultimate... vessel?"

"That right. Even vortex in raging Great Sea not slow advance. It go down in history as Queen of boats! Still work in progress, but sure to bring to fruition someday. Is Samon's dream!"

Eunie: "Yeah, he did say that! Something about it being able to take on stormy weather?"

Lanz: "Wait, wasn't that a work in progress, though?"

Taion: "I think he might've been drawing up blueprints...?"

Noah: "Whatever Mr. Samon said, he was pretty ardent about it."

Eunie: "Which must mean..."

Sena: "There might be a way to get there, after all!"

Mio, looking at Noah in the eyes, excitedly, "All right, let's go!"

"Yeah!"

Lanz: "Finally, our lucky break."

Sena: "Looks like this place was worth the trip!"

Taion: "Better hurry. I hardly imagine Moebius will stand idly by."

Eunie: "Agreed." And they just dashed off into the distance, leaving Queen Nia out of their short attention span.

After some run, Noah suddenly remembered, "Your Majesty!"

"Huh?" Her attention came back and saw Noah and Mio facing her from a distance.

"Thanks a lot! Things are looking up!" And he ran off first. Mio gave a smile, a neck-bow⁶, before going after him.

After they leave, "Uh... sure..."

Translator's Note: If you'd like to know more about Nia, we'd got another story for her here. Though, some information there only makes sense after you read the next section on "building the ship".

Footnotes:

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1: Queen of Kevesi, if you hadn't already know.

2: Snuff, their video quality is barely 240p.

3: Now we're talking matter and antimatter.

4: But, how does she know though? She can watch them while she's sleeping?

5: Damn, that doesn't even mean anything, Your Majesty!

6: i.e. a nod.