For those awaiting updates from here (if there are any), I just wanted to let yall know that im not going to update anymore.
Since Jan, I reduced the amount of time I was spending on lads and games in generals bc it’s rly hard to balance study (med student) and personal life and sometimes the former outweighs the latter. With how much grinding lads required (as a f2p player) just to get a 5star during events, it was just too much — I just stopped entirely.
From march onwards, I was still heavily involved with the fandom, well updated, just not engaging with the lads app anymore. I was more interested in the main story anyways and would watch any memories, if I was interested, on yt.
When the valko livestream and allat happened, I noticed there was a new main story update and was so excited for it. I was ready to get back in the game to get valko freebies and watch the main story. But with the whole thing going around him and him getting removed and just how the company responded, it felt like lads is never gonna make any major updates which would bring me back as a player — It just didn’t make sense for the main story anymore. The whole reason i played lads was for the plot. The characters. The romance. The tragedy. But it was all getting removed.
I know this is supposed to be an otome, where the story changes depending on the players choice. But in the end the company is supposed to decide the direction of the story and the characters involved. The game started to leak out of the app and some players decided to think they could make the choice out of the app and push it on others.
There’s no reason for me to follow on with lads anymore. I do, once in a month, see what’s going on and to see if anything has changed but after so long I don’t think anything is gonna happen anyways.
I will always love all the characters and value the memories I have surrounding them. They were part of some of my dark moments of my life and were and are a great source of comfort for me. I will miss how it was pre-valko era (I don’t regret meeting him, don’t jump me), I mean the vibe of the fandom.
If you read up to this, wow ur crazy!
I just wanted to say this since I get notifications of people reading my LaDs as Dads series and always wonder about it.
Anyways thank you for coming to my tedtalk! and thanks for reading my stuff. I’m happy that others have found comfort in my daydreams-written-as-fanfics!
If anyone has been having similar experiences and thoughts or even different feelings I’d love to hear.
Just random thoughts but I wonder if Xavier has ever thought about having kids. I feel like the whole concept may be confusing and hard for him.
1) he’s never had a great relationship with his father so he might be scared that he may be controlling towards his child. but it could work the other way too, like he’d know what not to do and be more closer to his child than he was with his dad
2) age gap. so we all know he’s pretty old and basically from another planet so i feel like he may be either outdated or rly advanced and he might be a little out of touch with his child on current trends. but he might work around it. just bc he’s quiet doesnt mean he isn’t a smart man
3) immortality. im not sure about all parents but what ive always heard is that they’d never want to see their child die in their lifetime. would Xavier be able to watch his child age and then pass away? would his view on immortality change? or would he try to find a way to stop his immortality so he can age with his children? ik he has seen mc die multiple times but that doesn’t mean that didn’t take a toll on him mentally. the story doesn’t actually show much of their mental state and emotions if u think about it. u never know what they are rly thinking.
Overall I feel like if it’s smth that has happened by accident with the linkon mc, he’d do his best to support her with any decision she makes bc in the end of the day he loves her. he’d try his best to support and love his child. Anyways I can’t really express my thoughts properly so I’ll look at this later and maybe add on. It’s like 2:40am 💀
LMAO just thought of smth funny. imagine if Xavier developed dementia in his old age and he’d randomly blurt out like brainrot from random planets and timelines and mc and his kids are like ‘???’
one comment just reminded me of rebirth… imagine if he did outlive his child and they are born again but they have different parents…
Also why does this also remind me of Rafayel. Ik lemurians retain the memories of their past lifes (they do right? Aha) do they always have the same parents? if they are born with different ones would they still talk to their previous life ones if they are still alive or if they are reborn too? or is it kinda normal for children to drift away from their parents basically from when they’re born or a little later (like other sea life) so they never really talk anyways? but also wasn’t Rafayel looking for his parents in the current life hmmm…also rafayel is in touch with talia…is talia his blood aunt or just a friend-kind-a-aunt, like bc they both lemurians and they rare so they stick together
Edit: ik my punctuation is rly sucky but that’s just my mind running with questions 😭
Just random thoughts but I wonder if Xavier has ever thought about having kids. I feel like the whole concept may be confusing and hard for him.
1) he’s never had a great relationship with his father so he might be scared that he may be controlling towards his child. but it could work the other way too, like he’d know what not to do and be more closer to his child than he was with his dad
2) age gap. so we all know he’s pretty old and basically from another planet so i feel like he may be either outdated or rly advanced and he might be a little out of touch with his child on current trends. but he might work around it. just bc he’s quiet doesnt mean he isn’t a smart man
3) immortality. im not sure about all parents but what ive always heard is that they’d never want to see their child die in their lifetime. would Xavier be able to watch his child age and then pass away? would his view on immortality change? or would he try to find a way to stop his immortality so he can age with his children? ik he has seen mc die multiple times but that doesn’t mean that didn’t take a toll on him mentally. the story doesn’t actually show much of their mental state and emotions if u think about it. u never know what they are rly thinking.
Overall I feel like if it’s smth that has happened by accident with the linkon mc, he’d do his best to support her with any decision she makes bc in the end of the day he loves her. he’d try his best to support and love his child. Anyways I can’t really express my thoughts properly so I’ll look at this later and maybe add on. It’s like 2:40am 💀
LMAO just thought of smth funny. imagine if Xavier developed dementia in his old age and he’d randomly blurt out like brainrot from random planets and timelines and mc and his kids are like ‘???’
Aurora learns that her power defies classification, forcing her into an unknown role she never asked for, one that alters what she can reveal, and what must remain hidden.
🎵 Now Playing: Enticing Trap [Love and Deepspace] 🎵
------------
Chapter 8: Initiation & Inevitability
??? ??? ?? ????
Aurora abruptly opened her eyes.
If this was all just a dream, I might jump.
“Why hello again… Aurora.” The owner of the deep voice swishes the shimmering, white liquid around his wine glass.
What-
She blinks hard, forcing the haze to settle.
Thanatos sits lazily on a marble throne, one leg crossed over the other.
Her gaze drops.
And her heart stops.
She’s on all fours.
Directly at his feet.
He looks down at her with a slow, amused smirk.
Aurora scrambles backward instantly, hands slipping slightly on the polished, mirror-like floor. She half-stumbles, half-crawls to the nearest chair, the one opposite his throne, and practically throws herself into it.
“What- what the hell! Thanatos?!” she sputters, breath shaking. “Why am I here again? I didn’t call for you. I didn’t do anything. I was at the hospital- Oh my god! I’ve got a bone to pick with you! You just threw me there! Into that world! Without letting me finish-”
He swirls the white liquid again, the motion elegant, effortless, and lifts up a hand.
“Ugh.” He recoils. “So many words in ten seconds. Calm down.”
Her eyes narrow, choosing to close her mouth for a bit.
He lifts the glass slightly, studying her over its rim.
“Aurora,” he says languidly, “you don’t have an Evol.”
She stares at him.
“…What?” she demands. “Um yes, I do. I literally just healed someone. In front of a whole board of doctors.”
A soft laugh drips from his lips.
“If that was the joke then I’m leaving. That was very funny.”
She gets up dramatically.
“Let me finish…please.” Thanatos side-eyes her.
He leans forward slightly, his voice dropping to a whisper that curls around her spine,
“What you used today was not an Evol.”
“…Then what was it?”
Thanatos tilts his head, watching her like a curious little puzzle.
“Aurora,” he says softly, almost indulgently, “what you wield… is divine power. A gift I bestowed on you.”
Her breath catches.
“Divine-? The hell is divine power supposed to mean? And why would you give me something like that?”
Her eyes widen.
“-and what’s happening at the hospital? Did I die again?!”
Thanatos sighs. A slow, elegant exhale, as though she is a child asking why the sky is blue.
The air shifts.
Behind him, the void ripples — dark and vast, filled with drifting lights like floating green embers.
“You’re not dead,” he says finally. “Your body is still lying quite peacefully in Akso Hospital. Your heart beats. They believe you fainted. They are examining you as we speak.”
Aurora swallows hard.
“Okay… so… why am I here?”
Thanatos leans back in his throne, the obsidian surface shimmering beneath him.
“I didn’t let you go there for free, Aurora.”
A shiver crawls up her spine.
“What does that mean?”
“I appointed you,” he says, “as my vassal.”
“…Your WHAT. Your vessel?”
“My vassal,” Thanatos repeats calmly. “A servant of higher order. Bound by divine tether.”
He gestures loosely with his glass. “A very old arrangement. Quite standard, actually.”
“STANDARD?!”
She nearly chokes.
“I didn’t agree to ANYTHING like that-!”
“You didn’t disagree,” he counters smoothly. “Which, in cosmic law, is very similar.”
Aurora gapes at him.
Don’t ‘um actually’ me. What the fuck.
Thanatos sets his glass aside, and with a flick of his wrist, a thick, ancient-looking book materialises in his hand — bound in dark metal and inked, neon glyphs that shimmer faintly.
He offers it to her.
She doesn’t move.
He arches a brow.
“Take it.”
Aurora reaches out reluctantly, and the book lands in her palms with surprising weight. It feels… alive. Warm. Wrong.
“What is this…?”
“A manual,” he says casually.
“For dark magic. An ability you acquire as my vassal. It will come to you in time, with practice.”
“Dark… magic.”
She says it like it tastes weird in her mouth.
“Yes,” Thanatos says, amused.
“Though for now, you are only newly appointed. Barely awakened. You won’t wield it properly yet.”
“But why dark magic? Why would celestial beings use dark magic?”
Thanatos tilts his head, leaning it on his hand. “Dark magic is a bit more flexible. It fills in the gaps of Divine power, since Divine power is pretty limited to a specific focus.”
Aurora flips the book open.
Black pages. Dark green ink. Symbols that shift when she tries to read them.
“Divine power obeys rules. Dark magic doesn’t.”
She lifts her eyes up from the book and snaps it shut.
“And the healing thing?” she demands. “How does that even work? Why do I have it?”
Thanatos steeples his fingers.
“Because,” he says, “some of the divine power must be passed down to the vassal when appointment happens. I cannot keep it forever. The cycle of souls requires succession.”
“Succession,” she repeats blankly.
“Yes,” he says. “Promotions, Aurora. Even deities have them.”
She stares at him, horrified.
“And my healing divine power,” he continues lightly, “is merely what I chose to bestow upon you. A fragment of what I once held. Now that you have it, I no longer possess that ability.”
Her blood runs cold. “You- you GAVE me your healing?”
Thanatos laughs softly.
Aurora grips the book tighter, heart racing.
“So what now?” she whispers.
Thanatos smiles.
“Oh, Aurora,” he says, leaning forward, eyes glinting like dying stars.
“Now… you begin learning what you truly are.”
Thanatos watches her clutch the book with that same amused, patient-but-not-really-patient expression.
Click!
He snaps his fingers.
The book vanishes instantly from her hands.
Not faded.
Not dissolved.
Just gone, like reality forgot it was ever there.
Aurora gasps.
“What-?!”
Click!
Thanatos snaps again.
The book reappears in her lap, heavy and humming with a dark pulse.
He twirls his finger in his hair lazily.
“Your turn.”
“My turn?”
“To cloak it,” he says, tone clipped as if this is basic kindergarten magic. “I don’t need Akso’s little monitors discovering you brought forbidden texts into their sterile world. Or anyone knowing, in fact.”
She stares at him.
He stares back expectantly. He makes a snapping gesture sharply.
“You are my vassal now. Act like it.”
Aurora panics. Hands shaking, she lifts the book in front of her.
“O-okay- uhh-”
Thanatos taps his foot.
“Aurora. It works through intention. Command the power from your head and imagine it running all the way through to your hands, then fingertips, then out to the book.”
She sucks in a breath.
Fine.
Okay.
Focus.
Hide.
A swirl of deep purple mist bursts outward from her fingertips.
It wraps around the book like ribbons of smoke, coiling elegantly up its spine, across the dark metal, through the neon glyphs.
The mist thickens, tightens, and sinks into the book’s surface swallowing its presence.
Aurora’s eyes widen.
“…I did it?”
Thanatos pauses and lifts one brow.
“Well. Good job. First try.”
He tilts his head slightly.
“Perhaps you are not as hopeless as I assumed.”
She groans internally.
Was that a compliment or an insult.
Probably both.
Thanatos rises from his throne with fluid, unnatural grace.
“Good,” he says. “Now let’s not waste any more time.”
He snaps his fingers one last time.
A luminous summoning circle ignites beneath Aurora’s chair — sprawling lines of green, white, and black flame weaving into geometric patterns that rotate like a clock and a star map layered together.
The floor hums.
Her stomach drops.
Thanatos’s eyes glow with a pale, inhuman light.
“Time to go back, Aurora.”
“W-wait-! I still have questions-!”
“Ask them when you survive your next fainting spell,” he says dryly.
Aurora’s visit to Akso Hospital forces her to confront a power that answers only under pressure, leading her into consequences no one in the room can see coming.
🎵 Now Playing: Destined Wish [Love and Deepspace] 🎵
------------
Chapter 7: The Spark beneath the Skin
Aurora breaks her gaze with Caleb and shifts it to the girl.
This must be the MC…
Aurora’s throat feels tight, but she forces her empty tray steady before stepping toward them.
“Right this way,” she says, her voice softer than usual.
She leads them to a corner table by the wide glass window, sunlight spilling across the polished wood. The woman thanks her with a smile that’s as disarming as it is kind, and something about it makes Aurora’s chest loosen.
When Aurora sets down the menus, the woman tilts her head. “You’re new here, aren’t you?”
Aurora blinks. “…Yeah. Just started yesterday.”
“Well, you’re doing wonderfully already,” the woman replies, tone smooth but warm, like she actually means it. “I’m Marceline. You can just call me MC though.”
Aurora lets out a playful scoff which could be mistaken for a nervous huff, deadpanning.
She is quite literally MC, huh.
Aurora swallows, daring a small smile. “My name is Aurora. It’s nice to meet you two.”
The man beside her—Caleb—finally speaks, his voice low and even. “Aurora. Fitting name.” His gaze is sharp, but there’s no malice in it. It’s the kind of look that weighs, measures… and, oddly, approves.
Heat prickles at her ears. She shifts on her feet. “Can I get you both started with drinks?”
The woman nods, rattling off an order with ease, while Caleb just murmurs, “The same.” His attention lingers on Aurora a second longer than necessary, like he’s cataloguing details he won’t forget.
Aurora scribbles down the order, but her fingers tremble slightly against the page. It’s not fear—it’s something else. Like being seen through.
---
SUNDAY June 30th, 2047
Aurora re-reads the email on her phone for the twelfth time.
Akso Hospital.
Board-level meeting.
Sunday. 9:30 AM.
Special case review.
Her stomach twists itself into an anxious pretzel.
“Yep,” she mutters under her breath. “This is the building.”
The towering hospital looms above her. An elegant monolith of glass, white alloy, and sharp geometric architecture. The morning sun reflects off its crystalline panels, scattering light across the plaza like fractured starbursts. Drones hum overhead. Holographic banners ripple with rotating medical announcements. Everything feels too advanced, too clean, too intimidating.
She takes a breath and steps inside.
The lobby is cavernous and bright, filled with the low buzz of staff and the gentle hum of hovering machines disinfecting the floors. The ceiling arches high enough to hold a small planetarium. Pale blue light pulses along the edges of transparent screens displaying patient wait times.
Aurora approaches the receptionist, palms clammy.
“Hi. My name is Aurora Doran. I have a meeting with the board?”
The receptionist scans her face with a practiced smile. “Yes, Miss Doran. You’re expected. Please follow me.”
Aurora tries not to trip as she trails behind the woman through a series of sleek corridors.
The door slides open with a soft chime.
A long table curves through the center of the room. Eight people and their titles sit spaced evenly along it.
Heads of departments, senior clinicians, administrative leads.
And one familiar man in a white coat with dark hair, golden-green eyes, and a composed presence that borders on intimidating.
Zayne Li.
Aurora internally screams.
Fantastic.
Cold, stoic, and sexy.
She forces a smile as she steps inside.
“Miss Doran,” the Chairwoman greets. “Thank you for coming. Please, have a seat.”
Aurora bows slightly. “Thank you for having me.”
She goes around the table, shaking hands one by one.
Firm hands. Sharp eyes.
Professional smiles that feel more like assessments.
When she reaches Zayne, he offers his hand with polite neutrality, but there’s a flicker of curiosity in his gaze.
“Dr. Zayne Li,” he introduces.
“I—I know,” she blurts, then wants to fling herself out the nearest window. “I mean—nice to meet you.”
Aurora takes her seat, setting her phone face down to keep her hands from shaking.
Explain my case. Demonstrate. Impress. Then LEAVE.
One of the board members clears his throat.
“In your email, you mentioned you possess a… special Evol. One you could not describe digitally. Please elaborate.”
Aurora nods, inhaling deeply.
“I believe I have a healing-type Evol,” she begins. “It activated accidentally- twice. I didn’t want to risk writing details electronically in case it was intercepted or flagged.”
Several members exchange interested glances.
“What precisely happened?”
Aurora explains everything.
Finding the injured kitten.
The golden mist.
The leg healing fully.
The second test at the vet clinic.
When she finishes, the room goes silent.
Not disbelief.
But… calculation.
Finally a woman leans back. “Miss Doran… that’s a substantial claim. Can you demonstrate it?”
Aurora swallows. “I can try.”
“Bring in a low-priority ED case,” another member instructs. “Someone stable. Non-critical.”
A nurse steps out.
Aurora’s pulse hammers.
Minutes later, the nurse wheels in a patient—mid-thirties, pale, restless, gripping his abdomen.
His chart indicates:
Severe kidney stone pain.
Stable, but in acute discomfort.
He groans softly, clutching his side.
“A stone stuck in the ureter,” the nurse explains. “Pain management is ongoing, but we can pause medication to allow demonstration.”
Aurora steps forward, heart pounding.
She hovers her hands over him.
…
…
…
Nothing.
No warmth.
No glow.
No mist.
Aurora stiffens.
One member raises an eyebrow.
Another scribbles something.
Zayne watches quietly—but with focus sharpened like a blade.
Aurora’s palms sweat. “I swear- it usually works- ”
One man sighs, sitting back down. “Miss Doran, you were informed that misuse of departmental time comes with financial penalties. The entire board is present today. I hope you understand the gravity-”
The rest of the words blur out. Her heart thumps in her ears.
His tone is cold.
Clinical.
Borderline accusatory.
They all walk towards their seats.
Aurora’s chest tightens painfully.
Why isn’t it working?
Why now of all times-?
She lifts her eyes just in time to see the patient wince, his face contorted in agony. His breath stutters. Sweat beads along his temple.
“Sir?” Aurora whispers, stepping closer. “Please… look at me.”
He lifts his head weakly. Their eyes meet.
A sharp, stabbing pain tears through her own lower abdomen, fast and brutal.
She gasps quietly.
The board barely notices—they’re watching the patient, not her.
Her heart stutters.
Her breath shakes.
The pain keeps pulsing.
Matching his.
Perfectly.
Her hand trembles and heat blooms in her chest.
A spark.
A glow.
A golden warmth rising like a held breath finally released.
Light crawls down her arms.
And then—the mist pours out.
Chairs hover backwards as the members scamper out of their seats.
Soft, golden, effervescent light swirls from her hands, weaving itself around the patient’s abdomen. The fog thickens, glows brighter, and begins sinking gently into his skin.
The room goes silent.
The board watches in stunned disbelief.
The patient’s breathing slows. His heart rate and blood pressure stabilises. His muscles relax.
He exhales shakily, eyes widening as the pain dissolves from his face.
But Aurora is still hurting.
The pain doesn’t leave her.
In fact, it gets worse as the healing finishes, stabbing hot and relentless through her abdomen.
She bites her lip, forcing her expression still.
One minute.
Four deep breaths.
Hold. Don’t react. Don’t expose anything.
Slowly and mercifully,
the pain fades.
The ache melts away.
The moment it disappears, the golden mist dissipates.
Aurora sags forward slightly, dizzy but composed.
Zayne’s eyes narrow ever so slightly.
“Miss Doran?” he asks quietly.
“Yes?” She stumbles out.
He raises an eyebrow.
“I’m fine.” she lies.
The Chairwoman steps toward the patient. “Sir? How do you feel?”
He sits up cautiously.
His eyes widen.
“…The pain is gone.”
“Gone?”
“Completely.”
A murmur of astonished voices fills the room.
“A regenerative Evol?”
“Advanced healing—never documented at this level.”
“Incredible…”
Zayne remains silent, assessing Aurora.
Studying the faint tremor still in her hands.
She forces them still.
“This could revolutionize—”
Zayne’s voice cuts through cleanly. “Miss Doran, please sit.” He pushes the glass of water towards her as he, along with the other members of the board, moves to his seat.
She collapses into her chair, trembling.
A board member leans forward.
“Miss Doran… with an ability like that, why would you want it hidden?”
Aurora lifts her eyes, voice small but steady.
“Because people get kidnapped for powers like this,” she says. “Weaponised. Forced into military branches. Tracked. Hunted. I don’t want to be a target. I don’t want to be used.”
Another voice says, gentler, “We understand. And confidentiality is… negotiable, especially since hiding something like this from the Evol Department…is risky.”
“Althought, there is no doubt you would be joining us. But we require formal testing.”
A holographic machine is wheeled forward.
“Please place your hand on the sensor.”
Aurora nods shakily.
The board watches.
Zayne watches closer.
She places her hand on the glowing panel.
It lights.
Flashes.
Her chest squeezes sharply.
Her vision tunnels.
“…W- wait…”
“Miss Doran?”
She hears Zayne’s voice, too far away.
The world thins.
Light engulfs her.
Everything goes black.
---
??? ??? ?? ????
Aurora abruptly opened her eyes.
If this was all just a dream, I might jump.
“Why hello again… Aurora.” The owner of the deep voice swishes the shimmering, white liquid around his wine glass.
i've been thinking—how Sylus is "always" rescuing something, take animals for example. And it struck me, suddenly, with that awful clarity that feels like a knife turning—maybe he does it because once, long ago, there was no one to rescue him.
Because there was a time when he was small, all scales and bones and fear, a dragon shivering in the dark with no hand reaching for him. Cast out. Unwanted. And in the eyes of every wounded, cornered thing, he sees that same terror, that same hollow ache of being left to die quietly where no one would notice.
So he takes them in. Not because he believes he can erase their pain, but because he cannot allow the world to be as merciless as it once was to him.
I completely agree with this. Humans were scared of him and viewed him as an enemy. And he was cast out by his own dragon kin because he looked too human.
He knows how it feels to be rejected by everyone. To have to sustain himself, by himself.
No one accepted him besides MC. MC taught him that he is worth caring for no matter how or who he is.
But even fate has rejected Sylus, and it tore MC away from him.
People tend to portray and give what they needed -- which I believe is the same case for Sylus. He would help someone if its reasonable to, if they are vulnerable, if Sylus is their last resort. Because he knows how its like to be rejected by everything.
Also I've always theorised that Mephisto was an injured bird that Sylus came across and, in order to save him, he placed modifications.
Honestly he is such a strong person, physically and emotionally. I have no idea how he has accomplished so much because anyone in that kind of situation is bound to break. And I'm sure he has in some way but has overcome it somehow. I wish we could dive into his pov a bit more and understand him fully.
Aurora discovers the limits—and dangers—of her mysterious healing ability as she quietly helps an injured animal and begins to question the strange sponsor behind the vet clinic. But just as she starts settling into her new normal at Destiny Café, a familiar face walks in.
🎵 Now Playing: Deepspace Echo [Love and Deepspace] 🎵
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Chapter 6: Espressos & Evols
FRIDAY June 28th, 2047
The next morning, Aurora returns to the vet clinic to pick up some essentials for Ruby—food, supplements, and a few care items Sarah had kindly set aside. The lobby was quiet, save for the occasional beeping of machines and the lazy hum of morning air.
"Hey, before I go," Aurora calls out to Sarah. She appears from the back, stepping out with a metal cart, "I’ve been thinking… do you mind if I trying that healing thing again? Just—on something else?"
Sarah blinks. "I guess so."
Sarah hesitates, and then disappears into the back again. When she returns, she carries a small cage with a trembling hedgehog inside. Its hind leg was bandaged and slightly swollen.
"She got her foot caught in fencing last week," Sarah explained. "We’ve done what we can, but she’s still in pain."
Aurora approaches slowly. Her breath calms. Shoulders down, her fingers hovers just above the tiny, injured creature. It was shaking, scared. Her expression softens.
She crouches and murmurs, "You’re okay. I promise."
Gently, she cups the hedgehog’s leg. For a moment—nothing.
A warmth surges from her chest, towards her finger tips. Deep, steady, gentle.
Gold fog swirls softly from her fingertips, slow and smooth like breath on a winter morning.
Aurora’s breath hitches.
This is really happening.
The shimmer wraps around the hedgehog’s limb, flickering once—twice—and then vanishes.
The little creature blinks up at her and takes a cautious step. Then another.
No limp.
Sarah’s eyes went wide. "Wow! It’s impressive."
Aurora exhales shakily, rising to her feet. "It only works on living things. I tried yesterday on a cracked display screen at home—nothing. It’s like it knows."
Sarah nods, stunned. "You should really go to a hospital," she said again. "Like, Akso Hospital. That kind of ability—it’d change lives. But more importantly, you need to tell the Evol Registry. If you’re undocumented, that puts you at risk."
Aurora's chest tightens.
“I know…” but I don’t think I can.
She brings her hand close to her chest.
With a power or Evol like this. I’ll be a walking target. Who knows what would happen if the wrong people get their hands on me?
I’d be stalked. Kidnapped.
Maybe even experimented on.
She shivers at the thought. EVER…
Aurora looks back over her shoulder at the window Mephisto had come from.
Why was Sylus here? Is this place perhaps something else disguised as a vet?
"Hey... that guy. Skye . Who is he, really?"
Sarah tilts her head, puzzled. "I’m not sure what you mean exactly… He just started donating every now and then, mostly anonymously. He never sticks around. I asked once and he said it was his ‘good deed for the day.’"
Right…
Aurora narrows her eyes. "That’s so vague. Don’t you think it’s weird?"
Sarah shrugs. "Maybe. But with how stretched everything is—especially with the government prioritising defence against Wanderers, hospitals, and that huge research branch, EVER—it’s been a blessing. He doesn’t ask for anything in return. Just drops the funds and disappears."
Aurora leans against the counter, troubled.
“I see.”
---
Sylus.
Not Skye. Sylus.
He is one of the most dangerous figures—enigmatic, cold, untouchable. A man who operates from the shadows and pulls strings with precision.
The Leader of Onychinus. The ruler of the N109 zone.
And she spoke to him. Thanked him. Stood there like an idiot in front of a man who could erase people with a flick of his fingers.
He isn’t someone who did things randomly. So why would he sponsor a vet? Why would he sponsor my pet?
---
Later that night, curled up on her couch with Ruby nuzzled beside her, Aurora taps open her phone.
She types in: Akso Hospital.
A polished site loads up immediately. Departments. Articles. Names.
She began scrolling lazily.
And then she saw him.
A profile photo. Jet-black hair. Golden green eyes.
Rising cardiologist.
Zayne Li.
Aurora sits up straight.
“Wow. It’s him.”
She taps on his name, and it takes her to his profile.
Doesn’t seem like he’s the Chief cardiologist yet. Maybe he gets promoted later.
She keeps scrolling.
So many achievements and qualifications. When does the page end?
She curls her fingers in her palm, tight into a fist, and then releases it again.
Sarah isn’t wrong. This healing power would help a lot in the hospital.
Aurora types in an email to the hospital, keeping it brief.
“Subject: Requesting an appointment. Email: Hello Sir, My name is Aurora Doran…”
---
SATURDAY JUNE 29th 2047
The scent of roasted coffee beans and vanilla syrup wraps around Aurora like a hug as she steps behind the counter, tying her apron with a neat little bow. Morning sunlight spills across the wooden floorboards, bouncing off the glass cake domes and catching in the golden flecks of the café’s signature caramel lattes.
Her second day on the job, and yet it felt like she’d been here longer. Maybe it was the way the café hummed with lazy conversation and gentle jazz, or the way the regulars always nodded politely as they walked in.
She slides a tray of warm pastries into the display case, humming under her breath
.
“Morning, Aurora,” Steve calls from the espresso machine, sleeves rolled up and already halfway through a rush of orders. “You’re on the floor today. Think you can charm our customers?”
She shoots him a mock salute. “Yes, sir.”
Moments later, she was balancing a tray in one hand and a notebook in the other, weaving through the soft clink of spoons and murmur of couples sharing bites of cinnamon scrolls. A woman waves her over, requesting extra honey in her chamomile tea. Another table asks for a refill of their milk tea frappés. Aurora moves smoothly between them, her smile genuine, her words warm.
For the first time since waking up in this strange world, she felt… at peace.
Ruby was safe. She hadn’t triggered any glowing hands in public. And she could finally do something. Something normal.
The café bell jingles again, but Aurora doesn’t glance up immediately—too focused on wiping a tiny splatter of chocolate off a menu.
Then she heard a woman’s voice, smooth and composed. “Could we have one of the window tables, please?”
Aurora turns toward the sound, plastering on her usual polite smile.
“Yes, of course-”
Her voice caught in her throat.
The woman was beautiful—strikingly so. Long dark curls fell over her shoulders like a river of ink, and her black coat was tailored like it belonged in a fashion editorial. But it wasn’t her that stole Aurora’s breath.
It was the man beside her.
His presence was quiet but intense. Brown hair, subtle piercing on one ear, and violet eyes that flicker around the café like he was scanning for something beneath the surface. He was calm—but in the way still water hides the sharpest rocks.
I've been into Black Butler again recently and omg you guys have no idea how hard i've been holding myself back.
Especially for the isekai story i've been writing for Love and Deepspace.
UGH this daydreaming habit of mine seriously is so annoying.
Hear me out (might be a spoiler if i decide to write it): For those who don’t know (spoiler for Black Butler coming up) Undertaker tries to bring back the real Ciel, which is basically against the laws or rules of Grim reapers and nature in general. The fact that EVER has been messing with people’s lifespan and trying to extend it, is quite similar to this case. They are both cases where people are trying to achieve immortality or some other kind of ‘stronger’ evolution. So the plot I can make in my story is that it’s getting harder for Grim reapers to reap souls when the souls are in wanderers (Alterums). William seeks out Aurora's help because they know each other from her past life in the Victorian Era. You see where I’m going? Like this is so possible. I’m trying not to give, the actual plot I’m coming up with, away.
I know exactly how I could weave in the demons and shinigami's (maybe even angels and other characters) into the Love and Deepspace main story but I'm not sure if I could pull it off.
I'm trying not to write it because if no one isn't going to read that then there's no use to write down and post it. I'll just keep it in my head. But I'd like to hear other people's thoughts.
I could write it in a way that people wouldn't require to know much of the Black Butler plot. Like you don't need to watch it or read it before reading my story.
Aurora discovers a strange power. Is it an Evol? She can't afford to take care of a pet but she also doesn't want to be alone. Who's sponsoring her pet?
🎵 Now Playing: Everyday With You [Love and Deepspace] 🎵
------------
Chapter 5: Facilitated Adoption
The clinician instinctively steps back from the table as Aurora frantically tries to fan the golden fog away with her hands, panic flashing in her eyes.
The dark yellow mist slowly stops swirling around the kitten’s leg—then vanishes into thin air, dissolving like it was never there at all.
Mew.
The little cat gives a quiet, contented noise.
Sarah frowns.
“Wait a second…”
She leans in, inspecting the leg with new urgency. A beat later, she rushes across the room to pull over the X-ray machine, hands already working on the interface.
Aurora takes a few uncertain steps back, staring down at her hands.
They were trembling slightly.
She brings them close to her chest.
It felt so… warm.
But also foreign. Strange. Like something ancient had brushed through her.
“It’s been fixed!”
Aurora’s head shoots up.
“What?”
Sarah spins the desktop monitor around with wide eyes. On-screen were two scans: one from before, with the fracture clearly visible, and one just taken—clean, flawless.
“Her leg’s no longer broken!” she says, voice filled with disbelief and awe. “Do you have some kind of healing Evol? I’ve never seen anything like that.”
Aurora stares.
“…Neither have I,” she whispers.
I can’t have an Evol… can I?
What’s happening to me?
“Well, that’s pretty cool,” Sarah added, still staring at the screen like it might explain itself. “That kind of ability would be insanely helpful in the healthcare field.”
Aurora didn’t respond.
Her eyes drift down to the cat again—now fully relaxed, curled up on the blanket like nothing had happened.
And in her chest, that same warmth lingered… but it didn’t feel like hers.
Not entirely.
---
Aurora didn’t sleep.
All night, she sat on her bed with her computer lighting up the darkness, screen after screen of fruitless searches.
Self-healing Evols. Golden Evol mist. Unknown Evol abilities.
Nothing. No records. Not even old wiki forums or archived posts.
Just silence.
By morning, she gave up trying.
---
THURSDAY June 27th 2047
The bell jingles as she steps into the vet again.
Sarah perks up. “You came to check on Ruby?”
They had decided to name the little kitty Ruby, after her crimson eyes.
Aurora gives a tired smile. “Yeah. I couldn’t stop thinking about her.”
“She’s in the back. Come on.”
The kitten curled up in a crate, cleaned, warm, and halfway through her breakfast.
Aurora drops to her knees in front of her. “Hey, you…”
Ruby looks up and lets out a soft, healthy mew.
Sarah leans against the doorframe. “She’s doing a lot better, you know. You could adopt her.”
“I want to,” Aurora admits softly, brushing a knuckle over the side of Ruby’s ear. “I really do…”
“…But I can’t afford to. I don’t even know how to take care of a cat. It wouldn’t be fair to her.”
Before Sarah could respond, the bell over the clinic’s front door rings again.
“Hello—how can I help you?” she calls from the hallway.
A moment passed, and then a calm, composed voice replies.
“I’m here for Mephisto’s monthly routine checkup.”
Aurora didn’t turn.
Mephisto?
Oh hell no. What can Sylus be doing here in Linkon???
Tall, broad-shouldered, and silver-white hair brushed neatly to the side, stands in her peripherals. A black coat hangs effortlessly off him. His presence alone made the space feel smaller. Cooler. More controlled.
When his eyes met hers—crimson, unreadable—Aurora forgets how to breathe.
This guy can kill anyone with the flick of his wrist. I need to calm down before he thinks I’ve recognised him.
He gives the crate a brief glance.
“Are you taking her home?” he asks, voice level.
Aurora blinks, caught off guard. “I… I want to, but I can’t afford it. And I don’t really know how to look after a cat. I don’t want to mess up.”
Why is he showing interest in what I’m doing? I’m just a civilian.
Sarah smiles from behind him. “This is Skye. He’s the one who sponsors the clinic. That’s how we were able to keep Ruby overnight and give her proper care.”
Aurora turns sharply toward him. “You… you sponsor this place?”
The man—Skye—nods. “Yes.”
Why?
Her fingers trembles slightly on Ruby’s fur.
Why would a man like that fund a clinic like this?
His eyes moved back to Ruby, then to her again.
“Take her home,” he says calmly. “I’ll cover everything.”
Whaa?
Her heart slams against her chest. “Wait- seriously?”
“Anything she needs. Medical. Food. Long-term care.”
What?! Why?
“It’s not just the cost! I don’t even know if I can handle it properly-”
“I’ll fund everything for as long as she’s alive.”
Aurora’s mouth opens. No sound comes out.
Who says that?
“You don’t even know me,” she breathes.
“I don’t have to.” Skye tilted his head slightly. “She’s alive because of you. You seem like you’ll take good care of her.”
Her eyes lit up.
Is he serious?
“I—what? You—thank you. Seriously—I’ll take such good care of her—I promise—thank you so much—!”
He raises a hand, silencing her flurry of gratitude. “You don’t need to thank me.”
Caw.
The sudden crackle of feathers snaps the moment in two. Aurora’s head whips around just in time to see a large shadow sweep across the clinic’s ceiling before landing with eerie precision atop a nearby cabinet.
A crow.
Its feathers, midnight-black, glisten under the sterile clinic lights. Slender, mechanical plating line the joints of its wings—fluid yet metallic. Thin veins of glowing red pulses faintly along its sides, alive and artificial all at once.
It tilts its head at her. Staring.
Aurora straightens. He was far too deliberate in its movements.
"Someone’s impatient," Skye murmurs, voice smooth as obsidian.
He didn’t flinch. Of course he didn’t. It was as though the bird was simply another extension of him—sharp-edged, silent, and unbothered by the weight of attention.
Sarah emerges from the back with a towel draped over one arm. She pauses only briefly at the sight. "Ah. Mephisto’s here."
The crow ruffles his feathers again, letting out a guttural croak in response.
Sarah laughs, tapping the metal examination table with a gloved hand. "Come on then, drama king. Let’s get your check-up started."
Mephisto hops down with surprising grace, talons clicking against the surface. His wings fan once before folding, mechanical joints humming softly as they settle.
Aurora couldn’t help but stare. The way the tech and biology intertwined—it wasn’t just augmentation. It was integration. Seamless.
"He’s huge," she murmurs, half to herself.
Aurora turned her gaze back to him, half-expecting a smirk.
"Is he yours?" she asks.
I know he’s his. I gotta keep the act up.
"Yes."
No elaboration. No warmth.
Mephisto let out a softer croak this time, then stilled as Sarah began her inspection.
Aurora watches as fingers gloved in latex check the wings, the joints, and the feathers—every motion clinical and practiced.
"He’s got tech in his wings," she whispered. "That’s… not from a pet store."
Should I be saying this?
"Modified for aerial recon," Skye replies, gaze focused on the crow.
She blinked. "Recon?"
A beat.
Nahhh. Did he just say that in broad daylight?
He glances at her. "I didn’t say that."
Her lips parts. "But you just-"
He turns away.
Aurora shuts her mouth.
What the f-
Alright then. Cool. Totally normal.
She lowers her eyes to the crate in her arms. Ruby sleeps soundly, unaware of the strange tension around her. Aurora gently stroked behind the kitten’s ear.
"...Thank you again," she whispers, even if he didn’t acknowledge it. “I’ll be taking my leave now, Sarah.”
“Okay. Bye. Come back tomorrow for the essentials.” Sarah doesn’t lift her eyes from Mephisto.
