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[Dialogue Diary 3]

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(I wanna make a quick cover art for this soon huhu qwq)

[Characters: Aires and Juliet]

[Context: « THE WAND (other names: The Tower, modernly known by researchers as "The Revisionist")—a phenomenological piece of architecture located in an abandoned civilization that it's been told came from the sky. Due to an isolated spread of a disease now unknown to history, the population drastically declined. Without its people maintaining their home island's ability to float, it eventually crashed into the mountains. The Wand is said to be a miracle maker, a future alterer, who, those that are able to reawaken its power, can shift the patterns of the stars and change one's fate according to their deepest desires. » ]

[Setting: AiJyul are given a mission to explore the abandoned civilization if it were to exist and report their findings back. They've been told about the structure's existence but it's been reduced to mere rumors. They eventually found that it does exist and so how to activate it from remaining literatures: Filling certain slots with certain blocks of sculpted artefacts at different locations in the island. Over a span of a few days, they managed to achieve its ritual, with one more night fitting the last artefact in the central pedestal...]

[Timeline placement: somewhere after Juliet finishes training and before the Fangs Arc]

*****************

With the block sliding in so easily and fit, Aires steps back in a few steps and... Everything stayed still for a single moment. Right before...

...the ground starts shaking.

The girls are surprised by the sudden quake, nearly losing their balance, and respond quickly by slightly raising their arms wide. Though the rumbling isn't at a catastrophic level, its disturbance is still felt. Leaves falling from trees; abandoned and fragile structures crumbling bit by bit; lakes and rivers creating ripples that turn into shy splashes at the grass; and birds that made their home in the lost area are immediately leaving their nests and returning to the sky. The girls wobble in place for a few minutes before the rumbling fades and lights from the tall tower begin to turn on from its pearly windows.

One by one, they light up until it reaches the very top, and finally, the giant orb in its center. Shining so brightly and actively that its form emits a sparking circle, then turning into a small shock wave that spawns its three rings of light enveloping the head of the tower. The orb's activity comes to a halt as its irregular nature calms down into just a lit orb. And lastly, the pillars around the central pedestal turn on their lights as well; their rectangular design for the light windows facing those who stand before them also shines in bright white.

The two observed their surroundings once more; what used to be caution became awe and then pride.

"We...We did it?" Juliet quietly asks, somewhat excited and astonished.

"Heck yeah, we did!" Aires looks back to her with a grin, then returns her focus upfront. "But how do we...tell our wishes?"

A grumble appears once more, and the two fix their eyes on the tower's head.

"TOWER'S ENERGY HAS BEEN RESTORED." A booming female voice comes out from the tower, having the intonation of an artificial intelligence, automated and formal, yet the volume of a stadium. "WELCOME TO THE TOWER WHERE ONE'S DEEPEST DESIRES CAN ALIGN WITH THE STARS."

"Incredible..." Juliet lets out from her breath as her head is fixed, looking at the brightly lit tower.

"THIS DEEPEST GRATITUDE IS EXCHANGED ACCORDINGLY," the tower continues.

"So uh, where do we start?" Aires asks, looking around their surroundings once more to answer her question. "Do we just, stand here, or find a way up or--"

"AIRES WON TERAK", the tower calls out her name.

"Huh?" she perks back up in response.

"YOU... HAVE AN INCREDIBLE FUTURE AHEAD."

"I-I do?" She becomes somewhat shy.

"AN OFFSPRING OF THE COSMOES, SALVATION OF THIS PLANET."

"Salvation?" Her tone suddenly deepens, confused.

"I SHALL FULFILL YOUR TRUEST DESIRE."

"You know?" Her voice awakening again, "All I want is just a peaceful life. A peaceful future," she said with warmth. "One where I can just live freely without worrying about others getting hurt. That's all I want." Her face beams up.

But the tower doesn't respond.

She waits for a second, then the irregularity occurs to her. "H-hello?"

"Tower, are you still there?"

"Maybe just give it a bit of time to process," Juliet chimes in.

Even with a few seconds going away, Aires could help but get antsy. Both excited and nervous.

The myth says that everyone who's been blessed by The Wand's power was able to grant their wishes successfully, whether it's a desire for their own future, for others, or a specific outcome. One could say they were blessed, fortunate by the presence of the glowing tower, as they're able to rewrite destiny. Its origins are unknown since there's no record of its creation, possibly an architecture not from here, but due to the lost civilization's secrecy, it is still yet to be discovered. These rumors remained in the two's minds, especially for Aires. While Juliet is curious about its history, Aires is eager to change fate more than ever now that this chance has been given to her. Even if it's based on one's truest and deepest desires, Aires is aware and in sync with hers. (Maybe add this somewhere much earlier in the full story. For now, this is here for additional context.)

So she waits eagerly. Juliet notices her hands are still curled, waiting like an excited puppy.

"AIRES WON TERAK," the tower's booming voice disrupts Aires from her waiting trance. She beams even more in anticipation, clutching her breath with each second of waiting.

"YOUR WISH..."

"CANNOT BE GRANTED."

Her eyes immediately changed to one of disbelief.

"YOU HAVE AN INCREDIBLE FUTURE AHEAD." It repeats those words from before.

"ONE THAT CANNOT BE MOVED."

Still in utter dismay, she mutters, "That can't be true..." raising her voice to be heard, "You can grant everyone's wish, right?"

"Why am I..." she whispers with a tremble.

"YOUR FUTURE IS ALREADY SET IN STONE. ONE THAT CANNOT BE MANIPULATED BY THE STARS."

Her breathing becomes irregular, and her body trembles with an invisible coldness. "C-Can't you try again? There must be an error, surely," as if it were a game where the system suddenly glitched, the codes encountering one error in operation.

Sensing that her partner is troubled, Juliet rests her hand on her shoulder and steps closer to check on her.

"THERE IS NO AVAILABLE CHANGE. EVEN IF YOUR DESIRE IS THE ULTIMATE."

But this isn't something created by a mere mortal nor computer. She doesn't utter a word; only her heavy breathing expresses her disbelief, her strong denial, and desperation. Juliet senses that it's becoming worse. "Aires, are you okay?" Trying to comfort her, she just watches Aires widen her eyes, never diverting her focus from the tower as if she were pleading. Her red hair is already glowing in bright pink, with her pupils in half of its brightness. And her body was stiffening from the emotional tension. Her steps begin to move backwards, one by one. She drops her head low, covering and hiding her arising emotions. Juliet finally steps in front of her, gently yet tightly grabbing her arms as she tries to comfort her. "Hey, calm down, it-it's gonna be fine..."

"JULIET LUDISIA LUCE." The tower calls to her, which makes both of them jolt in surprise. The one who's called looks back in response, while the other, already knowing that her turn is already over, on the brink of losing it, pulls back from Juliet's hold and runs away from the site.

"Ghh--Aires?!" Juliet calls as her friend dashes away. But before she decides to move--

"A MORTAL WITH A DREAM OF EXCITEMENT," the tower continues.

Instead of anticipating its next words, she's already tempted and worried to follow after Aires. With her right foot ready to leave and her left still clinging to the stone pavement.

"THIS DEEPEST GRATITUDE IS EXCHANGED ACCORDINGLY. I SHALL FULFILL YOUR TRUEST DESIRE."

But before it tells its success, she gives one more glance back and forth as she finally decides, "I'm sorry, but Aires is my only concern right now." She says to the tower and rushes away without hearing what it'll say next.

Still running through the trees, Aires runs with much haste, still keeping her head low while sprinting as fast as she could just to be far from the site when suddenly...

BOOM!

A slight shake of the earth is felt as Aires turns around and sees a beam of light coming from the tower, passing through the clouds, and reaching past the atmosphere. Aching with jealousy, Aires pushes on. While at the same moment, Juliet doesn't give it her attention and focuses on the path ahead, running with her parka rubbing on its own fabric and making a soft rustling sound as she sways her arms, trying to pick up speed.

This forest is too big, I can't lose her, she needs my help. She says in her thoughts, running as if everything's fate depends on her.

"YOUR WISH HAS BEEN GRANTED," the tower says at last, only to no one, for the person who should be receiving the message has already left.

Somehow, between seconds in time and space, stars realign and rewrite the course of history, ripping out old chapters and inserting new pages. Even as so little and insignificant, a slight shift is felt in the universe. Discarding what was once expected to happen and reconnecting each timeline, each life's past and conclusion with a new element. In her next step, her life is rebuilt anew, changing her fate to already fulfill her desire in the far future.

At this moment, a new future begins--

With a step, Juliet leaves the bustling trees and reaches the lake, a large pool of water so still and peaceful. Huffing, she turns her head back and forth to look for her friend and finds her far from the right side. She runs closer to see Aires in a deeply bowed position, as if begging forgiveness from the lake. Her hands clutching each of her elbows and her head tucked between her shoulders, she can tell that subtle tremble her body cannot hide. Juliet kneels down and offers her hand once more and lightly rubs her back.

Aires finally sits up, still with her head lowered and her hair covering her face, yet her glowing bangs make it evident what she's really feeling. Tears already dripping down her chin.

"Oh Aires..." She empathizes with her, understanding the pain she's feeling as of this moment. "I'm--"

"It's not fair..." Her words shaking.

"The rumor said it could change my fate...why..."

"Why am I stuck like this?" Her words, one by one, were losing their sound, as if becoming faint as air.

"Why me? Why am I not the only one who gets to have their wish granted?" Her voice returns, this time becoming upset. "That's not fair at all, th--"

"WHY ARE YOU LIKE THIS UNIVERSE?!" She shouts at the sky. "What do you even have in mind for me? Can't you just...give it to someone else?!"

"Why can't you just let me have this...wh..." She shrinks back to her former position and then, at impulse, roars and throws a handful of rocks in the water, as if that would hurt her tormentors. Huffing like an enraged wolf, she retracts from her formal position. Sitting once more with her head down, she covers her tearful eyes with the back of her hand.

Juliet is trying to think of words to comfort her and justify the situation, but she's afraid it'll make her even more upset and lash out, so...

She moves closer to her side and wraps her arms around her weeping friend. "Just let it all out. It's okay," is all she can say at the moment, and with little knowledge on how to comfort a friend, even though she has already witnessed this side of Aires a few times, it is still a fickle matter to handle so brashly or cleverly; hence, patience and consideration are all that's usable now.

A few minutes have passed, and Aires seems to be calming down now; her breathing is steady, going back to normal, and her tears are reducing to small amounts. She wipes her eyes one more time. "All that hard work, all my effort...I thought this chance would be it." She finally spoke. "I won't have to worry anymore. Worry about others and how my powers would harm them." She continues. "Heck, the whole world will be destroyed because of me!" She nervously laughs before returning back to that awful feeling.

"Do you really believe that?" Juliet asks. Aires gives her a glance before looking back at the still dirt.

"Salvation..." she whispers. Her lips tremble as she becomes teary once again. "For once, I just want to stop being afraid." Her voice breaks into utter sadness and misery. Feeling nothing but defeat and hopelessness, she lowers her head once more, hiding from the world. But then she feels a touch on her cheeks, raising her head up so she can look right at her partner, looking with a soft, dejected, and worried face.

"I don't know if I can help you with your fear, but... I'm here," she says. "At least you're not alone to go through this, and I can listen to your worries." Though appreciated, that still didn't help change Aires' emotional state. "Your fear...when do you think you'll stop being afraid?" She doesn't respond. "When you're no longer a harm to others?" Her eyes dart below. "You know, fear is a human thing to feel. Even right now, I'm afraid I might say something triggering to you, but I still have to push on, because I want to help you."

Finally, something different, Aires sighs and turns her head, but her eyes squint, and with a blink, tears appear again. Her hands curl into fists as the wave of emotion floods in once more. But not a moment in, Juliet comes closer and gives her a hug. With the puffiness of her parka, Aires is taken aback and softens as the warmth of her embrace becomes evident.

"It'll be okay, Aires," she gently says. Somehow, receiving this kind of consolidation from someone Aires knows is rarely physically affectionate; for her, it feels warmer, more touching. Her weary eyes are surprised, her cheeks slightly turning pink. For once in this moment, her sorrow has come to a halt as she finally feels the comfort of the only person with her right now. "If you ever feel like this, just know I'll be here for you. I've heard your story and your worries before, it still rings in my mind."

She withdraws. Meeting each other's eyes, Juliet exchanges a soft smile. "If a wish won't change your fate, I'm sure there's a way that we still can. After all, our future depends on our own choices too, right?" Aires behavely listens to her, a little in awe.

"And I'm certain it also applies to you, even when the universe refuses to help," she continues with a soft, tender smile. With those words, all the negative feelings that swell inside her chest are beginning to disappear. Letting her forget what she was crying about and become uplifted with a new foresight.

*****

Reclaiming her bearings, the two return to the direction of the tower, walking at an easy pace. "Welp. Our two days' worth of finding all those slabs are all for nothing," Aires jokingly remarks, sighing out of her breath.

"I don't think it's completely worthless. At least we get to prove that the myth is true," Juliet modestly comments. "Though I'm concerned that if we shared it, there would be catastrophic ramifications."

"I guess we should keep it between the researchers and the guild for now." She pats her dried eyes with the back of her hand. "Heh, looks like I cried all my tears for the rest of the month," Aires lightly humors herself. She looks back up to the tower in the distance, not as massive as it was when they were in its presence, but big enough that it still towers over her. Its lights are still active with their three bright white rings. Just looking at it still seethes her with rage inside, glaring at the huge, cold monument with scorn as if she wants to punch it with her flame until it crumbles. But, returning her cool again with a breath, she reminds herself that she's not that kind of person, breaking her fixation on it.

Juliet looks at her with concern once more, noticing that shift in demeanor, that silent condemnation. "Are you sure you're feeling okay now?"

"Uh yeah. Just...a bit drained out at the moment." She perks up and awkwardly smiles. "And besides, you're here for me, right?"

Juliet lightly blushes and modestly smiles in agreement.

"Actually speaking of you, uh, what was your wish?" Aires folds her hands behind her neck.

"Hm?"

"You know, I heard The Wand granted it, and now that I think about it, you haven't told your wish yet," Aires said.

"Eh? Honestly, I was helping you reach your goal," she says, holding the side of her temples. "Now that I recall, I was majorly focusing on the towers' history, with your wish as the main objective. I didn't realize that all parties are included in the wish-granting." Juliet retraces their steps in her head, trying to remember at least a single instance of wonder.

"Well, what's your deepest desire then?"

"Perhaps adventuring? But I already achieved that desire of mine, right?" Juliet continues to ponder. "It did say that I 'dream for excitement.'"

"Looks like we'll have to wait in the far future," Aires said with a sigh, already giving up the chase due to low energy, wrapping her arms behind her head.

"Ugh, this is gonna bother me now."

"Really? How about any big plans or ambitions?"

"I'm not really a big planner. Perhaps completing my academic journey is still in my mind, but it's not really a deep desire." With the mystery bothering her, she becomes serious in thought, thinking of recent actions and goals, even those from the distant past.

"I...never wanted something so intensely before," she pauses in her place, touching her knuckles on her chin. Aires notices this too and turns to look at her serious partner. "Aside from adventuring and exploring, the only instance I was able to feel so intensely was..." Her eyebrows rise, and looks toward Aires, also anticipating an answer. Just the thought of her suddenly makes everything feel so tight and focused only on her. The growing redness in her cheeks is exposing her entranced thoughts. But she immediately catches up and shakes her head back to reality. "Heh, I don't think it's you, were already together, right?" She amusingly says, clearing away the ridiculous thought.

They continue on their path. "Maybe it is still about adventuring. It is still early on my journey, and I want to keep at it in the long run." She places a finger joint close to her lips with a modest smile, looking at the passing trees as if daydreaming a comforting moment. "That's what I'm thinking right now, at least."

"And of course, I'd still want you around to be with me," she returns her look to Aires, positively.

This jolts her out of her exhausted mood, and with a light blush, she looks elsewhere. "Heh, sure I would! I don't want you to be in danger all on your own," she says with such confidence to hide her shyness.

Juliet is glad the atmosphere is softening now, but in truth, her granted wish still bothers her.

Juliet's eyes soften as she fixes her eyes on the tower as well, wondering about knowing only she can know, yet doesn't.

Is it... Really something about Aries? You can wish on someone else's behalf, but what could it be? Grant her wish through me? So she's happy and safe?

She returns her gaze back to Aires, who's casually walking with a tired, neutral focus on the path ahead. She recalls how she became more concerned for Aires ever since she told her one of her pasts and how she became less assertive than when she first met her, then recalls how Aires was earlier, sobbing and frustrated.

Is it recency bias? And does that really change my life's desire completely? I'm... just worried about her, is all.

She thinks about Aires' future, the one she fears, and how much despair it can cause her, even the destruction her powers can cause. Juliet acknowledges that it's something she doesn't need to worry about as a second party, but being her friend and partner, her heart couldn't help but to empathize with her.

Seeing all the cards I have on the table, I really have no clue about something I deeply desire, now that I really think about it. Either my brain is focused on the current situation, or I could never recall anything from my past that involves wishing for something other than to venture out. Maybe I need to do more reflecting.

Looking at the back of a girl deeply investigating in her thoughts, already formed her arms in that "thinking" pose, Aires thinks it's cute. But, even being slightly amused by her friend, she can feel her mind is all worn out and emotionally exhausted, already begging for a pillow to lie down on.

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