‘Thinking’
“Talking”
[Attack]
Act 5 (Part 6) — Echoes of an Unremembered Past
[ Location: Blue Star System – Herta Space Station: Primary Meeting Room ]
[ POV: Kiana Kaslana ]
We settled into our seats around the grand conference table.
Asta had certainly outdone herself the table was lined with an exquisite spread of high-end refreshments, planetary teas, and delicate pastries.
Herta was the first to break the quiet, standing up at the head of the table.
“So!
Everyone is present.
We shall now proceed with today’s main agenda for the glorious new invention: The Soul Gems!” she announced, her eyes practically sparkling with manic excitement.
The rest of us sat there in dead silence, right eyes twitching in unison.
‘Since when did she decide she was hosting my meeting…?’
I cleared my throat, forcing a polite smile.
“Herta…
thank you for that enthusiastic introduction.
Before we dive into the technicalities, let me bring out the primary hardware.”
Using [ Void ], I opened a spatial tear and summoned Kyubey directly from the Cosmic Juggernaut, placing it on an empty chair nearby.
In the same breath, I reached into the [Gate of Finality], manifesting three unbonded, pristine Soul Gems onto the center of the table.
The moment the cat-like creature materialized alongside the glowing, unblemished gems, the entire room’s collective focus locked onto them with intense, scientific curiosity.
Screwllum was the first to speak, his mechanical monocle zooming in on Kyubey.
“Miss Kiana…
what manner of creatures is this?
I am searching across every galactic taxonomy in my database, yet no record of this species exists.”
Herta and Stephen nodded in agreement.
Without missing a beat, Herta abandoned her seat, marched straight over to Kyubey, and began aggressively petting its fur.
Kyubey simply closed its crimson eyes, leaning into her touch with a soft, contented purr.
I chuckled at her reaction.
“That is Kyubey.
It’s a biological terminal designed to ensure Soul Gem contractors don’t suffer severe cognitive degradation or turn into power-hungry monsters like the unfortunate spawns of the Abundance.”
Stephen narrowed his eyes, his sharp mind immediately picking up on the underlying architecture.
“And how does it fulfill that role?
It sounds as though a hidden safety mechanism has been built into the Soul Gem framework.”
“Sharp as always, Stephen,” I smirked.
“The Path energy amplification and the tactical combat transformation are actually secondary features.
The primary function of the Soul Gem is the absolute protection and preservation of the user’s soul in the event of physical death ensuring their consciousness isn’t immediately swallowed up or dissolved by the Nihility.”
Herta paused her petting, looking up as she caught the deeper implication.
“You’re designing a localized afterlife network…
similar to what the Memokeepers do with the Garden of Recollection.
But instead of collecting memories, you intend to anchor the soul intact.”
I smiled softly.
“It is the preliminary baseline for my grand project.
Its completion will be equivalent to constructing a brand-new Aeon entirely from scratch with my own hands.”
Mei offered a mischievous, knowing grin beside me.
“So this commercial release is simply a pilot test to anchor souls and build interstellar prestige making sure no major faction dares cross you openly while marketing the secondary benefit as the main selling point?
You’re playing the IPC’s own game, Kiana.”
I laughed out loud.
“The IPC deserves a taste of their own medicine.
It’s about time someone scammed the scammers.”
Herta nodded in deep agreement, returning to her chair.
“Amen to that.
Scammers deserve to be taken for everything they’ve got.” Enjoying the story? Read on at g.com.
Screwllum let out a simulated cough.
“Steering back to our technical review…
how exactly does the Soul Gem amplify the wielder’s Path energy?”
“It operates through emotional energy resonance amplification,” I explained.
“For instance, whether a wielder enters a state of heightened emotional focus be it profound calm or intense angry the device amplifies that psychic frequency and converts it directly into usable Path energy.
It simultaneously boosts physical defense and offensive output during combat mode.”
Stephen crossed his arms, processing the math.
“So you’ve engineered a stable bio-circuit that converts the emotional spectrum of psychic energy directly into Path energy.”
“Precisely,” I nodded.
Mei picked up the line of thought, looking at me thoughtfully.
“Which means Kyubey acts as an emotional regulator.
If a user experiences an extreme surge of positive or negative emotion, Kyubey balances the emotional equation, converting the excess into Path energy the body can safely handle, then routing the leftover ambient energy into that pocket space you intend to use as the afterlife.”
I turned toward Mei, a genuine, fond smile breaking across my face.
“Hit the nail right on the head.
You figured out the hidden conversion mechanism on your very first try…
though you didn’t have to act all inquisitive just to show off that smug little grin.
Even if I do find it utterly adorable.”
Mei froze.
A sudden, deep blush spread across her cheeks at my blatant flirtation.
A thick, sweet, pink atmosphere seemed to form instantly around the two of us as we locked eyes, completely forgetting where we were.
The rest of the table went completely quiet.
Stephen slowly leaned over toward Screwllum, whispering under his breath.
“Am I hallucinating, or are Kiana and Mei openly flirting in the middle of a Genius Society meeting?
Look at her cheeks…
the air is literally turning pink.”
Screwllum nodded gravely, his mechanical gears whirring quietly.
“My calculations did not account for this variable.
In all my years of observing Madam Mei, I have never recorded her blushing.”
Herta leaned in from the other side, motioning for both of them to huddle up.
“Is the universe coming to an end?
Is a new War of the Aeons starting?!
Should we begin stockpiling emergency supplies?!”
Screwllum adjusted his monocle, speaking in a deadpan tone.
“I do not believe an Aeon War is imminent.
However, given the trajectory of this dynamic, we should perhaps prepare for a joint wedding between two Geniuses and the inevitable arrival of their children.
We are likely looking at our future roles as uncles and an aunt.”
Herta nodded sagely.
“We need to secure a venue immediately.”
“I suggest Planet Screwllum,” Screwllum offered smoothly.
“Madam Mei’s lab is far too isolated.
We should also extend an invitation to Member #55, Yu Qingtu.
She and Mei maintain a close friendship.”
“I think that’s a great idea,” Stephen chimed in softly.
“I can ask Robin to perform as the guest singer for the ceremony.”
Herta blinked, looking at Stephen in disbelief.
“How do you know Robin?!
I didn’t think an extreme introvert like you would be friends with the galaxy’s most famous pop star!”
“I…
saved her from a lingering swarm remnant a month ago,” Stephen admitted, scratching his cheek awkwardly.
“We’ve been friends ever since.”
“Any other names for the guest list?”
“General Feixiao of the Xianzhou Alliance would likely attend,” Screwllum noted.
Kyubey, still sitting nearby, nodded its head solemnly.
“Meow~” It raised a single white paw in absolute agreement with their planning.
Meanwhile, both Mei’s and my right eyes were twitching uncontrollably.
They were ‘whispering’ at a volume that filled the entire room.
I leaned toward Mei, muttering out of the corner of my mouth.
“They could at least pretend to keep it quiet…”
Mei pinched the bridge of her nose, her face still burning.
“They’re gossiping like bored siblings who just found prime teasing material.”
“So what should we name their children?” Herta whispered excitedly.
“For a boy, I suggest Odin.
For a girl, Freyja,” Screwllum posited.
“I think Cecilia for a girl, and Siegfried for a boy,” Stephen offered gently.
“I like those names,” Screwllum agreed.
“They carry a strong, noble weight that fits Kiana’s lineage.”
Herta nodded along like a gossiping aunt at a family reunion.
Mei covered her blushing face with both hands, whispering to me in distress.
“Kiana…
they’re literally picking out baby names now…”
“I’m stopping this right now before they plan the whole nursery,” I muttered back, my eye twitching.
I took a deep breath and cleared my throat loudly.
“COUGH!
COUGH!”
“Have the three of you quite finished your little fairytale planning?!” I called out, crossing my arms.
“Can we please get back to the Soul—”
BANG—!
The words died in my throat.
The moment the names ‘Cecilia’ and ‘Siegfried’ echoed in my mind, a violent, agonizing shockwave ripped through my skull.
“Agh—!”
I doubled over, clutching my head with both hands as a blinding headache tore through my consciousness.
Images fragmented, distorted, and wildly out of place flooded my mind like a shattered mirror:
A beautiful woman with a blurred, gentle face wielding a glowing lance against a nightmare in the sky…
A man with ragged silver hair, his body consumed by black, crystalline corruption, dissolving into nothingness in a cold, empty void…
My breathing hitched.
Tears welled up in my eyes, spilling down my cheeks before I could stop them.
‘What…
what is this?!
Why does my heart hurt so much?!
I don’t know who these people are…
Why do I want to cry?!’
“Kiana!”
Mei was by my side in an instant.
The teasing and blushing vanished completely, replaced by sharp, fierce panic.
She wrapped her arms around my trembling shoulders, pulling me close while her hand glowed with diagnostic Path energy, rapidly scanning my body for external attacks.
The rest of the room snapped out of their joke instantly.
Screwllum’s mechanical monocle flared bright blue as he swept the room for hostile spatial anomalies or invasive Path signals.
Stephen reached for his terminal, preparing to deploy defensive arrays, while Herta rushed over, her hand hovering over my shoulder with genuine concern.
“No external Path corruption detected,” Screwllum reported rapidly.
“Her physical integrity is intact this is an internal neural feedback loop!”
Kyubey leaped up onto the table, hopping onto my head.
Its crimson eyes glowed with a soft, soothing light as it pressed a tiny paw against my forehead, channeling the Warp’s emotional balance mechanism to suppress the sudden mental outbreak.
As the agony slowly began to recede into a dull, hollow ache, I lay pressed against Mei’s chest, my hand clutching her sleeve as I tried to make sense of the overwhelming grief tearing through my soul.