The Unified Soul

Airis Aine Lycancias

When Airis started the story, the sun was high in the sky shedding warmth and light all over Starlight Wonderland. But now, the sun was setting, creating a subtle calmness with the colors of the ending day. Pink, purple, orange, yellow and the deepest shades of blue and black were present in the sky, but the peace and calmness didn't reach a single room in a hotel near the sparkling waters of the beach.

The looks of despair, fear and great sadness. Those were the only expressions and feelings that the ones in the hotel room could give the little girl sitting on the bed. They couldn't feel anything else besides that.

Kawaii~Chan clung onto Zane with tears streaming down her cheeks, hearing the terrible truth about Airis' past family and her current situation. Zane was far too stunned to say anything, his eyes wide as he listened, but if you could take off his mask you would see his teeth gnashing together in his rage.

Garroth was in a similar state as his younger brother, his hands clenched into tight fists while his fur, ears and tail were standing on end in his fury. It took all of his willpower not to go running out of the hotel and trying to find the man who caused his precious niece so much pain and agony.

Lucinda was constantly wondering if there was any light to this dark tale. How a little girl was really related to this story, what kind of power she held, what those terrible people who killed her parents and took her away did to her. But then again, she would start crying again if she heard the truth about Airis' captive days.

The Ro'Meave adults were in a mixture of shock and pain. Zianna was too stunned to do anything more than shed tears and whimper at the story. Garte was conflicted on how to feel about the little girl. She was an Ultima, but she was also just a little girl with a painful past.

The Lycan Ultima family were in nothing but pain. Derek was furious at this stranger who caused so much pain to his granddaughter. Rachel was just the same, but her heart was breaking for the girl. Melissa was openly crying, not caring who was looking at her.

Aphmau was shaking, not just in fear, but also in anger and despair. Here was her little girl, a child who was almost always smiling and laughing, having the time of her life in whatever she does. But now, seeing her daughter look so sad and not even taking a moment to look at them in the eye.... it was like she was an entirely different person.

And Aaron.... he was terrified, angry, sad... there were too many emotions for him to keep track of. The girl that he loved as a daughter, a child that he loved as if they were flesh and blood. But ten again, I suppose they were blood in a way, since they shared the same bloodline and curse. She was always smiling, laughing, enjoying life to the fullest. And yet she was carrying around this kind of pain and weight on her shoulders. This kind of story and these horrible secrets... it was too much for even an adult to carry, let alone a child no more than seven years old.

Airis stayed in the same position the entire time she told the story, her head held low, her hand silently stroking Yukisa's white fur, and her face clear of any tears. All that those who were listening to her could see was her still form and a hint of pain in her red stained and puffy eyes. She wanted to stop talking, to stop remembering the pain of what that horrible demon did to her... but her family deserved to know the complete truth. And she hadn't even told them the biggest truth. A truth that would shake them to the core.

She took in a deep breath, ready to finally finish the story.

"After everything was burned to the ground... I lost consciousness. And when I woke up again, I was in a dark room. All there was was a small mattress, a thin blanket and another room used as a bathroom. The walls were stone, and the door was solid steel with a small slit at the bottom for trays of food. There wasn't even a window, so I didn't know what time of day it was. I stayed there in the cold for a while, until they finally opened the door... that's when I saw that man, the monster who killed my parents. He dragged me out of the room, brought me to another room and strapped me to a table with medical supplies nearby. That's when the experiments started."