Jumkou sat in silence.

  "What? Does it really sound that long of a stretch?"

  .:. Could it finally be that one legend I used to hear about? .:. The same principle was told by Avu Fujimara himself.

  According to the Kyvernians during the time they were around, Kytron he was defeated by a Soul-Wielder who possessed two of the possibilities... A sign of possible Ascension or a higher level of evolution that is still yet to be discovered.

  Could this be the Ascension Jumkou was thinking about? A power so intricately unique and different, something even stronger than Evolutions as a whole.

  "I see, so you think an outside force took action and saved you."

  "That's what it seemed like."

  Jumkou rubbed her fingers together while staring into the abyss of space and the bright stars, like candles. It was clear she was trying to piece things together, trying to understand how they targeted Flynnigan before Jumkou.

  Was Kaioshun after Flynnigan first? Or did he already know where he was? How in Earth's name did Kaioshun know where Flynnigan was? That couldn't be possible.

  Even I didn't know where Flynnigan was until Nasse helped me.

  Jumkou closed her eyes, feeling a panic attack coming. "... Fuck..." She muttered.

  .:. If Kaioshun already knew to locate Flynn before I could then he knows more than I do... I'm fucked. How am I supposed to protect Flynn against someone who's two steps ahead? I have Sachiel... but would that prove to be enough? Who am I kidding? Kaioshun knows who Flynn is...was... or both. I know way too less, even if I've done this countless times. I know I haven't come this far in a long while, though. Damnit! If only... if only I had full strength of my Soul! Shit... am I... I can't fail again... I can't. .:.

  Jumkou sat there, looking down at the floor, biting her nail, letting thoughts pour through. Flynnigan, on the other hand, felt something was strange with what was going on... was it just him, or was something was just, out of place.

  Flynnigan stared at Jumkou for a moment, questioning Jumkou's apparent behaviour and somewhat obvious panic attack. He wanted to try and say something, enough to snap Jumkou out of her state but... was it the right thing to do? He sat there quietly, as if his words had no value in the universe whatsoever.

  But then, Jumkou stopped. Her breathing became normal again and she stopped biting her nails. It's obvious there is a lot weighing down on her. But Flynnigan doesn't have any idea... and maybe he never will.

  If she really came from the future, does that mean she has done this multiple times. Is that why she's so fidgety, easy to agitate?

  .:. She does look like she's gone through a lot. .:.

  "Hey." Flynnigan spoke, staring at the same emptiness in space. "Earlier, the AI said we were going to Testharia, right? Is it that snowy planet? I've never been there, but I've heard cool stories of their leader."

  "Mhm. Their leader is cool alright. He helped me get back on my feet and even saved my life. It is indeed the planet that you're describing."

  Flynnigan kept his gaze on the endless horizon. Space just stretched for eons, and maybe longer than any living would be able to live. Maybe some ancient alien race did conquer the entirety of space before humanity existed? That is one mystery he will probably never have the answer to, the reason why space is the way it is.

  "... I still find this unbelievable.... Like you say a lot that this is all real, and everything's true... I don't think I'll have the mind to believe it anytime soon. If the world is as doomed and evil as you say it is, then why would anyone want to protect a world like that?"

  The girl had her legs crossed and her arms tucked into her coat.

  "If someone without a power was in a rather unpleasant situation where he was given a dilemma, to save about a dozen people over one. Would the person without power choose to do so, without question?"

  "...Yes?" Flynnigan shrugged in confusion.

  "In truth, you wouldn’t know. But let’s say he did and the one that was left behind would be sacrificed in order for those many people to survive... But it’s a lose-lose situation, nevertheless. I know I can't be the hero anyone needs, especially a boy who has barely any knowledge of anything outside his own world, let alone his power. But I will protect this galaxy until my whole fiber dissipates into nothingness. Even if there are people I cannot protect. Even if there are people that do not want me to protect them. If you’re not going to do it, then I will."

  Jumkou thought about the Warrior from her time, who died to Kaioshun in order to protect Jumkou, and seal her travels to the past.

  Flynnigan was still 19, a recently turned young adult. This was his ideal world, for a long time. But now, bearing a power that he doesn't know how to control, what it does and why he needs to use it... it was all too much for him.

  There was simply too much burden laid upon his shoulders, for something he was never aware existed. The destruction of the village and the massacre of his people were traumatizing for him, something he keeps having nightmares about.

  And now, he is somehow expected to play God or better yet, become God and become everyone's saviour? The Call of the Gods? Upon staring Jumkou in the eye, it was clear she knew about Flynn... everything about him.

  "... Everything you've said is true... or is there something you're not telling me-"

  "There will come a time for that." Jumkou quickly shut him down, almost as if she was protecting the secrets that would inevitably reveal themselves.

  But does that really matter, at a time and a place like this?

  "... I know it sounds a lot, and I know you wanted a normal life, Flynnigan, but-"

  "It's fine. When I sleep during the night, I often have these dreams of fighting this type of dark figure... some sort of evil force. Maybe those aren't dreams after all. It could be telling me something. If you believe I could change your future..." Flynnigan closed his eyes.

  "..."

  We tried, countless times. And we failed, countless times.

  But this is the one.

  I will never stop.

  Even if I lose myself.

  = = =

  [ Interstellar Space, next to the Kobaji System ]

  "She's dead. Check the Envia News websites. It's done."

  He sat on the pilot seat of his ship. With his comms no longer being affected, he called Evtoria to report the first target dead. He also calmed down, with his voice at the lowest tone it could be.

  [C] - "Hmph- Didn't think you'd actually pull it off. I may have underestimated you, Rakoji.

  "... For the amount you're paying me- dying is out of the question. Do you have anything on the other two?"

  The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  Evtoria was taking a sip of her beverage in her own abode when the report came back. Her demeanour remained calm, checking the Envia News websites about the death of a high-profile White Eye member. She smirked, almost villainous and ruthless.

  It was like taking candy from a baby.

  [C] - "Not quite as of right now. However, just a few minutes ago... I felt a bit on edge. Felt like something very striking- anyway. If I find anything on the other two, you'll know about it.

  "Yup." Rakoji replied in a stern but arrogant tone. His voice was all but smug. Killing someone of extreme power gave him a lot of confidence... but it also came with an incomprehensive amount of ego.

  [C] - "Actually. I've picked something up just now."

  "Eh?"

  [C] - "I picked up a location of where the Ghost Assassin may be."

  Rakoji stood up, clicking some buttons on the dashboard and setting the corvette to autopilot, leaving a navigation hologram that it will fly by itself to somewhere safe and land automatically.

  "By all means, tell me."

  [C] - "According to recent sightings, there is a single White Eye ship heading straight towards Eukaron. I'm not certain about you but no one would head to Eukaron just to have a sight-seeing vacation, that's for sure. Must be on a mission to touchdown on that heap of junk. And if I can recall correctly, the notorious Vincent Sparks supposedly was on Duvet and the Ghost Assassin's hit-list."

  "Eukaron? I was just heading for Kobaji... Right- I'll set an intercept course." He shuffled around, as Rakoji would move back into the cockpit of his ship, setting course for Eukaron.

  "I can understand wanting to go after Megami and Mitchel- one was about to kill you, the other shut down your ships. But what about this Ghost Assassin really? The news reports on the battle didn't mention him besides 'being present'..."

  He again checked Evtoria and Evto bearing the same surname, something he also wanted to question now that it lingered his mind.

  "... You guys also bear the same last name."

  The comm picked up radio silence for a few seconds.

  [C] - "The history behind the Ghost Assassin is darker than you may think. It is sickening that he does not falter to that of a ruthless murderer. The truth is that Evto Mugen stands higher than me and yet there are things he has done that even I... would consider far to an extent."

  "Weird reasoning."

  Rakoji swerved his ship, having entered a new route to arrive to his destination quicker.

  He activated autopilot to make it easier for himself... and to have more of his alcoholic beverages from Jirub.

  "I expected some kind of family feud about it."

  [C] - "He looked down upon us, my family. Him turning away from us only humiliated us further. Some things just can't wash away and he knows that. That's why he has no drive. He'll do whatever he is asked of, he'll go as far as to be someone's pet-- until someone kills him."

  Rakoji sighed, not at her story but at her to take care of her emotional problems... instead of just handling the issue at hand. There would be plenty of time for such things in the future, with him.

  "Why don't you take care of this family issue you have yourself?"

  [C] - "I believe I made myself very clear, didn't I? Besides- I won't dirty my hands with him. I gave you a mission, it would be in your very best interest to complete it, or I will personally bury that reward in your grave."

  "Please- you couldn't kill me if you lost against some lowly Martian who beat you into a pulp."

  [C] - "I guess I'll double that bounty on your head then. Now do your best."

  Checkmate.

  "I hate you."

  The comms were cut as soon as Rakoji's ship jumped into Hyperspeed. The snarky conversation would surely leave both feeling annoyed at the other... at least, one more than the other.

  "Fucking... cunt-faced bitch whore." Rakoji groaned as he turned his seat and looked out the windshield, sighing. His head started to feel heavy, now that his brain processed everything and the ship was flying through Hyperspace.

  He couldn't forget the way the boy looked at him, like an emotionless zombie. Just after seeing his companion killed, or ally- or whatever... that boy stared him down with uncontrollable rage.

  .:. "What you did wasn't justice... it was disorder!" .:.

  ...

  "You know nothing about the life we live, kid."

  The ship would then exit Hyperspeed, next to the Eukaron system. A radar picked up exact coordinates of enemy ships going in and out of Eukaron. He couldn't really pinpoint any White Eye ships, which made his task to find Evto Mugen even harder.

  "Of COURSE it wouldn't be this easy!" He slammed his fists on the panel in front of him, feeling stupid that he even assumed it was a cakewalk from this point forward. He only killed Megami Duvet because his power was a straight up counter against her.

  He rubbed his nose, trying to get it together. He typed some commands in the panel, prompting the ship to only detect ships operating on a certain frequency. Since he was affiliated with White Eye before, he knew what the frequency was.

  But that was as far as he was willing to dig, at least. More than that, he would sigh it off and leave it as it is. It's not like Evto is the only person who he's after. If not Evto today, then tomorrow. He'd just find him later. He didn't know how deep he dug his hole with that talk to Evtoria though.

  He took a swig of his Jirubian drink and shook his head.

  "Figures."

  This would leave him contemplating the decision and whether it was a bad idea- until the radar picked up just one ship operating on frequency 3666.

  The galaxy operates on a custom created radio frequency starting from 444 to 9727. Key bodies like Dark Intrinium, Soul-Core, White Eye and even Testharia, all operate on their specific frequencies.

  This was used as an identification number, which would then follow up with a question of their sub-frequency, which are like the custom radio frequencies that they individually use.

  "3666... White Eye, of course. I remember that sub-frequency too. 3666-00057."

  A sub-frequency starts from 00001 to 99999, used to differentiate all and every ship an organization or even a galaxy wide government may have. Mostly, this is used for logistical purposes, however this also proves to be effective against piracy or any other unlawful ship and space forces that can operate on their own frequency without being tracked.

  Evto Mugen's ship was slow sailing, as it detected another ship coming at full speed. A heavily modified ship, that resembled a corvette, almost as if it was a simple copycat.

  At that distance, it seemed it was going slowly, and Evto could possibly retreat, if needed. As it got closer, it seemed to be gaining speed. Any alarms on Evto's ship would warn Evto of Rakoji's weapons powering-up.

  But what Evto was rocking wasn't just some battleship or a war-suited shuttle. It was a standard cargo ship, unsuited for combat.

  Rakoji squeezed down on the triggers as he fired a volley of plasma-shots toward Evto's ship, really trying to ensure his death.

  "I'm not going to half-ass this one."

  The individual bolts were seen through his window, flying towards Evto like meteors. When a moment came to spare, he glanced at the side camera of the window to see the outcome.

  Evto's ship took direct impact - destroying both of his engines. The ship would shake uncontrollably, while Evto hung on tight as the cargo ship went dead silent.

  "Direct impact." Evto muttered, as Rakoji circled around his ship - coming up from behind to destroy the engines beyond repair with another rocket. Just in case.

  The engines of Evto's ship broke completely - the light flickering and the ship shutting down entirely, on the way back to Eukaron, wherever Evto's last stop was. It seemed that way to Rakoji... almost too perfectly that there could have been a chance this could be a setup.

  Evto's best bet was to crash land onto Eukaron's moon, as it was the nearest celestial object, other than Eukaron itself. Rakoji followed closely behind him - continuing to try and destroy Evto's ship to avoid a conventional soul-battle.

  He knew he was no match for the Ghost Assassin. If Megami Duvet was a fluke, Evto is anything but. But it would make sense, considering that he had no intentions of fighting directly and his fighting style... not really suited for a brawler.

  No, he wants to take enemies down swiftly and without risk, his signature mark for an assassin. But could he really prove to be a better assassin, than the best assassin in the world himself? The Ghost Assassin.

  Evto's ship did finally land on the Eukaron's moon's surface, jostled. Then Rakoji landed his ship next to the crash site.

  The crash site was roughly 8 miles away from any settlement in every direction. The crash-site had average Kirulan wilderness features. A flat and thick sheet of salt covers the planet as far as the horizon. The gleam of purply-blue crystals underneath gave it a shimmering effect.

  The clouds are thick and windy, while the temperature was at a freezing 63 degrees Celsius. Most people freeze-up after around 30 minutes of traveling.

  Even the smoke from the crash-site would feel cold as Rakoji walked inside the wreck. He had no desire to keep track of time. The smell of burning metal, aluminium and plastic could be picked up as his breathing continued to move him forward.

  "Is... is that it?" Rakoji questioned as he approached the burning ship. The smell of salt mixed with burning metal made him cough, and even sneeze uncontrollably. The purple crystals scattered across the salt as if a sheet of ice laid under the salt.

  Much to Rakoji's dismay, he spotted a figure. Evto stepped out of the fog, seemingly unharmed from the crash.

  "... Of course... of course it couldn't be that easy." He said again in the same tone, sneezing again. He wanted to vomit but somehow he didn't. Rakoji is allergic to salt. He mitigated it with a mask, which covered up his nose and mouth.

  Evto stood up with the cool air gently brushing by him.

  Rakoji stopped in a good enough distance to not properly yell at him. "You had balls, willingly crashing like that! I half-expected you would jump out."

  "I am not going to be some easy target for you, Kovac."

  "You are without a ship now, Ghost Assassin. You ARE a easy target now." Rakoji raised his HYPERVOLVER at Evto, expecting an attack.

  "Evtoria put you up to this. That explains why Thousand Leaves is dead too. I would've figured she would drop this childish act."

  Rakoji played gun tricks with his weapon, trying to look as cool and smug as he could be. This didn't strike anything in Evto, or even a reaction of fear or fear.

  "If it helps make your opinion of me any better. I was originally going to turn it down, until she doubled my contract payment and lifted the bounty Nextellar had on me..."

  "A bounty?" Evto smiled a little. "You truly are worthless."

  "I- I was banned from the West Region- Ugh! We're getting sidetracked!" He took minor offense to that, not liking to be underestimated. Megami did just that and look what happened to her.

  "Well, do the bid of your contract and kill me."

  "..."