Star Rail: The Aeon Hunters

"Oooh~ It's so nice and fluffy!" March plopped down on the bed. "I sure love nepotism, don't you?" she giggled. "Anyway Stella, what do you got? Did you do some 'research' like I ask you to?"

Stella nodded. "Yes, me and Lynx even went to the closed off block in the Backwater Pass and…"

March shook her head. "No, no, no~ I mean… Come on, did you really think that's what I meant by research? I made that thing up, remember!?"

Stella blinked. "What?"

"On Lynx! Research on Lynx! I told you to go call her and left you a message to do research, was I being too subtle there?" March sighed. "You still got a lot to learn about being a Trailseeker you know that? Don't go too deep into this 'researcher' role, we're here for the stellaron, not for study,"

Stella looked down, a blush spreading her cheek in embarrassment. "Ah… right… we're not actually researchers…" it's so easy to get caught up with the whole cover, with how smoothly March and Dan Heng plays it.

"Yes… It's just something I made up, don't you forget that," March sighed a little. "Anyway, what's done is done…" she folded her arms. "You did get along well with her, right?"

"Right, we went to the Backwater Pass,"

"Did you get to show off how badass you are?"

"Yes,"

"Perfect! That's another thing I'm counting on," March turned to Dan Heng. "Anyway, did you find anything weird in the Workshop? You did tell me to stay alert after all,"

"It was false alarm, I detected Stella's presence instead of the Stellaron," Dan Heng replied. "So far, I don't think Serval is hiding anything from us,"

"So the Landau siblings are cool huh?" March looked down in deep thought. "Except for Gepard, he's way too stuffy. I bet one word from the Supreme Guardian to kill us, he wouldn't hesitate,"

"Yes… he does seem like that type of person," Dan Heng turned to Stella. "I have to applaud you for putting on this cover so well," he folded his arms. "Don't worry about 'lying' to Lynx if that's what's bothering you, Landau is just a child and March has her ways of telling the 'truth' without making her feel betrayed."

It never crossed to Stella just how truly dangerous March is until then. A girl who don't believe in history itself, a girl who can tell lie as fluently as the truth, a girl who can make up just about any story on the spot and make people believe every word she says.

Now, seeing what March is slowly doing to Lynx, she wondered who else in the whole cosmos sees March as her very best friend…

"Ah, right, just to be clear, are we the good guys?" Stella asked. "Not that I mind either way, I just wanna make sure,"

Dan Heng tapped his finger. "We're… neither, we believe that what we are doing is for a better world, one that Mr. Yang dreamed of. A world where the supernatural isn't a threat for the natural. A world where nothing lurks beneath the shadows and a restful sleep is all there is to it," he closed his eyes. "It's a world where hard work and perseverance matters more than simply divine favors. That's the world we strive for,"

"And…" March added. "Good or Bad is totally subjective, no need to fret about it. Just do what you think is right, okay?"

Stella nodded, a sense of relief flooded her heart. "Okay, thank you,"

"You're welcome! Now go ahead and rest newbie, we'll see each other again first thing in the morning."

[LINE BREAK]

It was very early in the morning, the sky is still dark and the citizen of Belobog is still in a deep slumber. A rather peaceful morning, the kind that Lynx usually spend her time star-gazing, hoping she can see the aurora.

Except this time, she's not in her camp. She's actually walking down the streets of Belobog, all alone, in deep thought. The last day has been, one of the most interesting day of her life. To meet these friendly strangers from beyond the stars, who showed her true knowledge, true might, and true kindness.

"Will they let me… if I…" Lynx gazed at the cobbled street beneath her feet. She remembered what Stella told her back in the Backwater Pass. They're not humans, she couldn't possibly compare to them. No amount of training would get her to their level.

Yet… she simply couldn't accept that. If only, if, if she can figure it out, maybe she can stood beside them and explore the universe beyond this ball of ice.

"Eh…" Lynx paused in her tracks when she saw the Goethe Hotel in front of her. She didn't mean to go all the way here, she wondered if the Trailseekers are still asleep.

It was then that she noticed a certain man sitting on the staircase in front of the hotel, looking deep in thought. He noticed Lynx and gave her a nod while gesturing at a spot beside him.

"Good morning, Lynx," Dan Heng greeted her.

"Oh, umm… Good morning," Lynx replied, sitting next to him. "You don't sleep?"

"I made it a habit to wake up this early, the same couldn't be said for the other two," Dan Heng replied simply. "What do you usually look for, waking up this early in the morning?"

Lynx looked up to the sky. "Auroras, if I'm lucky, I get to see beautiful curtains of light dancing above the sky," a wistful smile formed on her face. "I don't get to see it often, so I always wake up early just so I don't miss it when it happens,"

Dan Heng nodded. "It's the rarest thing that are most precious, isn't it?" he asked her. "If you can see the aurora every day, every time you want, you'd probably not wake up so early every day to see it,"

Lynx nodded in agreement. "Yes… I agree… That's why I must cherish it when it happens."

The two sat there in silence gazing at the sky. There's no aurora that day, but Lynx is cherishing that night all the same. It's not everyday she gets to sit down with a man so wise and powerful from beyond the stars.

"Mr. Lead Scientist?" Lynx said nervously.

"Just Dan Heng is fine, what is it?"

"Are you a… Human?" Lynx asked. "N-not that I have something against non-human, I'm just… Back in the, when I was with Stella. We went to the Backwater Pass…" she paused and took a deep breath. "I asked Stella why she's so powerful and she said it's because she isn't a human,"

Dan Heng nodded understandingly. "I see what you mean," he took a deep breath and shook his head. "To answer your question, no, I am not a human. I am Viyadhara, one of the oldest of my kind," he explained. "But let me answer you the question you don't dare to ask,"

The dragon turned to Lynx and gently took her hand. "No force in this world is more powerful than human determination, ingenuity, and perseverance. It is entirely possible for you to be in our level," he explained.

"I see… Thank you…"

Dan Heng flipped her palm. "I hailed from a place called the Xianzhou and one of the most popular teachings there is fortune telling… would you like me to read your fortune?"

Lynx hesitantly nodded. "I admit… I am not one to believe something like that… But…"

"It's alright," a soft golden glow formed on Lynx's palm and a gentle vortex of golden light appeared around them. The glow floated upwards into the sky and symbols began to form above it. "You will find the answer you seek, but you will be silenced by those worship the ashes. You will bear witness to countless tragedies and you shall have a choice to either partake or turn a blind eye from it. You will have everything that you have ever wanted, at a cost too much to bear,"

Lynx was stunned. In terms fortune it was scary and exciting at the same time. She has a choice to partake in tragedy or turn a blind eye. She'll get everything she ever wanted at a cost too much to bear? What even she does she want?

"Don't think too much about it," Dan Heng let go of her palm. "Sometimes, your judgement far outweighs your decision,"

"My judgement?" Lynx rubbed her palm, finding it strangely warm.

"In this world of endless possibilities, sometimes you have no control over the thing that happen," Dan Heng turned to look at the sky. "Sometimes you have no control over the result of your decisions," he closed his eyes as if reminiscing of something that happened eons ago. "And the only true choice you have… is how you learn and grow from it, how you accept the events that happened, how you find meaning in all the things that has ever happened before…"

Lynx sat there in deep thought, thinking hard about Dan Heng's advice. She has no control over the fact that she's a human, she has no control over how her siblings treated her, she has no control over this world that she lives in… All she has control over, is her judgement.

"I… am grateful to be a Landau," Lynx said suddenly. "I am grateful of my siblings and I believe they love me…

Lynx put a hand on her chest. "Thank you, Dan Heng,"

The dragon simply nodded as the two watch the sky turned red and the sun peeks out from behind the tall buildings of Belobog.