Endless Evolution: Last Star

“W-What?” Adam blinked. “Your whole family, they…?”

Farla nodded.

“Yes, they didn’t survive. The energy of the Midnight Crystals simply tore them to pieces. Neither their hearts, nor their minds, nor their bodies were able to withstand such power.”

“And after that, you’re suggesting I do the same thing to my family?” Adam frowned as he clenched his fists tightly.

Farla, in turn, lowered her gaze to her glass of wine. For a moment, she stared at her reflection in the crimson surface before her lips began to move.

“Adam, I was unlucky. I took a risk, and every member of my family died, that’s true, but that doesn’t mean you’ll be unlucky too. Right now, you’re speaking from your emotions, not your reason. There’s no need for that.”

She continued:

“I know many members of the Gamma Division who did the same, and now their family members, their partners, or in some cases even their children, serve alongside them in the Gamma Division. Also, for the most part, you’re risking almost nothing.”

Farla shrugged.

“One month isn’t much to pay for a chance to live on, even if that chance is small.”

Adam gulped.

Now that he’d calmed down a bit, he realized that Farla was right.

Sure, she’d been unlucky, it was no surprise that all six members of her family had died, given how slim the odds were, but that didn’t mean the odds were zero.

“Yes, I get it…” Adam nodded.

Then, he looked at Farla.

“Can I ask you one question?”

“Sure. Go on.”

Adam clenched his jaw.

“How did you feel…? I mean, if I were in your shoes, I’d be hoping that at least someone would survive.”

“Yes. That’s exactly what I thought, but you already know what the outcome was. I felt terrible, for me, it was the end of the world. And… as ironic as it may sound, it was that actual end of the world that brought me back to a normal life.”

She tapped on the table, recalling events that had taken place many hundreds of years ago.

“That was my first World Wipe, and back then we were even less prepared than we are now, though there were already quite a few experienced people who helped me find something to do. For a whole month after my family’s death, I was barely alive myself. I was just a ghost, devoid of emotion and the will to go on, with a vacant stare.

“But you don’t have time to dwell on your mistakes when the whole world has been destroyed. You work, work, and keep working until the Citadel reaches at least a remotely stable state.

“Then, when you can finally stop for even a moment, you take a deep breath and realize that several weeks or months have already passed. Sure, I still remember what happened to my family with pain, but at least on that day, I began to move on.”

Farla’s gaze grew deeper as the corner of her mouth lifted into a bitter smile.

She drained her glass of wine and gestured for another.

Silence.

For a long time, no one said a word, and only Farla took one sip of wine after another.

“Thank you.”

Adam’s voice rang out, causing Farla to look at him.

“It must have been hard for you to talk about this. I appreciate it. As for your offer, I’ll think it over. After all, there are still more than five years before the World Wipe happens. I have time to think.”

Farla gave a wry smile.

“Of course. I just wanted to offer you some advice, and I have something else for you.”

“Agh?”

Farla’s blue eyes grew brighter, not with menace, but with the quiet pain she had once felt.

“Maybe not right now, and maybe not today, but you have to accept that your family will die in five years. I’d hoped I could save a few, or even all, of my family members, but in the end, they all died.

“Sure, my expectations didn’t affect the outcome at all, but if I’d accepted that they’d most likely die, as they did, I wouldn’t have felt so bad.

“What’s more, if you accept that and one of them gets lucky and survives, it’ll be a miracle for you, one that’ll give you new strength. That’s what I’d change if I could go back in time.”

Adam’s gaze grew more intense as he stared at a single point for a while. He understood what Farla was talking about. It made sense.

“I see. Your advice… I’m not sure I’ll be able to put it into practice, but I’ll try. After all, there are still five years ahead of me, and two and a half years ago, I was just an ordinary person, not a Phantom.”

Farla nodded.

“Indeed. You’ve traveled an incredible and risky path. You, more than anyone else, must understand how many times things could have gone wrong. The fact that you’re sitting here in front of me now proves that your family has a chance, too. If you survived, then so can they.”

“Yes, but for them it’s just luck, it’s… it’s different…” Adam muttered.

Suddenly, Farla burst out laughing.

“Hahahahaha!”

Adam and Silvana exchanged confused glances.

Up until then, Farla had shown a range of emotions, but never ones so vivid.

“Adam, do you think there was no luck on your path? Do you even realize how many times you had to get lucky to survive, even though you love to take risks and often act recklessly?

“Yes, that approach also helped you become strong very quickly, but if you’d had only that – your will and talent – you would have died long ago. Sometimes everything depends on luck, and sometimes nothing does.”

A strange emotion flashed across Adam’s face. Even Silvana found it hard to tell exactly what Adam was feeling at that moment.

After that, he nodded.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right. All I can hope for is that my family will be as lucky as I’ve been,” Adam replied with a warm smile.

Still, there was one thing he didn’t agree with Farla on.

His family had a chance to survive, all of them, just like Silvana’s family and everyone else at the Citadel.

There was only one solution: to stop the World Wipe.