Ravens of Eternity

~

Freya’s eyes blinked slowly as she woke in a light haze. Though the lights around the room were relatively low, they were still bright enough to leave her somewhat disconcerted. And as she regained consciousness, she realized that for the second time in her whole life, she was lying comfortably in a skin-tight medical suit inside of a regeneration pod.

She turned her head slightly to the side and looked at the small medical status display set into the inside of the cocoon-like bed.

—

Condition: Conscious, Stable

Affliction: None Detected

A.Metabolics: 99%

BPM: 63

.....

—

She chuckled lightly to herself at the very sight of her simplified readouts. It was exactly like the first time she saw it, only this time an entire lifetime had passed since then.

Memories of her long-dead past on Old Earth filled her mind, just as they did way back then, long ago. Then her most recent memories slipped in right afterwards – that of her boarding Thanatos, and prepping to parley with Godeater with Raijin.

She sighed as she realized that she had been regenerated, and that her old body had died. More importantly, if she was here, then she must have failed in her mission.

But then again the galaxy seemed to exist – maybe she didn’t fail after all.

Freya closed her eyes briefly as she poured the energies of Ascendant Form into herself. It wove through every cell in her body and swept across her bones and muscles and organs and skin. And from there, she checked every particle and molecule in her body for problems or differences.

Not that she distrusted the regeneration pod around her, or its ability to put her back together. It was simply that she trusted herself much more.

And she was certainly happy to find that she was exactly as she had been before she left, or at least, before she died. Well, except for a few things. Every cell in her body was brand-new and fresh. They were quite literally only a week old, which was how long the pod needed to rebuild her.

There was also one other thing that felt a bit different. It seemed elusive, and she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. As though every time she turned to look, it was gone. A bit like a shadow at the edge of one’s sight that disappeared when looked upon.

A bit like a vanishing void at the edge of one’s perception.

It was close to undetectable, but most likely benign.

Before she could explore that difference any further, her Digital Interface greeted her.

Welcome back, her DI messaged her. Your new biological body is ready for active use. It should have all the genetic capabilities of your old one. Please see your nearest Geneticist should you find any inconsistencies.

“Where am I?” Freya asked quietly.

Location information requested, her DI replied.

—

Yggdrasil Station, Orbit: Sagittarius A*

—

Freya realized that made complete sense. Yggdrasil was where she was last. Of course it took a genetic snapshot of her. Not that she was even aware of it.

Do you need specific galactic coordinates? her DI asked.

“No, no thanks,” she replied. “Did I miss anything while I was gone?”

You have 43.968 alerts since you were sent offline, her DI replied. Would you like to review them?

Nearly forty-four thousand messages? Freya thought to herself as she rubbed her eyes.

Her vision refocused as she massaged out the very slight pain in them.

“Pass,” she said. “Well… show me the important stuff.”

You have unlocked a new trait, her DI notified her immediately.

“Seriously? Show me.”

—

Name: Durga’s Resolve

Description: You are indomitable and indefatigable. But not invincible.

Classification: Ultra Rare

—

Freya wowed as she read her third UR trait. Its golden icon glittered in her mind’s eye, as her DI presented it to her. It was of a many armed woman wielding a variety of stars as weapons.

By unlocking this trait, you have also unlocked the Trinity of Warrior Goddesses Aspect, her DI continued. It is an extremely rare achievement that greatly increases the effects of your current traits.

“Wonder how many people in the galaxy have three ultra rares,” she muttered to herself. “Something tells me it’s just me, at least for now.”

There is also a high priority note from Raijin, her DI noted. Would you like to review it?

Freya nodded.

—

Dearest friend,

Welcome back to the land of the living. If you have not already guessed it, you have beaten Godeater. As far as anyone can tell, it no longer exists in the galaxy.. There are no voids that can be accounted for, at least not in the form it used to be in.

None of us are entirely sure of how you achieved this, however it does not matter for the time being.

Everyone and everything that Godeater consumed has been restored, exactly as they were before it happened. Its shadow has left a great impression over every living being in the galaxy, or perhaps at least the more sentient ones.

As a result, the galactic war that swept through every nation has been stopped, and many are engaged in sincere negotiations for peace. Even some of the pirate bands and rogue fleets from the fringes have proclaimed their wish to cease hostilities.

How long this peace will last, none of us know. But perhaps with you back, we can attempt to maintain it for longer.

And perhaps you might be curious as to how you have been regenerated. That is a simple answer – I pulled down your genetic code right before the two of us left for Dendrus IV, and stored a snapshot of your genetics along with your memories.

I hope you do not mind my doing so without telling you. I felt it necessary at the time.

Perhaps it is something all of us should have done sooner. As a result of our oversight, Azrael and I have been working to store genetic and neural information for everyone on Yggdrasil Station. Every member of the Corvus Republic and your Einherjar have been saved in this way, here for eternity.

Or at least as long as this station is active.

This also includes everyone who is here with us – the remnants of the war fleets at the Battle of Typhon. All have been instrumental in the cross-national peace talks, and in ensuring that no hostilities occur. It is only right that we preserve everyone as best we can, in the case of future disaster. Not that we predict any, of course.

But should any of us perish, we will always regenerate here at the center of the galaxy.

Of course, unlike Tetragrammaton Technologies it will not cost them millions of credits or ducats or krohn per year to maintain. We have access to a great abundance of raw materials at Yggdrasil, and have no need for the trivialities of currency.

I digress – Azrael and I also went out to seek a specific genetic memory of a certain individual. We eventually found it captured in a Regeneration Station orbiting Rhylen Terra. Though we did not expect it would be there at all, it seemed someone did, and prepared it for us.

We found more, of course. But we can speak of such things later, once you are back on your feet and able once again.

TTYL, and see you soon!

-R

—

Rhylen Terra? Freya thought to herself. Who’s over on that planet?

She went back in her memories, back to whichever moment it was that she was on that planet. And once she realized when that was, her body instinctively jolted up.

But she instantly hit the transparent metal canopy just above her with a BANG!

The impact itself caused the metal to dent slightly as thin cracks spidered out. Freya rubbed her temple and softly cursed as she tapped on the controls next to her instead. A moment later, the canopy split in half and slid down both sides of her pod gently.

Once it was out of the way, she leapt out of her egg-like regen pod and landed on the cold metal floor solidly.

She searched around the circular room with a near-frantic demeanor, as though she was looking for a long-lost treasure. And in a way, she was... Among the dozen pods all around, she found exactly what she was looking for – a thin and pale person with short silver hair who appeared to be sleeping soundly in one.

Her heart practically leapt out of her chest as she ran towards Lucifer. The sight of hir caused tears to well up in her eyes. They practically came streaming out by the time she reached hir pod.

She placed her hands on the clear canopy as the desire to sweep Lucifer up in her arms overtook her. Freya had lived with hir loss for so many years now that seeing hir alive and breathing was beyond overwhelming.

The very fact that Raijin and Azrael sought hir out specifically for her only made her heart swell even further. She felt it thump with force in her chest as everything that was happening dawned on her. They beat Godeater, restored the galaxy, and stopped the war.

And most of all, she got Lucifer back.

Freya suddenly found herself dazed by the very thought of it all, and wondered if it was all some kind of dream. Or a hallucination. Or some kind of perfect afterlife.

But when she slapped herself, she found the stinging in her cheek all too real. A wide smile and even more tears came soon afterwards.

Lucifer hirself roused from hir long sleep, even as Freya wiped the wetness from her eyes and cheeks. Hir eyes blinked as consciousness filled hir, then smiled widely at the sight of Freya above hir, just outside the pod.

“I guess we got away from those Imps, huh?” Lucifer said. “Shows ‘em right for thinking they could corner the Republic.”

Freya half laughed and half cried at hearing Lucifer speak. It had been so long since she had heard hir voice. Whatever doubts she had about reality were gone the moment she heard those words.

“You definitely showed ‘em,” Freya told hir in between stifled sobs.

.....

Lucifer put a hand up on the canopy, just opposite one of Freya’s. Joking aside, ze knew what hir actions did to everyone else. Seeing Freya cry was absolute proof of it.

“Sorry I put you through that,” ze said solemnly. “I bet seeing me die wasn’t so great for ya emotionally. But I had to do what I had to do and all that. Couldn’t stand the idea of you getting… you know… Anyway, you could say I wiped ‘em out before they had a chance to do the same to you first…”

“You don’t need to apologize,” Freya replied. “You’re back and alive, and that’s all I really care about right now...

“But I am gonna have to kick your ass a bit. I was definitely in a real bad way for a long time.”

“Well then, I might just stay in here for a bit longer. Kinda digging the peace and quiet in here.”

Both of them chuckled.

“How long?” Lucifer asked suddenly. Though at first ze thought that ze was regenerated not long after hir own suicide, ze realized a lot more time passed between then and now.

But before Freya could answer, someone across the room banged lightly on their own pod canopy. He yelled out for help, though it was muffled by the pod itself. At the same time, he pounded on the transparent metal canopy and frantically pointed towards his touchpad.

Seemed it was broken, or he had no idea how to use it.

Freya grinned widely.

“I’m gonna go get that guy out real quick,” she told Lucifer. “And after that, well, there’s a whole galaxy that needs helping and fixing and whatnot. While you were gone, I caused a lot of damage and I seriously regret it all. I need to do everything I can to make things right, for so many all across the galaxy.

“Beyond that, there’s lots to do and see and experience out there, plenty of wrongs that need righting, not just my own. And I intend to spend the rest of my life doing so... You with me?”

“‘Course!” Lucifer replied. “Just who d’ya think you’re talking to?”

THE END