"You say she's... ill?"

"No— well yes... I don't know, she's hasn't been eating or drinking or... anything. She just sleeps all day, and sometimes she'll just stay in her room all day and not leave. Is there anything you can do?"

Yun fidgeted with his hands nervously as the healer cast his mother a glance. The woman was sitting idly nearby, staring blankly down at the food her youngest had prepared for her.

It remained untouched. Yun would try heating it up and helping her eat this time, although he had the feeling he wouldn't have any more success than he did the last time.

"She's grieving, Yun. It may be difficult, but she does need to eat well and drink. Perhaps getting her out more could help, but... what she needs most is time and you by her side." the healer turned her sympathetic gaze back to the devastated boy, "I'll see if there's anything I can prescribe her to help, but there isn't much else I can do."

"R-Right... yes, thank you." Yun mumbled as he turned away, "You can... you can go now."

The healer looked as though she wanted to say more but nodded and backed off as Yun closed the door.

He glanced back at his mother, unsure of what to do.
He was always there for her, no matter what. But, these days, it felt like she didn't see him anymore.

Sometimes she'd talk as if in a conversation despite being alone, prepare three extra meals and other times she'd mumble about when y/n and b/n would be returning home from their expeditions.

Yun was terrified. Terrified for his mother, wondering just what would become of her if this continued. He wanted to help, but he just... didn't know how.

He wandered over to her, carefully taking away the food to go heat it up again. It was a few minutes before he returned and set it in front of her again, dragging over a chair to sit next to her.

"Here, eat at least a little bit." Yun offered her some food and his mother hardly reacted, starting blankly at the table.

The foxian's ears dropped slightly, "Mom?"

No reply.

Yun's hand began to tremble as his eyes began to well up with tears. He lightly shook his mother's shoulder, "Mom. Please, eat. I can't stand to see you like this!"

M/n inhaled quietly, "I failed them."

"Failed them?" Yun echoed.

"My children. My sweet, sweet children. I failed them." M/n whispered, "B/n. I should've never let him become a Cloud Knight. He would've been fine as a diviner, and he was always such a bright little boy. He would've been an amazing artisan. But he chose to willingly go into danger and put his life on the line over and over..."

"Mom—"

"And y/n. Oh... y/n, my baby. I should've kept her closer, I should've been more strict. If she'd never laid eyes on that wretched sword, maybe she would still..." M/n began to tremble a little, tears gathering in her eyes, "They hurt her. Those people she called her friends and gave everything to... they killed her. It's their fault, it's my fault! I should've done more, I... I-!"

"Mom!" Yun protested, grabbing her hand, "Don't say that, it's not your fault! You did nothing wrong!"

"No... no, but it is... I should've never let either of them stray too far. They would've been fine if they just stayed where it was safe-!" the woman's voice became wrecked with pain and anger as her tears began to flow over, "I let them go and look what's become of them! My son killed by the very same accursed aeon we follow and my daughter... betrayed and killed and torn apart over and over until she broke completely. It's my fault!"

Yun opened his mouth to protest but was drowned out by his mother's panicked mumbles. Over and over, she sobbed the words, "my fault" and a sharp svent hit the boy's nose when his mother's nails drew blood from how tightly she held her arms.

The boy looked around for some kind of idea on how to help her, but found nothing. All he could do was hold onto his mother and hug her until her sobs died down and her rant turned into distant and incomprehensible mumbles.

Yun helped her up the stairs to her room where he tucked her into bed. After he was sure she'd be comfortable, he began to leave only for his mother to grab onto his hand.

"Don't go... please don't go."

The boy looked between the door and his mother before wandering back to her side, sitting down at the bed side, "Don't worry, I won't go. Just rest."

She seemed to have not heard his words as she held tightly onto his hand, "Not you too... I can't lose you too, not another one, you're all I have left..."

"You won't lose me." Yun whispered.

"I could've saved her. I should've stepped in..." M/n mumbled, "I should've kept her home that day..."

"What day?"

"That day... she begged me not to send her to the lyceum. Maybe then her and that woman's paths wouldn't have crossed..."

"What woman?"

"Or maybe... that day she had to choose... between the Luofu and her friend. Never... she should've never had to choose..."

M/n didn't speak after that, dozing off into a fitful rest while Yun quietly remained by her side. Medicine... didn't that healer lady have medicine for people with symptoms?

Yun would have to get some.

Tomorrow? No, not tomorrow.
Tonight. As soon as possible.

'But it didn't work before, she's only gotten worse.' Yun thought, rubbing at the tears in his eyes, 'No! It has to work! I'll try again, and it'll work this time!'

'It has to...'

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Every single day, following y/n's death, M/n had been tormented by memories both in the waking world and within her dreams.

Dreams of her daughter, happy and without scars. Happily going to work with friends, and returning in the evening for dinner with co-workers and Jing Yuan.

She'd help her mother cook, happily speaking of that day's events and occasionally leaving the kitchen to bicker with Jing Yuan over something ranging from work matters to moments from the past.

By the time dinner was prepared, a tired b/n would return from the Artisanship Commission with Yun by his side, the two of them carrying groceries while discussing Yun's lessons at the lyceum.

Y/n would pipe in, something about her abecedary being a jerk or how she wished the lyceum would just burn already, to which B/n would remind her not to badmouth her former abecedary.

It was perfect, without pain or danger.
Safe. All three of her children were safe.

However, she awoke to a cruel world where her oldest children had perished so tragically. All that was left was Yun who would go out every day and leave m/n to worry for her safety until her world began to crack and split ever so slowly. Like worn clothing beginning to split at the seams and rapidly reach its breaking point.

M/n had long passed the age of a thousand years, yet her children kept her mind clear and her spirits bright. However, after b/n's passing, her world began to crack. When y/n went missing, it began to splinter.

And then... Yun came along. Sweet little Yun, a bundle of joy. Her youngest son, and her hope for better days. She would keep him safe. She wouldn't lose him too.

The moment he showed interest in starskiffs, M/n quickly urged him to put more effort into his studies. When he asked to see the Cloud Knights train, m/n asked for him to help her with groceries and cooking instead.

He wouldn't end up like his older siblings.
M/n wouldn't let him end up like her oldest children.
He couldn't die too. He mustn't die too.

He would live. He had to live.

Live... live... please live—!

She had to keep him safe!

Every injury, no matter how small, sent m/n's mind spiraling back into a panicked madness.

What simply looked like a scrape upon the knee reminded her of her son's scarred arms and hands frond decades... centuries of battling the Abominations of Abundance.

Mild scuffs and cuts from fighting with his peers would bring back memories of her daughter returning home after close encounters with death.

Slight fevers. Old burn wounds.

Lingering colds. Borisin bites that would render y/n bedridden for days if left without treatment.

While scars never lingered on others, evidence of each of her children's suffering always remained. Scars remained, countless... horrible... painful scars.

It was her fault. Her fault.

She let her oldest son suffer in silence, quietly bearing the wait of his father's passing and the responsibility of holding that wretched sword which had been passed on to him.

She did nothing but watch as her daughter's stubborn loyalty got her hurt over and over again, one betrayal after another, countless of comrades teetering on the edge of madness given freedom by her hand at the expense of her own sanity, dying over and over...

In the end, they both lost their lives.

One was killed before he could feel a thing.

The other suffering for years before she could finally be relieved of her never ending pain and allowed some rest.

What would become of Yun?

That thought filled M/n with fear.

Not him too. Please, not him too...

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⋆　　　。　　 ⋆。　 ඞ 。　 . • . . ⁎ 。　. 　。　.　　⋆. 　　。 .　 .　　 . ⋆. 。. ⁎ 。•　 　ﾟ　　。

"That weapon collection of yours... has it grown?"

"I guess it has. I have two now!"

"Do you now? I can't say I'm surprised. Ever since you met that arrogant man, you've had quite the fascination with weapons of all kinds."

"Huh."

Y/n and Jingliu were wandering ahead of Dan Heng and Yanqing, the two haven spoken non stop. As scary as Jingliu was, she was somewhat sweet and affectionate with y/n yet still straightforward and lacking sugar coated words.

The group of four had traveled to Stargazer Navalia together, as that was the place Yanqing had helped Jingliu decide on regarding where she wanted to visit first.

The two women's discussion was cut short as they came to a halt together to turn an allow Yanqing and Dan Heng catch up.

"You know, if you wanted to see Starskiffs, we could've just gone to the Jade Gate." Yanqing commented, "What point was there in coming all the way here?"

Jingliu crossed her arms, lips quirking up into a small smile, "There's a reason for my desire to come here, young man. Tell me, have you ever heard of Baiheng, the Foxian Pilot?"

"Baiheng..." Yanqing murmured with a pensive look, "Hm... I think I've seen that name before..."

Jingliu turned her head to y/n almost expectantly.
Y/n could only shake her head apologetically.
"I'm lacking in the memory department these days. My memories have only begun to flow back to me, but I don't have many regarding Miss Baiheng."

Jingliu suddenly moved to smack y/n over the head only for y/n to duck and hop back out of of range.

"What the hell?!"

"Ah, so you do remember."

Y/n gave Jingliu a look of disbelief.

"Are you 🚚ing crazy, of course not! How would that possibly mean I remember? Ducking when someone tries to smack me over the head doesn't—!"

"Ow!"

"Don't call me Miss! It makes me feel old!"

"But Miss, you are old— OW!!! What the hell?!"

Y/n opened her mouth, then shut it.
"..."

Jingliu chuckled quietly, seemingly amused by y/n's uncharacteristic silence, "I take it that you remember now."

"Mhm..."

Jingliu turned her attention to Dan Heng next, the goober looking rather pensive as he kind of spaced out. "Imbibitor Lunae. If memories are returning to you, by all means, share them."

Dan Heng averted his gaze, "I... don't remember anything." Jingliu didn't seem pleased with this answer.

"But you've learned how to lie... no matter, that's all in the past. My reason for coming to Stargazer Navalia is to pay tribute to her here." Jingliu hummed.

"Huh? Pay tribute... do you mean the Foxian soul-soothing ceremony?" Yanqing inquired, the blindfolded woman nodding.

"Yes... the send off of a starskiff to represent the voyage of the deceased into the stars." Jingliu murmured, a tone of regret creeping into her voice, "Due to circumstances beyond my control, I was never given the change to bud farewell to her... I still regret it to this day."

"Well? What are we waiting for? Let's give Miss Baiheng—!" y/n flinched away from Jingliu to avoid being smacked over the head, "AHEM, Baiheng... the farewell you wanted to give her. I don't know anything about making starskiffs, but I bet the machines do! Off we go!"

"Hey! Wait! There's still Stellaron spirits around, and there may be Disciples of Sanctus Medicus lingering!" Yanqing warned as y/n began to run off.

She halted, before glancing back at the trio with a smile, "You don't have to worry about me. Paperwork has gotten me all pent up and angry, as has that little cheat Jing Yuan's schemes during our occasional game of star chess. I'll be just fine!"

And with that, she ran off ahead.

The trio trailed after her and found her tapping away at a control panel. When they reached her, she turned to them with a proud expression, "We should be getting our Starskiff for M—" y/n visibly began sweating as Jingliu lifted a hand to swat away a fly, "B-Baiheng. Ahem. Soon."

Dan Heng regarded y/n with a mild look of surprise while she smiled nervously at Jingliu, 'The only other times I've seen her this nervous was when Himeko and Mr. Yang found out about her losing limbs.'

"Oh! I remember!" Yanqing blurted out of the blue, "I've seen Baiheng's name in books before!"

"Oh? You like to read? I never would've guessed." Jingliu said, y/n snorting in amusement afterwards.

"Hey, I don't read a lot, but the General made me finish a bunch of ancient volumes during my training. I remember one called Views of the Universe From a Starskiff by an author named Baiheng." Yanqing recalled.

"That's right. Baiheng wrote that travelogue."

"It was actually really interesting! 90% of it was about dangerous situation like Starskiff crashes on different worlds. It also had records of local species and ecosystems but I started wondering how could an ace pilot crags her Starskiff so many times? Then, I realized, she always made the best of the situation and got back alive! Her luck was truly out of this world!"

"That's not luck, that's 🚚ing plot armor."

Jingliu nodded, a gentle smile upon her face, "Her luck always astonished us... whenever she piloted a mission, there was almost always a guarantee of a narrow escape from the jaw of an abundance behemoth... or a miraculous return from behind enemy lines. She earned herself the nickname of Starskiff Killer from the Sky Faring Commission."

As Jingliu reminisced memories of Baiheng, fragmented memories pieced themself together in y/n's mind. She had faint memories of that woman... that bat💩 crazy Foxian who, unsurprisingly, began to rub off on the highly impressionable y/n from centuries ago.

Y/n let out a small groan as she rubbed the top of her head. All the times she'd been swatted out of nowhere for mistakenly referring to her as "Miss".

Still...

"At least someone appreciated my quote on quote recklessness." y/n mumbled before turning to the group, "She could always turn the tides in her favor no matter the situation, especially when Jing Yuan would start playing tricks in star chess."

Jingliu chuckled, "Heh... luck is a type of strength, after all. I hope that this ship which will be built for the Starskiff Killer will be able to return to the stars."

It wasn't too long afterwards that the machine activated and the Starskiff began to take shape. Yanqing guided them to the sky port where they squared the starskiff's completion.

Which, as Yanqing had mentioned, didn't take long.

"After all these years... away from the Luofu for so long. I can finally say farewell to you..." Jingliu hummed as she gazed at the newly constructed Starskiff.

"If you don't mind me asking, what happened to Baiheng in the end?" Yanqing inquired curiously.

"I do not think details are necessary. We are here today for the sake of commemorating her." Jingliu paused, then turned to face Dan Heng, "Imbibitor Lunae. Do you remember the battle against Shuhu?"

Dan Heng was quiet for a while, pondering in silence before finally speaking, "The Abundance Emanator, Shuhu, rallied an army and attacked the Alliance. I... read about it during my time in The Shackling Prison."

"Like a nerd." y/n grumbled to which Dan Heng pointedly turned his head away from her while y/n scowled.

"Hm. You seem to show interest in learning about your past life. Still...  all of that has been erased. After Shuhu attacked the borders, he disappeared. There are no records of his remains." Jingliu continued in a quiet tone, "Allow me to refresh your memory. It was during that battle that Baiheng, being the headstrong girl she was, exhausted the luck she'd had bestowed upon her by the Reignbow Arbiter."

"She charged ahead... shattering the enemy's defenses, allowing the Xianzhou soldiers to break through Shuhu's Sanguinary Abyss and awaken you from your Dragon's Dekirium. She was not able to walk out of that battle. We all shoulder a debt that we will never be able to repay."

Eek.
Uhm.
Well.

*cough*

"For the Cloud Knights, giving up one's life on the battlefield is an honor... but you, Imbibitor Lunae, did not believe the same. You couldn't accept that. Baiheng was gone. Instead of leaving her to eternal rest, you decided to..." Jingliu scoffed as the slightest hint of resentment creeped into her voice, "You made a mistake that can never be undone."

Dan Heng. What did you do. 😐 Anyways, Jingliu was not interested in whatever he had to say in response to her words.

She only turned back to the Starskiff.
"And now, I will send off this starskiff."

The others stood back as Jingliu approached the starskiff. But not without a few final words.

"Baiheng. I've brought your flagon... this gift was handmade by him, though he never got the chance to give it to you in person. I'm sorry it took me so long to find it. Only by bringing it to your will my nightmares be calmed."

"I will fulfill what you asked of me. I will keep my word. Even if it requires me to cut down the stars in the sky."

And with that, the starskiff was sent off. Flying away while Jingliu watched it depart in silence.

It was a long moment before she sighed.

"Let's go. The Artisanship Commission is next."

There was a loud rumble, one that caused Dan Heng to cross his arms and sigh while Yanqing and Jingliu turned their attention y/n to flinched and laughed awkwardly.

"Ah... I didn't eat breakfast this morning..." she explained in an apologetic tone, "Don't mind me."

Jingliu exhaled quietly, "You still like steamed buns, don't you? Come. We'll get you some on the way there."

Y/n's eyes sparkled with excitement before she nodded with a pleased look, "That'd be great!"

Yanqing, Jingliu, and y/n all began to head off while Dan Heng lingered behind for a long moment.

He... did remember. Bits and pieces.
Fragmented pieces of shattered glass.
When looked at just the right angle... he could see it.

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"Are you sure we should be here?"

"Y/n asked me to check in on her mother for her. We can't just not check in on her, you know?"

March and Caelus were walking through Central Starskiff Haven together, headed for M/n's residence.

They'd hopped off