Souls Online: Mythic Ascension

"Hold up, what do you mean your hair is green? I mean, yeah, your hair is green here. It's a game!"

"I am talking about in reality, Horo. I know I must sound crazy, but it's true."

Horo's eyes flickered with disbelief as he dismissed Lily's words as being absolutely impossible. She must have been playing this game so much that she was hallucinating.

"If you don't believe me, go take a look for yourself! There is probably going to be some sort of change with you!"

Lily huffed with her arms crossed, an eye twitching as Horo dismissed what she had seen as a mere hallucination.

 Luna and Leo sat at the campfire, their gazes locked on the flickering flame, lips pressed together in silence. They couldn't outright deny what Lily had said because they had undergone changes themselves.

Yet some part of them hoped that Lily was wrong. The world itself could descend into utter chaos if she was right.

"Fine! I will... but know that when I come back, I will be teasing you to hell and back, Princess!"

"GOD! You are so annoying! GO already!" Lily shouted, losing control of her emotions.

Horo simply smiled, unfazed by her anger, as he navigated his menu to log out temporarily. Beneath the surface, he was worried for Lily. He could tell that something was wrong, but he knew his presence right now would only continue to aggravate her.

"I'll be back in a few minutes. Don't miss me too much~"

He flashed a smile at Lily and for the briefest moment, something flickered in his gaze. Was it concern? Doubt? She couldn't tell.

With a faint flicker, he faded into thin air, leaving Lily staring at the empty space where he once stood. With him gone, Lily turned and trudged to sit by the campfire next to Luna. As the reality of her situation continued to sink in, she wanted nothing more than to cry.

She leaned her head on Luna's shoulder. Luna said nothing, simply raising her free hand to pat her friend's head in an awkward attempt to comfort her.

She never spoke of it, but since she had lost her mom at a young age, her hair was the one thing that still connected her to her mother. Her mom had been a police officer who died in the line of duty.

She couldn't help but remember that, despite her busy schedule, her mom always made time every Sunday so they could brush each other's hair.

"My little Kitten has such pretty hair~"

How many times had she heard that growing up? Yet now there was silence. No more laughter. Her mom was gone, and now so was one of the last few things that tied them together. It was like she had lost her all over again.

"It's going to be okay. We are here for you, Lily..."

Luna's soft, consoling tone pushed Lily over the edge. She let out a long, shuddering wail, her shoulders heaving as tears streamed down her face. She hugged Luna tightly, who could only sit there silently, letting her friend cry as much as she needed.

Luna had been in Lily's shoes, and she knew that nothing she could say would help her friend through this. While she had lost her mother and father, she still had Leo to rely on.

Lily didn't have that. Instead, she had a father who was often too busy to comfort her, choosing instead to quietly suffer so that he wouldn't worry her.

Leo sat in silence, feeling helpless and angry at himself for being useless as he watched Lily cry. He clenched his fists as he looked at Luna. Her forlorn expression remained as she slowly patted her friend's head.

There must be something he could do. He needed answers! His gaze turned to his bracelets. Astra and Mors had fallen silent after his transformation.

Concern for them welled up inside him as well. He still felt their presence in his mind, but it was faint and weak, as if they had entered a form of hibernation.

He would have to wait to ask them to wake up before he could get any answers.

For a few minutes, the only noise in the dense forest was the crackling of the fire and Lily's cries.

Lily's chest felt heavy when she finally stopped crying into Luna's shoulder. She hadn't expected to break down like this, but she was grateful for her best friend, whose shoulder was soaked in her tears.

She lifted her head and glanced over at Leo, who had been tending to the fire. His cute face was scrunched up in guilt and frustration.

"Why... are you frowning... Cutie? It will... ruin... your pretty face..."

Lily's voice was hoarse as she spoke, raw from crying, yet she still tried to smile and crack a joke to lighten the mood. 

She looked around at her friends, noting that Horo had either not returned yet or was hiding somewhere nearby. It was strange. Without him there, the space felt oddly empty. 

She expected Luna to flick her head or something, yet there was nothing. Looking back at her, she saw the ruby eyes of her friend filled with nothing but concern for her best friend.

Luna hugged her as she whispered, "You know that I will be there for you whenever you need me. We are best friends, after all. Right?"

Lily's eyes watered as she wanted to cry again, but instead, she simply reciprocated the hug with a wide smile forming on her face.

"You're absolutely right!"

Leo felt his mood lift a little, seeing the heartwarming moment the two girls were sharing. A small but quiet smile formed on his face as he glanced at the time display. However, that smile quickly faded.

"I'm really sorry to interrupt, but I am getting worried about Horo. It's been 20 minutes, and he hasn't returned. Wasn't he supposed to check to see if there were any changes? That shouldn't take so long, right?"

Horo had yet to return despite telling them he would be back in a few minutes. Could something have gone wrong in the real world? The girls' eyes widened as well. What could have possibly happened to him that was keeping him from returning?

"Do you think he went to report back to his family?"

Luna frowned with displeasure, her eyes glinting with rising anger at the thought that Horo had betrayed them.

"No. He wouldn't do that, Luna," Leo said confidently.

"How do you know?"

"He told me that he and his family….don't get along... I don't know why he would do anything to benefit them."

While Leo sounded confident in his answer, he truly wasn't sure if he was right. He had seen Horo open his heart and wanted to believe in him, but he couldn't deny that there were seeds of doubt scattered in his mind.

Luna's eyebrow lifted as she heard something unexpected. Lily, too, frowned as something clicked in her mind. Her breath hitched, and she glanced away, suddenly uneasy. She hadn't fully understood before, but now… now she did.

"So what do you think happened?"

Lily was a bit anxious. She wanted to apologize to Horo for snapping at him the way she had.

"I don't know, but you guys might have to find him in reality if he doesn't come back soon. Let's give him another 10 minutes..."

For now, all they could do was pray and hope that he was safe. Leo couldn't explain it but somehow, he felt that the darkness of the night seemed to grow a bit stronger. 

Lily looked towards the stars and mumbled under her breath, unease welling up in her heart. 

"Horo…Adam… What have you done..?"