Lena's hands shook as she spoke toward the Light Signal, voice breaking on every other word. "My daughter. My beautiful and brilliant daughter… We just want you to listen now, as we are still focusing on running."

Tears ran down her cheeks, dripping from her jaw. "I am so happy you became a Seeker, and so proud of the woman you've become."

Darius moved beside his wife. "When you left to join the Seeker under the Ancestor." His voice emerged rough. "We worried every single day, and wondered if we'd made a mistake letting you go."

"But we didn't." Lena continued, her smile wavering as fresh tears fell. "We gave you the chance to become exactly who you were meant to be."

"You're our pride." Darius said, the words heavy with meaning. "Our joy. Our beautiful golden light that refused to be dimmed by this cursed forest."

Lena pressed her palm against her chest, over her heart. "When things get hard, and they will get hard, I want you to remember that you aren't alone and that we will always be at home cheering for you."

"We want you to keep going." Darius added as he gritted his teeth and said. "To live the life we couldn't, and to continue seeing things we never got to see."

"To be happy…" Lena whispered. "Please, my darling girl, be happy."

The crimson-black tide drew closer. Its roar became audible with a sound similar to a tidal wave rising up. The crimson light intensified, casting long shadows that swept across timber walls and stone foundations.

"Mom! I promise to be happy! But what is that odd sound?"

"Haha, that's just the tide approaching the town. We can hear it now as we are climbing up some debris of roots and stone." An elderly man said with a chuckle.

An elderly man stepped forward, leaning heavily on a cane carved from dark wood. "Still to think after three hundred years, Eastern Hesod would be free… I feel so content, especially with the children and teenagers already evacuated."

"The future is secured." A middle-aged woman added while holding a younger woman's hand. "They'll grow up in a world where Eastern Hesod isn't a death sentence. Where they can choose to stay or leave. Where the forest is just a forest, not a living nightmare."

"You gave them that," Nigen said, his voice carrying over the others. "You and Janus. You carried the will and belief of everyone who came before. Everyone who died fighting this darkness." He stood slowly, legs still shaking. "We forgot that, in our rage and resentment at the Seekers incompetence and their methods. Forgot what it meant to pass hope forward."

"But you didn't forget!" Someone called out. "You remembered for all of us!"

"You became our golden stars!" Another voice added.

The Light Signal continued transmitting their voices, which were filled with constant carrying and subtle farewell, pride and sorrow, love and gratitude, all woven together.

The townspeople gathered closer, forming a tight circle, and some began linking arms with each other.

Some others clasped their hands while the rest embraced each other tightly.

"Thank you." Lena said again, her voice breaking completely. "Thank you for being strong when we couldn't be, and for taking that step none of us dared."

"Thank you for giving everyone the freedom we dreamed of." Darius said softly.

Nigen's voice rose above the others, carrying across the crowd and through the Light Signal. "Amiya, and Janus. You are Naraku Town's golden stars. You are everything we hoped you'd become and more." He smiled with a massive grin on his face. "We love you both so much."

The crimson-black tide reached the wooden fence. Timber exploded into fragments as the malevolent flames consumed everything in their path. The hellish light flooded the town, painting every face in shades of damnation.

But the smiles remained.

The laughter continued.

The pride never wavered.

"Live well!" Someone shouted as the tide swept forward.

"Be happy!" Another voice called out.

"Keep moving forward no matter what!" A third added.

…

"W-Why are you guys sounding like that!?" Janus shouted with dread and worry spreading through his body.

The only reason he and Amita haven't said anything is because of the promise of listening and the fact that they were climbing. It was a very hard thing to do, especially with how odd their words and tone were.

After a moment, Nigen's voice returned, and the warmth faded into sorrow. "Now then, Amiya and Janus… We are sorry, but we all lied."

Janus and Amiya paused before blinking once and then again. "Huh?" They said in unison.

"We didn't leave the town," Nigen said, the others murmuring their agreement in the background. "We are still here."

The confusion curdled into pure, unadulterated horror.

Janus trembled, a violent, full-body spasm. "What the hell do you mean you're still there!? Why haven't you-" His voice rose into a scream.

Nigen laughed, a real, hearty sound that made Janus's anger burn hotter, while Amiya screamed for them to stop playing around and run.

"It's pointless for us to try." Nigen said, his voice gentle but firm, the others echoing his resolve. "We can't escape the river, and you should know that by now."

Janus and Amiya trembled, but they refused to accept his words. They continued shouting to climb up one of the trees or try to pull all the buildings together.

"We just wanted to relay our final goodbye and appreciation to you all before the tide fully came. We know if we didn't lie, you two wouldn't allow us to get a word in." Nigen said with a chuckle. "And to get you guys ready for your new responsibility."

"A lie?" Janus's voice was a ragged tear. "Were the kids-"

"No, that was the truth." Nigen assured him. "The kids are already gone. It's just us here. But what I mean is that after we are gone, it will be up to you guys to lead the new generation of Naraku people, of Precursor people. One where they aren't prisoners of the forest, but people who can live the life they want and be happy."

Janus gritted his teeth, the sound loud in the sudden silence. "How can they, no… How can we be happy without you guys!?"

The answer came not just from Nigen, but from all of them, a unified, powerful wave of sound. "Because you guys are our pride and joy."

Janus was stunned into silence while Amiya clutched her chest as if wounded.

"I'm sure you guys grasped that you're carrying the will and belief of those from the past." Nigen continued, his voice thick with emotion. "I understood it too long ago, but it seems I had forgotten that in my rage and resentment. Misha would smack me in the face for doing it… What I'm saying is, you guys won't be alone, even after we leave. You will carry with you our memories, our wishes, and our encouragement."

Janus trembled, looking down at the ground as tears fell, splashing against the dusty stone floor. "Please…" He pleaded, his voice a broken whisper. "I-I am not as strong as you guys think… Please don't leave us behind…"

Nigen's voice was impossibly soft, a caress across the vast distance. "But you both are strong. As you took a step, none of us was willing to do. We are all so proud, and so we just want to say… You two are our greatest miracles of Naraku Town. And we love you both so much."

Janus screamed, a raw, wordless sound of utter agony. Amiya wept, her body folding in on itself.

But Nigen and the others didn't answer. Their voices were gone, and replaced by the sound of the tide smashing through things.

Casseo's words rang out, clear and quiet. "Take care, Veryn… And live well."

Veryn's eyes widened, the last vestiges of hope dying in their depths.

Then, a click as the sounds of waves crashing rang out with bits of screaming.

A dead, hollow silence fell, which was heavy and suffocating. Janus slumped to the ground as he buried his face in his hands, while Amiya fell like a puppet onto the ground. She was trembling in grief as she stared at the Light Signal that had gone grey.

Veryn constantly tried to reconnect, but after the tenth pressing, nothing was happening.

They were all gone.

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