The start.

It was a clear night on Solis, and the full moon hung in the sky like a pearl on a sea of black velvet.

Death sat in a small glade not far from their castle, her bare feet wet from dew and her violin at her side. The others were watched and guarded, but nothing was unbarred to her; she went where she pleased. She stared up pensively, the silence only broken by the wind and a few ambitious nightengales. Death wanted to enjoy the stillness while it lasted. Soon there would be no more time, even for her.

Conquest was inside her stone cell, laying on her front and trying to sleep. It wouldn't come no matter how many sheep she counted, and she knew full well why. The doll she'd found in the aftermath of a battle, from the warping effects of a machine and a mutant was in her hands; she'd meant to be rid of it, but kept it like a dirty secret. It made her feel things she'd long thought she'd buried, and she sighed with something like regret as she tried to get comfortable.

Pestilence was in her own bare cell, but for once not trying to sleep as well. For almost half an hour she'd been struggling to remove her armor under the weak torchlight, and now it was beginning to grow frantic. She'd done this countless times, over and over... But she couldn't get the plates off of her. The straps and buckles had to be undone in a certain order, and she kept failing at it. Her hands fell to her lap as she glanced at the small mirror she'd installed; her expression was frustrated, confused, and scared. It- the blankness, the disorientation- was growing worse, not better.

Famine was in her lead-lined box, her glow dim and unhappy. It had been days since she'd seen the sun or moon; longer still since she'd been able to talk to anyone. Her steady loneliness made her heart ache. She'd always assumed they'd kept her in here because of fear, but after her eyes had been opened, she knew it was because of disgust, too. She missed Earth, she missed having a purpose other than tinkering and fidgeting in the dark.

When the small, slim Xbox 360 chimed, she almost thought she was hallucinating.

Across space, across whole systems of planets, a rip into reality tore open on a black beach, lighting the night and crackling with lightning. The sand underneath turned to glass as Clash stepped through, her sword across her shoulder. She whipped around to excitedly wave as the tear closed up with a sound like an iron door clamming shut; even though she'd known it was coming, saying Goodbye had been one of the hardest things she'd had to do.

But it was time.

Clash blinked up at Earth's own moon, smiling her sharp smile and holding in a joyful yell before she perked up and reached into her pocket for her Shen.

"Nitori? Hi!... Oh, right, I'm sorry, I didn't realize how late it was- tell Komachi I said Hi when she wakes up! I just wanted to let you know I'm back!... Oh, it was amazing. The whole world was beautiful, and Aggie is doing a lot better. Uh huh. Yeah, everyone was really nice. No... She can't come back... I know. It's okay though. She belongs there and then. I'm just going to miss her a lot... But anyway, I'm on Kuwahari now! I'll see you at work tomorrow, right? I can't wait! Okay. Bye! See you really, really soon!"

Clash hung up and started walking towards the lights she could see in the distance; she was cheerful and happy after her vacation, and more hopeful for the future than ever before.