Aura - Analyzation: The Choice Has Been Made
Jan 23 10:50:26 2003

The clang of a loud bell from the far western
end of Truce seemed to call forth the peace and
quiet of midnight, on the following morning.
Aura was not in her Sanctuary home, as one would
expect, but out at the docks, leaning over the
railing and looking out over the silent waters.
Far too much had occurred where she felt she
was concerned, and it was starting to take its
toll on her already-overthoughtful mind.

"First Roanne... then Cedrian... am I going to
have to stop making friends altogether, to see
that they don't die...? I know better, but it
seems like I would have a hand in it... or,
rather, I wouldn't, since I couldn't cursed
DO anything about either of them..."

She couldn't stand what had happened, already. But
she also knew that it was merely an omen of things,
even worse, yet to come. The aged voice of the
fortune teller ensnared her mind, still, like a
lasso that could not be avoided.

"'If you do not find yourself... you will remain
forever alone...'"

Finding herself... she KNEW she was different; it
was uncannily obvious. But it was that fact that
struck fear deep into her mind, regardless of how
hard she attempted to deny it. For the sake of
friends... enemies... who could tell?...

"'...those whom you hold dear... they will never
know what is good for you... those whom hate
you... will never be honest."

Trust. That had been a key factor in deciding that
she was different from any other of her kind. She
COULD trust, and at will! She had not been laid
to rest, yet, because of it...

Aura reeled, as if she'd just been nailed in the
face with a high-speed projectile, and staggered
to regain her balance. Of course she hadn't! But...
others HAD. Was it truly... of her doing, somehow?

The other person she had seen on the previous
day... she hadn't gotten a name to call him by,
but Cyx seemed to know him. Cyx...

"...he... killed Cedrian..."

She gritted her teeth, and shook her head violently
from side to side. There would be no crying; not
now, and not anytime soon. It wouldn't help her
through any of this, and it wouldn't bring the dead
back to life.

She remembered the other one speaking... of a spirit
inside that was not rightfully Cedrian's... Pumki?

"'...reincarnated into a great beast of unholy
strength...'"

This was all becoming so confusing... and in so short
of a time... at first, all she sought to accomplish
was the freedom of Roanne's soul, but now...it had
become much more just one task. The entire world
was trembling. Could she truly be one to do anything
about it...?

"'...the greatest burden of them all!... it is
only yourself, whom you cause so much misery...'"

Of all the possible replies she could've anticipated,
that one was the the farthest back in her mind of any
of them. All this time, since the coming of that...
that... robed THING... she lived in fear of being
a burden... but not to herself! It was actually
starting to become a little clearer, now, however...
piecing together the teller's words, she thought,
for a moment, that she might have a lead on this
jigsaw puzzle that was her life.

"'...close your heart...'"

It was coming. She didn't know if she could stop it,
or even postpone the inevitable. But she had gained
knowledge; about the present, the future... and, most
importantly, about herself. She flung her arms out
to the open waters, letting her voice be heard in
the silence of the night.

"I AM NOT A REPLOID!"
"...eploid..."
"...eploid..."