Asch had reluctantly setup a camp in a clearing of the forest. While every ounce of his being lusted for the opportunity to strike Van down, he knew that it would be impossible to navigate the forest in this dark. He stayed awake long into the night, his years of training teaching him to draw upon his inner strength. As the fire crackled beside him, he looked over to the gray pegasus that had followed him on his quest for revenge. She was sleeping soundly by now, completely oblivious of the dangers that would be faced on this journey.
"Why do I continue to put up with this annoying dreck?" He asked himself
"Because you can't just leave her alone in this forest."
He shook off the suggestion from his thoughts.
"Ridiculous! Why should I worry about what happens to some fool that followed me in here?"
"Because she holds you in high regard. She cares about you just like Luke and Natalia."
Asch thought back to his childhood. Back before he was kidnapped by Van, he and Natalia made a promise to change their nation for the better when they were older.
"Some day, when we're grown up, let's change this country." Asch began. "Change it so that no one has to be poor. Change it so that war never happens."
"Let's work to change our country. For the rest of our lives. Together." Natalia finished.
"I have to destroy Van... or I may never be able to keep that promise."
*Rustle*
Asch drew his sword and turned to face the direction of the noise.
"Who's there? Show yourself!"
Slowly, a figure walked from the bushes and into the light shed by the fire. Asch's body froze when he recognized the person standing before him.
"Impossible! How can it be you?!"
--------
After the camp was set and dinner was served, each of the travelers took shifts keeping watch for any creatures that might attack them in the night. Once Luke had completed his shift, Fluttershy nervously took a seat near the fire to begin her shift. Luke crawled into his tent and slowly drifted into a slumber. A dream began to form in Luke's mind. He was standing aboard the deck of a large ship in a sea of mud and a purple fluid. He recognized that he was on the Tartarus, a Malkuth military landship, when it fell into the Qliphoth shortly after the destruction of Akzeriuth. The purple liquid around them was the liquid form of miasma, a deadly poison gas. All of his friends, including Fon Master Ion, were standing on the deck with him. He was visiting the past once more.
"It looks like it will still run." Jade reported as he returned from the bridge.
"There's a place called Yulia City here in the Qliphoth. It should be to the west. Let's try heading there." Tear suggested
"You seem to know a lot about this place. I'd like to hear an explanation once we're safe."
The Tartarus then sailed through the sea of Miasma for what felt like hours.
"No matter how far we go, there's nothing in sight. ...Are we really underground?" Guy asked.
"...In a way. The place you live is known down here as the 'Outer Lands'-- the world's outer shell. It's a floating land supported by pillars called 'Sephiroth Trees' that extend from the Qliphoth." Tear explained.
"I don't understand." Natalia stated.
"Long ago, the Outer Lands were here in the Qliphoth."
"Unbelievable..." Anise said in her astonishment.
"Two thousand years ago, the miasma enveloped Auldrant and infected the land. That is when Yulia read the seven-part Score, finding a way to escape destruction and bring prosperity."
"Based on the Score, Yulia proposed a plan to raise the planet's crust using the Sephiroth." Ion finished.
"And that was the beginning of the Outer Lands, huh... That's quite a story." Guy concluded.
"Yes. Only maestros and above in the Order of Lorelei know. As do those born in the Qliphoth." Ion explained
"Then, you're from the Qliphoth, Tear...?" Anise asked.
Tear did not answer, so Ion continued speaking.
"At any rate, we've fallen down here. We were saved thanks to Tear's fonic hymn."
Jade began to see the problem with all of this information.
"How did this happen? You said Akzeriuth was supported by a pillar, correct?" He asked Ion.
"Yes, but... that pillar disintegrated."
"How?" Anise asked the Fon Master.
Tear turned to face Luke, who had been silent ever since they boarded the Tartarus. The others in the group followed suit.
"...I-I don't know anything about it! I was just trying to neutralize the miasma!" He quickly explained. "He told me if I caused a hyperresonance there, the miasma would disappear...!"
"My brother deceived you. And you destroyed the pillar that supported Akzeriuth."
Luke couldn't come to grips with this truth.
"No! That can't be..."
"Van ordered you to stand next to the passage ring. Those passage rings are what produce the pillars... Tear is probably right." Ion deduced. "I was careless. I never dreamed that Van would make Luke do such a thing..."
Jade was not convinced Luke was entirely the victim.
"I wish Luke had at least discussed it with us beforehand. Neutralizing the miasma could have waited until the residents were evacuated. ...Of course there is little point in saying that now."
Natalia, who cared so deeply for her country, understood Jade's position.
"Yes... Akzeriuth is gone. Thousands of lives, lost in an instant..."
Luke was shocked by the direction of the conversation.
"A-are you saying it's my fault...?"
Everyone simply stared back at him, none of them willing to answer him, as it was obvious. Luke couldn't handle accepting any fault for what happened, and desperately tried to convince them he was not to blame.
"It's not... it's not my fault! Master Van said... Yeah! Master Van told me to do it! I had no idea this would happen! No one told me! It's not my fault! It's not my fault!"
Luke was clearly becoming emotionally distressed. He feared the hatred and loss of trust from his companions and friends. Jade began to walk away from where he was standing. Tear turned to address him.
"...Colonel?"
"I'm returning to the bridge. If I stay here, I'll just be irritated by some ridiculous ranting." Jade said coldly.
Luke was infuriated with his statement.
"What's your problem?! I tried to save Akzeriuth!"
Natalia approached Luke while he was still facing Jade.
"Ever since you lost your memory, you're like a completely different person..." She said, then followed Jade off the deck.
Luke began to get angry at all the accusations.
"Y-you all couldn't do anything to stop it, either! Don't just blame me!"
Ion began to feel a bit of guilt well up in him, along with pity for Luke.
"You're right. I'm powerless. But still..."
"Ion! Don't even bother talking to him! He's not worth it!" Anise interrupted, taking Ion with her as she left.
Luke grew more desperate than ever. He turned to his best friend Guy. Surely he would believe him.
"I-it's Master Van's fault! Not mine! Right, Guy?!"
"Luke... Don't make me think even less of you..."
This nearly shattered Luke. Not even his best friend was willing to side with him.
"I was stupid for starting to think you had some good in you..." Tear said as she took her leave.
Luke was utterly destroyed. The only one left on the deck with him was Mieu.
"Wh-why?! Why are you all blaming me?!"
"Master... cheer up." The cheagle tried to comfort.
"Sh-shut up! What do you know?!" Luke lashed out.
"A lot of my people died because of me. So... I can understand what you're feeling, Master."
"Don't compare me to YOU! Don't compare me to... Aah..."
Luke knelt down on his hands and knees and began to break down, sobbing without anyone but Mieu to console him.
Time passed, and eventually the Tartarus docked at Yulia City. It was a large and advanced city using Dawn Age technology. All the others in the group went into the city to find Teodoro, Tear's grandfather and the mayor of the city. Luke stayed dormant on the platform as the others left, leaving Tear to stay with him.
"...How long are you going to stand there? Everyone's gone to the mayor's house."
"All they'll do is keep accusing me of stuff. I don't want to go."
"You're even more pathetic than I thought, reject!"
Asch the Bloody, one of the six God Generals, insulted Luke as he walked into Yulia City.
"...You!"
Luke confronted Asch filled with anger at him. By this time, they were still enemies in Luke's eyes.
"What are you doing here?! Where's Master Van?!"
"Hah! You still call him 'Master' after he's betrayed you?!"
The truth finally began to sink in. Luke could deny his master's true goals no longer.
"...Betrayed me? Then, Master Van really did want me to destroy Akzeriuth?"
"Damn it! If I had realized what Van was planning sooner, none of this would have happened!" Asch cursed his inability to stop him. Asch then turned back to Luke. "And you! Why didn't you think before using your hyperresonance?!"
Luke was infuriated.
"S-so you're saying it's my fault too?!"
"Of course it's your fault! Don't even try to deny it!"
"It's not my fault! It's not my fault! It's not..."
"Are all replica brains this defective?!"
"'Replica?' Master Van used the word 'replica,' too..."
"...You STILL haven't figured it out?! Is this someone's idea of a joke?!"
"Wh-what?! What the hell are you talking about?!"
"I'll tell you, Luke."
"Asch, stop!" Tear tried to intervene, but Asch simply dismissed her outburst.
"Why do you think you and I have the same face?"
"...H-how should I know?"
"I'm a noble who was born in Baticul. Seven years ago, I was kidnapped by a villain named Van."
The truth dawned upon Luke.
"You can't mean..."
"That's right! You're a second-rate copy of me! A mere replica!"
"You're lying... It's not true! It's not true!"
Luke was enraged with Asch. He drew his sword to fight, as it was the only thing he wanted to do: shut up Asch.
"...So you want to fight, replica?"
"Stop lying!"
Luke fought against Asch with all his might. Their blades constantly parrying each others attacks. Even their Artes were the same! Both warriors were reaching their limits, but Luke had one final trump card. Just as Asch was about to deliver the final blow, Luke used his Mystic Arte: Radiant Howl, in order to secure victory.
"I can't believe I lost to this trash... It's no wonder I lost my family, my home, everything... I'm pathetic!"
An aura of light began to surround Luke, blurring his vision and making him weak.
"It's a lie... I..."
Luke's vision became nothing more than a pure white, and he fell unconscious.
--------
Luke rose up in his tent in a cold sweat. Even after everything that's happened, even when he's in another world, he couldn't find peace from his past. This was not the first time he was awoken by nightmares of Akzeriuth. Jade was perhaps the only one who knew about the traumatizing nightmares he had to endure. But then Luke realized: none of his friends are here to comfort him anymore. Luke let out a deep breath. There was no way he would be able to get back to sleep, so he opened his tent to try and get some fresh air.
"AAAAAAH! STAY BACK!" A feminine voice cried.
Luke saw that it was Fluttershy, who by now was cowering behind a log.
"It's just me..." He said unenthusiastically.
Fluttershy peeked over her wood sanctuary, and confirmed that it was Luke.
"Oh thank goodness! I thought you were a scary monster." Fluttershy sighed with relief. Miraculously, her shouting failed to wake anypony else.
"A monster..."
Luke pondered on the word. He probably could have been considered a monster for what he did in Akzeriuth. Thousands of people were killed because of him. His only motivation was to be free of having to live stuck in that manor, and everyone in Akzeriuth died. Luke sighed and took a seat near the fire. His eyes were focused at the ground, dull and devoid of any life. Fluttershy saw this in him, and couldn't help but wonder what was wrong.
"Um... are you alright?"
"I just had a bad dream..."
Fluttershy wasn't convinced, and nothing got her more serious than someone who was sad.
"What's wrong? You can tell me." Fluttershy said now in a more comforting and confident tone.
Luke glanced over to her. He felt that he could confide in Fluttershy, even though he barely knew her. There was just something... there that told him she could help.
"I had a nightmare about something I did... Something unforgivable."
"What was it?" Fluttershy asked, intrigued.
"There was a city... called Akzeriuth. Miasma leaked out and so we went to help evacuate the people. But Master Van, the one we're after, he told me if I used a hyperresonance on the passage ring beneath the city, it would get rid of the miasma. I didn't even think about what I was doing, I just wanted to become a hero so I could be free from the manor. The hyperresonance destroyed the sephiroth pillar that was keeping Akzeriuth suspended above the Qliphoth. Because of me... everyone in Akzeriuth died!"
"Oh my..." Fluttershy gasped.
"Everyone blamed me for what happened. They were right, but I couldn't accept it then. They all lost their trust in me and left me. And then Asch... he told me I was a replica of him, that I wasn't the real Luke."
"But then what happened? You don't seem like that kind of person at all."
"Well..."
--------
Luke woke up in a bed in Yulia City after seeing the world through Asch. Since the two of them had the same fonon frequency, they could communicate telepathically. Luke now fully accepted his responsibility for what happened in Akzeriuth, and wanted to make up for it. He needed to get back to the Outer Lands so he could stop Van and he would need Tear's help to do it. He spotted her in a garden at the back of building. Luke went up to her in order to apologize, to convince her to help.
"Luke... You're awake."
"Is this a flower garden?"
"They're selenias. The only flowers that grow in the Qliphoth. They bloom at night... The Outer Lands cover the sky so hardly any sunlight gets through... Anyway, you look like you were worried about something."
"Oh! Right! I want to go back to the Outer Lands!"
"You'll be able to go back at some point. But for right now..."
"No, I have to go back right now! Asch said St. Binah's going to fall!"
"But... you've been asleep this whole time..."
"I could hear! He and I are connected!"
"Even if that's true, how do you plan to prevent St. Binah from falling?"
"W-well..."
"You don't understand a thing... You base all your actions on what others say and never try to understand things for yourself. That's no different than how you acted at Akzeriuth."
"...Heh heh. You're right. 'Master Van said so...' 'Asch said so...' That's all I ever say... It's no wonder everyone got sick of me and left me behind."
"You knew? That they went back to the Outer Lands?"
"I told you, Asch and I are connected. I saw it through him. ...I really am his replica.
"Luke..."
"Up till now, all I ever paid attention to was myself... And I'm not even sure I saw myself clearly...
"...Yeah."
"I want to change. I HAVE to change."
"If you really mean that, then perhaps you can. But even if you change, that won't bring back Akzeriuth. ...And it won't erase the fact that thousands died. With the weight of all that on your shoulders, how do you plan to change?"
"I don't know... Heh, that's all I know how to say. I'm pathetic... If I could make up for Akzeriuth by apologizing, I'd apologize as much as it took. If my dying could bring back Akzeriuth, then... I'd be scared... but I'd die. But that's not how things are. Even if I tried to make up for it, I'd never be able to. So I'm going to start with what I can do. I don't know what that is yet, but I'm serious. I want to change."
"I still don't think you really understand. Not while you can talk about dying so easily."
"I won't ask you to trust me right away. ...Tear, you carry knives on you, right?"
"Yes, why?"
"Let me borrow one for a minute."
Luke took the knife from Tear and placed it behind his head. Luke grabbed his long hair and began cutting into it.
"Luke!"
After cutting off the large portion he held, he turned to Tear.
"With this, I say goodbye to who I've been."
Luke released his hair into the flowing wind, filled with the resolve to change.
--------
"Ever since then, I've worked to change into a better person, but as you can see... I still can't get past what I did."
Fluttershy had a genuine smile on her face as she looked at Luke. After everything that happened, he resolved to change so he could make up for his mistakes. It saddened her to see him full of guilt, so she did what she did best.
"Luke, you may not be able to bring back those people or that city, but you can keep living and becoming a better person so you can help others and never make that mistake again."
Fluttershy trotted over to Luke and wrapped her forelegs around him to hug him.
"You already showed me that you're a nice person. You helped protect all of us from those timber wolves and yet avoided killing them, and you even carried me when I was just a burden."
The tears welling up in Luke's eyes were no longer tears of guilt, but now tears of happiness.
"*Sniff* Thanks Fluttershy. It's really great to know I've still got friends here."
*Click*
Off in the distance, there was an audible metallic click. At first neither one of them had a clue as to what it was, but then Luke's eyes widened in horror as he recognized the noise.
"Get down!" He yelled to Fluttershy as he unsheathed his sword.
*BA-BANG!*
Luke placed himself in front of Fluttershy to protect her from the two incoming projectiles.
*Pa-Ping!*
Using the Sword of Lorelei to block, both of the high velocity projectiles were deflected. One ricocheted into a nearby tree, while the other snapped one of the burning logs in half, sending it flying towards the origin of the noise.
"Wh-what was that?!" Fluttershy panicked.
"Trouble..." Luke muttered.
The burning log landed several feet away, revealing a blond woman clad in a black, yellow, and red dress, adorned by a shawl that resembled large white feathers. She had two smoking fontech guns in her hands, one looked like a glock, while the other looked like an over under double barrel pistol.
"You were fast. Tear could learn a thing or two from you." She said.
"Legretta! How are you here?!"
"I woke here and soon found the commandant. With the power of this world, we will finally overturn the Score."
"So Master Van really is alive? Why is he still obsessed with the Score? We saved Auldrant!"
"What in tarnation is goin' on 'round here?"
Applejack got stirred from her sleep along with the other ponies. Clearly the gunshots would have been able to wake anyone up.
*Bang!*
A large hole suddenly appeared right in front of Applejack's hooves.
"Leave them alone! This is between you and me!"
"So now you're going to face me alone? Fine then!"
Luke prepared himself for a difficult fight. Not only would he have to beat Legretta, but he had to make sure none of the ponies got hurt.