The depths of the fire consumed us.
Solace. Solace in the fact that it was real. An imperial government ruled Japae. That happened. It... It really happened. It was real.
Anger. Anger in the wake of realization that it had all been taken away. By the Archive, by the Anrufe. By the Warrior Humans. By Kurai, a negi.
Disgust. Disgust that the remnants of that time, of that place... Had been scattered. Scattered all throughout the dimension. What little was left, was broken.
Knowledge. Knowledge that there was... Hope.
It was time for a fucking reunion.
Walking the streets of Gyokoru, Ju passed many Japaens. Some had escaped during the bloodbath of Kurai. Some had escaped during the occupation by the Archive. Some had escaped during Aria's attack. Some had been here for the last thirty years, since the Japaen Exile began. No matter what the case, the fact of the matter was that this was one of many homes for Japaen refugees. A few had flocked to K City, but for the most part, K City was home of non-Japaen Sages and humans. Many Japaens felt that the Tyris family had forgotten about the Japaens, abandoned them all together.
Ju, too, felt that his former master had forgotten about him.
But it was time for a change.
As he walked the streets, he could feel the stares of some Zarethians. Colonists. Sure, they were peaceful, but they didn't understand the Japaen culture. They had not felt the suffering of these people. Still, Ju knew that they had felt their own fair amount of suffering. Against the Lorcar once. Against their own people. Against... Revenge. But the Zarethians, as gracious as they were, weren't Japaens. And this wasn't Japae.
He spoke loudly now, stopping in the street, speaking to any who would listen.
"Listen to me, brothers and sisters! You know me! You know my struggle!"
A few ears. At first, nobody looked up at him. They continued looking down at their feet, in their haze, depressed about the coming war with Revenge. A few stopped, but still did not look up.
"You know that I have been to the far reaches of this existence and beyond! I have seen the afterlife with my own two eyes, and still, here I am to speak of it to you today! I am not afraid! Are you!?"
A few more stopped.
"I am... Libertas vespuchi! I am the freedom fighter! Who is to deny that I saw us, a broken people, struggling to survive!? Who is to deny that I gave us order after our old leaders abandoned us!?"
"Nobody," one man quietly replied, looking up at Ju.
"And who is to deny that we have sat like cowards for the last nine years, while our old leaders have moved on without us!?"
"Nobody," a few more replied.
"SAY IT WITH ME! WE ARE FREE!"
"We are free," a few mumbled.
"WE ARE FREE!" Ju yelled, louder.
"WE ARE FREE!" a few yelled.
"WE. ARE. FREE!" he yelled again.
"WE ARE FREE!" the crowd yelled, loudly.
As the crowd began to loudly shout his name, a smile spread across Ju's face. The Imperial King had returned. And so had the empire.
