Countering Fate

Space, a void like waters. A place unreachable by man where even the gods never dare to be. Debris floats in the midst of destroyed ships, broken parts and ash seen on the fallen ships. There is a capital ship the size of a continent in the midst of the debris. A message is transmitting from this vessel to earth from the brig. Billions of billions of light years away by the Commander of the fleet. A young man's voice is transmitting in the message.

"White Tiger to earth, Commander Kitt speaking. Finally, as Master predicted, earth has won the war." he sighs in relief. The communication ends as it's sent to earth and the capital ship loses power and shuts down. A reply came to the ship from the Master.

"Good job Kitt, I'll pick you up." a female voice replies, sounds joyful and proud. A giant magic/rune circle appears beneath the capital ship as it vanishes as if it was never there.

Moving back to earth, another communication arrives. From somewhere far away, even beyond the place where the White Tiger fleet is. The master is speaking to earth, Geowall.

"We've finally rid ourselves of the aliens, now's the time for peace. But for us, we'll hunt them down across the universes. Xenos, launch Phase 2 of Operation Rebellion."

The message ends as we finally see the earth, on top of the earth is a gold sheet with runic symbols running all over it. On this gold sheet stands people as only their silhouettes is visible. At the center of the gold sheet, a spaceship forms as the space around it distorts. A cube of many dimensions with runes appears, moving over it floats into the ship. Then runic circles appeared below the ship. The ship is being surrounded by a bubble of energy as it flies upwards at the speed of light.

The first being amongst the people "Will this actually help the other universes fight back?".

"No, but it should make it possible for us to reach them without the laws hindering us."The Master replied. "Good job everyone, this is the first trial, send the next one based on the intel we stole from the aliens."

"Yes Master." More ships like the first one appears from the surface of the metal sheet. 10s of similar ships could noticed and more appears from the metal.

...................................................................................

In the Zolkia kingdom, to the north east is a little village Avua. This village is one by a river which is flowing to the south and inhabited by farmers and fishers. In one of the houses in the village on the top floor, a young boy is sleeping as there's knocking at the door.

*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*

"Flint! Wake up! You'll be late for work." says a little girl. *KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK* the boy woke up although not willing.

"Yes yes yes, I'm awake. Is dad ready?" he says sitting up on his bed

Voice sounds anxious, "No, but he will leave soon." The boy rush to his feet as he rummages through his clothes to get ready for the day.

"Licia! Tell dad I'll be ready soon." Flint falls as he rushes to get dressed.

"Okay, Mum and I packed lunch. Hehehe." She laughs and she's skips downstairs to her father.

"Thank you!" In a few seconds, he opens his door but his pants fall, "My belt!" he goes to take one and rushes downstairs to the backyard, he meets his elder sister on the way as he rushes out.

Elder sister teases him, "You slept in again, I came to wake you but you were sleeping so peaceful I couldn't do it." Flint turns to answer his sister as he runs to the backyard. His elder sister is also going to the backyard so she stepped aside for Flint to pass.

"Ha ha ha, very funny~ay" Flint trips and falls "Ooof!" he tripped on a broom stick. His sister chuckles "Watch out for the broom" she giggles.

"Thanks Aku." Aku whose full name is Akua.

"You're welcome." she smiles. Flint gets up and rushes outside to the backyard. He washes his face and cleans it with a towel as he runs to the front yard to meet his father.

"Sorry dad, I'm here." he tries to stabilize his breathing. His Father is with Licia as they are talking, Licia is asking questions to buy Flint time.

"Well, you made it, let's go." says his father as he points to a donkey. Flint reaches his side as he pats Licia on the head and they wink at each other.

The mother sends them off, "Take care you two." A donkey is with them as it is pulling a cart.

"Yes honey!" and Flint replies to his mother, "Yes mum!" both at once. The 2 set out to farm, the farm is at about a kilometer away from the village, so they walk to it. They arrive at the farm with a hut built at the center, that is where they rest when tired from farm work. When they arrived at the farm Flint is going to tie the donkey to a post then join his father,

His father tries to conversate with him, "You slept in, were you thinking about her last night?"

"WHAT! No, no no, I was not thinking about Cynthia." Flint feels embarrassed as he tries to hide it. His dad raises a brow.

"I didn't mention any names." Flint freezes as he's standing still, sweating.

"You'll be an adult soon. You should ask her out before it's too late."

"Does that always work?" he rubs his fingers together as he looks at his father with a pleading look.

Dad puts his right hand on Flint's shoulder and looks into his eyes, "Flint my boy, I have to tell you the truth." he smiles" .......No." Flint is shocked. Dad continues, "But it's better you say what you feel than let it eat you up every time, last night you tried to eat a napkin." Flint gives a wry smile, "It may not always work but it worked for me." He got to work on the farm as Flint followed behind him.

Flint sighs, "Somehow this feels even worse." He also joins his dad as he is weeding.

"Hahahaha, know this Flint. Life isn't always colorful and pretty. You're young, you should enjoy your youth." Flint smiles, "That doesn't mean you should do something stupid." "I won't dad!" Flint feels embarrassed for some reason, the duo went to work from morning till noon then they have lunch. Afterwards, they wait in the hut making small talks until late noon. They have a water tunnel leading to the farm so they open it for the soil irrigation. They do this late noon because working on muddy soil is hard and after watering the crops, they leave and go home.

The sky darkens since night is coming, signal that work is over. The people going home as others came to Dad and made small talks with him as he leaves Flint to get things ready to go home. There wasn't much to do anyway so Flint could handle everything. Flint went to close the water outlet and he saw a deer in the distance. He tells his father about it as a hunter is among the small group of men talking.

"Dad! Dad, I've seen a deer in the woods." Flint runs to his father,

"A deer huh? Bobby, do you think a deer will be good for the boys tonight?"

Bobby a hunter replies with pride, "Hah, you read my mind. I'll get us some great meat tonight, though I need help bringing this thing back." he is a hunter, a good one.

"Sure, I'll come. Flint, wait for me okay?" Dad volunteers to help telling Flint to wait for him to return.

"Okay dad." The men disperse as some go home and Dad leaves with the hunter to hunt a deer.

Far high up in they sky, a crack is forming. The crack spreads as a piece of the sky falls off and vanishes. A light comes from the crack far away in the darkness. Wherever the light is coming from is a mystery.

Flint goes to the hut as he lies down waiting for his father, he keeps thinking which soon leads him to speaking.

"Cynthia is beautiful but she's out of my league..... But if you don't try as Dad said I won't make any progress...... Who knows she might like me? .....No no no, look at my skinny hands, Avan is bulkier and more masculine. Chuck has his slick tongue though it gets him into trouble. What do I have? Hmmm, hmmm, hmmmm!!! Nothing! I don't stand a chance." he rolls on the ground. He lies back down as a pillar of light descends from the sky up over the hill opposite to the direction his dad is.

"Wooaahh, what is that? A light from heaven? I...I... I should wait but.... You know what? A quick peek, I'll be back before dad notices I'm gone. And if he does see this light then we'll meet there, no problems." Flint is anxious as he gets up and leaves towards the light with a jog. He is the only one to see the light as it is evening and most of the farmers are home. He jogs for a while before arriving at the crash site. Smoke covers the place as a spaceship, about a logging truck in length, enters his sights, he didn't know what it is.

"W....What is that?" he's anxious as he goes closer. A crest on it gets his attention, he observes the crest. The spaceship is silver in color as the crest on it seems to made of gold color. The crest is the face of a girl surrounded by stars. Outside the stars are 2 people looking at the face. 1 wearing armor and the other strange clothes (Official clothes). On top of everything is a crown colored in gold, the flag has a red background.

Flint stares at the spaceship as it opens up from the side showing inside of it. Flint, startled by the sudden movement he picks a rock.

"Hello! Any....Anyone there?" he observes as the door opens showing the interior. Flint couldn't control his curiosity so he goes inside with caution. A barrier erects at the exit but he didn't see it, he looks around as a ball drop from the center of the roof and floats. It scans him, A mechanical voice speaks from the ship,

"Life form detected." Flint is frightened, "Huh! What!" as the voice continues, "Life form is human. Playing recording."

Flint held the rock hard in his hand ready to throw... or fight.

Then a hologram appears before Flint as a female figure is shown. The figure is 1.68 meters tall, plumb with athletic build, dark brown skin. Black hair is fluttering with the tips being green as a crown of moving data and runes is on the head. Red veins like circuits all over the body. The eyes are open as the sclera (White part of the eye) has a light glow. There are rings around the pupil as between the rings and the pupil are black though it glows. In the pupil of the left eye is a white clock with runes numbering it, the hands of the clock weren't moving. The part where the black hands (Clock hands) meet at the center of the left eye is silver. The right eye has the same ring but in the pupil is a black hole with gold light bending around it. Red lightening flashing in and out of it at the center of the black hole was a symbol of lines unknown to anyone.

"Uhhhh, I didn't prepare for this recording since I was busy with The Fallen. So here goes nothing." Flint looks at the transparent girl as he tries touching her as he whispers, "A beautiful woman?! A person?!" her voice captivates him.

"My name is Nytri Alcore Elnora, if you're seeing this then it means the transport was a success. I'll go straight to the point, the world you know is going to have invasion of monsters, aliens. This vessel came to the universe whose garden is soon to mature, that means your earth. I'm not from your earth but a different universe, and we managed to defeat them. Unfortunately, we realized that my universe is not the only one targeted. They have been harvesting the gardens since The Fall, millions of years ago. As it stands, we still can't find a way to send our army to hunt them due to a lot of restrictions you're better off not knowing. This vessel has a way to increase your chances of survival, no matter what happens DO NOT FIGHT THEM. Even gods died at their hands. The Sequence Synthetic Management Data Cube or for short SSTM DC is your shot at survival. Good luck." The recording stops as the hologram vanishes,

Flint engrossed in the sweet voice finally realizes, "Wait! Aliens?" he heard words but didn't understand much of it. A compartment opens up as the SSTM DC, a cube of many dimensions with runes all over it floated out.

"Do you accept to install the SSTM DC in your soul space?" The mechanical voice wants confrimation. He's confused, he didn't know what to do, so he did what anyone else would say.

"...Okay? But could y- ."

With his first respond, the cube shot into his forehead as Flint saw his vision turning blue. He moves around trying to get the blue vision back to normal as he keeps hearing sounds and voices.

"SSTM DC has docked in soul space. Commencing synchronization .... 5%.... 15% .....30%". Flint is rolling around in the ship confused and blind. "50% .....70% ....90% ......100% Synchronization complete. Activating package."*WWIIIIINNNNGGGGG* is the sound in Flint's ears. He loses consciousness.

A figure appears outside the ship, the figure is smallish as only it's silhouette is visible. With a stuffed animal .

"Finally arrived. OH! Looks like someone has already taken the package, this makes my job a lot easier. I should probably hide the ship and take the kid back. If people find it, it would cause unnecessary trouble for him. You simply have to grow strong in like 200 years or more, no pressure." The figure shakes as it becomes clearer. A cute little girl with the appearance of brown yellowy skin in a sci-fi armor. The little girl pointed at the ship as Flint floats out of it and runic circle appears below the ship. It dissipates into lights.

"What?" she's surprised by how much energy it took. "....Right, the energy density is too low so the environment tries to suck me dry. Good thing I brought a storage card." She takes out a card, pointed it at the ship as it turns into lights and floats into the card, Flint is still floating. The little girl waves her hand as a lot of EP left her. Only a small amount is use to restore the crater, making it look like nothing happened.

Little girl gets closer to Flint as he floats, she examines him, "Now where are you from?" she puts the card on Flint's head as it shows her his memories. Though only the basic ones about his identity and where he stays.

"I'll borrow your face for a bit, okay Farm boy. I can't let people suspect anything. This'll be like a dream to you." The girl taps Flint with the card as he also turns into light and enters the card. The girl taps herself with the card as her appearance changes to look like Flint. She rushes back like the wind and appears in the hut on the farm as Flint's father returns.

"Flint! Are you ready?" Flint who's actually the little girl answers, "Yes father!" she/he left and joins his father as they leave, like nothing ever happened. Girl/Flint snickers behind his father as she thought, "Pretending is quite fun."

Flint woke up to the familiar roof like any other day, he rubs his eyes. "Huh? Was that a dream?" he looks around him to see that everything is as it should be.

*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*

"Wake up Filly, you'll be late again." Aku opens the door and sees him awake, Aku is shocked, "WHAT?! You woke up early!" it was a bit before sunrise.

"Is that something too surprising!".

"Well...yeah." Flint lies back down sighing.

"Anyway, you'll be late." She threw a rag to Flint as she left.

"Late? Hah, I had the strangest dream, what am I even late for?...... FARM!" as usual, the frantic moving about for clothes and rushing around ensues again. Except only this time Aku was delaying their father to buy time for Flint.

"So~o you're saying you prune the branches and not the stems?". The father was listening to her, and knew what's going on, "*Sighs* Aku, I know your trying to buy time for your brother."

"Is it working?" she gives a sunny smile.

"It would have been if you were younger, then I can take it as your cute little curiosity". He pokes her nose, "Your brother better start getting into shape soon or he might oversleep on his wedding day.".

"You know something strange that happened? Little Filly actually woke up early."

Dad didn't notice what she said earlier, "*Sighs* Stil trying to buy ti- WAIT WHAT?! FLINT WOKE UP EARLY?!" he's so surprised he didn't notice Flint had arrived.

"Why're you so surprised?" shocked at the scene of his father's reaction.

Dad was mumbling, "Flint woke up early? It's the end of the world. The world is ending." Aku burst out laughing as Flint gets shy.

"Da~ad!" Flint tries to snap his dad out of it. Then their mother arrives to the commotion. "What's so funny this early morning?".

"Flint woke up early" Dad spoke."......Silence....."then Mother took a ladle and a pan. *BANG BANG BANG BANG*

"FLINT WOKE UP EARLY THIS MORNING! THE WORLD IS ENDING!" the neighbors also joined in on the joke as some laughed hard, an old man's teeth fell out. Licia came outside, "Big brother is great either way!" she said trying to defend her big brother while swinging her arms and huffing.

Everyone is touched by her cuteness and goes, "Awww." The people really enjoy this morning. With that the duo set off again to farm as they all have a happy morning.

Flint and his father go out to work as usual. They chat and Dad keeps giving Flint relationship advice too terrible for Flint to try. The old generation's way of dating and the youth are different. They enjoyed working until lunch. They were working again as they saw someone running towards them in distress. Dad went ahead to meet him as Flint continues working.

"What's the matter?" the man arrives. Dad's heart starts to race.

"John*Pants for breath*, it's Licia she collapsed!" Dad called John froze. The man shook him out of his trance as John left and ran home, Flint sees his father running home so he ask.

"Excuse me, but why's dad leaving?". Man didn't know how to break it to him, "W....We....Y......Your sister, Licia is- ". Flint takes off after his father running, Man follows but he is exhausted to run.

Flint's thoughts, "Please, please be alright. Licia!" he ran as tears stream down his face, he keeps praying hoping..... Flint arrives back home and sees the house empty. He runs inside calling out to his family but no one responds. He leaves for the herbalist next. He sees people gathered there murmuring when he arrives.

"Uncles, Aunties, what happened?" no one could look at him as they all stare down, tears fell from his eyes as he rush inside the herbalist's home. He sees his family gathered around a bed as Aku sat at a corner in tears. His mother held a hand as she wept and his father was by a wall coved in blood marks with is hand wounded. Flint looked towards the bed and saw Licia lying on it unmoving. Flint's hearing dimmed as he only focused on his sister. He walks slowly to her until he kneels down at the bedside looking at his sister as she lies there.

"Licia? Licia hey get up. *Aku came and hugged Flint as he wailed* LICIA, LICIA! *SOBS*".

"Stop it Flint! *Flint looks at Aku* She's alive, but if we don't find a cure soon....." Flint sobs as he hugs his sister back. It was a sad moment for the village, a bright little sun was dimming. After hours of sobbing until they couldn't cry anymore. John, Flint's dad finally moved from the wall,

Spoke with dead eye in whisper, "I'm going to the farm to get our stuff." And he walks out of the house, some of the men are worried so they go with him so nothing happens. Flint's mother took Licia home as Aku held Licia's hand until the reached home. Flint is by the corner of the room and a boy walks over, the boy looks at Flint and gives him his candy he has been saving.

Flint looks up at the boy, "Thanks Chuck but I'm not hungry." The boy sat by his side,

"I'm sorry Flint, I don't know what I can do but... know that I'm here for you." They sat there deep into the night and even slept there. In the morning Chuck's mother came for him and told Flint to go home to his family. Flint gets up and groggily walks out but not home, he lost his way and he went to the village outskirts.

Flint sits on a rock as he weeps even more, beside the rock are Licia's favorite flowers. They'd come here to pick some when she was stronger, but as she got weaker, she couldn't even leave the house. Night came as Flint is still at the rock, his eyes dried from tears. His sadness slowly turns rage as he got up and hits the rock.

A voice comes to his ears, "Hitting the rock won't fix anything."

"What do you know?" he didn't check to find out the source of the voice, "My little sister is dying and we don't even know how to cure her even if we have the money.". A little girl appears beside him in the village's clothes as she's holding a stuffed animal.

"..... Bad things happen and there's nothing you can do to stop them." Words hurt Flint more "But sitting around crying won't fix anything."

"So, what should I do then?" he turns to see a beautiful girl, her hair fluttering in the wind as the night light shine of her brown skin. But he is currently not in the state to appreciate this.

"Pray and leave it to God, a miracle might happen."

"We've prayed to the goddess ever since we found out about this. Nothing's changed."

"Trying praying to the ONE who listens." Flint looks at her confused and sad, "When was the last time you slept? No matter, you should get some sleep at least, there's no point if you also fall sick." She turns and walks away.

"*Sighs* The ONE who listens. Whoever you are, please help my sister." He prays then, turns and heads home, he sees how quiet the house was but still went in. He sees his father in the living room staring blankly at the wall.

"Dad...Maybe we should get some sleep." His father didn't answer, he took a blanket from his room and laid it on his father but he didn't move. He goes to Licia's room and sees his mother on her bedside praying as she holds her hand, he goes to Aku's door but didn't enter. He hears sobbing from the other side, he continues to his room and lies on his bed. Surprisingly, he manages to sleep.

Meanwhile outside the village, the girl who spoke with Flint stood on the tree top as she watched them.

"*Sighs* A curse like this can be cured easily with a few herbs, they see them every day but don't know what it does. SSTM DC Package should activate soon, I guess I'll put in a mission for the cure, he might adapt to the SSTM quickly." The girl jumped off the tree as she flies high into the sky above the clouds with a jump.

"This world also has gods huh, I'll deal with the god who gave her the curse as a sick joke." She stretches her hand forward and swiped down as a tear opens, she flies through it.