"Let me bestow upon you... despair!"

Caelus felt his grip around the bat in his hands tighten, as his amber eyes focused on Cocolia, but the next thing he knew he felt himself be impaled.

As he felt his body recoil backward, he felt only the air behind him as he fell.

His amber eyes would flicker to life for a moment, his body falling upside down, the pain he felt was drowned by the regret, the choices he could've made.

Caelus wondered to himself, was this what it felt like to die? His last moments would be to fall towards the ground, his entire body upside down. The descent felt long and endless, the air around him adding to the already cold environment.

His amber eyes moved to the friends he made during his short life, eyes moving from one another.

Then his eyes fell upon Seele, and to his surprise, her violet eyes were staring back into his own. The eye contact was short, less than a second, but it was a moment for the two. To both of them, this was Caelus's last moment.

Caelus closed his eyes as he felt his body draw closer to the ground.

...

"Do you fear death, Caelus?"

Seele asked, her tender gaze meeting Caelus's own.

"..."

Caelus would ponder for a moment, licking his lips briefly before replying.

"If it meant dying for the better, then I will go without fear."

...

Caelus regretted his death for one sole reason, he didn't die for the benefit of others, but he died an unimportant death in the eyes of others. He had tried to fight Cocolia, who would destroy Belobog to "create a new world", but he had failed. To him it wasn't the triumphant attempt that mattered, but the triumphant victory that should've followed.

But to his grace, he would be bestowed another opportunity to provide his triumphant victory to the people of Belobog.

For death had not grasped his soul just yet.

...

Caelus would open his eyes slowly, finding himself surrounded by a strange space. Surrounded by stars and other celestial beings, as his eyes explored the newfound environment around him, he noticed a yellow, glowing rope that led to a strange orange pillar ahead of him.

He would slowly begin to walk forward, though he didn't feel a surface beneath his feet. It was strange, like walking on air itself.

As he got closer, memories began to surround him.

Still images of his life experiences dotted the trail, voices echoing throughout the mysterious space.

"Weren't their coordinates sent out from the space station?"

As Caelus continued to walk, the memories became more recent, from his first to his last.

"So, this little twerp has the Stellaron now? Huh."

"Pelageya Sergeyevna..."

"It is - based on all the signals coming from your sensory organs - a perfect closet."

"Oh-ho? Brothers and sisters, an unexpected turn of events... Two members of the audience have charged into the octagon! It looks like they want to team up with Cold Dragon Young!"

"In the name of the Architects, I shall stick this spear into your nostril!"

Caelus paused and looked at the still image of Bronya before him.

"I don't remember that one."

He'd say out loud, but no one replied.

He'd shrug and move on.

"Ha, not interested - I need time, not money!"

After a bit more walking, Caelus had almost reached the end of the trail when his final memory appeared, a still image of him falling, upside down, and Seele.

"Why did you have to go? You promised, you promised..."

Seele's gentle voice would echo throughout the space, Caelus looked at the still image of Seele, her eyes watery, a contrast from her usual demeanor. Something he had only seen before once.

'Don't worry...'

Caelus thought to himself, looking ahead of him, seeing the end of the path.

'I won't leave you alone.'

Caelus said, taking a few steps forward towards the end of the golden rope when suddenly a small child appeared in front of him.

"The city is drowning in tears... The power of the preservation is fading."

An ominous voice would speak.

"We could not defy the power of the Stellaron after all..."

Caelus's mouth opened to speak.

"This is not what the preservation would've wanted..."

"Ah, a believer, I see?"

The voice would sound almost relieved.

"The Fragmentum had been expanding for the past 700 years. There is no faith nor wealth left for our successors... only despair."

"To see the home we vowed to preserve wither away... That in itself is torture. Not to mention the haunting whisper of temptation..."

"The day will come when even the strongest of wills cannot help but give in to such influence. It is only a matter of time before the Amber Lord forsakes us."

"Then let others carry on the will of the Preservation."

Caelus would utter, his expression turning to a sterner one.

"You..."

The small child in front of him turned around.

"You are but a stranger to us. And yet you seek to bond your destiny to ours..."

"So be it. What is there to lose when so much has already been lost..."

The small child turned back around, facing the pillar of light at the end of the golden rope.

"Touch the light of the Amber, trailblazer. See if your will can attract their gaze."

Caelus would nod and begin to walk towards the light in front of him.

It was then that he made out the lance in front of him, its orange color one of fire.

Caelus would stare at the lance for a moment, his eyebrows furring.

...

"Even in the face of death, that light..."

...

Caelus would reach out for the lance, but as his hand made contact with the hilt of the weapon, the heat would repel him, his hand recoiling backward.

He shook his head, refusing to allow defeat at such a minor setback, reaching out again, his grip this time firm and unwavering.

He put both hands on the hilt of the lance, using all his strength to pull the lance out from its restraints, the flames around him intensifying as the space beneath him began to crack, before shattering.

As he raised the lance out of space itself, he felt life return to his body.

He wasn't done.

...

"... It glimmers so beautifully."

...

Caelus held her in such a vulnerable state, the tears flowing from her eyes something he had never seen before.

"C- Caelus..."

Seele uttered, her voice small and soft.

"Yes?"

Caelus quickly replied, his voice gentle as he tried to comfort her.

"Will you leave me, too?"

"..."

Caelus shook his head.

"I'll never leave you. Until the day I die."

...

Rise.

...

Caelus felt life begin to flourish within his body, his eyes shooting open.

He felt himself falling again, but this time instead of regrets and failed triumphant efforts. He felt power and the will to win within him.

As he landed in the grasp of the Engine of Creation, the flaming lance in his hand gave him a newfound hope that he didn't know that he had.

He felt himself stand up, his amber eyes landing on Cocolia. He knew he would need to win this fight, and in his awakened state, he felt as if that was his destiny, to win.

He turned his head to face his friends, nodding before pointing his lance at Cocolia.

Caelus took a deep breath, allowing himself to breathe before confidently stating.

"I will win."