Stars of Freedom

Chapter 60: A Man With Time

The ice was melting as Volk kneeled in the middle of everyone, one of his hands grabbed onto the ground tightly. His breathing was off as he was holding on to his shield with his other hand. He took a deep breath and he stood up.

Everyone who knew what he had lost looked at him, wondering what would happen next. Before anything did happen, Tori immediately dropped everything to run over to him. She grabbed his arm and looked him directly in the eyes.

Tori: Listen, V, take a deep breath.

He looked at her, he closed one eye and turned from her. She noticed smoke coming from his back. The two suddenly sensed something was off, they looked up and immediately jumped back. As something landed on the ground at immense speed, the two fell back from the shockwave the crash created. It was Lamia again.

Lamia: Well, well, never thought you'd get this far...

Okami: You came back to life again?! Fine, we'll kill your punk ass one more time!

Her eyes twitching from side to side looking at everyone and her hands now entirely black, she rushed at Volk. He blocked a relentless barrage of hits from her when suddenly someone else appeared from above the trees near them.

He had launched himself towards Lamia, she turned her head all the way around to look at him but had no time to react as he had knocked her off of Volk. He landed on the ground and immediately dragged his shoe clockwise in a semi-circle on the dirt, casting something on himself.

He moved faster than before and dug into Lamia's face with his bare hands. As he ripped her apart into two pieces he summoned a Desert Eagle from thin air. He immediately unloaded two round into each part of her body, subsequently making her finally disappear. Volk looked at this new stranger and recognized him immediately. To his surprise, Kenos did as well. The stranger picked up two orbs that Lamia had dropped upon her death.

Volk: Kochev? You...

Kenos: There he is! Koko!

Volk looked over at Kenos and then back at Kochev. Kochev turned around towards the two as he lifted his head.

Kochev: Sup.

Volk closed both eyes and took a deep breath.

Volk: This whole time...you were alive!?

Kenos: Wait, you two know each other?

Kochev: Umm, long story, Ken.

Volk covered his eyes with his sleeve, he clenched his teeth. Tori grabbed Volk's shoulder, trying to calm him down.

Kenos: Wow, this whole time you had been friends with a literal god of time.

Everyone paused for a second, Volk looked up to look at Kochev.

Volk: the...what?!

Kochev: Ken, how many times do I have to tell you to not say things like that out loud.

Volk walked over to Kochev, he grabbed his shirt.

Volk: This whole time...

Through tears, he spoke as he pulled Kochev closer.

Volk: We tried contacting you...Sobaka, Lisa...we could've used your help!

Kochev: Woah, woah, calm d-

Volk: No! Where in Helheim's name were you?!

Kochev: Listen, dude, I can't-

Volk: Oh my god...the entire journey would have been so much different...!

Kochev pushed Volk back.

Kochev: Listen! I can't change those events! It could reset the timeline...again.

He looked over at Kenos, to which he responded by making a peace sign towards Kochev. The smoke on Volk's back got more noticeable as the surrounding ground froze again. He took a deep breath and the ice disappeared.

Volk: To answer your stupid question from before, I'm not dropping out of this fight now. I want the heart of whoever did this in my hands.

He turned around, ignoring Tori and heading towards Alepou. He grabbed her arm and told her to follow him. All eyes weren't on Volk, but instead they looked at Kochev. Nahe stood up from the ground, still in pain.

Nahe: Okay, Mr. Urth, why exactly did you show up now?

Kochev: Damn, haven't heard that name in a while. For your answer.... Right place, right time.

Tori grabbed her head, suddenly losing her footing and falling back. "Really now?!" she told herself, laughing, before her hair changed from brown to black. Her entire outfit changed colors as she had an angrier expression than when she was fighting.

Kitsune: So. What exactly is the reason the timeline would reset if you had helped us even just a bit all those years ago? The reason why you couldn't accompany Volk?

Kochev: To put it simply, think of a timeline like a string of yarn. There are these very carefully placed pins holding the string in a straight line, we call these Summus events. These are events that have a major importance in a timeline. Yes, you can take a few pins out and the string can stay stable and straight, but someone had cut off that piece of string and replaced it with a new line which is thinner than before. Plus, you can't take the first pin out of the line and expect it to be stable.

Okami scratched his head trying to piece everything Kochev just spoke.

Kochev: To put it even simpler, time unsteady, me no mess with it.

Okami: Oh.

Kitsune: So our fight with Hel was something that had to happen no matter what...the death of our friends...and everyone else. All that time me and Argos spent in the castle...was that necessary? Did you know?!

Kochev: No. Ken told me not to intervene, he-

Kenos: I thought it was playing out just like my timeline...

Elias: What happened back then? What was so bad that you never heard them out?!

Kenos: You don't want the answer to that question.

Yuzui sat on the ground and closed her eyes.

Kitsune: Well, I do! What could be so horrendous that it warrants you leaving us to rot in that castle, insulting us every time you saw us, not letting us live a single day thinking that we were safe! Making him have to go out and kill people to ensure that we could survive an attack from what we now know is a Titan, God, and Mortal Hybrid!

Kenos sighed as a cold wind blew through the air.

Kenos: Fine....