Chapter 753 Mourning Our Losses

"I get that you're mourning, Olivia." Keng spoke up. "But do you really have to be an ass all the time?"

"Hey, you don't get to—" Liz began to defend Olivia as Keng's eyes glowed bright. She stopped as Keng drew the group's eyes to him.

"I'm really disappointed in you. You promised me you'd try to be understanding yet you've done nothing but stay quiet and be angry. I know you're mourning the loss of your grandmother and your village but Lee Seng doesn't deserve this. He doesn't deserve any of it. You know who's behind this." Keng stood up and turned. "Enjoy your night. I won't sleep tonight. I'll keep a lookout for Lee Seng and anyone curious enough to attack us." Keng vanished, leaving the group to themselves.

Manny let out a frustrated sigh as he buried his face into his hands. Calis and Ritsuka continued to eat while Liz tried to comfort Olivia.

"Ah those assholes! He has Lee Seng again so he suddenly doesn't have any sympathy!" Liz angrily shouted. "It's alright, Olivia. Don't forgive those two! They wouldn't know what we went through."

"Because no one told them." Evan bluntly spoke. He stared daggers at the girls then at the two other boys. "We didn't tell him anything, so how he's supposed to know? Is he supposed to be a mind reader?"

"He can talk telepathically! You think he'd figure it out by now?" Liz retorted. Evan sighed and set his food down.

"IF you don't communicate well then how's anyone supposed to know how you feel? All you two are doing is throwing shade to him! You've done it all fuckin' day! Don't so delusional that anyone's going to understand how you feel all the time! Even I'm trying my best to understand you're still mourning your loss, but don't expect someone who woke up from the dead to understand the amount of time that's passed!"

"Evan." Manny called out. "Please." Evan gave Manny a weird look and turned to him.

"You. You buried how you feel about him but act all defensively when something happens to him. You've fucked him up and yet Lee Seng still kept you around! Should you really be saying anything right now?"

"Hey. I don't remember asking for your opinion." Manny barked. Evan laughed and looked around. "If I remember correctly, you were so about the rules! We fought over the rules and where did that take us, hm? Lee Seng disappeared that day and we got our memories wiped!"

"Yours didn't." Evan pointed out. "Let's get that right, Valentin. Which side are you really on?"

"Hey." Ritsuka set his plate down and raised his hands. "Let's not—"

"And you Yamada!" Manny turned. "You've been super close to Lee Seng ever since he joined the school all those years ago! You stuck near him everyday. Do you have some sort of crush on him or something?"

"Manny, calm dow—"

"You can't even hide you like him. I wouldn't say anything if I were you." Liz sourly interrupted Ritsuka. She glared at Manny who was bubbling with anger. Calis finished the rest of his food and set his plate down. He started to stand when Olivia glanced in his direction.

"If it weren't for you, we wouldn't have to be here." Olivia told Calis. "This is why I didn't want to be apart of this. It's all your fault."

"Hey don't blame him!" Evan defended Calis. "You need to sort yourself out!"

"How 'bout you get the fuck outta what I should do, hm?" Olivia snapped. "I'll knock your 5 foot ass any day."

"Bring it, bitch!" The two flew at each other as a purple lightning bolt flew out and hit Evan. Evan bounced away, slamming into a tree as the group grew angry barking and hissing. Calis sighed and snapped his fingers. Water bubbles grew around each individual, lifting them up.

"Better." Calis sighed. He watched Manny, Liz, Evan and Olivia try to speak but no sound would come out. Liz tried to bolt her way out of it, but the water bubble would absorb it before anything happened.

"I really didn't want to get involved, but I guess it's my duty as a leader of sorts to do so." Calis sighed. He turned to Manny. "Leader Valentin! You're the leader. Don't you think your personal feelings and the call outs of your teammates should get under your skin? You need thicker skin to guide your people! They are all emotionally charged and you need to defuse the situation quicker!

"Liz! I know you're only trying to protect Olivia's feelings, but it is Olivia's own responsibility to voice those same feelings she's trying so hard to keep in a bottle! Nothing gets solved if you just decide to protect someone without letting them do their job!

"Evan! Your personality has changed a lot since you've fled Earth. I get it that you're coping in your own way and hard things must be said, but please think about what you say to whom you're saying it to! Olivia is mourning the loss of a lot of people. Family, friends, acquaintances. You don't get to tell her when she's done mourning and what she's done wrong. Mourning comes in ever shape and size.

"Ritsuka. Sometimes the quietest route isn't the best route. I understand your intentions but when your leader or members aren't the voice of reason, you have to step up as best as you can." Calis sighed and turned to Olivia.

"I know what its like to lose someone. I've lost many people to this unknown curse. I wish I could've found the Cup sooner and not involved you guys, but this is how it is. All of those people that died to the curse… I wish I could bring them back. I wish I could mend families back together. Brothers. Sisters. Uncles. Aunts. Moms. Dads. Grandparents. Death is an unfortunate cycle in our lives but we must accept it somehow…

"When my father died to the curse, I didn't know how to act… I wished I was more lucky in finding the Cup… I wished everything that happened on Earth didn't happen. I wished so hard for things that can't come true because Fate chose that for us… So I get it. I get it that you're mad for the wrongdoings of the Deimons… Lee Seng made his choice to protect that town by killing that Deimon. Years have passed since that day… Lee Seng has paid for some of that suffering by being in a coma…" Calis let out a heavy sigh and refocused himself. He set his hand on his heart and focused on Olivia.

"I heard your grandmother fought to the very end to protect all of you… Would she want you to pin it all on Lee Seng?"

Lee Seng stomped through the forest as Keng blinked to his side. Keng grabbed Lee Seng and spun him, almost dropping Lee Seng's food.

"What?" Lee Seng asked, annoyed. Keng sighed and moved the plate out of Lee Seng's hands and allowed it to float away from them. He grabbed Lee Seng and hugged him.

[Connection Established… Soul Bead Levels connecting…]

[Ping!]

"It's going to be okay, Lee Seng. Don't mind what they're all saying. We've all lost a lot of things." Keng whispered. Lee Seng didn't try to fight Keng. He accepted it as what it was and rested his head on Keng's shoulder while he raised his arms up and squeezed a bit. "Olivia has lost a lot that day. You've gained and lost a lot that year. We all did." Keng pulled away and smiled. He wiped Lee Seng's face and pulled him in for another hug.

"What am I supposed to do?" Lee Seng asked. "We have to constantly move forward yet it feels like we're stuck in the past… It feels like yesterday for me, y'know… Yesterday… I helped them kill that Deimon… Before that… The explosion from that Deimon captain lady… And… that woman - the Protocol… The Broodmother… She's… She…"

"Shhhh… It's okay… Take your time." Keng ruffled Lee Seng's hair. Lee Seng sobbed while Keng quietly made shushing noises. "It'll be alright."

Lee Seng and Keng sat on the floor. Lee Seng quietly ate his food as he occasionally sniffed up snot. Keng hummed, quietly, as he kept watch. The food had gone cold and Lee Seng couldn't be bothered to reheat the food, so he ate it cold. He took a bite, chewed it and swallowed it like he was processing everything that happened. It was quiet for quiet some time, but Lee Seng turned to look at Keng.

"I had a nightmare about her… After that night." Lee Seng continued his explanation. He had started to fill Keng in on what he saw, but the words were hard to find. "Do you think… That shard was trying to show me something? That my life was really a lie?" Keng shrugged and shook his head.

"I don't know for sure, but… I think she was trying to tell you something. What do you think you should do with this information now?" Keng asked. "Should we dig into it…? Or should we leave it alone?"