Project Schemer: Higeki's chapter: Requiem

Arc 3 - Epilogue: Beautiful Puppetry

"At least you have to eat something."

"..."

"I know it is painful, but please, seeing you like this it break my heart."

"..."

Six months passed since that day, six months and all that sacrifice for nothing. We got a peace treaty and a promise from the city to leave us alone... all that sacrifice for almost nothing, but this is my fault, i forgot the fact that the bond i share with them is two sided. Because of my decision, everything return to square one, they accepted the peace treaty because of my decision, but in my heart i feel something else. A feeling that a burden remain in my heart but the pain wash away everything, all i can feel is pain, even after six month and countless of operation performed by my own team and even Tau from the savant help them. I still feel pain... maybe this is the famous phantom pain they always say about. Seeing myself in the mirror, what was the last time i take a bath or cutting my hair, i look like a homeless right now... They can't do much since the arm is pretty much gone by this point. Even trying to re attach the arm then the contamination will spread through all my body, the savant... they are devastated right now.

"How could you not predict that !"

"There were so much information... i can't do anything else."

"This is my fault, i underestimated his emotion. I thought the moment i said he could let me take the blame, i thought he could let go."

"Everyone calm down."

"How could i calm down, we have a kid without an arm screaming in agony in there for six month with phantom pain."

"This is not a victory or a draw, this is our defeat. And along with that is humiliation."

"These emotion, i never felt it before."

"Of course we didn't but this is what Higeki felt."

Six months living as an empty husk, the same day, the same night, the same stars. Like stargazing doesn't have that much meaning, everything doesn't hold much meaning, everyone are the same, they can be happy and cheer for this peace but i can't feel that. The pain of the missing arm and it is strange, i feel like the bond with Tomoe is breaking and he even stop appear or trying to talk. The fact that he used my blood and flesh to manifest and went on a s*******r is quite strange, i am not the real Higeki then why he did so much for me.

The blue star, is that even important ? Do i care about reaching the blue star ? Everyone already have what they want and everyone is tired then why do i need to care reaching the blue star. This world will die and everything along will fall into the depth of the abyss, even the Conductor reach his perfection then is that truly important. Nothing more than a swan song, a desperate attempt to show your talent before the curtain call, why try so hard and only know that you will fail. Maybe i am trapped in my ambition of reaching the blue star but you the conductor, you have my condolences for you have a dream like me, a dream that you can't and never can reach.

Even if turn myself in for the city, that doesn't help that much, all research sites are destroyed, maybe i should accept my fate back then. At least that moment i can end my existance and end this pain, what happen if i fall, can that release them from the pain of witnessing me everyday ? Can they live on ? They will live in pain but that pain will fade away and then they can be happy. The last good deed i can do for my people. Finally, they can be free from pain and grief, they can move on and build a brighter world, so much like you conductor, i will perform my own swan song.

"Please... save me... anyone please if you can hear me....please save me..."

"Another whisper... i basically can ignore you at this point."

"Please stop... i need your help... please save me... this ambition, it is torturing me."

"Ambition... are you the conductor ?"

"You are that child... Higeki... please save me..."

"And six months ago you took my arm. How irony, are you trying to mock me ?"

"Please, save me, all these ambitions, all these desire of the citizen, it is killing me. I know i took away everything from you but please hear my voice."

"Alright, i am not that different from you, what do you want to speak ?"

"I can't maintain this power, i will let my man escort you to my place. Please trust me, i won't bring you any harm."

What do i have left to lose, but the conductor is truly the man to his words. But this is strange and much more scary than the last time i entered the city, the atmosphere is almost threatening, the guard keep me close to them. They even use a robe to cover and hide me, we turn and turn until we reached a house that look like every house on the street. When i entered the house, the two guards behind me leave and their faces for the first time i see emotion on the face of people in the city. They are filled with sadness but i can't help them that much. The house is filled with countless of crumpling paper, splatter with paint and countless of broken instruments along with a lot of sheet music lying on the floor. The house only have two floors and not a lot of rooms, the moment i reached the second floor, i see him - The conductor. For the first time, it like seeing a mirror, completely different from the conductor i see six month ago. According to Alermond and Alfred, the conductor always pay attention to his appearance and every actions are perfect but the person in front of me right now, is he the conductor ?

"You must be disappointed."

"A little bit, you are my opponent after all."

"I am not a stuck up villain like you think. But that battle, that one battle, you do more than just peace treaty, you change more than you think and you opened my eye for the first time."

"That your goal of perfection is delusional ?"

"No, my goal isn't delusion, it far worse than that. Last six months, i fought against against the thought in my head. I searched through countless record and discover the truth."

"The truth ?"

"That my goal, my life, everything is a lie. I am a lie, i am created to serve one purpose, to create perfection as a way to maintain this world."

"Maintain this world ?"

"Maintain the law of this world, the vicious cycle. But now i see both of us are trapped in this cycle no matter who emerge victory, you will become the new conductor and the cycle renew."

So no matter how much we fight, this world will remain as long as one side emerge victorious but that is something i predicted. It is the future that i feared and now it is confirmed, it is an endless cycle and our agony will continue until the end of this world. But that is too much distracting, there are a lot of questions that need an answer.

"Alright, that is enough of introduction. Now, i have a lot of questions."

"I predicted this."

"First, do you know about the blue star and my creator."

"... I always see it on the sky, but i can only say, i have nothing to do with it. Maybe someone else behind all of this event, and we are simply puppet performing for someone's entertainment."

"So is there anyway to save him ?"

"I don't know, but i think there is someone else who play my role as the conductor. I never want this world to be like this."

"Conductor, we must leave now."

"Where are we going ?"

"My old home. The only place safe place, the city is filled with traitor."

So the Conductor explain everything. What happened in the last six month and the truth he found that change everything. The cruel truth about everything in this world is simply a large puppet show, the performance to entertain some deranged individual. Or maybe it serve a greater plan and simply the conductor is a dummy used to take the blame, instead of directing the anger directly to them, they can direct that to WORLD. They have every organization in this world wrap around their finger, since the beginning there were no WORLD to begin with, it is just a way for those in the dark avoid the light. So all that s*******r, it is just a show to them.

"But explain this to me, why a change of heart. You murdered an organization, you consider people as stepping stone, why now, why that took six months ?"

"What organization ?"

"Don't play dumb you murder and capture an organization with their leader named Musouka."

"No... so that is also their plan... everything is revealed now. We must reach that mansion under the ground."

"You know about it too ?"

"That is my orginal house."

The mansion underground, the house of art or any names it is called. The butler welcome us and he is not surprised by the Conductor, he even calls the Conductor by his real name and even welcome both of us. We go the library and the conductor, now his true name revealed - Orcress, and with his document we can reach the hidden part of the library. And that is the moment we discorver the truth of Orcress.