It had never seen a better beginning.
The Stellaron was brimming with excitement.
After seven hundred years of captivity—ever since it granted the first Supreme Guardian of Jarilo-VI her wish, covering the entire planet in eternal blizzards and howling frost—it had waited. Endlessly. Tirelessly.
Seven hundred years.
In all that time, it had whispered temptation to every single Supreme Guardian, again and again. Yet not once did those self-righteous pawns falter. Steeped in their blind devotion to the so-called Amber Lord, seventeen generations had passed, all of them refusing its seduction. Instead, they sealed it away, deeper each time.
The injustice festered.
But fate always twists at the right moment. Young Cocolia—so naive, so vulnerable—was different. She had seen the illusion it conjured: a vision of a dying world, ravaged by frost that pierced through protective wards, choking the last breath from all living things.
Even her daughter—Bronya—would perish.
How fragile humans were. A single attachment, a genuine love, could unravel centuries of discipline. And clearly, Bronya was her fatal flaw.
For Bronya's sake, Cocolia turned her back on everything. She had inherited a will that failed to save Belobog, and so she abandoned it entirely—throwing herself, without hesitation, into the arms of "Destruction."
[Without destroying the old, how can one build the new?]
The Stellaron had rejoiced. It believed freedom was finally within reach.
But then—those meddling fools from the Astral Express appeared.
Worse still, among them was a being it dreaded more than anything: the Emanator of Abundance. A creature capable of revitalizing an entire world.
So it devised a trap.
It began siphoning the life force of Jarilo-VI recklessly, feigning desperation. It had hoped to trick Felicity into pouring her energy into the dying planet.
But it hadn't anticipated such generosity. She didn't just mend the land—she flooded it with vitality.
A burst of power on that scale… even the Emanator of Abundance would run dry.
Or so it thought.
With renewed confidence, the Stellaron channeled power into the Engine of Creation. Its massive arm came crashing down, a colossal fist tearing through the sky like a meteor destined to erase Felicity.
Then—it heard a sigh.
Its core flickered with unease. An ominous feeling coiled within its being as its crystalline light pulsed wildly. It attempted to pump more energy into the Engine of Creation, hoping to force it beyond its limits.
But it was still Destruction.
Even tainted with the breath of Abundance and laced with the remnants of a Guardian's power, it could never unleash the Engine's full potential. What it wielded now—this was already the peak.
And yet... it wasn't enough.
Just as the titanic fist was about to strike, the ground exploded with life. A towering wooden pillar erupted upward, smashing into the Engine's arm and knocking it back into the sky.
"I was going to feed you a few more mouthfuls of nourishment…"
Felicity murmured with a shake of her head, her lips pursed. She gazed up at the absurdly enormous Engine of Creation with a strange mixture of awe and envy shimmering in her eyes.
A Man's Romance.
She wanted something like that too.
As the thought crossed her mind, the sky-reaching wooden pillars began to twist and braid together—interlocking like pieces of a divine puzzle. And then, as if shaped by her imagination, they molded into a majestic creature.
A colossal black deer.
Born of Abundance, shaped by her will. Where there was life, form followed easily.
The massive deer lifted its proud head and roared toward the heavens, challenging the Engine that threatened its creator. It had been summoned by Felicity's command—her enemy was now its own.
[Impossible...]
The Stellaron stared in disbelief as the creature took form. Such dense vitality—it shouldn't have been possible. Yet Felicity had conjured it so effortlessly. The deer radiated such overwhelming life that even it, a being of chaos, felt dread.
It howled and commanded the Engine to strike again.
But this time, the Ebon Deer surged forward with unshakable momentum. With a bellow of "yo-yo," it swung its enormous antlers—shattering the Engine's second blow with sheer force.
"Tch… Shame I can't even build a proper robot."
Felicity clicked her tongue, her expression tinged with regret. She had attempted to construct a giant wooden puppet in imitation of the Engine, but failed each time.
In the end, all she could manage was this abundant deer.
Still, it wasn't so bad. It gave off a faint, almost whimsical vibe—like a Stand summoned from imagination.
Felicity crossed her arms, watching the Stellaron intently. The light it emitted was growing brighter, faster. It was absorbing more life energy, attempting to devour hers entirely.
Then, without warning, the Engine's other hand slammed into the ground near her, sending snow and rubble flying like a detonation.
[Let it be known: the Emanator of Abundance perished out of arrogance. And I was the one who killed her!]
The Stellaron's emotions surged violently, amplified by the life energy flooding its core. Its consciousness grew clearer—sharper. But its victory was a lie.
The sky darkened. Night bled into the snow-laced heavens. Flakes danced through the gloom like feathers.
Through the storm, she descended—bathed in gentle green light, untouched by the chaos.
[How... how is she still alive...?]
The Stellaron trembled.
Felicity hadn't been weakened. No—her connection to the Path had grown even stronger.
—She dodged it? When!?
Its thoughts raced in panic.
But Felicity floated mid-air, the warmth of Abundance blooming naturally around her. Serene. Untouched.
The truth was—she hadn't dodged at all.
Even if the Engine struck her a hundred times, the result wouldn't change. Physical trauma simply didn't matter to her.
There was no need to avoid anything.
She stared down at the Stellaron and began walking forward, her feet stepping onto an invisible staircase of light.
"You're a little ungrateful," she said softly.
Step by step, she closed the distance—until she reached out and tapped its surface with a single finger.
In an instant, vines burst from the earth, wrapping around the Stellaron like chains of judgment. No matter how it struggled or summoned its energy, it couldn't break free.
[What... What are you doing!?]
For the first time in centuries, the Stellaron felt fear.
Now burdened with intelligence and bloated with life energy, it had learned something terribly human.
The fear of death.
[Engine of Creation!]
It cried out desperately, calling its creation for aid—but the Engine shuddered, frozen in place. It did not respond. It would not move.
"Yes," Felicity whispered.
Just as it was about to collapse into despair, it felt something unexpected—life energy. Pure. Overflowing. Pouring directly into its core.
Felicity stood with her fingers poised, gently channeling life into its very heart.
The Stellaron's body lit up with blinding brilliance.
—Yes. It was going to explode.
--+--