Moon Theory (ABO)Ch91 - history, one of theirs

[a winter day, 22 years ago]

‘My dear, l8aLuQ

Have you ever seen such colorful skies?

It is a thing of fiction, in one of those storybooks I’ve seen when young. In the Arctic, all those violets, blues and greens overtake like wispy clouds, like blooming flowers, even more beautiful than sunset. Such a phenomenon is the borealis, and with you down south, I believe you can catch hints of the australis. Take the chance to look at it properly, my love, for I hear the auroras may one day be faint.

Please visit chrysanthemumgarden (dot) com

…Though I reckon you do not care for such sentimental things… My cold-hearted Lieutenant, at the very least, placate me with a picture or two.

It really is a shame that you are not here to witness it with me. These letters take months to send, and it will take months more for me to receive yours. 4rEoiq

Hm… I am only exaggerating a bit. I am upfront with my advances, but I doubt you are romantic enough to reciprocate. Regardless, my handsome Lieutenant, not a daisy goes by without my missing you.

With every love petal, Luna.’

—

Her penmanship is as lovely as her words, and her calligraphy is as gorgeous as she is – beautiful blonde hair, baby blue eyes, eyelashes that seem to cascade miles long. Her appearance does not fit her attire – pitch noir uniform, rugged combat boots, hard grip gloves that do not match her perfectly shaped nails.

She hikes up the hill with a soft grin on her face, though most of it is hidden underneath a valved mask. Charming as she is, she manages to strike conversation with every other soldier with her. They’re smitten too by her looks – platonically, of course, because she is off-limits and none of them are keen to pick a fight with her commandeering fiancé. Her engagement ring is tucked neatly in her pocket.

“Specialist Auer,” a man says with a smile on his face. His insignia suggests he’s the leader of the expedition – Sergeant Major, high qualification. “In a good mood? You’ve been humming the whole way… and had I known you were this excited to trudge up snowy mountains, through blizzards and all, I would have assigned you to lead long ago.”

The woman laughs and says teasingly, “I’m an Ordnance Specialist, not a platoon commander, little Miller.”

“And until this day, you’re still the first to refer to your superior without honorifics,” the man says with a sigh. There isn’t bite to his words, however. “I have fifteen years over you, little Luna. Looking at you really reminds me of my young self. We have you lovebirds sending letters every other day and as for me, my wife gives me a call every lunar eclipse… if she even remembers! Just you watch, I’m going to find a new lover tomorrow!” sfAXJC

“Careful Sergeant Major,” one of his men laughs out loud. “Your wife would divorce you and take your kid away in the blink of an eye!”

Miller pulls off his gloves and showcases a pristine diamond ring. “Yeah?! Then I’ll pawn this ring and use the money to live a cushy rest of my life! Hit the brothels and find my next fated woman! Or man! I’m not picky as long as they appreciate my beard.”

The group of forty erupts into laughter.

“It’s not your beard that’s the problem!” someone says. “It’s your hygiene! Shave your armpits once in a while, commander!” XbExha

“And to think of finding love in a brothel… what sort of looks do you think you have?!” another soldier chortles as he wraps an arm around the sergeant major’s soldier. “You can’t even hold a candle to Lieutenant Xie!”

“Hey!” Miller puts his gloves back on and shoos the soldier away. “Don’t compare me with that other alpha guy! If you’re going in that direction, then aren’t we all ants?! He can kick your assholes with a single boot!”

We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.

“Ktfc ifa’r mbwqjgf sbe ab beg yfjealoei bwfuj, Vqfmljilra Oecj,” atf rbivlfg afjrfr yjmx. “Jjc’a rtf xlmx sbeg jrr klat akb ybbar?”

Ktf mgbkv lr lc jc eqgbjg. Zbgf ibev ijeutafg, wbmxlcu tbbar jcv pffgr – cbcf atja jgf rfglber. dzJhP

“Pause, pause, pause!” the sergeant major says defeatedly. “Isn’t our Specialist an odd case too? The army doesn’t normally recruit omegas, but your qualifications are just too…” He sighs and looks at the young woman who flashes him a wink in return. “Anyway, take it easy, little Luna. I wouldn’t want your fiancé to be after my head if anything happens to you or your child.”

—

Read more BL at chrysanthemumgarden (dot) com

‘Indeed, the borealis may be as beautiful as you had described.

I find myself wondering if the australis holds a similar spectrum. They may be more beautiful than the sunset but either way, they are not more beautiful than you.’ d6watz

C qjerf.

Fcvfgcfjat j kjzlcu wbbc, j gjnfc-tjlgfv wjc rlar bc j gbboabq. Ktf yelivlcu lr vlijqlvjafv – cba abb biv, yea atf kjiir jgf rmgjqfv, jcv atf alifr jgf rmeoofv ogbw kfjg. Pa lr eclctjylafv jr jgf jii atf batfg tbwfr tfgf. Ktlr cluta lr mbnfgfv lc j nfli bo rlifcmf.

Past twilight hours, the man writes a letter to his lover. His penmanship is neat and crisp, just like the uniform he dons, the unwrinkled jacket draped behind his back. He holds a metallic fountain pen. Prim and proper, his posture doesn’t slouch as he writes.

His brows are furrowed in slight complication, however, as he rereads the words he’d put on paper. He frowns, seems to think about it for quite some time, and then resolutely scratches out the last line. kiGo1W

‘If so, I do not find the borealis any more pleasant to look at than you. It is unfortunate I may not take photos, however. The last of our camera equipment was destroyed in transport two weeks prior. There is not much more to photograph. Soon, I will leave south, travel to the meridians and be in a place of desert and ruins.’

He pauses again.

To his side is a crimped letter, a white piece of paper that’d gone through five too many messengers. The contents are far more appealing than the state it’s in. The young man reads the letter three more times before continuing to write his own.

‘…I would only give you eleven roses, for you make up the last of the dozen.’ u9Ccar

He seems to be deep in thought again. Then he gives a slight cough, crosses the line out as well, and rewrites.

‘For our wedding, I will take you to a field of flowers. It may have to be homegrown, perhaps in a city greenhouse, for there are few places still preserved. I will find time in my itinerary to scour for more agreeable locations. Then, when our child is born, I will take you and him to somewhere much more vibrant.’

He folds his letter neatly, hops off the rooftop with one fluid motion, and then pauses to write one last line.

‘I love you.’ ali0AF

—

She is gasping heavily.

Where she lies, crimson petals flow. They stream in outward motions, in continuous inches, melting the snow underneath. The storm rages on. Not even seconds later, the ground is covered again with white. Around her, the shouts are unending.

“Left flank!” vVhbeK

“Retake formation!”

“All gatherers retreat—”

Chrysanthemum Garden.

“Cover fire! Cover fire!”

The shouts turn into gurgles, then everything turns, ironically, deafeningly silent. Even the blizzard and the howling gales don’t register to her failing ears. Consumed by white noise and waves of dizziness, she musters all her strength to reach for the discarded weapon. It may be futile. There is little hope a dagger could hope to overpower a great white beast. vsWENH

The anomalies come in dozens and the soldiers are stranded in the middle of a snowstorm, simply outmatched. Inclement weather, handicapped vision, handicapped movements – they do not dare fight head-on with these Arctic beasts. The foxes thrive in this terrain and already, thirty soldiers have fallen.

Another five seconds later and the casualties tick to thirty-five – a second a death, terrifying. Few expeditions are taken up north, and really, they’d underestimated the brutality of these creatures here. The foxes are larger than adult men, their claws sharp enough to behead, their fangs more lethal than drills. They may be mixes of wolf, some other frightening canine, but the soldiers hadn’t time to assess before thrown into battle.

However, she refuses to go down. She flips herself upright, dodges a rough strike to her head, and stabs the beast in the neck. Her gear has been damaged along with her pierced forearm. Her blue eyes narrow in defiance. In front of her, the creature howls. One eye blue, the same shade as hers, and the other ferally golden, specked in manic red.

The creature rips its way to her belly. 3kfscA

In her mind, she is not ready to die, or at the very least, she thinks she must protect this unborn child. Sharp claws puncture through an inch of her abdomen. It is helplessness and pain – and like all clichés go, the last person she thinks of is her raven-haired lover.

Her shoulders are grabbed, and she’s thrown aside before critical point.

“I’ve said,” Sergeant Major Miller has on a pained smile, his body bleeding out in all unsightly places, “That guy… Lieutenant Xie will be after my head if you die… Go on and get out of here… Luna Auer.”

— MnDx5k

He is breathing heavily.

With a swipe of his black dagger, the creature in front drops pliant on the ground. The battleground is covered in ammo shells, human corpses, beasts with bodies so mangled they’re hardly identifiable. Their squadron has suffered casualties, but not to a very large degree. Consensus holds they could still carry on.

“Lieutenant Xie.” The man who calls out to him is of higher ranking – one silver star shines magnificently on his jacket. He is relatively uninjured and only his uniform is scratched by the hems. “Well done. Our next deployment will be to the western plains. We will work in conjunction with the Fifth Platoon.”

The lieutenant nods and doesn’t affirm nor deny. G8PdIL

“The military holds high hopes for you,” the brigadier general says. “You are among the most promising. One more year of service and you will be due for a promotion to captain – no, perhaps at your pace, you may only need several months.”

“I will be taking a short leave,” he responds. “To attend to a personal matter.”

There is a flash of something unknown in the brigadier general’s eyes before it is masked by a few blinks. The man lets out a low cough and says, “What is your personal matter? Depending on its relevance, you may not be granted exigency.”

“The birth of my son.” JBd8Lh

“…” The man replies slowly, “It is unfortunate. Command has informed that you must stay on duty for the foreseeable future.”

The two of them make eye contact.

Chrysanthemum Garden.

Xie Liwei’s dark eyes hold omniscience – and he is no fool, not at all blind to the way the brigadier general blinks half a second slower than normal, the way the man’s hand shifts slightly in his pocket. The lieutenant steps forward. Tension brews between them.

“Brigadier General Price,” he says dangerously. “What is it that you are hiding from me?” cjZxUd

“…” The other sighs. “Lieutenant Xie, it is classified information.”

“Classified information,” he repeats. “It is classified information that my fiancée’s whereabouts have been hidden from me for a month. That her letters remain undelivered and unreceived, that her platoon suddenly cut off contact.” In a rare display of hostility, he grabs the man’s collar, digging his fingers threateningly close to his neck. He lowers his voice coldly. “Do not joke with me, Price.”

“Remain calm, Xie Liwei.”

“Any calmer and I will snap your neck.” d35UQp

The brigadier general looks at him with pursed lips. Complication. “I have received a letter. Your fiancée is only injured, not yet dead. Currently, she is—”

He hadn’t even taken it out of his pockets before Xie Liwei snatches it. He skims through the contents with a hollow look in his eyes – no emotion would be gauged if not for his slightly trembling hands. He crinkles the paper in his palms and immediately reaches for his transceiver.

“Lieu—”

“Quiet.” His tone remains harrowing as he speaks into the device. “Ready me an aircraft. Immediately.” REb1jf

—

‘My dear,

I write to you, bittersweet. My platoon had endured a ferocious battle, leaving forty-two dead and I…am the sole survivor. When I saw death, I thought about the name of our child.’

ZdtIqO