Chapter 131 - Forget About Numbers Aurora Skies is a beautiful, secluded island, far from any other landmass. It's a natural wonder, with enormous mountains and waterfalls, not to mention the dancing lights in the sky at night. The locals are polite, friendly, and keep to themselves. Aurora Skies is the one place in the Simverse where people actually mind their own business--which is good, because something very strange is about to happen, and it's best if no one notices.
There's a mansion at the end of the road, one of the largest and most opulent houses in the mountain town. It has been empty for decades, but was recently purchased by an anonymous buyer--probably someone trying to get away from city life, the real estate company decided. Not ones to pry, they left the key on the doorstep, as requested, no questions asked.
And so no one saw seven elderly women and one elderly man appear on the grass outside the house.
Together, the last four drank.
Then the first four.
And, one by one, they were surrounded by sparkles and transformed.
Until, at last, eight young, beautiful (and handsome, just for Nicholas) men and women had replaced worn-down, tired people who had once stood on the grass moments before.
Ilene Azokka was the first to leave. She went alone, but not quite alone--he was waiting for her. Now all she had to do was go find him. The youngest Elysi disappeared with a parting smile for Serena. Her work was finished, but her many-times-great-grandmother's had only just begun.
The immortals unanimously chose Nicholas as the first to be reunited with his spouse. The rest could wait, but he had suffered for so many years that even the Young Again potion helped less than Lolita would.
Even the years of separation hadn't dimmed their love for each other, and Nicholas felt like he was floating as he walked across the ground to hand Lolita her Young Again potion.
He watched, trying to maintain the solemnity of the occasion with a straight face, as Lolita tipped the drink into her mouth.
Nicholas couldn't look away from his wife. Everything seemed almost like a dream to him--when, in reality, he had woken from the dream that had encased him for hundreds of years. They were going to a paradise, where the sand was golden and the water blue as the sky.
Serena smiled fondly, watching her son go, but then returned to her task.
Unlike her father, Bree didn't care at all for the "solemnity" of the occasion. As far as she was concerned, it was finally time to celebrate!
She gave Brandon his drink with a grin on her face.
They decided to go somewhere where life would be an endless party. After all, this
is Bree we're talking about!
So many graves left, so little time. Actually, Serena reflected, for the first time ever, there was all the time on the world. At least, there would be, if the rest of the family wasn't so impatient.
There would be no sleep tonight, or tomorrow night, or the night after. But she didn't care a bit--just the look on Kara's face when she saw Bianca for the first time in four generations was more than enough.
Bianca and Kara left for a metropolis that was gray, colorless, and generally awful, according to the rest of the world. But they were determined to make something beautiful out of it.
Night came on, and the work was halted. Nataliya wept over Stephen's grave, so overcome with sorrow that she didn't know what to do.
She, Mikayla, and Iris Bianca were the only ones left. Mikayla, with her usual vivacity and optimism, did her best to reassure her daughter.
Finding that words failed, she ended up just giving her a hug. "Everything will be all right, Liya. Worrying too much will only get in the way.
Iris Bianca hugged her, too, passing down her own advice. "People like us tend to think that the world is nothing more than numbers and equations. But trust me--if you love Stephen, there will be no number in the world that can express the magnitude of that emotion. Forget about numbers, because they only confuse you when it comes to things like this."
She stepped back, only to find Mikayla hugging her. "I'll miss you, Mama."
"We'll talk every day, Butterfly. But I'll miss you, too."
