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For the first time in years, Julius felt his breath enter his lungs. He felt the wool blanket against his skin, the linen sheets he lay upon. He smelled herbal medicines and a faint undercurrent of flowers in the air. He saw rays of light beam through the window, passing through delicate curtains that billowed in the breeze. The air was crisp, his vision clear, his mind free. He'd perished and been reborn.
Not since he'd touched that accursed book had he felt like this.
He pushed himself up by his forearms. Pain wracked through his bones, sharp and dull at the same time. He hissed. Perhaps the only benefit to Loptous' possession was his loss of physical pain. But Loptous was no benefactor, and he'd made up for this boon through mental torment.
The tell-tale click of shoes sounded from the hall. He turned his head to the doorway just in time to see a petite girl come into view. She carried a tray in her hands, on top of which sat a bowl and a glass of water. Her pale locks stood out against her green shawl. Two lavender eyes set themselves upon Julius, widening with shock as the girl noticed he was awake.
Julius' chest warmed. "Julia?”
“Oh, Naga…” Julia set down the tray on an empty bed. Her hands shook. “Naga be praised…”
“Julia?" He tilted his head. A crick shot through his neck. "I haven’t seen you in years. When did you get here?”
"Oh, Naga. You're awake." Julia took careful steps backwards, then rushed back into the hall.
“Hey! Julia! Wait!” Julius reached his hand out to no avail. Had he done something wrong? Was this one of Loptous' tricks? He hadn't seen Julia since... that terrible day. Maybe she was still afraid of him-- he couldn't blame her.
A few minutes later, Julia reappeared with a blue haired boy in tow. The two entered the room and knelt beside his bed.
“Oh! You’re back,” said Julius. “Who’s that with you?”
The blue haired boy blinked. He opened his mouth, but Julia placed her arm in front of his chest. She gave him a glance, and he closed his mouth in silent understanding.
“Julius, this is our half-brother Seliph,” Julia said. “It's a complicated story."
Julius slouched back against his pillow. He'd seen both Mother and Father in the afterlife, but Mother had been with a man he'd never met. A man with the same hair and eyes as Seliph. "How complicated?"
"Um..." Julia rubbed her fingers together. She'd always done that when she was nervous. Mother said it was a self-soothing instinct. "I know it’s been a long time, but do you remember the stories of how Mother and Father met?”
“He uh, found her unconscious in the gardens? And she had no memories, so he took her in.”
“Right," Julia said. "Well… it turns out Mother was kidnapped from her first husband and her infant son. I don’t think you’re ready to hear all the details of that story yet.”
Julius sighed. Nothing terrible surprised him anymore. "It was Manfroy, wasn't it?"
Julia nodded. She sniffled. Her voice wavered. "He erased her memories and placed her there for father to find. It was part of his plan."
"And that's why we exist. Because of Manfroy." Julius stared at the wall. "I'm going to need a moment to process that."
Silence. Julia grasped Julius' hand. Little teardrops welled in her eyes.
Seliph was the one to break the silence. "How much do you remember, Julius?"
"The longer Loptous resided in my mind, the foggier life got. I blacked out more and more often. My moments of control grew shorter each time. Last thing I remember is Ishtar's face."
"Do you remember what year it was when you had control last?" Seliph asked. "Do you remember the Liberation Army?"
"It was, uh... early 776, I think? Maybe late 775. It's all a blur. And no, I don't remember anything about a Liberation Army."
Julia drew in a sharp breath. "Two years..."
Julius' heart skipped a beat. He hadn't had control for two years? Just what happened in that time to culminate in his death? No one in the afterlife would tell him. Not even...
"Ishtar," Julius said. "What happened to Ishtar?"
"Ishtar died for you," Julia said. "But we--"
"Julius!"
Seliph and Julia whipped their heads back. Ishtar rushed into the room, her heels in her hands. She slipped as she rounded the other bed. Julia and Seliph parted, and she burst through, tackling Julius in a hug. He felt tears on her cheek as she pressed her head to his. "You're alright! Gods, I was so worried..."
Julius wrapped his arms around her back. "Ishtar. They brought you back too?"
"Yes," Ishtar cried. "I didn't deserve this kindness, and yet they did it anyways."
"We also revived Ishtore, Liza, and Reinhardt," said Seliph. "But that's as much as we could manage. We're going to try again, though. The Valkyrie staff also needs to be repaired each time we revive someone, and it's rather expensive."
Ishtar withdrew from the hug. She wiped her face with a gloved hand. "I hope you don't mind having to deal with Reinhardt again."
"Without Loptous, I think I should be fine," said Julius. "I was a little jealous, yeah. But Loptous amplified those negative thoughts." He turned to Seliph and Julia. "But, um... how exactly did you all revive us? I thought Bragi's line ended. I saw Father Claud in the afterlife. He has great hair, by the way."
Ishtar chuckled. "That's my Julius."
"It turns out General Hannibal's adopted son is a distant descendant of Bragi," said Seliph. "It's a miracle we have him."
"General Hannibal?" Julius asked. "I don't remember him either."
"Oh, right, you probably never met him," said Seliph. "He's from Thracia. He helped us win the war."
Julius paled. "I started a war?"
"No. My cousin Leif organized a rebellion in Thracia, and then Prince Shannan of Issach started one with me in... well, Issach. We joined forces with other groups like the Magi Squad to form the Liberation Army." Seliph gave him a solemn smile. "Even if you had started a war, it wouldn't have been you. It would have been Loptous."
"I suppose you're right," said Julius. "When Loptous was in my head, he kept saying everything was my doing. I knew he was lying, that I had no control over anything, but the guilt hurt so badly." He squeezed Ishtar's hand. "You helped me manage that."
"I tried my best," said Ishtar. "And then you were gone, and I thought I'd failed, but I held on hope you'd somehow break through again."
"But I didn't," Julius said. "Why did you stay?"
"Because I love you, Julius!" She began to weep. "When they revived me, they'd revived you first, and you didn't wake up, and we were all so worried, and I thought it was all for nothing! But I stayed, and now you're back and I..."
"Ishtar, please don't--" The rough, wet sensation of phlegm filled his throat, crinkling as he breathed. He coughed, turning as far from Ishtar, Julia, and Seliph as he could.
"Alright, I think we should leave you for now," said Julia. "You were always sick as a kid, so I figured you wouldn't feel well when you woke up. I've been feeding you your favorite soup. You know, the carrot stuff that made you feel better?"
"I don't deserve you," said Julius. "Not after everything that happened. Not after I ruined our family."
Julia shook her head. "No, Julius. Loptous ruined our family. Manfroy ruined our family. You didn't do anything."
"And they're gone now," said Seliph. "We can start anew. Jugdral has entered a new era, so why can't we?"
Julius felt tears welling in his eyes. Seliph was right-- he was not the only one reborn that day.