-----
Nia's hands trembled as she cried, gazing at her dear son.
"What do you mean he's not dead?" she asked.
"If he were, I would've told you," Maria replied. "I'm sorry for scaring you. I was so angry, I just went after them... I honestly would've torn them apart for you and the boy, Nia. I swear I would've... but..."
Nia sighed, a faint smile forming. "So he's not dead? Then what's going on?"
"I think I understand now," Oceanus said quietly.
"Naiad—no, Celes... the boy is like us. He is a Divine Spirit," Thalassa explained. "We come from another world, a distant realm now lost. Our true forms are shapeless, as you can see."
"The boy is unique. My daughter died and chose to reincarnate what remained of her soul," Oceanus added. "She could have returned to us, though weaker... but she chose to die as mortals do."
"When we truly die, our essence explodes into spirit energy and merges with the world," Thalassa said. "That didn't happen with her... and now I understand why."
