Глава 14

We weren't imagining it!

Heaven and earth reversed in the blink of an eye.;Strange, I don't seem to feel any discomfort.

Do not be distracted by any changes in the rules of the Assimilated Universe.

Mortals were never made to set foot in this place. There is no point in trying to judge the line between the real and unreal based on our conceptions.

Look up at the sky.

The golden ocean that Rhodes Island sailed... it's hanging above our heads?!

Dr. Kal'tsit, I see Rhodes Island... and the churning tides.

The myriad souls call to me. They're trying to pour down and drown me—

Logos is still fighting the myriad souls...

I don't care how above and below change. Tell me...

Where's Her Highness? Doesn't seem like she's here at all.

Damn, this place makes me feel comfortable — that disturbing kind—

But the voice that called to me...

That was Theresa's voice.

...The myriad souls.

She's here. We have already found her.

Enough riddles, hag!

Look with your own eyes. Other than those weird pillars, do you see any—

She stops mid-sentence.

Pillar. Tower. Myriad souls. Theresa.

In that instant, she understands why her soul finds this place so comforting.

The myriad souls have taken crimson roots here, extending to the furthest reaches of heaven.

Those white pillars...

They're Theresa's will. She's trying to stabilize the tower.

She's been watching us.

Time does not flow in the Assimilated Universe, but this miracle continues to grow.

It's even trying to penetrate the 'sky' that we're standing on.

Maybe it already has.

If she could break through the limits here, that means—

Why are you looking at me like that?

I had to make sure this thing we're standing on is solid enough, right?

Don't want to get it pulled out from beneath my feet when we finally get to see Her Highness.

But this 'sky' is more than what it looks.

My bombs didn't even leave a mark...

It's impossible to damage this place by any physical means.

The 'limits' of this place are set by rules beyond the comprehension of Terra and incredible amounts of information.

It permits neither change nor challenge.

Could've fooled me.

You're hiding something. Hood was right. This tower has broken through whatever 'limits' you're talking about.

I know you have secrets that not even Hood and Bunny know about.

You've never been here, but you're strangely familiar with many things here.

You hide it well on your face, but you can't fool me.

W, don't—

We can't afford to waste any more time.

If Her Highness has fallen asleep while waiting for us, someone has to put new batteries in the alarm clock.

She's not as reckless as she looks, Kal'tsit.

Hah.

Give me a hand, bunny. There's something I need to make sure...

I was wondering. Why would there be shadows in this hellhole, when there's no sun and no moon?

She throws her flashbang upwards. Rather than fall back to the ground, it keeps going up.

The ball of light rises from the 'sky', flying towards the golden ocean, revealing a blurry shadow.

Over there, Amiya! That shadow that won't go away!

He's here too...

The revenant?!;He might attack again! Careful, Amiya!

I don't sense any hostility. It's like...

He doesn't even notice us.

Wanna do it, bunny? I've got a score to settle with him.

He must know something about this godforsaken place!

Wait, W!

This is strange... he's not like the other myriad souls we've seen, lingering here rather than leaving...

If he's here, does it mean he's dead too?

No. He's fine... in fact, he's never been better.

He's fully at peace. I can feel it. A peace filled with sorrow.

What did Her Highness do to him?

Theresa saved him, retaining the last bit of consciousness that the revenant had left.

Not only that, she has brought clarity to his chaotic mind.

She cured his madness? She can do that now?

I don't know what Theresa's state is right now.

Can you communicate with the revenant, Amiya?

He may hold the key to the truth.

I can try...

A dark wave ripples from Amiya, touching the black shadow.

The shadow meanders and answers the King's whisper.

You...

So, it is you who arrived here after all, in the end.

The indistinct shadow opens its 'mouth'. His tone is surprisingly calm, with no hint of anger.

An instant of clarity had arrived after millennia of torment, soothing his fury at long last.

It is no coincidence that you are here, Revenant.

Theresa saved me, preserving the fragment of soul that should have disappeared.

I merely followed her to this place... to witness the turning point of Sarkaz destiny.

Where did you say Theresa... Her Highness is?

She has departed to retrieve the seed from the very beginning.

The seed... Amnannam?

Isn't Amnannam already under Sarkaz control? What else is Theresa trying to do?

Originium created everything in this land.

It has been utilized in many ways, but no one has truly mastered it.

Except.. Her Highness.

She said she would steal the fire from the source of all suffering. Our curse will become the weapon that reshapes our lives.

An immaculate garden for the Sarkaz...

Controlling Originium at the origin...

After all we've been through, I think you know what this means, Doctor.

Theresa is fighting for authority over Originium itself.

The vision of Theresa and Theresis goes beyond the limits of all knowledge on Terra.

I can't let Originium become a weapon of mass destruction.

There are no more questions. Kal'tsit gazes at you silently. You have been through too much together.

So you can talk normally, after all, not just all that crap about suffering.

I was human, once.

...Hmph.

I had raged against many things in my long existence.

The invasion of the Ancients, the betrayal of the Sankta, the fall of Kazdel... and my rejection by the myriad souls.