cetsyr

LOG: RI-FLDOP-41a0d7fc

Link Unit: VI03

Executor: Folinic

_MIGRATED

LOG: RI-FLDOP-41a0d810

Link Unit: UR06

Executors: Dur-nar, Rosa, Zima, Istina, Gummy, Leto

_MIGRATED

LOG: ZOOT-SYS-INIT

_INITIATE SYSTEM_RESTORE_SEQUENCE

_ESTABLISHING CROSS-VERIFICATION LINK WITH NODE [DWDB-221E] (AUTHORIZATION CODE: CE)

_REFERENCING [MULTICORE-TACTICS|INDEX-SCHEMA|BIO-ID|SYS-GHOSTS]

",delay=0.05,size=35,width=1000,block = true)]

VERIFYING COMPATIBILITY...

LOG: ZOOT-HRREC-UPDATE

ENTRY: ENCRYPTED

STATUS CHANGED: ACTIVE → ARCHIVED

_RECORD UPDATE COMMITTED

_EDIT NOTE

_CANCEL

_RECORD UPDATE COMMITTED

Phew...

What time is it...?

Did I oversleep...?

I need to hurry... Huh? What... am I in a hurry for?

Amiya comes to her senses. There is a knock at the door, by a gentle hand...

Ah, I'll be right there!

The corridor's... gone?

Pushing the door open, Amiya steps into the wind.

Summer has only just arrived. An azure sky hangs low, blanketed by thick piles of white clouds.

She steps into an early summer meadow, bent grass blades scratching her feet as dew slides down the creases of stems and leaves, spreading the scent of grass into the air.

Good morning. You finally woke up.

...Good morning?

Now that's out of the way, it's time for the important stuff—

Did you find them yet?

...No.

Why did you sleep in then...? You lost them all. Aren't you worried?

I-I'm heading out to look for them right now!

...Do you know where I lost them?

I should be asking you that! Aren't you always with them?

If you don't know where they went, if you don't go looking for them, who do you think is going to find them?

You're right, I'm the one who'd know where they went...

Where... did we part ways?

When I saw you guys lying on that big snoring burdenbeast in the wastes, did you lose them then?

Burdenbeast... No, that wasn't a burdenbeast.

You mean the mountain, right?

The child looks in the direction Amiya is pointing. At the end of the plains sits a colossal mountain under the transparent sunlight.

In a blink, the sun seems to solidify, as if the entire mountain has been encased in a giant amber.

Amiya closes her eyes in disbelief, and opens them again to see the mountain back to normal.

Did it ever snore? Amiya has doubts. It seems so silent right now.

It wasn't a burdenbeast...? Um, anyways, if you think that's the spot, then that's where you should be headed.

You should go now, right? Who knows, they might have been waiting long for you, and you shouldn't keep them waiting... besides, you don't have much time, do you?

...You're right.

Amiya politely thanks the child for waking her up.

Then, she walks through the early summer breeze, toward the giant mountain.

Behind Amiya, the wind coils into an open cabin.

A shadow quietly stands next to the narrow bed, looking at Amiya and the child past the door.

The shadow listens to their conversation, to their farewell, and watches Amiya walk towards the giant mountain.

After leaving the cabin, Amiya never turns back.

And so she never sees the shadow.

...Why are you so hard on yourself?

Hard...? Me?

I'm just... a little anxious.

If you're really tired, it's fine to rest for a while longer.

But 'I' lost everyone... they might be waiting for 'me', they might have been waiting for a long time...

Everyone believes in 'me'... so 'I' have to find them quick... or else...

Or else what?

...The fields are so vast, the mountain so high. Getting an early start... is the first thing 'I' can do.

Yes. You'll do many more things on your journey. So it's fine to take it slow.

Will this road... be a really long one?

I'll always be with you.

No matter how long it is, I'll be with you until the end.

The young illusion cradles the shadow's neck with her arms, and dissipates into the grassy wind without a word.

The shadow gets to her feet, and turns toward the little figure trudging toward the mountain.

The giant mountain peak is flat and wide. From it one can see yet another summit.

This is where I last saw them, right...?

Amiya circles the mountain peak in search of traces or clues... will she find their footprints? Did they leave a sign within the shadows cast by the rocks?

But the flat and wide peak bares all that it has. Other than the sunlight, wind, and dust kicked up by her steps, there is nothing else to be found.

...*sigh* Where can I find some clues...?

Why didn't they tell me where exactly they were going...?

She looks at her own toes as her heart seems to be weighed down by something. She wants to breathe out, but it seems like her lungs don't have enough air...

And then...

A small black thing jumps up from a crack in the precipice, dropping into Amiya's arms, and scares a shriek out of her!

Don't be alarmed.

Sorry... I didn't think I'd find a cloudbeast here.

I heard your question. Perhaps you missed it, but they did tell you.

As far as I know, they sent you a letter.

A letter?

Amiya holds the cloudbeast with her left hand, letting it calmly sit on her arm as she rifles through her pockets with her right hand.

Left... right... she feels something soft, her fingertips touch something damp.

So there really was a letter, right in my pocket... I'm glad it didn't fall out.

She cautiously pats her right pocket. She has worn this jacket for a long time.

You shouldn't stuff your pockets so much.

Read it. Perhaps you might find the information you need, where they might have gone.

But... I can't read a single word...

Amiya holds the cloudbeast's fluffy body with her left hand and together with her right, tries her best to straighten the soggy paper.

It's thoroughly soaked.

I see. You couldn't find them because the letter was damaged, and you couldn't read the information within.

Who did this?

Amiya lowers her head, unsure how to answer the cloudbeast...