Story Reader / Main Story / 31 Shaper's Ripples / Story
A massive crimson tide suddenly erupts from the dark passage, smashing through the walls in its path like a raging torrent.
Everyone watches anxiously as Lucia finally steps into the elevator.
The pale light casts an eerie glow on the flustered faces, while the roaring tide relentlessly chases you from beneath the ascending elevator.
What do we do now? Don't tell me this thing's gonna flood the streets too?
Let's get back to the surface first and assess the situation.
Why didn't you tell us about this earlier?! Even the emergency stairs in this damn place have collapsed!
She warned us about it long ago, but we didn't listen. Should we try the hidden floor?
The Red Tide surges up from below once again, its smash sending out ear-splitting sounds of destruction.
The ascending elevator shudders from the impact and slowly grinds to a halt, its doors opening to reveal an unfamiliar floor.
...So this is the hidden floor?
Let's hide here for now!!
Before anyone can step out of the elevator into the dim tunnel ahead, a thunderous roar, akin to a bursting dam, erupts from around the corner.
The tunnel buckles under the weight and collapses in an instant, its scattered debris instantly swallowed by the surging Red Tide.
...!
Move back!
Lucia slams her fist on a button. As the elevator doors slowly close, the light from within reveals the barely concealed anxiety on Lucia's face.
In the next moment, the entire elevator shakes violently as the tide envelops it from all sides.
...Only one step away.
You got the password, and the rift of the Inver-Hetero Tower is right there in front of you.
You are just one step away from entering it, one step away from returning to the Inver-Hetero Tower, one step away from the path that leads home...
Yet this single step might as well be an eternity, with the insurmountable torrent of the Red Tide separating you and the destination.
What are you supposed to do? How can you possibly get past the Red Tide flooding the entire tunnel?
Looking up at Lucia, her expression mirrors your own gravity. Ever since witnessing those deaths, she rarely finds moments of peace.
We're almost at the surface. Let's get out of here first. At least we have the password; we can discuss everything else once we're safe.
Suddenly, a violent impact strikes the bottom of the elevator.
The elevator doors distort under the relentless water pressure, emitting a piercing screech as the metal tears apart.
Then, crimson droplets trickle through the crevices of the elevator, gradually converging into a slender stream.
It's the Hetero-Creatures—they're attacking from below the elevator.
Before those words can even settle, another fierce impact strikes the elevator, hurling the humans who have barely regained their footing into a tumultuous tumble once again.
Multiple fractures have quietly emerged around unnoticed, and the oozing crimson fluid effortlessly shatters what little sense of safety they clung to.
Like prey surrounded on all fronts, the survivors in the elevator huddle tightly together at its center.
Got it. Let's leave through the top.
Lucia hands over her Pyro Katana before lifting you up.
The relentless strikes of the Hetero-Creatures have already exhausted the elevator's stability. The opening at the top gradually widens as you pry it with the blade.
****, hurry up! You need a hand?!
The Red Tide continues to surge through the bottom cracks while the Omega Core of the Pyroath frame operates at full power, repelling the encroaching hostility.
BANG!
The Pyro Katana emits flames, melting through the last stubborn welds. A powerful strike from its hilt warps the metal sheet, creating an opening large enough for one person to pass through.
Through the breach awaits a shadowy passage, illuminated dimly by the distant glow of the top floor.
The signals are all gathering below, but we're close to the surface here. The butterflies might fly up.
We can kill those things without breaking a sweat.
The two mercenaries grab your outstretched hand one after another, climbing onto the top of the elevator.
After climbing up, Chiko turns around and reaches down through the opening to offer you her hand.
Your turn now!
Looking down after climbing to the top, a chilling realization dawns upon you—the Red Tide has risen past Lucia's calves.
...! ...!
Emerging out of nowhere, a Hetero-Creature suddenly lunges at the Construct who's about to escape.
The floating blade intercepts the attack meant for Lucia, the dissipating red glow reflecting in her eyes as she glares at the enemy.
Commandant, go up with them first. I'll hold these enemies back.
Naturally.
You shift your gaze from the battle below to the faces of the three people around you. The mercenaries have already confirmed the steel cable's durability.
Do your gloves have enough grip?
Chiko reaches out her hand.
The mercenaries exchange a glance and then nod to you.
I'll leave it to you, son.
The mercenary seizes the steel cable, swiftly ascending with newfound vigor, propelled by the glimmer of hope on the horizon.
And then comes Chiko.
Need a hand?
Alright.
She grips the steel cable firmly and climbs higher.
Below, another wave of muffled crashes ripples through the metal plating, causing the elevator beneath to shake uncontrollably.
Crimson waves surge through the crevices, as a glint of platinum hue flashes in the periphery of your sight.
Looking up, the silhouettes of the three have already vanished into the radiant light of hope above—they must have reached the surface.
The steel cable holds firm—each upward pull brings you one step closer to hope.
Another violent tremor rocks the elevator, the vibrations coursing straight through your palms.
...Upward.
A viscous liquid clings to your hands, impeding your ascent.
...More.
A putrid stench assaults your nostrils.
...Keep going.
Light from the exit finally floods your vision, and then...
A familiar figure crouches at the edge, level with your position.
She rests her chin on one hand, batting her innocent-looking eyes as she waves at you, just as you emerge from your ascent up the elevator shaft.
Well, hello there, Gray Raven Commandant.
The radiant light reveals not only the girl's figure, but also the lifeless body lying by her feet.
Chiko's eyes remain wide open in death, fixedly gazing upward.
Hmm? Wondering how I managed to hide myself?
I was in the Red Tide all along. How could Lucia possibly find someone made of the Red Tide within the Red Tide itself?
Before her name can leave your lips, an excruciating pain tears through your body.
Blood splatters into your eyes, painting your entire vision crimson.
How many more deaths must you endure before returning to your own time?
How many more failures must you face before finding the way to take that final step?
No... Perhaps there is no chance left. The "Key"... is almost depleted.
This end, roughly weaved, is filled with desperation and reckless failure.
You were just one step away from returning to the Hetero Tower, so close to making it...
Lucia, Lucia...
At least this time...
Those unheard words, along with the broken body, plummet down the elevator shaft behind.
Something rocks the elevator cab from the top, and a wave of weightlessness washes over Lucia like rising bubbles.
...Drip. Drop.
A single droplet of crimson falls from above.
Only to be followed by more blood.
Lucia's motions gradually still as she gazes upward at the crimson trails cascading down—the very shade that sears through her heart.
She knows exactly what it is.
She knows where the blood is coming from.
She doesn't even need to look to know the condition that body must be in to shed so much blood in such a short time.
Everything now resembles the mirrored walls of the elevator—a boundless, inescapable cycle.
Far too many times has it occurred—a person and a heart, relentlessly torn apart.
Believing they seek hope within the loops, convinced they are just one step away—yet death, time and again, has been all that awaits them both.
Her hands fall limply to her sides.
The Hetero-Creatures that had been relentlessly pursuing them now vanish into the Red Tide, as if their mission is complete.
...
Back then, while chasing after Liv in the church, she had asked herself the same questions—was her life nothing but a dead end? Why did all these tragedies keep repeating themselves?
Just a step distant, a fleeting instant out of sight, barely a minute away.
The Red Tide swirling between her calves surges with her despair, poised to consume her whole.
Com... man... dant...
Something inherently "wrong" that has long dwelt within her heart now festers freely, exuding the stench of decay.
Next time, she will never let go of those hands.
Next time, she will never let that person out of her sight.
Next time, even if it means tearing herself apart...
A faint cracking sound interrupts her tumultuous thoughts.
...The "Key"...
Her last hope lies cracked in her hands, giving her no response.
Everything unfolds just as she predicted—time refuses to rewind, no miracle occurs—she is left with no chance.
...
The elevator lights suddenly die out, leaving only one last brilliant arc of light.
And then, the Red Tide surges forth, consuming everything in its path.
By afternoon, the setting sun casts a warm glow over the tranquil Golden Time Court of Constellia, restoring a semblance of peace to the surroundings.
In the underground parking lot, the echo of deliberate footsteps reverberates. A figure draws near, their gait uneven as they limp forward, aided by a wooden stick.
Cradle...
It's been a while.
She looks at Yuko's legs, now festering from the infection.
Would you like my help? Though I can only slow down the infection's spread...
Where's everyone else?
Her icy question reverberates through the empty parking lot, striking Cradle's eardrums along with its haunting echoes.
The girl simply blinks, pointing at the elevator behind her.
Are they... still alive?
Alive in the Red Tide.
...Humph... So this is what you meant by protection?
Is this also how you treated your "creator," that "Curse Queller"?
...
Cradle finds herself at a loss for words, startled to realize that her memories of the "creator" have begun to fade.
You told me about your birth—how you firmly believed your mission was to silence the sound of the tide and to guide that "creator."
You said you witnessed their choice, and his will brought about your birth... giving you both form and life.
After their death... you said you would carry on the "creator's" will to not harm others.
You also said that you approached me... because I too am a creator.
Then what exactly are you doing now? Are you truly following that creator's will? Or perhaps you're doing it for my wishes?
Tell me... what exactly are you?
Once more, she poses that question—the very same one she asked Cradle when she first saw the festering corpses.
Are you the Agent Zero you keep talking about? The guardian from the story? Or, are you still "Cradle"?
Yuko forces her weakened legs to move, staggering toward Cradle with each trembling step.
Let me ask you one final question... Tell me...
Is Chiko... still alive?
Despite already knowing the truth, Yuko still clings to that desperate, illusory hope as she utters these words.
Such foolishness—it reminds Cradle of all those worthless stories Yuko used to tell, mere memories that hold no significance.
You promised me that if I found my sister, you'd give me a chance to help her... That's my deepest wish...
You told me to lead those people to capture Chaos, and I did it. You told me to persuade Barley, and I did that too. I even went as far as to incite those mercenaries...
So everything I did... only ended up getting Chiko killed?
...
In that moment of silence, Yuko finds her answer in Cradle's eyes.
So... it was all my fault...
I've always been a loser, nothing but a failure.
...An objective assessment.
I've always wanted to do something for Chiko, always thinking of ways to repay her years of care, always trying to become someone useful to her.
But in the end... the harder I tried to help her, the more I wanted to prove my worth to her, the more I became nothing but a burden...
...Indeed it is.
But if that is the case, there is something "Cradle" cannot comprehend.
You've already labeled yourself as nothing but rotten wood, calling yourself that repeatedly. So why do you cling to life so desperately, still persisting in these futile efforts?
...
For I am but rotten wood, yet I refuse to simply rot...!
You wonder why I cling to life so desperately? It's because I can't accept this fate! I refuse to die a worthless death!!
That's why I'm still alive, still fighting, still searching for a way to change...!
I never wanted to die before I could repay Chiko for all she did for me, but you... you killed her!
The gun hidden in Yuko's hand is now raised high—Cradle thought she would never have the courage to draw it.
...How could you do this! You promised me!!
Cradle finds herself unable to answer, torn between the consciousnesses within her. Agent Zero loudly dismisses the question as trivial, while Cradle is adrift in a fog of hazy memories, devoid of purpose and clarity.
One moment she seems to be following her destined mission and original will, the next she feels as if awakening from a long dream, only to discover she has committed unforgivable sins.
She is meant to devour civilization whole, yet she finds joy in humanity's unyielding will. She wants to support them, to witness their journey, to honor them... Which side is truly wrong?
I'm going to kill you...!! For every one you murdered!!
Cradle watches as this human, body covered in festering wounds, channels her hatred into a throat-rending roar—her last defiant cry harmonizing with the resonant bark of her gun.
...
Her vision splits into two planes, accompanied by an ear-piercing ringing as relentless as the chirping of summer cicadas.
...Friend? Or mere rotten wood? Which one is correct?
Who cares?
The scythe thrusts through Yuko's back, its blade halting mere inches from <phonetic=Cradle's>Agent Zero's</phonetic> front.
The weapon woven from the Red Tide shortly dissipates back into the surging tide as Yuko, on death's door, falls forward onto <phonetic=Cradle's>Agent Zero's</phonetic> shoulder.
Her remaining willpower keeps her eyes open, but her hands, drained of strength, can no longer grasp onto anything.
The gun drops into the Red Tide, and with it, her will fades away.
The lifeless body rests in <phonetic=Cradle's>Agent Zero</phonetic>'s arms, as if two long-estranged friends sharing one embrace.
A hollow emptiness washes over the girl's awareness, as though a part of her very being has been carved away. Sensing Yuko's fading warmth beneath her touch, she listens to the last tremor of that shattered heart.
...
It no longer matters. What comes next will not conflict with Agent Zero's mission.
And so she acquiesces... permits the essence of Cradle within her to awaken, her eyes fluttering open in tandem with that heart's last throbs.
...Let's go, Yuko.
Cradling the body in her arms, she whispers softly as she walks deeper into the darkness.
I will... make your wish come true.
The girl opens the elevator door while holding her "friend" in her arms. The churning Red Tide still surges within the elevator shaft, resembling a silent crimson coffin.
You will become one within the Red Tide.
Become part of each other.
As she plummets, the rushing wind snatches her whispers, reducing them to faint, almost inaudible murmurs.
...No need to worry about your flaws anymore...
The girl falls onto tiny cresting waves, landing in the boundless sea of crimson.
She raises her forearm, then flips her palm.
From the depths of the Red Tide, where Yuko and Chiko dissolved, a butterfly emerges, landing silently on Cradle's fingertip.
If you still hate me after this, then I shall give you a chance to hurt me.
In the deepening night, she closes her eyes and swallows the butterfly from her fingertip.
