Story Reader / Main Story / 31 Shaper's Ripples / Story
As bodies disintegrate in the high concentration of Punishing, a white light engulfs every living silhouette.
This marks the end of the information Lucia can process.
However, your dream was not over yet...
The vision continued to extend, and this dream remained invisible to all but the dreamer.
Who are you?
The eyes of the nightmare fell upon a woman in a white cloak, and she, too, became aware of the eyes.
I see... You're still in the dream, unable to control where your eyes wander... Then let us watch this together.
Following her gaze, the eyes witnessed countless corpses paving a long path ahead.
From above, the city unfolded beneath—countless threads raced through the streets, frantically carrying countless crimson fragments as they plunged into a bottomless pit of despair.
The threads, bearing the essence of Earth's life and civilization, converged and weaved themselves into an expanding "cocoon."
...This planet, too, is ready to hatch.
Her words rang with familiarity, as if heard somewhere before.
No miracles have happened here either.
She gazed at the "pupa" enclosed within the massive "cocoon."
It was feeding on the corpses, utilizing the threads and information within to reconstruct its form.
As it grew, the world gradually lost its shape.
The consciousness drifted further away from the ground as it dissolved into nothingness, and her form became increasingly indistinct.
As gravity waned, all sorrows ascended, enveloping everything in a denial of liberation or peace for any soul.
The ground became unreachable below, while the sea of stars still hung overhead, beyond touch.
No salvation, no miracles—everything once alive would be converted to data, becoming part of the "cocoon."
Oh? Looks like this isn't the true ending.
A smile graced her lips as she pointed to the cracking "cocoon."
Someone has escaped.
Its purpose is to "harvest"—to eliminate "incorrect" civilizations and bring all their data back to the Gate.
Of course... what's correct or not is defined by its "test."
Defeating it earns the right to cross the Gateway—though whether one can pass through it intact is another matter entirely.
Yes, this is its "test." Once mastered, it becomes a "ticket" to the sea of stars. People here call it the "Chaos Contamination".
...
If a miracle does occur, I will come to this planet. Let's meet again when that time comes.
Opening eyes once more, that <phonetic=commandant>person</phonetic> returned to the Inver-Hetero Tower under Chaos' gaze.
Memories of reality and dreams blur into chaos under the influence of deaths and time rewind.
The human's body felt as if crucified on a gallows known as May 3rd, being torn apart piece by piece.
A piercing ring tore through the human's skull, merging with a splitting headache as the figure fought to steady the swaying body.
Reality... The reality that is constantly shifting and deteriorating with the collapsing Inver-Hetero Tower...
...
...It's Agent Zero. Cradle's body and personality... are, in fact, working against her.
Her consciousness and sense of self are unstable, so...
Chaos gives her a nod.
The Hetero Tower's core. Can't let Agent Zero revert it to its original state.
The human's gaze dropped to the hands, recalling something precious once held by them.
With an activated "invitation," you will be able to enter and utilize the Inver-Hetero Tower. If necessary, it can also be used to destroy and retrieve the tower's core.
Please note that destroying the tower's core will have severe consequences. This should only be used as a last resort.
Things <color=#ff4e4eff>uncontrollable</color>.
Both Agent Zero and the "Key" would lose control of the tower, releasing all the problems.
The Inver-Hetero Tower would no longer "invert" anything it currently shields—the Red Tide... the rifts... Meanwhile, anyone could enter the tower, with no guarantee of which time they might exit into when they leave.
...Complete chaos.
If everything fell apart like that, what was even the point of retrieving the core?
With all the problems now... if this continues, Agent Zero will cause the same outcome as a core meltdown... or maybe something even worse.
...
One more thing...
You know about that?
Chaos appeared somewhat taken aback, lowering her head in contemplation.
...Can you?
It's like Pandora's Box—reaching for that last flicker of hope necessitates enduring the catastrophe it unleashes.
That inevitable ending.
...
To sidestep this path, to avoid the weight of an impossible choice, only one safe option remained—delay everything and keep both the Inver-Hetero Tower and the core safe.
Even if the tower's problems remained unresolved, the delay would buy time to search for a solution.
...Let me become Agent Zero.
She kept the rest to herself, not mentioning that it would require another sacrifice.
Or... if you give me the retrieved core, I can take over Agent Zero's authority... even though with my consciousness stability, I won't last long, just like Cradle.
...
If we had more time to try things out, maybe there could be another way...
She quietly lifted her lifeless eyes, waiting for you to ask the next question, and yet she was met only with silence.
Both the human and the doll standing here knew that this silence carried the weight of countless failures and an inescapable dead end.
Through futile attempts and years of torment, the Hetero Tower acted as scissors, cutting down those who dared to tamper with time.
...Perhaps there really was no other way. This treacherous path led to an insurmountable cliff—only sacrifice could carry them forward.
Calling out her name once more, you turned with a bitter smile to face this Hetero-Creature.
...
The only answer to this question was an even longer silence.
...
...Just as Lucia suspected, you turned to the path of sacrifice for the very same reason.
To prevent your sacrifice, every single step from here on must be calculated with utmost precision.
...Don't disappear without letting me know again.
She whispers this plea in a soft voice, even knowing she herself will soon break this very word.
...Next...
Melting down the core may have long become inevitable.
If I could bring the retrieved core back to our original era, maybe, with everyone's help, there could still be a way...
Then everything she has done would not be in vain.
—But are they even safe anymore?
During the endless cycle of massacre on May 3, the commandant had already witnessed the deaths of Liv and Lee—something that happened not even in the future, but in the past.
As long as Agent Zero lives, she will ensure suffering follows you like a haunting shadow, never ceasing until the end.
To deal with Agent Zero once and for all, Chaos must take over her role.
For an incomplete Chaos to become Agent Zero, the core must be destroyed first.
...It's almost a deadloop impossible to break.
...
...Since entering Constellia, the only progress seems to be Cradle being held back by the "fruit."
She tightens her grip on the terminal that Vonnegut gave her, weighing her options.
It will severely strain your frame. The first use won't be fatal, but repeated usage will eventually exceed your limits.
...
How many times would it take to exceed her limits? Even if she asked Vonnegut, he wouldn't answer.
...Best to treat this as a one-time chance.
One misstep could spell her demise in the never-ending battle looming ahead.
Well then...
A plan gradually takes shape in her mind.
Chaos.
I remember you've always been in contact with Rose. It was the same when we first met you in Constellia. Are you trying to protect her?
Chaos gives her a nod.
To keep her safe, you have to get her out of Constellia. I can do this—not just for her, but for everyone trapped in Constellia. I can help them all return to the normal world.
But I need your help with two things.
First, open an exit in Constellia's force field to let them escape, while holding back the Red Tide.
Chaos nods earnestly.
Second, once we're inside the Inver-Hetero Tower, can you help us return to the correct time, like you're doing now?
...
Is it impossible? Or you just can't guarantee it?
...I can't guarantee it...
The Inver-Hetero Tower's deterioration runs deep, but I'll do what I can.
Can you keep the time displacement within one month?
One year.
If the Inver-Hetero Tower's condition is no longer severe, one year.
...Time is running out. Agent Zero won't stop destroying the Inver-Hetero Tower, and Lucia knows all too well that she has few options left.
...
Vonnegut, I'll make use of your plan after all.
She holds up the peculiarly shaped terminal, carefully inspecting the connection device with her frame's scanning module before linking it to her frame.
The connection is swiftly established. Despite encountering intermittent disruptions in energy transfer, the affordable nature of trial and error ensures that the key soon reverts to its initial state.
Beneath a newfound radiance, all the cracks appear concealed, and yet she wonders how long this fragile facade can uphold its guise.
Let's race, Commandant... I'll use the method you taught me, toward death for the same goal.
...
While Lucia murmurs to herself, Chaos seems to sense a shift in the air. She watches Lucia complete the terminal setup step by step, a desire to speak tugging at her, yet she only bows her head eventually, words caught in her throat.
What were you going to say?
The doll, her head bowed, fixes her gaze on a spot in the distance ahead.
...
Just spit it out.
That core...
...?
Was it made from... the egg that Lamia... took?
...
As the connected "Key" activates within the Inver-Hetero Tower's bounds, time begins to flow once more.
Just as everything is about to rewind to the beginning, Lucia notices something peculiar about the doll.
I've heard that Hetero-Creatures capable of holding complete conversations all retain a relatively intact human consciousness within them.
...
Whose consciousness is inside you?
Lucia's question is met with a prolonged silence.
This isn't meant to be an interrogation—Lucia harbors no desire to extract such trivial information. She accepts Chaos' silence and begins counting down the remaining moments in her mind.
Just as the countdown reaches zero, at the very moment before everything rewinds, the doll finally speaks in a voice weighted like a lament.
...I forgot. All I remember is that my name is Chaos.
