Story Reader / Main Story / 34 Dream till the Timeless End / Story
Every step leaves its mark.
Something happened in the "past" that caused traces of the "present" to be erased. When the traces of the "present" are erased, they leave behind "echoes" that humans cannot hear.
You hurry back to the lounge. Inside the mailbox are neatly arranged letters with only your name and elegant wax stamps. They're like an endless dream.
The jarring tune transforms into a delicate melody, lingering between the window frames and the letters.
After carefully collecting all the letters, you bring them to the Science Council where Asimov is waiting.
According to the report that dates them, these letters here should be the most recent ones...
He picks out a few thin sheets of paper.
Can we ask for the surveillance footage from around these time points?
Requests like these are always quickly approved. Shortly after learning the situation, Celica authorized the request to access the surveillance footage around the Gray Raven Commandant's dorm.
Not long after, Teddy also receives a call for assistance and hurries over.
...This part here.
At 3 AM, most of Babylonia has fallen silent. The commandant's dorm is no exception.
The few remaining lights go out one after another, leaving only the grainy electronic noise in the clip...
...We got a match. Right here.
Nothing shows up on screen, yet Teddy's audio monitoring program shows an unusual wavelength pattern.
This noise has such an unusual frequency that even Constructs can't hear it. If we didn't happen to have a Construct with modified auditory systems at the time, I wouldn't have thought about the "noise."
I saved several surveillance clips and analyzed the data to identify a common sound pattern. This program will send an alert when it detects a matching signal... like this.
She plays that clip again, and an alert pops up on the program at exactly the correct time.
This timestamp... is roughly when you said "Iris" slowly disappeared.
Of course not.
The White Noise device needs great computing power and has to be connected to a specialized Construct structure. Unfortunately, you can't do any of these.
Theoretically, this device should be able to read specific audio signals and convert them into something concrete... like location data, images, or other forms.
I'll recall Hamlet from the WGAA and modify it a little to connect it to the White Noise device. I'll use Gestalt's computing power to attempt a run, but as for what we can get... there are no guarantees.
No worries. I'm also curious about its practical uses.
Try to "remember" everything about Iris through videos, notes... anything. Just remember her.
According to what you've told us, she exists in a time slice. After you leave that area, your memories of her might fade.
If she is actually a Babylonian Construct as you said, then her M.I.N.D. will have a virtual neural array structure.
Right. You should know that familiarity will allow a Commandant's Mind Beacon to detect Inver-Device signals from nearby Constructs.
I'm not sure if White Noise can actually pinpoint the location of that time slice, but if it could...
...Then you would be the only one who could find her.
Asimov recalls Hamlet with maintenance as an excuse and attempts to install an interface for "White Noise".
Using the first bit of "noise" caught in the commandant's dorm, you enter Hamlet once more to trace whispers coming from a distant time and space.
If anything weird happens, notify me immediately so I can halt the process. This attempt is dangerous.
Asimov's voice sounds muffled coming from outside the machine.
Rosa, activate it.
O-of course!
The jarring white noise suddenly grows, swarming your mind.
Your vision in the dark suddenly shrinks to a dot, and daylight floods this virtual world.
Conductor... Conductor?
You see"Iris" wearing a worried expression. Behind her is Babylonia, veiled in darkness.
Your M.I.N.D. suddenly becomes clear, you speak her name.
...Conductor, how are your wounds?
It all happened so quickly. Lueya probably secretly did something. The soldiers at the airport have completely forgotten about me. Seeking help from the military is a bad idea, so I can only hide you here for now...
Like watching a scripted play, your vision can only focus on yourself in this moment, re-playing memories buried deep down.
I...
She seems to be summoning courage and pauses for a while before speaking again.
I went to see "that person."
Yes, without her permission, I can't reveal her identity, but... I've found a way to fight against Lueya.
Enora Lueya, her true form is hiding far away.
Conductor, please stay in Babylonia for now, because...
Darkness shrouds her face in the night. After a brief pause, Selena speaks again,
Because I'll need your help at any moment, so please stay in Babylonia. Once you get my distress signal, report to the military and bring Gray Raven to help me defeat Enora Lueya.
Trust me.
I'm not sure what Lueya has done, but... someone without a "past" like me can better track her down.
Otherwise, the impact would be much greater, with terrible consequences. We can't let Babylonia be in such danger.
Your consciousness starts fading from blood loss. You struggle to grab Selena's hand, but your arm falls to your side.
Selena gently takes your limp hand in hers.
...Please wait for me, Conductor.
I...
Her gentle whisper disperses into the night sky, carried away by the breeze.
A letter gently drifts down. Written in royal blue ink, two lines of delicate handwriting are stained with tears.
<i>Why did this mad rose bloom?</i>
<i>When my soul knew only solitude,</i>
<i>If irises could bloom in the cracks of time, perhaps their fragrance would help you remember...</i>
The pale handwriting fades with the girl's departure. You sink deeper into darkness...
...C-Conductor?
...[player name]!
The dizziness from blood loss still lingers. As the harsh static subsides, you hear Asimov calling from outside the machine.
Has the device located the source of that noise?
Hamlet faithfully converts the signals into images, "displaying" them as holographs.
Mr. Asimov, the Gray Raven Commandant doesn't look well...
Should we pause the experiment?
...
Asimov turns to look at you after making sure all your vital signs are normal on a monitor.
Both your physical readings and Mind Beacon data are fine... Are you sure you want to continue?
...
Asimov waves his hand to tell the researchers to continue, then turns to face you.
Don't push yourself too hard. Even if you manage to connect to Iris's Inver-Device, it won't do anything if your Mind Beacon disconnects.
Rosa, input the second segment of "noise."
...Input successful.
Rosa's voice is instantly drowned out by violent static.
Conductor!
The girl leaps with lightning speed. Before you can react, she has drawn her weapon, and blue threads are about to strike you from behind.
Without a second thought, you spin around and fire in the direction of the blue threads' target.
The metal armor staggers back a few steps after being struck.
You immediately turn sideways, dodging to the side.
The metal armor misses and instantly jumps backward.
Selena's attack follows yours, filling the air with twinkling blue starlight.
Heh...
The metal armor emits an unintelligible sound, crumbles like sand, and shatters to pieces under your combined attacks.
Another clone... This is already the fifth.
Conductor, are you alright?
She looks at you with concern.
The unusual Construct named Lueya just launched her fifth "ambush."
The process is almost identical every time. You arrive in Babylonia in a hurry, report the incident, and investigations on this Construct begin, but they can never find any leads.
As the sun rises on the third day, you wake up in this conservation area again. The mission on your terminal still reads "Investigate the unidentified Ascendant near the conservation area".
It's almost like time is cursed by Chronos...
But I'd rather it be a time loop, or else your wounds...
Time only appears to be in a loop, but the days on the calendar keep changing.
No one knows exactly how Lueya altered the "past," but Hippocrates and Asimov already found something weird through the accumulating wounds on your body...
But in the "past," you were still the Gray Raven Commandant without any field missions.
She's probably using her clone to repeatedly simulate traces of the "unidentified Ascendant" "yesterday," prompting Babylonia to dispatch the "Gray Raven Commandant" from the "nearest conservation area."
I've tried to seek help from the military, but after providing information, the "past" always gets erased, leaving just "an anomaly at the target location."
I also tried to leave clues on paper, but whenever we meet again in the conservation area, the words disappear...
Memories are deleted and any traces of the "past" are erased.
...
A flicker of worry crosses her eyes, but she quickly forces herself to brighten up.
Maybe next time we'll manage to defeat her original body, who knows?
Selena reaches into her pocket and takes out a sheet of paper.
This is... the fifth letter now. I wrote down our experiences.
The writing on the first one disappeared, so I destroyed it. I left the second one in the conservation area.
The third and fourth letters... I sealed them in bottles and buried them here "today"...
And this fifth one, I'll leave this one to you, Conductor.
She puts the letter in an envelope and hands it to you.
<i>When people are no longer fooled by time, when the warm winter sun burns in the sky once more.</i>
<i>Will you see my wish, written in the spaces between the lines?</i>
<i>Conductor...</i>
You jolt awake in the darkness, head drenched in sweat.
You quickly record the location of the conservation area before the memory fades, before finally letting out the breath stuck in your chest.
Coordinates?
In the memory not yet withered by time, you clearly remember the image of Lueya's clone shattering.
A device identical to the "White Noise" was left on the ground.
...
Not. The one we have is a child device that needs a parent device.
The parent device anchors coordinates, while the child device locates and positions, creating a two-way connection... How did you know?
Immediately send the military to search for "White Noise" devices at these coordinates.
Okay.
We could strengthen the locator signal. We might even be able to pinpoint the coordinates of the parent device.
That was the final bit of useful noise extracted from your letters.
Are you sure you want to access it now?
Establish connection.
Asimov checks each connection cable methodically right away before reactivating Hamlet.
Try to remember every detail, just like the coordinates... Noise input successful.
A familiar, extremely loud ring pierces through your ears.
You open your eyes again to find yourself inside a transport aircraft.
The terminal is on the mission screen: "Escort the Archaeological Team on a surface mission—Meet with Selena in the conservation area" and "Investigate the unidentified Ascendant found near the conservation area". On the small table in front of you is a letter.
<i>Dear [player name], hello.</i>
<i>It is now <color=#ff4e4eff>23:30</color>. Considering human sleep schedules, maybe you have already retired for the night.</i>
<i>I was going to share my day with you,</i>
<i>How I found a flower near the conservation area that I had never seen before, and tried a fruit with a most peculiar flavor...</i>
<i>But none of that is as important as what I need to tell you next.</i>
<i>I heard sounds of the "past" becoming distorted, and I'm worried...</i>
I'm very worried. I feel like something is about to happen, but I don't know how to warn you about it.
I hope it's just my imagination. I really cherish these hard-earned moments we have now.
We'll see each other in a few days. I heard you took this mission, and I'm very happy.
Looking forward to your arrival—Yours, Iris.
