Story Reader / Main Story / 26 Cradle Parade / Story
As Lamia deftly avoids Lithos, the lost soul trapped in the depths of the pit begin their own battle to break free and flee.
Your limbs are trapped by shackles, firmly anchored to the table and the floor, granting only limited movement to your upper body.
Luckily, the shaky sensation suggests the handcuffs aren't securely fastened. If not for this weakened body, it is possible to break free through sheer strength alone.
Time to find a tool.
Biting down on one end of the fork and pulling hard, you feel a sharp pain shoot through the back of your hand.
Just as a glimmer of hope appears, exhaustion hits like a ton of bricks, blurring your vision.
Maybe Lithos was right about the fish. A quick bite might restore some stamina.
The shackles remain immovable.
Awkwardly changing angles and gritting teeth, you press down again and finally feel the fork sink, only to see its handle bent into an arc.
Shaking your head to clear your blurred vision, you realize sweat has begun to bead on your forehead.
Ever since resolving to step onto the battlefield, you have never allowed your body to reach such a state of weakness.
Knowing that there is no turning back and you have been harboring an unspoken lie, you must work harder than those with innate talent.
If not for being in this predicament, all of this would have remained a secret.
Shaking off these thoughts, you calm your chaotic breathing, adjust your posture, and press down on the fragile fork once more.
The fork screeches, prying at the joint bit by bit.
Clang! The base of the fork suddenly breaks into two, and your cheek is cut by the broken edge due to inertia.
Fortunately, the handcuffs loosen significantly.
Vigorously shaking your wrists, you finally pull out the handcuffs along with the nails on them.
After moving your newly freed hand to wipe the blood off your face, you shift your focus to the other hand.
With one hand freed, the rest of the escape goes much smoother.
You bend down to inspect the shackles fixed to the floor and find them to be very sturdy but locked with a simple lock, which could be picked with a simple tool.
Could Lithos have overlooked that this fork would help your escape?
What he said and how he said it all point to one thing—this is a game planned in cahoots with the defectors from Babylonia.
The game didn't start now—it began the moment you boarded that doomed transport craft.
The moment the shackles fall off due to the fork's tampering, slow footsteps approach from outside.
...
Lithos steps into the room, spots the discarded shackles on the table, and isn't surprised in the slightest.
Commandant?
Hiding so quickly?
It seems those with memories are more stable, immediately knowing what they should do.
Twirling his long hair around his finger and wandering around the room, Lithos never opens the cabinet or searches under the table.
Gray Raven Commandant?
He whispers softly, edging closer to your hiding spot.
It turns out that in the haste to hide, a drop of your blood inadvertently fell nearby.
...
He stops in his tracks beside that drop of blood.
What should I do now...
It's even more dangerous out there...
Besides those children, Loki is there too. Running into her would be troublesome...
But this is our last chance for Project Cthylla. Mister won't allow us to fail.
He mutters to himself, resting his hand against the wall.
Cthylla? Cthylla...
No. Mr. Monster, can you hear me?
The wall behind you suddenly becomes scorching hot.
I know it's hard, but please, you must help Cthylla control her "cradle"...
We must stop Loki from leaving that area at any cost.
He turns his head in the direction of your gaze, revealing a meaningful smile.
Paper Crane, let's go.
After his footsteps fade away, silence reclaims the space as if the burning sensation behind just now was but a bluff to intimidate.
Barely able to support your body, you creep through the narrow crevice, realizing then how drained and feeble your body is.
The same feelings hit you after you sustained injuries in the battle at the Pulia Forest Park Ruins, followed by a prolonged coma.
Commandant, your wounds...!
Reaching out toward her figure, you only grasp the afterglow of light.
Your state of confusion grows, unsure if the anomaly lies within yourself or in this mysterious space.
You shake your head again, clearing the chaos from your mind.
While the Gray Raven Commandant hunts for an exit unarmed, a weathered soldier hurries past the grim alley in the amusement park.
It is the third survivor to fall into the pit—Shorthalt of Scarab.
...
How did Shorthalt come to this?
He still remembers the day he left the squad, when the Scarab Commandant, Valeria, called him into the operation room for a confidential mission.
Project Cthylla? What's so important about a crazy project that was terminated long ago?
That theory and experiment might have been unthinkable during the Golden Age, but it's different for Ascendants. Hetero-Creatures have provided new possibilities.
Any news?
Yeah, here's what we got from the Science Council and the Purifying Force. Hetero-Creatures are sprouting new variations, namely—
Give me the gist. I can't handle lengthy reports.
The brass wants us to scope out these spots for anyone the Purifying Force is after.
She taps the terminal screen on the table with her fingertips.
Why can't the Purifying Force handle it themselves?
Those folks are all about secrecy, darting from one spot to the next.
Ah, so they've got stealth scouts among them.
Exactly, which is why this stays between us. We're hitting the road in two hours, splitting up, and sharing any intel pronto.
I've got a hunch someone's about to strike gold.
Stay sharp, Shorthalt. Don't go poking your head out of a manhole only to stumble upon a bunch of Ascendants worshipping the Red Tide.
Hmph, like that would ever happen to me.
...
Shiva's gut feelings are always dead-on.
Just as she foresaw, that nondescript spot turned out to be one of Lithos' bases, where Shorthalt was caught in an ambush during his investigation.
Barely dodging the trap, he was double-crossed by a defector pretending to help, sending him back into the abyss.
To bait Valeria into a rescue, the defector scattered his severed limbs in conspicuous spots, while Lithos kept him captive.
After waking from a long coma, he has spent ages rummaging through piles of rubble for spare parts and weapons, hunting for an escape route.
In this twisted maze, he has wandered for endless days, losing track of time.
Phew...
Shorthalt briefly puts down his weapon, leans against the corner, and slips a liquor-filled peppermint candy from the bottom of his pocket into his mouth.
Valeria had given it to him before they split up. She knows Shorthalt has a soft spot for these little treats, though she isn't one to dole them out herself.
This mission's dicey. Don't get stuck in a fight too long.
If there's no progress in three days, come back, and we'll brainstorm a fresh strategy.
You're not brushing off Shiva's words, right? I won't return empty-handed.
Fine. If you're missing in three days, I'll send Wanshi that video of you cuddling a medic bot, sloshed.
That was the parting shot from Commandant Valeria.
...
Wonder if I can score a memory fragment wipe for a friend.
Crunching on the sweet, Shorthalt gears up for a recon trip down south, only to catch hurried footsteps nearby.
...?
In a flash, he's face to face with a somewhat familiar human, trailed by a monstrous Hetero-Creature.
Get down!
He pulls the already weary human into a tight hug, then lunges forward to jab the creature with his weapon.
Red liquid splatters, and the monster drops.
What a surprise, finding the Gray Raven Commandant here in this shithole.
I'm Shorthalt from Scarab.
Oh? You know me? I'm flattered.
Hah...
It's a long story.
He pulls out a candy from his pocket, contemplating eating it, then tossing it over.
Take it. You'll need the energy.
Had I known there were survivors, I'd have brought more.
He lets out a sigh as he briefly recounts what he went through.
The small purple Ascendant didn't off me, just chopped me up and dumped me in a heap of rubble.
Commandant Valeria didn't expect me to be alive, did she? What about you?
The transport craft to Babylonia had an accident?
Seems like some folks are driven to desperate measures, willing to do anything.
Those who escaped the Purifying Force.
Hard to say. Time doesn't seem to exist in this place. I figure it's been over a month, most of it spent knocked out cold.
Transport vehicles bring people in every now and then, but they're heavily guarded by Ascendants and all sorts of Hetero-Creatures, making them tough to approach.
And lately, those vehicles have vanished altogether.
Chaotic doesn't even begin to describe it. You see those illusion-like doors and floors too?
**** me, this place is like a maze, with doors floating all over, leading to who knows where.
Some are labs, others are orphanages, and there are even underground waterways. I thought my M.I.N.D. was playing tricks on me.
But since you can see them too, it means this place has some serious real-world simulation going on.
Yeah, Lithos has been popping up a lot lately. Every time I run into her, she pulls some slick move and vanishes, neither attacking nor letting me attack.
And believe it or not, when I'm at my lowest, she shows up to lend a hand, like I'm her pet or something.
Can't trust a word that guy says. You'd be smart not to take his words at face value.
She's all about deception and manipulation, so watch your back.
Hmph, can't believe she fed you that line about Gray Raven already rescuing your clone. Total hogwash. You've only been gone a few days, and your clone couldn't have grown up that fast and fooled Gray Raven, could it?
Even if those researchers have ways to speed up a clone's growth, it couldn't be that rapid.
Since we seem to be in this together, I've got a favor to ask.
Connect my M.I.N.D. I've been wandering around here for so long, my M.I.N.D. is turning into mush.
With the M.I.N.D. connection established, Shorthalt lets out a long sigh of relief.
Ah, that's much better.
Hmm... Your Mind Beacon feels different from Commandant Valeria's.
Every time I connect with her, I feel this restlessness, like I wanna pick a fight with someone.
Your Mind Beacon has this calmness that's way beyond your years. We should take it slow and not rush into things, which suits me just fine.
He chuckles heartily, giving you a friendly pat on the back with his big hand.
Oh, sorry about that. Didn't realize you were hurt.
Shorthalt regards you, whom Commandant Valeria had described as someone noteworthy, with the kind of look one gives to a patient.
You're a lot different from what I imagined. I thought you'd be more of a tough-as-nails soldier type.
But hey, when you're stuck in a place like this, you gotta face reality.
For now, let's treat you like someone who's wounded. Take it easy and don't push yourself too hard like you used to. Keep that in mind, okay?
So, what's the plan now?
My terminal got tossed ages ago, along with all that junk in the disposal channel, and turned into scrap metal. Yours probably met the same fate.
Even if there's no signal 5000 meters under the sea, there might be some messages on the terminal that could come in handy.
And here I was wondering why you were dressed so lightly. Turns out you got stripped down.
Alright, let's head back and find it. There might be some usable weapons in that pile of debris, better than you going unarmed.
