Story Reader / Interlude / Night Mayfly / Story
Familiar lights sway above Yoyo. She opens her eyes, violently coughing.
The long-missing air in her throat tastes like honey. Yoyo even wonders if she has forgotten how breathing feels like.
You're finally awake...
The woman who has saved Yoyo twice smiles genuinely for the first time. She helps Yoyo up before feeding the girl a small cup of tea.
The warmth from the tea brings the sensation of life back to Yoyo. Her body slowly stops shaking while her tears roll down her face ceaselessly unprompted.
Miss... I'm still alive... right?
Yoyo's voice is choking up. The woman nods and puts down the tea, hesitating for a second before holding Yoyo in her arms, allowing the girl's tears to drench her dress.
Time passes, and the night sky in the distance fades, signaling the arrival of a new day... The night of grief and tears has passed.
Yoyo wipes her tearful eyes and opens her mouth hesitantly.
I'm sorry...
The woman looks at the soaked spot of her dress and shakes her head, not minding the stain.
Oh, it's alright. I got this from the dance troupe. It'll be fine after a wash...
I didn't mean that... although I'm sorry about it too!
Yoyo blushes, scratching her head, embarrassed.
I should have stayed like you told me. I shouldn't have left out of spite and called you a bad person...
Perhaps... you're not wrong. It's not smart to trust someone blindly on the Nighter.
Then the woman takes out the panda plushie that has been staying by Yoyo's side, putting it back in the girl's arms.
I should apologize too... I shouldn't have told you that you'd never see your parents again. As long as you don't give up hope, there is still a chance that they'd be waiting for you in Kowloong when we return.
Okay! I won't give up, then. They must still be waiting for me...
There's something else I need to apologize for. I tried to fix the Tai'E mechanoid you bought... but its body and memory shell are both damaged beyond repair. It's impossible for it to become what it once was...
The woman shakes the bells in her hands, and a giant figure slowly steps inside the room out of nowhere—it is a Blubber mechanoid.
Rargh—
So I used the parts of the Tai'E to fix up a broken Blubber—and hopefully that would do the trick and bring it to "life" again...
The woman knows she is being impudent. The mechanoid that Yoyo called a "friend" no longer exists. She fears that everything she has done for the girl is in vain.
Every module and every screw of a mechanoid can be replaced... Does a body built with parts have a soul? What constitutes the real "soul"?
Yoyo reaches out tentatively, timidly touching the Blubber's metal body. It is as cold and stiff as other mechanoids—apart from the hint of pink on its wrist.
The ribbon was on the Tai'E mechanoid. I thought it must have meant something, so I kept it.
Yoyo blinks, looking at the ribbon that she once used to tie her hair, and she smiles.
What... is his name?
His name...? I... I don't know...
Everyone needs a name. Let me give it one, then! The main character in my favorite cartoon also has a robot friend. How about I name you after him... "Uno"?
Rargh—
Hello, Uno, my name is Yoyo. See? We've exchanged names... but since you were just born, you'll be my little brother, and I'm your big sister, okay?
After seeing Uno flings its arms up and down to indicate it understands, Yoyo turns to the woman again.
Now, Miss, it's your turn to tell us your name!
Slightly surprised by Yoyo's questions, the woman shakes her head and pulls up her sleeve, revealing a crushed arm from the Blubbers' attacks—and the mechanical structures beneath her artificial skin.
Perhaps you have already guessed that I'm not a human... My creator didn't give me a name because I was made in secret—and I suppose there was no need to name someone who was made to be an instrument.
The woman's hands are as delicate as a human's, her face detailed and intricate. No one would have known her secret if it were not for her injuries.
I called you a valueless burden... but the truth is I am the worthless one here. I was made to fulfill my creator's biggest wish, and yet... I found out eventually that it is a duty a machine like me can never do.
But you're so incredible, Miss! There are things that even you can't do?
Some things can never change in this world... Some things you can never obtain.
She looks out the window, her gaze crossing the dawning light, landing on the top of the highest tower on the Nighter. There, his figure occasionally appears, but in his eyes, she finds not herself... nor anything on this ship.
I managed to board this ship as a human with this body... I couldn't explain why I disobeyed my creator's order and left Kowloong, following him onto the Nighter.
But I'll never understand humans as much as I look like one. I'll never become someone like you, Yoyo... A precious human.
Only half-grasping what she said, Yoyo smiles and holds the woman's hands anyway.
Values, duties... are they important? I don't actually understand... but I don't think you need to become a human, Miss! Because "if you have the component called a heart, it doesn't matter if you are human or machine!"
Isn't that cool? It might just be a line from "Kowloong's Magical Girl"... but I think it's right to say it here!
Yoyo holds the panda plushie she recovered in her arms, shaking her head playfully.
And if you lost the value that man gave you, Miss, why don't you search for your own? That must be something more precious.
My own... value? I don't know if that's... possible.
The woman is surprised to hear what Yoyo said. The girl's words are beyond a machine's logical parameters.
But I promise you I will try—I will try to find my own value, to find the component called a heart...
And I will return to Kowloong, where Mom and Dad will be waiting for me like you said...
In that case, let's make a pinky swear! We swear to live together on the Nighter... until we achieve our goals.
Yoyo smiles, extending her pinky finger and locking the woman's pinky with hers.
What is this...?
That's how we make a promise... but we need your name, Miss, or it won't work!
Hmm... My creator didn't give me a name, but I have a nickname I used on this ship. I borrowed the word from a line in a song.
Then that will be your name, Miss! It belongs to you and no one else.
This is the first time the woman owns something precious that is hers—even if it is only a name, it still means a lot.
Hanying... My name is Hanying.
Hanying! What a pretty name, Miss!
Yoyo locks her pinky with Hanying's once again, moving her head from side to side rhythmically.
Pinky swear—pinky swear—Hanying and Yoyo swear! A promise made, a promise kept—a promise of a thousand years!
Looking at their locking pinkies, Hanying gives the gentlest smile.
This is the second precious thing she has gained today—a promise with a young human.
Their fickle fates are now forever intertwined.
