Story Reader / Interlude / Night Mayfly / Story
The Nighter will dock in approximately 70 hours. The open market we are hosting on the dock will be our closest one to Kowloong.
I will be controlling the mechanoid with Qu's appearance remotely and monitor the market myself. I have changed the classification level from B to C based on the citizen feedback we received...
Villier, however, does not seem to care about this. He is just focusing on calibrating Huaxu's data.
Since the market's close to Kowloong, there may be Corrupted roaming near where we dock. Take Yazi as your guard, just in case.
Huaxu's projection flickers as if that is how it expresses the idea of "confusion."
Should we cancel the market for now if there is a chance of Corrupted attacking? Otherwise, casualty among the citizens could be catastrophic.
Villier frowns, pausing the calibration he is working on.
Huaxu, you seem to be caring about those humans more and more during the time you manage the Nighter for me... It's an interesting shift, but you're acting a little too obsessive now.
The people of the Nighter are the people of Kowloong. Their freedom and lives have been granted to them, and in return, they must become the cogs that build the machine.
The value of the Nighter is to give you... to give Huaxu a body of your own. Only through frequent trades can we expedite the search for the Construct that can serve as your body. A risk like that is too small to stop us.
After years of development, the device to transfer your consciousness is almost complete... Soon, there will be no barriers between us... I can touch you, I can hear you...
Do I... only have value with a body?
Villier is not expecting a question like this from Huaxu. After a brief silence, he sighs.
...You're indeed thinking more and more like a human.
Have I been keeping you around the humans for too long... or have you inhabited Qu's frame for so long that you're starting to think like her?
Looking at the mechanoid with the same face as him, Villier seems disgusted.
Perhaps I should keep you away from humans after the market...
Huaxu's projection slowly nods, watching Villier walk away.
A large figure dashes across the street, and the pedestrians all jump away to avoid it. Recognizing it as one of the Blubber mechanoids that work as security on the Nighter, no one dares stand in its way.
Except this is no ordinary Blubber, but Uno, who is holding a small, human girl in its arms.
Finally, Uno stops at a quiet corner after leaping and dashing away, gently putting the girl down after making sure there is no danger around.
Wounded all over, none of Yoyo's injuries is serious—the words she heard have brought her more pain than any of her physical wounds.
Hanying...
She gazes into the distance where they came from, the place she has inevitably considered home... She remembers every inch of it, the marks of a difficult but joyous life shared by three happy figures inside a cramped space.
But she can no longer take the path she has walked countless times, and the person who waited for her will no longer be there. Once again, she can only run away alone like when she was younger, powerless to do anything.
Rargh...
Uno has no idea how to comfort her, so it takes something out of the storage inside its chest and hands it to Yoyo.
It is a panda plushie. Having spent countless days and nights with Yoyo through laughter and tears, it now has a big hole in its body, looking more worn than a few years ago. Hanying claimed she could get it fixed.
Rargh!
Uno may not have realized that Yoyo is past the age when she needs her plushie to sleep. In its memories, the plushie always cheers Yoyo up whenever she was sad.
Yoyo holds the plushie she called "Master" in her arms. The warped patch on it is clearly done by Hanying, the only thing the talented dancer could not do well.
Inspecting closely, Yoyo can see hints of "blood" where the stitches are—Hanying's human-like body also bleeds like a human.
—A machine is always going to be a machine. They exist only to fulfill humans' desires.
Is that true for Hanying and Uno as well...? Do the two of you treat me so kindly because you've been programmed to do so?
Yoyo buries her face in the panda plushie, which seems to retain some of Hanying's warmth still.
"Master"... What should I believe...?
[You... foolish disciple!]
Holding the plushie's arms to hit herself with consecutive strikes, Yoyo lowers her voice to mimic the panda character from the old cartoon and talks to herself—the way she used to do with Hanying.
M-Master!
[It matters not what you should believe, but what you want to believe!]
Yoyo grabs the plushie's legs and makes it jump-kick her.
[What if she is a machine? Hanying is your friend! How can you leave her behind?!]
But... I can't stop them...
[What a giant fool you are! Lean in so I can smack you in the head!]
Its soft, fluffy fist hits Yoyo in the face.
[What's the use of crying? If a weakling like you want to protect something valuable, then you must change yourself! You are valuable because you can improve!]
Right, Hanying said that I can become a Construct... Once I do, I'll have the power to save her.
Hearing that, Uno shakes its head, handing Yoyo the letter Hanying gave it, implying that Hanying would not want Yoyo to miss the opportunity to return to Kowloong.
No... we made a promise that we would return to Kowloong together. I won't go back by myself.
Uno, do you know how to become a Construct? Don't lie to me!
Despite its best effort to shake its head, Uno cannot hide the truth from Yoyo after all. It points to a giant shop in the market with its massive arm.
Inside "Jinman's Emporium", Jin Man spares no effort hiding his disdain toward his two uninvited guests.
So, in this critical hour after Hanying was taken, you dumb robot takes the girl to my place...?
Rargh...
You are the one Hanying found to help me become a Construct?
I didn't "help." I was "paid to provide a service."
In that case, I want to become a Construct. How much would that cost...
Staring at Yoyo with a side glance, Jin Man quickly fiddles with his abacus.
As a matter of fact, Hanying already prepared the design and the material... but the operation itself is costly. Do you even have money? Get lost if you don't.
The money Hanying prepared is kept by herself, so the girl has no way to pay the price.
Get lost, then. Why are you still here? Hey, boy, kick them out.
Jin Man calls for the staff beside him. The slender young man smiles as he approaches Yoyo and gestures for her to leave.
I'm terribly sorry, young lady, but my boss never does something that doesn't profit him. Please leave.
Yoyo is not angry, however, nor does she intend to leave. Determined, she stares right back at Jin Man.
I might not have money... but I have something I can sell. You mentioned it in the past... my memories.
Jin Man's dismissive expression suddenly turns solemn, no longer acting like his usual condescending self.
Do you have any idea what you're talking about? Without your memories of Kowloong, you won't remember what your parents look like, or your life there.
My parents once told me I'm "terrible at determining the value of a thing. So do what feels right. Don't hold back." If my memories can become my strength, then now is the time to use them.
Plus, I'm not afraid... Hanying and I promised each other we'd return to Kowloong together. My parents will find me even if I'm a Construct. Then, the four of us will create new memories.
Jin Man has never been so torn about a deal, as ruthless a merchant and a shark as he is.
If that's not enough... I'll add this plushie. This is everything I have... Please...
Yoyo holds the plushie one last time before putting it on the counter, leaving behind the last anchor she has to her past.
How much can it be worth? And it's so old...
Fine. "Jinman's Emporium" will take this deal... Prepare the operation.
Really?!
Jin Man ignores the staff, smirking only at Yoyo.
We might have a deal, but Construct operations are not guaranteed success. You might just die on the operation table... and we'd still charge you the full price. Do you understand?
I understand... I have to try, even if it's just a small chance!
Very well... Follow us.
Yoyo turns around and wipes away her tears, waving goodbye to Uno, promising herself that she will cry no more.
Instead of crying about her past, there is something more valuable she has to protect.
Can she really survive this...
What's wrong, boss? Are you worried about the girl?
I'm worried about your skills.
Relaxed. You know that I used to be a member of the Fuxi Crew in Kowloong.
Whoa. Very Impressive...
But are you sure about removing her memories during the procedure... She'll forget everything before she boarded the Nighter—her parents, her friends, her past... even her name.
Certainly. A contract is a contract. That is what I'm owed.
Do people really buy that stuff...?
Of course they do. Freaks run amok on this ship, but... instead of selling it to some peeping junkie, I'd rather keep it as a favor to a promising future dancer.
That's why you're the boss. Of course you've planned it all out.
Not to mention that it's a good thing for the girl to stop obsessing over her unrealistic past... Start the operation.
Leave it to me!
She is shaken awake by a loud crash. Unlike how the Nighter sways when she usually wakes up, she finds everything beneath her shaking.
Ugh...
She tries to sit up, but an unfamiliar feeling of disassociation in her body takes over her, and she almost falls down.
Is this my body?
Looking at her metallic hands, it is obvious that she is no longer "human."
With another loud crash, a huge figure crashes through the wall in front of her, barely able to stop itself before the girl.
Uno?!
The Blubber mechanoid struggles to stand up, one of its massive arms severely damaged.
Soon, several twisted mechanical figures appear from the hole in the wall. The girl does not know what they are, but she can tell that they are dangerous.
Rargh...
Uno just manages to climb up, standing before the girl, hoping to protect her, only to find her closing her fists and nodding before gently lifting Uno's giant figure and placing it behind covers.
It's alright. Let me take care of them now!
Hiss—!
Why is something like that on the Nighter...?
Uno projects its data terminal, showing that it has been three days since she was transformed into a Construct.
Right... Hanying!
She still remembers that this is the day the Nighter docks for the market—the day the bad people are making Hanying do bad things.
I have to get to the market... Uno, wait for me here!
But it's clear that the Corrupted are not going to let the girl and the mechanoid go. Several of them leap toward her, only to be swiftly kicked away—before they climb back up in their twisted forms.
Punches aren't going to do anything to them... I got it!
She reaches for a giant blade next to the bed—the sword is taller than her, yet she wields it comfortably.
Out of my way!
Hiss—!
The blade turns into a tornado of slashes in her hands, tearing the Corrupted in her way into pieces.
She can feel that she has forgotten much, including her name. But she remembers that there is someone she needs to save, something she has to do.
