Editing City Series:Volume8b Chapter18 (section)

===Aoe’s Sight Mode: In DT’s Amusement Park===

'''<Aoe’s Over Reload>

The sky overhead seemed endlessly large.

It was already filled with the black of night. It was no more than a dark color Aoe could not focus his eyes on.

A single shape jutted into that sky while emitting light toward heaven.

That shape was Babel.

A white ellipse floated near the artificial lake located in front of Babel.

…''That’s the blimp.

With the management removed, Aoe’s thoughts remained in his head and he tapped Monkey’s face and pointed forward.

Between them and the blimp was a white castle full of light and several attractions.

A large white entrance gate stood with that amusement park scenery behind it.

“Welcome.”

The greeting came from the 401 NPC Bodies who managed the amusement park.

Standing out in front of their joined voices was Mekton in his black combat outfit.

The NPC Bodies behind him were dressed in the clothing of men and women both young and old.

They all wore their version of formal wear and carried combat equipment.

The guard knights readied rifles on horseback, the mages held glowing staffs, and the jesters were passing glowing orbs between each other. The restaurant workers were equipped with knives and other weapons and wore heavy-duty vests over their work uniforms.

Yuo, dressed in her light combat uniform, placed her left hand on Aoe’s shoulder while he viewed them all.

He did not turn to look at her. He simply viewed the strength of the hand on his shoulder.

“I’m going to break through. If I focus on speed, I won’t have to bother fighting him. You can blame me for that.”

Yuo’s right hand pushed a window into his view. It was her thought window.

<Would you be mad if I said I wanted to share the blame?>

He realized the strength had left the hand on his shoulder.

So he nodded with a smile on his lips.

Mekton was staring at them, like he was observing their conversation.

He crossed his arms with no apparent expression on his face.

“Aoe…you called me…i-inexperienced.

“But,” he added, swinging down both his fists without warning. His thick arms sliced through the air.

'''“This is my power.”

With that Text, the notification window for his Word Race trait change opened.

Several points of white light appeared around him.

But they did not come from any part of his body. They came from behind him.

Bluish-white toy soldier symbols appeared on the hands, feet, necks, and weapons of the 400 NPC Bodies.

'''<Aoe’s Over Zoom>

The splitting stone sound was so loud it reached the level of a roar.

'''“We often…played with Master Yuo…and protected…her.

'''“Then she would…stop crying.”

'''<Pseudo Grandload: Running Pseudo Load Emblem: Tribes: Preparing>

Enough windows opened to surround them all and the excessive displays created noise resembling thunder.

Light shined from the hands, feet, necks, and weapons where the emblems had appeared on the 400 NPC Bodies.

A text string was drawn from the emblems.

'''●Type-XX050: Imperial-class: Tribes●

'''<Pseudo Grandload: Activating Pseudo Grandload of Mekton’s reflexes: Loading highest-level subprograms and releasing upper limit on Load Emblem applied reflexes>

Aoe saw diskette programs attach to the ends of the 400 text strings and begin to rapidly rotate.

…''He’s the same Uriel type as Daikatana, but he uses it completely differently!

As soon as it was all ready, Mekton tapped the program control panel at his hip.

Bluish-white lightning appeared in his hands and his feet floated from the ground.

“This is a race, Aoe.”

He stood about a foot off the ground and looked back over his shoulder.

He looked past the white castle attraction and past the artificial lake, to something at the bottom of Babel. A plaza was built there with a beach-style swimming area.

A white blimp was floating there.

“Master Algo is…below that blimp.”

Aoe clicked his tongue at that and replied in annoyance.

“Enjoying a relaxing swim with sis, huh? He always did know how to take it easy.”

“Will you go meet him?”

“You bet I will. But I doubt you’re going to just let me through. You aren’t going to let me pace myself.”

A smile formed on the corners of Mekton’s lips and he raised his right hand.

Immediately, all of the NPC Bodies behind him ran backwards.

“!”

The wind blew as the 401 figures crossed the border between Top Pages and vanished into the amusement park.



'''<Aoe’s Over Zoom>

Aoe no longer saw Mekton or anyone else for that matter.

Only the small leaves of the garden’s bushes blowing in the wind.

But he did hear something. It was not coming from the amusement park.

It came from the sky. A noise seemed to ooze out of the word tower.

Babel was playing some music.

It was not a song everyone knew. Nor did it suit the amusement park situated at the tower’s feet. It was a deep, ringing march. Aoe recognized it.

He began humming the rhythm without meaning to and then recited one of the lines.

“I shall move ever forward.”

His lips stopped moving as a look of disbelief formed on his face.

He looked to Yuo’s hand on his shoulder. The hand was trembling in surprise.

He gulped and moved his gaze up from her hand.

She was looking to the amusement park with surprise on her face.

Then he realized something without needing to ask.

She still knew this song.

“Yuo.”

<Yes. Shortly before I came here, this song was written in North Kantou where the Kobayashi family lived. Dad and Alternative learned it right away, but…I had trouble learning it.>

She lowered her gaze in a troubled or tearful way, but then she smiled.

He moved his eyes when he saw that smile. He looked to the plaza below the blimp near glowing Babel. He could just barely make out the beach there.

“Sis is there, isn’t she? Algo too.”

She nodded. She still looked near tears, so the ferret lightly tapped her head and Monkey tapped her hand on Aoe’s shoulder.

That put a small smile on her face.

<Don’t worry. I’m fine.>

A window appeared over her head and Fooblicky’s voice reached the two of them.

“Yuo! And the idiot! We’re ready to go! We have less than half an hour left, so get to work!”

'''<Aoe’s Sight Mode has updated>