User:Démiurge

Chapitre 2 : Ligne Silencieuse (Esthétisme)

However, those great wings

failed to reach the sky.

For there was no sky in that world.

An empty world that lied, saying they could go anywhere.

An empty voice that would not let them go anywhere.

An empty cage that told them how to live—

Every time those wings opened,

aversion and curiosity,

inclusion and exclusion,

a force barred the sky.

Seeing the baby bird’s tears, the puppet said:

Let’s take our time and think how we can escape this cage.

The puppet entered the bird’s cage.

Let’s think together how to spread your wings and fly.

Always together…

Just as we promised. They smiled…

Partie 1

There was no sky in that world…physically.

The capital of Hardenfell—a massive space said to lie ten thousand meters below the surface. Sora and Shiro got down from the subterrane and viewed that expansive underground city. Both were lost in thought figuring out how they could describe what stretched in front of them. Technically, not just in front. Also above, below, behind, to the left, and to the right. If they were to describe this 360-degree panorama just as they saw it.

“Let me guess. Your chieftain is the president of a corporation that rhymes with Thinra.”

“…What does Demi…actually…do…anyway?”

If you did an image search for “factory nightscape,” you’d probably get the right idea. A steel jungle floating fantastically with countless dazzling light sources sparkling in the darkness. It basically looked like a slight modification of Midgar from the seventh installment of that one series where both of the words begin with F. As if they’d used a Gravity spell to ignore all those laws of physics and stuff and copy-pasted it in every direction and there you go. What you saw was what you got—no sky, no up or down. The upshot:

“They even have the Mako Reactors. Just say it. The chieftain’s Ruf*s, isn’t he?"

Seeing a pillar of light thrusting through the center of the city, Sora threw this question over his shoulder half in earnest.

@

"—Oh! No, Master. That is the aforementioned fire of the Old Deus Ocain—the Holy Forge.”

Jibril had been looking about, eyes agleam with excitement, but she hurried to lower her head as she spoke.

“The Dwarves are one of the rare races whose creator is alive and well, and still resides with them. The industrial utility of the Holy Forge allows it to serve as the driving force of this advanced mechanical civilization—this city.”

Advanced mechanical civilization—huh. They’d seen plenty on the way to convince them of that. Such as the subterrane, which Til still wouldn’t exit…

Apparently, it was a ship that used “flow differentials” to travel through the earth. They hadn’t a clue what that meant, but anyway, they had traveled about nine thousand seven hundred kilometers to get here. Discounting the time Til had needed for repairs—a little under six hours. One thousand six hundred kilometers per hour… 

…through solid ground. In their old world, that wasn’t even in the range of a submarine—you’d need a supersonic jet. Did the standard disclaimer for improbable physics—“ignoring friction”—apply to reality in this world? Even Shiro clutched her head.

“…It’s pretty awesome, I’ll give you that. But with Jibril saying it was the most scientifically advanced civilization anywhere—”

Sora took another look about Midgar—pardon, the capital of Hardenfell. A bit steampunk, but totally sci-fi.

@

Yet even so… What was it? Somehow…it didn’t live up to his expectations. Something was off—or not exactly off, but…

“Oh, no, Master. I merely indicated that it was the most mechanically advanced civilization in this world.”

Jibril interrupted Sora’s discordant thoughts with a correction and elaborated.

“If I may add—your world is far more advanced in science.”

…Huh. Compared to these bullshit Dwarves who messed with gravity to build 360-degree cities? These sick freaks who’d built this city in layers with no supports?

“Dwarven civilization is mechanically superlative—but by no means scientifically so. In fact, Dwarf is the race furthest removed from science… I suspect this will become clear to you quite soon. ♪”

—? 

Mechanically advanced, scientifically advanced… What was the difference? Sora and Shiro exchanged skeptical looks, but Jibril just smiled knowingly.

“With that, though with great reluctance—I shall take my leave to welcome our guests.”

Her sullen voice lingered as she vanished into thin air.

And so, for now, those who remained were Sora, Shiro…and one other. That was Til, making furious use of countless tools to fix her spirit arm—her hammer. Her work had continued noisily since they were in route. “Hey,” started Sora—

“Y-y-yes?! I-i-is the chieftain here? Help me!!”

—to which she immediately shrieked from behind him and Shiro. She’d taken shelter in an instant, tears in her eyes, her hammer held defensively aloft. It had been too fast for Sora or Shiro to see or comprehend. 

@

"We dunno why you’re so freaked out. But can we say what we do know?”

“…We’re…positive…we can’t do…shit, to help you.”

If she had that kind of physical prowess and was still afraid…then hell if they could help her.

“I disagree, I do!! I-I’ve somehow managed to overhaul my spirit arm—in time!!”

As if to confirm Til’s objection, her hammer made a clanging noise and emitted an intricate pattern of light beams.

Sora and Shiro narrowed their eyes and went, Ah, I see. Not because of the transforming, initializing spirit arm. Rather, it was the pale blue fire shimmering in Til’s eyes—those eyes purportedly of orichalcum—that brought grins to Sora’s and Shiro’s faces. It was the determination in those eyes, that indomitable resolve burning with bright flame—

"I’m not alone anymore, I’m not!! If the enemy comes—”

—that iron will, bowing for no one, that roared from the mouth of that brown Loli monster girl. In other words—!!

*****

"—you’ll hold me, you will!! And then! I’ll be so ☆ very ☆ safe—!”

“Excellent. Come roaring into my arms! Yeah, where’s that enemy? Come and—"

*****

"With indomitable resolve, Til would run like hell from the dominant! And Sora would welcome her into his arms—that ultimate safety zone where the Covenants would repel any attempt to pry her loose—

…Yoink, yoink, yoink…

Silence arrived as Shiro yanked at Til’s suspenders. Til blushed, and Sora watched adoringly. But just as soon, the  silence dissolved with the appearance of one of the enemies Til feared.

@

"Whyyy…so this is your burrow… What a perfectly grotesque horror showww!”

The sudden visitor continued merrily as if in song:   "It rubs me quite the wrong way. ♥ Why… ♪ this would be a fine time to execute you in a dark ☆ ritual! ♥”

“Help me! This is the time, it is! Help me! I’ll be burned alive, I—ow! Q-Q-Queen Shiro, pardon me, if you will! I-I’m safe here, I am; I’ve successfully escaped, I have!!”

Smiling, Fiel announced Til’s imminent slaughter. Til fell on her face, probably due to having her suspenders pulled, before crawling into Shiro’s skirt. Sora looked behind, unimpressed with Til’s shaky-voiced declaration of victory.

“…? Oh, I apologize for the wait, Masters. But I have returned.”

“Yeah… Good work, Jibril… So, sorry to spring this on you right away, but…"

The devil angel, back with the Elven menace, stood there confused.

Til and Fiel had averred that they would die were they to breathe the same air for six hours in the subterrane. So the agreement had been made that Jibril would go back to pick up Chlammy and Fiel after they got to Hardenfell. Sora praised Jibril and clutched his head again.

“…This isn’t even on the level of ‘they don’t get along’…"

@

*****

"Heh-heh-heh, yes, heh, I say! I can’t see anything, I can’t! Even if you glare at me, I—I won’t be scared, I won’t! You might as well craft a spell to hurt me and watch the Covenants turn it to mist, you might! ***Pft!***"

*****

"Fi!! Come on, Fi, don’t make that face; it’s scary! Please…”

Her head buried beneath Shiro’s skirt, her bottom showing, her body trembling, Til taunted Fiel all the same. Fiel’s face was such a storm of silent bloodthirst, it ultimately made Chlammy cry. Shiro grudgingly bore the situation as the alternative to having Til in Sora’s arms. All present looked to Jibril for an explanation.

“Perhaps owing to the influence of their creator, Dwarves believe that everything exists to be forged.”

She gestured toward the light at the center of the city—the Holy Forge.

“And with the fire of Ocain, god of the forge, they are capable of melting anything."

…Hmm, quite a radical line of thought. Sora nodded. Everything existed to be forged—so the world existed to be rebuilt. To the Dwarves with their all-melting furnace, the environment was made to be destroyed. Meanwhile…

“Why, rocks cave, trees fall, rivers dry up in their wake. The very mountains collapse.”

—And the wind? And the sky? Sora, Shiro, and even Chlammy wisecracked to themselves as they listened to Fiel.

“The seasons dieee, and the homes of the Elves—naturally!—die as well…”

And as they started to hear the rumbling of intent to kill, Sora and Shiro finally understood.

@

"Why, to exterminate such vicious beasts…is the natural obligation of every intelligent being. ♥”

The polar opposite of the Elves, whose love and hearts died as well, apparently… Even so, Sora asserted that he was not convinced—for indeed—!

*****

"You both destroyed the environment on a planetary scale in the Great War! Who are you to talk?!"

*****

It was thousands of years too late to be saying that—!! Sora and Shiro couldn’t swallow this however they tried. But at Jibril’s next words—

“It is a matter of the length of their feud, I suppose. Masters? Please observe the forehead of that long-ears. Do you see something? ♥”

—they froze like stone. In Fiel’s forehead…there were gems—minerals. Sweat ran down their cheeks.

—Everything exists to be forged…

They didn’t know exactly what those gems were. But it was easy to imagine that it would be problematic for them to be mined.

"As the Elves have butchered the Dwarves for destroying their forests, so have the Dwarves massacred the Elves for their gems…”

No one knew by now which happened first, but in any case…

“They have slaughtered each other since the beginning of time, altogether apart from squabbles over the One True God.♥”

*****

“It’s your fault for being born with stones in your head, it is. If you’ve a complaint, then come back as a liquid instead. ***Pft!*** That’s right, I won’t apologize, I won’t!! I’ll never apologize to a little weed, I won’t!!”

*****

“…Nooo, nooo… Fi’s ignorrring me… Waaaaaah!!"

@

"—Ah! Wh-why, no! I wasn’t ignoring you, Chlammyyy, I was just a bit—”

“Nooo! I don’t like iiit! Eegh… You’re scary, Fi. I hate you!!”

Til’s trolling had made Fiel’s malice explode again, which then brought Chlammy’s fear to the breaking point, it seemed. Fiel apologized in a panic to the wailing Chlammy, who’d regressed to the state of an infant…

At all this, Sora just sighed. He gave up and decided to dismiss it.

This is beyond reconciliation or resolution…

“’Kay. So, will you take us to our customer who wants his medicine?”

He looked back at the multilayered, antigravity, omnidirectional factory-type city as he spoke.

Actually, to be precise, by now Sora’s eyes were only on the Dwarves who bustled about the city. To be more precise: only the females. Yes…the brown Loli monster girls—!! As he asked Til where to find the customer who would sell them to him, not knowing even which way was up…

“By the way, you might want to get out of there…before Shiro goes ballistic on your ass.”

…Sora advised Til, who’d been squawking away with her head beneath Shiro’s skirt. Til responded promptly.

“ — Wha? Wha?! I-it was a brief lapse, but I do apologize, I do!!”

“……There’s…a limit…to how, rude…you can…be……isn’t there?”

Til’s shoulders bounced up as she scrambled to her feet with a salute. Which meant…

@

…Her skirt—Shiro’s—went up, too. Dazzled by the sight of her panties, belly button, and smile, Sora and Til froze.

“…The little sister…role’s, not…enough, huh? …Now you want…to be the protag…?”

The smiling Shiro was looking just as ballistic as Sora had feared. He could read between the lines.

“…You think, you can get away with…being an accidental perv…if you’re not even, the main character…?”

I see, so you want to be crushed, do you? Very well, I’ll grant your wish.

*****

Alll right, Til!! Let’s hurry and get to Hardenfell and get back!! Okay?!

*****

"Sir!! I-I’ll escort you to the Chieftain’s Hall immediately! B-but I won’t see the chieftain, I won’t. I-I’ll wait nearby, if I may…!!”

Sora shouted at Til in the hope of hurrying her and avoiding an unmanageable situation this time. Til saluted, while sticking to her guns on that one point. She closed her coat up to her head—once more in backpack form—and said as if reassuring herself:

“…It—it’s all right. I’ll go back home; this is just a trip…it is…"

Mumbling, she walked ahead with heavy steps. Following, Sora felt—

—a sense of déjà vu at this one who so hated her own country.

“…Hey… Why do you hate Hardenfell so much?”

“Heh… There’s no place for a grubby mole among Dwarves, there’s not.”

She sounded just as she had when they first met, when she called herself a “grubby mole of a travesty of a Dwarf.” She seemed to sense the doubt of Sora and Shiro behind her.

@

" …We’re going through anyway, we are. I’ll introduce you to the Central Industrial District, I shall.”

A picture is worth a thousand words. You’ll see. The ironic smile with which she turned made clear enough what she meant. And then:

“…Sir and Ma’am, do you like this city?”

……

“To me…the capital is the worst part of Hardenfell, it is.”

Til looked up at the lights like dazzling stars throughout the spherical underground city. The light shone in her orichalcum eyes—but she dropped her gaze as if she were staring beyond the horizon.

“ — There is no sky here……”

Til managed a fragile smile as she looked at the dark sky reflected in the dark-haired Sora’s eyes. Sora chuckled—Yeah, you’re right…

Références

Revenir au Chapitre 1

Retourner au Sommaire

Passer au Chapitre 3