After they sailed past the critical marker of six nautical miles, the environment around the Vanished and the Bright Star underwent a strange transformation.
The ocean and the fog abruptly disappeared, replaced by an odd twilight that enveloped the sky. This twilight spread everywhere, making it seem as though the entire world beyond the edges of the ships had lost its definition. Every distinct feature merged into a homogenous and indistinct⊠backdrop. The two ghostly vessels seemed to be gliding through this monochrome expanse as if they were floating in a void.
ââŠThis isnât what the churchâs records suggested,â Vanna remarked, gazing out at the transformed surroundings, her words flowing without thought. âThe documents mentioned that even after crossing the six nautical mile threshold for some distance, the sea and the sky should remain visible⊠I recall Miss Lucretia pointing this out too.â
Duncan, deep in thought, quietly lifted his gaze to observe Sailor, who was now clenching the wheel with a noticeable tension. After a brief pause, he finally broke the silence: âMaybe this is the scenario that unfolds when Anomaly 077 is âproperly triggeredââweâre navigating through a unique âcorridorâ, shielded from the chaotic temporal disturbances that lie beyond the critical boundary.â
âBut how long will we be traveling through this corridor, Captain?â Alice inquired, her curiosity piqued, standing beside him.
After a moment of reflection, Duncan shook his head, indicating uncertainty: âEven I canât say for sure.â
Aliceâs inquisitive eyes then shifted to Sailor managing the helm.
Feeling the weight of her stare, Anomaly 077âs anxiety heightened, causing him to retract slightly and protest, âDonât look at me, Iâm just as clueless. Iâm merely handling the shipâŠâ
As he spoke, he endeavored to maintain a stern demeanor, making slight adjustments to the wheel. Yet, in truth, he was unsure of the direction they were headed, merely moving the wheel back and forth to seem occupied. Given the surreal circumstances, the shipâs precise âcourseâ seemed irrelevant to the position of the helmâŠ
Duncan, perceptive but opting not to comment, checked the condition of the Vanished to ensure all was well, then shifted his focus away from Sailorâs predicament. He cast his gaze towards the nearby Bright Star, mentally reaching out: âLucy, how are things on your side?â
âEverythingâs as usual here, apart from Rabbi, whoâs so terrified heâs barricaded himself inside a box, refusing to emerge,â came Lucretiaâs immediate reply, her concern evident. âHeâs incessantly babbling that weâre âplummetingâ⊠plummeting towards the âend of the worldâ. Itâs quite worrying.â
âCrashing towards the apocalypse?â Duncanâs brow furrowed in concern as he mulled over Rabbiâs frantic declaration. He turned his attention away from the conversation, his gaze sweeping across the deck to the shipâs edge, which was enveloped in a uniform expanse of âgray-whiteâ that seemed to represent a vast emptiness.
âIt could be referring to the âexternal barrierâ,â Duncan mused, âOr possibly something that lies even further beyond that barrier.â
âSomething beyond the barrier?â came Lucretiaâs voice, tinged with confusion.
ââŠAshes, the chaotic and unfathomable remnants of the old world that werenât used as âbuilding blocksâ for the new sanctuary,â Duncan elaborated, his mind tracing back to a recent discussion with Ray Nora. He remembered the Frost Queenâs words about the extreme purity and the terrifying âvoidâ that exists at the worldâs edge. An insight struck him, ââŠFor a fish, the world of air would indeed be an incomprehensible void and an apocalypse.â
On the Bright Starâs bridge, Lucretia, upon hearing her fatherâs interpretation, seemed to grasp something deeper. She then glanced at the box near the helm, which was gently shaking with Rabbiâs ear peeking out, visibly trembling.
Miss Witch scowled slightly: ââŠAs a creature meant to instill fear in others, must you be so frightened?â
âRabbi⊠Rabbi isnât meant to instill fear, Rabbi is⊠merely fear itselfâŠâ Rabbiâs voice was muffled inside the box as if trying to reassure itself, yet the tone shifted mid-sentence, âItâs truly horrifying, Mistress! Weâre plummeting, descending rapidly! Donât you feel it? Itâs becoming colder, darker, more constricted, like plunging headlong into a narrow tube from an endless abyss, about to choke, freeze, be crushed, envision that scenario, imagine itâŠâ
Without showing emotion, Lucretia walked over, flung open the box lid, and hoisted the rabbit up to slam it against the wall with a single hand.
The doll rabbit made a âpiaâ sound upon impact with the wall, then fell silent.
âSo, itâs your imagination thatâs vivid, isnât it?â Lucretia fixed a stern gaze on the flattened rabbit doll as it slowly slid down the wall, and she unconsciously rubbed her arm to ease the chill, âStop sharing those wild fantasies of yoursâkeep them to yourself. Otherwise, it wonât just be a matter of being thrown against the wall next time.â
The doll rabbit inflated back to shape with a âpoof-bangâ sound, shakily stood up, and muttered an obedient âOhâ before heading back towards its box.
However, before it could get far, Lucretia seized its ear, dragging it back towards her.
âStop idling around, go find a task to occupy yourself,â Miss Witch commanded with a tone that brooked no argument, âTake a handful of your mechanical companions, head to the rear boundary of the ship and stand guard. The essence of the shipâs spirit seems somewhat disturbed in this area⊠Ensure that none of those devoid-of-soul shadows break free from within. I donât have the spare capacity to address such nuisances at the moment. Off you go.â
âOh, alright, MistressâŠâ Rabbi responded, its head hanging low as it obediently made its way out of the bridge, taking small, dejected steps.
Once the rabbit had departed, Luni approached, her voice tinged with concern: âWasnât that a bit harsh on Rabbi? Sheâs merely frightened.â
âSheâs excessively frightened. I needed to find her a distraction,â Lucretia let out a light sigh and dismissed the matter with a wave of her hand, âShe originated from the deep depths of the spirit realm, capable of perceiving many âshiftsâ that are beyond human detection. What seems trivial to me may appear âvibrantâ through her eyesâŠâ
She halted mid-sentence, then cast a speculative glance at the clockwork doll before her: âBut now that you mention it⊠didnât you sense anything? In crafting your mimic soul, I incorporated âelementsâ from the spirit realm.â
Luni paused, reflecting deeply, then shook her head, âI havenât sensed anything.â
A hint of complexity shadowed Lucretiaâs features as she scrutinized Luniâthough perhaps it was her imagination, she couldnât shake the feeling that ever since Luni began interacting with that animated doll named âAliceâ on the Vanished, there was a distinct and pure⊠âauraâ about her. This observation became especially pronounced after the dolls learned the peculiar act of exchanging headsâŠ
Yet, when she last covertly evaluated Luniâs cognitive abilities, no significant alterations were detectedâshe had yet to bring this up with her father.
âMistress?â The clockwork doll picked up on the scrutiny, her head tilting in puzzlement.
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ââŠItâs nothing.â Lucretia brushed off the fleeting thoughts, deciding to sideline the odd connections forming in her mind for now. Just then, something in the periphery of her vision caught her attention.
Through the porthole, amidst the vast expanse of âgray-whiteâ that blanketed their view, patterns, and shadows that hadnât been there before began to emerge, becoming gradually discernible.
âWhatâs that?â Luni, too, noticed the enigmatic lines and shapes materializing on the âcorridorâs outer wallâ, her eyes widening in astonishment.
In the instant following her inquiry, the vague, seemingly detached âoutlinesâ, began to shift within the gray-white backdrop.
The once indistinct black lines began to shiver and swiftly reorganize themselves into coherent shapes, while the shadows around them expanded, filling in the outlines with color. A ship, as if being âprintedâ onto the corridorâs outer wall from the uniform gray-white backdrop, suddenly materialized and started to align itself with the trajectory of the Vanished and the Bright Star.
This occurrence was akin to a wayward traveler abruptly âbursting intoâ the corridor, and the once abstract and warped shadow of the ship, upon coming into the view of the Vanished and the Bright Star, rapidly assumed a more recognizable⊠âformâ.
Lucretia, caught off-guard, dashed to the porthole with the swiftness of the wind, her gaze fixed intently on the newly appeared ship within the corridor.
She instantly identified the faint emblem emblazoned on the vessel.
âItâs the Sea Song!â
That vessel was the Sea Song, known for its eternal journey, meandering through the shattered currents of time.
It had navigated from a disjointed time stream, finding a brief moment of âconvergence,â to intersect with the path of the Vanished and the Bright Star.
The atmosphere on the Vanishedâs aft deck turned eerily silent.
Every onlooker was drawn to the vessel hovering âin mid-airâ outside, observing its flag becoming more discernible and the name on its hull increasingly visibleâthe Sea Song was voyaging within its own temporal flow, seemingly oblivious to the nearby Bright Star as if the discrepancy in time veiled its âvisionâ. It passed alarmingly close, then approached the Vanished. freŃnovelkiss.com
There, it adjusted its bearing and emitted a sequence of light signals.
Anomaly 077âs grip on the wheel tightened, his eyes widening as he scrutinized the blinking lights on the Sea Song, silently tallying the sequence and intervals as though he was counting the beats of a long-stilled heart.
âShort light-dark-short light-dark-long lightâŠâ He halted his count mid-way, even as the Sea Song continued to flash its signals. Closing his eyes briefly, he then mustered all his strength and shouted with a raspy voice, âCaptain! The approaching vessel is signaling their intent!â
Duncan exhaled quietly, his face etched with a blend of gravity and resolve.
âSignal back with lights,â he instructed softly, âGive them our respects.â