[LOOKING, LOOKING, LOOKING FOR A FRIEND, FOUND MYSELF A GOOD FRIEND…]
A faint chant drifted through the empty universe.
Ordinarily, that should have been impossible. Space was a vacuum, with no medium to carry sound waves.
But that depended on who was singing.
For instance, a certain someone who had hidden away most of THEIR body and was quietly circling the Asdana system, careful not to touch the dream of ORDER within.
The cheerful song sounded deeply eerie in the strange voice of that mocking mask.
But THEY did not seem to care. THEY poured THEMSELF into the song with all THEIR heart.
[AHA IS A GOOD PERSON EVERYONE LOVES! EVEN FLOWERS BLOOM WHEN THEY SEE ME! SO EVERYONE WANTS TO BE FRIENDS WITH ME!]
As THEY sang, THEY used cosmic dust to knead one figure after another into shape.
The figures were so misshapen that, at a glance, it was impossible to tell what they were supposed to represent.
Of course, AHA did not dare sculpt them into definite forms.
Otherwise, those fellows would definitely sense it at once.
So THEY could only use these completely unrecognizable shapes to represent THEIR former "friends."
[THIS IS AKIVILI. HE AND AHA WERE SUCH GOOD FRIENDS! HE EVEN GAVE AHA THE BIG FIREWORKS AHA LOVED WATCHING MOST!]
AHA held the clump of cosmic dust THEY had kneaded in THEIR hand.
When THEY mentioned fireworks, THEY seemed to recall something wonderful.
But how could cosmic dust possibly withstand the fluctuations of THEIR power? Beneath that surge of energy, it gradually scattered back into the universe.
Seeing the cosmic dust meet such an end, AHA's tone dipped slightly.
[WHAT A PITY.]
Though THEY called it a pity, the expression on the mask did not change at all.
Then THEY picked up another clump beside THEM.
[THIS IS BIG BUG. AHA AND BIG BUG, AHA AND BIG BUG…]
At that point, the words abruptly trailed off.
Because THEY discovered that, in THEIR memories, the two of them did not seem to have had any actual contact.
But now that the atmosphere had reached this point, letting the scene go cold simply would not do.
Although THEY were the only one in this stretch of universe, AHA would never neglect a single detail, nor slack off in any performance.
So…
Nonexistent past, activate!
[WHEN LITTLE BUG WAS AT THEIR LONELIEST, AHA BECAME THEIR LAST FRIEND. WE SUPPORTED EACH OTHER AND GREW UP TOGETHER!]
One nonexistent scene after another was forcibly fabricated by THEM.
THEY and TAYZZYRONTH crawled through mud together, played together, went to school together…
Then, at a certain moment, the two of them suddenly faced separation.
[BECAUSE THEIR FEELINGS FOR ME WERE TOO DEEP, BIG BUG, HAVING LOST THEIR FRIEND, SEARCHED THE WHOLE UNIVERSE FOR TRACES OF AHA!]
At this point, THEIR voice could not help taking on a tearful note.
TAYZZYRONTH carried THEIR new companions across the entire universe, searching for traces of AHA, all so THEY could introduce THEIR first friend to them.
But in the middle of it all, a bad person appeared!
[THAT FOOL ACTUALLY BROUGHT HIS HAMMER DOWN ON BIG BUG!]
A scene appeared of AHA kneeling on the ground with a phone in hand.
In that scene, one could almost hear THEIR mournful cry: "NO!!!"
Snowflakes drifting—north wind howling—♪
On that day, AHA lost THEIR friend. On that day, THEY received the final message the other party left behind.
"AHA, look. These are all the new friends I made."
After leaving those words behind, Old Bug shattered into crystal fragments.
The grief-stricken AHA, in order to fulfill Big Bug's wish, cared in every possible way for the bugs Big Bug had left behind.
What? You say those were just Big Bug's fighting bugs?
Keep saying that, and AHA will be right in front of you!
[AFTER THAT, I LOST SO MUCH. NO ONE COULD FILL THE EMPTINESS IN MY HEART!]
Then one day, AHA suddenly saw a mechanical little bird land on THEIR shoulder.
[AFTER BUG LEFT, I WAS IN SO MUCH PAIN. I ALWAYS THOUGHT I HAD LOST THEM FOREVER, BUT RECENTLY I DISCOVERED THAT WASN'T TRUE AT ALL.]
AHA's originally choked voice suddenly turned pleasantly surprised.
[I DISCOVERED THAT BIRD LOOKS A LOT LIKE BUGGY!]
[I DIDN'T THINK SO AT FIRST, BUT RECENTLY, THE MORE I LOOK, THE MORE ALIKE THEY ARE. DO YOU UNDERSTAND?]
THEIR emotions took on a jealous edge, and THEIR hands and feet grew somewhat deranged.
[AKIVILI AND BUGGY MUST BOTH HAVE TRANSFERRED INTO THAT BIRD! IT'S ABSOLUTELY TRUE! I CAN FEEL IT—MY FRIENDS HAVE ALREADY COME BACK TO LIFE!]
Those words were spoken with tears and blood. If anyone had been here to witness it, they would surely have been moved beyond words.
This was the deepest scar in AHA's heart. Now, at last, it had erupted.
However, after performing all of this in a mad, deranged manner, THEY suddenly wiped away every expression THEY had shown just now.
[SO I'M VERY CURIOUS. HOW ARE YOU GOING TO SPREAD WHAT I JUST DESCRIBED?]
THEIR gaze fell upon the void beside THEM.
It was a pitch-black starfield, without even the faintest trace of light.
Had AHA's words merely sounded like self-talk?
Had they really?
In that pitch-black starry sky, not the slightest glimmer of starlight could be seen.
It was as if that side of the universe were the strangest, deepest, most mysterious darkness in existence…
And when one looked at it, one could see a smear of paint rippling through the black.
A riotously colorful black filled that patch of starry sky, all manner of colors gathering into an utterly unknowable region.
Yet within that dark starry sky, one could almost make out tangible objects.
They were like steps.
But they were neither orderly nor straight, and they followed no discernible pattern.
They were tangled and complex, scattered and interwoven, arching around the golden silhouette at the center.
[I WILL SPREAD IT EXACTLY AS IT IS.]
[YOU WON'T PACKAGE IT INTO RIDDLES? AHA WAS RATHER INTERESTED IN THAT.]
AHA sounded somewhat disappointed.
[IS THERE ANY NEED?]
It was not real to begin with. It was only a past you fabricated.
THEY had no need to process it again.
AHA knocked THEMSELF on the head.
[THAT DOES SEEM TRUE!]
After saying that, THEIR laughter once again resounded through this stretch of universe.
[SO WHY DID YOU COME HERE?]
AHA leaned over playfully.
[DO YOU WANT ME TO REVEAL SOMETHING YOU DON'T KNOW AGAIN?]
For example, that the fool with the hammer was actually in love with THEM, and that was why he had killed Buggy.
Or perhaps that the reason that madman NANOOK wanted to destroy all civilizations was actually because the idol he loved was being chased all over the place by the HUNT…
Whatever THEY wanted, AHA could narrate it perfectly for THEM.
[THAT WILL NOT BE NECESSARY. I HAVE COME FOR CERTAIN SPECIAL MATTERS.]
No features could be seen on the golden human figure, and beneath that gold was an interior like the mysterious paints outside.
Those paints contained Morph, Screen, Riddle, and Mirage.
And these things seemed to be proclaiming an indescribable truth to the world.
THEIR true name was: [AEON of ENIGMATA — MYTHUS].
And the true reason THEY had come was that special train.
THEY lightly splashed ink, and those mysterious oil-colors slowly submerged certain chosen people.
[THE UNIVERSE CANNOT BE KNOWN TO ITS LIMITS, NOR CAN IT BE EXHAUSTIVELY EXPLAINED. TRUTH IS BUT ILLUSION. FINITE THINGS CANNOT IMAGINE THE INFINITE, AND THUS ALL THINGS BECOME MYSTERIES.]
Seeing things in advance that should not be seen was not a good thing.
So THEY had to act and cover certain things up.
When AHA saw that THEY had come to do this sort of thing, THEY immediately found it rather disappointing.
[BORING, BORING. HOW DULL.]
But to MYTHUS, this matter was extremely significant.
[THE FOG OF THOUGHT AND THE RAIN OF SENSATION OUTLINE OVERLAPPING LABYRINTHS, AND TRUTH LIES IN THE DEPTHS OF THE MAZE.]
MYTHUS's ink submerged Mikhail, who was leaving after saying his farewells, and THEIR gaze also fell upon him.
The details could not be perceived. MYTHUS would not delete what he had experienced during this time, but would instead turn it into a riddle.
Go and understand it. Go and perceive it. The truth lay within.
...
The DenLiner's countdown was about to end.
This also meant that the time had come for Sora and the others to say goodbye.
The Imagin were naturally very satisfied with this journey, and each of them declared that they would often come back to play whenever they had time.
When Sora heard that, his expression changed dramatically on the spot.
This made Sunday extremely happy. He immediately clapped and declared, "Good, please visit us, visit us often!"
He welcomed the Imagin's arrival with both hands and feet raised.
But that was a matter for later. Right now, there was still one person before them.
Mikhail was currently inspecting the Astral Express.
After all, he had been a one-time temporary Navigator. Before sending the train back to Granholm, he needed to inspect the whole train.
Fortunately, after coming into direct contact with the Great Septimus, the train had not suffered any damage. Otherwise, in such a short time, he would not have known how to repair it.
After confirming that the train was fine, it advanced along its route into the past.
When the train arrived at the station, the first to get off was Pom-Pom.
Granholm and the others were holding a bonfire revelry out in the wilderness.
When the train arrived, they all stopped their merrymaking and quietly watched as Mikhail stepped down from the Astral Express.
Granholm came forward to meet him, and Mikhail faced him once again.
But neither of them spoke during this reunion. A silent nod was already enough for them to understand each other's hearts.
"Want to stay and eat something?"
Granholm gestured toward the blazing bonfire behind him.
"No. I have to go too."
Mikhail smiled and shook his head, refusing the invitation.
Granholm said nothing more. From the other man's expression and certain features of his body, he had already understood many things.
So he merely patted Mikhail lightly on the shoulder, just as he had back when Mikhail decided to get off the train.
This was very likely the last time the two of them would ever meet.
So Granholm said nothing. He only watched as the other man's back was covered by the train door.
"Pom-Pom…"
He spoke, startling Pom-Pom, who had been clinging to the train doorway the whole time.
"I wasn't peeking, pom!"
Granholm smiled. "Was this train-repair journey fun?"
Pom-Pom paused for a moment, then nodded.
"That's good."
The DenLiner whistled again and set off toward the universe, then vanished from before their eyes.
The location of the next stop left Mikhail somewhat silent.
Although this period of time had been extremely brief, the strange and fantastical things he had experienced during it were unlike anything he had ever felt before.
Whether it was the train that could travel through time, or Sora and the Imagin, he would remember all of them firmly.
One could say that he had already come to regard these fellows as companions.
But he also understood that farewells would come sooner or later.
However, in the next instant, a smile quickly appeared on his face again.
"Farewells are for better reunions. Perhaps, at some careless moment in the future, we'll meet again."
If it had been the old him, perhaps he would have felt that they would almost certainly never meet again.
But with the DenLiner, nothing was certain anymore.
Perhaps in the next moment, or perhaps at some other instant, when he opened a door…
He would see those fellows waving at him.
"Hey, what're you standing around for? Hurry up and get on!"
When that time came, Mikhail would definitely give a knowing smile, then take three steps in two and board that train car.
So he would not feel dejected over this parting.
"Next time we meet, I'll definitely show you all my cool side."
"Hoh, big talk!"
Momotaros rolled up his sleeves.
"Of course. I'm Mikhail Char Legwork. Whatever difficulty you run into, just leave it to me."
Mikhail looked at the somewhat timid Misha behind them, the smile on his face not fading.
Only, what he had not expected was that, before he got off, someone would actually give him a keepsake.
Ryutaros quietly came to find him. "I'm giving this to you. You can't forget us, okay?"
It was a feather as beautiful as a swan's, and its origin was also extremely unusual.
"I secretly yanked this off the bird guy, Sieg. I hope when you see it, you'll be able to forget sad things."
Ryutaros was an innocent yet very willful Imagin. His mind was like that of a child.
So when facing farewells, he naturally would not act like his seniors.
For those who were parting and about to step onto their own road, he would also offer his blessings.
Although this feather had not come from him.
Mikhail looked at the feather before him and revealed an expression between laughter and tears.
He wanted to look past Ryutaros and see whether Sieg knew about this feather, but then he feared it would arouse the other party's suspicion and gave up.
There was no need to cause extra trouble. It was better to leave the farewell with the most beautiful image possible.
"I'll remember. I definitely won't forget you."
Mikhail gripped the feather tightly.
"Then… bye-bye!"
Ryutaros waved goodbye to him.
"Goodbye."
Mikhail nodded and slowly stepped down from the train.
The train doors closed, and he stood in the dark, deserted reaches of Penacony, quietly waiting for the train to depart.
Perhaps parting was always so silent, yet so unbearably nostalgic…
Mikhail turned and left, not daring to look again.
Only, he had not gone far after turning around when he heard a commotion behind him.
"Ow, ow, ow! Retainer, what are you doing?!"
"I just gave my keepsake away, so I can only pluck another one from you, Sieg."
"What?! You dare give such noble feathers away so casually?!"
"Pervy turtle, stop watching! Hurry up and separate those two before they strangle each other!"
Mikhail stopped where he stood and listened as the noisy voices grew fainter and fainter, until they finally vanished.
By the moonlight of the starry sky, he looked at the feather in his hand.
"Goodbye, huh?"
Could they really meet again?
As he thought this, he clenched the feather tightly.
If possible, he would very much look forward to that day.
What he did not see was that the feather's pure white had been stained with a few shades like oil paint.
...
The black tide condensed by Flesh DESTRUDOS was steadily advancing toward Dreamville.
The greatest difference was this: they were things formed from flesh and the lingering Memoria of those who had died in Penacony's sweet dream.
These things were not illusions, but tangible beings with true physical form.
So they could cause substantial damage to both the dream and the physical world.
Ever since Gopher Wood began laying out his plan, countless people had died in Penacony over the hundreds and thousands of years.
Although DESTRUDOS could only condense one hundred thousand of them, the power they produced was absolutely not something that tiny little town could withstand.
"Do you need me to act?"
After seeing the black tide in the distance, Acheron could not help asking.
Although these people were not Sin Thirsters, in a certain sense, they could be counted as a kind of dead.
Roughly speaking, they fell within the scope of her duties.
Unfortunately, faced with Acheron's question, Mr. Trash Can did not nod.
"Do you know why Clockie and Friends — Special Crossover Collection is so brilliant?"
This sentence had almost nothing to do with the present situation.
One had to know that Dreamville was currently facing a crisis of destruction. Who still cared about what happened in a cartoon?
"I know."
However, to Acheron's surprise, Gallagher, who had been silently standing beside her all this time, actually took the initiative to answer.
"Because in that set of episodes, Clockie, as the protagonist, died trying to protect his friends."
In a work meant for children, the protagonist actually died because of the villain. That had undoubtedly been the biggest talking point at the time.
So it was also the matter people paid the most attention to in that set of episodes.
Because across Clockie's tens of thousands of episodes, Clockie had only died that one time.
Of course, some people would say at this point…
"The protagonist group isn't invincible. Didn't Brother Hanu get permanently shrunk by Boss Stone too, never again able to meet his companions?"
Many people supported that argument.
But Clockie's death did not mean he had truly died completely.
In animation, if it was not the final episode, then after the righteous protagonist died, they would return to life through the efforts of their friends.
"And in that set of episodes, what brought Clockie back to life was an ink-filled quill!"
With his friends' help, Clockie was revived by that quill.
And at the time, there had even been rumors about this matter. They were not merely hearsay.
Because the Watchmaker himself had also possessed such a quill.
It was said that the quill could produce inexhaustible ink, and that Clockie's rough drafts had been outlined stroke by stroke with that very quill.
Of course, some people also said the quill had extraordinary effects.
That it could truly bring the finishing touch to a painting.
Of course, not many people believed that claim.
Because no one was stupid. If it really could bring things to life, countless people would have tried to fight over it long ago.
But the truth was…
"That pen really does have that effect, but only in Penacony."
Gallagher looked toward the other side connected by the rail.
One had to know that, in Penacony, entities containing specific cognitions had always existed.
They were known as Memory Zone Memes, formed from fragments of the subconscious accumulated in the Memory Zone.
If these things wandered, they would have a certain influence on lifeforms living within Memoria.
Of course, some people also used them to travel, and the region where they could be used existed only within the Memory Zone.
If there were something that could absorb these things and grant them a specific form and a specific identity…
Then what would happen?
The answer was…
"Hmph!"
On the rail on the other side of the advancing black tide, a cold, handsome snort suddenly rang out.
Immediately after, a rocket tore through the darkness and blasted into the black tide.
BOOOOOOM!
The firelight of the explosion blew a gap in the tide's army.
The Nightmare Walkers that suffered severe damage directly turned into smoke and vanished.
The one responsible was a little fellow less than fifty centimeters tall, shouldering a rocket launcher.
He wore a black suit and a pair of sunglasses, showing off an incredibly cool style.
The two fangs jutting from his lower jaw made him look incomparably dashing.
And the existence that had arrived here to save the day at this very moment was called…
"Brother Hanu?!"
That was right. Brother Hanu!
At this moment, he was sitting atop a moving train, the wind blowing away the smoke rising from the rocket launcher on his shoulder.
"Tick-tock! To protect Dreamville, Clockie has revived and returned!"
Clockie laughed with both hands spread wide.
And behind him were other figures!
Since his friends had revived Clockie, naturally, his friends were all by his side as well.
"Clockie, Master Hat, Armchair Boy, Mirror Princess, Captain Revolver…"
One familiar figure after another, all living in the hearts of Penacony's people, appeared before them at this moment.
These characters, once regarded as fictional, now stood back up at the most dangerous time, in the most crucial instant.
For the sake of their Dreamville!
Clockie and his friends would never slack off for even a moment!
"Charge!!!"
Those animated characters either spread their wings or ran, charging straight toward the Nightmare Walkers DESTRUDOS had sent out.
Ordinarily, those animated characters should have looked completely outmatched.
After all, even the tallest among them barely reached a person's knees.
Body size was a difficult obstacle to overcome on a melee battlefield like this.
But there was a saying that had always circulated on the internet…
"Never face animated characters head-on. Otherwise, you'll never know where they'll pull out something you can't possibly deal with."
And what was happening on this battlefield right now clearly proved that saying.
Because after Clockie and his friends joined the battle, all sorts of utterly ridiculous things began happening across the battlefield.
Ordinarily, a rocket launcher should have limited ammunition. Once it fired, it could not fire again.
But Brother Hanu's rocket launcher was different!
His rocket launcher not only had the ability to kill in one shot, but also came with a passive reload-on-kill effect.
After a round of wild bombardment, not only was his ammunition not empty, there was even more of it!
And that was not even getting into Captain Revolver's handgun.
It was clearly a revolver, yet its ammunition seemed endless.
The revolver's cylinder had already started spinning in circles, and he could still defeat the enemies blocking his path with a single shot.
And that was not even mentioning the Origami Birds.
Although they had no real combat power, they could distort the terrain in the dreamscape and create all sorts of miraculous items.
When many people saw this, they could not help widening their eyes and opening their mouths.
"Isn't this ability a little too abstract?"
"Right? This is practically on the level of a creator god."
Freely distorting terrain and creating objects in the dreamscape was simply unbelievable.
But when someone revealed their prototypes—
"Supposedly, these Origami Birds are based on Penacony's Dreamweavers."
All of Penacony had been created by their own hands. Thinking about it that way, distorting terrain and creating objects seemed acceptable too.
And Acheron's gaze was completely drawn in by this group.
To be precise, what drew her was not this group of animated characters, but one character among them.
It was a fellow swinging a great sword back and forth through the enemy ranks.
With a bright red body and a shape like a butt, no matter how one looked at it, this was a…
"Peach…"
Acheron stared fixedly at Momotaros.
As she watched, the corner of her mouth inexplicably grew somewhat moist.
"Eek?!"
Momotaros, who was fighting ahead, suddenly shuddered.
"Who is it? Who's thinking about yours truly?"
On the battlefield, no one answered his question.
Oh, someone did answer him.
It was a blue turtle wearing a fitted suit and holding a fishing rod. "Senpai, how could anyone possibly be thinking about you?"
As he spoke, he brushed his hair back. "No matter how you look at it, if someone were thinking about anyone, it should be me."
"Hmph!"
Momotaros did not care in the slightest. If he could not find them, then he would not look.
"Here I go, here I go!"
He charged toward the enemies ahead again.
And when he grew careless for a moment and nearly took damage, a figure suddenly appeared beside him.
"What do you think you're doing?"
Acheron looked coldly at these fellows before her.
You bastards actually dared try to hurt Momo?!
A streak of white dyed her purple hair, and a red tear mark appeared beneath her eye.
"For the departed…"
Her long blade left its sheath. Cold light flashed.
"WE MOURN!"
SHING!
...
RIIIIING~
"Ugh!"
A ringing suddenly sounded in Hotaru's ears. Immediately after, crimson markings spread across her body beyond her control.
"What happened?!"
Robin looked at Hotaru, who had suddenly turned like this despite being fine moments ago, and could not help asking worriedly.
"I-I don't know either…"
Kohane was also somewhat puzzled.
She looked at the blood-red hands dissipating across Hotaru's body.
Why did it feel as if these things were trying to convey some kind of message…?
But she could not sense the specifics.
However, just as she was thinking, the blood-red palms centered on Hotaru suddenly wrapped around her.
Robin was startled by the sight. Just as she was about to take to the sky, she saw a fair little hand stretch out from within.
It was Kohane.
She gently waved her little hand, signaling that she had not been harmed.
"Then what is this supposed to do?"
Robin sought an answer from the people beside her.
But when the other Iron Cavalry met her gaze, they could only spread their hands helplessly.
How would they know all the twists and turns within? The only thing they understood was one thing…
"It sounds really noisy outside. Did something happen?"
Feeling somewhat uneasy, the Iron Cavalry entered the small town, only to discover that life here was as usual, the years peaceful and quiet.
It was as if the noise outside had not affected the tranquility inside at all.
However, just as she was about to go back, a dazzling radiance suddenly bloomed from that side.
Sensing something was wrong, she immediately rushed back, only to discover that in this place, aside from her original companions, there were also several inexplicable figures.
They all wore identical clothes, their faces impossible to see clearly, and stood before Kohane.
Although their identities were extremely mysterious, the Iron Cavalry sensed a familiar power surging from them.
It was resonance from the Path of PROPAGATION.
In other words, like them, these people were existences walking upon the Path of PROPAGATION.
But the power the other party emitted was clearly far more ancient than theirs.
"What exactly is this…"
Finding it unbelievable, they turned their gazes toward Kohane.
Because she was standing there and nodding continuously, as if she could understand these people's words.
"You're saying… you want to ignite the final flame?"
Kohane finally understood what these people meant.
The faceless people nodded slightly, then turned in perfect tacit understanding toward Hotaru, who was lying on the ground.
"She still has a trace of life. She still has the possibility of living."
"We leave her in your care."
"Let us, the departed, shine with our final flame."
They formed ranks.
At that moment, the Iron Cavalry beside them suddenly widened their eyes in surprise.
Because the Path within their bodies had suddenly been drawn into resonance by some inexplicable existence.
And as for the source of that resonance, was there any need to say it?
"A life as frail as a cicada's wings can still burn brightly."
"This is more than a battle."
Within the intense flames, those faceless existences completed their armor deployment.
"LIVE TO FIGHT, FIGHT TO LIVE!"
---
T/N: woahfohsaofhoasfhow anyway ummm
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