Fatheema allowed her consciousness to drift weightlessly through the air, closing both eyes. She tried to sense the subtler, more hidden aspects within herself.
"First Echo... First Echo... First Echo..." she slowly called out to the spirit sister who had communicated with her before.
The figure was a spiritual girl—or, more precisely, a mental form—that resembled her. Even now, Fatheema still did not fully understand what this being truly was. She would appear whenever Fatheema's consciousness entered the dream world, communicating with her, providing information, advice, and whatever assistance she needed.
Sometimes, Fatheema wondered if First Echo really was a part of herself. If she was, then why could she disappear and reappear whenever she pleased? What happened to her when she vanished, and what happened when Fatheema woke from her sleep? Or was she actually a separate entity, something that came from outside of her?
Why weren't they completely connected? How had First Echo originally appeared within her consciousness? Was Fatheema the only one experiencing something like this, or did all humans have something similar?
So many questions about First Echo remained unanswered in Fatheema's heart.
According to First Echo herself, she had been formed from the manifestation of Fatheema's soul. She was a part of Fatheema, and she would continue to fight alongside her and help her.
A moment later, a faint shadow began to take shape, forming a body—a translucent twin of herself, her spirit sister, First Echo.
The figure shimmered with a reddish glow. She raised her hand and touched Fatheema's palm. The moment their palms touched, Fatheema felt a stream of subtle energy flowing into her. The energy was absorbed into her being, sinking directly into her consciousness.
This was one of First Echo's ways of communicating with her. Through that flow of energy, she showed Fatheema what she had experienced and shared her memories with Fatheema's consciousness.
For some time, the two communicated in this manner, as though synchronizing with one another.
Fatheema received various pieces of information about the world around them through First Echo's experiences in the spirit realm of that world.
It seemed that First Echo, as a spiritual body, was the first manifestation of Fatheema's soul. She was connected to Fatheema and existed because of the energy that flowed from her. The stronger Fatheema's soul and consciousness became, the stronger First Echo became as well.
After communicating with First Echo in their unique way—a form of communication that no longer always required words—the two shared their consciousness and understanding.
Then First Echo slowly faded away and disappeared.
Fatheema allowed her consciousness to continue drifting through the realm of dreams, the place known as the Oneiric Origin.
Slowly, her consciousness began to fade. And eventually, it disappeared into unconsciousness.
---
The following morning, the five of them continued their journey toward Mount Kalavajra on foot.
After nearly half a day's journey, they finally arrived at a vast open plain. At its far end stood the foot of Mount Kalavajra.
The mountain towered before them, supported by towering, steep cliffs of stone. Very little vegetation grew along its slopes. Almost the entire mountain was covered in heaps of black, glistening rocks, many of them forming sharp, jagged peaks.
Dark, thick clouds covered the summit, adding to the mountain's ominous and terrifying appearance.
Meanwhile, the foothills were surrounded by tall, dense, sprawling trees. The mountain was crowned by a vast forest at its base.
"Luna, Mount Kalavajra isn't an ordinary mountain. No one has ever reached it—or at least, no one has ever returned to tell the tale of what lies inside. There may be all kinds of dangers within. We need to be careful," Princess Eos said quietly, reminding her companions.
"Fatty, like I said before, I need several materials. Iron ore that can be extracted from the mountain rocks, as well as several types of rare crystals. The crystals should exist somewhere inside this mountain. Hopefully, we can find them easily without having to dig deep into the mountain."
Luna handed Fatheema a small sheet of paper containing a list of the required materials, along with descriptions of the rocks and crystals they needed.
Fatheema stood upright, facing the vast grassland before them. To reach the foot of the mountain, they would apparently have to cross the enormous field.
A cool energy entered her eyes, causing them to glow with a violet light.
And then—
Her vision shifted.
She suddenly found herself looking at a vast chamber covered in dark clouds. Violent winds howled through the space while lightning struck randomly across the area.
Her vision became severely distorted.
Standing before her was a humanoid creature nearly three meters tall. Its entire body was made of blackened stone, covered in cracks that glowed with a golden light. Its eyes shone brilliantly gold.
There wasn't just one. There were countless numbers of them, seemingly filling the entire place.
All of them looked upward and released horrifying roars. Faintly, a humming sound echoed throughout the chamber.
It was the sound of a woman's singing. A haunting melody that sent chills down Fatheema's spine.
Fatheema froze as she stared at the vision before her. Even after everything vanished and her normal vision returned, she remained motionless, still lost in what she had seen.
"Fatty, what happened? What did you see?" Luna asked curiously, noticing what had happened to her friend.
Luna already knew what usually happened whenever Fatheema experienced one of her visions.
The others, however, found Luna's question strange. They remained silent without commenting, seemingly still feeling awkward around their new companion.
"Everyone, there's something inside that mountain. If it really is dangerous, you should stay here. I'll go and find the materials we need myself." Fatheema hesitated slightly.
The thought of the others being exposed to danger made her anxious. She couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong.
But they had already come this far. She had no choice but to see the plan through.
"All right. Let's set up a resting area at the foot of the mountain, near the edge of the forest. I think we might be able to find some fruit or other supplies there. Besides, we'll be able to communicate more easily."
Luna paused before continuing.
"I'll install a scanner here, just in case something unexpected happens."
She placed a small black cube on the ground.
Suddenly, the cube emitted a low, humming sound.
From its underside, a cone-shaped drill emerged and began spinning rapidly, boring a hole into the ground.
The device then descended into the earth and disappeared completely. Luna checked a screen that appeared above the bracelet on her wrist.
The screen displayed the surrounding area like a three-dimensional topographic map.
Various strange symbols resembling letters appeared across the holographic display. Luna carefully examined the characters. Apparently, they were letters used by the people of this world.
"Okay, it's done. I've mapped the area around the mountain. If anything happens, we can simply teleport back here—or to another safe area." Luna smiled broadly.
After completing her preparations, she felt confident that if anything went wrong, she could quickly escape and take her friends with her.
Finally, they continued walking across the vast grassland toward the dense forest covering the foot of the mountain.
The surroundings were calm and silent.
Without encountering any obstacles, they eventually reached the edge of the forest at the mountain's foothills.
A gentle breeze passed through the area. The weather was bright and clear. The forest at the foot of the mountain was incredibly dense, filled with towering trees growing close together.
The light inside was dim, as sunlight was blocked by the thick canopy of leaves above them.
It was as though a gigantic green roof covered the entire forest.
---