Rain (3)
"Terraforce existed before humans, and it built a civilization far superior to theirs."
As the Chief Justice walked around the Great Earth Temple, Taeseong followed him with his eyes.
"They endlessly probed the nature of the world. Where is the end, where is the beginning? Whether such things even truly exist. Our conclusion was…"
The Chief Justice stopped and looked back at Taeseong.
"This world is electricity." It was true, but Taeseong could say nothing.
"And we've already been using that electricity. From that reflection we can infer—"
The Chief Justice raised a finger.
"Somewhere, power was supplied and the universe was born. As if powering a machine."
He turned, hands clasped behind his back.
"Before that? There was nothing. Only null. A state with neither existence nor reason to exist."
They called it the Off State.
"We pondered. If so, why was this world born? For what purpose does it exist?"
They dug in endlessly.
"And what we discovered was the Akashic Record. A cosmic database, the existence of Anke Ra."
"By that definition—"
"Anke Ra, the one who dreams the universe, cannot criticize himself. The moment a dream realizes itself, it ceases to be a dream. So he believes himself unique and cannot entertain the doubt that he was created by someone else."
"But he began to doubt."
"Indeed. The Gaia-born who broke the Akashic Record and left the Photon Realm plunged him into contradiction."
It was an event that cracked Anke Ra's claim to uniqueness.
"Why was Anke Ra absorbed into me?"
The Chief Justice, who'd asked the question, answered it himself.
"Because Gaia's blood runs in humans. Gaia's departure means what is an end for us is not an end for humans."
"A world made for humans."
"Or a world made by humans. In truth, humans are the gods, and that concept was borrowed into this world."
It was a painful assumption for everyone except humans.
"Terraforce accepted it. Surprisingly easy. After we passed a technological singularity and everything became meaningless to us, we were given a new role."
That too may have been predesigned.
"Terraforce probed the reason for existence. And it concluded that, as the judge of the universe, it should seek to stabilize worlds. Something like a fail-safe system."
Taeseong turned his gaze to the display on the ground.
"So sending an ark to save humans fits the same logic."
By then, in the Gustaf Empire every lifeform except humans had been wiped out.
"Humans have a unique code. It morphs in real time, of course, but Terraforce's information-gathering is the best in the universe. As long as they're enclosed in the Magnetic Shield, they'll be safe."
Taeseong asked a question.
"What about Gai? Why wasn't he protected by the shield? Did he reach the Idea?"
The Chief Justice shook his head.
"I said humans have a unique code. It's a temporary code. But the Idea is different. A perfect user code that never changes. Among the current survivors, Rian is the only one who has that code."
Rian was being protected by the Magnetic Shield.
"Then Gai?"
"The Magnetic Shield is triggered by the inner sound produced by a particular code. Gai…"
The Chief Justice lifted his head and spoke.
"He didn't want it."
"He didn't want it…?"
"Well. It's hard to put emotions into words. But unlike the other codes, he no longer had the desire for life. That was all there was."
"His anger… was gone?"
Shirone chewed on Gai's words and clenched his fist.
"That's impossible. Have you thought about what you did to those humans? Countless innocent people died! Siok must wander in hell forever! Why! Why did you lie!"
Even though Gai had died, Siok did not appear.
"Before I fought you, I met Rian."
Shirone's shoulders jerked.
If this was reality and not a dream, Shirone had killed Rian's brother.
"I thought he'd be hopelessly immature, but seeing him today—he's really grown. Stronger than me now."
"Rian is different from humans like you."
Shirone forced himself to separate Rian from Gai.
"Haha."
Gai laughed in agreement.
For a moment, as he propped his chin and fell into thought, a fondness flashed through his eyes.
Rian's back came to mind.
"...I thought I could do anything to become stronger. Right and wrong didn't matter."
Gai spread his arms as if seeking agreement.
"Isn't that honest? In the end, the victor is right. If you truly become strong, moral conscience, justice—those things don't matter."
It sounded like a last will, and Shirone couldn't interrupt.
"Live bearing responsibility… I finally understood Rian's words."
"I couldn't live that way. The moment I saw what that kid would have to shoulder, I was sickened. How could he live like that?"
So he ran away, but there was something he absolutely had to tell Shirone.
"The strong one is Rian."
The person who can bear the most responsibility is the strongest.
"I said he's my friend. Take good care of my brother from now on."
"...What are you doing?"
Shirone ground his teeth.
"What difference does saying that now make? Don't suddenly pretend to be family! Do you think I'll forgive you? You're a murderer!"
This had to be a dream.
"What about the dead? What about the lives sacrificed for no reason? If you die—"
Gai must not die.
"How am I supposed to explain it to Rian!"
Gai smiled serenely.
"No need to explain. Dump it all on that stupid kid. Tell him to take responsibility."
"Is that what an older brother should say!"
"He's the strong one, isn't he?"
Gai closed his eyes.
"That's what a knight is."
He wanted to be like Rian.
As the light tied to Gai dimmed bit by bit, Shirone's face went pale.
"Wait! If it goes on like this—"
At last the light vanished; Gai's body blurred and began to sink into darkness.
Permanent annihilation.
"Nooooo!"
Shirone flung out his hand in panic, but no signal reached his senses.
A rumbling filled the sky. The black clouds that had filled the heavens began to turn gray, and then, astonishingly, became transparent.
"R-rain…"
Those sheltered by the shield looked up and saw a gigantic craft hovering in the clear sky.
"Shirone."
Rian immediately swung the Great Sword at the dome.
A tremendous roar split the air, but the dome didn't crack, and the shockwave whipped through the confined space.
"Grrr!"
It couldn't be easily destroyed because this Idea's state was also a kind of electrical signal.
"Yaaah!"
Rian, unconcerned with his body being torn apart, kept swinging his sword.
'Shirone! Shirone!'
Rian couldn't understand why the torrential rain that was destroying the world had fallen.
But whenever phenomena on the scale of apocalypse occurred, Shirone had always been there.
'Wait!'
Wooooom!
When the Great Sword's vibration struck the dome with full force, finally—amid a tremendous explosion—the Magnetic Shield shattered.
"The Hexa program has terminated." The faces of the Terraforce people aren't suited to showing emotion, but the Chief Justice was clearly perplexed.
"What has happened?"
Taeseong's eyes, which had been surveying the ground, went wide.
"Shirone has—"
On the screen, Hexa's particles densely gathered and were restoring Shirone's body.
"Impossible. Once converted into a signal, one cannot find the body again."
According to Terraforce doctrine, there is no regeneration code.
"No."
The Chief Justice snapped his head up.
"I see. The Idea is—"
"Shirone's back!"
Taeseong cried out in joy, but the Chief Justice's expression remained unexpectedly grave.
"Is it not over yet?"
"The ark?"
"We will retrieve them. The selection is canceled. But whether this situation is a blessing or a curse—I cannot say."
The Chief Justice's words were ominous, but Taeseong turned to the screen and smiled.
"Thank you."
For Shirone, who faced gruesome pain ahead, that was all that could be said.
"Huh?"
Events from just moments before passed through Shirone's head like a dream.
When he checked his chest, the wound where Gai's sword had pierced him had sealed perfectly.
But more alien than that was that the boundless rage that had been swelling inside him was gone.
"Where—am I?"
As if he'd landed on a different world, all Shirone could see was an endless horizon.
"It's all gone."
Gai had said it.
Do you know what you've done?
"No."
He didn't know what kind of calamity Yahweh's wrath had visited upon the world, but one thing was clear.
Gai's words had been true.
"I, I—"
Shirone sank to his knees weakly and searched for Gai's corpse, but not a trace remained.
"This can't be. This can't be—"
It wasn't a dream?
"I killed them all. The people, Rian's brother, every living thing… animals, plants—literally not a single blade of grass remained."
"Shirone!"
At Rian's voice, Shirone's head snapped up.
"Rian?!"
Rian rushed over in an instant, grabbed Shirone's shoulders and checked his body.
"Are you okay? What happened?"
"Rian, you're… safe."
"The people are safe. Some unknown shield spread. It's probably that flying craft."
While Shirone watched the retreating ship, Rian briefly explained what had happened.
"A rain of light fell…"
He hadn't seen it with his own eyes, but since it was a phenomenon he had caused, imagining it was terrifying.
'He tried to destroy the world.' Rian patted Shirone's shoulder.
"It's okay. Anyway, we're alive. The demons were annihilated too. Let's go back for now. I have to find my brother."
Shirone's heart dropped.
"He's probably protected by the shield too. Tch, you should've listened when I said to go together."
"Rian—"
Not hearing Shirone's voice, Rian continued to look around for Gai.
"Has he already run off? Maybe he's injured—"
"Rian!"
Unable to watch Rian worry about his brother, Shirone lifted his head and shouted.
"What's wrong? Your face is pale."
Shirone opened his mouth slightly.
What rose in his blank mind were self-destructive words.
"I killed him."
"Hm?"
"I killed Gai."
Rian's gaze calmed.
"I don't know. It felt like a dream—no, it wasn't. I think Gai saved me. So I—"
"Shirone."
As Rian spoke in a low voice and stepped closer, Shirone choked out:
"Rian! I—your family—!"
Rian wrapped Shirone in his broad shoulders.
"It's okay."
Because Rian meant it, it was all the more terrifying.
"As long as you're alive. Whoever you killed, as long as you're safe, I don't care. I'll take responsibility for everything."
Tears slipped down Shirone's cheeks.
"You're exhausted. You've been fighting nonstop. Rest a little. After a nap you'll feel better."
Rian was so kind-hearted that there was no way he was truly fine.
'He would shoulder even that.'
Shirone's consciousness, forced to lean his soul on Rian, began to drift away.
At the tail end, Gai's words surfaced once more.
'The demon realm, Yahweh's wrath…'
The strongest is Rian.