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Loading Environment…
Loading Environment States…
Loading Actors…
Loading Actors States…
Loading Actors Memories…
Simulation Ready.
Simulation Starting in:
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Dull thud echoed repeatedly inside the shelter.
Umbra pummeled the tendon without stop, trying to separate the fibers.
Without mallet or proper tools, the process became slow and taxing. He used a flat stone as the base and another smaller flat stone at his hand as the mallet. Both were not ideal, yet it was better than nothing.
Tristia, on the other hand, kept herself busy by applying ashes mixed with the filtered water on the shelter wall.
It was painful for her injured palms, and it was not fine. After all, ashes were very abrasive on the skin.
“Hh!” she sharply exhaled, winching.
She stared at her palm.
A wound had re-opened.
Tristia sighed.
“Trish… you… o… khay?” he asked.
“Y-Yeah… I’m alright…”
“W-Whay… you…”
“Nothing, just uh…”
Umbra limped out from the shelter.
Tristia accidentally took a step back and averted her gaze.
“Trish… lis… ten… t-talkh… to… mhe…” he sat in front of her, grunting in the process.
“I… uh…”
Umbra held her hands.
She jolted.
“Hm… ashes… s-shrarph…”
“Y-Yeah… I-I mean…” she stuttered, still keeping her eyes off him, “better than waiting around and doing nothing, right?”
“N-No…” Umbra shook his head, “Yhou… can… rest… s-sleep…”
“Nah… I… can’t…”
He took a deep breath and looked aside. “Rem… mem… breh… when… I… fall… when… yhou… thell… me… rest?”
“Yeah… but… you’re injured… and I…” she sighed, “I fuckin’ did this to myself… and there’s still work, Umbra… a lot bloody fuckin’ of work. The tendon still need some work… then, there’s the hide… I can’t just… lay down… doing nothing while you work!”
“Trish… you… af… fraidh…?”
“Afraid? Of what?” now, she stared at him.
“T-Tryh… ashk… your… s-sehlf…”
“W-What?”
“You… fear… s-some… thingh…” his eyes stared into her pale red eyes. He had the eyes of a predators, a monster.
Slit eyed.
Pale green.
Yet, somehow, it wavered when staring at hers.
She kept staring at him.
Did it pain him to see her pushing herself like this? Was this how she looked at him when Umbra was still unconscious? Or when he trained till his nails bled?
“I… uh… okay…”
He nodded. “You… n-needh… me… here?”
“Um… no… I need to… think alone…”
He nodded, then stood before returning inside the shelter.
The dull thud continued.
Tristia took a deep breath.
She exhaled slowly.
The dull thud continued.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump..
She took another deep breath.
Slowly, she let it out.
Thump.
Thump..
Thump…
Was it the spark of the stone?
Or was it the beat of her heart?
It did not matter.
Thump…
Thump…
Thump…
Why was she afraid?
What did she afraid of?
If she did… what made her be afraid?
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Was it… Umbra changing?
Thump…
No…
She knew that after everything that she had shown to him… Umbra did not change much. Yet… why? Why was she like this?
Thump…
Did she afraid of him telling her secret?
He was not one to gossip.
Then… did she fear him?
Thump..
Was she truly fear him?
But why? Why would she even be afraid of him? He had been nothing but kind to her.
Was it… because of that?
Thump…
Because she couldn’t read him?
Thump..
No…
Deep down… she knew Umbra was a simple man…
Thump…
Then… why…?
Thump..
Could she be fall for—
No… it couldn’t be…
Yet…
Thump…
No… No… after everything that they went through, intimacy would be the very last reason…
Thump…
She had grown dependent on him… so him dependent on her… that would not—
Thump!
Wait… dependent?
Was she afraid…
THUMP.
… that he left her behind?
THUMP!
THUMP!
THUMP!
THUMP.
THUMP.
Thump!
Thump!
Thump…
Would he…
Thump!
…leave her?
THUMP!
No!
THUMP!
NO!
TRIS!
Hm?!
TRIS!
“Tris…!” Umbra shook her shoulder.
“H-Huh… U-Umbra?” she opened her eyes.
“Y-Yhou… ok… kay…?!” he had to force every syllables. “You… mum… bleh!”
“I… uh…” she was shivering. Cold sweat covered her body.
“Trish…!” he grabbed her head, slowly turning it to him.
She could see his worry.
His trembling eyes.
The twitch at the end of his lips… or was he worried? Or was it the injury?
His expression.
Did she really worry for this? Abandoned by someone whose eyes trembled staring at her state? Perhaps… for now, she could cast aside her worry
“I… yes… I am fine…” she leaned to him.
“Goodh…”
“Umbra…”
“Hrg…?”
“Can I be… selfish?” she knew the answer, yet, she still asked. “Just… for a while?”
“Yhes…”
“Appreciate it…”
Dull thud continued to echo inside the shelter.
Umbra was still pounding the tendons. Occasionally, he looked to Tristia who was sitting on his laps, sleeping.
His tails coiled softly around her body as her hands held his tails closely.
Sometimes, she let out a soft yelp.
Umbra stopped and slowly caressed her hair.
As she calmed down, he continued.
Thump…
Thump..
Thump.
******
Male: Research Log 13. Agent Creep—
(Sigh)
Female: Sorry, do continue.
Male: Research Log 13. Agent Creep. Class [REDACTED].
Female: Name [REDACTED]. Class [REDACTED]. Okay… so we start?
Male: Yes, what is your opinion?
Female: Very rough… I can see why you became groggy after Session 12
Male: Imagine sitting to see one person broke down at the moment you least expected…
Female: I can imagine.
Male: So… do you expect this to happen?
Female: Yes, but… not to this extent.
(Sigh)
Female: Let me explain… we expected this result since every character, actor, subjects, whatever you called them is not just a single instance of data or variable.
Male: I know, even the previous model has at least two instances working on the same actor. It could add or update an instance everytime something major happened, like TBI, or something that will affect the actors. But, as far as I know, it only has a limit of five instances… and not exactly considering the backstory so much… there is but mostly what the data implied.
Female: Surprise, surprise… this model has no max limit of instances…
Male: What? Does it become more bloated?
Female: Take it as… secondary instance. Our concept was from an understanding of humans nature that is derived from a Japanese proverb.
Male: Pause. Japanese… so Japan? Is it that archipelago country in Asia that attacked Pearl Harbor during World War 2?
Female: That is correct.
Male: Known for it’s suicidal attack known as… uh… what is it again?
Female: Nicknamed kamikaze… its officially name is ‘Shinpū Tokubetsu Kōgekitai’. Um… I… probably butcher the Japanese language there, but… at least I still pay attention in class.
Male: It’s been so long. I don’t learn history again lately. They also do suicide attack against tank with anti-tank mine attached to pole… was it?
Female: Also correct… that is called lunge mine. A little context, that actually barely worked since well, it’s a fuckin’ tank… no way that tanks are not supported by infantry. And second… it is also tank… and they mostly hit the thick armor part instead of less durable, like the wheel… so yeah… it killed the soldier, but barely damaged the tank most of the time… or they are just shot dead either by machine guns on top of the tanks or just infantries covering the tanks.
Male: Okay… so… what kind of philosophy come from that kind of country?
Female: You might be surprised…
Male: Possibly… yeah.
Female: First face is the one shown to the world. Second face is the one shown to close friends and family. Third face is the one shown only to themselves.
Male: Wait… the same country that do a fuckin’ suicide attack say that?
(Sigh)
Female: Yes… ironic, isn’t it?
Male: More than ironic… like… what the fuck?
(Sigh)
Male: Sorry, getting side-tracked. So, these secondary instances will affect those main instances decision?
Female: That is correct.
Male: Interesting… so, you said you expect, but not to this extent, where did you least expect it?
Female: How it mimicked real emotion. I could still see where anger took over and a character did something illogical… that is after all still consequences of emotion which resulted by some factors, despite being illogical. It is still a consequences… you understand what I mean?
Male: Basically… it is still logical, since anger means you are reckless and can’t think well… still logical despite acting illogical.
Female: That covers it… but this? She has old scars, old wounds that we don’t know how or when it happened, yet somehow the simulator tracked that… kept that and simulated that before it even started.
Male: You’re saying that their instances right now is as much as what their current age?
Female: Yes, that is my theory… even at start, both subjects have hundreds, perhaps thousands of instances, affecting how they behaved at the moment.
Male: That is a lot to take…
Female: Have you got the permission to look into the data, yet? Because we really need it to get a bigger picture…
Male: Not yet. Must be something with the difficulty of extracting it.
Female: Well, yeah… kinda see why…
Male: Okay… so… since my mind is quite clear now… I do remember something that I want to ask.
Female: That’s why I am here.
Male: How do you think Subject 0 could remember or at least know Subject 1’s humming?
Female: Got a theory first?
Male: I do think because… the world has regressed twice… So, most lullaby or song would probably lost to time in the first collapse. Since the second collapse probably was milder so… it should survive, but changed depends on the region and culture. However… the main melody, the core would still be similar… hence why he knew it.
Female: That was actually… wow… okay… that… that actually makes way more sense.
Male: Is it?
Female: Yeah! I originally thought it was just his TBI acting up and messed up his memories, but your reason actually did make a lot more senses… huh… I need to write that.
(Paper rustling)
Male: Here.
Female: And pen…
Male: Here.
(Scribbling)
Female: Okay… that is… wow… you really need to come to our department.
Male: Nah, I prefer field duty…
Female: Adrenaline junkie…
Male: Like you don’t high on oxytocin after eating candy bar?
Female: You… fuck… fair enough. Moving on!
Male: Well, I mostly got those two questions. So… we’re done.
Female: Hm… I could see why… nothing truly happened, except for Tristia… sorry, Subject 1’s breakdown… still, I never think of about the humming that way… that would be a very useful insight.
Male: Glad to be of help, then… anything else perhaps? Last thought?
Female: Hm…
(Inaudible noise)
(More inaudible noise)
Female: Nothing. I’ll tell you if we thought of something.
Male: Alright.
