Chapter 20

Laurel decided to wait on the train. She sighed, her feelings unsure. Did she hate Ann? She hadn’t hurt him. Her existence scared him. Her mind had saved a clear video of Ann pushing the train straight into a horde of MARA units, slamming right into them. Her body shivered when she thought about it.

Yet… at the same time…

She couldn’t force herself to hate her. Was it as simple as Ann not hurting her? Thus, despite what she did, Laurel couldn’t find herself to despise the original.

She glanced out of the window. She sighed and returned her attention to her laptop screen. It showed the conditions of the railroad lines. The line heading toward the east end of Leya line’s underground section had turned orange. Maybe the dragon stayed there.

They were so close to their destination. Just a few more hours, then they would reach Takogashi. They could get a comfortable hotel room and get some sleep for the night.

The clock showed thirty past twelve. A new day.

What are they doing?

Laurel checked Scorpion’s locator. Hakade had it turned on whenever he used it against anything other than MARA, as MARA could locate it.

All of a sudden, a call appeared on her smartphone. Mia had started a group call.

“Can you find a generator?”

“Where is it?”

They must have thought they were in a private call. They had no reason to involve Laurel in this, not after what happened before. Laurel muted her microphone, just in case.

Scorpion began moving around. It then returned to the railgun tower and parked there. Hakade and Mia conversed some more, Laurel listening in. It didn’t seem like they needed her.

Just then, Laurel remembered something. She looked up her database. She recalled seeing this facility on one of the data files she purchased. It had come as a bonus, and she remembered thinking of it as a useless waste of memory.

Here it is.

The tracks weren’t clear when they arrived, partly thanks to the snow, but this complex had several internal railway lines. Based on the files, these railway lines had the same gauge as their train. It had been built as a quick way to connect the various buildings spread out throughout the facility. Some went to the factories, others went to the railguns.

That said, most of the lines went through and around the southwest part of the complex. The northeastern part of the complex only had one main rail line.

All of a sudden, all the lights nearby lit up, giving her a better view of her surroundings. The complex was massive, with many railway tracks linking one section to the others.

Probably one of Hakade’s doing, or maybe Mia. Mia had always been good with machines for some reason, despite Laurel not remembering the original having that skill.

… Are we… truly different from her? Who am I?

She never had to question her identity before this, yet it now stood in her way like a large roadblock. Laurel returned her attention to the outside world, observing the snow falling to the ground.

Could she be hiding in one of these buildings?

Laurel looked around. Abandoned buildings littered the area, perfect for someone hiding from something. At the same time, this complex was far from anywhere someone could get supplies. Maybe that was why people didn’t live here.

Laurel let out another sigh. She wished things could go back to the way they were. She was scared of the idea, she despised it, yet when she remembered the memories she had prior to the war.

… What if… I hadn’t existed?

What if Laurel Anamia remained a single person? What if three people never came out of her? How would things be? Would Hakade be traveling with the original? Would the original be the one sitting here, holding this laptop, guiding the way forward? Would they be taking a different quest right now? One nowhere near Takogashi?

“I see her! On your two! She’s heading… She’s heading toward a dragon!”

Laurel looked outside the window, not realizing that the bottom right part of her laptop was disappearing.

•••

Scorpion stopped in front of Ann, blocking her way forward. She tried to cover her eyes from the bright headlights. Hakade turned them off, allowing her to see again. She seemed surprised at their sudden appearance.

Hakade took the phone so that Ana, Mia, and maybe Laurel could hear their conversation. He rushed out of Scorpion, stopping in front of Ann. Ana took control of Scorpion, cornering her from both sides.

“Ann! We can talk about this!”

Ann looked back and forth between him and Scorpion. “Talk about what?”

“You don’t have to disappear!”

She frowned. “That’s not something within my control.”

“Why?”

“Because-” Ann fell silent. “Because… I’m also the eldest dragon, and the eldest dragon is consuming me.”

Silence fell upon the mountainside. For a few seconds, no one said a thing.

“The eldest dragon…? You?” Hakade asked in disbelief. “Wha- What are you talking about?”

“Have you not heard? The dragon is going berserk, and humanity cannot fight it.”

It hadn’t bothered people so far, but in the event of a battle, humanity couldn’t fight something like that. The dragon would destroy everything the world threw at it. Such was the nature of the most powerful beast in this world.

Hakade had heard it, all the way back in Ariko, when they claimed their reward.

“But, I know a way to stop it.”

“... And that is?”

“By letting the dragon consume me. I’ll extend its life span for a few more years, allowing you to find a more permanent solution.”

“Wha- What are you talking about?” Hakade asked, not believing what he had just heard.

“When the missiles struck, I was split into five. I found out about you three when I looked into you, but something else appeared from within me.”

Ann put both of her hands on her chest, her face looking down at the ground.

“The eldest dragon. It is both me and not me. I can control it, but I also can’t.”

Such a thing wouldn’t be believable before the existence of magic, but magic itself rewrote the rules of what could and couldn’t be done. Hakade didn’t find it hard to believe. Quite the opposite.

“But my control over it is slipping day by day.”

“... Is that why you want us to take you to Takogashi?”

Ann nodded. “One last trip, the two of us.”

Hakade’s breath got caught in his throat. That must be why she didn’t rush them. She wanted to enjoy every second of it.

“They said you were going around with a party of three girls who looked the same. I didn't believe them at first.” Ann let out a wry smile. “I was shocked when I saw Laurel for the first time. Someone just like me, exactly like me. Then Ana and Mia arrived. There are four of me.”

“Why didn’t you tell us?” Hakade asked. “Had we known, we wouldn’t-”

“I was worried that this would happen.”

She straightened her posture, her eyes full of conviction.

“You can’t defeat the eldest dragon. It has evolved into something beyond something even I can control.”

“But nullification magic! Can’t you use it on it?” Ana asked during the phone call.

“I can’t.” Ann shook her head. “You cannot use nullification magic on yourself, and all of you appeared out of me. I cannot use nullification magic on you.”

“But there must be something we can do!” Hakade said.

A way they can fight back. The dragon might be a fearsome creature, but there must be a way for it to be destroyed. If magic could create it, then magic could erase it.

“There's nothing you can do-”

“I can use nullification magic on it! I may have come from you, but I am not linked to the dragon. The dragon isn’t my creation! It isn’t me!”

The girls inherited many of the abilities the original Laurel Anamia had. Each of them inherited different abilities, along with new ones they learnt after the split. Yet, since everyone received a side of Laurel Anamia, it stands to reason that Ana, too, received her nullification magic. They had no proof, but Hakade wanted to try.

“And to do that, you have to find a way to immobilize it, which is impossible.”

“We can! We can do it!” Hakade said, full confidence. “If we damage it enough, it’ll be forced to land.”

“Then I’ll get it.”

The two tried to convince Ann. Ann clicked her tongue.

“I didn’t come to you with the intention of getting you harmed. I won’t hear anything else!”

“...! Hakade, she’s going to use magic!”

Hakade leaped forward and grabbed her arm. Ann yelped, her magic fading.

“Just come with us!”

“Yo- Hakakun! You don’t understand! Let me go!”

“I’m not! You’re the original, right? You think I’m letting my childhood friend sacrifice herself like that?”

“This is not just for you! The entire world will be destroyed if I don’t get the dragon under control!”

World this world that, dragon this dragon that. Hakade didn’t care. Humanity survived through countless apocalypses before. This wasn’t something a lone girl should carry on her shoulders. She didn’t cause the war, she didn’t want to be exposed to the maganium. Whatever happened wasn’t her fault.

“Trust me! We’ll find a way somehow-”

“It’s coming!” Mia shouted.

Hakade looked up at the sky. A large shadow blocked out the moon, hiding the stars behind its wings. Its red eyes glow in the darkness, its pitch black skin blending with the night sky.

The eldest dragon, the most fearsome threat humanity has ever seen.