Chapter 18:

FRAGMENT ERROR - TOURIKA

Secret Story - 小説


Myra giggles as she meets Hideo, trying to hide her intentions, "Hideo, it's nice to see you again."  Hideo puts on a serious expression, trying to decipher why Myra has come to see them. Atsuko looks at Myra with confusion, feeling like she knows the girl, but not being able to recall where from. Myra introduces herself to Atsuko, "Hi, I'm Myra and you're Atsuko, right?" 
"That's me and it's nice to meet you." Atsuko replies. Hideo starts walking, hoping that both of them will follow him. They find themselves in a mysterious land with an infinite blue sky and a grassy green field with no buildings or forests around. "Where are we going, Hideo?" Atsuko asks, curiosity eats away at her mind and heart. Hideo remains silent. Myra, on the other hand, pouts, "I know a place where we can go...."

"Oh, okay. Lead the way then." Hideo agrees and Myra leads the way. As they walk, Myra starts to devise a plan on how to make her father happy and carry out his plan. She abruptly stops, speaking, "This is my domain. Tourika is my playground...." Atsuko suddenly loses her gravitational balance and begins to float off the ground. Hideo uses his wings to reach and help her. Suddenly, they get sucked into an abnormal hole within the blue sky, which turns red. Myra laughs maniacally and transforms the scenery of Tourika into a surreal building of the Somnus Facility, an outside prison. Hideo and Atsuko are spit out from the red sky, injured as they fall into a jail cell. The cell walls are covered in thick, grassy vines with thorns. 

Myra's loud voice echoes, "Where are you guys? Come out and play with me!" Hideo wakes up Atsuko, who he has in his arms. She stands on her own two feet and then the two wander through grassy halls, coming across a statue of a woman, sculpted with clay and dressed in high priestess apparel. She merely stands there, wearing an evil smirk. "Who is that?" Atsuko whispers. Hideo glances up at the statue and wears a small smile, "She's the goddess of insanity."

"The goddess of insanity...." Atsuko repeats. While frowning, she follows Hideo and feels fear and anticipation. Her hands start trembling as voices in her head remind her of how broken she is. She tries to control herself, but it proves to be futile. Memories of the past come flooding back to Atsuko. Memories that she never knew existed, memories that are unspeakable, disturbing, and dark. She can feel the darkness consuming her, and the weight of it is unbearable. Not too far away from her, Myra, dressed in high priestess clothing, watches with deep interest and will. With a snap of her finger, Atsuko is consumed by madness and falls to the ground, unconscious. 

Hideo turns around from the noise, noticing that something is wrong with Atsuko. He rushes to her side to check on her, but her brown hair covers her face, making it difficult to see what's wrong. As he tries to get a closer look, he senses Atsuko's dark energy and takes a step back. But it's too late. Atsuko, using her long nails, leaves a deep gash between Hideo's upper nose and eyes, infecting him with her dark energy of insanity.

Hideo winces in pain as the confusion washes away, replaced by sudden and uncontrollable laughter. Atsuko shares the same laughter as she stands up, no longer human. Her entire form is changing into that of a mere dark shadow. The same goes for Hideo, as they both can't help but laugh, overwhelmed by their insanity. Dread washes over them both as they realize one thing. They are in the land of Tourika, a place that Myra claims is her domain. Myra, the mad child and queen of the realm for ages, came from Tourika. Dr. Alistair, Myra's father, is secretive about how his daughter could come from this realm, and the mother of Myra is unknown. The revelation of this information is the driving force of Atsuko and Hideo's insanity, as they have both been victims of Dr. Alistair's schemes.

 Myra stands there, watching intently as the two dark shadows slowly vanish into the thin air. With a smile of satisfaction on her face, she is just about to unleash more chaos when a sudden golden silhouette appears behind her. The silhouette quickly takes the shape of Leonarda, who merely shakes her head in disappointment. "Are you serious? Don't think for an instant that you've gained the upper hand." Leonarda says. Myra turns around, her face etched with deep hatred and annoyance. "Why are you always ruining things? Just go back to being useless...." she snaps at Leonarda.  Leonarda simply laughs, unfazed by Myra's words. "See..... that's where you're wrong." She holds up a golden watch from her back.

Myra gasps and makes a desperate attempt to stop Leonarda, but to no avail. "Time reset!!" Leonarda cries out triumphantly, hitting the only button on the watch that causes everything in Tourika to change. A sudden flash of light engulfs the entire scene and everything that has happened up until this point has been reset. The world of Tourika is returned to its original state, where Atsuko and Hideo meet Myra for the first time.  What new twists and turns will fate bring this time around?


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