mayfield_rpg | Phase 4 - The Beginning Of The End

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Phase 4 - The Beginning Of The End

♪ BGM: Singing Hills ~Harmonics EOLIA~ Orgel [Youtube Original]

The door of the house's latch opened, the wood creakily announcing its owner's entrance to no one but herself. The girl, dressed in white and pink attire belonging to the Church's order, closed the door behind her and marched, steps heavy, toward the counter of her shop, the top of it covered with a scattered assortment of boxes, both finished and in-progress. She picked up a completed one and, with a frown and huff, wound a metal key on the side of it, the orgel still attempting to whine.

Once she was done, she set it down and watched the music box begin to play a melody of a very old myth, passed through the generations. The prologue calmed her a little, as she sat down on her knees and leaned on the countertop, folded arms under her head.

"Mou... after everything, it ended up like this. Lyner..."

It still bothered her, months later. Even after she summoned up all her courage to propose herself to Lyner with an orgel, the boy couldn't decide on who to be with. She said that she would respect whatever decision he made, but it still hurt that of all the choices, he made none.

So she struck out on her own, to fulfill at least part of her dream to open a shop and sell music boxes. It was difficult at first, her understanding of Grathmelding still narrow and improvised, even with the teachings of the Professor at Karulu Village, Grathmelder Pochoma. Still, she learned to craft many things, though the usefulness of ~~many~~ some of them could be questioned.

Aurica sighed, affected from something or another. It could have been about a visit from Lyner (with Lady Shurelia in tow ... that Reyvateil was always so dependent from lacking a sense of direction), or her current progress in her one-year course of Grathmelding; it was a lot to deal with sometimes, managing her future on her own. And yet, she liked the freedom it came with. She was free, because of that white knight's kindness.

As a clock began to chime and the orgel shifted into the main melody of the piece, Aurica hummed along to the tune, her head moving very slightly from side to side in metronome. It was a song she often sung to herself in the past, too lacking in self-esteem then to let herself be heard. It brought back memories, memories of the life she led: from being alone and looked after by now-Cardinal Radolf, to being saved by Lyner, that Apostle of Elemia. To memories of her saving him as well, of him getting past her shell and her wanting to share her future and be always with him, forever.

Her eyes misted, reminiscing in her past. Claire taking care of her as she grew up, Aurica showing the people that banded alongside Lyner her old broken-down home in Skuwat Village, the image of Don Leon, her stuffed lion knight, still strong in her heart. So many memories. It moved her to sing during one of the sections of the piece:

[2:06-2:15]

"Kanade narifuku ga~ia! Sora ni hibiki ainaseba..."
("Sing the songs of ga~ia! Resonate through the Skies of Creation...")

[2:15-End]

...That was when he found me singing, wasn't it?

A smile crept on her face, blinking her eyes back to normal. She relaxed them, half-open, not continuing to hum after singing. She said to herself then, "Oh, if only I could go back to those times." She began to daydream and think things up with her imagination. A school life; a fantasy world; any place where she could have fun, mixing her memories together within them. Some with Lyner, some where Don Leon would be real ...

... some where her parents were still with her.

Her thoughts reached back into the times she experienced weird dreams, such as that very night she told Lyner about her wish to open a shop with him. She dreamt of another world, an old-fashioned town, where she lived with what could be called a family, a mother and father and even a cat. She went to school, met many different kinds of people, and had bizarre incidents happen. For some reason, she cherished that as much as her real memories, and kept them in mind from time to time.

The more Aurica thought about it, the sleepier she got. It was hard to differentiate at that point, whether the dreams actually all happened or not. There was just something about it she couldn't place, and besides, those dreams helped shape a lot of things in her recent life.

"Mom, dad...Lyner...I love you all."

And with that, she dozed off.

[...]

Her eyes opened to broken glass and machinery, shards and gears laid everywhere. In each place she looked, there was burnt wood and broken ceilings, windows. Her vision shifted to the door outside, or what was left of it, the walls having caved in. Terrible beings quivered as they walked at an inhumane speed, their heads and body vibrating, no, shaking erratically. They came upon her within seconds, bloody and misshapen.

It wasn't until she saw the head of one inching right up to her own face, mutilated and torn, that Aurica awoke and shot up from her bed. She sat there for many moments as her eyes looked around her pefectly normal Mayfield room. The calendar was marked, "Friday, September 7th, 195X". Slowly, she curled the blankets around her and brooded, her mind staring off into space just as much as her own sight was.

[A.) Thursday, September 6th, Morning/Afternoon - The Dairy Portal, Locked to Chen & Dakki:

Aurica walked down the street, tailing the unfamiliar robot-thing that was claiming to be Dakki, her not!mom from the last time the girl was here. She was warned to not follow, but she couldn't help herself; as much as she wasn't sure to trust her, she wanted to know what was going on.

Though, with her acting just like how her drone self would, she couldn't ask directly, either. Not that she thought Dakki would tell her, at any rate. Mothers are nothing if not caring for the security of their children, real or not. She stepped out from a corner, eyeing the portal that her supposedlynot!mom was preparing to enter.]

[B.) Sunday, September 9th, Morning/Afternoon - The Church of Salvation:

Normally when one prays in the church, they close their eyes, don't they? It's what one does when they reach into their soul, to feel for what they believe in to support themselves. Something to feel good, wholesome. Better.

If one would look closely at the girl sitting there on the empty pew, they might just see that she had her eyes open briefly. If one pays attention for longer though, they could notice that the girl didn't close their eyes at all, all that time.]

[C.) Sunday, September 9th, Afternoon - The Post Office (Feel Free To Intercept At Any Point):

If you decide to walk anywhere near this area today, one might find a girl in Mayfield-style clothes dragging herself along, arms lifeless and head bowed, her posture somewhat off-balance. As she passes by the Post Office itself, she stops and looks up towards it for some time, before she lowers her head again and continues to walk by, her pacing uneven.]

[D.) Sunday, September 9th, Afternoon/Evening - John Doe Park:

It's a casual day for living, and that means recreation in the park for a lot of people. Some are having fun, playing games, and others are relaxing, just taking in the sun and air. Aurica will be one of the latter, seemingly, as she's propped up on a bench. Most of the bench actually, as she's lying down on it, an arm lazily hung downward and a finger twirling around some grass on the ground.]

[E.) Sunday, September 9th, Evening - Phone:

Most of the time people talk on the phone if they're on it. You might be yapping away, with whatever important things or otherwise talkative conversation you're expressing, but there's someone listening in to these things that won't be very cheery. It'll be a surprise if the person even talks at all to you, really. Though, she may not be in the right mind to appreciate you trying to talk to her. You won't know until she starts talking to you.]

[F.) Monday, September 10th, Morning/Aftenoon - Mayfield High:

There was a better step in her feet today, the girl with the long braid that bounced around as she walked through the crowds of students into the faculty office. When Aurica heard that she had to go back to school, she was a little happier. That is, until she found out that one of her favorite teachers no longer taught there. In fact, the drones acted like he never existed.

She moved as fast as she could to the music room, opening the door, and it was... empty. Save for the piano that sat there at the front, where she both heard and played music that touched her deeply.

For those that roam the halls today, you might hear musical notes being played, and if you want to follow it or know where the music room would be and have a reason for being there, you might find the girl there at any time of the day, randomly poking at the piano keys.]

[G.) Monday, September 10th, Afternoon/Evening - Front Porch of 458 Stone Street:

Neighbors or those walking by could see a girl on the steps of the front porch to the house. She's sitting there, back hunched over and arms folded over her knees. She's been there since the end of the school day, not budging at all. In fact, if you come across the residence or look out your window later on, you might see her still there. Did she even eat dinner?]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Gat's walking back from work by the evening hours, having put in another day of milling around at the fire station. Recent events left little doubt that Mayfield was just one big VR Space like he and Dakki had suspected over a year ago when they first arrived—the widespread glitching of the town, Grey's letter disguised as mail, and the whole business with the portal to that desert town have given him a lot to think about.]

[So much so that he doesn't notice Aurica sitting on the front porch until he's a house away. It makes him pause in his stride for a moment ... that's not how the drone acts at all ... but Aurica's been gone ever since the Halloween business—the town "vaporized" her and put a vapid likeness in her place. So ... what does this mean? Are the town's drones glitching again?]

[Gat approaches the front porch and, after another moment's hesitation, clears his throat.]

Howdy, Aurica ...

[Aurica had been making herself scarce since she arrived in Mayfield, so this was the first time she saw her not!dad since a year ago. Or rather, the first time he saw her here again.

She raised her head at an angle, slowly, her eyes being more active as they zeroed in on the silver figure. She was almost back to normal (as normal as one can get around here), but the mood remained.]

Hi— [She paused. Her eyes lowered.] Hi, Gat...

[That makes him stop walking all together. The drone never called him by his name, always acting as if he was her father—a real human father. Then ... this means—]

... They brought you back?

[Logically it's the obvious explanation, but—this is Mayfield. Its captors treat people as playthings to abuse and break. Thus, he has some lingering doubt that this really is the same, real Aurica Nestmile.]