Anima, Ch.3: Shards

[Anima, Ch.3: Shards]
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--01-- [Scene: Filia] <BGM: Tears of Memories>
Days passed.
I must have looked odd, ambling about Filia, curiously examining everything, looking for something I knew not what.
I still move clumsily, but it's getting easier with practice.


--02-- <BGM: Tears of Memories>
Still, from them, I picked up a few new skills, and sometimes a tiny shard of memory re-emerged;
the mere impression that I'd done the same thing before, once, long ago.
Only sometimes.


--03-- <BGM: Tears of Memories>
But all I've found are a few tiny shards of memories, broken pieces of a life that was.
A few puzzle pieces out of thousands, and no picture to compare it to.
It's...better than nothing, I guess.


--04-- <BGM: Tears of Memories>
I'd tried to converse with the other elves, but my grasp of speaking is still poor.
I stammer and stutter. I know what I want to say, but my mouth struggles to voice the words.
I need to practice that too.


--05-- <BGM: Tears of Memories>
Something that bothers me about the elves here...most of their memories aren't their own,
as if a few select moments from each of them were shared with all the others, and the rest had been erased.



--06-- [Scene: Rupes Desert] <BGM: Tears of Memories>
Filia is a small village. Before long it felt like I'd seen everything.
Experienced everything.
I started to wander about in the nearby desert as well, though I dared not go far into the sands.


--07-- <BGM: Tears of Memories> {SFX: wind}
Elves get lost out there, or so I was told.
They lose their way. They lose their memories. They lose themselves.
Well, I'm already missing two of those. I shouldn't take the risk.


--08-- [scene: Filia] <BGM: Tears of Memories>
My efforts--and frustrations--had not gone unnoticed.
On my tenth afternoon in Filia, while I was pondering what to do next, Castanea came looking to talk to to me.



--09-- <BGM: Song of Blessing>
(Castanea)
Good day, Meara. How are you feeling today? And how is your...self-discovery going?




--10-- <BGM: Song of Blessing>
"Both could be worse. Or better.
I've been just about...everywhere a-around Filia, though, and I don't think I'm, um, going to recall...anything more."
I wish I could stop stammering.


--11-- <BGM: Song of Blessing>
(Castanea)
As one from another world, you are not bound to the Memory Tower.
You are free to go where you wish.
Perhaps it's time for you to broaden your horizons in your search for yourself.


--12-- <BGM: Song of Blessing>
She handed me a delicate smooth blue object in the shape of a bird's wing,
made of some flimsy material that looks like it could easily break.



--13-- <BGM: Song of Blessing>
(Castanea)
There is another continent beyond the great ocean, with more people such as yourself that have
come from another world. If you break this wing apart, the magic within it will take you there.



--14-- <BGM: Song of Blessing>
(Castanea)
Perhaps you will find more to aid you in Uladh.
And if you can't recover your old memories, why not simply create new ones?
That is the way of us Elves.


--15-- <BGM: Song of Blessing>
I look at the wing, then at Castanea, visibly concerned.
"But if this takes me...far away, how am I going to get back?"



--16-- <BGM: Song of Blessing>
(Castanea)
The world is vast, but all of our hearts are here.
If you strongly desire to return, you'll find a way.
I wish you luck on your journey.


--17--
With that, Castanea turned and walked away, leaving me holding the delicate blue wing.
Simple enough. Just break it, right? But I hesitate.
Maybe leaping off into the unknown isn't such a good idea?


--18-- <BGM: Lost Memories at the World's End>
I don't trust Castanea.
She seems to know too much about what's going on with this...hive mind...thing going on here.
I bet *her* memory is fully intact.
Maybe that's all the more reason to leave.

--19-- <BGM: Lost Memories at the World's End>
I'm more comfortable with this new existence, but I still feel helpless dealing with the unknown.
I can't let that stop me, though.
If I've managed this much...novelty, I think I can handle whatever comes.


--20-- <BGM: Lost Memories at the World's End>
I do not know myself. I do not know why, nor how to know myself once more.
Neither does anyone else here.
If there are no more answers in Filia, then I'll face my fear of the unknown.


--21-- [Scene: none] {SFX: failure}
I snapped the little wing in half.
Reality itself twisted around me.
One moment I am in Filia, another moment I am...nowhere, and the next...I am somewhere else.


--22-- [Scene: Tir Chonaill]
It is a land of a dozen shades of green, abundant with verdant life.
The air is cool and dry.
I spun around to look at my surroundings, and almost tripped down a flight of stairs behind me.


--23-- <BGM: Experience Turns Gold>
An old human male stood before a nearby stone house, unfazed by my sudden appearance.
No, in fact, he seemed to be expecting my arrival.
He raised one hand in greeting.


--24-- <BGM: Experience Turns Gold>
(Duncan)
Ah, welcome. Meara, is it?
Madame Castanea sent me a letter about you.
Welcome to Tir Chonaill.
We haven't seen an elf around here in years, so forgive us if you encounter any...strange reactions.

--25-- <BGM: Experience Turns Gold>
So he *was* expecting me. Castanea must have planned this.
"Um, yes. H-hello."
I knew it. Maybe I was getting too close to something she didn't want looked into?


--26-- <BGM: Experience Turns Gold>
(Duncan)
I am Duncan, chief of this village. Sorry to hear about your memory problems.
I'm afraid I may not be of much help to you.
All I can suggest is that you try as many new things as possible.


--27-- <BGM: Experience Turns Gold>
(Duncan)
There's a lot here that you could learn. Perhaps something will jog your memory.
For now, why don't you look around the village?



--28-- <BGM: Experience Turns Gold>
(Duncan)
Don't go too far, though. Things have been uneasy around here as of late.
The Fomors are stirring again, and someone...in your condition...shouldn't get tangled up with them.



--29-- <BGM: Experience Turns Gold>
OK, now he's lost me.

"Fomors?"


--30-- <BGM: Experience Turns Gold>
(Duncan)
They're a race of beings that humanity fought a long, bloody war with many years ago.
After humans won, the Fomors retreated to the darker places of Uladh.



--31-- <BGM: Experience Turns Gold>
(Duncan)
I'm concerned they're up to something sinister, considering the local animals have turned aggressive lately.
Don't worry about it too much, though. You have bigger problems.



--32-- <BGM: Experience Turns Gold> {SFX: wind}
I sighed. "Thanks for reminding me."
A cool wind blowing down from the mountains sent a chill through me.
This short dress might have been fine in the hot desert, but here? Not so much.


--33-- <BGM: Experience Turns Gold>
(Duncan)
I apologize. That came out wrong.
It would be wonderful if you can recover your memory, but at the least,
I also hope you can find some purpose for your life here in Erinn.


--34-- <BGM: Experience Turns Gold>
(Duncan)
Even if you can't find yourself, you can still find a calling.
That, however, you'll have to do on your own.
Anyway, if you have any more questions, feel free to ask me. I'll be around here.


--35--
"Well, thank you for the...emotional support. I'll go...have a look around then."

We said our farewells, and parted. Something he said lingered in my thoughts...


--36-- <BGM: That Beautiful Day>
'I also hope you can find some purpose for your life here in Erinn.'
My life here.

My life here?

--37-- <BGM: That Beautiful Day>
Yes. I have a life again. I'm alive again. But what do I *do* with it now?




--38-- <BGM: That Beautiful Day>
All I've been doing is looking downward, searching for myself.
But what if I never get my memory back?
What do I do with myself then?
What *can* I do?
What do I even like doing?
--39-- <BGM: That Beautiful Day>
I...don't know. Maybe those are the most important questions.

I might be here for years. For decades. Maybe even forever.
I'm going to have to look down less, and start looking forward more.

--40--
My stomach makes an odd noise. I'm...hungry? I have to eat.
Ugh, the demands of flesh.
For now...I think I'll look for something for lunch. Then I'll try looking forward.
...It's a start.

[chapter end]