Voyagers Crossing the Night - Episode 2: "Waves of the Boundary"

The morning in the port town of Riedel
wore its usual face.

The bustle of the market.
The sound of fish being gutted.
The rhythm of hammers maintaining ships.

Even though nothing should have changed,
inside Kaito alone, things had quietly changed.

The events of the night were no dream.

That ship.
NOX.
And the "voice" that echoed deep in his head.

"--You finally came."

Every time he remembered it, his chest felt uneasy.

(What... was that?)

Thinking about it provided no answers.
But there was one thing he knew for sure.

--There is no going back now.

"You're really going, aren't you?"

When he turned around, Lena was standing there.

With her arms crossed, she was looking at him as if she were exasperated.
But her eyes held a look of resolve.

Kaito"Did you come to stop me?"

When Kaito asked, Lena shook her head.

"No."

After a beat, she continued.

Lena: "I'm coming with you."

It felt as if the wind had stopped.

Kaito: "...Huh?"

An absurd sound escaped him.

Kaito: "Why?"

Lena: "Because it's scarier to let you go alone."

She said it simply.

"Besides,"

Lena looked away slightly.

"If I leave you alone, you really don't look like you'll come back."
Kaito gave a bitter smile.

He couldn't deny it.

Kaito: "...It's dangerous."

Lena: "I know."

Kaito: "You might not be able to come back, you know?"

Lena: "I know that too."

Kaito: "Even so?"

Lena looked straight at Kaito.



"Even so."It was a short, strong statement.

Kaito thought for a moment, then shrugged.

"Sigh. Alright."

Those words became the signal for departure.

---

At the edge of the port.

The forgotten ship, NOX.
Seen under the daylight,

it looked much
"older" than last night.The wood creaked,

the sails were frayed,
and it looked like it might collapse at any moment.
Lena

"Does this thing really move?"Lena frowned.

Kaito placed his hand on the hull.

--

Thump.

Again.

That sensation.

As if it were alive,
the ship was "responding."

Kaito"It'll move."

It was a feeling bordering on certainty.

He didn't know why.

But he knew.

This ship would not sink.

Lena"That's not much of a basis for confidence."

Lena boarded, though she looked exasperated.

At that moment, the wind blew.

The sails swayed on their own.

As if they had been waiting.

---

The departure was far too quiet.

Seen off by no one,
noticed by no one,
it simply left the port slowly.

Looking back, the town of Riedel grew smaller.

He might never return there again.

Even so, he had no regrets.

In fact.

The weight in his chest had lightened just a little.

Lena: "Hey."

Lena muttered softly.

Lena"We're really going over there, aren't we?"

Beyond her gaze was that horizon.

Even though it was daytime, that part was dark.

The light didn't reach it.

Kaito"We have no choice but to go."

Kaito replied.

Kaito"Because we're being called."

Lena frowned slightly.

Lena"That 'being called' thing is creepy."

Kaito: "...I know."

But he couldn't stop.

That much was clear.

---

A few hours later.

The color of the sea began to change.

The blue surface
gradually sank into a deep, heavy color.

The sky was the same.

In the sky that should have been clear,
clouds had spread before they knew it.

"Hey, this..."

Just as Lena started to say that,

the waves swayed unnaturally.

Boom!

A shock, as if something had struck from below.

The ship creaked.

Lena: "...What was that?"

Lena's voice trembled slightly.

Kaito did not answer.

No, he could not answer.

Because he had seen it.

Beneath the surface of the water.

For just an instant.

Something like an "eye" was looking at him.

It wasn't human.

But it wasn't entirely something else, either.

A shape that felt, somehow, "familiar."

"Hey."

Kaito muttered in a low voice.

Kaito: "Did you see it?"

Lena shook her head.

Lena: "I don't see anything."

Kaito gasped.

(Again...)

Just like that light.

Something only he could see.

That was when it happened.

--Gree...

The ship groaned.

It wasn't just a creak.

It was a sound with more intent.

And then, it echoed deep in his mind again.

Kaito--It's close.

Kaito's heart pounded hard.

Kaito--It's almost here.

The words slipped out before he could stop them.

LenaWhat is?

Lena asked back.

Kaito looked at the horizon.

That darkness was right there.

A sea that looked like night, even though it was day.

A place where light was being swallowed up.

KaitoThe boundary.

He didn't know why he had said that word.

But he knew it was correct.

This was still "this side."

But if they took one step further--

KaitoIf you're going to turn back, now's the time.

Kaito said.

Lena looked at Kaito for a moment.

And then, she smiled.

LenaIt's too late for that.

At the same time as those words.

The NOX crossed the boundary.

⸻

The sound vanished.

The wind, the waves,
everything fell silent in an instant.

And then.

The "color" drained from the world.

A gray sea.
A gray sky.

Even though the sun should have been there.

There was no light anywhere.

Lena...What... is this...

Lena's voice was raspy.

Kaito did not answer.

He just watched.

Deep into the sea.

Something was there.

He was certain of it.

And it was.

Looking at them...

Episode 2 End.