Cassie
> You have no idea how hard the advanced Tsukumogami training has been. I always thought the general education they put us through was too simple. All it is, is teaching kids how to shift between the easiest base forms. They don’t even cover simultaneous forms, let alone merging two forms at the Second Realm!
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> Koto must be really upset. I had to fight until I dropped, then mediate until I fell asleep, then fight in my Dreamscape until my magic recovered, and then start again from the top! I don’t know if I’m going to get another free minute this decade!
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> I’m writing you this during my first five-minute break since yesterday. They’ve stopped searching for contraband. Maybe they’ve given up, and I’ll really be able to keep this Shew Stone.
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> Cassie, tell me everything you learn about the outside! I’ll be sure to pass on anything useful I learn in Koto’s training. Let’s get strong together!
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> Someday, they’ll put me on a mission, and I’ll get out of here. Then I’ll come find you.
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> Till then,
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> Your Brother Tarō
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Cassie snorted to herself while reading. He’d promoted himself to ‘little brother.’ She hadn’t forgotten Tarō had been sentenced to a century of community service, though apparently, time didn’t matter much to the boy.
In any case, it seemed like she wouldn’t be getting that many messages from him. She couldn’t imagine the consequences he’d bear for sharing racial training secrets with an outsider but doubted anything she said would change Tarō’s mind. She wrote him a quick reply of encouragement for the next time he checked.
That done, Cassie had another new friend to check up on.
From a lotus position, Cassie used her newfound mastery of consciousness to put herself to sleep. She entered her Inner World. Her inner self lay on the straw in the hayloft of the barn in the woods of her island in the void.
Cassie flew out the window to soar above the barn.
She felt herself pass the Threshold of her Inner World and enter the Nightscape. Her senses expanded in the domain of infinite Night. Despite the dangers, she felt safer here than in the waking Wilderness. She Heard leviathans stir on the Far side of the starry night galaxy. She Heard the local Nightwalkers creeping in the Vague vicinity, not a threat with her forewarning. And she directly Heard the Vivid details of the nearest islands by her ultrasonic echolocation.
Stars across the galaxy were constantly winking out as people died and bursting into light as they were born. Each star was an island in the void containing a person’s Inner World. Upon their demise, their island became a dull drifting asteroid.
Cassie took her bearings, observing the drift of her reference stars, and found their meeting spot in the distance. Her flight seemed long with anticipation. In the waking world, she knew perhaps seconds had gone by. Although, it was a bit hard to tell exactly how much time elapsed while out here. If she overstayed Cassie would feel a tug from her physical body attempting to rouse from slumber.
There, ahead of her, was Auge—who she sensed Vaguely as a living circus of spotlights searching the void. Eerily, those spotlights pointed at Cassie as she approached, though she knew she eluded their acuity range. Auge had found her.
Her Nightwalking friend was a Mokumokuren, a cyclops as she’d been told, though they’d never gotten in Vivid reach of one another. Their friendship had the fragile newness of tenuous trust.
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Auge moved from one asteroid to the next, signaling Cassie to investigate the message left for her on the first. There was indeed an inscription and something else that surprised her, a little box.
> Cassandra,
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> Last time I expressed the onerous weight of the debt between us. I admire your bravery in sharing your story. I regret I am not so courageous as to trust you with the corresponding information from my side, as of yet. This has everything to do with my associates, whose stories are not mine to tell, and naturally, my story intertwines with theirs.
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> What I can tell you is that Naja found me and adopted me from infancy. He immersed me in a wealth of information for my development, including many entertaining stories. Gradually, we gathered other orphans to our group: The Gryphon, Key Meister, and Alchemist I previously mentioned. Over the course of my fifteen years, I gained my current skillset—which I also described previously.
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> These few paltry sentences do nothing to assuage said debt. I’ve prepared a present to moderate said discrepancy. It will appear to you as a box, but it is in fact a memory.
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> For your information, a memory will not last long in the void without a Nightwalker to sustain it. Do not be overly concerned I am giving up a memory. While precious to me, I have access to the person who made this memory possible and their willingness to make many more such memories.
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> As much as I would like to perpetuate your suspense, I have a caveat to share about the box’s contents. Therefore, I must tell you it is a box of chocolates.
She opened the box before continuing to read. The box contained nine lavishly decorated candies with the corners nibbled away. Cassie giggled to herself as she continued reading to find out why.
> These chocolates were concocted by Nicholas, my Alchemist associate. I’ve revealed this so you can expect effects from eating them beyond the scope of mortal candies. Though these are mere memory and not reality, you may experience a fraction of their original magic in addition to their superb quality.
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> Unfortunately, on the way to our rendezvous, I realized you would have cause to consider foul play on being offered confections from such a new acquaintance. I consumed a small portion of each gift to allay any suspicion of poison. Regardless, I do not recommend ingesting anything outside the protection of your Threshold where you will be able to safely weather unexpected side effects.
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> Auge
By the time she finished reading, Cassie had swallowed the last of the chocolates. They were the best she’d ever tasted by leaps and bounds. She thought the cherry one was especially incredible. As for the effect, they warmed Cassie from the inside out and her fingers felt tingly in a fun way.
They were amazing! Thanks for the gift. I said before it’s not necessary, but I don’t mind if you keep bringing me fun things! Also, how did you get a really specific memory like that? All I could find were figurines of people from my past.
She wrote her reply and flew away to let Auge read her message and respond.
> Cassandra,
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> I am not sure whether to be frustrated you ignored my warning or pleased to know you trusted me enough to have the whole box on the spot! You are a perplexing individual, yet always entertaining.
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> My Alchemist is fascinated with carnal pleasures, particularly in tweaking flavors of sweets and other concoctions. I have no shortage of similar memories, nor do I fear losing access to future test batches. Therefore, I feel no remorse in pledging to bring a box with me for our next meeting.
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> From what you’ve told me of your Inner World, you should be able to find any memory you wish within the straw of your barn’s loft. I urge caution not to remove a representation of critical or unique memories. These serve as keystones built upon by multiple later memories. The ‘butterfly effect’ on your psyche could potentially be severe.
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> Safety is paramount.
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> Auge
While composing her response, Cassie felt a tug on the core of her being. Someone was trying to wake her.
Hey, Auge, we need to wrap this up. I’m getting pulled back to the WW. Let’s pick a spot for next time, and then I have to go.
> Cassandra,
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> I’m sorry you have to leave so abruptly, but I can be swift. Despite the candy and trifle of information, I continue to feel things between us are not yet even. I have been planning a surprise for you much more significant than the meager insubstantiality of memory. My preparations, and my courage, are not quite sufficient for next time. Soon, though, I promise I will show you something you won’t ever forget.
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> Auge