Takes place after chapter 5. I guess they took their time exploring Primordia?
Inspiration from the first minute of this: watch?v=O9KO5xZ8pqU&index=7&list=PLVmM0UVcquYLcRGVuF0MF6P_iFssJHOKY
I have merged the words 'experience' and 'explore' to get 'explorience'. Yay?
The group of three stopped at the crest of the hill they had just climbed, taking a moment to admire the reflection of the setting sun on the lake.
Cross turned back to see Lin frowning, staring at her hands. "Hey, you okay?" they asked, concern clear in their tone.
Without looking up, Lin slowly said, "I feel stronger."
"Uh, okay," was Cross' response. "How, exactly?"
Lin shook her head. "I don't know," she replied, "but we reached the top of this hill and I saw that lake and I just felt… stronger."
Cross frowned. "Weird."
"It's down to our mimeosomes, and how they're coded."
Cross and Lin both lifted their gaze to Elma as she joined the conversation. "They're programmed to learn as the owner experiences new things. It's supposed to be similar to the way humans learn and evolve. You see something interesting…" Elma paused, moving to gesture to the still waters of the lake, painted orange in the evening glow, "…and you remember."
"Huh," Cross said eloquently.
"Oh, wow, I didn't know that!" Lin exclaimed excitedly, the mechanic in her roaring to life. "So even something as simple as a new area or a pretty view can cause our mims to update?"
Elma nodded. "It's fascinating, isn't it? For humans to have created robotic copies of themselves and transferred their consciousness over was impressive enough, but to have those robotic bodies evolve and expand so realistically? It's remarkable."
"Wow," Cross said, too impressed for anything more.
"So always remember," Elma said with a tone of finality, "that your mim grows with you and gains experience with you. Treat them like your real body, because they're honestly very close to the real thing."