[Author's Note: Welcome Back! Today's episode has a new name. Please disgregard the title and translation in the last chapter. This episode's translation: "Heart... What is it?" Enjoy!]
Chapter 7: Kokoro... Nani?
Ryu, Nina, Rei, and Momo woke up in the laboratory under Caer Xhan. Was it morning? It was hard to tell.. No daylight reached down into the depths of the metal maze. It was cold, heartless, and devoid of life.
"Are all of you ready to go?" Rei asked impatiently.
"Well, there's nothing we can do about breakfast. There is nothing for us to use as heat..." Nina noted.
"So, let's go then," Momo concluded, she pushed her spectacles up onto her nose.
Everyone except Rei started towards the door. "Rei, what's wrong?" Ryu asked.
"Could you guys leave and shut the door, it will only take a second. I have some unfinished busness to take care of," Rei explained.
Ryu, Momo, and Nina walked out into the lit hallways and shut the door. Suddenly they heard strange sounds. Metal was being bent and scratched. They could hear a large amount of glass being broken in one instant. "He must have smashed his fist through the monitor screen, but a normal person shouldn't be able to do that.." Momo wondered, "Never mind, I get it." Suddenly a large explosion sounded through the shut metal door. A few seconds of silence...
Rei opened the door and some smoke seeped out the door, Rei walked out of the room and shut the door. He clapped his clawed hands together, "Okay, let's go then." No one said a thing.
"I guess, by the sounds I heard, Rei transformed and destroyed the laboratory. No normal sized humanoid can smash that screen, no matter how strong. That led me to believe he changed shape to accomodate... He probably doesn't want anyone to be able to create another device like that again.. Thank goodness I still have the papers with me, my father's legacy will remain forever..." Momo thought to herself.
"Oh, Momo. Here's that disk you wanted. I hope I did it right," Rei said as he handed the small disk to Momo. They continued to walk down the hallways.
"As long as you followed my directions, it should have worked," Momo explained as she pocketed the disk.
"Then it's fine."
Everyone continued to walk down the hallways, they reached an upward slope and Nina's thoughts came out of her mouth.
"No fight at all?" Nina asked.
No one stopped walking, they reached the top of the sloped hallway.
"We're concentrating on finding our way out. There's no time to fight or argue..." Momo trailed off.
"That way," Rei pointed to the left passageway.
Everyone continued to walk down the hallways in an awkward silence. Hours passed in the labyrinth, until the silence was broken by Ryu.
"Rei... Why did you destroy the laboratroy?" He asked.
They turned right at an intersection and walked up another sloped path.
"I felt like taking a bit of anger, better a machine than a person. Is that a good explination?"
Ryu sighed and they made a left turn at the next intersection of hallways.
"My feet are getting tired, are we almost out of here yet?" Nina complained.
"You didn't feel tired when he came down the first time," Momo noted.
"Well, we were going DOWN-hill then. This time we are going UP!"
"Once a princess, always a princess..." Rei mocked Nina.
"Shut up, Rei!" Nina shouted.
Ryu sighed again and kept score on his fingers, "Let's see the score is Nina: 0 and Rei has..." He rolled his eyes to the upper-left side of his head as he remembered what happened recently, "4."
"Oh, great! Everyone is against me," Nina said angerly.
Ryu put his hand on her shoulder and whispered, "Don't worry, I'm just kidding."
Nina smiled and gave out her usual giggle. They continued to walk down the hallways in higher spirits. The metal didn't seem so cold and the lights didn't seem so dim.
Momo decided to make conversation by discussing a new invention she was thinking about.
"I thought of a neat invention when I was inside the laboratory, that screen gave me an idea..." Momo started.
Nina said, "Don't keep me in suspence, what is it?"
"Well, imagine if one could project a play or information across the world."
"How would that work? How would the information be displayed?" Ryu asked.
"On a thing like the screen we saw in the lab," Momo explained.
"That's perposterous!" Nina exclaimed.
"It might not be impossible, I remember that at the lab where I was created, they could send information from room to room through some cables. The information was always displayed on a screen. But the rest is a total blank," Rei explained.
"So what use could this be?" Nina asked.
"Well, plays, music, concerts, and even news could be displayed on a screen," said Momo.
"That's impossible!" Exclaimed Nina.
"Don't worry, I'm sure our Momo could do it," Rei said.
"I still think it is strange that you two aren't fighting..." Ryu started.
They finally reached the door to the outside world. Ryu pushed it open, it was dusk outside. "At least we won't have to adjust to the light," Momo noted.
"Why don't we set up camp outside the town, it's going to be dark soon," Rei said.
Everyone agreed and they set up camp without a problem.
"I'll make supper!" Nina exclaimed.
"NO!" Everyone shouted.
Momo walked to the food chest and picked up some fish, "Well, this is all we have at the moment. We might as well make the best of it."
"Momo, you didn't make a joke about Rei. Are you feeling okay?" Nina asked.
"Huh, what?" Momo asked as she picked up the metal pan from the chest and placed it over the fire.
"You two have been acting strange lately, did you finally admit to loving each other?" Nina asked.
"WHAT?! How did you know?" Rei and Momo exclaimed simultaniously.
"Anyone with eyes could see it, at least you finally admit it," Ryu noted.
"Okay, the cat's out of the bag. No pun intended, Rei," Momo said.
"Now it's no longer a secret, that's a releif," Rei said. Rei got up and grabbed some more fish and handed them to Momo.
"Well, if we're going to be together... I have some conditions," Momo said with a smile.
"What conditions?" Rei asked.
"Well, when we get married... I want to be wed in Wyndia."
"And?"
"I'M choosing your clothing the rags you're wearing are too small, and you're getting a job!"
"That's understandable, I have some too."
"Go ahead."
"First, when we have kids, you'll instruct them."
"That's easy!"
"And I want to instruct them on how to survive in the world."
"Okay.."
"And when I teach, you'll have to take over my job for that day."
"There's one more, isn't there?"
"Yes there is. I don't want you to be with anyone but me."
"Don't worry, I won't."
Ryu and Nina watched them the entire time. "Hey, Ryu... Why haven't we talked about what we're going to do in the fututre?!" Nina shouted.
"I don't know.. I never really thought about it."
"RYU!"
Ryu got up and started to run away from the angry Nina. "You can't get away from me, Ryu! I know how to cast Slow!"
"Maybe she'll trip and fall, for Ryu's sake that is," Rei said.
"I'll drag you into the wedding chapel even if I have to carry your unconcious body!" She shouted at Ryu as the chase re-entered the camp.
Ryu ran right behind Rei, but Nina tripped over his tail. She landed into the sand face-first, just like before.
"Don't say a word, Rei!" Nina shouted.
"Nina, you have sand up your nose," Momo noted.
"Shut up, you are just like Rei!" Nina shouted as Ryu helped her back on her feet.
"Thanks, Nina," Momo said with a smile.
After much travelling they arrived in Junk Town. Momo got some materials for her new invention, Ryu and Nina reconciliated, and Rei set everyone up at the inn. The next day, they set out on a ship back to the main continent. Eventually everyone reached Windia and then...
To Be Continued...
The next episode of Rei no Kigen To...
It has been about 12 years since the death of Myria. Everyone is settled down, and life has continued. How have things come together?
Chapter 8: Mata Futsuu no Seekatsu!
Ordinary Life Again!