"He'll stay safe with me for forever."
Duster tossed another stick on the fire and sighed.
It was an odd thing to say about an enemy you intended to lock up just to keep out of your way and then forget about. No, that was the way you talked about someone you actually cared about-
Kumatora grunted in her sleep and flopped over.
Duster smiled fondly down at her.
The first time he'd met her, back in Oshe Castle, he hadn't quite known what to think. Her brash attitude was unlike anyone he'd ever met, other than maybe his dad. But despite her attitude, she did care about other people. She even cared enough about Duster to stick with him, despite his memory refusing to return.
She'd probably yell at him again if she realized he'd let her sleep past when he was supposed to wake her up and let her take her watch. Still though, she'd been pushing herself too hard all day. It wasn't like he was a stupid martyr- he fully intended to let her take a turn- he just wanted to her to get some more rest before she did.
It wasn't that Duster was a hero or anything. It was just that he was the oldest, the adult of the group, which meant his job was to look out for the others.
Which also meant that he'd failed. Lucas had been captured right in front of him. He hadn't been able to do anything.
"You couldn't keep him safe- he'll stay safe with me forever."
Why would the Pigmask Commander say that?
And he'd been wearing Lucas's Franklin badge. It could have been just that he'd figured out what it was by process of elimination and taken it away, but he'd talked about Lucas giving it to him as if they should believe him- and something about his voice-
The fire popped, and Duster glanced at it distractedly.
They should have plenty of fuel- and the abandoned but still sturdy building would keep their fire from being spotted by Pigmasks or wild animals.
After the battle with the Commander, they'd zig zagged all around the forest, to make sure they weren't followed or cornered. They'd returned to Ionia's for a night and slept there before returning to this place. It'd taken them all day to get here, so they'd set up camp and then gone to sleep.
Kumatora murmured and flopped over onto her other side, curling into an even tighter ball.
Duster looked over at her, not smiling. The fight with the Commander had hit her hard. She never dealt well with frustration, and missing and worrying about Lucas just made it that much worse. Duster had the feeling she was feeling just as guilty as he was. Which was silly of her- it wasn't her fault. She wasn't that much older than Lucas.
There was something about Lucas. Maybe it was his smile. He smiled more with his eyes then with his mouth. It was a trusting smile, even now. The degree of trust had gone down, but it was still there. That smile made you like him, made him want to be your friend. Want to protect him.
Duster rubbed at his face wearily. This wasn't good. His brain kept chasing the same ideas around over and over and the tiredness was beginning to drag his eyelids down.
He didn't want to wake Kumatora, not when she was resting more peaceful then she'd been all night, but she'd been sleeping for hours now and Duster needed some rest of his own.
Reluctantly, he got up and shook her awake. "Kumatora. Hey, Kumatora. Time to wake up."
She grumbled under her breath and looked at him blearily. "Duster?"
"Your turn to stand watch." If she noticed that he'd let her sleep in, he'd admit it, but if she didn't notice, he certainly wouldn't tell her.
Kumatora stretched, almost cat-like. "Right," she said, standing up. "You go ahead and rest now while I take over!"
Duster nodded fondly, and laid down. He shut his eyes as Kumatora started to hum to herself.
Duster was still listening to her as he drifted off to sleep.
He dreamed, vague, out of reach fragments. He dreamed of the sea, watching it go past, of voices that called to him, so familiar. And yet, they didn't know his name.
"Hey Duster, you okay?"
At first he thought one of the voices from his dream had finally learned his name- and then he opened his eyes and realized it was Kumatora.
"You okay?" she asked again, gazing at him worriedly.
"…yeah." Duster cleared his throat (clogged almost as if he was going to cry) and tried again. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a dream." He sat up. "What time is it?"
"Well, I'm not sure of the exact time, but-" Kumatora gestured to the window from before, now uncovered. "As you can see, the sun is beginning to get up."
"Right," Duster sighed and stood up as he stretched. "Guess we might as well get started."
"Sounds like a good idea to me," Kumatora said determinedly, lighting an unused branch in the fire and turning it into a torch, before Duster dumped the pile of dirt that they'd gathered last night for this purpose over the fire and putting it out. "Let's go."
Outside the sun was just beginning to come up and the air was still cold from the night, but slowly, slowly becoming warmer. Duster hadn't heard any bird or animal noises as of yet. Maybe they were just sleeping in. Or maybe they didn't like the structure and avoided it.
Duster and Kumatora headed further inside, Duster trying not to look at the place where he'd wandered to in his previous trance.
They walked through silent hallways, lined by silent and empty rooms. They checked every one, occasionally coughing at the dust thrown up by their feet.
At the end of the hallway it led out into a big open room.
It was lined by tables covered with switches and buttons-
"Ah-ha!" cheered Kumatora, rushing over to examine the closest one. "I knew this was a Pigmask base!"
Duster said nothing- stepping further and further and further in, looking around- the dust seemed to be getting thicker and thicker, almost choking off his throat.
It was true that the Pigmasks were the only ones they'd seem with any kind of technology like this, but still, somehow- he was almost sure-
He was standing in front of the center now. There was a depression there, on top of it, like something was meant to fit right there.
Duster reached for it- wanting to see it clearer, meaning to dust it off so he could see it better- his fingers touched it.
The whole room lit up with a white flash- the sound of something charging, so loud it hurt their ears- around them the lights began sputtering back to full power.
And then a figure appeared in front of them.
"Leder?" Duster asked, dumbfounded.
Wait- it was him, but at the same time - why could they see through him?
"Isn't that the guy who used to hang around that bell in your village?" Kumatora asked, "Why can I see through him?"
"I don't-" Duster started to say, when the apparition suddenly opened his mouth.
"This place is forbidden."
"Whoa!"
"No way! He actually talks!"
"For whatever reason you have come here, you must leave. If you stay too long in this place, you will not be able to turn back."
"What are you talking about?" Kumatora asked, then got irritated when he kept talking over her, just as cryptic as before, "Hey, look at me you jerk!"
"He's not really here," Duster said softly.
Kumatora turned back to him. "What are you talking about?"
"It's like a picture- except it moves. He isn't here now- but he was before."
"…how do you know that?"
"…I don't know." Duster reached for the indentation and pressed it again.
The image stopped- froze briefly- then started again. The look on his face was even graver than before.
"Wess- or Duster- or whoever is here- this is the point of no return. If you're here because the crisis we feared has come, then proceed. Place the Hummingbird Egg on the stand. But remember- once you insert the Egg, you have passed the point of no return. You will not be able to go back, no matter how much you want to. Remember." The image flashed and then was gone.
Leder could talk? And he'd said Duster's name. He'd known that he was going to come here, or at least suspected he might.
Duster's head pounded like an overenthusiastic child with a drum.
"What was that? What the heck is going on here?" Kumatora demanded, still staring at where the image had been before spinning to face Duster. "Hey, he's from your village and he knew you were going to come here- what's going on?"
"I don't know!" he shouted, then pressed his hands to his head. "Sorry- I just- have I been here before? Since when can Leder talk? And how did he know I was going to come here?" He lowered his hands and stared at where the image had been.
Kumatora approached, standing in front of him, demanding his attention with how close she stood. "So your memory- it's not all back?" Her voice quieter now.
Duster tried not to shudder as all the disconnected memories surged like a tide trying to pulling out. Instead of answering, he pulls out the egg and stared at it, truly started studying it for the first time.
For a moment, the voices from his dreams echoed in his ear- and then Kumatora yanked it out of his hands.
"We can't do anything with this thing yet!" she said, holding it in the air. "Not until we know exactly what this thing does. And if you don't know and I don't know, then we need to find out." She spun and headed for the doors with it still in her arms.
Duster followed after her, telling himself that the twinge is his leg was from pushing himself to run so fast- that it didn't have anything to do with the wistful feelings struggling in his heart.