"So, uh, what exactly is 'Zero Sailing'?" Patxi asked. The last time Chaldea'd done it had been right after they'd destroyed the Russian Lostbelt, and as he'd been unconscious and roughly three-quarters dead he'd completely missed the entire thing. "Is it just like driving this thing across the emptiness?"

"No, it's far worse." Goredolf shuddered in his seat. "It starts off fine enough, alright, kind of like when you're riding a rollercoaster and come onto the first big dive, but after you cross the boundary into void space your soul basically separates from your body! One minute you're just staring straight ahead, and then you're staring down at yourself like it's a video!" He gulped. "Ugh, if only I'd had some sleeping pills with me."

"Come on, Director." The Chaldean with the yellow hair - Patxi wasn't sure his name, but he thought it was like 'moon-something' - smirked. "That wouldn't be right. What if something happened to us while you were fast asleep?"

"You're right, of course, but still - it's not like complete dissociation's something I signed onto this job hoping to see happen to me repeatedly. I'll be glad when we're on the other side." He turned back to Patxi. "Get it now?"

"No, not really." In fact, Patxi had only understood about half the words Goredolf had used. "I'm still new to this magic stuff, remember?"

"Oh, right, of course." Da Vinci's voice came over the loudspeaker. "Really, Director, can't you remember something so simple? Anyways", she continued before Goredolf could start arguing with her, "basically, think of it this way: you know how you're from a different world than us? 'Zero Space' is more or less another one, and since it's so different from our own it does really weird things to the body, so you wind up kind of staring down at yourself like it's another person. Zero Sailing is actually really smooth once you get going, fortunately enough, but I'd recommend strapping yourself in all the same."

It was a much better explanation, so Patxi nodded and reached over for his seatbelt. A minute or two of fumbling later he managed to figure out how it worked and settled down to get comfortable. At least, as comfortable as I can get with this leather pressing right up against a couple bullets.

"Hey Holmes," Fujimaru asked as they rolled towards the massive wall of clouds designating the Lostbelt's boundary, "is there any chance that Patxi's body'll react differently to Zero Sailing than ours since he's from a different world?"

"I doubt it. The Yaga body is more or less a heavily-modified version of our own, and the Lostbelt wasn't around long enough for the fundamental structural elements to diverge far enough for that."

"Um, if you all are done talking," da Vinci's voice came back, "I already started up the Paper Moon, so get ready to dive!"

" What? " Goredolf practically choked on his own tongue. "Couldn't you give us a little more warning?"

"I got impatient, alright? At least I waited until you all got buckled, and besides, you said you couldn't wait until we were on the other side. The faster we get going, the faster we're there!"

"THAT ISN'T WHAT I MEANT, DAMN IT!"

Da Vinci ignored him; Patxi sensed she was having a bit of fun. " Shadow Border , untether from reality. Void Space Dive, Zero Sail, unfurl!"

The next thing Patxi knew the view outside the Shadow Border 's windows had vanished, the bleached landscape gone instantly and replaced with an odd landscape of black interspersed with little white lines stretching off as far as the eye could see. And then he blinked, and suddenly his view got a lot higher, as though he'd jumped straight up into the air, and at the same time all the lingering pains and aches from the wounds he'd taken in Russia completely vanished.

Patxi looked down at his left side, confused, and noticed his body sitting in the chair a few feet below him. Ah. Well. He'd known it was coming after da Vinci's explanation, of course, but by the same token looking down at one's self was downright weird . Patxi waved his arm down at his body to see what would happen, but his actual arm stayed completely still like he was somehow both moving it and not moving it simultaneously, and he realized with a shock that his breathing was not in fact remotely in tune with the steady rise and fall of his chest.

Okay. This is weird. Really, really weird.

Patxi tore his eyes away from himself and looked around the cabin, noticing that everyone was undergoing the exact same phenomenon - Goredolf appeared to have his eyes shut as tight as possible on both his actual body and his not-body - before he gazed out the window. The view was largely the same, just an endless expanse of black interspersed with countless white lines, but there was something else in the distance: a large, blacker than black hole. He opened his mouth to try and ask if that was the entrance to the next Lostbelt, but for whatever reason the attempt at forming words made his head spin so wildly that it was impossible to keep focus. By the time he regained it the Border was about to plunge into the black hole…

...and a few seconds later Patxi was back in his body, all the muscles on his left side screaming in confusion over their recent experience with moving and not moving at the exact same time.

"Well," Goredolf exhaled, "that was just as terrifying the second time. I doubt I'll ever actually get used to this." He looked over at Patxi. "How about you, Yag- I mean, Patxi? Aren't I right? Isn't that just about the most terrifying thing in the world?"

Patxi took one look out the window to see the most indescribably unfathomable excuse for a place he'd ever seen, then over at Goredolf, and then his stomach immediately started heaving. Repeatedly. Getting more and more violent each time.

"Uh, Patxi?" Fujimaru asked. "You're not looking so hot."

His stomach gave another massive lurch, and Patxi felt something disgusting begin to race up his throat. Only able to mumble out a weak "no" as he fumbled with his seatbelt, the second he was free Patxi made a break for the restroom.

Half an hour later, he managed to pull himself off the floor long enough to wash off everything that had gotten stuck in his fur, and after a couple more dry heaves he exited and stumbled back up to the bridge.

"You know what, Goredolf?" he grumbled as he sat back down, "for once in your life I actually think you're right about something - I can honestly say that Zero Sailing is probably the worst form of travel it's possible to come up with." He looked back out the window. Huh. Now that I can actually watch without immediately needing to throw up, it's actually sort of pretty. Like a whirlwind of color and lights. "So," he asked once he'd had his fill of Zero Space, "did I miss anything?"

"Not really." Da Vinci's voice came back over the intercom. "We're about half an hour from surfacing, after which hopefully it's just gonna be a nice, quiet drive across the Lostbelt and over to the Wandering Sea. Honestly, the only thing you missed was the umpteenth argument and minor freak-out from our illustrious director." Patxi swore he could detect a smirk in da Vinci's voice, as well as the fact that she didn't care one bit who knew it.

"So then...we're not going to have to cut down the tree thing, then?"

"Hopefully not. At least, not on this pass-through."

"And yet we are going to have to at some point." Holmes replied. "Are you implying that you don't want to be present when that happens?"

Yes, Patxi thought, but instead he said "That's not what I meant. I was just curious." It wasn't like there was any other 'right' answer, especially since he was still trying to make himself useful enough to justify staying with Chaldea.

Patxi's ears twitched.

Distantly, barely decipherable even with the hypersensitive years of a Yaga, he picked up a mechanical whirr besides that of the Shadow Border.

"Everyone, quiet." Patxi held a finger up to his snout. "I can hear something a little way off."

Everyone froze. "Where?" Mash whispered?"

Patxi listened again. The sound was louder. "I'm not sure. Somewhere to the left."

Immediately afterwards, an alarm blared loud enough to make them all jump a mile in the air.

"Got a reading on the radar!" Moon-Something called out. "It's big, whatever it is!"
Holmes switched on the overcom. "Da Vinci? Can you see anything?"

"Nope. I've got my hands full running this thing! Can't spare enough focus to check the cameras."

"Then we're just going to have to rely on the radar and our Yaga friend. What does it sound like, Patxi?"

"I'm not sure. Kind of like the Border , I guess, but different? Like it's bigger."

Mash and Fujimaru looked at one another. "You don't think one of the Crypters has a ship of some kind, do you?"

"It is possible," da Vinci answered, "But none of the files on Team A suggested that any of them were the type."

"M-maybe it's a Lostbelt Servant?" Goredolf looked terrified. "You all saw how it was in Russia! Who knows what kind of monsters might be hiding in the others?"

Trying valiantly not to be offended, Patxi looked over at the radar and tried to figure out what it meant. "The middle is where we are, right?"

"Yeah." Moon-Something pointed at the leftmost part of the display. "And this is...whatever that thing is, or at least it's right side. God, that's big." He gulped. "And it's, uh, getting a lot closer."

"It's not changing it's speed, though. At least, it doesn't sound like it."

"Maybe it's friendly?" Mash suggested. "Or just curious?"

"In void space?" Goredolf shook his head. "There's no way that anything in a place like this isn't a danger!"

"So then what would you have us do, Director?" Holmes studied the radar. "It does seem to rapidly be getting closer." He looked out the window. "Perhaps soon it will be close enough for us to observe?"

"Are you mad? There's no way in hell we're sticking around that long! Da Vinci, re-engage Paper Moon and prepare for an emergency exit into Reality Space!"

"Now?" Mash protested, "Isn't that dangerous?"

"Normally I'd agree with you, Mash, but I have to admit Gordy has a point. We don't know what that is, and I can't get a look at it with the cameras, for now, the best option really is to retreat."

"But -"

Placing his hand on Mash's shoulder, Fujumaru shook his head. "We can find out what it is later. For now, our main focus is getting to the Wandering Sea safely."

"Well spoken." Holmes tugged his seatbelt back into place. "Everyone, prepare to exit Zero Space."

Mercifully, this time the transition back to the real world passed by without any issue, and in short order Fujimaru, Mash, and Patxi were ready to scout around.

"So we're just walking out the front door this time?" Mash looked oddly despondent. "I thought you were going to shoot me out again like last time."

"That was different. Then we were dropping you into a massive combat situation, but now you guys are just going to scout around a bit and get a lay of the land. Not to mention that Fujimaru's with you this time, and I, uh, don't think that shooting him from a cannon is the best idea in the world."

"Fair enough." Fujimaru smiled. "Although it's not like I haven't been hurled through the air a million times before."

"Yeah, I'm not gonna be the one adding to that count. Anyways, hatch opening in 3...2...1…" With a hiss, the Shadow Border 's door opened, giving the three of them their first glance of the Lostbelt.

It's… snow. It's all snow. It's warmer, sure, but still. It's just like home. It was almost like if he were to leave the Border he would be able to walk back into town, trade the day's catch for some precious money, check in on his mother…

Looking back towards Russia from afar had been hard. This was worse by far.

Oblivious, Mash and Fujimaru stepped out into the icy clearing. "Senpai, it's…"

"Yeah. It's beautiful. Kind of reminds me of the Sapporo snow festival, actually."

Mash laughed. "It's like a winter wonderland! Not at all like Russia."

"Mash." Fujimaru gave Mash a nudge and nodded back towards Patxi.

"Oh...sorry, Patxi. I shouldn't have said that."

"It's fine." Patxi strode past the two of them, keeping his head down and covered by his hat. "We still need to have a look around." I have to stay strong.