Chapter 22 "Detour Down Memory Lane"

It was supposed to be the exciting start of their long journey to the fabled City, but Noah and Mio had barely progressed through the Urayan Trail before trouble found them in the form of the begrudging Colony 5. Although it was a matter that she would've rather avoided, the amicable Agnian managed to turn out a good result by attempting to make peace with the teammates of her victim whose gear she was to utilize in the near future. After debriefing what'd just occurred, the two deserters were ready to resume their trek.

"Looks like the path funnels into an overpass of some sort," Noah gauged the next portion with a hand over his eyes.

"It's one of High Maktha Wildwood's bridges," his running mate informed him. "I've crossed it myself several times before."

"Are the views nice?" his curiosity was inevitably piqued.

"Let's go and you can see for yourself," Mio folded the uniform that she'd been inspecting and stood with him. "Why spoil the fun?"

"Why indeed?" the pacifist chuckled as his gaze moved from the distant bridge to the girl in front of him.

"What?" she noticed his soft staring.

"I'm glad to see you in a better mood, if you don't mind me pointing out." The ninth-termer's smile was as warm as the afternoon sun above.

"I do feel loose and free, now that I'm out of Colony Rho," her expression mirrored his before fading. "Still, there are memories all over this area."

"Oh," he detected a hint of dolor in her response, "bad ones?"

"Bad ones, good ones," she listed them tiredly, "and some in-between."

"Perhaps you could tell me about the good ones along the way," Noah suggested as they started walking toward the bridge. "I'm sure there's plenty I still don't know about you."

"You wish to get to know me better? Well, I-I suppose there's nothing wrong with that." The moonblades-wielder felt her cheeks flush ever so slightly. Before she could dig up something to share, however, a request for communications lit up her Iris. Facing Noah to show him this, Mio tapped her temple to accept it. "H-hello?"

"Mio, I do hope I've found you at a good time." It was a subtly deep and familiar voice coming through.

"You have, Taion," it surprised her to hear from him again so soon, both her and Noah having halted by the bridge's entrance. "You sound like you're in a hurry."

"Does my tone really project such urgency to you?" her former associate queried in an equally detectable fluster.

"I know you well enough," she faced the ground but closed her eyes.

"I'll take that as a compliment," he reacted similarly on his end.

"It wasn't a compliment," the cat-eared Agnian remained frank. "Anyway, what's the matter?"

"Right, ahem…" Taion prepared to explain the unfolding situation. "If you recall during your stay in Colony Phi, you and the Kev… er, Noah had an altercation with some of my soldiers, two of whom were identified."

"Kane and Alyss, I remember them," the tenth-termer leaned against a barricade installed along the bridge.

"You may also remember my plan to reprimand them for their misconduct," he continued to discuss Noah's harassers. "Shortly after you'd left, I demoted them from Avis vanguards to perimeter sentries."

"I can't imagine that it went down well," Mio started tapping her elbow curiously and impatiently.

"Quite," the tall officer adjusted his glasses, or so she imagined. "Sometime later, they abandoned their posts, as well as Colony Phi on the whole."

"Uh-huh…" the zephyr idly watched a fledgling ansel peck at a crack in the concrete. "Taion, why are you telling me this?"

"I'm getting to that!" he snapped at her, hardly unexpectedly. "Ahem… yesterday, our survey branch observed them being pursued by a Colony 18 unit in the direction of Pentelas."

"Towards us, then," she straightened her posture upon the realization.

"Indeed." There was a brief pause in the conversation, now that Taion's report had been relayed to whom it'd concerned. "I can only hazard a guess as to why they chose to resurface there, risking their lives to sneak past our enemy, no less."

"You think they may try to cause trouble, is that it?" her sights switched onto Noah as she spoke, the image of his abuse by Kane's and Alyss' hands coming back to her.

"Take this information as a warning," the bespectacled Agnian urged before softening his tone, "from a… concerned friend."

"Thanks, Taion," his former associate couldn't help but briefly smile at that. "I appreciate that you were thinking of us."

"Of course," he remained hushed. "I know you've got a big mission ahead of you."

"We bested my consul," she abruptly updated him on her accomplished mission. "She can't control me anymore."

"Oh… I see…" his words temporarily escaped him upon hearing her claims, partially from disbelief. "I would ask what's next for you, but I'm afraid I must return to my duties."

"We can talk more later, yeah?" the moonblades-wielder slowly slid the sole of her boot across the marginally mossy surface.

"I cannot guarantee anything," Taion pulled back the reins on acquiescing to her hope, "but I will continue to make an effort."

"Good enough for me," she sighed, though not indignantly. "Take care."

"You as well, Mio." His adieu was as brief as hers, and thus the two Agnians' call was over. Although Noah hadn't participated, he'd heard enough from Mio's side of it to understand.

"Sounds like trouble may eventually be coming our way," the ponytailed soldier surmised, his hands lightly latching onto the strap of his crossbody bag.

"Picked up on the situation, did you?" the older of the pair likewise assumed correctly.

"Yeah," Noah stole a glance back up the trail from where they'd started. "It took us three days to go from Elsayer Cape to Colony Rho."

"Guess that's the head start we have on them," she reasoned with mild concern, "going off Taion's intel."

"Right, and we shouldn't have to worry about them once we reach Keves Castle territory," the ninth-termer added his own logic, turning towards the rest of the bridge. "At any rate, let's make our crossing, yeah?"

Even though the path was simple and straight, it would turn out to be quite the stretch for the two youths to walk. The bridge itself was semi-enclosed, but the middle portion allowed for a sneak peek at what High Maktha Wildwood had to offer. Canopies of foliage from the massive, towering trees were thick like Noah had observed during his visit to Colony 5's base. The view below was staggering for the sightseeing Kevesi who was glad that the local Agnian walking beside him hadn't spoiled it.

Their feet were sore by the time they reached the bridge's end where a partially closed garage door allowed for the afternoon sunlight to stain the ground. There were several Levnis scraps and debris strewn around the opening, but beyond it was a much cleaner space. Stepping outside, Noah and Mio found themselves at the natural expanse of Engardo Pass. The air was noticeably cooler, but the rustling of the leaves was just as prevalent here as it was on the Urayan Trail.

"It's been quite some time since I last visited this area," the zephyr slowed to a stop, breathing deeply.

"Mio?" her travel partner became still as well.

"I'm fine," she insisted after shutting her eyes and shaking her head. "There are… a lot of memories around these parts."

"You don't have to tell me if it's too difficult," the pacifist watched her expression closely.

"Oh, plenty of them are good," Mio saw the concern plainly in his eyes. "It's just that… now I'm feeling a little despondent because she's gone."

"You mean your old commander? Your mentor?" The younger soldier knew exactly to whom she was referring.

"Yeah, this is where we spent most of our downtime together," her hands folded loosely over her mouth, "during our peaceful days, of course."

"I see," his own hand went to the back of his neck. "So, you two must've walked a lot just to get here and back every time."

"It was worth it to get away from the colony," the moonblades-wielder claimed as she descended a crumbling ramp to the land itself.

"The consul never bothered you, being this far out?" the swordfighter followed her down.

"She only stalked those who were close to their homecoming," his running mate clarified, though she didn't want to dwell on memories involving her former oppressor. "If anything, it was the other soldiers who interrupted us via Iris calls to the commander."

"That makes sense as their immediate superior," Noah knew better than to pry further. "Anyway, I'm feeling a bit peckish. Can we take a break for now?"

"Sure, but let's not stay in the open," she advised with her sights set on a nearby grove which included the biggest stump that he'd ever seen. "Over there is a camp that we soldiers at Colony Rho would use during an occasional border patrol mission."

"Perfect," there were no objections from him. "I'm right behind you." Their shadows stretched across the ground while they made their way to the miniature forest. Near the corner where two walls met were unattached, chain-link barricades and the untidied remains of a campsite. After rearranging a couple of logs for seats, Noah and Mio had themselves a comfortable spot on which to dig into their provisions and unwind after a lengthy hike.

While she had her backpack opened in front of her, Mio took the opportunity to review what she'd packed from Colony Rho. Besides her Kevesi disguise, she found the collection of journals for first-termers which she'd been using to jot down her own, personal entries. However, it was the one used by her old commander for this purpose that hogged her focus. Exhaling unevenly, the anxious Agnian extracted it and studied the scribbling on the slightly crinkled cover. The name Masona was barely legible, but Mio was glad to see it there at all.

"Is that your journal?" the ponytailed soldier glanced at the booklet, unable to read the name on it.

"No, it's my commander's," Mio corrected him before slipping a finger between the cover and the first page. "If there were any others back at the colony, then I never found them."

"Ah." A few seconds ticked by before Noah settled on a light question to ask next. "What's her name, again?"

"Masona," the zephyr removed her hand and held the journal against her chest instead. "Sparks… I miss her."

"I'm… sorry she's gone," his tone became benign. "Would it help you feel better to talk about her with me?"

"Oh, I already did my grieving. I'm not like those two Kevesis who were still upset about their friend, Amie." There was neither a frown nor a smile on the tenth-termer's face. "Like I said, this area's full of memories from our private excursions."

"Still, I'm interested in hearing about them if you're willing to share," he felt safe enough now to coax her.

"Mmm… you did say you wanted to get to know me better," Mio contemplated with a couple of taps to her chin. "Fine then. For starters, this camp was probably where we hung out the most."

"I'm not surprised," the younger soldier sat back on his log. "It's rather secluded here, and we can still see through the trees in case someone's coming from out there."

"That was exactly our thinking back then," she affirmed his theory, sounding chipper already. "Though, our favorite place kept us virtually hidden."

"I'm guessing that's why it was your favorite?" the pacifist posited, grateful that she was opening up to him about it.

"Yes." A pause followed her response while she considered how much she could share. "Would you, um, like to see it?"

"Huh? Really?" Noah was taken aback by her offer despite her growing unguardedness. "I started to get the impression that it was not to be seen by anyone else."

"It is special to Masona and me," the cat-eared Agnian confessed, "but anyone can get to it if they're daring enough."

"Daring?" the curious Kevesi tilted his head. "What do you mean?"

"Come," she stuffed her commander's journal away and promptly stood. "I'll show you myself. It's not that far."

"Oh, uh, sure." Likewise, he reequipped his crossbody bag and rose to his slightly rested feet. "Lead the way."

"We'll have to backtrack a little bit," Mio warned him as she led him towards Runo Ruins. After climbing a large, steel ramp, the two youths strolled through a concrete passage and eventually down two sets of stairs. Their footsteps echoed subtly between the surrounding structures, a new aural sensation for Noah whose previous colony basked in the open, unobstructed desert. Laid out ahead of them was another lengthy bridge, though Mio's detour down memory lane didn't require them to use it. Instead, she turned left to face an alternate path which consisted of two thin girders with loose, metal sheets between them, a small slab protruding from the wall, and a thicker girder connecting it to a terrace on the other side. "It's over this way."

"Is it safe to cross?" her travel partner observed its makeshift construction.

"As long as we don't put too much weight on the middle," she advised with her arms extended outwards. "Let's hold hands. This way, we can keep our balance while we walk along the outsides."

"If you say so," the ponytailed soldier tentatively followed her instruction.

"Masona and I did this a lot," her confidence didn't waver. "She's the one who came up with this technique."

"I-I see." His breath became stifled during their execution of the cooperative maneuver. The loose sheets clanked under every step until they reached the small slab which itself hardly instilled confidence in him.

"Okay, I'll need your help again." Spinning around, the moonblades-wielder lowered herself to her knees to reach for the last sheet. "Taking this one with us will discourage anyone else from following."

"Got it…" Noah grunted as they both dragged it with them to the more solid ground at the end. "Another idea of your commander's?"

"I don't remember who thought to do this, but the gap we've created is what afforded us privacy whenever we came here." With the sheet safely deposited, she took in the impressive view of High Maktha Wildwood in all of its glory.

"This is… an amazing perspective," he did the same, standing beside her with widened eyes. It was a much fuller view than what they'd seen from the first bridge, even giving them a glimpse at the lower lands. "Didn't Verna say her team of City folks would be down there?"

"I don't envy their position if that's where they are." Mio rubbed her forearms to ward off an impending chill before turning about-face towards the ruins. "Anyway, we've made it to the spot."

"It's a… big room?" the pacifist described it succinctly.

"Are you disappointed?" she watched him inspect what little it offered.

"I hadn't really thought of what it could be," he unwittingly dodged her question, scratching just beneath his ponytail.

"Just wait until you see this…" his running mate enticed him upon scanning the left side of the room. Curiously, Mio began tapping low on the wall before peering over her shoulder to him. "Er, can I ask for your assistance once more?"

"Of course," Noah needed no persuading to oblige in her latest request. "What are you looking for?"

"There's a secret compartment in this wall," the zephyr planned to reveal, "but I'm not sure where exactly the panel is."

"Guess we'll have to check it and hope to find something hollow." At his suggestion, they proceeded to search from opposite ends until they were nearly in the center.

"Wait…" her ears twitched with his latest knock. "I think you found it."

"Did I?" The meticulous Kevesi began feeling around for an opening. Seconds later, a section of the wall near the floor gave way.

"Nice going," Mio aided in its removal and stuck her hands inside to grab at whatever had been left behind. On her knees again, she extracted two worn-out cushions, a leatherbound book, an earthenware container of sand and half-burnt sticks, a portable, ether-powered cookpot, and a handful of small, discarded wrappers.

"All of this was stored here?" he knelt beside her to get a better look at the assortment. "I guess you weren't exaggerating about coming here often."

"Well… often enough…" her tone reverted to the softness from before she'd taken him on this detour. Although the cushions had long lost their firmness, Mio nonetheless passed one to Noah and took the other for herself. Memories rushed back to the older soldier, while the younger one couldn't decide on which strange object to focus first. He eventually selected one of the wrappers and attempted to read the text printed on it.

"Sweetee's Choclits…" his eyes were squinted, "butterscotch…"

"Masona said they were called flavored candies," she retrieved one as well. "We ate them all, though."

"Where'd she get them?" the ninth-termer wondered aloud, mildly amused by the crinkliness. "Colony 25 never received anything in packaging as elaborate as this."

"Everything here except for the cookpot came from… outside contacts," the moonblades-wielder informed him, managing to power up the device that she'd mentioned. "Masona seemed unable to tell me more than that."

"That's a bit mysterious," the swordfighter remarked before an inquisitive thought occurred to him. "What if these are from the City?"

"You think they could be?" she picked up the bowl next.

"Aside from the cookpot which I assume you guys brought, this stuff has neither Kevesi nor Agnian designs." Noah watched her snap off the burnt portion of a stick and light the fresh end of it with the ether-ignited flame. "Er… what are you doing?"

"Burning incense, for fragrance," her answer was simple as wisps of smoke rose from the bowl now placed between the two youths. "Sorry, I should've warned you."

"It's… okay," he allowed himself one whiff before scooting back, "though I've never heard of incense."

"I hadn't either until Masona started… bringing this out for us…" Mio divulged further with her knees up and her arms around them, suddenly sounding relaxed.

"Mio?" the ponytailed soldier continued to watch her.

"I always enjoyed this," her head came forward next. "She called it aromatherapy. All worries… gone…"

"If only…" he lamented to himself.

"I used to imagine… a world of peace," she continued to recount wistfully. Although the incense had already burnt out, the fragrance lingered in the ruined space. "Can't remember much else besides how good it felt to be so carefree."

"I don't think I've ever experienced that feeling yet," her travel partner spoke marginally enviously.

"Sit next to me, then," the zephyr's hand extended towards him. Without answering, Noah smiled and gladly did as suggested. Keeping silent herself, Mio rested her head against his neck while the sun began to set. The view of the wildwood wasn't as great from their spot in the big room as it was from the terrace, but it was satisfying enough for deserting Kevesi and Agnian alike. Before they knew it, nighttime was threatening to paint everything in a dusky shade. Not wishing to cross the makeshift bridge in darkness, they relinquished their seats and stored almost everything back inside the hidden compartment.

"You're taking the book?" Noah noticed her stuffing it in her backpack.

"Masona used to read it here, though she claimed to not understand it at first," she told him regrettably. "I'll give it a try sometime."

"Very well," he walked to the terrace while she stole one last glance at the room. Placing the loose sheet back onto the thin girders outside, Noah and Mio returned to the main path through the ruins.

Back in Engardo Pass, it was decided that further travel would be unadvised at night. Thus, they found the nearby campsite in the grove again where Noah prepared a fire for warmth and Mio perused the now expanded reading material that was available to her. Although the newly acquired book was tempting, she opted for the commander's journal instead. This time, the cat-eared Agnian opened it up without reservation.

"You're comfortable reading that now?" the pacifist glanced in her direction, not wishing to be too nosey.

"Spending time in our favorite place helped me warm up to the idea," Mio explained not only to Noah but also to herself in case of second thoughts. "I never truly let it go… her death by our consul."

"Your commander's homecoming," he recalled from her horror stories.

"Right," she nodded tentatively, "but after this morning's confrontation with Colony 5, I see how it's not healthy to keep things bottled inside."

"Is that what you've been doing all this time?" Noah's morose expression solidified on his face. "I'm sorry I hadn't noticed."

"I was too afraid to know how my commander truly felt during her final term." The older soldier felt the heaviness of her words as she spoke them. "However, I'm at that same point in my life now, so I think I can handle it."

"Hopefully, it'll at least give you closure," he gladly took her cue to find the figurative light in the darkness.

"Yeah…" her eyes finally laid upon the first entry. "Besides, I want to see if Masona wrote about coming into contact with people from the City. Maybe you're right that they're the outside contacts who gave her those things."

"Let me know if you find anything," the ponytailed soldier moved to unroll his sleeping mat. "For now, I'm going to turn in for the night."

"Okay, I won't stay up too long." With the only sounds coming from the campfire and the distant wildlife, Mio began reading her old commander's journal in earnest. This wasn't about wanting to learn secrets but rather about hoping to confirm her hunch. The first few pages contained nothing more than random, idle thoughts and the occasional humorous complaint about lazy colony personnel, but eventually accounts of meetings with City folks filled the lines with enlightening details. Strange words and phrases intrigued the Agnian soldier, the meanings of which she could only guess without Masona being there to explain. Regardless, it was clear that the City had much to teach.

Turning to face the sleeping Noah, Mio wanted so badly to tell him about wooden frames with internal strings and monochrome levers apparently called pianos, or how her act of pressing her lips on his cheek yesterday was actually just one of multiple gestures for directly expressing profound appreciation. However, it wasn't long before the onset of exhaustion persuaded her to insert a bookmark and prepare her own sleeping mat. It'd been a deceptively long day, and now was the time for much-needed rest.