VS The Park's Crisis, Part 4
Everyone, following the source of the voice, turned their sight towards the clouded sky through the hole in the wall. There, they saw four silhouettes. Two of them, who had their wings on their heads spread open, descended while holding onto two more people.
"Oh my~ That's quite the large gathering~"
"There's trouble, so everyone will gather at the Library after all."
Kaban ran up to the descending duo, which was a little surprised about the amount of faces looking up to them.
"Alpaca-san! Crested Ibis-san!"
"Ah, Kaban-chan~ I'm glad to see you again~"
The one to reply with a gentle smile and opening her arms wide was Alpaca. Meanwhile, Crested Ibis took a small breather, resting her wings. These two should've been in the Alpine Area.
Setting foot a little later were those who, as opposed to the two going at their own pace, weren't exactly as calm. And those were—
"T-The hell…? I've never heard that there are this many people here."
"I… can't handle being with this many prominent members…"
"Tsuchinoko-san!? And who's that girl…?"
"That's Scarlet Ibis-chan~ Just like Crested Ibis, she became a regular at the Cafe."
Being stared at by a large group, Tsuchinoko and Scarlet Ibis' bodies shook uncontrollably. Tsuchinoko's expression relaxed immediately the moment Kaban spoke to Alpaca.
"Ah! It's you!"
"It's been a while, Tsuchi—" Without waiting for Kaban to finish her greetings, Tsuchinoko hurriedly ran up behind Kaban, hiding in her shadow.
"What're you doing?" Serval was confused by Tsuchinoko's actions.
Smacking her tail against the ground, Tsuchinoko raised her hissing voice.
"Can't you tell, it calms me down! …Tch, I thought that I'll be alright since only the experts are ever at the Library…!"
Kaban had her questions as to why her shadow, but she decided to save it for now, and turned her head to look at her.
"Right, you don't really like being in front of others. But then, why did you go through the trouble of coming here all the way from the ruins, and with these people no less?"
In response to Kaban's question, Tsuchinoko, who had been grumbling and complaining, suddenly became serious.
"Kh… Now's not the time to be saying this… You gathered here because you were curious about the 'Mountain's Situation', right?"
"The… Mountain…?"
Everyone knitted their eyebrows at Tsuchinoko's words and turned towards the hole in the wall, but all they saw was the clouded sky.
"Can you even see it from that hole…? Then, what the hell are you lot EVEN DOING— Gah, anyway, we're saving chit chat for later! Everyone outside, at once!"
"That's right! There's trouble at the Mountain~!
Everyone went out of the Library at Tsuchinoko and Alpaca's panicked words, while holding back their boiling uneasiness.
…
"What… is that…?"
A bizarre sight came into everyone's view as soon as they walked past the door. Behind Professor, who let out a grumbling murmur, was Serval, who could only blankly leave her mouth agape.
"Is that… Sandstar Raw…?"
It was as if a dark smoke was coming out of an active volcano in lieu of an eruption. A pitch-black Sandstar rose out from the summit of the Sandstar-releasing Mountain. But rather than dispersing into the atmosphere, it all headed into a certain direction, as if something took hold of it. Rising from the volcanic crater and streaming into a singular point, it looked less like a bird migration or a large swarm of bugs, but more like a gigantic snake.
"What a repulsive sight…" Moose groaned, hatefully scowling at the flow.
Right next to her, African Wild Dog, at a loss of words, gulped.
"Yesterday, the Mountain wasn't like this at all." Crested Ibis quietly muttered, walking up besides Professor. "I noticed it early in the morning, before the sun even came out. This strange event might've happened during the night."
"This is the first time I've ever seen something like this… Professor, do you know anything?"
Crested Ibis and Scarlet Ibis both stared at Professor. However…
"…If these inexplicable events keep happening one after another, I might just become nauseous…" Pressing her palm against her head, Professor became silent.
When you have an issue, you go to the Library. Professor was genuinely happy that everyone was reliant on her. However, the amount of suffering that came into light was unacceptable.
And Assistant, who would've supported her at times like these, wasn't there.
(…I don't have time to waste on complaining. —I am, after all, the head of this island.)
With a long breath, she exhaled all of her hesitation and anxiety. Having regained some composure, Professor mustered all of her knowledge to sort out the situation.
"—Usually, the concentration of Sandstar and Sandstar Raw around the area of the crater is high enough to see it with a naked eye, but becomes invisible once it disperses into the atmosphere. The fact that it's still visible from such a distance from the Mountain is… It's unmistakable that this high concentration of Sandstar Raw is flowing towards a certain point, I believe."
"A certain point… Towards where…?"
And the one to reply to the unusually quivering Fennec was…
"Ahh, that part I can answer~" Someone rather unexpected. "It's heading towards that thing, what was it, you know, the Amusement Park."
Alpaca's oblong pupils rounded out, as if everyone turning towards her at the same moment surprised her.
…
"What's… an amusement park?"
Everyone returned to the Library to calmly discuss. With that said, having seen the Mountain in such a bewildering state in what should've been a peaceful place, they couldn't stay assured. Everyone had either dim, impatient, or anxious expressions. Even then, Kaban, with the weight of anxiety dawning on her, inquired Alpaca about the unfamiliar words, to better grasp the incident, and to advance even a little more forward.
"Hmm? Ahh… Did you not see it on your way up the alpine mountain where my Cafe is~? Come on, there was this huge round flower-like thing, wasn't there~?"
Kaban went back in her memory to when she visited the Alpine Area. Going separate from Serval, who declared that she'll scale the mountain on her own, Kaban had taken off the ground for the first time in her life in Crested Ibis' arms. During her fun conversation with Crested Ibis, plus some comments from Boss, what she had seen on her way up…
It was when she got a panoramic view of the Sandstar Mountain… which from the skies felt different than when seen from the Savanna or the Jungle Areas. She remembered how Boss taught her about the strange power of Sandstar. Now that she thought about it, although her attention was taken up by the Mountain, it did seem like there was a strangely-shaped large object in view—
"Oh, also, that thing's called a ferris wheel! Professor told me that when teaching me about the Cafe. And she said that this ferris wheel is in this place called the Amusement Park."
"Supposedly, Humans build these amusement parks to entertain themselves. It's a fairly sizable plot of land surrounded by a tall fence, and besides the ferris wheel, there exist many objects in there which I more or less know what they are… However, there are many Celliens nearby, so we couldn't investigate it properly."
Alpaca continued after Professor's comment.
"So, in short… I could see both the Sandstar Mountain and the Amusement Park from the Cafe. Black Sandstar was coming out of the mountain and flowed towards the Amusement Park, as if it was being absorbed."
"We've seen it too during our flight, so it really was as Alpaca said."
Scarlet Ibis made eye contact with Crested Ibis, the latter nodding without changing her expression.
"Seeing that thing from was frightening, but sight of the black Sandstar gathering towards the Amusement Park was something to behold. It seemed like Celliens were gathering too."
"A high concentration of Sandstar Raw heading in large quantities towards the Amusement Park…"
Lion leaned in as Professor grumbled her complaints.
"Then… If we check out what's happening in the Amusement Park, then wouldn't we find out what's the source behind this?"
"T-That's right nanoda! There's definitely gotta be something happening at the Amusement Park noda!" Raccoon stuck her arm upwards, raising her voice.
Professor and Kaban both turned towards Boss at the same moment.
"Lucky-san!"
[Leave it to me. I had already begun a transmission.] Boss answered with its eyes lit up in rainbow, seemingly already being in contact with a Lucky Beast present at the Amusement Park.
"I'd like for you to describe what's happening at the Amusement Park in as much detail as you can. We're depending on you."
[—I suppose that activating the other Lucky Beast's camera function and projecting the view would work great.]
[Correct, that should make it easy to understand. Commencing video correspondance.]
After hearing Professor's request and a short exchange with Number Two with some difficult words, Boss fell silent.
"H-How the hell are you getting Lucky Beasts to speak…?"
"We'll leave the detailed explanation for later. Right now, finding out what's happening at the Amusement Park is most paramount. The same goes for this whole situation, you'll hear after this."
Tsuchinoko seemed confused seeing the other Friends and the two Lucky Beasts become pale about the black Sandstar flowing towards the Amusement Park, but Professor's determined expression left her speechless.
Everyone watched over Boss as it made electronic sounds. Then, with a high-pitched beep, Boss' eyes lit up, and an unfamiliar sight appeared on the Library's wall. It was like the projection of Mirai's recording back at the Lodge.
"Whoa! What's that!?"
"I've never seen anything like this before!"
Friends, who had never seen this sort of scenario, like Lion or Scarlet Ibis, were confused.
"This is… Just like back then. Could it be one of Boss' powers too?" Gray Wolf, who already witnessed a projection of Mirai's recording at the Lodge, was relatively calm.
Boss Number Two answered in Boss' stead at her murmur.
[Correct. We Lucky Beasts can transmit the sights we see and the sounds we hear. This is a projection of the sight seen by a Lucky Beast currently present at the Amusement Park.]
"So that's… The Amusement Park…"
In the large projection on the wall an area with a large fence that Professor had spoken of appeared. It could be easily discerned that the splendid gate was the entrance. Peeking through it, a bustling scenery unfolded, filled with colorful objects of unfamiliar shapes, just as Professor had told.
If it had been how it was supposed to be like, it would've been a fun place. One that entices with its wonderful and interesting shapes, and makes you excited with its marvel. However, not even the slightest of these bright emotions had come to light.
"It's as if I got tossed right back into that storm…" African Wild Dog spitefully grit her teeth.
—Within the projection of the Amusement Park, pitch black Sandstar made a thundering noise as it swept over the area.
"If this flowing Sandstar Raw has the same power as the storm that started it all, then we won't be able to get in…" Professor brought her balled up hand to her mouth and spoke in a dull voice.
"Lucky-san. Would you please check inside?"
Since they themselves couldn't do it, they needed the Lucky Beast, which was unaffected, to get inside for them. Boss, despite not uttering anything while projecting, flicked its ears twice, then thrice, in response to Kaban's words.
And so, the image was changing. The gate seen in the Amusement Park's surroundings was steadily getting closer, and before long, it had passed, and the vision began shifting around, as if restlessly surveying the area. The Lucky Beast began moving. As everyone watched the footage, which occasionally glanced around, they felt as if they were strolling through the Amusement Park in the midst of a storm.
As the Lucky Beast ventured deeper and deeper, more and more of Sandstar Raw floated in the atmosphere, and the vision became more obstructed. Everyone watched intently as the image became darker. As if to not overlook any clues. Kaban stared intensely at the image as well, and couldn't help but begin to feel uneasy.
The Lucky Beast proceeded further into the Amusement Park. For some reason, they felt as if they were stepping foot into a forbidden area. Even when they held onto their chest as their pulse quickened, they never took their eyes off the screen in search of the source.
And then…
"…! Whoa…" Fennec reflexively let out her voice.
Everyone else opened their eyes wide too, becoming petrified. What they witnessed was a large gathering of Celliens. Small and large, they all formed a ring, seemingly staring at the center of it. Looking intently, it appeared that the center of the ring was where the Sandstar Raw was flowing into.
"That's… the spot, huh…?" Lion muttered in a low tone with a hint of groaning.
Most likely, that's where the "something" behind the outbreak is located. Maybe even "someone".
The Lucky Beast moved around looking for a gap in the ring of Celliens. It was to check the center of it.
Serval, who had her eyes fixed to the screen, instinctively glanced at Kaban next to her. She was terribly pale.
"Kaban-chan…? Are you alright? Are you scared?"
"I'm… fine. Thank you, Serval-chan." Kaban returned a vague smile.
Thinking about it for a moment, Serval gently grasped Kaban's hand and looked at the screen again.
Everyone leaned in forward, frantically glaring at the projection.
And…
"—! It's there!"
"There's SOMEONE there!"
Just whose voice could it have been? From within the black fog a faint silhouette appeared. The Sandstar Raw storm seemed to be both siphoned and expelled by the figure. The question was just "what" was the figure.
Suddenly, the figure spread out its two arms. It had a pair of arms. Standing on its two legs, and spreading its two arms, there was no doubt about what this silhouette was.
"Is that… a Friend…!?"
"N-No way nanoda…! There's no way… that it could be a Friend noda!"
While Professor had her eyes wide open, Raccoon shook her head. The being's silhouette was completely different from Celliens, and no matter how you looked at it, it had the shape of a Friend.
"Haah… Haah…" For some reason, everyone couldn't help but breathe unevenly. Something within them was telling them not to look.
Even then, Kaban, amongst the panicking Friends, was the sole person to calmly continue watching the figure.
"Don't look away! If it really is a Friend, then we have to find out what kind of Friend it is!" Having finally found the aggravating cause, the wholly enraged Lion bellowed at everyone else.
Find out what kind of Friend it was— Serval suddenly remembered the time she first encountered Kaban.
{To find out what kind of Friend you are… If you're a bird, then you'll have wings here!}
Serval stared intently at the figure spreading its arms. However, she couldn't find anything resembling wings.
{If you have a hood, then you'd be a snake!}
But there was no hood like Tsuchinoko had.
Serval began feeling a little uncomfortable. It had no wings. It had no hood. And it had no horns like Moose. There were also no ears on its head like she herself had. She shifted her focus to look for a tail, but there was none to be found either.
"A tailless and earless… Friend…?" Serval felt a shock as if she had been struck by her own words that she had uttered oh so instinctively.
And at the same moment…
The figure in the projection suddenly lowered its arms, and the storming Sandstar Raw suddenly stopped.
Sandstar Raw was now gently falling to the ground like the snow in the Snowy Mountain Area, like something out of a whimsical dream. The sight too, felt like taken out of a dream.
As for the black silhouette, rather than a tail, there was some sort of a large growth on its back. The short hair on its earless head swayed in the wind.
"Wha…?"
While everyone was motionless as if time had stopped, Serval's quiet voice reverberated loudly. Having forgotten to even blink, Serval looked beside her, as if making sure of something.
Although it didn't have a hat on its head… And although its clothes and body were both completely pitch black, with its eyes in a deep bloody red color… Besides those things…
It looked exactly the same as her dearest friend, who let out a faint voice from her slightly opened mouth
"…M-Me…?"
—The one on the screen looking and laughing at them was unmistakably "Kaban".
Hello, this is PoGu. At last, the gang encounters the signature OC of this series. This is also the longest chapter so far.
Anyway, since FF doesn't like any kind of link anywhere, I'll instead leave directions on how to find the original work.
First method is to search for "「けもの」の本能" and find the link that leads you to a Japanese site called "kakuyomu".
Alternatively, you can go to the kakuyomu site and add "/works/1177354054882921926" to the domain.