TETHYS ARCHIVES
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Resonance Evaluation Report
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Evaluation Basis: [Resonance Assessment 1631-G]
The exact time of Resonator Encore's Awakening remains uncertain. According to Encore's reports and resonance inspection, the sheep-like entities that accompany her are considered to be manifestations of her imagination and psychological state. They are believed to represent her Forte abilities.
Encore's Resonance Assessment was found to be influenced by the collective emotion in the testing environment, exhibiting a strong Syntony response. The cause of her Awakening remains unconfirmed.
Encore bears a Tacet Mark on her upper back, and Post-Awakening examinations have revealed minor physical mutations, including wool-like hair tips. In times of heightened emotional states, she may also manifest sheep-like horns, requiring caution from testing personnel.
Analysis of test samples has revealed a non-convergent Rabelle's Curve with a noticeable periodic waveform, which classifies Encore as a Congenital Resonator.
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Overclock Diagnostic Report
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Resonator Encore's waveform graph shows zigzag fluctuations. The pattern of Time Domain is irregular. Both the upper and lower peak values are high and manifest proximity to the Criticality level. The waveform displays segments of partial fuzziness and abnormal waveform can be seen.
Resonant Criticality: relatively high, combined with low stability. The risk of Overclocking is significant.
It is recommended to contact her guardian for routine examinations and provide psychological intervention if necessary.
Scribbled annotation: Encore says Aalto is NOT her guardian! Don't want examinations! She likes stories better!
Annotation to the annotation: Please be good, little one. We have candies for you if you want some.
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(JEFF'S POV)
| Whining Aix's Mire |
The storm had passed, but the air was still thick with leftover resonance energy. Mist hung low around the ruins, curling between fragments of mossy stone and rusted machinery. The faint blue glow of the nearby Resonance Beacon pulsed as they reactivated it.
Their boots crunched softly against the damp ground.
Aalto broke the silence first, his usual swagger dulled by fatigue. "This is the place," he said, gesturing toward the Beacon's base, a massive circular platform carved with complex runes and metallic dials. His tone was half awe, half exasperation. "Ugh, those savants really love their puzzles, don't they…"
Jeff let out a sharp exhale, rubbing his neck where the Tacet mark had been. "I'm gonna strangle whoever designed this shit," he muttered, glaring at the intricate mechanism like it personally offended him.
Rover glanced up at him, a soft laugh escaping before she could stop it. She stepped closer, touching his arm lightly. "Hey, easy there. Don't let an ancient contraption get under your skin," she teased, her eyes glinting with quiet amusement.
Jeff sighed, but the edge in his voice softened. "Yeah, yeah…"
Aalto crouched down beside the sundial-like device, squinting at the grooves. His hair stuck up from the humidity, and he pushed it back with an impatient flick. "No wonder folks never managed to get inside after all these years," he murmured. "Their security is top-notch."
Encore crossed her arms, her expression unimpressed. "That's because you set off the security alarm," she pointed out bluntly, her crimson eyes narrowing. "And now the gate's closed. Hmph."
Aalto froze mid-motion, pretending to inspect the machinery even harder. "Ahem… Anyway! We've got to figure out how to open it again."
Jeff shot him a side-eye. "Real smooth."
Aalto ignored him and tapped the edge of the dial with his glove. "It looks like a sundial, don't you think? Maybe if we spin the pointers to align in the same direction…" He trailed off as realization struck, his tone shifting from casual to astonished. "Wait. This is—no wonder…"
He stood, eyes wide, staring at the structure as if it had just whispered something to him. "Those crazy savants… They were trying to recreate the Retroact Rain."
Rover tilted her head, wiping a bead of water from her chin. "Retroact… what now?"
Jeff crossed his arms, brow furrowing. "What on earth is the Retroact Rain?"
Aalto's voice dropped to something between lecture and fascination. "The Retroact Rain is a form of condensed Remnant Energy drawn from the Etheric Sea," he said, pacing slowly around the dial as he spoke. The faint glow from the Beacon reflected in his eyes. "Events across space and time — memories, emotions, echoes all recorded as Remnant Energy. The Retroact Rain conjures illusions of those past moments for anyone caught in it."
Jeff's gaze drifted upward, following the faint shimmer of suspended water droplets floating unnaturally still in the air above them. They glittered faintly, unmoving — like glass marbles caught in time. "So that curtain of rain we saw earlier…?"
Aalto nodded. "Probably the result of one of their experiments."
Rover's eyes softened, reflecting the quiet beauty above. "It's… hauntingly pretty," she murmured.
Aalto continued, "Before the Retroact Rain fully forms, it goes through three stages. The first looks like normal rain. Then comes this—" he gestured to the frozen droplets suspended midair "—the second stage. Nothing happens. Absolute silence. And the third…" He paused, the words hanging heavy. "That's when it happens. When it shows you everything it's absorbed all at once."
Rover shivered slightly, folding her arms. "That sounds… dangerous."
"Dangerous?" Encore echoed softly. "Or maybe tempting."
Aalto's gaze flicked to her curious but wary. "Temptation's what got most researchers in trouble. They wanted to relive the past, see the people they lost… Some even tried to bring them back." He exhaled, running a hand through his hair. "But this—" he motioned to the intricate setup of coils, emitters, and shimmering panels "—this scale?.
Jeff crouched near the edge of the sundial, tracing a faint symbol on the ground with his gloved finger. His expression was unreadable, but his voice was low. "Then the real question is…"
He looked up at the group and said.
"What were they trying to bring back?"
They went silent wondering the same thing.
Aalto tilted his head up, breaking the silence. "The power system here might still work…" he mused, rubbing his chin with theatrical thought. Then his eyes lit up like a child spotting candy. "Let's split up and find it!"
Encore threw her hands in the air. "Hurray! Woolies, thataway!" she cheered, sending her two floating plush-like drones darting off into the shadows with a mechanical bloop-bloop.
Jeff glanced at Rover, one eyebrow raised. "Does she always… talk to her toys like that?"
Rover hid a quiet laugh behind her hand. "We better get used to it."
They scattered through the ruins, their footsteps echoing softly across hollow corridors lined.
Jeff worked with quiet precision, eyes sharp, tracing patterns of Resonant glyphs on the wall. Rover, on the other hand, was more instinctive fingertips brushing along panels until something clicked beneath her touch.
Moments later, the building trembled faint lights flickering to life across the ceiling. The sound of machinery awakening filled the hallways.
"Looks like we're in business," Jeff muttered, sliding his pistol back into its holster.
Inside the main lobby, Aalto was already rummaging through an ancient storage cabinet like a scavenger at a flea market. His voice echoed cheerfully.
"Crystal potion, glass barometer, instant noodles, packets of nuts…" He paused dramatically, then gasped. "Oh wow! A game card that went out of sale decades ago! Aha, lucky me!"
Jeff and Rover exchanged a look.
Rover smirked. "You sure we didn't come here on a treasure hunt?"
Aalto grinned, clutching his newfound prize like a relic. "Hey, business is business. Never know what might be valuable in a few decades."
He straightened, his tone softening slightly. "Hey, Rover, Jeff — how's it going on your end? Found anything good? I've collected some things, but not much."
Jeff leaned against a wall, arms crossed. "The puzzle was nothing complicated. Brute force works wonders."
Aalto chuckled, raising an eyebrow. "Haha… You didn't seem to be brute-forcing it, though. Do you happen to know someone from the Court of Savantae?"
Rover brushed a strand of hair from her face, looking faintly distant. "I saw something similar before," she murmured.
Aalto's curiosity sharpened. "Oh? So you do know someone from the Court of Savantae?" He smiled slyly, a glint of interest in his eyes. "I'm really looking forward to making more deals with you."
Jeff shot him a wary look. "You talk about deals more than a street vendor."
Aalto winked. "And that's how I make a living."
A few halls away, Encore crouched beside a humming induction cell, her two little drones Cosmos and Cloudy circling her like mischievous pets.
"Cosmos! Cloudy! You saw anything fun?" she asked, her voice full of childlike authority.
The drones beeped in unison.
Cosmos: "Reporting in! Cosmos saw nothing!"
Cloudy: "Cloudy saw nothing either, baa~."
Encore froze, eyes wide. "What?! Go! Go look again!"
The two drones darted away like guilty puppies.
Rover peeked from behind a broken console, struggling not to laugh. "I don't know if that's scary or adorable," she whispered.
Jeff smirked, watching the tiny machines vanish down a corridor. "Probably both."
Encore looked over her shoulder, hands on her hips. "Hey! I heard that!"
Rover quickly straightened up, pretending to inspect the machinery. "We didn't say anything!"
Aalto appeared from behind a corner, carrying a box full of random trinkets. "What's going on here?"
Jeff sighed. "Nothing of importance."
Aalto blinked once, then shrugged.
The lights flickered overhead again — this time, brighter. The facility was waking up, its forgotten systems roaring back to life one heartbeat at a time. Beneath the metallic floor, something deeper began to hum…
Rover's gaze followed a faint pulse of blue light snaking along the wall toward a sealed door at the far end of the hall. "Looks like it's leading us somewhere," she murmured.
Jeff felt a chill crawl down his spine that strange sensation again, the same one he felt when his Tacet mark reacted before.
Aalto grinned, tossing the box of loot over his shoulder. "Well then," he said, brushing his hands together. "Time to see what the good old Court of Savantae left behind."
Encore's drones returned, circling above her head, their eyes glowing a nervous red.
"Uh oh…" she whispered, her cheerful tone faltering. "Encore thinks we're not alone anymore."