「Broken Compass」The “Return”

Chapter 8

"Is the 'nucleus' referring to the center of this place…? It looks withered."

"I suppose that's why it's called the Withered Forest," Juno answers.

Their footsteps are loud on the ground, crunching on dead leaves.

"The nucleus is a safe space. There are all sorts of nasty creatures that roam around it, and being outside of it jeopardizes our lives…" Juno hesitates.

"It's unlikely we'll encounter something on this path, but not impossible."

Hoku anxiously grits his teeth.

Creatures? Like animals, or something nearly as unimaginable as this forest?

"Have you ever…" he begins to devise a question, but Juno seems to anticipate what he is going to ask.

"I have. Countless times. Usually, it depends on our proximity to certain things that this universe wants to protect."

"Protect?" Hoku furrows his eyebrows.

"Past the nucleus are the Recesses of Life, which are essentially wells of flowers and trees. You have to complete an objective to move on to the next 'mantra.'

The Recess possesses the weapons you'll need to survive beyond this fractured mantra."

"So, I haven't made it to the 'timestream' yet? Polaris said I had to complete an objective in the manor to begin my trek of the outer universe."

Juno suddenly freezes, and the corners of her mouth twitch.

"You met the watchmaker…?" Her voice comes out a bit hoarse.

"If the blonde stranger with grayish-blue eyes is a watchmaker, then I guess so."

Juno turns around and inspects the ground beneath Hoku.

"You shouldn't trust that guy. We don't know much about him. Moreover, if you met him, then where is your guide? He should have accompanied you in that scenario."

Hoku tilts his head, somehow puzzled further by Juno's question.

"I don't have a cat… what are you talking about? Guide? And by your rationality, I technically shouldn't trust you either."

Juno is briefly taken aback. Her eyes widen, and her lips relax, forming a vaguely curved line.

"Walk and talk," she says, turning around.

"What did you see while you were unconscious?" she suddenly asks.

He stays quiet. There was nothing to recall seeing until he was slapped awake.

"Did you hear anything?"

"I think... I heard a woman's voice, but it was different from yours," Hoku answers, trying his best to gather the fragments of his memory.

He has an indescribable feeling that a piece is missing from what he can recall.

"A woman?"

Juno sounds more confused than Hoku, which he finds ambiguous as well.

"I feel like I'm forgetting something. Did I—"

Hoku is on the cusp of verifying that he hadn't left anything behind when he stops in his tracks.

"The compass! Or pocket compass watch, I forgot the broken compass!"

"The pocket watch is not with you?"

Juno halts too, taking a few steps toward Hoku.

Without warning, she slips her hand under the narrow opening of the black robe that covers his chest.

Hoku flinches, and his face slightly flushes.

A saddle brown silk belt is secured around his waist, and brown chiffon is stitched from the shoulder of his robe to the area above his hips, flowing atop the actual sleeve that loosely encompasses his arms.

He feels the coldness of her fingers over the undergarment. Hoku looks down and sees that his pants are also darkly shaded, cinched around his ankles.

The attire is spacious and glides like satin on his skin.

Juno retracts her hand.

"Could you take that off? There should be a hidden compartment behind the front, but that brooch is pinning your robe too tightly."

Hoku nods, spreading the distance between them.

"That should be good. Just check the compartment by your shoulder, there should be a pocket."

His eyes widen as he reaches into the robe and his fingertips brush over a cold object.

He presses his fingers in, grasping the trinket, then pulls his hand back and passes it to Juno.

Juno clicks her tongue and curls her fingers around the compass.

She examines it, turning it over in her palm.

"Not bad, watchmaker," she whispers, an amused smirk fading onto her expression.

Hoku watches as she presses her thumb on the dial at the top.

"What the hell did you do to it?"

Hoku stares at her, confused by the question.

He carefully responds after a moment.

"I didn't do anything—when Polaris gave it to me, I didn't get a chance to remove it from the fabric. My memory is even surfacing in fragments, but what I remember happening most presently is dropping it when I stumbled."

"Is it cracked?" 

Hoku clenched his jaw as Juno chuckles and shakes her head.

"This couldn't have been an outcome of you stumbling. Take a look for yourself."

She closes the compass and tosses it to Hoku.

He reaches out precisely, catching it with a single hand. 

"What did you call it again? A broken compass?"

Hoku doesn't speak, only nodding as he presses his index finger on the small golden dial.

He frowns upon inspecting the inside. Aside from the breathtaking design of a compass, nothing appears amiss.

Hoku leans in closer. The arrow is subtly different, resembling the minute hand of a watch more than the needle of a compass.

Even the usual abbreviations for North, East, South, and West have been replaced with symbols of large asterisks.

'Wait… these aren't asterisks—they're stars, each one has a unique set of rays.'

Around the stars, faded Roman numerals are partially obscured by a thin white layer.

"Was this a pocket watch, originally?"

"Yes. It was significant for all of us."

Juno straightens, her voice wavering slightly.

Hoku presses on, feigning ignorance.

"Significant in what way?"

A pulse of anticipation surges through him, especially as Juno's usual composure seems unsettled.

She opens her mouth to reply when low, rumbling sounds echo from a distance, reverberating through the highest branches rather than the ground.

The infrasound sends a chill down Hoku's spine, and fear claws at him.

Before he can react, he is yanked forward by his sleeve.

Juno catches his arm as his legs stiffen.

She pulls him closer, her voice low in his ear.

"Run straight into the forest. If it goes quiet, you're in the nucleus. Tell them to stay in the safe zone."

She barely manages to turn away before Hoku reaches out and grabs her shoulder.

The rumbles persist as branches tumble around them.

He cups his other hand over his mouth and mutters in her ear,

"What about you? Will you follow me?"

Juno doesn't respond, shoving him away and calling out loud enough for him to hear.

"If they ask about me, tell them I'm held up by The 'Return!'"

'The Return?'

Without another word, Juno darts in the opposite direction.

The ache in Hoku's head barely manages to register over the rising panic in his chest.

The Memoir Chapter 5

Objective 4

Aid your patron in eliminating The "Return". Failure to do so will only bring the corrupted remains to you, and you will be forced to neutralize them without armor.