Day: XI

CHAPTER 7

19.

The difference between day and night time here is definitely hard to tell. The system inside the bubble will help you sleep even just during the reset. But in the Bubble gap, you are on your own. I was lying down the whole time, waiting to fall asleep, then suddenly Yue and Astri stood up and said it's time to start the day. I guess this marks our first day here in the Bubble gap.

"Get up now, follow us, we are going to do a patrol first" Yue said. Even though we barely have any rest, Xav and I followed Yue and Astri.

"Where are we going?" Xav asked.

"Around the Gap. We need to check if there's something different or someone accidentally crossed last night." Yue said.

"Around the gap? Meaning we are going around the whole bubble? How long is that gonna take?" Xav clarified.

"Exactly as you heard. We can accomplish it in 4 hours of walking" Yue answered.

"4 HOURS!" Xav complained.

"Don't worry, I brought some water and food" Astri said.

"That explains the bag on the stick looks like a hobo bag" Xav commented.

"By the way, how do you guys know that it's morning already? The surroundings were the same as last night" I asked.

"We trained, our body clock tells us that it is morning already. Light and dark do not exist here, though time still does. When the reset is done, it means 24:00 a day is finished. We will be counting from 00:00 then wait until 23:00 for the opening of the Mist again. It was hard but we eventually get used to it." Yue explained.

"Indeed, there were tons of adjustments. If you fail to recognize what time it is now, then you'll have a hard time anticipating the reset. The Mist opening is the only way to gather food, we might die here if we miss that chance" Astri added.

"How many people have died here?" I asked.

"The chief holds the record of those who died but we rather not want to talk about that. Let's respect their honorable death for the betterment." Yue straightforwardly answered.

Our patrol continued and no matter how many questions that we threw, their answers were just too safe. It's like they themselves do not know the full story, only the narrative is what they are given. I don't know if it's true but that's how I feel about their answers.

4 hours have passed. The whole Bubble gap is just a straight outer circle gray, nothing to see, nothing to observe. Good to know that there's no random kid who stumbled inside last night. Yue said that there are times that they find one but that is like 1 in 50 chances.

While trying to keep track in time, Xav and I are trying to look for something in this Bubble gap. Yue and Astri let us off the hook after that patrol and now we have a lot of time to spare. Of course we're being cautious about our observation, we don't want to raise suspicion while we are at it. That part isn't hard, but how are you gonna find something from nothingness?

Eventually I told Xav to stop for now. I think we are doing this in the wrong way.

"How do you hide something from plain sight?" I asked Xav as we sat to rest.

"Well usually you'll put in the least place that everyone looks at, but you can't do it here because there's not that much to look at." Xav answered.

"least place to look at…" I reacted.

"Without a blindspot, it should be not tangible in order to hide it" Xav added.

"Not tangible…" I reiterated. Even though he is stating the obvious, I think he is making a lot of sense.

"What are you doing? I don't like that deep thinking of yours, it usually leads to catastrophe" Xav worriedly said.

"Nothing, nothing, I'm just building hypotheses" I responded as I dropped my thoughts for now.

Xav and I later on realized that pointlessly digging something that is not buried only wastes our time. We instead decided to spend our remaining time, learning how to know the time without the observable day and night time difference. We usually use the stars in order to know the time. It's hard when it's cloudy but I guess those cloudy days were the pretest of our current situation.

The goal was to correctly anticipate the next Mist opening. The only basis that we have is the 4 hour patrol after the said morning start. In the end, we were slightly off the mark but I guess that was not as hard as we expected. Anyway, the reset is happening and the Mist is opening, it's time for us to enter the bubble again.

In order to protect us from the fireflies, Xav and I are wearing the robe which is the dress code here. That explains why Astri keeps on missing, she was making these, I don't know about Yue tho.

As we enter the bubble again, the plan was to stay inside and occasionally go back to the Bubble gap when there's a finding. We are not that much in a hurry, we can actually take our time here. Yue said that he will be the one to report to the chief during the reset so that he can go back again after the report. Forgetting will not be a problem since we are wearing these robes.

In that instant, I realized something. I started to ask questions as we headed to Gluengy. "If these robes were keeping our memories, why don't we just let everyone wear them?" I questioned.

"It's way more complex than you think, it sounds simple at first but not that easy" Astri said. Her answer already gave us the idea that she already asked this question before.

"Can you please explain to us why?" I responded.

"I do understand your curiosity, I once asked that question before. The chief cleared things for me and I realized that it was not as easy as it may seem" She said.

"First, you have to convince everyone that they forget without causing chaos. Second, even though we managed to do that, it will take time to produce for all, you have to create those and make them wait in order without causing a chaos. Third, even if we managed to convince everyone, then organize everything to work together in order to make those, how are we so sure that it won't come up with a cause?" Astri added.

"Now that you thoroughly dissect it, it does make sense. Given the circumstances that everything here looks like were set for a purpose, a catch might hunt us soon if we act hastily" Xav replied as he agreed with Astri.

"Exactly, the unknown consequence is like waiting for us to fall for it. We need to gather data first before we act, we can't let the innocent ones be doomed by our actions" Astri responded. I think Xav and Astri are connecting really well right now.

The group eventually reached the cave where Gluengy resides. Listening to their conversation kinda helps me to get more pieces to this puzzle that I'm building. I hope that I can get more.

20.

As we all settled down in the front of Gluengy, we started to examine Gluengy even further. It's like a brainstorming moment where we think of multiple hypothesis then test those ideas one after the other. Xav and I aren't new to this but I guess Yue and Astri are. Surprisingly, Astri looks enthusiastic with it, her flexibility can match her determination. Yue cannot keep up with us but he was filling his shortcoming by preparing us something to eat. We all decided to call it a day for now, and continue the analysis in the morning.

The next day, this is actually the first time I wake up here where my memories are still intact. I wish that everyone can be this way, we all will, I promise.

Getting back to the track, I think the bigger picture is already painted in front of us. We just have to move back a bit. Connecting every info that we have; least place to look at, something not tangible in order to effectively hide it… I then realized that the answer is just too simple! The answer to this riddle is INFO…

We are thinking this too much! The one that is hidden from us is information about the Ozonosphere! With this realization, I pulled Xav into a distance while Yue and Astri were busy hunting.

"That's it Xav, Info! They are hiding information from us! Specifically what's beyond that Ozonosphere." I told Xav.

"Are you crazy? There's nothing beyond that" he said.

"Well that's what we also thought about the Mist!" I replied.

Xav was stunned from what he heard because none actually knows the truth behind the Ozonosphere, or at least that's what they want us to think.

"I understand now, why the environment was even designed that way, why Yue and Astri could not keep up with the brainstorming. They were fed by the idea that nothing is beyond it. The place is intentionally designed to be an end point so that no one will try to find a way! You said it yourself, It's hard to think and formulate new ideas with that type of environment because it's depressing." I argued.

Shocked from what he heard, Xav responded on delay. "You're right… Corrupting them will slowly make them stuck there and lose hope. I guess that's also the answer why no one went back. They are too corrupted by the idea and now they are just stuck there… They are being mentally manipulated…" he said.

"I firmly believe that the answer is beyond the Ozonosphere and the chief knows it. We have to know what it is and why he is hiding it." I stated.

"So what's your plan?" Xav asked.

I know that we cannot do this alone, we need some help. "We have to convince Astri first, I think we can make her go to our side." I suggested.

"Risky but possible, what about Yue?" he responded.

"Honestly, I cannot see Yue's true intention. Astri's intentions were crystal clear but I don't know about Yue…" I answered.

"I agree as well. Also, looking at his past, he was not loved by his pair. If Gara gave him the adult figure that he is looking for, then it will be impossible for us to gain him to our side." Xav mentioned.

"We need to discuss this with Astri, maybe she can convince him. She's his pair after all." I replied.

With a clear plan in our heads, we patiently wait for an opening. Since we know that Yue is not into brainstorming, Xav asked Yue to train him outside. In that way, Astri and I will be left alone in the cave. Though I don't know if Xav will be alive after that. Yue immediately took the bait and it's time to get Astri on our side.

"Have you ever questioned the chief?" I suddenly asked Astri.

"I did, in fact, several times. But whenever I try to question things, he always has answers to it. Honestly, this is the only time that I was allowed to think freely again" Astri confessed.

"Is he right tho?" I asked.

"Maybe he is. He said that some of us already went through the Ozonosphere and never came back" Astri said.

"Is there any proof of that?" I questioned.

Astri paused for a second. "We did not see it but everyone there knows about it so it must be true" she answered.

The more I hear from Astri, the more that I'm convinced that the chief is mentally manipulating everyone there. "But what if that actually never happened?" I said.

"What do you mean?" Astri confusedly replied.

"What if the chief said that to everyone who accidentally discovered the Bubble gap. He kept that story going until to the point that a number of people knew about it. A fabricated story can turn into a truth if everyone there believes it. The newcomers will instinctively follow even if they don't know why" I argued.

"That's a bit of a stretch. What could the chief possibly gain by doing that?" Astri commented.

"To mentally manipulate everyone there! If everyone is convinced then no one will seek for the truth. Don't you think it's suspicious that he is the only one with a gray nameplate?" I added.

I can see in Astri's reaction that my words are getting inside of her. I have to continue my attacks.

"Think carefully Astri, you know that we both have the same goal. The chief knows something about the Ozonosphere. There's a lot of experimentation that can be done instead of just fearing the Ozonosphere. He wants everyone to stay away from it because he knows something about it. If we cannot question him, then what is his difference to the Globules?" I stated.

Those words made Astri realize that I am right, the chief should not be acting like that if there's nothing to hide. "What do you plan?" she asked.

Hearing Astri say that made me breathe freely, but I should not let my guard down yet. I have to fully convince her before asking her to convince Yue as well.

"We need to verify first about this going through the Ozonosphere thing. If even a single one can vouch that they saw it then it must be true. If none actually saw it and everyone said they heard it from the chief, then our assumptions might be right" I answered.

"You're right. If that event happened, there should be at least someone else beside the chief, who witnessed it all" Astri replied.

"But you have to ask them without raising any suspicion, we don't want to alert the chief." I added.

"I'm on it, later the reset, I'll join Yue on his way back" Astri responded.

"Oh by the way, you cannot tell Yue this for now…" I mentioned.

"Why?" Astri asked.

"He reports to the chief, let's convince him once we already have concrete evidence." I explained.

"I understand. I'll try to sneak in while he reports to the chief" Astri said.

After a long tiring conversation, I was able to win Astri over. Her mission will start later during the reset while Xav and I will be left here in the cave. We have to trust Astri for now.

21.

Gaining Astri's trust was a success, but that still did not answer the questions about Gluengy. The plan later will eventually occur, we have to examine Gluengy for now.

Lots of ideas occurred but we cannot actually prove any of our hypotheses. We could not even understand why Gluengy does not exist elsewhere.

Xav and I carefully went back to the center of the town in order to check the Globules. Maybe it is related to Globules, though we have to be vigilant since we don't want our adult pairs to see us. It will be tremendously hard to explain why we are dressed like we are part of a cult. Every other person there will eventually forget, so them seeing us is fine.

We spent hours assessing the center but it is nowhere as impressive as Gluengy. It's like just a spawn point, or an output thingy similar to exit. You just get out there, nothing more that you can do. Because of that, I'm starting to think that maybe Gluengy was not supposed to exist in the first place. With zero results gathered, Xav and I decided to head back to the cave.

Along the way, I convinced Xav that we both should check our adult pairs before fully going back to the cave. We won't interact, we will just check from a distance. Due to my intolerable persistence, Xav agreed.

We head to Xav's home first since it is way closer to the center. After a short while, we headed to my place. At this point, I don't know if that was a good idea after all. Xav and I were both melancholic after seeing our adult pairs. I personally wanted to just run straight and hug them but I can't. The only thing that we can do is look at them. Thankfully, they are safe. With a heavy heart, we both head back to the cave.

While we were walking, I suddenly thought of something that broke the silence. "Don't you think Gluengy is not supposed to be there in the first place?" I asked

"What do you mean?" Xav questioned.

"I just find it odd, if that was supposed to exist. Why there? Why not somewhere else? It's like Gluengy was there because of something else" I hypothesized.

"Because of what? It's not like the people here are doing something to cause something…" Xav suddenly stopped talking as we both realized something.

"People here are indeed doing something that we shouldn't…" I responded.

"Could it be? That exist because we are breaking the Globules' order?" Xav asked.

"Well no, Gluengy was there before we even started to break the rules" I argued.

"Yeah, you're right. But what could possibly cause the anomaly?" Xav asked.

"Wait a second. People in the Bubble gap were there for a long time, they were probably living there before I even discovered Gluengy" I mentioned.

"Well that actually makes a lot of sense. They are breaking the order, creating an anomaly to the place. Not to mention, the camp is in the same direction from the cave!" Xav replied.

"That actually explains its location! It can never exist in the center of the town since the Bubble gap is an outer circle of the Bubble itself, there's no center!" I said.

"Now I fully understand the purpose of the Order, it is to keep the world intact. The outside of the edge of the Bubble is not fatal to us, it's fatal to the world itself… Gluengy is a crack, the result of living where people shouldn't…" Xav added.

"This is a problem, we have to do something" I mentioned.

"If those were true, I think we actually don't have to do anything immediately. In fact, it will be better if we just wait" Xav suggested.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Yue already reported Gluengy to the chief. If he indeed knows something that we don't, he will probably do something in order to fix Gluengy. Remember last night? We were slightly off the mark. We entered the Mist around 23:30 already. I'm sure he ordered Yue to do something first before taking us back in. Later at night, Yue will report to Gara again. All we have to do is to observe Gluengy, if something changes, then it means Gara is pulling the strings" Xav answered.

"You're right… Let's be patient for now. We can prove our ideas later at night." I replied.

Keeping ourselves cool, we once again reached the cave where Yue and Astri are hiding. It's really hard to keep a straight face while reporting what we gathered from the center. Xav and I were telling them that it is not related to Gluengy, the center is nothing but a spawn. Even though those were true, we are still hiding the fact that we already deduced the idea behind the existence of Gluengy. There is no other acceptable explanation other than that, and we are just simply waiting for the hypothesis to be proven.

On the other hand, Astri is actually impressive. Looking at her act normally after we talked was surprising. She acts like she knows nothing. I got to take notes from her.

Hours of just pretending to do something have passed. I never thought that would be an extreme challenge. Finally, Yue and Astri left in order to report to the chief. At first, Yue was actually against the idea of Astri joining him back but he eventually let her tag along.

Reset is finally happening and the fireflies outside started to come out. I was fascinated by it back then but now those glowing little stardust frightens me. If only we can stop this madness, then people can appreciate how beautiful the night is…

As the reset continues, both Xav and I are keeping our eyes on Gluengy. We even made sure that we blink alternatingly, we cannot blink both at the same time. If either of us needs to blink, we have to inform each other first so that we won't miss even a split second.

30 minutes into the reset and Gluengy seems dimming.

"Xav! Is it me or Gluengy seems to be way dimmer compared to earlier?" I asked Xav.

"I am actually not that sure. Us, being slightly sleepy as well kinda make this quite hard" he responded.

We were a bit confused because it's hard to tell if it's gradually degrading. If it deems instantly then we can notice it but we cannot really tell at this point. 10 more minutes and some of the crack suddenly closed!

"OKAY I'M PRETTY MUCH SURE THAT THIS IS NOT JUST ME. THE CRACK SHRINK!" I shouted.

"I KNEW IT! GARA IS MAKING A MOVE NOW!" Xav loudly said.

"Then we are right! Them being in the Bubble gap, violating the order is what created Gluengy. It should not exist in the first place!" I replied.

"But I do wonder what exactly he is doing…" Xav mentioned.

"We can know the answer once Astri returns. Still, this whole scenario proves that the chief knows something about this world. It's impossible for him to fix Gluengy if he does not know anything. And besides, yesterday was the only time that he knew about Gluengy. It was until now that we've seen Gluengy changed. There's no room for coincidence here anymore" I replied.

The pieces are already coming together, it's only a matter of time before we can uncover the truth. We are counting on you Astri.

End of Day XI-XII