Chapter Text
Life was made measurably worse when the old capital fell.
The abrupt drop in quality of life had never been felt since civilisation initially collapsed. Several population centers were consumed whole. Vast areas of industry and commerce vanished. Entire sectors of the market collapsed. The sports entertainment industry practically ceased to exist on a practical level. Even Umamusume racing crumbled, the Twinkle Series just a bygone memory.
It had been ten years since then, and recovery had been a slow going process. Time would tell if New Eridu would ever recover and rise from the ruins of Eridu.
Either way, time stopped for nobody. And for Belle, her life on Sixth Street was, well, Sixth Street. Low foot traffic compared to the more densely packed parts of New Eridu meant that a lot of days working at Random Play's desk would end up being, well, boring.
But honestly? Considering what Belle had been through the last couple of days, she was more than fine with the slow pace.
Even Proxies as legendary as Phaethon needed a break sometimes! Their new AI assistant Fairy seemed to agree as well — encouraging Belle to take time to manage the store herself instead of just handing off the task to Bangboo eighteen. Keeping busy kept the thoughts away.
She had even gotten a customer! Belle made sure to put on her best customer service smile as a young Umamusume came in through the front door. With brown hair and purple eyes, Belle watched the girl take stock of the store, seemingly looking for something specific.
Maybe she was an intern for some company, sent out here to do dirty work? She was certainly dressed like one, with her black blazer vest, white undershirt, black dress pants and dress shoes. Eventually, however, the girls eyes lit up with recognition as she spotted Belle, and quickly moved to the counter.
Right. "Can I help you with anything in particular?" That meant that she was probably looking for something specific, then. Hopefully, she would be able to solve this problem with her elite video recommendation skills.
"Um, do you guys sell anything here besides, uh, video tapes…?"
Oh. If this girl was rumor hunting, she was way too inexperienced to be here. "No, we don't, sorry! It's all tapes and tapes and more tapes here — oh! Do you need to repair a tape? We have products for that, too!"
Like a huntress stalking her prey, Belle saw the fear flash through the Umamusume's eyes. "N-no, I don't, actually. I was, uh…" The girl took a moment to look around, before her eyes landed on the section of their shelves dedicated to Archival Race Footage—courtesy of Wise—, seemingly slowing down.
Perfect. "Good choice! The other manager here loves to watch those as well. You know, for only two thousand dennies a month, you could get a membership for our store. It would place you first in line to rent out any new race archives we get!"
That offer seemed to snap the girl's attention back to Belle. "Ah, well, I'm not looking for a membership, sorry…"
A shame. That was a good pitch, too. "Then, I'm afraid our store probably won't have anything you're looking for, then. Unless you want to take a closer look at our collection?" Still, there was a chance she could pull a customer out of this yet. Come on, Belle, work your magic!
The mention of a collection got the young woman to look back over to it, almost entranced by it before she shook her head. Without turning back to look at Belle, she spoke up one more time, in a noticeably quieter voice. "Would, um, your collection of wares change if the… Helios Academy… was involved?"
Ah.
This was about to get complicated.
"…let's talk in the back. Eighteen, you're on counter duty." A quick 'Eh-nah!' confirmed that Bangboo Eighteen had, in fact, received his orders, so Belle got up, unlocked the door to the back room, and let herself in.
Turning around, she beckoned the other woman in. "Come on in. We don't have all day, you know."
Belle closed and locked the door behind the young woman once she got inside. As soon as she did so, however, Fairy appeared onscreen. What now? It better be something important, if she was going to reveal herself to a random stranger.
"Apologies, Master, but approximately thirty seconds before your conversation, and as of now one hundred and four seconds ago, a companion hollow formed over second assistant's route."
Oh.
Oh, shit.
Without even asking, Fairy brought up the map data of the area, clearly showing the hollow, it's expansion, and an estimation of where Wise would be caught up in it.
"Oh, that's the same one as—"
"How far away are the Cunning Hares?" She could figure out what the girl knew about Helios Academy later. For now, she needed to get Wise out of there.
"I have already contacted Anby and secured her cooperation."
"Good. Good. How quickly can Eous get there?"
"Um, I—"
"Eous would take approximately seven minutes to travel to the companion hollow. However, there is an HIA certified Agent in this room." What. "I advise you recruit her and use her to arrive at the hollow as soon as possible. Arriving in three minutes will improve Second Assistant's survival rate from thirty-four percent to eighty-six percent."
Well, that was just great. That meant that she was going to have to rely on Ms. Nerves McGee over there to get Wise out safely.
"I'll prioritize getting this Second Assistant out as quickly as possible, ma'am."
Convenient. Almost a bit too convenient for her liking, actually, but it wasn't like she had much of a choice in the matter right now. She just hoped this woman didn't have too much of a vendetta against them…
"Just, uh, who is Eous…?"
"Eh-nah!" On cue, the little Bangboo announced it's presence, startling the Agent.
Well, at least Anby would be there… hopefully, that would be enough to get Wise out of this mess intact.
Wise was trying his best to not throw up, the nausea from the pulsing corruption in his veins a visceral reminder of his predicament. Every second here was one second closer to death, especially with his poor ether aptitude. He needed to get out as soon as possible.
Unfortunately, the companion hollow had formed in the middle of the neighbourhood, which meant that there were no data piles for him to pilfer for hollow data. On the flipside, however, the hollow had formed very recently, meaning the spacial distortions weren't severe enough to prevent escape.
However, it wouldn't remain that way for long.
With a worrying amount of exertion, Wise pulled himself upright and examined his surroundings. He could already see the currents of ether start to tear the area apart. Nausea began to churn in his stomach, but he pushed through and started walking. Hopefully, he'd reach be able to exit the hollow before his path was cut off.
It seemed that luck hadn't abandoned him entirely. He could see the thin veil of the hollow boundary just ahead. If he made a run for it, he could get out before the spacial distortions tore it away. So he did. He ran as fast as he could toward freedom.
But his legs weren't strong enough. The onset of corruption had sapped too much of his strength. He could see the currents of ether rapidly snake their way ahead of him.
He wouldn't be fast enough. He wouldn't cross the finish line to survival.
His punishment for losing was tumbling into a hollow fissure, dragging him further and further away.
Wise was slightly listless when he fell out of the fissure in the now thoroughly distorted hollow. The symptoms were getting worse now that he was certainly closer to the center of the hollow. Looking up he could see-
Someone was abruptly in his face, shining a light in his eye. What were they doing?! When the light was finally gone, Wise could finally get a better look at…
Instantly, Wise was on full alert. A pulse of nausea tore his attention away, but it didn't matter. He recognised her.
"Wise, I need you to focus on my voice, I won't let you slip away so easily now."
Someone he hadn't seen in almost eleven years. Another researcher of Helios Academy and close friend of Carole Arna, Agnes Tachyon.
"…Miss Tachyon?"
She was wearing a purple long sleeve blouse and black jeans, along with heels. He still recognised her ear decoration.
"Good, your mind is still intact. The neurological symptoms haven't set in yet," She clinically assessed. Wise slightly deflated.
Of all people to be trapped in a spontaneous companion hollow with, it just had to be the one person even more manic than Belle.
"What symptoms are you currently presenting?" Tachyon requested.
"I'm… trying not to… throw up," Wise croaked, holding back the contents of his stomach with each breath.
"Nausea. Hmm, let's see if I have an anti-nauseate." Tachyon rummaged through her purse.
"Listen, my… ether aptitude-"
"Is dreadfully low, I'm aware. Take this," Tachyon offered him a pill, "and hold on. I'm sure your sister and my little guinea pig aren't going to just be sitting by while we're trapped in a companion hollow."
Wise downed the pill, thankful that he had brought his water bottle along. Immediately the churning in his stomach was soothed to a manageable level. Entirely expected, considering Tachyon's genius.
And then he processed what Tachyon said. Guinea pig? What the hell? That… sounded exactly like Tachyon, actually. Speaking of.
"It's… been a while, hasn't it, Miss Tachyon?" Wise said with remorse.
"Indeed it has. Far too long, in my opinion."
"How's…" Wise thought about how to word this, considering the likely tenuous emotions regarding Tachyon's split from Helios. "How have you been since leaving Helios?"
Tachyon hummed in thought. "You need not fret over me or my little guinea pig. Our lives have been… relatively peaceful in the intervening years." She waved her hand. "But enough about us. How have Carole's little Phaethon been?"
So Tachyon had recruited another guinea pig? Wise gave a prayer to them.
"We've been… managing. We actually run a video store over on sixth street, Random Play. It also uh…" Wise looked left and right to make sure no one else was listening. "Serves as a front for our Proxy business. Please keep it on the down low?" He begged.
"You wound me!" Tachyon draped a hand over her forehead in dramatic flair. "You would really entertain the thought that I would betray the trust my close confidant Carole placed in me? Especially regarding her precious Phaethon?"
Wise stiffened at the mention of Teacher. Every mention of her since that horrific day has been tainted in pure hatred for her unforgivable sin. Would Tachyon be like them? So far she hadn't shown him any outward hostility, even reminiscing on her friendship with Carole.
"Do you really think… Carole is guilty? That… we're guilty?"
"Absolutely not."
Wise was taken aback by the immediate, blunt response. "Really?"
"Yes, really. I would be a right fool to throw her under the bus because of misguided allegations. Along with that, only an imbecile of the highest order would implicate her beloved Phaethon simply by association. And I am certainly not either of those, right?"
He shook his head. "No, you certainly aren't."
Wise processed what Tachyon had said. He… they had an ally. To prove Carole's innocence. Someone who knew there was more to the story of Hollow Zero than an official statement and questionable investigations. More than the slings of rage and grief thrown against her for a crime she didn't commit.
They finally had someone else who saw Carole Arna as the human she was.
"Hm? Is something the matter, Wise? You seem to be-"
Wise interrupted Tachyon by throwing himself against her in a desperate hug, tears falling from his eyes as the relief of having a true ally washed over him. "Thank you, Tachyon… thank you for believing in us."
Tachyon, seemingly unsure of what to do, awkwardly returned to hug, though not nearly with the same force. "I am not a fool, Wise. That sorry excuse of an 'investigation' only confirmed what I already knew. If you have laboured to prove her innocence, then I would gladly assist you." Wise nodded in agreement.
Eventually Tachyon broke the hug, offering Wise a handkerchief to wipe his tears. "Now, we will do the prudent thing in this situation and wait. The hollow formed quite recently, so I doubt we'll encounter any ethereals. Which means neither will our rescue."
So Wise and Tachyon did exactly that: wait. Which was easier said than done considering the proxy's abysmal ether aptitude. Even this short stay in the hollow was starting to be bad for his health. As time went on, his symptoms began to worsen. An injection of anti-corruption medicine from Tachyon only delayed the inevitable. By this point, Tachyon had Wise laid on his back, monitoring his worsening condition.
Wise was trying to breath through a makeshift filter Tachyon put together from materials in her purse, but it was only marginally effective at limiting his intake of ether particles. Time was starting to run out. Where the hell was Belle? The hollow shouldn't have a substantial population of ethereals yet.
Tachyon put a hand on his forehead. "You're running a fever. I can't procure a cold towel, so you'll just need to bear it for now."
Wise winced in pain, the seconds seeming to drag on forever as his body slowly shut down from the latent ether corruption. He just kept praying that Belle would find them in time. Tachyon still hadn't met her yet.
A violent wretch brought Wise upright as he vomited out-
no no no no no
Ether crystals. The corruption had spread to his lungs. It was only a matter of time before it reached his heart. And then his brain.
And then an ethereal core would form, turning him into a mindless ethereal.
Wise gasped with horror as his lungs began to crystallise in earnest, each labouring breath shallower and more painful than the last. Tachyon looked terrified as she scrounged a needle from her purse and injected it into his vein, probably her last dose of anti-corruption serum.
"Wise, stay with me!" She looked utterly horrified at seeing an ethereal transformation up close. "You will stay with me! I refuse to let you die!"
Wise heard someone shouting. Tachyon looked away, then back at the dying man. "Help is here, we'll get you out and treated in no time. Then I can finally introduce myself properly to Belle, and I can share tales of my experiments for humourous effect, so don't you dare die on me!"
Wise wished he could be there for her. His consciousness started to fade, the last thing he saw was Anby and a girl with brown hair alongside Tachyon.
I'm sorry, Belle. I'm so sorry.
There was darkness everywhere. Wise had no feeling, no body, no perception. All he had was consciousness.
He was dead.
The only saving grace was that they were able to end his suffering swiftly.
A trio of faint lights suddenly gathered in front of him, each being blue, red, and yellow respectively.
…Was he not dead? Wise tried to speak, but he had no mouth to speak with, nor lungs to exhale air.
But they had heard him anyway.
"Death has slipped its grasp on you," The yellow light spoke.
"And with it, a new beginning awaits you," The blue light continued.
"Yet the track ahead is wrought with danger," The red light warned.
Wise was now thoroughly confused. What was going on? Was this some sort of death dream? Upon closer inspection, however, something in his brain clicked. Those three lights. He recognised them.
They were the Three Goddesses of Umamusume.
Why were they here?
"This world, through apocalypse, has frayed its connection to the divine," The blue light somberly said.
"The spirits of all Umamusume here flow in peril, without our protection or guidance," The yellow light followed up.
"But their grit has allowed them to flourish despite the harsh conditions. Much like you, lost soul." The red light gravitated toward where Wise thought he was, the other two following suit.
Why were they here? What made him special? He wasn't an umamusume, so they shouldn't have any reason to take interest.
"At ease, lost child," The red light ordered. "Though we are divine, we are not omniscient. We are not all seeing."
"As much as it pains me to say, we lose sight of many of our children. And in this world, ravaged by the hollows, we are nearly blind," The blue light lamented.
"But your resilience continues to shine, even in the darkest abyss," The yellow light praised.
That didn't answer his question. Why him? Why did they show up now?
"Because, at last, we have you in our sights," The blue light answered. "No more shall you wander the labyrinths lost. No more shall your spirit wither."
"Even with our diminished divinity, we can still fulfill our divine right." The yellow light affirmed.
And then, they spoke in unison.
"May your foresight illuminate the Hollows, Eye of Prometheus."
Wise(?) awoke with a groan, their body aching terribly in protest.
Everything immediately felt different. Their body felt different, but it was hard to tell what was different with how overloaded their senses were. The world was too loud, their ears flicking to and fro to catch every stray sound. A distinct pain radiated from their lower back, like they were pinching something they were laying on.
That… was very odd.
They opened their eyes at last. The familiar ceiling of their bedroom greeted them. Looking around, they could see Belle, Anby, Tachyon, and that brown haired girl from earlier as well—who they now realised was an uma.
They all looked relieved to see them awake.
"Is-" They coughed, their throat very dry. Tachyon handed them a glass of water, which they greedily gulped up. "Is everyone okay?" They finally finished. Huh, that voice wasn't familiar.
Belle gave them an incredulous look. "Really?! You almost die on me and that is your first thought?" She charged in for a desperate hug. "Don't do that ever again, you hear me?!"
"Quiet!" Tachyon chastised with a whisper yell. "She's still going to be sensitive to noise. Be mindful of your volume."
"…Right. Sorry." Belle withdrew the hug before they could reciprocate. Without any fanfare, however, Tachyon quickly interrupted the moment between siblings and shoved a pocket mirror into Wise's hands. Why? Had something changed?
Wise looked into the mirror and-
Oh. Oh my.
Well, at least the uma in her reflection looked cute.
Surprisingly cute, actually.