"The [Others]..." I muttered as I gave Mrs. Elmeth an inquisitive look. 

"Throughout the entire Milky Way Galaxy, ever since the beginning of the True Interstellar Era, the people who comprised the civilizations which later joined the Federation shared surprisingly similar genetic traits and appearances. Specifically, they looked more or less the same as us. The only variations were things like skin tone, eye and hair colors and average height. But generally, the standard appearance was the same for the entire Federation populace. The [Otherworldly Invaders] or simply [Others], however, were different. So different that they couldn't be more fit to be described by the term 'Otherworldly'." 

"They appeared seemingly out of nowhere and started attacking the Federation en masse; unexpectedly bringing about huge amounts of losses, despite the Federations' military might," Mrs. Elmeth continued.

"Most weapons were ineffective against them. The prided interstellar warship fleets of the Federation posed next to no threat for the [Others], which quickly decimated them with surprising ease. They took over a third of the Federation-held Sectors within mere months. And further exacerbating the situation was the appearance of a new biological threat." 

"A biological threat?" 

"Yes. It was a new disease which quickly spread throughout the Milky Way, afflicting a large chunk of the populace. No matter how much the best medical experts of the time tried, they couldn't find the underlying cause. The answer, however, came from an unexpected source."

"A report from researchers who were studying the ruins stated that the spread and effects of the unknown disease - which eventually caused unpredictable genetic mutations in biological organisms regardless of species - were more pronounced in the planets where the various mysterious ruins appeared. This discovery alarmed the Federations' higher ups. It was then that they realized that what they unwittingly opened was 'Pandora's Box'."

"Pandora's Box?" I asked once more after hearing the unfamiliar term.

"It's a container which appeared in a very ancient legend, and was said to have held all manner of malice and disaster. When it was opened, that malice was unleashed to the world," Mrs. Elmeth explained. "The dire predicaments the Federation faced started when they meddled with the ruins after all. This conjecture was further solidified when they discovered that the [Others] were prioritizing the capture of Space Sectors which housed the planets where the ruins appeared. It seemed that the invaders were after the ruins as well."

"What exactly were the ruins?" I inquired curiously.

"This question still remains unanswered until now," Mrs. Elmeth replied. "This has been the case even long after the Federation's fall. Perhaps the [Others] knew something about them, which was what spurred them to seek the ruins out. But seeing as they weren't interested in any form of exchange and only sought to completely annihilate the Federation, hoping to get any information out of them was utterly futile." 

"Hmm...," I groaned while ruminating the incredulous sounding story. "Sorry to interrupt ma'am," I interjected. "This stuff sounds incredible and all, but honestly, it's not what I came here to hear about."  

"I'm assuming you already know ma'am, but a few nights ago, I experienced something really freaky. I underwent something called a 'Dive' while I was sleeping and ended up getting sent back to Runegard Continent - but not physically. You're claiming you're the Azure Calamity, and you know so much about myself, the Demon War and such, so I believe you already have an idea about what I'm talking about," I stated and gave Mrs. Elmeth a probing look. 

"Something which sounded like an A.I. guide told me I was a 'Diver' affiliated with the Federation, and my duty was to collect data. Since you also mentioned the Federation, is this all connected somehow? How do I fit into the equation? How'd I even 'Dive' in the first place? Is this related to what my parents in this world were researching before they died?"

I suddenly blurted out a series of questions all at once. Anxiety and impatience tinged my voice. It was like indirectly saying 'spare me the long prelude and get to the important stuff already'.

"We'll be getting to that shortly dear," Mrs. Elmeth answered with a reassuring smile. "Don't be so antsy. I have to explain from the beginning so it would make much more sense. We haven't even talked about how this mirror galaxy came to be."

"Fine," I reluctantly conceded. "But what exactly do you mean about that 'mirror galaxy' stuff?"

"As I said earlier, the Space Sectors the Confederation, Emperium and all the other interplanetary states are currently occupying are situated within a sealed subtemporal bubble — a 'mirror galaxy', so to speak. It's about a third of the original galaxy — The Milky Way — and is completely cut off from the original spatio-temporal plane."

"Uh, okay..." 

Mrs. Elmeth giggled in amusement once more; probably after seeing my confused mug. 

"Let me put it in simpler terms then," she offered. "We're all inside a dream."

"Huh?"

I admit that was simple enough. But I'm still confused. 

"If this is all a dream, who's the one dreaming it?" I humored.

"The Universe," came the curt reply. 

Oh boy. This is getting even more baffling by the minute. It's really beginning to sound like something those new age cults like to spew when trying to recruit new members. I gave Mrs. Elmeth a suspicious gaze.

"Hey! Don't give me that. I'm entirely serious here," she playfully admonished. "That's why I said we need to discuss this step by step."

"Please go ahead ma'am," I said in a resigned tone.

"That's better," Mrs. Elmeth nodded approvingly. "Let's go back to what happened to the Federation. It was losing badly to the [Others]: a good half of the Milky Way was already lost, and from the way the war was going, it wasn't long before it completely gets subjugated. Things were getting pretty desperate. It was at the height of the Federation's despair, that someone came forward with an extremely bold proposition."

"It was the young researcher from Earth who first resonated with the [L.D.F.] relics — Professor Alma Jimenez. Perhaps because of guilt or a sense of responsibility from playing a part in causing the invasion — or possibly both — she and her team tirelessly sought a way to use their newfound knowledge about the mysterious relics in order to turn the tide of the war. They had somewhat succeeded, and immediately reported it to the Federation higher ups."

Hm? Alma Jimenez? The name kinda reminds me of something, but I can't quite put a finger on what. But I decided to put away my idle thoughts and continued to listen to Mrs. Elmeth.

"The Central Council was torn about the matter. If the proposed plan was successfully pulled off, then it may truly provide a ray of hope for the battered Federation. But the method was untested and used unknown technology. If something went wrong, it may result in the Federation's utter destruction. Moreover, it would be caused by their own hands instead of an external enemy."

"However, they were not given much choice. The attacks of the [Others] intensified, and they approached closer to the Capital Cluster practically unhindered. The Council eventually decided to bet it all on the plan, and mobilized practically all the Federation's remaining resources to achieve that end. And thus, [Project: Last Bastion] was started."  

"What was the plan all about?"

"It was to utilize the recovered [L.D.F.] relics in order to send a portion of the Milky Way galaxy into a separate space-time continuum — one where the [Others] would not reach."

My eyes widened in realization. So that's why. 

"This place we're in now is that so called 'Last Bastion', right?" I asked. Mrs. Elmeth nodded in confirmation.

"That's right. All of us are descendants of the Federation populace who exiled themselves within this prison of their own making — all in order to buy time while trying to develop a method to win the age old war with the mysterious invaders presumably from another galaxy."