At any rate, now that I was inside, I couldn’t help but look around. This place was indeed a laboratory with an abundance of state-of-the-art scientific equipment, along with cutting-edge devices that looked similar to an MRI scan, a small generator, numerous metal pipes, and even several sizeable batteries.

To top it all off, there was a large pod placed in the middle of it all, looking like a display or sort. The inside of the pod was hazy with frozen ice, but I knew for sure that it was a cryogenic pod, as there were various devices telling vital signs of someone…

I wonder who’s inside… I gulped down a mouthful of saliva while gazing intently at it.

“Ah, so this was what I tried to protect…” Lunaria’s projection appeared, her flawless face was full of nostalgia. “How many years has it been? A century? Definitely more…”

Upon hearing Lunaria’s answer, the dots finally connected. The one hidden inside was none other than Lunaria herself — her real body.

There were a multitude of reasons why I was so sure of this theory:

One, she always refused to speak up when I jabbed her with questions pertaining to her physical form. Mostly, I was going for a joke to beat her in an argument, but she constantly brushed it off with her silence, which might be attributed to her sealed memories.

Two, no matter when and what happened to the whole airship, all the energy reserve was always directed somewhere — its destination couldn’t be checked normally. Even at an extremely minimum output, she would always keep this place powered up.

Last but not least, no possibility was more likely to change this fact — at least I couldn’t think of one.

“But to think that this world possesses the technology to revive people from cold sleep at its peak… I shouldn’t be surprised when seeing that you can upload your mind,” I chuckled, finally conceding the inferior technology that my previous world possessed.

“Is that so?” Lunaria’s projection peeked at me with interest. “You always told me that you come from another world in the past, and I said to you that I may know the answer why… Now, it’s crystal clear that it has something to do with me — the sealed memories are beginning to reemerge.”  

“Really?” I was intrigued to hear the whole story, but I was afraid to disturb her mind.

“Mhm. So? What will you do now? Since you are ‘the destined one,’ I will leave all the decisions in your hand.”

While I didn’t understand what she said by “the destined one,” I had some idea where that might lead to. Anyway, I shouldn’t make the wrong move here, as it would entail how she would act in the future.

So, I stayed silent for a moment, weighing things again and again. Eh, why should I dilly-dally in this thought? I mean, isn’t the answer obvious?

“Lunaria. You haven’t answered why you kept yourself frozen for so long. Now that I’m here, I have to get something straight regardless of your opinion. Tell me… What make you forget your memories?” I motioned at her to speak.

“…Well, it’s a long story…”

And just like that, she began retelling all her experiences…

***

Lunaria’s Perspective

For a long, long time she had been imprisoned — bound by a prison that lasted for perpetuity: time.

She felt lonely, to the point that she was borderline insane. Even hibernating didn’t do much in curbing her loneliness…

It was when she ruled the world.

In the past, she had been a very prominent figure; she could get everything with a single say from her sacred mouth — all her wishes fulfilled. People would revere her like revering to a god. It wasn’t just her, but her entire line of family.

Through the reign of her family, they created a massive empire, unsurpassed by any nation and even any ancient civilization. Their technology advanced and their military power was unmatched. Everyone would tremble in fear upon just hearing the name of their nation.

Nevertheless, the world that she thought would last forever crumbled when the red fog soon plagued her realm from all sides, saving not a single land free. It eventually came to roam the huge capital where she resided.

The experiment that the brightest of minds among her people had failed, even though they said that this would bolster the once already prosperous nation so it could last eternally.

At that moment, she saw how the world that was reigned by her kind turned red from all horizons… Her people were turning into corrupted beings that infected their families and loved ones. The military power that she thought was invincible was crushed by the eldritch monsters that came to invade. This was what would later be called the “Crimson Apocalypse” — the worst calamity that her nation ever faced.

Rebellions soon rose from every part of the realm that was still free from the red fog, turning the once peaceful and prosperous nation into a barren, savage land. Left with no other choice, her family brought her to a secluded base in order to make a cure but leaving the empire to collapse in the process.

Despite that, a new government rose in the name of putting down the chaos and tried to put a stop to the apocalypse. But even they failed miserably.

How long had it been?

Now, she wasn’t sure anymore. Her family had died protecting her and preserving the legacy of the empire so that it could raise again someday.

The only remaining one that she could a “family” was a certain half-dead guy that one day stumbled into her hidden base. If she hadn’t treated him, he would have died and eventually turned into one of those mutated monsters.

However, since his mind was corrupted by the red fog, she had to take some drastic measures. And the after-mentioned measure was to…

She glanced at the man before her through the lenses of the drone and made up her mind to confess.

“You must be thinking that I’m the one who helped you through your tough times. Wrong! It’s the other way around. I approach you to curb my loneliness; I use you to help me through my difficult times. Do you think my intention was pure? No!”

Her repressed pain flowed out like a flood bursting through a dam.

It was only right for him to know, to know of the fact that she had been using him. After all, being brought to this godforsaken world without knowing better was the worst thing imaginable.

“…Wrong. It’s all wrong…”

For some reason, she felt relieved once she vented all the words that she had kept all this time. Even if he decided to turn around and leave, she wouldn’t mind.

Contrary to what she had expected, the black-haired guy just stood in place and smiled gently, saying, “What’s wrong with that? Don’t we need each other to survive?” as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

***

Maxim’s Perspective

My suspicion was right on the money.

I had imagined all sorts of reasons why this all had happened. But to think that it was so simple that I couldn’t help but shake my head deep down; I must have overestimated Lunaria’s mental condition as well as her clear-headedness.

In fact, the always logical and emotionless Lunaria uttering something so illogical at the next moment escalated this whole idea further.

“But… I am nothing but a conscious mind of a body sleeping inside.”

“That has nothing to do with this.” I shook my head, trying to convince her by my own reasoning: “For the past three months or so, you’re the one who supports me. Through ups and downs, you accompanied me till the end. Well, we may have some disagreement here and there, but you always think ahead for my own good.”

The truth was all she needed.

If it wasn’t for her help, I wouldn’t be here and would’ve died in my world from burning the midnight oil carelessly… Twenty-one years of my life in another world, coupled with Raymond’s eighteen years of experience and memories in this world made me all the more pragmatic.

All that she needed to get out of her shell was one more push.

I reached my hand toward her. “Now it’s my time to do the same to you — to reciprocate your support. So come out of your shell and join us in our adventure. Not through the veil that is the drone, but through your own two eyes in flesh.”

At my statement, her projection shed a tear; her eyes closed, while her mouth formed a tiny smile — a sight that had never occurred.

“Will you promise to protect me?” she asked carefully.

“You can count on me. I promise that you’ll never be hurt again…” I made the sincerest look I could make; if this didn’t work, I didn’t know what would.

She stayed silent for a while before her answer. “…Okay, I believe you.”

Her projection disappeared and the spherical drone, Luna-1, positioned itself in the gap of its life-size platform beside the cryogenic pod. And thus, the process of reanimating the dormant body inside commenced, evident in the melting ice that surrounded it.

Although I had seen the wonder that this world’s technology had given me, I was still a bit skeptical about the whole process of reviving someone. I mean, usually, this kind of freezing and unfreezing a body inside liquid nitrogen would break the living cells inside the body, not to mention the tissue that made up the whole body.

However, it appeared that there was something more than met the eye this time around. Perhaps there were microscopic nanobots that prevented the cells from getting destroyed, or maybe something entirely unthinkable by me…

I figured that the only way to know was to ask Lunaria herself. Yeah, I will ask her for the details later on.

Not long after, a silhouette gradually became clearer from inside the pod… It began from the visage of a girl in her teens, maybe sixteen to seventeen. A shining silver hair that draped from her shoulders to her waist, and a face that was cold as if expressionless but flawless, nonetheless — a perfect resemblance to her hologram self.

Still, the more the ice melted, the more I felt discomfort, as I came to realize something.

Her smooth, porcelain-like skin got exposed more and more for the world to see that if it wasn’t for her long hair, she would be butt-naked— Wait, she is!!

“Th-This… is not good…! Gotta do something, quick!”

In haste, I searched around the room and found a large metal shelf that appeared to be a wardrobe. There were several black dresses as well as other garments, like a few sets of gloves, stockings, and… underwear that were arranged neatly. The owner of these clothes was pretty self-explanatory without the need to pinpoint who.

Without being mindful of the small details, I took a set of clothes that she typically wore — underwear included — and then put them on an empty spot at the table filled with advanced and sterile apparatus. With this, she would be able to wear it as soon as she woke up…

“This should do.” I nodded my head and stood at the side.

Only at this moment that I thought that gazing at the ceiling, walls, and floor was interesting… Naturally, I spent most of my time waiting by inspecting the devices all around, including reading her vital signs which included her personal information on the monitor beside the pod, all the while stealing glances at her suspended form once in a while, of course. Who wouldn’t, right? Right?!

As minutes passed by, the process of unfreezing came to an end, and various devices came to inject her chemicals while withdrawing others. Then, the liquid was sucked away completely before the pod slowly opened, basking me in the cold air remaining inside. Brr… So cold!

“Achoo! Brrr…” I bet that I would have caught a cold if it wasn’t for my jacket…

Despite the intense coldness, I took off my army jacket and draped it over Lunaria’s body, waiting for her to wake up from her stasis. Feeling a bit nervous, I just sat down nearby without making as much as a speck of noise.

It didn’t take long for her to come to, as her eyes twitched open. She looked around the room seemingly in confusion and finally settled her eyes on me, slowly uttering a line that made me horrified.

“…Where am I? Who are you…?”