Lost in Summer! Fated Paradise · Chapter 8
The Fixed Future
Ayla
This is...!
Ayla pulled the notebook from the pit and opened it.
Ayla
...This looks like a ship's log.
A ship's log...?
Ayla
...!
Ayla's eyes widened, and she froze as she read the mysterious log.
Smile
Ayla, what's wrong?
Ayla
...Well...
...
This handwriting...
It looks like... my mother's...
The Pirate King spent his life roaming the seas, destined to rule them. But meeting the Star Savior inspired him to settle on a small island and found the underwater city of Flora.
He loved Flora so deeply that he wanted it to remain a paradise free of even the slightest sorrow...
So he sealed all of Flora's remaining misfortune within a single piece of parchment.
But to also prepare for the possibility that someone might accidentally break the seal one day and fall victim to the curse...
On the parchment, he also marked the resting place of a treasure imbued with his blessing, one capable of breaking the curse.
He then entrusted the parchment to his subordinate, Floren, warning him never to let word of it reach the outside world...
Over the years, the truth became distorted, and rumors spread that the parchment was a map to the Pirate King's treasure.
Only after reaching this island did we learn the full truth behind the rumor. It filled us with hope.
We were certain that finding the Pirate King's treasure would break our daughter's curse.
Even after rough currents and countless reefs left our ship badly damaged...
We searched the island frantically, clinging to the hope that the Pirate King's treasure that could save her was finally within reach.
At last, we found the stone marked with a moon...
That led us to the Pirate King's treasure.
Ayla
Mother, Father...!
After reading the entire page, Ayla looked down into the pit.
The pouch buried with the log was still there.
Smile
Ayla, it's here...!
Smile quickly picked up the pouch and handed it to Ayla.
Hands trembling, she took the pouch, took a few deep breaths, and opened it.
Ayla
...?
...What is this...?
Looking confused, she reached inside and pulled something out.
Luna
Silver coins...?
Ayla
...Yes. It's nothing but silver coins.
Smile
Strange. The Pirate King's treasure meant to break the parchment's curse is nothing but ordinary riches.
But looks can be deceiving. Simply touching the coins may have already broken the curse...!
Ayla, any sign the curse was lifted when you touched them?
Ayla
I'm not sure... I couldn't tell...
Luna
Ayla, does the log say anything else? Like how we're supposed to use the treasure to break the curse?!
Ayla
Wait... There's one more page...!
Only then did Ayla notice the final page. She hurriedly began reading.
...But the Pirate King's treasure buried beneath that stone was not what we had hoped for.
Just ordinary silver coins, with no trace of any blessing or magic.
There were enough to change the fate of whoever found them.
Enough to make them rich overnight.
But to us, all that wealth was simply another name for despair.
Our ship was badly damaged, with no way off the island in sight...
And the Pirate King's treasure we had searched so desperately for, believing it would break our daughter's curse, was nothing more than ordinary silver coins.
So we bury this treasure again in the pit where it once lay.
Along with our final log entry.
We pray for our poor daughter...
We pray that Ayla never comes looking for this treasure...
...If we don't find a way off Grave Island soon...
Ayla
...M-Mother... Father...
...
Aah...
Ayla closed the logbook with a hollow sigh and sank to the ground.
Ayla...
The pouch buried alongside the ship's log lay in front of her.
It was the pouch her parents had come to call despair after their search for a treasure that could break their daughter's curse.
Still sitting on the ground, Ayla opened the pouch again and stared inside.
She stared into it with empty, disbelieving eyes.
Ayla
...
...So this is... the Pirate King's treasure...
Just ordinary silver coins... with no blessing or magic at all...
...Haha... Ha...
...
This is it...?
This is supposed to be the Pirate King's treasure...?
And my parents... all for this worthless pile of silver coins...!
Luna
...
Ayla
Me... My parents... We weren't looking for riches...
If this is the treasure the Pirate King left behind... then my curse...
Smile
Ayla...
Ayla
...
Ayla stared blankly into the distance. Then realization hit, and deep regret flashed in her wide eyes.
Ayla
Ah... Ah... Aah...
Aah... Nothing ever changes...
Ayla clutched her head in anguish.
Ayla
...Without a treasure to break my curse... what am I supposed to do now...?
Ahaha... What was all that effort even for...?
Still doubled over, she sobbed until a hollow laugh escaped her, like she'd finally lost her mind.
Her cracked, swollen fingers ground the torn half of the treasure map deep into the sand.
Smile
A-Ayla... Don't lose hope...
There's still a chance the real treasure is buried somewhere else... Right, Luna?
Luna
...
Smile
...Luna?
Luna
...In this game of fate, every piece was destined to end up here.
Just like always.
...I knew this would happen. I never should've taken this quest.
Ayla
Fate...
Why did I ever think someone like me could defy fate...?
There was never any treasure that could break the curse. I only fooled myself into believing there was still hope...
I don't know... what to believe anymore...
...Ah.
Ayla!
Smile
*Thud*
Her breathing grew ragged as she lay face down in the sand. Then her body went limp, and she rolled onto her side.
I lifted Ayla into my arms. The treasure map she'd held so dear was still crumpled in her raw, swollen hand.
...Looks like she passed out.
Luna
...
Luna didn't seem the least bit surprised. She calmly picked up the logbook and coin pouch, then gazed down at them.
Luna
...
See? This is exactly what I hate.
Smile
Luna...
Luna
...It was a stupid idea after all.
With that, Luna turned and strode off with the two items.
We walked along the beach for a while with Ayla in my arms. Luckily, we found a small cave before sunset.
Ayla came to not long after we settled into the cave, but...
Smile
Hydration required. Ayla, drink this coconut water.
Ayla
*Cough... Cough...!*
Smile
Ayla...!
Ayla pulled a medicine sachet from her waist and carelessly emptied it into her mouth.
Aside from the medicine, she ate and drank nothing for hours. She just lay there like a corpse, staring into space.
Luna
...
Luna watched Ayla stare blankly ahead, then let out a deep sigh and stood up.
Luna
I'm going to clear my head.
Smile
Luna...
...Ngh.
Smile's hand stopped midair as she reached for Luna.
She sat beside Ayla, her gaze lingering on Luna's retreating figure until she disappeared from view.
Smile
Captain.
Yeah?
Smile
I've never seen Luna look that sad before.
Have you?
...No.
Smile
...I don't understand human emotions very well. I'm not human.
So it's hard for me to tell how Luna feels just from her expression.
But...
...Even I can tell she's sad.
Smile looked at me with her usual blank expression, but the sadness in her eyes was impossible to miss.
Smile
I don't like seeing Luna hurt.
So, Captain... could you save Luna?
Like you saved me.
...
I wasn't sure I could.
Even so, I ran out of the cave with no idea where I was going.
The pitch-black sea stretched ahead, with nothing in sight...
I ran so desperately that I couldn't even hear the waves over the pounding of my own footsteps.
And thankfully, before long...
Luna!
Luna
...Oh, Captain...?
I found Luna walking alone along the shore, lost in thought.
Luna
Why'd you come running like that?
...I was afraid I'd lose you.
Luna
Haha... Lose me?
We're stranded, remember? It's not like I can go anywhere.
We already know how this is going to end. You don't have to try so hard.
Luna looked down at her feet.
Moonlit water washed over her pale feet, then receded in white foam.
Luna
...Because no matter how hard you try, nothing changes.
Nothing.
Why do you think that?
You could be wrong, just this once...
The steady rhythm of the waves filled the silence between us.
Luna raised her head and gazed out at the horizon.
Luna
Once a future has been observed, it cannot be changed.
That's a law of the universe. The natural order of things.
Even if the path changes... even if things stray a little along the way, the destination never does.
Luna closed her eyes and let out a quiet breath, as if silently repeating those words to herself. Then she turned to me.
Luna
Ayla won't make it through the night.
That's her ending. The one we have to face.
...Then...
Then what about how we were going to break Ayla's curse together...?
Luna
Yeah. You saw it too. There's no way to break it.
It's tragic, but that's her fate.
She won't overcome the curse. In the end... she'll die alone.
...Then we'll try again. We'll find some way to—
Luna
Ahaha. If trying hard could change it, they wouldn't call it fate, would they?
It's not like I haven't tried, Captain...
But no matter how many times I try again, an ending that's already set never changes.
So you should let go of the false hope that trying harder will somehow be enough.
Hope always lies beside despair.
But Luna...
You hoped this time would be different too.
I thought back to how unusually driven Luna had been throughout this adventure.
She'd thrown herself into finding Grave Island, swearing she wouldn't lose and smiling brighter than the sun.
Luna
...Yeah. I did.
Even knowing how it would end, I wanted to cheer Ayla on. Part of me still hoped things might turn out differently, so I went along with her.
I knew all along that hope would only drag me deeper into despair...
I'd already lived through the same fixed future over and over...!
...And still, I found myself believing.
...
Behind Luna, the sea shimmered an even deeper blue beneath the moonlight.
Luna
You changed the future. ...My future.
It was a miracle.
I let myself believe... that maybe one more miracle was still possible.
Tears welled in Luna's eyes but never fell. Instead, she forced a smile.
Luna
But look.
I... was wrong again.
In the end, all that struggling was for nothing.
Luna let out a bitter laugh at herself for getting her hopes up again.
Her pessimism all this time had come from her disillusionment with the fixed future.
This time, too, Luna had given up hope as she always had. But seeing Ayla so determined to defy fate...
She'd found herself hoping again before she knew it.
Amid the same despair she'd endured time and time again...
If changing the future with me had felt like a miracle...
And if that miracle had made her believe the future could be changed...
Then I'll change it.
Luna
...We're already past the turning point, Captain.
Even if you pull off another little miracle now, once a fate is sealed, it just...
Her words were calm and unwavering.
All that remained was the quiet sorrow of someone who'd lived through it all before.
But...
...I'll change it.
I didn't care whether we'd passed the turning point or were already headed for the end.
Whether the world came to an end or began anew, it made no difference to me.
If all I could change...
Luna
The future can never be changed.
...Even if all I could do was wipe that sad smile from Luna's face, that alone would be enough.
I closed my eyes for a moment.
Beyond my eyelids stretched nothing but an empty, pitch-black sky.
Beneath it stood a lone figure, sending a beam of light into the heavens.
Again and again.
Until the dark sky glittered with starlight once more.
Luna
...
And I realized I felt the same way now.
I'll change it. I swear!
Luna
...How?
...
I-I don't know yet, but...
Luna
...Yeah. Thought so.
Luna looked up at the moon, her face blank as if she hadn't expected anything.
Luna
You can't change fate. No matter how hard you try.
Tomorrow, and the day after, that moon will still hang in the sky.
...Ahaha. What, did you think it'd vanish tomorrow? Or that there'd suddenly be two moons? Three?
Well... Once you've seen the future, it's no longer unknown.
That's when you realize just how foolish it is to keep hoping.
Then I'll give you a reason to hope.
Then I'll make the future unknowable again.
Luna
I'm asking how.
Luna asked without a hint of curiosity.
I stepped in front of her and declared without hesitation.
Go ahead. Look into the near future.
I'll change every bit of it!
Luna
...Hehe. You really never change.
I can play along... but it'll only lead to more despair.
That's fine.
I wasn't certain.
I didn't think a little miracle would happen so easily, either.
But even so, I had to prove it here and now.
I'll show you.
I'll show you that the future you saw isn't the whole story.
A moment that defies fate!
Luna
...
You'd really go that far...
What do you want, Captain...?
...Hope that the future can change.
That's all I need for now.
Luna
...
Haha... You've dragged me into another dumb stunt.
Despite her words, Luna looked bitter as she closed her eyes and peered into the future.
Luna
...
A moment later, Luna quietly opened her eyes.
Well?
Luna
...
Heh... What were you expecting? All I saw was the same sea as always.
A quiet world beneath the same old night sky.
...
So... how are you going to change that?
I glanced at her skeptical face, drew a sharp breath, and shouted toward the moon in the sky.
Let there be a miracle!!
Luna
...
...
My embarrassing shout didn't even get an echo...
No matter how loudly I shouted, all that answered me was the same unchanging sky and sea.
Luna
I told you. You can't change anything.
She lost interest and turned away.
Luna
Let's go back. Ayla doesn't have much time left.
We should stay by her side now... It might make things a little easier to bear.
Luna started to head back, her steps heavy with loneliness.
...
Still feeling a little awkward, I traced her footprints in the sand until I spotted a crab scuttling into its burrow.
As it retreated deeper into the hole to escape the light, I couldn't help thinking how pathetic it looked.
Something about the sudden brightness felt strangely familiar, so I looked up.
And then...
...!
L-Luna!
Luna
...What? Want to try again?
Unfortunately, I'm not in the mood anymore.
Look at the sky!
Hurry!!
I stopped Luna as she turned away and had her look up at the sky.
Luna
Why? What's up there—
...!
The waves fell silent, as if holding their breath. The air began to warp.
And then...
Luna
...This is...
The moonlight was bathing everything in an even brighter glow.
Reflected in Luna's eyes was the impossible sight of two moons in the sky.
Luna
T-two... moons...
But how...?
Luna stared in disbelief, rubbing her eyes again and again before finally squeezing them shut.
The sight before us shattered everything I thought I knew. Unable to believe it either, I closed my eyes as well.
And the moment I did...
Long-forgotten memories came flooding back.
When I opened my eyes again, I saw two moons... and Luna's face, radiant beneath their light.
Luna
...
C-Captain...
...Well?
Ready to bet on me now?
Fragments of memory flashed through my mind, followed by a familiar headache.
I shoved the tangled memories aside and flashed Luna a confident grin.
Whether the world was about to end or not no longer mattered.
What mattered most to me now was...
Luna
...
Showing Luna that it was okay to hope.
I'd rather let her hope for one more miracle, even if it ended in despair, than leave her with that calm, resigned smile.
Luna
Captain, I...
...Ngh...
The tears she'd been holding back started to spill down her cheeks.
Luna
I...!
Smile
Captain... Luna...!
Just as Luna was about to open up, Smile came running toward us, shouting.
Luna quickly raised her arm and wiped away her tears.
Luna
What is it, Smile?!
Smile
Something's wrong with Ayla...!
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