My Last Chance [Made in Abyss Fanfiction]

09| Stairway to the Fifth

"With time the boulders leave a trail, becoming a hail of burning steel, turning the ice-clad trees into clouds... Extending their necks through to the skies, the colossal turtles gather together to gaze at the amber sky." I frown a little as I read the passage, and I glance over to Bondrewd, who's pulling more notebooks from a shelf. "This is rather poetic for research notes."

   Bondrewd waves his hand dismissively. "Ah, pay no mind to the form there. That is part of a folk song written about the White Whistles, though it's fallen out of popularity in the past few decades. I keep it in my notes concerning the Sixth Layer since it seems to speak of a creature that dwells there. None of my Hands who I've sent down have been able to see any, however."

   "I see... I've never thought of using folklore for a basis in research." I turn the page and start scanning sketches of four-winged birds with hooked beaks. "If you assume anything from a story, then that could lead to something awful happening if you assume wrongly."

   "Ah, but every story comes from some sort of truth," Bondrewd replies. "That's when you pursue all possible leads and gradually pull the web together. I understand your apprehension as well, though every mistake is one to be learned from." I nod and return to reading.

   It's been nearly two weeks since Melva and I came to Idofront, and even here I find myself falling into a routine. Wake up, eat, read and research, or talk with Iann and Sciro for a time out on the balcony before sleeping and repeating. Having a routine at all makes me antsy, but it's not like we can do anything else. Besides, the amount of research I have at my fingertips is incredible, even if it's not as plentiful as Bondrewd has said he wishes it to be.

   I glance over at Melva, who lazily flips through a notebook, not seeming to take anything in. We haven't talked much since our... disagreement. I hate to call it a fight, though I feel that was what it truly was. She doesn't snap at me or sound hostile when we do talk, but there's still tension when we're alone in our room. It kills me not to know how to relieve it.

   "But based on you mentioning that passage..." Footfalls ring out, and I look up to see Bondrewd approaching, stopping before me. "Do you notice the sensory organs on the birds here?" He reaches over and places a gloved finger on the largest sketch of the bird, and my eyes widen in surprise.

   "Wait, those are sensory organs? They're covering the entirety of its chest!"

   "Creatures further down seem to have larger sensory organs. For what reason, I'm still unsure. My working hypothesis at the moment is that the wider surface of the organ can pick up on the curse more easily. But does that stop or circumvent the curse's effects before they occur? Every sensory organ I've studied hasn't yielded any results..."

   I look back down at the drawings, thinking. Picking up on the curse at all suggests there's more to it than it being some abstract force. "Perhaps the curse is something more tangible?" I mutter this to myself, but then Bondrewd looks at me, clearly overhearing it.