Desert
Episode 1
Sanae
Past the station, through the tunnels.
Sanae
We thought we were just going on a little adventure.
Sanae
We thought we were just taking our little secret a bit further, the two of us strolling along together.
Sanae
Past the station, through the tunnels. So many unfamiliar sights. Our hearts raced at the thought of what was to come.
Sanae
I kept telling myself we were safe. That one more step couldn't hurt.
Sanae
We were in the Youkai Mountain. Moriya territory. My own backyard.
Sanae
But I was forgetting something important.
Sanae
We were in Gensokyo. Even if you live here, even if you know the land...
Sanae
You never know what strange things are lurking around the corner. Like...
Reimu
...Who's the kid?
I-It's...
Sanae
Miss Reimu?!
Sanae
Suddenly running into someone you know in a place that's supposed to be deserted.
(Wh-Why's Reimu here?!)
(Sanae. What about Sanae―?)
(She's frozen!)
Sanae
...Huh?!
Sanae
Careful, careful. Be cool, Sanae. Right, Gensokyo's a mysterious place, after all.
Sanae
Wait and see?! But it's Reimu!
Sanae
Reimu
What are you two whispering about?
Sanae
Nothing! We're whispering about nothing!
Reimu
If you're gonna lie, at least lie well. Honestly, sneaking out of the base like that.
Reimu
So, what are you doing all the way out here? If you lie to me again, I'll―
Sanae
I was looking for a lost kid!
Reimu
A lost kid?
You mean me?
Reimu
Hate to break it to you, but the "lost kid" looks as confused as I am.
Sanae
S-Sorry!
Sanae
Ahem. Don't be like that, Miss Reimu. A lost kid would never admit they're lost.
Sanae
If you saw an old man wandering around and they said...
Sanae
I'm not lost, ya whippersnapper!
Sanae
You wouldn't believe them, right?
Reimu
I suppose old people do get kinda forgetful. A bit like kids. Maybe you're right.
Reimu
But could a lost kid really make it all the way out here?
Sanae
Well, this little one did. What more proof do you need?
Reimu
That's a circular argument, and you know it.
Reimu
But whatever. Let's just head back.
Reimu
We've still got tons of work left.
Reimu
And that kid must be tired.
(Does she...)
(Not know who I am?)
Reimu
She's your responsibility now. Got that?
Reimu
Geez, patrolling the base is hard enough already. The least you could do is pull your weight, Sanae.
Sanae
Looks like we managed to bluff our way through.
Hey, Sanae.
I think that Reimu...
Sanae
We can't be sure of anything yet.
Sanae
But from the way she treated us...
Sanae
I have a feeling whatever you were about to say is right.
I wonder what base she's talking about.
Sanae
Sounds like she came straight from it.
Sanae
If she meant Hakurei Shrine, she would've just said so.
Sanae
Especially since she seems to think I'm one of her allies.
That was quick thinking, Sanae.
Sanae
Teehee, I'd make a good actress, right?
Sanae
I'm starting to think this is... *gulp*
Sanae
Another world.
Sanae
I don't know how Miss Reimu will react if she finds out we're not who we say we are.
Sanae
So for now, let's keep up the act.
Reimu
Hey, you two. Quit blabbering and try to keep up.
Sanae
OK, we're right behind you!
Sanae
Time to explore beyond the station. This is pretty much what we were gonna do anyway!
Past the station, through the tunnels.
We thought we were just going on a little adventure.
We thought we were just taking our little secret a bit further, the two of us strolling along together.
Past the station, through the tunnels. I held her hand, excited to see her face light up.
I kept telling myself we were safe. That nothing out of the ordinary would happen.
After all, we were in Gensokyo, the place we call home.
But I was forgetting something important.
In Gensokyo, anything is possible.
Which means you never know what surprises lurk around the next corner. Like...
Sanae
All right, let's see what it's like outside the station.
Sanae
...
Sanae
Umm...
Sanae
Where are we?
Reimu
Duh, Gensokyo. Why're you asking such a silly question?
Reimu
You two were just standing around, gawking at this place.
Sanae
No, no, no. We were inside the station and then...
Sanae
Huh?
Sanae
Where'd the station go?
Sanae
All I can see...
Sanae
Is this desert!
Strange things occur in Gensokyo. But I never imagined the station would vanish...
And be replaced by a massive desert.
Episode 2
Sanae
Umm, Miss Reimu? Let's see, how should I put this...?
Sanae
...
Sanae
We were in a station just now, right?
Reimu
Station? What station?
Reimu
You two were standing out here in the dust, spacing out.
Reimu
There's no station out here.
Reimu
Believe me, I wish there was.
Reimu
But that doesn't mean there is one.
Reimu
...So you two are the same as the others. It makes sense I found you here.
Reimu
C'mon, follow me. I won't harm you or anything.
Sanae
...OK.
Does that mean...?
This really is...?
Sanae
Sanae
Urgh, how much further to this base?
Reimu
Less whining, more walking. If you ACTUALLY got lost out here, you'd be screwed.
Umm...
Sanae
Haha... We sure would be.
Reimu
...
Reimu
Fine. I suppose we can chat as we go.
Reimu
That'll help you relax, huh?
Reimu
Come to think of it, there really isn't that much for us to talk about.
Sanae
No way. I'm sure there's plenty of stuff.
Sanae
Like why you're here. Or where here even is.
Reimu
You realize those are impossible questions, right?
What d'you mean?
Reimu
How to put this...
Reimu
Put simply, this is my home. Nothing special about it.
Reimu
Wouldn't you be stuck if someone suddenly asked you to explain your hometown?
Y-You're right!
Reimu
Wow, thanks for actually agreeing.
Sanae
That reminds me, there's something else I wanted to ask.
Sanae
Was my acting really so bad that you figured us out right away?
Reimu
Your acting was fine. It just lacked substance.
Reimu
And I don't mean it was, like, shallow. I mean you didn't have the background knowledge to back it up.
Reimu
You looked like you've never seen a desert before. That kinda gave the game away.
Sanae
Hmm, you're sharper than I thought.
Reimu
Hey, don't be cheeky. Although that reminds me of the Sanae I know.
Reimu
I hate to admit it, but in a way, you're right. I wasn't always this perceptive.
Reimu
We can go into all that later, though. For now, I'll get you up to speed.
Reimu
Like I said before, I don't have that much to say. Everything around us seems normal to me.
Reimu
This desert is our Gensokyo.
Reimu
It's been stretched out. Now, it goes on and on.
Reimu
No flowers, no grass, nothing.
How was it stretched out?
Reimu
It'll be quicker to show you.
Reimu
We're almost there.
Sanae
Is that...?
Reimu
Yep. That's our base.
Reimu
It's one of the scattered oases. And also our home.
Reimu
Someday, we'll all leave it behind.
Reimu
Welcome to Human Village District 19.
Reimu
C'mon. It's small, but you're welcome here.
Episode 3
Sanae
Human Village?
District 19?
Reimu
I should probably start from there, huh? Let's walk and talk.
Reimu
It'll make more sense if you experience it for yourselves.
Sanae
Huh... This feels kinda familiar.
Reimu
So your village looks like this, too?
Sanae
Yeah. It's nothing special. Just everyone living together peacefully.
Sanae
In that sense, this village doesn't seem any... Huh?
Sanae
It ends here?
Sanae
The village is behind us.
Sanae
And in front of us, an endless desert.
Feels like it got cut off halfway.
The rest should be right here.
Reimu
You're right. It should be.
Reimu
That's what I meant.
Reimu
Our Gensokyo has been stretched out.
Reimu
That's what you're seeing.
Reimu
I don't know how many times bigger it is than your Gensokyo. But it's a lot.
*confused look*
Reimu
Hmm, let me explain it with an example.
Reimu
Take udon noodles. You know how they're made, right?
By kneading the dough?
Reimu
That's where it starts.
Sanae
Teehee, there's a lot more to it than just kneading.
Sanae
How're you supposed to slurp up one big ball of dough?!
Reimu
So what's the next step?
Sanae
Easy. You take the dough and...
Sanae
Stretch it out.
Sanae
Wait. Are you saying what I think you're saying?
Sanae
That Gensokyo is the dough.
Sanae
And to make it into udon, you need to stretch it out. That would mean...
Reimu
You figured that out on your own? Impressive. I should mention, I heard about all this from someone else.
Reimu
There are ways to screw up the dough, right?
Reimu
If you don't add enough water, the color might be off. You might even get little clumps of dry flour.
Reimu
I guess some people might like it that way... but that's beside the point.
Reimu
Once you roll out standard udon dough, it comes together evenly. And once you eat it, none of that matters anyway.
Sanae
Yeah, but this is noodles we're talking about.
Reimu
I know. And it's only an analogy.
Sanae
So you're saying that the Human Village didn't stretch out properly, so now, it's in "clumps," spread across the desert.
Reimu
I take back my sarcasm from earlier. You're actually pretty smart.
Heh heh!
Reimu
I wasn't talking to you...
Sanae
Heh heh!
Reimu
...
Sanae
Ahem. So, uhh... what's the deal with the desert?
Reimu
That's not really my area of expertise. But it's not too hard to imagine.
Reimu
When you force the dough to stretch, those clumpy parts of Gensokyo get pulled apart, and empty spaces appear.
Reimu
Empty spaces, in other words, spaces where nothing exists.
Reimu
But there's no way they can be completely empty, right?
Reimu
After all, you can't stretch nothing. There has to be some dough holding everything together.
Reimu
But I'm guessing it's been stretched as thin as possible.
Reimu
The result is this desert.
Reimu
Again, I didn't come up with any of this myself. It's like a retelling of someone else's best guess.
Reimu
So take it all with a big pinch of salt.
Reimu
What really matters is―
???
That humans can't live in the desert.
???
Prosperity is impossible here. Though whether human prosperity is good or bad for us is another question.
???
Still, losing them would be a problem. At their core, humans exist to multiply.
???
That's one thing that sets them apart from us youkai.
Reimu
Oh, I was just about to come and see you. It's rare for you to venture this far.
???
Things are just getting started. I need to get used to moving around.
Y-You're...
???
Allow me to introduce myself.
Yuuka
I'm Yuuka. Yuuka Kazami. A humble professor, not wholly unwilling to be your friend.
Yuuka
I extend my hospitality to you. Though not for your sake. For ours.
Yuuka
Think of this as a recruitment drive.
Yuuka
Perhaps that was a little blunt. I was never a smooth talker.
Yuuka
I live for my research, and my research alone.
