Kyotyoryon's eyes bulged and crawled out of their slots. Soon, drops of gray liquid emerged from them, which after a few moments solidified and fell down in the form of metal balls.
The spirit of metal resisted as best she could. Her body could no longer move, but she was not going to give up the mask that was part of her.
The doll, on the other hand, tried to remove the mask with the force of a wrench, but quickly realized that it was not enough.
"If you do not want to open your mouth, then you will not get the chicken," Sitihi said. "Open your mouth and say "yum-yum."
Kyotyoryon let out a quack roar, but she still did not intend to give up the mask. Sitihi's pupils turned purple.
"Sis said before that if you don't want to eat, the chicken will fly to the sky and take you with her," Sitihi said.
The mask moved, and then with a heart-rending bird-like cry it tore itself away from Kyotyoryon's face and stuck to the wrench...
... The blade-shaped tongue pierced Sitihi's head in an instant.
"Ouch," the doll said.
A loud roar and a loud cracking sound filled the cave. Kyotyoryon pulled her tongue out of Sitihi's forehead, and then flew back.
... A thick blue-white electric beam burst out of the hole in the ceiling and hit Sitihi. The cave was filled with a bright white light...
Kyotyoryon reached the wall and covered her face with her wings, which began to expand and soon transformed into a spherical barrier of metal scales...
Halankuo sank to the floor in an electric aura. The girl's eyes were still closed, and in her hands was the same electric clot.
"Sorry, sis," Halankuo opened one eye, and then the other.
The electric aura and the clot in her hands dissolved into thin air. Halankuo felt weak, fell to her knees and bowed her head, but despite this, she managed to examine the surrounding space a little.
... The doll's remains were scattered across the floor in different parts of the cave. Smoke was coming from the hair on her head, and her hand continued to twitch from the electric shock.
Near the wall lay a large metal ball, which Halankuo immediately recognized as her character.
"Kyotyoryon was not harmed. It's good that the "Heavenly Child" is self-guided."
But the joy did not last long. Halankuo raised her head and saw a thick gray-purple sky instead of a ceiling. The cave had turned into a crater-like structure and was now well lit even by the weak daylight.
"Aaah... this sky looks like metal from all over the continent was collected and filled with it."
Halankuo turned her gaze to the large ball, which was still lying against the wall, and saw how the metal scales that made it up began to separate from each other.
"This is the skill that was at the end of the list. I think it's called "Metallic Rain". It can only be used if you have accumulated a lot of metal, and only in open spaces."
Halankuo looked at the sky again and saw bright spots on it. They stood out so much against the gray-violet background that they looked like stars shining brightly in the night sky.
"I thought she would never be able to use this skill," Halankuo looked at the broken stones that lay on the floor a few steps away from her. "It's my fault. I completely forgot about this skill and broke the ceiling. Now I'll get what I deserve. I'm sorry, mom."
"Don't say that," the voice in my head answered. "Even if you won't be, I'll help you."
"What? Nothing can save me now. Sitihi won't have time to assemble herself. "Heavenly Child" has smashed her badly. And I don't have any more energy to defend myself. I'm sorry it happened."
Halankuo looked at the sky again and saw many bright spots on it, which grew, exploded and released many gray shiny dots into the air.
"This is some kind of metallic fireworks. It's a pity that it will end soon."
For a moment, Halankuo forgot about the danger and simply looked at the grand spectacle that was unfolding right above her. But when the gray, shiny dots took shape, the girl felt a sudden, strong attack of fear. At the last moment, Halankuo even wanted to live…
A powerful rain of metal needles fell from the sky onto the cave floor. An electric aura appeared around Halankuo, which, although it reflected the attacks, was decreasing in size with each passing moment…
"This is going to hurt a little, but don't be afraid. You'll meet your character soon."
"Mama, don't," Halankuo closed her eyes and lowered her head. "It's my own fault that this happened. I created Kyotyoryon, not you. I'll get what I deserve."
"I told you that parents should protect their children even after death. I will do it again, but for the last time."
"Mom, don't!"
"If I don't do this, you will turn into data too. This is not life, but existence. I don't want you to become like me too."
"I'll find you a body. And I'll find dad. We'll live together, like before."
"But you'll turn into data now. Your aura will disappear soon."
"Yeah, but... I want to be with you, Mom. I just found you recently, and I don't want you to disappear."
"I can't be saved anymore. When I appeared in your brain, I knew it was temporary. When something terrible happens, I will replace your data with my data, and you will survive even if you are assembled like a doll."
"Mom..."
"Don't be sad. You have a character. Take care of your metal bird so that it will never have to fly out of its cage again."
"Okay. Kyotyoryon will no longer be in the "Mausoleum of Nature ". If she doesn't want to be with me, I won't force her. But mom..."
"I have one more request. When Sitihi assembled, continue pretending to be her big sister."
… The rain of needles stopped. The metal ball opened one of the plates.
"My metal, you cut all the evl dlls…"
A girl with grey hair and short metal horns on top of her head poked out from the hole that had formed. The lower part of her face was no longer covered by a mask, and the tip of a blade hung from her mouth.
"Aaah... I have to fly away from here," the blade went into the character's mouth. "But first, I need to find the lid."
Kyotyoryon jumped out of the metal barrier onto the floor and looked around for the mask, but instead saw the head of a blue-haired doll, looking at her with bulging, shiny eyes.
"Oh, this is a doll's head, but there are no holes on it. Is it that strong?"
Kyotyoryon walked up to the head, and then lifted her leg a little. A short blade extended from the bracelet, and then landed on the doll's cheek along with the leg.
"I see," the spirit of metal lifted her leg and saw a small, narrow hole where it had been hit. "The "Metallic Rain" didn't hit her. Then why did she break?"
Kyotyoryon continued to examine the floor and noticed a multitude of metal needles in the middle of the former cave.
The spirit of metal extended her hand forward. The needles gathered in a pile and then united into a crowbar, which moved into the character's hand.
"Do you know who cut the doll?" Kyotyoryon addressed the crowbar.
The piece of metal did not answer, but the spirit understood it without words. She continued to examine the floor and soon found a head with black hair attached to a body.
"My creator," the thought flashed through Kyotyoryon's mind. "She saved me from the evil doll with the head and the shovel. My creator..."
Kyotyoryon approached the body and made sure that it was indeed her creator. Halankuo lay in a pool of red liquid, studded with long needles.
"Creator, this is not yours," Kyotyoryon extended her free hand towards the metal.
The needles that pierced Halankuo's body burst out and "stuck" to the bracelet on the character's arm.
"Creator," Kyotyoryon looked at another crowbar in her other hand, several times smaller than the first. "Before, I wanted to cut you, and I did it. Now I want..."
The spirit of metal could not continue. She felt something hard in her throat, fell to her knees and released drops of gray liquid from her eyes.
"What do you want?" Kyotyoryon heard a voice in her head.
"Who are you?" the spirit of metal tried to get up, but couldn't even move. "Why do you sound like my creator?"
"I am your creator."
"But my creator broke."
Kyotyoryon managed to turn her head and looked at Halankuo, surrounded by a white glow.
"Creator, don't disappear," drops of gray liquid fell from the eyes of the metal spirit, but instead of the floor, they fell on her chest and disappeared into a dress made of plates. "There's nothing there."
"It's strange to hear that from you. You wanted to cut me."
"I already cut you. Now I want to…"
Kyotyoryon felt something hard again, but this time in her head, and turned her gaze to the floor.
"If you want, do it," the voice in character's head answered.
"But creator, you don't even know what I want to do."
"Whatever you do, I won't be against it."
Something hard in Kyotyoryon's head disappeared. The spirit of metal looked again at her creator, who was no longer glowing. There was no trace of the wounds, needles, or red liquid.
"Creator!" Kyotyoryon released the short blades from the bracelets on her hands and rushed towards Halankuo, but then stopped a step away from her.
"My metal cannot be against my creator," Kyotyoryon looked at the bracelets and made the blades hide back. "She is good."
"Kyotyoryon, are you back?" a voice rang out next to the character.
The spirit of metal wiped away her tears with her hand and saw Halankuo's face with open eyes.
"You have also returned, creator," Kyotyoryon's mouth stretched slightly to the sides. "Were you there, where there is nothing?"
"I don't remember…" Halankuo looked to the side and saw the head of a doll with blue hair. "I dreamed that I was in your head."
"You spoke to me, but without words. You also glowed. I thought that you would disappear and go to where I was."
"So it wasn't a dream," Halankuo looked at the sky, which had become almost clear. "Mom, I'll find you, even if you're nowhere."
"I also wanted to tell you, but I couldn't," Kyotyoryon continued.
"That you want to cut me?"
"No. I already cut you. I wanted to say that... Creator, you... You..."
Kyotyoryon bowed her head, rested her hands on the floor, and then suddenly raised her head and looked at Halankuo.
"Creator, you are good."
"This is true?"
Halankuo looked at Kyotyoryon and saw that she was looking at her with her mouth open, from which the tip of a blade was sticking out.
***
Tuot opened his eyes and saw an arctic fox girl in a summer outfit, looking into the distance and beating her tail on the ground.
"She looks so much like Etinnei."
The dinosaur reached forward to take a picture, but quickly realized that he was not in the game. The arctic fox girl noticed this and looked at her friend.
"I thought you'd never wake up," Etinnei ran the sleeve of her fur top over her eyes. "But the lizards helped you."
"What lizards?" Tuot raised his head to look around.
"These were one yellow, one blue or green. They're very cute, but stupid."
Tuot looked at his elbow and imagined a small purple shield with a black symbol in its place.
"Something's wrong here," the dinosaur thought.
Tuot turned his gaze to his friend, who was sitting on her knees with her legs spread wide apart, holding her tail in one hand and a strand of hair in the other.
The next moment, the dinosaur jumped so high that it was one step away from flying, but since it could not fly, it activated the green aura and landed on its feet.
"I remembered," Tuot looked at the forest. "I summoned the blue-green lizard when I fought the doll. Where did she go?"
"She didn't say," Etinnei scratched her arctic fox ear with her hand.
"Exactly, she can't speak, like the yellow lizard."
Tuot looked at his elbow again, but this time there was a shield with a black symbol on it.
"The lizard won't be back today," the dinosaur guessed. "It has a one-day recharge. We'll have to wait."
"Tuot."
"What?"
"I think something is flying here."
Etinnei jumped aside. Tuot did not notice this and was very surprised when he saw a large burning dog with a rider on it in place of his friend.
"Etinnei, can you turn into that?"
"Of course not," a voice from the side answered. "It's too hot for me."
Tuot looked to the side and saw his playmate standing on the ground with her legs spread wide and bending over. Then the dinosaur turned his head forward and saw not a dog, but a dog girl, who was looking at him with an evil grin.
"No need, Noru..."
The man in black clothes said something in the dog girl's ear, after which she sat on her knees and began to wag her tail.
"It looks like the plan worked," Itinit said. "Recently, a message came from Halankuo. She made peace with her pet... that is, character. We will take her away soon."
"What about my creator?" Etinnei asked.
"It's better to ask her about this," Itinit pointed towards the forest.
On one of the tops of a tree fern stood a doll with long red hair, wrapped in a white translucent cloth.
Etinnei stood motionless for a few moments, and then suddenly ran forward. Noru looked at the doll, bared her teeth, and then began to burn and went into the forest.
"I wasn't wrong about choosing a spy character after all," Itinit watched the light quickly diminish. "Her abilities are well suited for this. I just didn't think Noru would be spying on her friend."
"What did you tell her?" Tuot asked. "I could already imagine her roasting me over a fire."
"Nothing special, I just promised to buy something tasty," Itinit answered, after which he turned away and mentally continued:
"Actually, I promised Noru that if she didn't attack Tuot, we would go to her little sister."
***
The railway station on the shore of the grey-blue sea seemed abandoned. A thick layer of snow covered the station building, and coniferous trees even managed to grow on the roof. A lonely rail appeared on the surface near the coastal rocks, after which it curved and headed back again.
But all this did not stop the spirit of the cold lizard. Timnichan stood on top of a thick coniferous tree, looked at the snow-covered cone-shaped mountain peaks in the distance and smiled stupidly with the tip of her blue tongue sticking out.
"Are you sure you haven't mixed up the stations?" a voice came from below.
Timnichan looked at the layer of fresh snow and saw a head of a man with brown hair sticking out of it.
"Yup, this is the same station," the lizard girl continued to smile. "Trains used to go here. My creator and I have been here many times."
"But now..."
The man didn't have time to finish his sentence. A girl's head with brown hair and black headphones with short antennas appeared from the snowdrift.
"Yueret, have you seen Kimchan?"
"Don't worry, Unana. She's too hot."
As soon as Yueret finished his sentence, the layer of snow in front of him began to rapidly decrease. Soon, the snowdrift turned into a puddle that began to boil.
"This," Yueret noted. "Kimchan will melt any snow and ice."
The bubbles on the surface of the water quickly grew. Yueret grabbed his sister's hand, and then took a step back. The next moment, a girl with brown hair and dog ears poked her head out of the hot spring.
"You were right, Yueret," Unana noted. "Kimchan will melt any snow and ice."
After a while, all three were lying in a warm puddle in the snow. Timnichan sat nearby and looked warily at the bubbles.
"Come to us, you won't get boiled," Unana suggested.
"I am the spirit of the cold lizard," Timnichan answered. "If I warm up, I will become the spirit of a warm lizard."
"Is it far from here to that place in the north?" Yueret asked.
"Yup," Timnichan looked at the snow-capped, half-forested mountains in the distance. "But it's winter now. It's dangerous to go north in winter. It's better to wait until spring."
"We'll have to wait a long time," Yueret made a snowball and threw it into the water. "It's not even midwinter yet. But it's even better this way. Unana needs to go to school."
The archer sank into the water almost up to her eyes, but because she couldn't breathe there for long, she was forced to emerge.
"That's good," Timnichan looked at the abandoned station. "The train will arrive by then. We can wait."
Unana almost went under water again. Yueret turned away so that the spirit of the cold lizard wouldn't see his smile.
Volume 3. "Mausoleum of Nature: Metallic Rain" finished