OWARI NO CHRONICLE - Volume 14, 13: Noah’s Ark

Volume 14, Chapter 13: Noah’s Ark

 

I made a promise

And I will keep it

Even if I had not made the promise

I would keep it

Automaton Noah supported Mikoku in the corridor.

She used her gravitational control to hold Shino’s body in the air.

“Mikoku-sama.”

The person she spoke to had lost consciousness.

Her condition was due to exhaustion and the hits she had taken from Sayama.

She had been bearing with it, but she had suddenly found herself unable to continue on.

That was why she had lost consciousness.

Noah was already carrying out the instructions Mikoku had given her.

And Noah herself had been given another command.

This command had been given to her long ago by her creator.

“————”

She recalled the past.

She thought back to so very long ago when she had been surrounded by everything.

December 24, 2005

Noah remembered it. She even remembered the dates.

“Before” December 25, 1986

In the world named Top-Gear, she had been created for the coming new world. She was meant to protect the world filled with residents of the other Gears once Top-Gear had subjugated those other worlds.

She was an ark that protected the Concept Cores which supported the world and, even if the other Gears opposed them with their own Concept Cores, she could easily subjugate them and protect the people from the spreading flames of war.

She was a boat of salvation equipped with a facility for creating concepts so that she could oppose any and all threats and, more importantly, so she could give the people a life of plenty.

She had been guaranteed all capabilities and had been given every kind of power.

However, she had a single flaw.

For some reason, she had been unable to create concepts in Top-Gear.

Her creator seemed to have realized why.

“Before” September 12, 1988

In addition to the research and development of the concept creation facility, a plan was underway to increase Noah’s knowledge and abilities.

She would learn the knowledge, history, and combat techniques of UCAT and every Gear.

“Before” October 10, 1988

When mastering the Nagata-style techniques, she met a girl named Tatsumi who was the family’s heir.

She sparred with the girl a few times to confirm her skills, but the girl would get oddly angry when Noah held back so as not to injure her.

“Before” December 24, 1988

Her creator had a child. The child moved back and forth between the two sexes and her name included “life” in its meaning.

A friend of her creator’s back in Low-Gear apparently had a child as well.

Two children were born on the night before the celebration of the holy one’s birth.

Her creator commented that two holy ones had been born.

December 23, 2005

Noah remembered another child born that year.

That child was Mikoku.

“Before” July 14, 1989

Alex brought a crying Tatsumi to see the mechanical dragon takeoff and landing zone.

“What is justice?” Alex asked. “I wonder if I have my own version of it inside me.”

“Before” November 3, 1990

Noah asked her creator a question.

“Am I a failure? Is that why I can’t create the concepts? Over.”

Both of her creators told her that was not the case.

Based on her statistical analysis if human facial patterns, their expression at the time was a mixture of troubled and joyful.

“Before” November 5, 1990

Noah became painfully aware that some percentage of her giant body was wasted space.

She often suggested giving up on the concept creation facility and instead building more residential space for people to live. She had suggested building the facility known as a church, just like the one her creator had built.

She liked the ringing of the bell.

Its ring was a fluctuating sort of data that she could not create with her synthetic electronic sounds and it was much louder than other musical instruments.

It was ideal.

It made a unique sound that no one else could emulate and it also carried far into the distance.

“Before” March 25, 1991

Noah wanted to be like that.

However, she had a flaw. Her concept creation facility was theoretically complete, but it would not function properly for some reason.

She had nothing that only she could do.

She had the Concept Cores corresponding to the ten Gears, but the other Gears had those as well.

A great many people could be evacuated into her residential areas and she could act as a final stronghold in an emergency, but she did not want to make use of that power.

“Before” September 18, 1991

“I want to do something good. Over.”

Noah knew that Top-Gear would invite Low-Gear to Top-Gear once the world’s time of destruction arrived.

Low-Gear contained reservations for the other Gears. At the meeting between Top-Gear and Low-Gear representatives, some had said the Gear reservations needed to be informed of Top-Gear’s existence and a plan to deal with them had to be determined before the time of destruction arrived.

“Before” January 10, 1992

Low-Gear’s representative agreed to reveal the truth in order to keep the other Gears from joining the concept war between Top-Gear and Low-Gear.

They agreed to do so by three years before the time of destruction which was April of 1996.

“Before” March 10, 1992

Her creator’s child was apparently being bullied at kindergarten.

Noah could not go outside.

Mikoku had cried because she had not been able to protect Noah’s creator’s child.

Noah had no way to help, but she learned that Mikoku was a kind child.

Mikoku’s parents had made a certain expression. Noah statistically determined it was a slight smile.

“Before” March 20, 1993

Noah gained a single joy.

The concept creation facility was remade and the negative concepts were to be created.

Low-Gear would reveal Top-Gear’s existence in April of 1996, so it was expected refugees from the other Gears would arrive then. With “stiff” expressions, the higher ups had decided Top-Gear had to prove its superiority by building a place for any Low-Gear residents that arrived.

Noah was overjoyed.

Her creator also made a “stiff” expression, but the creation facility inside Noah was remade and – theoretically – all of the flaws had been dealt with.

“Before” December 25, 1993

One more thing was added to the creation facility: a bell.

The bell would indicate the completion of the concept creation. It would inform everyone that the world had changed.

This was something only Noah had.

She wanted to try ringing it right away.

This was hers alone. It was the physical proof of something only she could do.

“Before” February 18, 1994

Noah had a thought.

“Is it still not time for the world? Over.”

Was it still not time for the worlds to gather?

Was it still not time for the world to change?

Helping that along was something only she could do.

Creating, protecting, and supporting the beginning, ending, and everything afterwards was her job.

The great army inside her was to reach out if someone reached their hand into the sky.

The great armor outside her was to protect any precious people trembling in fear.

“Is it still not time for the world? Over.”

“Before” April 18, 1994

Mikoku and Noah’s creator’s child played a lot with the daughter of the Tamiya family.

Her creator’s child dressed as a boy outside but as a girl inside Noah.

“Before” December 24, 1995

The ending came suddenly.

Noah did not known exactly what was happening.

Theoretically, her concept creation facility should have been perfect, but for some reason, she lost control of the negative concepts being created and they began to activate.

“Before” December 24, 1995

It happened in an instant.

In that instant, Top-Gear was flipped toward the negative side.

By the time Noah worked to suppress the negativity by surrounding it in the positive concepts, the number of survivors was only in the triple digits.

The only survivors were those who had been lucky enough to be wearing anti-concept equipment at the time, so they were all scientists, their families, or soldiers in training.

“Before” December 25, 1995

Noah and the researchers worked to control the negative concepts.

However, those people collapsed and then the enemy arrived. Enemies had arrived from Low-Gear to destroy Noah.

Noah feared those enemies.

She had great power to defend herself or to protect the new world.

However, the people of Low-Gear were also those she was meant to protect. Also, Low-Gear contained the residents of many other Gears, so losing them would be a problem for the people behind them.

“Before” December 25, 1995

Noah asked her creator a question.

“What am I supposed to do? Over.”

Her creator replied while holding her child.

“Don’t worry.”

She then asked a question.

“Do you remember the song I taught you?”

Noah answered that she did remember. Yes, it remained in her memory.

December 24, 2005

Noah recalled what her creator had said.

“Before” December 25, 1995

“You are probably going to be alone, but the time is sure to come when you will become a creator. The time will come when you will know you should change the world.”

Noah could not believe it. Top-Gear was being destroyed, so that was not a possibility she could believe in.

But this woman was one of her creators. It would make sense for her to know things that Noah did not. More importantly, she had been the one to create that church bell and Noah’s intermediary terminal was modeled after her.

“Before” December 25, 1995

“If you have changed the world, you can sing the song I taught you. That song praises the birth of a holy person, so it’s an appropriate song for the creation of a new world. So…if you ever finish singing that song, please ring the bell. Ring the bell that signals the arrival of a new world.”

“Understood,” replied Noah. “Over,” she added.

“Before” December 25, 1995

After that, her creators invited in a Low-Gear man and left her.

When her creator left, she spoke so only Noah could hear.

“Take care of the new world.”

Noah agreed to do so.

“Before” December 25, 1995

The only Top-Gear residents in range of Noah’s scans were her creator and her creator’s child.

Noah determined even her creator had little time left.

The end was coming for the people who had created her.

It would not be surprising if that meant the ending had come for her, their creation, as well.

“Before” December 25, 1995

Noah was enveloped in light and closed off her consciousness as she felt the end arrive.

“Before” December 25, 1995

Noah stopped her clock at December 25, 1995 11:59 PM.

December 24, 2005

The automaton named Noah had records of the time before she had reactivated the day before.

Her main body had been active and experienced that time.

However, time had remained stopped for her herself, so she only needed to add about ten years.

After all, she had yet to fulfill a certain command.

That was something only she could do.

“Before” December 25, 1995

Her creator spoke to her.

“Take care of the new world.”

December 24, 2005

Winged Noah’s clock was stopped at December 25, 1995 11:59 PM.

December 25, 2005

Noah recalled what had happened after being dropped into the void.

Unknown

How much?

Unknown x10000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000…

How much time had passed?

Unknown x10000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000…

The positive concepts were no longer within Noah.

Unknown x10000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000…

The negative concepts had not stopped activating.

Unknown x10000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000…

Time passed and more time passed.

Unknown

At one point, something higher than Noah’s sleeping consciousness activated. Even when greater than 99% of her functionality was asleep, some preservation functions remained active and they attempted to record what her sight devices saw without waking her.

December 25, 210050077 BC

She saw the sky.

This was not her main consciousness. It was her unsleeping subconscious in her nerve terminals. They left her consciousness to awaken naturally and simply recorded everything that happened.

The earth, sky, and ocean were there.

There were forests, mountains, and winds. The stars and the sun swapped out in the sky as day and night came and went.

December 25, 8331 BC

Finally, an unnatural change occurred near the inland sea visible in the distance.

People had begun to move.

December 25, 6698 BC

A village was formed and lots of people were visible.

There were only about one hundred of them, but it was far more than zero.

December 25, 2517 BC

The village grew larger.

December 25, 1865 BC

The number of people grew even more once they built boats to catch lots of fish.

Small-scale conflicts broke out from time to time, but it was not enough to produce any deaths.

December 25, 1032 BC

People started living on the neighboring plains and mountains.

The terminal consciousness on the surface could not access Noah’s massive collection of knowledge, so it did not know where this was.

It knew this was some kind of world because there were people, but it did not know what world it was.

“Before” December 25, 1995

Her creator spoke to her.

“Take care of the new world.”

December 25, 1032 BC

However, Noah’s terminal consciousness realized that this was not a new world at all.

It was Low-Gear.

It did not know how this could be Low-Gear.

Regardless, the geography and weather were identical to those in the records, so this had to be that old world.

It did not know why, but this was Low-Gear.

“Before” December 25, 1995

Her creator spoke to her.

“Take care of the new world.”

December 25, 1995

Noah’s creator had told her to make the new world herself.

Noah would not wake until then.

December 25, 58

Finally, the village disappeared and was remade.

December 25, 423

Conflict arrived and it was built again.

December 25, 795

It grew.

December 25, 1018

Large wooden ships travelled to the city.

December 25, 1241

The ground was smoothed off, roads were built, and…

“————”

December 25, 1580

Noah awoke slightly.

When a castle was built inland, she heard the ringing of a bell.

December 25, 1612

However, the ringing soon stopped and only Noah’s surface continued recording.

She was inside a concept space.

No one came to visit her.

However, her terminal consciousness found a sudden visitor at one point.

December 25, 1911

It was a one-armed man.

Something remembered him.

That something was the terminal consciousness near the elevator bulkhead door toward her stern, which was now her bottom.

That terminal consciousness had once welcomed him in.

The small thought circuits of the terminal consciousness did not know what that meant, but her creator had given her instructions long ago.

When he arrived on a mechanical dragon, she was to let him inside.

And so Noah’s terminal consciousness let him inside.

It had been a long time since she had last carried out one of her creator’s commands.

He looked slightly surprised when she flashed her lights as a greeting.

“Are you welcoming me in? You are…as nice as always.”

According to her records, he had searched inside her and she had footage of him bowing his head toward a dropped sword.

From there, a small series of events began.

1911+

He visited a few more times. Her terminal consciousness could open and close the door, but she could not hold a conversation because her consciousness had not woken.

But after a short period of time, he stopped visiting.

December 24, 1983

However, something strange happened.

The one-armed man visited again, except he had both arms and had grown younger.

Noah’s terminal consciousness did not know what to make of it.

Also, something even more incomprehensible happened.

Her creator visited with the formerly one-armed man and she too had grown younger.

Her terminal consciousness welcomed the two of them in.

Her own consciousness had not woken, but the two of them had searched through her and been amazed.

Her internal terminal consciousness had been a bit happy because it felt like they were praising her.

However, they only visited for a short time.

At one point, they stopped visiting, and…

December 24, 1995

“—————”

All of a sudden, Noah’s consciousness nearly woke.

The negative concepts were throbbing inside her.

She sensed danger.

There were two dangers.

First, she was worried she would be unable to entirely contain the negative concepts if they fully activated.

Second, a full inspection of her external records revealed that she was indeed in Low-Gear and she did not know why.

She was in the Gear that had destroyed Top-Gear.

However, she did not fully wake. After all, this was not the new world.

“Before” December 25, 1995

Her creator spoke to her.

“Take care of the new world.”

December 24, 1995

While still not fully awake, Noah worked at analyzing her data.

She read through the massive piles of data, linked it together, and detected similar pieces of information, but she still did not wake.

She still had no one to be her master.

Also, she could not accomplish her goal.

“Before” December 25, 1995

Her creator spoke to her.

“Take care of the new world.”

She was told to ring her bell.

She had the bell and she wanted to ring it.

But could she create a new world?

“Before” August 10, 1990

She often played shiritori with her creator. It was meant to increase her vocabulary.

That was where she learned the word “goal”. A “goal” was something to be accomplished and “means” were used to accomplish it. One had a goal because they had the means.

December 24, 1995

So Noah had a thought.

“I will create a new world.”

Was that the means or the goal?

She did not know.

She did not know because she had no reason.

But when she searched, she found a reason.

“Before” November 5, 1990

She liked the ringing of the bell.

It made a unique sound that no one else could emulate and it also carried far into the distance.

“Before” March 25, 1991

Noah wanted to be like that.

“Before” December 25, 1993

One more thing was added to the creation facility: a bell.

The bell would indicate the completion of the concept creation. It would inform everyone that the world had changed.

This was something only Noah had.

She wanted to try ringing it right away.

This was hers alone. It was the physical proof of something only she could do.

“Before” December 25, 1995

Her creator spoke to her.

“Take care of the new world.”

She was told to ring her bell.

“Before” December 25, 1993

She wanted to try ringing it right away.

“Before” December 25, 1993

She wanted.

“Before” December 25, 1993

Wanted.

December 24, 1995

What only she could do became her “goal”.

December 24, 1995

Her creator’s command became the “means” to accomplish her “goal”.

Her means and her goal were the creation of a new world and the ringing of the bell.

Goal. Goal. Goal. Lilac. Cosmos. Snapdragon. Oh, that ended on an “n”.

She had messed up like that a lot in the past too.

“Before” August 16, 1992

Noah’s creator rubbed her head.

She asked her creator why she was being praised for losing a game of shiritori.

“You like the names of flowers, don’t you?”

When she agreed, her creator gave her an illustrated encyclopedia of flowers.

She opened it in order to learn the names and not mess up anymore, but she became fascinated by the shapes of the flowers.

“Before” August 19, 1992

This time, she lost with dandelion.

She was praised regardless.

December 24, 1995

Noah reconfirmed that her creator’s command was the “means” to accomplish her “goal”.

December 24, 1995

With her creator gone and Top-Gear, the base of the new world, also gone, that command took top priority.

She had been tasked with creation.

She wanted to create.

But, she thought. What am I supposed to do?

But at one point, the world suddenly grew a lot noisier.

October 27, 2003

The Concept Cores she could sense in this world began to move and demonstrate their power.

It mostly happened to the east, but…

March 29, 2005

She sensed that power to the west, near what would have been Mount Hyono on Top-Gear’s map.

July 24, 2005

She sensed more of that power near Kurashiki.

March 29, 2005

Once, a helicopter passed by near her.

May 11, 2005

Noah thought she might be able to do it.

“Before” December 25, 1993

She wanted to try ringing it right away.

May 11, 2005

If someone gathered the positive Concept Cores, they would activate them and send them out of control, but wouldn’t that mean releasing the activated concepts and remaking this world?

December 24, 2005

The result she had hoped for had arrived the night before.

Three survivors of Top-Gear had visited her with all of the positive Concept Cores.

They had not been her creator, but they had been worth listening to.

They had all remembered her and she had remembered them.

Strangely, despite so much time having past, the three of them had only aged by about ten years.

However, it really had been them.

One of them, Mikoku, had asked her to do something.

While holding Tamiya Shino’s remains, she had asked Noah to bring the girl back to life.

“Before” December 25, 1995

Her creator spoke to her.

“Take care of the new world.”

She was told to ring her bell.

“Before” December 25, 1993

She wanted to try ringing it right away.

December 24, 1995

Noah reconfirmed that her creator’s command was the “means” to accomplish her “goal”.

December 23, 2005

I see, thought Noah in front of Mikoku.

Yes, she also thought.

“A new world, you mean? Over.”

To bring everything back to life would be to bring her creator and everyone else back to life.

Was this why her creator had tasked her with creation?

Noah agreed and the philosopher’s stone creation was sure to go well.

The concept creation facility worked properly and it contained all of the original positive Concept Cores. She could sense that she would be able to create a concept without them activating beyond control.

However…

December 23, 2005

Someone stopped her “means” and “goal”.

They were from Low-Gear’s UCAT and they were the children of those who had destroyed Top-Gear long ago.

If she was stopped, she could not return the world to its original form.

If she was stopped, she could not sing her song or ring her bell.

She could have resurrected everything that had been lost, so why was Low-Gear interfering again?

December 23, 2005

Noah did not like this.

This was what only she could do.

She silently begged them not to stop what her creator had asked her to do.

December 24, 2005

But she was stopped after all. She was unable to pull the bell’s cord.

Fortunately, she had regained accurate data on the positive Concept Cores and she knew that the concept creation facility would work properly.

December 24, 2005

Currently, Noah was creating the positive Concept Cores inside herself.

Once that was complete, she could combine them with the negative Concept Cores and create the resurrection concept.

She would not let anyone get in her way.

Creation was the task given to her by her creator. Once everything was resurrected, everything she was to protect would return.

Anyone who would get in her way was her creator’s enemy and would essentially erase what she was to protect.

December 24, 2005

So Noah entered combat mode.

She knew who her enemy was: this world’s UCAT.

It would be okay.

Everyone would disappear regardless when she created the resurrected world.

She would first destroy the world and secure her safety. If she could then bring everything back to life, she could create a happy world where everyone was equal.

“It will be okay. Over.”

December 24, 2005

Noah muttered the words her creator had spoken to her.

“Before” December 25, 1995

Her creator spoke to her.

“Take care of the new world.”

December 24, 2005

Noah thought about Mikoku.

That girl had solidified her goal for her.

She had been unable to protect that girl in the past, but the girl had still come to rely on her.

“Before” December 25, 1995

Her creator spoke to her.

“Take care of the new world.”

December 23, 2005

Mikoku asked her to do something.

While holding Tamiya Shino’s remains, she asked Noah to bring the girl back to life.

December 23, 2005

Noah replied.

“A new world, you mean? Over.”

December 23, 2005

It all fit together.

Her goal, her means, her desire, and what she should do all fit together.

The destruction of Top-Gear had split everything apart and made it uncertain, but after so much time had passed, it had been brought together by her creator, herself, and Mikoku.

December 24, 2005

Noah moved forward.

Mikoku was her current master, her creator’s command lay at the foundation of it all, and she would fulfill her own and Mikoku’s desires.

Mikoku would be able to resurrect the world.

Noah would be able to ring her bell.

December 24, 2005

Winged Noah’s clock was stopped at December 25, 1995 11:59 PM.

December 24, 2005

If she rang her bell, would her time begin to move once more?

No, if she changed the world, the world would be utterly remade.

She too would disappear, but…

“I will have moved from stopped to ‘disappearing’. Over.”

When that time came, she could ring her bell.

December 24, 2005

Noah held Mikoku in her arms.

She had made up her mind.

She understood what she should do, so she gave the command to her main body.

Her entire body went through its greatest evolution and all of her armaments and armor were deployed.

She used her greatest speed to reach this world’s UCAT headquarters where her greatest enemy would be.

She would not let them escape.

With her speed, it would take less than half an hour to travel from Osaka to the mountains of Tokyo.

She would destroy them to keep them silent and then bring everyone back to life.

That was what only she could do.

And…

“We can all be together. Over.”

In the new world, they could all gather below the ringing bell.

Her creator, her enemies, and everyone else could all be together.

December 24, 2005

Noah continued on.

She flew through the night sky to tune the world that was worn down from all it had lost.

She then realized that enemies were fast approaching from behind using the original Concept Cores as weapons.

The enemy is here, she sadly thought.

She would prefer not to lose them if possible, but…

“————”

They approached.

December 24, 2005

This was Noah’s first battle after passing through such vast spans of time.

She shifted into combat mode.

December 24, 2005

Noah spoke while carrying Mikoku and Shino to her bow.

“Awaken, my two servants. The enemy is here.”

December 24, 2005

Noah changed her main body’s name to what her combat form had been designated when it was designed.

She was now the great dragon that enveloped the entire world and fought to protect it.

She was the Leviathan.