Spot Story: Tycho Lake

[rutisensei]

Many thanks to Jenn and @iridesenescence for proofing! You two are my heroes.
 

“My eyes are a lake of stars.

I gaze upon you with eternal love.”

 

 

 

 

Chapter 1:

 

Location: Southern Tower

 

 

Akira: We’ve arrived at the Southern Tower. Today, the Southern Wizards will be heading off to Tycho Lake.

 

Rutile: Tycho Lake? You mean the one in the southeastern plains?

 

Akira: Yeah, I think that’s where it is based on this map.

 

Mitile: Tycho Lake was apparently a place that our mother really liked. I heard that’s where she and father met.

 

Akira: That sounds like a lovely story! It must be like a date spot for young couples, then. Is the lake something like a tourist attraction?

 

Figaro: Well, it’s a beautiful place, but it’s a little far off. That makes it quite difficult for humans to visit.

 

Lennox: There’s a famous poet from Central Country who traveled to the South and wrote a poem about it called “Lake of Stars”.

Chiletta’s husband was a teacher. He said he decided to set out on a journey after reading the poem to see Tycho Lake for himself.

 

Akira: “Lake of Stars”?

 

Rutile: That place is well known for having a lake that reflects the sky like a mirror. It’s a lovely dreamlike place. Did something happen there...?

 

Akira: No, we just got a request to investigate the area this time. It’s a vast and old lake, so we’re just going to check if there’s anything out of place.

 

Rutile: I see! Doing research on the place beforehand gives you peace of mind, after all. Well then, let’s go!

 

Akira: Yes!

 

Rutile: By the way, Sir Sage. You can catch phantom fish in that lake.

 

Akira: Phantom fish?

 

Rutile: It’s a fish that is as agile as it is rare. It’s also known as the soul fish. They say that eating it has an effect on wizards’ hearts.

It’ll make you feel more confident, soothed, and more passionate than usual.

 

Akira: How interesting! If we catch a soul fish while we’re there, let’s bring it back as a present for everyone!

 

 

 

Chapter 2:

 

Location: Above the Clouds

 

 

Akira: It’s been a while since we flew out from the Southern Tower. Are we about to reach our destination?

 

Figaro: We’re almost there. See, there are mountain ranges extending outwards from the dishlike form in the center.

 

Akira: You’re right... the mountains are all lined up facing that single point. They’re arranged almost like the petals of a sunflower or the blades of a windmill.

 

Rutile: Tycho Lake was formed a long time ago when a burning star stone fell down and rainwater accumulated in the crater.

 

Akira: Burning star stone... are you talking about a meteor?

 

Rutile: That’s right. Mother said that’s why it’s a land possessing great magical power and many mysterious species you can’t find elsewhere.

 

Mitile: Ah! I can see it! The lake is between the mountains, and it’s reflecting the sunlight like a mirror.

 

Akira: Now that we’re up close, it really is big!

 

Rutile: It’s huge, right? Isn’t it even bigger than the eastern forest in Blanchett and the Central Capital?

 

Akira: (Amazing... the lake shines like a jewel in the barren wasteland... how beautiful...)

 

 

 

Location: Tycho Lake

 

 

Akira: Wow! So this is Tycho Lake. The blue sky and the clouds reflect off the water like a mirror... It’s almost as if the sky is at your feet.

The lake spans to the end of your field of vision, so it seems like an infinite sky... It’s like we’re in a world of only silver clouds and the light blue heavens...

 

Rutile: The sight makes you feel like your heart is being cleansed. When night falls, it reflects the starry sky. It’s so beautiful it’ll take your breath away.

 

Mitile: There are also lots of beautiful flowers and plants! I should collect some for making magic potions.

 

Lennox: I can see some strangely colored fish. It would be fun to try fishing here.

 

Figaro: Ahaha. It’s like we’re on a holiday. I’ll go and talk to the villagers in the neighborhood. They might have some good alcohol.

 

Mitile: Dr. Figaro! Our mission for today is to investigate Tycho Lake!

 

Figaro: I know, I know. But isn’t this such a beautiful sight? It makes me want to write some poetry.

 

Lennox: You write poems?

 

Figaro: When I fancy it. “Ah, Lennox. The noble name of a man among men. Ah, Lennox, Lennox.”

 

Lennox: Are you teasing me...? Well, let’s meet back here at sunset. I’ll take Mitile with me.

 

Mitile: Got it!

 

 

 

Chapter 3:

 

Rutile: Then, come with me, Sir Sage. Shall we examine the lake’s water from above?

 

Akira: From above? Will we fly over it on your broom?

 

Rutile: Sir Snow and Sir White lent me these magic shoes! Let’s put them on and take a walk on the lake’s surface.

 

Akira: Magic shoes that let you walk on water?! C-can I try them on?

 

Rutile: Of course!

 

Akira: ......! It’s true...! You really can walk on water with these! Wow, I’m actually walking on water!

 

Lennox: You seem very impressed, Sir Sage.

 

Akira: I am! I feel like I’ve become a wizard!

 

Rutile: Ahaha! I’m glad you’re enjoying yourself.

 

Akira: Wow... I could walk on this lake forever... It’s like we’re inside a glittering dreamlike world...

 

Rutile: Mm... It’s really beautiful, isn’t it? All your worries and exhaustion just get blown away.

 

 

Option 1: I agree...

 

Akira: I agree...

 

Rutile: Sir Sage, has there been anything troubling you recently?

 

Akira: That’s not the case, no.

 

Rutile: I’m glad. Your comment felt quite sincere. If there’s ever anything bothering you, please feel free to talk to me.

 

 

Option 2: Is there anything troubling you?

 

Akira: Is there anything troubling you?

 

Rutile: Ehehe. There isn’t. I just got caught in the moment, so I said that.

 

Akira: Ahaha! That’s just like you.

 

Rutile: If there’s ever anything bothering me, I’ll go to you for advice. Please hear me out when the time comes.

 

 

Akira: By the way, you guys were talking about the poem earlier, but... What is “Lake of Stars” all about?

 

Rutile: Tadah! I actually have it written down in my notebook. May I do a live poetry reading for you? 

 

Akira: Ah, I’d love to hear it! Please let me listen to you!

 

Rutile: Alright then! Without any further ado, ahem. “Lake of Stars.”

 

“My eyes are a lake of stars.

It’s waters reflect you and your boundless joy,

With your radiant beauty overflowing to the brim.”

 

“My eyes are a lake of stars.

Were you to fall though the heavens onto a different star, 

I would continue to gaze up at you from this far away land.”

 

“Only when tears flow down your cheeks, 

Shall my eyes be clouded over with sorrow,

like an ashen lake pelted by a thousand rains.”

 

“My eyes are a lake of stars.

I gaze upon you with eternal love.”

 

 

 

Chapter 4:

 

Akira: (How wonderful... it’s a romantic poem so direct that it makes you blush...)

 

Rutile: My mother really liked this poem, and my father read it to her quite often. But what she was even more fond of was the time she would spend listening to and being enraptured by his recitals.

 

Akira: It really is lovely. I suppose she would be spellbound, listening to her beloved husband read it out to her.

 

Rutile: I heard from Mister Mithra that in the past, she had asked him to read it as well. Though, he apparently turned her down because he found it too troublesome.

 

Akira: Ahaha! That sounds just like him.

 

Rutile: But if he hadn’t thought it was too much of a bother and read the poem “Lake of Stars” to my mother...

Perhaps Mister Mithra might have ended up being my father?

 

Akira: (I-I’m not sure how to respond to that...)

 

Rutile: I think about it once in a while. Why did my mother decide to marry a human man instead of a wizard like Mister Mithra?

I don’t intend to sound discriminatory to humans, but... Wizards and witches eventually stop aging and live extremely long lives.

My mother passed away before my father, but it’s usually the human who dies first. Wouldn’t that be too lonely?

 

Akira: That’s true, isn’t it... How do you feel about it?

 

Rutile: I’m not sure. It’s a little scary. When I meet humans and get attached to them, I always worry about what will happen when time stops for my body alone and I go on to lead a long life.

I don’t think my own physical growth has stopped yet, but... When that time comes, I wonder what I will think...

 

Hearing the quiet voice Rutile is speaking in, I realize I had touched upon one of the worries that weigh down wizards.

Time moves differently for humans and wizards. Even if you were to fall in love with someone, the passage of time could tear you apart.

No matter how many smiles you share, the time to say farewell will come - as if you’re sending them off as they board a train to a far off place.

Saying goodbye would just be more heartbreaking the more precious they are to you.

 

Akira: Still, I’m sure everyone will find true happiness, the same way Rutile’s parents fell in love with each other.

 

Rutile: Sir Sage...

 

 

 

Chapter 5:

 

Rutile: You’re right... I’m sure that such a thing exists, since my parents were able to find it.

 

Seeing Rutile smile makes me picture the moment. The image of a man from the Southern Country, sitting by the lakeshore, and a witch on a broom flying towards him.

It must have been a truly wonderful meeting.

Just as how the poet who wrote “Lake of Stars” discovered true love - a love as wondrous as a glimmering lake.

 

Akira: Oh, right... I wonder who that writer was thinking of when he wrote that poem?

 

Rutile: That’s a mystery. He was a bachelor all his life, so it couldn’t have been his wife....

 

At that moment, the surface of the lake started rippling.

 

Rutile: What...

 

Hearing Rutile’s voice, I look up and follow his line of sight. The faint silhouette that I spot through the surface of the water takes my breath away.

It’s a beautiful woman, with snow-white skin and glimmering silver hair like the clouds reflected on the lake.

She breaks through the surface for a moment and dives back in, disappearing into its depths.

Her shining silver tail splashes in the water.

 

 

 

Location: Tycho Lake, Sunset

 

 
 

Figaro: You saw a mermaid?

 

Rutile: We did! You saw her too, right, Sir Sage?

 

Akira: Yes! She was incredibly beautiful!

 

Figaro: Man, I’m so jealous...

 

Lennox: Are you sure that’s what you saw? Mermaids are legendary creatures that should have gone extinct a long time ago...

 

Mitile: I heard that there was a huge dragon that was revived in the Northern Country, so maybe the mermaids have also come back!

I want to see her, too! Let’s stay here overnight and investigate!

 

Figaro: Mermaids are cautious creatures, so I don’t think she’ll come back out that easily. You saw her from a distance too, right, Rutile?

 

Rutile: No, it wasn’t from particularly nearby, but she did show herself.

 

Figaro: Huh. I wonder why...

 

 

 

Chapter 6:

 

Akira: Could it be... Maybe it was because you recited the poem?

 

Rutile: You mean “Lake of Stars”?

 

Akira: Yeah! Perhaps the poet read the poem to that beautiful mermaid.

 

Rutile: ......

 

Rutile turns to look back at the shining lake. The surface of the water remains calm, with nothing but gentle ripples created by the passing wind.

 

Rutile: ...“I gaze upon you with eternal love.” Was the poem written for her all along? Did she really believe in that kind of love?

I wonder if my mother did, too. That even if humans will always pass away sooner, the love they give you can last for an eternity...

 

A pained yet loving smile gently graces Rutile’s lips.

 

Rutile: The same way that my mother was spellbound by my father reading it to her, maybe this mermaid, after hearing the poem written for her for the first time in a while...

Perhaps, she too was enchanted, and decided to show herself to us.

 

The Southern Wizards stay silent. Both Figaro and Lennox have lived for an extremely long time, and Rutile and Mitile surely have many years ahead of them.

I wonder what their thoughts on the matter are - what they think of the poet who wrote of eternal love, and their own destinies.

 

Figaro: ...Well then, we should head home soon. Did you all survey the area properly as requested?

 

Mitile: Yes! I was able to gather the plants I was interested in, so I’ll be studying them closer when we get home.

 

Lennox: I’m also bringing back a few things. I wasn’t able to take a look around the whole area, though, so I might come back soon.

 

Rutile: I like that idea! Sir Sage, let’s come back together and take a look around again.

 

Akira: Yes, let’s do that! I hope we can encounter that mermaid again next time.

 

Rutile: Me too. Until then, let us pray that no disaster ever befalls this beautiful place.

May this lake, where my mother and father met, and where a wonderful poem of love was born, never lose its brilliance.
<< Ortonik Setomaoge >>

——

Bonus:
The “Lake of Stars”, for your viewing pleasure.