To Your Eternity (不滅のあなたへ)

In the beginning, it was an orb.

Not just any orb.

It was an orb that captured the reflections of many things,

and changed its form in response.

I decided to cast the orb upon the Earth, and observe it.

After it settled, it spent some time in the form of a rock.

As its surroundings grew warmer,

it took on the form of moss.

As time went on, snow began to fall upon the land.

In the midst of the storm,

a Reshy wolf appeared from the south.

Before long, the wolf collapsed and died.

The orb then took on the form of the wolf.

And in doing so, it became conscious.

It didn't know how to walk,

but it was soon able to replicate

-the animal's behavior. -(wolf barks)

It moved clumsily,

and it seemed to have replicated the wolf's injury as well.

So it experienced its first discomfort, its first pain.

However, it was able to recover within seconds.

It adapted quickly.

It began to walk.

As it wandered aimlessly across the landscape,

it experienced the cold of the wind and the scent

of the snow for the first time.

Joaan!

You finally came back!

Thank goodness you were safe!

You were gone for two whole months! I was so worried!

But I knew deep down inside,

that you would never forget about me!

Huh?

That's odd. You seem quieter than usual.

Wait a minute, I get it. You must be tired.

Here there were many new

and unfamiliar things to experience:

the pleasure it felt as its body temperature rose,

an unidentifiable scent.

-This was an alluring space. -(sniffs)

So alluring that if it could have spoken,

-it would have said -(fire pops)

-it wanted to -(squeals)

stay here forever.

You did it again.

I keep telling you not to go near the fire.

Alright, here's your food.

Huh?

Open up.

What?

Wait, now it makes sense.

You don't like this stuff

because it doesn't taste like horndeer milk.

Well, I can't help you with that.

Fact is, the last one around here died almost a year ago.

The fire's about to die out.

We should go to sleep before it does.

The boy, whose name it didn't know,

was the first person it met.

Every experience in this world was brand new.

It's never gonna dry if it keeps snowing.

This wood from Auntie's place isn't gonna burn well.

I have no right to complain

when I'm taking other people's things.

I know. And I'm sorry.

I suppose everyone will be angry with me when they get back.

But what choice is there, really?

I have to do this or I won't survive.

They'll come back, you know!

It's been five years since they left.

That's not very long.

They're past that far point on the horizon,

way, way in the distance.

They kept telling me that there's lots

of food and people there.

It's true. They all believed it.

You know what else?

They told me it's just like paradise. Can you imagine?

There's plenty of fish,

and lots of tasty stuff they called fruit, I think.

There are tons of people who are way smarter than we are,

and they all live happily together every day.

I'm so jealous. I wish I could've gone with them.

Do you remember what happened?

I was all set to travel with the grown-ups,

but I never made it.

You're the one who stopped me.

You bit my leg, you stinker,

so they told me I had to stay behind

and watch over Grandma and all the other old folks.

That wasn't very fair, huh?

They said they'd be back with gifts

for me once they found paradise.

That's what they promised. And of course I believe 'em.

Do you remember when they all said that?

The only ones who stayed behind

were all the old folks I couldn't save, and us.

Huh?

Joaan!

Please let it be them.

Welcome home!

I was playing with you. It's actually a fish!

Alright! We haven't caught one this big in ages!

Here's your share, my friend.

What do you say we eat the rest of it raw? It'll save wood!

Hm?

What's wrong? That part's your favorite!

Have you forgotten how to eat or something?

Like this!

You put it in your mouth and chew!

Mmm.

You see?

There you go! I knew you could eat it.

Hm?

Ah!

These two are my Uncle and Auntie.

And here's my older cousin and his kids,

and the hairy guy from across the street.

And this is the lady next door.

Looks just like her, huh?

I just wanted to make it clear

that there were people who actually lived here.

I didn't wanna forget them.

Joaan, I'm thinking of leaving this place.

I wanna meet different people,

and have all sorts of new feelings.

I'm sure some of it will be bad, and scary, too.

But even so, I still wanna learn about the world.

Of course you're coming with me.

I can't see the ocean anymore.

I've never really come this far before.

According to my uncle, I need to head due south.

The way he described it,

I turn my back to my house and just walk straight.

You can't see it just yet,

but eventually, there'll be a huge mountain in front of us.

And past that, is paradise!

What do you say, let's keep going until it gets dark.

Huh? What's that?

It's a message!

It's gotta be for people like me,

who are traveling to paradise!

It says I'm heading in the right direction.

I knew it was the right thing to do!

See, Joaan? Aren't you glad we made this journey?

Yeah! It's gonna be a great adventure!

Do you have any idea what vegetables are?

Apparently I ate some of them a long time ago,

but I don't remember them at all.

And then there are the round, sweet things called fruit.

I asked my uncle what sweet was like.

He tried to describe it,

but it never really made much sense to me.

I can't wait to try it, though.

I'm so excited!

It'll be freedom like I've never known it before!