Miranda stiffened in fright before she remembered that she was invisible and she still hadn't heard a bat screech. She got the illusory butterflies to move in closer to the sculpture so she could get a better look.
At second glance, it was more of a gargoyle than a statue; minus a gutter in its mouth and the minor detail that it wasn't on the roof of a cathedral, or any roof for that matter. It was hidden miles deep inside a mountain. Trying to figure out how it might have gotten there only led to more questions than answers.
She warily flew towards the sculpture once she was certain that it wouldn't suddenly come alive. The craftsmanship on it was utterly exquisite, with great attention to detail. It was so lifelike that she wouldn't have been surprised if it suddenly turned its open eyes in her direction.
"Okay, that's a bad joke. That would be terrifying. Let's not jinx ourselves here," she immediately waved her hand and brushed the bad karma aside.
She saw that the sculpture was curved out of a material like gray limestone and sat on the rock on four of its six limbs. It looked like a grotesque version of a bat, but with an extra pair of arms. It also had long winding horns on its head but the left horn was broken. The horns lay between prominent ears that were as long as the broken horn.
Bat-like wings grew from its back and spread out as if to cage its body. A sharp claw poked out on the upper part and three other claws dug into the ground on the bottom of each wing. Claws like talons also grew from the limbs resting on the rock, sinking into it.
She stared at her own claws and thought that they were pretty cute in comparison. She flew around the sculpture and hovered before it's monstrous head. It's face might not have looked so horrifying without the grim expression marring it. It looked like a fox with a short snout and big eyes.
The sculpture was the iron-clad proof she'd needed; proof that sentient life did exist on this planet, or at least it once did. Somewhere inside her heart, she had already known it to be the case. She had known from the moment she'd seen the coniferous forest also native to Gaia.
She had thought that she would feel some sense of relief after verifying her suspicions but she was further conflicted instead. After almost two years of living a life just focusing on herself, she didn't want to go back to constantly trying to accommodate others.
She knew she was being selfish but she was satisfied with her current life. It was a life that she hadn't dared to dream of in the past. And she was happy.
Happiness.
Was she truly happy? Was the feeling of contentment she felt in her chest happiness? She couldn't say for sure but she certainly knew that didn't want the feeling to end. But how long would this happiness last if she was only ever talking with herself? She thought to herself that she'd be happy for two decades. Minimum.
Sher did offer some company and she could always talk at it, but mana AIs had never been programmed to support speech. No one appreciated having extra voices in their head and commentating at their every thought. They could only upload information to the brain, seamlessly merging with semantic memory and accessible with but a thought.
Sher had obviously dropped the ball on that since detaching from the hive-mind. It could now only send images of its environment and not much else. Well, the trade-off was worthwhile as it could grow food and man a floating island.
She hadn't been attached to anyone from her last life either, not even her ex. All her past relationships were built on benefits. She recalled her crew members and many other talented merchants that she'd worked with for decades. Maybe she would have missed them if she hadn't been a cyborg at the time.
That was all in the past.
She shook her head. She would cross that bridge once she got there. It won't be too late to decide once she found some locals. In the worst-case scenario, she would just hide on Arim on Sher island. Besides, she still needed to get more resources for Amir. Of course, getting a moon for Arim was now a pipe dream.
She had to make preparations and keep moving South. Only then would she be able to find more clues. She didn't forget that she was now four inches tall and would never fit in among humans, which was another reason why she had to head out.
She was awfully curious. Was the race of this world fairy just like her? Were they human? Or maybe something else entirely? Was the giant sculpture moulded in their own image?
She looked around the chamber for a while longer but didn't find anything else. She promptly hopped onto the gargoyle's head and pulled out a carrot twice her height. She was feeling a bit peckish.
She'd made a huge gain today and decided to head back after finishing eating. She flew back up the cave and headed towards the floating island. The sun was setting as she touched down on its ledge.
She suddenly noticed a small UFO approaching the barrier to her right. It smacked into the barrier and was bounced back. She was alarmed initially as she watched it hit the barrier again and again. She carefully approached it from the inside, keeping up her invisibility.
Upon flying closer, she noticed that it was only a small black bird, roughly her size. She was pleasantly surprised and all the tension in her body rapidly melted away. That's right. She wasn't a human anymore, nor was she a cyborg. She was a fairy, and she could damn well do as she pleased.
She couldn't help but laugh out loud, spooking the pitiful bird. It chirped and flew away in a flurry. There was no need to rush anywhere. She could already guess that Sher would slowly transform the area around them to be more suitable for her. She would then map out the area, build a base and search for more clues.
She tore all the cotton away from her body on the spot and flew all the way to Sher, humming a jovial tune. It was night-time when she alighted on the vast white tree.
The glowing forest was full of tranquility as she dashed into the hollow, diving into the pool inside head first. She splashed about and wanted to swim for longer but was too drowsy. She didn't even eat before leaping into her flower bed, and knocking out instantly.
Early the next day, she asked Sher to allow small birds that wouldn't eat her to cross the barrier. She had come to terms with the fact that she was at the bottom of the food chain due her size. She also asked it to allow other small herbivorous animals like rabbits and squirrels to enter into fairy forest.
She thought that she might as well grant all herbivores entry. What's the worst that could happen? She could definitely handle it with her invisibility and teleportation.