Sinoa

Ranzal: The hell was that?!
Euden: It sounded like an explosion!
Ranzal: Well, that's a piece'a bad news. I'm gonna go check it out.
Sinoa: Please stay back! If anything was damaged, I'm happy to pay for the repairs!
Euden: Uh...where did she come from?
Sinoa: I know my room is a little smoky—er, and filled with rubble and a couple of fires—but I have some VERY important equipment in there, so please stay out!
Ranzal: All right, all right. We'll stay back. Er, but what happened here, anyway?
Sinoa: Oh, just a little mishap with one of my current experiments. All I was doing was trying to distort time and space, and then...boom.
Euden: Sorry, did she say she was distorting time and space?
Ranzal: Don't ask me—that stuff's way too far from swingin' steel for my taste.
Sinoa: *sigh* I knew you wouldn't understand. No one ever does. Anyway, all it means is that the experiment failed this time, too. It's not a big deal.
Ranzal: A huge explosion like that seems like a pretty big deal to me. So this is somethin' you've been trying over and over?
Sinoa: This was only the sixth time, so I wouldn't quite say ＂over and over.＂
Euden: The sixth?! That's probably enough, don't you think?
Sinoa: No it is not! This explosion is proof of that.
Euden: I...don't really follow that at all. Still, I'm glad you weren't hurt.
Sinoa: *sigh* My body might not have been, but I can't say the same for my heart or wallet. I dread to think how much it's going to cost to repair this room. Or to replace all the damaged equipment...
Ranzal: Yeah, I imagine all them science-y gee-gaws cost a fair bit'a scratch.
Sinoa: They certainly do. I used to do my research as part of the Institute of Magic, but once they kicked me out, I was forced to buy all my own equipment.
Ranzal: Hey, if ya kept blowin' all my crap up, I'd wanna kick ya out, too.
Sinoa: Alas, you're probably right...although it still hurts to hear it said aloud. *sigh* I suppose I'll be kicked out of this room as well. Wherever am I supposed to go now?
Euden: Well, you COULD come to our castle. Er, provided you don't blow anything up. How does that sound?
Sinoa: You're incredibly kind to offer. But I must warn you, I'm a magical scholar first and foremost—and quite useless at nearly everything else. Honestly, I'm not even that good at research—but I'm still MUCH better at it than physical labor or...whatnot. Knowing all that, do you still want me to continue my research in your castle?
Euden: Actually, being able to create an explosion of that size IS a talent...of sorts. Regardless, welcome aboard. By the way, what's your name?
Sinoa: Oh, thank you so much! I'm Sinoa.
Ranzal: Ya sure this is a good idea, boss? That was one huge explosion earlier...

Cleo: Is everything all right in here? I heard a terrifically loud noise. Where did this mountain of books come from?
Sinoa: Urgh. I'm... I'm sorry.
Cleo: Is that you, Sinoa? Are you underneath all of these?! Hold on! I will dig you out!
Sinoa: I'm so sorry... I was completely engrossed in reading, and before I knew it, all the books on the shelf were falling on top of me!
Cleo: Hmm. You really do need to be more careful. Honestly, you seem to have your nose in a book every time I see you. What kinds of books are you reading?
Sinoa: Oh, I read all kinds—but the topic I have the most interest in is space-time physics magic. Those books are my greatest treasure.
Cleo: Space-time physics magic sounds... complicated.
Sinoa: Have you ever heard of a wormhole, Cleo?
Cleo: Not unless it's in an old apple.
Sinoa: Theoretically, it should be possible to create a kind of hole in space-time that connects the past, present, and future.
Cleo: Really? So you could use this thing to travel backward or forward in time?
Sinoa: Yes! Exactly! The possibilities of such a thing nearly boggle the mind! Why, you could go back and watch key moments in history unfold—or maybe even try to change them!
Cleo: That's a fascinating thought.
Sinoa: Isn't it just? But rather than just wait for someone else to discover one, I want to create a wormhole for myself.
Cleo: Do you really think you can do that? You can't even say for sure that it exists.
Sinoa: Weeeell...
Cleo: Yes?
Sinoa: I don't know if I can make it happen or not—but if I'm successful, there's something I want to do... I want to go back in time and tell my younger self how to make a wormhole!
Cleo: So you'll teach yourself how to invent it... yourself? This is very confusing.
Sinoa: Exactly! Of course, I have no idea if the universe will permit such a thing or not. But one thing I can say for sure is that I've never met my future self. This makes me relatively certain that I'll never even travel through a wormhole, much less create one.
Cleo: In other words, you already know that your research is going to be fruitless?
Sinoa: Yes. Oh, I'm a fool, aren't I? How can I possibly be so enraptured by an idea I know will never come to fruition? Ah, but that's just how life is for us magical scholars.

Ranzal: Gya! We're under attack! Wait, it's you AGAIN?!
Sinoa: I'm SO sorry! I was so certain I had finally built the perfect space-time distortion device, but it wasn't to be.
Ranzal: All this space-time stuff goes right over my head. Just stop blowin' stuff up in our storehouse, yeah? This castle's pretty sturdy, but everything has a limit—plus I'm tired of mistakin' yer screw-ups for some enemy attack!
Sinoa: Y-you're not going to kick me out, are you? Please! Anything but that!
Ranzal: Ain't up to me. Euden makes that call—and between you and me, he's a real soft touch like that.
Sinoa: Oh, thank goodness. Honestly, I'm really not sure where I would go.
Ranzal: Ya came from some institute, yeah? Don't ya ever wanna go back?
Sinoa: Oh, I think about it from time to time. But even before I was told to leave, there wasn't really a place for me there.
Ranzal: How's that?
Sinoa: Space-time physics magic is theoretically sound, but it's thought to not lead to any concrete results. So people who dedicate themselves to it as I do are regarded by their colleagues as... Well, fools.
Ranzal: So nobody took yer side?
Sinoa: There WAS one other student like me. She often helped with my experiments.
Ranzal: Did she get kicked out too?
Sinoa: No. As the experiments were all my idea, I took the blame. Doing so allowed her to remain, so I was okay with it in the end.
Ranzal: Feels like they made ya a scapegoat.
Sinoa: I try not to think of it that way, but I suppose you're right. I mean, all I did was burn three research buildings to the ground! Surely expulsion is something of an overreaction.
Ranzal: Wait, three BUILDINGS? Okay, I gotta reconsider my thoughts here.
Sinoa: Don't let that cloud your judgment! Sometimes sacrifices must be made in the pursuit of a dream.
Ranzal: Yeah, within REASON.
Sinoa: If you let little details like that hold you back, you'll never get anywhere in your research. It makes no sense to be at an institute like that and NOT be able to perform whatever experiments you like!
Ranzal: I think I'm startin' to side with the guys who kicked ya out...

Euden: Did you read the letter that came for you, Sinoa?
Sinoa: I did. It sounds like a fellow student I knew at the Institute was made a senior adviser.
Euden: Is that an important job?
Sinoa: Oh, absolutely. Any self-respecting scholar of magic dreams of achieving that position. Needless to say, it's a very competitive selection process.
Euden: Well, that sounds amazing! Er, but why don't you look happy about it?
Sinoa: Oh, I am happy. Truly I am. It's just... Well, I guess I'm also a bit disappointed.
Euden: Because if you had still been there, you might have been offered it?
Sinoa: Yes. I'd always quietly hoped to achieve that position someday.
Euden: You still could, right? I mean, it's not like you've been expelled forever.
Sinoa: Technically, yes—but I'm not sure how I could possibly return after everything that has transpired. When I set all of those buildings on fire, I was trying to conduct an experiment to send my voice back in time. Then, when I was adjusting the equipment, I felt like I really DID hear a voice. It said, ＂Put the red pipe onto the blue outlet and everything will be fine.＂ Normally no sane person would ever do that, but I was so convinced the voice was from the future that I went for it.
Euden: So that was how you ended up getting expelled?
Sinoa: Exactly. But do you want to know what message I was trying to send back?
Euden: I imagine you tried to warn yourself about why your previous experiments ended in failure.
Sinoa: Oh no. It was much more basic. I told myself, ＂Stay away from magical science. It's not worth your time.＂
Euden: Well, that's depressing.
Sinoa: I was the only one in the Institute actually chasing my dreams. And all that happened as a result was me getting ostracized and made fun of.
Euden: So did you ever send that message back?
Sinoa: No. Everything exploded before I could. When I was expelled, I felt like I should have said it...but now I feel differently. Magical science is my everything, after all.

Sinoa: Look at this! It's a research paper written by the scholar who used to work with me!
Euden: Let's see... ＂An Examination of the Transmission of Sound Via Advanced Space-Time Metrics as Exemplified by...＂ Well, my brain hurts.
Sinoa: I'll explain the actual content later. The important part is right here! Look in the special-thanks section! That's my name! Ordinarily it's taboo to put the name of someone who's been expelled in a research paper.
Euden: So how did you end up here?
Sinoa: She must have pulled in a whole lot of favors to make it happen. All this time, I thought she couldn't do anything without me... But the content is really quite excellent! Back at the Institute, I always had to rewrite her papers.
Euden: You look really happy about this.
Sinoa: To tell you the truth, when I first heard she had been made a senior adviser, I didn't understand it at all. And part of me still feels unhappy—and a little jealous—that she's moved so far, so fast. But when I read this paper and imagined her all grown up, I wanted to cry. It would be one thing to feel happy that I was growing up, but feeling this way about someone else is strange, right?
Euden: Not at all. If anything, I'd say that feeling is proof that you are growing up, too.
Sinoa: I am?
Euden: Sure! You're a lot stronger than when we first met—and more positive, to boot. Surely you've noticed this.
Sinoa: Now that you mention it, I suppose I have. And I owe it all to the voice that made me cause that explosion. AAAAAH!
Euden: Whoa! What's wrong?!
Sinoa: It all makes sense now! It really WAS my voice that I heard!
Euden: You really think so?!
Sinoa: My experiment was a complete success! Everything that's happened up until now has been for the better because it was MEANT to happen! Sinoa? Can you hear me? It's you from the future! Put the red pipe onto the blue outlet and everything will be just fine!

Sinoa: *groan* Another failure. The theory is sound—so why?
Sinoa: How many attempts does this make? A dozen? A DOZEN dozen?
Sinoa: Perhaps I truly am grasping at straws here. I mean, a wormhole through space-time? There's plausible, and then there's...that.
Sinoa: W-wait, what am I saying?! Past or future me, you didn't hear that!
Sinoa: I'm just a little tired and discouraged. Mhm. That's all. I didn't really mean—
 ???: ...ear me? My past self, can y...
Sinoa: What? Is that...my own voice?!
Sinoa: Wait! Does this mean that future me has succeeded in sending her voice back to present me?
Future Sinoa?: Summer...seaside vacation... Experiment...success...
Future Sinoa?: ......
Sinoa: I can't hear her—me?—anymore. But if I piece together what I could make out, I get...
Sinoa: "If I go on a summer seaside vacation, my experiment will be a success." Well, me, you heard the...me! Let's go!

Summer Sinoa: ...Which is why this vacation is actually vital to my work! Can I count on your assistance?
Elisanne: I do not mind a trip to the shore, but I am still struggling with your story. You're CERTAIN it was your voice from the future you heard?
Summer Sinoa: Yes. Absolutely. Establishing a bridge between the past and future is, like, Wormholes 101!
Summer Sinoa: My future self was finally able to successfully create one and use it to give her past self—me!—a hint.
Summer Luca: You can skip all the brainiac jargon. You just had to put the words "beach" and "trip" in the same general area and I was IN.
Summer Ranzal: Same here! I'm gonna swim until every muscle is screamin', and then pig out on more barbecue than you can shake a pig at!
Summer Sinoa: Please don't shake a pig. *ahem* Your individual motivations aside, thank you all so much for your cooperation!
Summer Cleo: Er, hello, Erasmus. Do you always pack quite so...thoroughly? Your suitcase is positively bulging.
Summer Sinoa: Oh, that's my fault. I asked him to help transport all of my research equipment from the Halidom.
Summer Cleo: You intend to experiment even here?
Summer Sinoa: Of course! Research is my life! I may step away from my lab, but never from my work!
Summer Cleo: Even so, performing volatile experiments on a crowded beach seems ill-advised. What if there is another explosion?
Erasmus: She could always use my old cave as a base of operations. It's sturdy enough, and out of the way.
Erasmus: Then, once that's done, I have matters to attend to on my own.
Summer Prince: Alone? ...Ah, of course. You must have a lot of memories here.
Erasmus: Indeed I do. Now, I'll be off.
Elisanne: Speaking of memories, this place reminds me of the adventurer Simon, his treasure, and our clash with Barbary.
Summer Cleo: Ah, the betentacled menace herself. Incidentally, I hear she's turned up again right here on Lewis Island.
Summer Cleo: Fortunately, Estelle went to the beach where she was sighted to nip her mischief in the bud with a stern lecture.
Summer Luca: In other words, we don't have any shenanigans to worry about this time. Summer fun, here we come!
Summer Luca: I'm hittin' the waves! YAHOOEY!
Elisanne: Ever the excitable buffoon... *ahem* REMEMBER TO STRETCH FIRST, LUCA!
Summer Ranzal: I'll go scrounge up some grub for that beachside barbecue I was talkin' about.
Summer Cleo: Perhaps I'll indulge in a little beachcombing.
Summer Sinoa: Swimming, grilling, strolling on the sand... Fascinating. There are so many ways to enjoy a summer vacation.
Summer Prince: Yep. Everyone's trying to make the most of the trip in their own unique ways.
Summer Prince: Vacations are special precisely because they don't come along every day. Don't be afraid to let loose a little, Sinoa.
Summer Sinoa: Let loose, you say? Very well! Then first, I shall...

Summer Sinoa: ...... ...I'm drawing a blank.
Summer Sinoa: Come to think of it, I don't know that I've ever actually TAKEN a vacation.
Summer Sinoa: It's just so hot outside in the summer that I was always more comfortable holed up in the lab.
Summer Sinoa: What's the procedure here, anyway? Show me the way, science!

Summer Sinoa: My future self clearly said that if I go on a summer seaside vacation, my experiment will be a success.
Summer Sinoa: But what am I meant to DO here? How do vacations even work? No textbook prepared me for this!
Elisanne: Is something troubling you, Sinoa? Aren't you going to go have some fun?
Summer Sinoa: I feel extremely silly confessing this, but... I'm at a loss over what to actually do here.
Elisanne: How about you start with a little swim?
Summer Sinoa: I-I suppose I could try, but, well... I've been a bookworm since I was a child. Physical exercise isn't really my forte.
Summer Sinoa: The one time I ventured to a nearby river, I wasn't even able to float, let alone actually swim.
Summer Sinoa: Ever since, I've been reluctant to tempt fate again. The experience haunts me, to be completely honest.
Elisanne: I see. In that case, I shall teach you how.
Summer Sinoa: What? N-no, you don't have to—
Elisanne: Breathe, Sinoa. Anyone can swim once they grasp the fundamentals. The human body is buoyant by nature.
Summer Sinoa: You're telling me that human flotation is not merely possible, but a law of nature?
Summer Sinoa: In other words, my previous failure stemmed purely from my ignorance of hydrodynamic theory?!
Elisanne: Er...yes? I suppose you could say that?
Summer Sinoa: Fascinating! Then the problem is already solved! Theoretically.
Summer Sinoa: Thank you, Elisanne. Now that I understand the root of my previous failure, I am ready to yield to the sea's embrace!
Elisanne: Well, I'm glad you feel more comfortable with the concept of swimming.
Elisanne: Shall we head down to the water and give it a try? After stretching, of course.
Summer Sinoa: Of course! You have my gratitude in advance for your expert tutelage!

Summer Sinoa: *glub glub glub*
Elisanne: *gasp* SINOA!
Elisanne: Are you all right?! Here, hold on to me!
Summer Sinoa: *cough* *sputter* B-by Poseidon's beard... I'm alive...
Elisanne: I'm not sure even a boulder could have beaten you to the bottom. You said you couldn't float, but I had no idea it was this bad.
Summer Sinoa: Indeed. But why? Operating under the fundamental assumption that humans float—
Summer Sinoa: WAIT! Is this—no, surely not! Is this conclusive proof that I'm NOT HUMAN?!
Elisanne: No. No it is not.
Elisanne: Let's get you some floaties to practice with. Wait here. I'll go fetch them.
Summer Sinoa: That seems prudent. Surely, if I make use of a flotation device's buoyancy, I can... Hm. Hmmm. Hmmmmm...
Summer Sinoa: Eureka! Humans and floaties... are ONE AND THE SAME!
Elisanne: Perhaps we should get you out of the sun...
Summer Sinoa: Hear me out. Both humans and floaties are innately buoyant, yes? They rise in water.
Summer Sinoa: And WHY do they rise in water? AIR! So if I take in a big breath—
Summer Sinoa: I did it! I'm floating! I'm floating, Elisanne!
Elisanne: Superb! Breath control IS a crucial part of learning to float. I'm impressed that you figured that out through deduction rather than practice.
Summer Sinoa: Heh heh. Reasoning about natural phenomena is a researcher's bailiwick!
Summer Sinoa: So, how do I move my body once I'm afloat?
Elisanne: Right! Let's start with the scissor kick. Lay your body flat, then take your legs and...

Summer Sinoa: *gasp* *heave* S-swimming is...quite taxing...
Elisanne: Indeed. It's a wonderful full-body workout. Now, are you still with me, Sinoa?
Summer Sinoa: Y-yes! I'm fine! Bone-tired, but... strangely exhilarated!
Summer Sinoa: The feeling of propelling myself through water with my own deliberate movements is something I'd have never experienced had I stayed huddled in the lab.
Summer Sinoa: I would say that CERTAINLY counts as enjoying my seaside vacation, so surely my next experiment will—
Summer Sinoa: Hrk! I can't move another inch...
Elisanne: Easy, now. You need to rest. I'll carry you back to our lodgings.

Summer Sinoa: Ahhh, what a beautiful morning! I'm feeling wide awake and sharp as a tack.
Summer Sinoa: Perhaps because I slept so well?
Summer Sinoa: No, it's because I gave my body the exercise it sorely needed. And now that I'm in peak condition, my experiment is practically guaranteed to bear fruit.
Summer Sinoa: Thank you, future self! Your guidance was foolproof!
Summer Sinoa: Now, let the sciencing begin! Space-time distortion field... Activate!
Summer Sinoa: Control valve open. Injecting arcane slurry. And...there!
Summer Sinoa: Internal mana density has reached the control value. Pressure valve readout is green.
Summer Sinoa: Everything looks good. Now, once the mana density stabilizes, I can...
Summer Sinoa: What? Th-the density is spiking! It's going to—
Summer Sinoa: Waaaugh!
Summer Sinoa: *cough* *sputter* Not another failure!
Summer Sinoa: No. I won't accept this. It was going perfectly this time! Right up to the very last step...
Summer Sinoa: A-HA! Clearly, this means I haven't sufficiently enjoyed my seaside vacation yet. I need to put my nose to the grindstone and relax harder than ever.
Summer Sinoa: I'll need to solicit more help so I can really crank the fun dial up to eleven!

Summer Sinoa: *whimper* In Nimis's name, mercy... I see now what my hubris has wrought...
Summer Luca: Whoa! You okay, Sinoa?
Summer Sinoa: B-barbecue... So much barbecue...
Summer Luca: Ahhh. That. Yeah, the guy was grilling up a storm, huh? Hard to stop once you've awakened the beast. I get it.
Summer Luca: Here, I've got just the thing for you. Drink this.
Summer Sinoa: Huh? Is this made from...ground-up leaves?
Summer Luca: Old sylvan remedy. It'll un-bust any gut in no time flat.
Summer Sinoa: Science wins again! Thank you, Luca.
Summer Sinoa: Blegh. That is BITTER.
Summer Sinoa: But my stomach IS feeling better. Enough for another ride on the protein slide down to the meat dimension, even!
Summer Luca: Hey, whoa, VETO! Keep that up, and your experiments won't be the only thing exploding around here.
Summer Sinoa: It's for science, Luca. Science! Procedure dictates that I push myself to the limit and enjoy this vacation!
Summer Luca: Okay, I wasn't gonna say anything, but you might be taking this a liiittle far.
Summer Luca: Aren't vacations all about doing the OPPOSITE of pushing yourself to the limit?
Summer Sinoa: Come again?
Summer Luca: Isn't the point of a trip like this to take it easy and recharge?
Summer Luca: Like, uh... Look at Cleo there.
Summer Cleo: Zzz...zzz... *snerk* Zzz...
Summer Sinoa: She's out cold. Under a beach umbrella. With a look of total bliss on her face.
Summer Luca: Did you see HER going ham over there, stuffing her gut till she barfed?
Summer Sinoa: N-now that you mention it, no.
Summer Luca: That's because she knows how to chillax.
Summer Luca: She's always busting her buns looking after the castle and everyone in it. This is the only chance she gets to really unwind.
Summer Luca: I'm gonna go out on a limb here and guess that you're kind of in the same boat.
Summer Sinoa: I haven't done housework in ages, though.
Summer Luca: That's not what I meant. I'm saying you push yourself too hard. When was the last time you didn't spend the day in the lab?
Summer Luca: This trip—right now—is your chance to forget about all the daily grind, if only for a hot minute.
Summer Luca: THAT'S what vacation is all about, if you ask me.
Summer Sinoa: So I need to cool it on the research stuff?
Summer Luca: Exactly! Empty that head of yours and go have fun, girl! Now, if you'll excuse me, there's a big blue ocean calling my name.
Summer Sinoa: Hm. Does Luca have the right idea here?
Summer Sinoa: His point is sound, but still...
Summer Sinoa: My research is everything to me! How am I supposed to stop thinking about it?
Tourist: Sorry, miss! Could you toss our ball back?
Summer Sinoa: Hm? Oh, this?
Tourist: Thaaank yooou! Huh? Wait.
Tourist: Do my eyes deceive me? Sinoa, is that you?!
Summer Sinoa: Huh? Y-you're... Mary?!
Mary: Yes! I worked under you at the Institute of Magic!
Mary: How wild to bump into you here. Talk about serendipity!
Summer Sinoa: Y-yes. What a...happy surprise.
Summer Sinoa: (I'm glad to see her. Really, I am. But still...)
Summer Sinoa: (After I was expelled from the Institute, she zoomed right past me to the position of senior advisor!)
Summer Sinoa: (Of COURSE I'm jealous. I want to find the nearest palm frond and hide behind it in shame right this second!)
Summer Sinoa: (What do I do? How do I look her in the eye and hold a conversation?)

Mary: Ohmigosh, it's been FOREVER! I did a double-take when I saw you, Sinoa!
Mary: How have you been? You're staying at that castle these days, right? Oh! How go your experiments?!
Summer Sinoa: S-slow down, Mary! One question at a time, please!
Mary: Oops. Sorry! I'm just so excited to see you!
Mary: Okay, deep breaths, Mary. So, what brings you here? I hear you're living in that castle in the Mistholt?
Summer Sinoa: Y-yes, you heard right. I'm here on vacation with the others from the castle.
Mary: Same as me, then! I'm here on break, too.
Mary: The Institute sent me as a reward for my latest round of experiments going so well.
Mary: Nothing beats turning off your brain and kicking back for a while.
Mary: My next project is even more complex than the last, but I'm feeling ready for anything!
Summer Sinoa: Oh. That's...nice.
Summer Sinoa: (She just breezes through everything I struggle with, in the lab or on the beach.)
Mary: Sinoa? Is everything okay?
Summer Sinoa: I'm just reminded of how amazing you are, Mary.
Summer Sinoa: I got your letter. You made senior advisor. Congratulations.
Summer Sinoa: Now, I should really be going.
Mary: What?! Sinoa, wait up!
Summer Sinoa: No, I don't believe I will! I have nothing more to say, so—
Mary: Maybe YOU don't, but I do!
Summer Sinoa: *huff* *gasp* Can't...go another...step...
Mary: Please, Sinoa, stop! You look exhausted. Let's get you into the shade to rest.
Summer Sinoa: Th-thanks...
Summer Sinoa: *sigh* I'm such a mess.
Mary: What? Why do you say that?
Summer Sinoa: You've run circles around me— both in work and in play.
Summer Sinoa: Now you're even taking care of me. The role reversal really is complete.
Mary: Sinoa! You need to stop this self-defeating line of thought right now!
Mary: I could NEVER have gotten to where I am today without your mentoring.
Mary: I'm really, really grateful to you. Didn't you see the last page of the paper I published?
Summer Sinoa: The special thanks section, you mean? Yes. You included my name.
Summer Sinoa: It couldn't have been easy convincing them to let you list an expelled researcher.
Summer Sinoa: You must have had to call in a lot of favors. To the Institute, I am anathema.
Mary: Maybe so, but I'd do it again ten times over! That paper wasn't complete without the name of the scholar I most admire!
Summer Sinoa: Surely you can't mean me!
Mary: Who else, Sinoa? I was always too shy to say as much when we were working together at the Institute, but it's true.
Mary: You are the consummate scientist. My admiration for you runs deep.
Summer Sinoa: What?! But all my experiments end in failure—often explosively so!
Summer Sinoa: Even now, I'm a disgrace. For all my effort, I still haven't made one measly little wormhole!
Mary: But that hasn't stopped you from continuing the work.
Summer Sinoa: Because a true scientist never relents.
Mary: Heh... That's what I'm talking about. That's what's so impressive about you.
Summer Sinoa: What is?
Mary: Opening a man-made rift in space-time is the holy grail of the field you're working in, as well as its most intractable challenge.
Mary: A handful of scholars have offered armchair theories, but most dismiss it as an outright fantasy.
Summer Sinoa: ......
Mary: But not you, Sinoa.
Mary: You combined brilliant theoretical practice with a stunning imagination and let every failure fuel your next attempt.
Mary: To this day, I've never seen anything as radiant as the glimmer in your eyes when you'd say, "This time, for sure!"
Mary: Your drive taught me a profound lesson— that a scientist's greatest asset is the tenacity to never give up!
Mary: I don't know if I'll ever be able to fully express how grateful I am for that.
Mary: The days I spent with you in the lab are what anchor me in my work today. They form the very core of my being!
Summer Sinoa: Mary...
Mary: I went through failure after failure before finally making my breakthrough, too.
Mary: But every time, I'd think of you, pick myself up, dust myself off, and get back to it. Because I knew you would never give up!
Summer Sinoa: Wha—Mary? Where are you going?
Mary: Heh, sorry. Hearing myself say all this aloud, I'm starting to feel super self- conscious, so I'm going to take off!
Mary: But the takeaway is this: I'm always in your corner, Sinoa.
Mary: And I know you're absolutely, positively going to succeed in realms that lesser researchers can only dream of!
Summer Sinoa: Mary... I had no idea she felt that way.
Summer Sinoa: Hold on to my tenacity, she says...
Summer Sinoa: You bet your beaker I will. That's all I ever needed to do. My resolve is once again firm— I WILL create a wormhole!
Summer Sinoa: Thank you for helping me find my way again, Mary.
Summer Sinoa: I'd started to lose sight of myself. But never again!
Summer Sinoa: I am Sinoa, and science is embedded in the core of my being—my very DNA!

Summer Sinoa: I'd nearly forgotten until Mary reminded me...
Summer Sinoa: Research is fueled by raw, feral passion and the blind refusal to accept the ignominy of defeat!
Summer Sinoa: These ideals form the core of who I am as a scientist—nay, as a human being.
Summer Sinoa: I was a fool to have lost sight of that. Now I remember when I first seized hold of the dream I still cling to.

Summer Sinoa: (It was back when I was just a child. Fond of my studies, I swore I would become a researcher when I grew up.)
Summer Sinoa: (As to what I'd research, well... I hadn't thought that far ahead. Even so, I devoured books voraciously.)
Summer Sinoa: (I chewed through my family's entire library end to end without finding a subject that resonated with me.)
Summer Sinoa: (I began to read my neighbors' books. I worked my way through the entire village...)
Summer Sinoa: (That was when I found it, among the personal manuscripts of a local scholar. Her words set the gears of my fate in motion that day.)
Young Sinoa: "Wormholes"...?
Summer Sinoa: (Thinking back on it now, that was less an academic paper and more a collection of the author's daydreams on the topic.)
Summer Sinoa: (I learned that creating a wormhole would open up a literal world of possibilities.)
Summer Sinoa: (As far-fetched as it was, reading such flights of fancy as a child writ them indelibly upon my impressionable mind.)
Summer Sinoa: (More than anything, the thought of a rift in space-time was utterly fascinating!)
Young Sinoa: Huh? The world of...the past. And...the world of the future?!
Young Sinoa: You could just up and jump to ANY TIME you wanted?! No way! That's AWESOME!
Summer Sinoa: (I knew right in that moment...)
Summer Sinoa: (...that someday, I would open a rift in space-time with my own two hands!)

Summer Sinoa: Heh. I can remember the exhilaration so clearly. Feels like it was only yesterday.
Summer Sinoa: Imagining myself free to travel between past, present, and future... Even now, the idea gives me goosebumps.
Summer Sinoa: That's it. I refuse to waste another second. I've got experiments to run!
Summer Sinoa: A single success is worth a hundred— no, a THOUSAND failures. Ten thousand!
Summer Sinoa: (My mind is clear again. I will not be daunted, no matter the challenge!)
Summer Sinoa: (Ah! Is this—?! It must be!)
Summer Sinoa: I've taken the perfect vacation, relishing in this exact moment, at this exact spot. I've recharged my body and mind alike.
Summer Sinoa: I've reconnected with my roots—with the emotional core that drives my work.
Summer Sinoa: There's not a doubt in my mind. This is it. THIS is what my future self was talking about!
Summer Sinoa: Space-time distortion field... Activate! I need to send this message to the past!
Summer Sinoa: Control valve open! Injecting arcane slurry! Internal mana density has reached the control value!
Summer Sinoa: No... Mana density is spiking again?! NO!
Summer Sinoa: GYAAAAAH!
Summer Sinoa: Ugh... Another failure. But I won't be deterred.
Summer Sinoa: I'll try as many times as it takes!

Summer Sinoa: *cough* Aha! That's the *cough* problem. If I alter the timing of the slurry injection... Next time I'll set the control valve to...
Summer Sinoa: (Hee hee. I'd almost forgotten, but science is fun!)
Summer Sinoa: ("What if I did this?" "What if I changed that?" Ideas flood into my mind.)
Summer Sinoa: (No matter the outcome, the possibilities are endless.)
Summer Sinoa: Now, once more! Space-time distortion field... Activate!
Summer Sinoa: I'll adjust the control valve like I did in the last round, but use the quantity of arcane slurry I did in the round before. Yes! I've never tried it like this!
Summer Sinoa: Now, show me the money, wormhole! I'm on the edge of my seat here!
Summer Sinoa: Yes... YES! A wormhole! I'VE DONE IT!
Summer Sinoa: Oh no! It's destabilizing! It's going to collapse in on itself, and soon!
Summer Sinoa: I won't let it—not before I send this message. My voice can still reach the past.
Summer Sinoa: Listen up, past Sinoa! Can you hear me? Er, can you hear yourself? I know this last round of failures has beaten you down, but you can't give up!
Summer Sinoa: Go indulge in a summer seaside vacation! That will open the path forward to lead your experiments to success!