Historian(Dr. Stone)

05. One Small Step

The young Cosmos had never been so far from the village, nor has he seen other villagers besides his own for seventeen years.

But everything changes now. His illness was cured and his health is slowly coming back. He won't be afraid of collapsing anymore in long travels.

So when he finally arrived at the site of the ship's construction, he was really amazed to see new people. But why is all of them so lean and muscular?

His adolescent soft self felt conscious that he hid behind Senku and Gen who is just as weak looking as him to hide from the intimidating people.

Gen chuckled, petting him on the head. "I guess you have to get used to them before being ready meeting our Tsukasa later." He said.

Cosmos nodded in embarrassment. Volkov villagers may have been lean, but there are only little of people who are the size of Magma. So seeing it all in one place really hit him hard.

"I'll work hard to achieve that muscle." He replied with determination.

Gen and Kohaku looked at him in disbelief. Even Senku had a look that seems to say that Cosmos was making the wrong decision. "Now, now, Cosmos-chan, dear. I don't think that's a good idea." Gen advised.

Imagining Cosmos, such docile looking sweetheart that looks like a fluff of a bunny, having bulging muscles for a body... Not that they bodyshame, it just felt oddly hard to imagine.

Cosmos face with a Magma body...

"Well, let him do what he wants. The more muscles we have, the more power team supplies we can get." Senku chuckled like a villain.

"There we go... As long as it benefits him, he's just so chill with it." Kohaku added

Entering the village, Cosmos was toured to the place while being introduced to the others. The first destination Kohaku lead him at was towards her sister Ruri and the other villagers. "This is my sister, Ruri. She's the priestess of our village." She said.

Ruri was a year or two older than Kohaku. But the resemblance was uncanny that both are indeed sisters or blood related.

Then Kohaku pointed to Cosmos. "His name is Cosmos. He is the priest who is currently passing down the hundred tales in their village." She said. "And hear this, sister. His forefather was the one who brought Senku's dad's grave stone back to Japan thousands of years ago."

"To be precise, it was Cosmos XIV who did it." The youth cleared.

"To think that such a thing happened." Ruri was surprised to hear it. There was no mention in the hundred tales or any addition after the story of why Byakuya's gravestone was there.

Ruri let him sit for a while, while Kohaku took out the record player. They showed him the glass disc and let the boy admire the glass. "This is what's inside the founder's gravestone. They said that it's a time capsule that was recorded for Senku, preserved for thousands of years."

"A recorder?" Cosmos tilted his head with ignorance.

"It's better if you listen to it yourself. This is, after all your forefathers' hard-work to bring back." Kohaku brought the record back on the recorder and played it for him.

There was silence in the room, only the player was resonating in the room.

No where to turn
No where to hide
Between a rock and a hard place
Someone to find
I know that times are tough, just down and out
putting my faith in tomorrow

I’m ready to go but I don’t know where to start
Each and every road seems to be calling to me
Pulled in every which way, so I made my own path
A deep breath and my best foot forward