“Kid, what are you doin’?!”

“Hurry, shut it off!”

There’s a clatter like a chair falling over, and then the wireless broadcast cuts off with a brief burst of shrill feedback.

“Saya…!” I stop, calling her name involuntarily.

The teachers caught her. Large beads of sweat pop out as if they’ve just remembered their jobs, falling to the asphalt with audible drips. I’m on the road that circles around the lake, the one that goes to the town hall and the high school, and I start hearing bewildered voices from several evacuees.

“What? What’s goin’ on?”

“Huh? Was there some sort of trouble?”

“What about the evacuation?”

Oh no. A moment later, a voice booms from the wireless speakers again.

“This is Itomori Town Hall.”

It’s not Saya or her big sister. It’s the middle-aged guy in charge of Town Hall broadcasts, someone I hear every once in a while.

“We are currently looking into the circumstances surrounding the accident. We request that all residents refrain from panicking. Please stay where you are and wait for further instructions.”

I lurch forward again.

They figured out where the broadcast was coming from, and the town hall contacted the school. Saya’s going to get grilled by the teachers. Tesshi will be in big trouble, too, if this keeps up.

“I repeat: Do not panic. Stay where you are and wait for further instructions.”

They can’t stay where they are! I have to make them stop this broadcast!

I leave the prefectural road, plunging from the gap in the asphalt onto a slope that’s overgrown with brush. It’s a shortcut to the town hall. The thorns on the bushes scrape and sting my bare legs. A spiderweb clings to my face, and little winged bugs get into my mouth.

Finally, I hit the bottom of the slope and run out onto asphalt again. I can’t see anyone around me. There’s only the voice from the wireless broadcast, issuing orders to stay put. As I run, I spit out the saliva that’s pooled in my mouth, wiping my sweaty, tear-streaked, cobweb-sticky face with my sleeve. My legs have gone watery, and I stagger. Even then, I keep running. I’m going downhill, and I’m not losing speed. I’m on a gentle curve, and it’s bringing me closer to the guardrail. Below it is the incline down to the lake.

“…Huh?!”

A feeling that something’s wrong makes me look in that direction. The lake shines faintly. I strain my eyes.

No, it isn’t the water glowing. Its calm surface is reflecting the sky. Like a mirror, the lake reveals two shining tails… Two? I tilt my head to the sky.

Oh, the comet— It’s finally…

“…It split!”

I was channel surfing. Every station jabbered excitedly about the unexpected astronomy show.

“The comet has definitely split in two.”

“This wasn’t predicted beforehand, correct?”

“Still, what an extraordinarily fantastic sight…”

“Is it safe to conclude that the nucleus of the comet has divided?”