The battle was over, the illustrious Team Dai-Gurren had overtaken Thymilph and Viral. they toppled the army that the beastmen had commanded, and most importantly had taken Dai-Gunzan. It was a time to celebrate and revel in victory, and yet the skies were dark, nobody cheered, and even the heavens above seemed to cry at the loss of one of the Gurren Brigades founding members.
"H-he can't really be… I mean… He isn't, is he?" Yoko stood stiffly, arms at her side, shaking as she gazed at the lifeless mech standing before them all.
Kamina shivered as he approached the face that was his brother's gunmen, his Lagann. Biting his lip he felt his heart sink as he laid eyes on Simon's lifeless body in the cockpit, bloodied and bruised from the hit that Thymilph had dealt.
"He should've just stayed put" Kamina mouthed, his head hanging low, trying to clear the lump in his throat. "I could've protected him if he had just stayed put… we already won and he had to get in the way"
The rain only became heavier, each and every drop echoing loudly off of the body of Dai-Gurren, the rest of the Gurren brigade bowed their heads in respect for the deceased boy. Yoko finally gave in to tears as she watched Kamina stand before his closest friend, shaking and doing all he could to keep himself together. She approached the tattooed man and placed her hand on his shoulder, making the man face her.
"Kamina" she started "It was because of him that we took Dai-Gurren…" She looked into Kamina's eyes and was taken back by what she saw. The indomitable spirit, his fearlessness, it was not in him, the man she saw appeared before her broken. "If he hadn't done what he did- " She held back her tears and felt a sting in her heart "You wouldn't be alive right now."
"He wasn't supposed to die though!" Kamina screamed as he finally felt everything hit him. "What am I supposed to do without him!?" Kamina felt the tears welling up in his eyes, doing all he could to them back. "He made all my talk mean something! I put my faith in him and believed in him because he made it possible for me to be strong for him!"
"Kamina I-" Yoko whimpered, withdrawing her hand from his shoulder "He went in to protect you, knowing that he probably wouldn't make it… He did it because he knew he wanted you to keep going!" The girl took a deep breath as she moved the wet, red hair from her face. "He thought you were someone who ought to live"
Kamina turned away from the redhead as he removed his cape, walking towards Lagann. He could feel his heart beat out of his chest each step closer that he took, until finally, there he was. Standing in front of the short mech that served as his beloved blood brothers tomb. Taking his cape, he carefully removed the body, blanketing the boy delicately in the red cloth, he felt a stray tear escape as he gently placed the body on the ground in front of Lagann.
"But he was the one that deserved to keep living" Kamina muttered, his voice shaking. "He was full of so much potential and I just knew… I just knew there were great things ahead of him! If I lived or died it wouldn't have mattered.." Brushing the black hair out of his young brothers face he removed the core drill from Simon's neck, and placed it over his head, allowing it to slip down and hang from his neck. "I wanted him to grow up to be the man I knew he could be!" As the words escaped his mouth it all finally hit, his heart felt as if it had been cut wide open, and the floodgates broke as tears streamed down his face.
Kittan motioned the other members of Team Dai-gurren to follow him into their newly acquired moving fortress. They all slowly followed, some slower than others, taken back by their once believed invincible leader's sudden breakdown.
"Oi! Leave th' man be!" Kittan Barked shepherding men towards Dai-Gurren's innards "Th' man just lost his brother! Give 'em some privacy!" he growled going as far as to shove men away from the scene, as he himself approached Yoko and Kamina.
"Kamina…" Yoko muttered.
"What are we gonna do now leader?" Kittan asked as he stood next to the redhead, looking down at the tattooed man. "We're waiting for your orders."
Kamina stood up, his arms at his side and fists clenched. "Whatta you think were gonna do dumbass? We're gonna Stay on course! We're gonna get to teppelin and we are gonna kick the Spiral King's ass!"
Yoko and Kittan simply nodded and took the man's words at face value, They knew that after coming this far, Kamina would not allow them to turn back, but they also realized he would need time to let this fresh wound heal.
The sun set over the mountain side as Dai-Gurren prepared for its Voyage to Teppelin. Kamina had sat all night, in the spot where he had buried Simon. His sword serving as a grave marker for the boy's final resting place.
"I'm glad I was able…" The man paused and chuckled to himself "I"m glad you were able to get us to the surface blood brother." Kamina let his palm rest on the soft soil and sighed. "You got to see the sky that I saw as a kid, we met so many awesome people together, and one day, I'm gonna go to the moon, for you and me Simon! Just like we said!" Kamina's eyes watered as his hand clenched up into a fist.
"Preparations are ready! We Can take off on your order Leader!" Leeron shouted from the distance, standing with Yoko and Kittan they waved for Kamina's attention.
"Well, I guess it's time for me to go…" Kamina's lips formed a bittersweet, weak smile. "I promise I'll come and visit you bro." He choked back his tears as he turned around to walk towards their new battleship. "Until then… Later buddy."