Fall of a Goddess, Faith Restored
Part 1
An Angelic Layer Fanfic
By D. Cooper
daijin26@hotmail.com
It had been a week since the end of the Angelic Layer tournament. Kobayashi Hatoko, known in Angelic Layer as the "Rising Goddess", sat on her bed with tears in her eyes. She still remembered that dreadful day, the day when she broke her promise to Misaki. Her promise that she and Suzuka would once more meet with Misaki, and her Angel Hikaru, in the Layer.
Misaki was first starting out in Angelic Layer when Hatoko first met her. Even then, she knew of the rookie's potential to become great in Angelic Layer. She thought back to Misaki's first match…
Flashback
Misaki was sitting with Hikaru in her lap in the waiting room. She was very nervous because this was her first official Angelic Layer fight. All those people in the audience, the cheering and the atmosphere of the tournament was a lot for a rookie to handle. Hikaru was going to go up against an Angel named Katarina, a very beautiful Angel that looked like a figure skater. However, looks can be deceiving in Angelic Layer. Misaki did not know if she and Hikaru were ready for this. Just as that thought entered into her mind, Hatoko walked into the waiting room.
"Hatoko-chan!" Misaki called out.
Hatoko walked towards Misaki to greet her, Suzuka in her arm as always. She smiled at the older girl. "This is your first match, isn't it?"
"Yes!" answered Misaki. "I'm a little nervous!"
"Don't worry. You'll be fine." Hatoko ran her hand over Hikaru as if inspecting her for approval. "Just believe in Hikaru."
Misaki was still nervous. "I don't know. It's my first time and all."
Hatoko took on a more serious expression. "In Angelic Layer, age and size mean nothing. How long one has been in the Layer does not mean anything. Just believe in Hikaru."
A woman called out into the waiting room. "Suzuhara Misaki! Your battle is about to begin!"
"Na! That's me! I've gotta go, Hatoko-chan!"
"Good luck, Misaki! I know you'll do well!"
Misaki ran off to begin her first match in Angelic Layer.
* * *
Misaki was doing well for her first match. But it was not easy. Katarina used her ice-skating skills to pick up enough speed to initiate her famous spin kick. Hikaru was barely dodging the spin kicks, made even more deadly because Katarina's ice skates could easily cut Hikaru if it connected. Katarina's Deus became cocky.
"Katarina's spin kick is invincible!" called out her Deus.
Misaki was scared. She could see no opening in the attack. If she did not do something fast, she and Hikaru would lose in their debut match! Hatoko watched the fight intensely on a nearby monitor. She immediately knew the weak point of the spin kick. Now if only Misaki could see it.
There is a weak spot. I know you can find it, Misaki
!At that moment, Hikaru charged Katarina head on. Everyone in the stadium was amazed at what Misaki was doing. Was she trying to have Hikaru commit suicide? But Hatoko knew the truth.
She sees it now! As I knew she would!
Hikaru leaped high in the air as Katarina continued to spin, but she could not stop. Hikaru then came straight down on top of Katarina with a devastating kick. The force of the kick, added with Katarina's spinning, created enough inertia to knock Katarina out of the Layer.
Katarina landed on the floor outside of the Layer, as the entire crowd went silent. Misaki sat in her chair in mute awe, not believing what she just did. But the announcer broke the silence with the cry of:
HIKARU WINS!
The crowd went wild as they celebrated Misaki's first victory. It was at that moment that Hatoko knew she had found her rival.
End of Flashback
Hatoko smiled a little at the memory. She remembered how happy and excited Misaki was to have won her first Angelic Layer battle. Hatoko was of course happy for her as well. And at the same time, Hatoko was excited as well. She wanted Misaki to continue to win so they could battle each other in the tournament. And then, that day finally did come and the promise was made…
Flashback
Hatoko was very impressed at Misaki's performance, being the only Deus to actually not be defeated by the frightening kindergartner from the moment the fight began. All of the others were beaten from the instant the battle would start. This was why Hatoko's Angel was known as "Light Speed" Suzuka.
However, this match was going the distance, as Hatoko had hoped. But, Misaki had a weakness in this match. Hatoko was continuously watching Misaki during the battle. She noticed that as Misaki commanded Hikaru, Misaki would move in the direction that she told her Angel to go. Thus, Hatoko could easily predict the gutsy Angel's next move and command Suzuka accordingly.
Suzuka dogged Hikaru every step of the way and would not be shaken off. Hikaru tried to outmaneuver her, but the dark clad Angel would be there in an instant to deliver a lightening quick blow. This kept up for most of the fight. Suzuka was relentless and Misaki did not know what to do.
How does she know where Hikaru will go? Is it intuition? No…she would miss sometimes if that were it!
Misaki looked towards Hatoko to see Hatoko staring right at her.
She's watching me instead of Hikaru! Wait a minute! I haven't noticed it before, but every time I told Hikaru to move in a direction, I'd move that way too! That's how Hatoko-chan knows! Well, I will watch Hatoko-chan also!
With that, Misaki sat perfectly still and silently issued her command:
Hikaru! To the right!
Suzuka attacked Hikaru but Hikaru suddenly moved to the right and avoided her! Hatoko was very pleased.
So she figured me out! She is worthy!
Hatoko stopped the fight. "Misaki!"
"Huh?" Misaki was surprised that Hatoko would stop in the middle of a battle.
Hatoko only smiled. "This has been a great fight, Misaki! It's too bad we only have a little time left. I'd enjoy continuing this match with you! We must fight again!"
Misaki just sat in her seat not knowing how to respond to this. But then, the child Deus became very serious.
"That is why you must lose to no one but me!" shouted Hatoko.
At that moment, Suzuka performed a handstand, then executed an awesome somersault kick that sent Hikaru flying into the air and out of the Layer. Hikaru landed lifelessly on the floor, her face a show of pain and utter defeat.
The announcer was going wild. "OHHHH!!!! Suzuka has just executed her devastating special attack, Rolling Thunder! Hikaru has been knocked out of the Layer! SUZUKA WINS!"
The stadium was filled with the roar of the crowd. But only one thing mattered to Misaki.
"HIKARU!"
Misaki ran over to where Hikaru had fallen. The small Angel was battered and damaged badly. Hikaru had taken a brutal beating at the hands of Suzuka. Misaki was heartbroken at the sight of Hikaru like this; Hikaru was not just a doll to Misaki, she was her best friend.
Hatoko approached Misaki and looked Hikaru over. "Hmm. The shoulder parts need to be replaced, but Hikaru should be fine."
Misaki looked up at Hatoko and said nothing. What could she say? She had just lost to this little girl. Hatoko just smiled at her friend. She held out her right hand to Misaki, pinky finger extended.
"Misaki, let's promise to meet each other again in the tournament. Promise me that you and Hikaru will get stronger so we can fight again!"
Misaki simply reached up with her own right hand and wrapped her pinky finger around Hatoko's, sealing the promise. The crowd cheered again pleased at the show of camaraderie between the two.
End of Flashback
Hatoko wiped some of her remaining tears off her face and moved herself to sit on the edge of her bed. She felt foolish. I have to get over this! It happened and there's nothing I can do about it! But why does it still...hurt so much?
She knew the answer all too well. It was not the loss that haunted her. It was that she did not keep her end of the promise to Misaki. Her rival.
Her dearest friend.
That is what hurt Hatoko the most. She had let down the one person she felt closest to. Hatoko had formed a bond with Misaki as they both endured the battles of Angelic Layer, trying once more to reach each other again.
Misaki was on a winning streak and made it into the semi-finals. Hatoko swept through her competition as well, easily making into the semi-finals, both keeping the promise alive. There were only four players left now in the semi-finals. The other two were Saitou Kaede and her Angel, Buranshe along with Jounouchi Sai and her Angel, Shirahime.
Kaede and Sai were formidable opponents. Both were experienced in Angelic Layer. The match-ups were randomly chosen and as fate would have it, Hatoko and Misaki would not fight each other just yet. Misaki would go up against Kaede and Hatoko would face Sai.
Two more obstacles, one for each of them. All they had to do was win and Hatoko and Misaki would fulfill the promise. They were so close! Misaki had won a spectacular victory over Kaede. The match between Hikaru and Buranshe was unbelievable! So Misaki had kept her end up. It was all up to Hatoko.
All I had to do was beat Shirahime! That's all I had to do! Just one more win! But I failed!
Hatoko began to clutch hard on the sheets of her bed as the painful memory of that day swept into her mind like a rushing wave…Flashback
This was it. Sai and Shirahime were all that stood between Hatoko and Suzuka fulfilling a promise made long ago. But she had to be very careful. She knew how good Sai was. These two Angels that faced each other now were the two fastest in Angelic Layer. One wrong move and it was over.
The tension was mounting as both Angels stood their ground, waiting for the other to make the first move. They stood in the middle of an interactive, holographic desert. In the semi-finals, the Layer was installed with a new system that created various terrain for the Angels to battle in, adding more excitement and requiring even more skill on the part of the Deus.
The desert was randomly chosen. The winds blew gently over the scene with the sunset in the background, setting the mood for the showdown. The two opponents stood ready:
Suzuka, cloaked in her black ninjutsu outfit.
Shirahime, draped in her beautiful white kimono.
The Angel of Dark and the Angel of Light.
WHOOSSHH!!!
Before anyone knew what was going on, the two warriors charged at each other simultaneously at a speed impossible to measure. As fast as the human eye can catch it, both Angels leaped at each other and were knocked back in opposite directions. The crowd went mad.
The scene was replayed in slow motion on the monitors of the stadium and it was seen that both Angels kicked each other. Because it happened so quickly, the hit detectors were still calculating the damage.
The announcer had to shout over the ecstatic crowd. "Suzuka and Shirahime have knocked each other down! But neither was knocked out of the Layer! It's only a matter of who has enough strength left to stand up first! If one is unable to fight, the one standing is the winner!"
Time seemed to have stopped. The stadium went completely quiet as all eyes looked on to see who would first stand.
Please! Please, Suzuka! Stand up! Stand up!
Hatoko was pleading to Suzuka, but she would not respond, no matter how hard the little girl tried. Suddenly, Shirahime moved and slowly, ever so slowly, Shirahime rose to her feet.Suzuka could not move at all.
The hit detectors had just finished the calculations for the damage. Suzuka's hit points had been completely brought down to zero. Shirahime only had one hit point left. Just one. But, it was enough.
"Shirahime has gotten up!" the announcer shouted. "SHIRAHIME WINS! Jounouchi Sai now advances to the finals where she will face her next opponent, Suzuhara Misaki!"
Hatoko was crushed. She could not stand it. To be so close and lose it all. She grabbed Suzuka and ran out of the arena. She found a secluded tree and stood silently next to it, hiding herself from the world. She heard footsteps behind her and knew whom they belonged to.
Misaki stopped just behind Hatoko. "Hatoko-chan?"
Hatoko turned to face Misaki, the one she had failed. Misaki had been watching the match and had come to comfort her mentor and friend.
Hatoko stood holding Suzuka lying outstretched in her hands. She tried to be graceful about the loss. Hatoko smiled at Misaki.
"I lost!" Hatoko said with a slight giggle. "I guess Suzuka's range was a bit too short! Or maybe Shirahime's hit did more damage!"
Misaki saw the tears that began to gently rain on Suzuka. Tears from the eyes of the "Rising Goddess". Hatoko could no longer keep up the façade.
"No! That's not it! Suzuka lost because I was not strong enough! After all you've done to hold up your end of the promise! I…I broke it!"
Hatoko broke down and Misaki held her close. The tears were streaming down Hatoko's face like tiny rivers! She held Misaki tight as she cried.
"You'll win, okay Misaki!" Hatoko cried, her voice choking up badly. "You must prove that age and size mean nothing in Angelic Layer! You must win! In my place! M…Misaki!"
Hatoko just cried in Misaki arms. And all Misaki could do was hold on to her friend, while holding back tears of her own.
End of Flashback
Hatoko found herself crying again at the hateful memory of that day. She wiped the tears way quickly. She looked over at her nearby dresser near her bed and saw a picture on it. It was a photo of herself and Misaki that they took together some time ago. Hatoko gripped the picture tightly in both hands.
"I let you down, Misaki. I cannot forgive myself for that."
Hatoko then noticed Suzuka on the dresser too. She put down the picture and picked up Suzuka.
"And you, dear Suzuka. I failed you as well. Because I wasn't strong enough."
Hatoko got up from her bed and walked over to her mirror on the far wall. What she saw was not pretty. What was once the face of a cute and happy five year old girl who loved Angelic Layer more than anything, was the face of a five year old girl whose eyes were red from crying.
A face that no longer showed her love for Angelic Layer, but disbelief in herself as a Deus.
Still looking in the mirror, Hatoko made a decision. She looked at Suzuka who she still held in her hands.
"Come, Suzuka. There is something I must do. To see if…I'm still worthy of you and Misaki."
With that, Hatoko got dressed and left to go to the Piffle Princess.
* * *
Hatoko was using one of the practice areas at the Piffle Princess. The test that she was using helped to develop the speed and accuracy of an Angel. Usually this exercise was easy for Hatoko and Suzuka, always scoring "A's" across the board. But today, Suzuka was not up to her best. The high-speed orbs were hitting Suzuka all around and she could not keep up with them. Hatoko's heart was not in it. The raven haired Deus looked at her scores. All "D's".
That was the last straw for Hatoko.
"As I thought." said Hatoko grimly. "I am weak. I've lost my edge."
Hatoko picked up Suzuka and held her lovingly. "Forgive me, Suzuka. But, I am no longer worthy of being your Deus."
Hatoko left her seat and walked out of the Piffle Princess with her head down. Once outside, Hatoko took a deep breath and looked back to the Piffle Princess, the place where she and Suzuka first began their quest together to be the best in Angelic Layer. This was the place where Hatoko and Suzuka's union was forged. But now…it marked its end.
"My time has come. It is time for me to quit Angelic Layer."
With her final decision made, Hatoko walked back home, a single tear coursing down her cheek.
The "Rising Goddess" had fallen.
To be continued…
