Not a whole lot to say up here; this is something I've been wanting to get to for awhile, but I think I'll let the story tell itself.
Only thing I feel the need to note is that I strongly encourage people to check this on my site as well, as that version includes a few select images for characters.
maileesaeya wordpress com /divinity-saga/afterword/
Special Thanks: Kiiroi Senko, for all of his support for this project and helping me when I was writing this conclusion.
Disclaimer: All standard disclaimers apply.
Divinity Saga: Afterword
August 4th, Cosmic Era 78, Four Months after the Third War of Divinity
Taiyonoha Estate, Amaterasu One, Asteria Federation
"Don't try to hide away from the pain. Let it come to you, and let it flow over you. Nothing good comes of running away."
"I know… but it's just so hard…"
Her name was Makoto Michiru Taiyonoha; she was tall and beautiful, with an amazing figure, emerald green eyes and deep red hair, and looked nearly half a decade younger than she actually was. She was greatly admired by pretty much everyone, and her mother was basically the de facto leader of the world while they tried to rebuild the nations destroyed by the Horizon Blitz on New Year's of 76.
She was also a complete wreck; her jeans were torn, she was covered in dirt, her eyes were so downcast she seemed constantly on the verge of crying, and she was proving to be the most difficult patient her therapist had ever had to deal with, right down to making the woman come to Makoto's room in order to actually get the sessions done.
The therapist was Hanako Minamoto; one of the many victims of Horizon's cruel experiments, Hanako had once been completely mentally crippled, but she'd recovered after being rescued by her brother Setsuna, and was now a psychic and empath strong enough that even people who didn't believe in such things were forced to acknowledge her abilities.
Hanako was still crippled too, bound to a wheelchair and with a slightly hideous prosthetic for a right arm, due to injuries suffered during her rescue. Still, she didn't let her physical state hamper her—the people of Asteria had saved her, the Taiyonoha had taken care of her, and right now, Makoto needed her help. She idly tucked a strand of brown hair behind her ear as she continued to stare at her patient.
"Makoto, what happened was not your fault," said Hanako, though she knew they were retreading old ground, "there was nothing else you could've done. You can't run away from things instead of facing them just so that you can feel like you're being punished."
"I told you before Hanako—we had the advantage and then I had to play the hero."
"And nobody blames you—you saved a lot of lives that day," said Hanako soothingly, "including myself and the Testarossas. You saved my brother too in a way."
"I didn't save anyone," said Makoto, shaking her head, "I spent two months being…" The redhead squeezed her eyes shut, trying to suppress the tears, but it was no use—Hanako knew exactly what Makoto was feeling.
"Luxurious or not, a prison is still a prison," continued Makoto, "and what that bitch did to me…" That one word she spoke was dripping with vile hatred—the first time Hanako had felt Makoto's hatred for her childhood friend many months ago, it had nearly driven the brunette back into the child-like persona she'd assumed to protect herself during her own captivity. Never before or since had Hanako ever felt such powerful and raw negative emotion from anyone.
"You were raped," said Hanako simply; Makoto shuddered in response, pulling her legs onto the couch and curling them against herself, arms wrapped around them; she looked like such a small child like that, but Hanako had gained a great deal of personal control and didn't let that affect her too deeply. "What Seika did to you was terrible; she raped you in every way possible, even in ways that shouldn't be possible, ways the rest of us can't even begin to understand. But that doesn't change the fact that, for your own sake, you need to face what happened."
Makoto whimpered slightly.
The poor girl had been captured by Horizon and held in captivity by them; while in captivity, she'd discovered that her opposite number in Horizon, known only as "Lilith" up to that point, was actually her childhood friend Seika Tsukirei, who was more than a little unhinged. Makoto's rape at Seika's hands had been more than just physical and emotional—she'd destroyed the redhead's pride and even attacked her soul through the SEED, the strange metaphysical power that was Makoto's domain and to which Seika had been given access, a process that had likely been responsible for the sheer depth of her madness.
Even after Makoto's escape/rescue, Seika had managed to attack the poor girl, and Makoto had been a complete emotional cripple for nearly a year afterwards. Even now, more than a year and a half after the fact, with a huge amount of emotional support and the best therapist anyone could hope for, she wasn't doing well.
"We'll look at it a different way," said Hanako softly. "Makoto, why do you want to suffer?"
"It's my fault," whimpered Makoto, "I made her that way. Just like I destroy everyone else around me… Erik, Nabiki, Louisa–"
"Stop right there," said Hanako sternly. "None of that was your fault. You hold yourself to too high of a standard, and refuse to let anyone else be at fault. Success is for others, failure is for you, is that it? Don't answer that. We'll come at this from the success. What good have you done for the people around you?"
"Noth–"
"Bullshit!" snapped Hanako, causing Makoto's jaw to snap shut. "Look at Misuumi and Setsuna; do you think they could be where they are now without you?"
Nyan Nyan Café, October Nine
"So Setsuna, I'm still waiting."
Setsuna Minamoto started choking, which was unfortunate since he was in the middle of drinking a soda, and the whole experience turned extremely unpleasant in record time.
The blonde sitting across from him, Misuumi Hino Kamakura, smiled mischievously, mismatched red and green eyes twinkling with delight at his situation.
After a moment, Setsuna got the choking under control and turned a shocked look on Misuumi, gold eyes wide with shock.
"What did you say?"
"In one ear and out the other Setsuna? Shame on you." The mischievous smile never left Misuumi's face. "I said that I'm still waiting."
"For what, exactly?" asked Setsuna, sounding almost scared, running a hand through his blue hair a bit nervously.
"Hmm, I wonder," said Misuumi, leaning her chin on her hand contemplatively. "Dinner, maybe. An invitation? Wait, it's on the tip of my tongue…"
Setsuna gulped.
Misuumi might've been a fighter for most of her life, but ever since pulling her life back together at the end of the Second War of Divinity, she'd become playful with the people she cared about, and she'd certainly made the most of her new, happier life.
The blue-haired young man suffering her teasing was a different story; he'd spent a good chunk of his life suffering, especially in the last five years after Horizon leveraged his sister's captivity to make him work for them and play a lab rat, then sent him off to get killed as an agent of theirs known as Leon Vanyel, only to torture him further when he survived with a bald-faced lie about his sister being loyal to Horizon.
The woman in question who they'd claimed was his sister, Aleksi Shimizu, had been a pupil of Misuumi's at the end of the First War of Divinity, but had been turned against her mentor and the world in general by Horizon, driven insane by their experiments and then made into Eve's favorite pawn for torturing others, particularly Setsuna. While Misuumi always regretted Aleksi's fate, she was grateful to Setsuna for stopping the woman Aleksi had become from trampling over her old dreams.
"Oh, right, I forgot to mention," said Misuumi, snapping her fingers suddenly. "Congratulations Setsuna; you're going to be a father."
"WHAT?!"
Setsuna jerked back as he cried, causing his seat to tumble over and spill him onto the ground. Misuumi didn't really react, merely continuing to contemplate.
On the ground, Setsuna had yet to rise, his mind instead running through dozens of worst-case scenarios—starting with his sister killing him for knocking up his girlfriend and ending with Serenity mutilating him for getting her niece pregnant.
"Oh, stop worrying," said Misuumi, glancing down at him, "Minako's on birth control and tells me that you two practice safe, I'm only kidding around."
"What? But… Minako… me… what?!"
Misuumi laughed softly.
"Sorry Setsuna… you're just too easy sometimes," she said before lifting her right hand a bit. "This is what I'm still waiting for. Where's my engagement ring?"
Setsuna's eyes practically boggled out of his head.
"What? You agreed to date me Setsuna," said Misuumi, eyes twinkling mischievously. "My last name might be Kamakura, but I'm still a Taiyonoha; you didn't think you could get away from me, did you?"
He had no real answer to that, so he just continued to gape at his girlfriend like a deer in headlights.
"Setsuna and Misuumi are happy," said Hanako, "past all the pain of their lives, all the tragedy of the last two years… they're happy. You made that possible."
"Fate made that possible," said Makoto softly, though there was a tiny smile on her face—Hanako was right about how happy Misuumi was now, after all. "I was just along for the ride."
"You saved Misuumi from her lie, and don't try to deny it to me," said Hanako, "and do you think anyone would've believed Fate if you hadn't been there to vouch for her? You made it possible. Oh, others played their part in everything, but without you, where would we be? Maybe you didn't save the world, but really, is the world more important to you than the people you love?"
"No…"
"That's right." Hanako nodded sagely. "And it's not just Setsuna and Misuumi either; how about Nanoha, Fate and Vivio?"
Verity Park, Amaterasu Three
Nanoha Takamachi, purple eyes shining with determination and brown hair whipping through the air, jumped slightly to the left, left hand stretching out, trying with all her might not to miss…
… and miss she did not, her tennis racket catching the ball and sending it back over the net at Fate Testarossa. The blonde gasped slightly, burgundy eyes widening by the faintest of margins in surprise that Nanoha had caught the ball, and she missed it herself.
"Go Nanoha-mama!" cheered Vivio Takamachi, Nanoha's adoptive daughter, watching all of this from the sidelines, more tennis balls sitting in her arms.
"That's nine points Nanoha, zip for you sis," said Alicia Testarossa with a faint smile as she walked over and collected the tennis ball.
Actually, the family relations weren't quite that simple—of the four people in the tennis court, half of them were clones created by Horizon. Fate's actual name was Alicia, with Fate being the codename she'd used during her time as a coerced agent of Horizon. The girl now going by the name Alicia was a clone of Fate created by Horizon to help keep her mother, the genius scientist Precia Testarossa, under control. Fate had only learned of Alicia's existence after she broke Makoto out of her Horizon imprisonment and the two went to free Precia for what turned out to be a very awkward reunion.
Vivio was a bit of a different story; she was the only survivor from an experiment in cloning active SEED-bearers (such clones were evidently extremely unstable), and was actually a clone of Misuumi Kamakura, with matching hair, eyes and facial features—Misuumi had even said that Vivio looked exactly like Misuumi herself had at nine, but she was unburdened by the things Misuumi had had to suffer through for her incredible psychic abilities and decidedly cynical adoptive father.
"Uh, Vivio, could you possibly cheer a bit for Fate-mama too?" said Fate, looking at Vivio somewhat pleadingly. "You bring such good luck."
"But Fate-mama, I have to cheer whoever scores, and Nanoha-mama always beats Fate-mama," replied Vivio, smiling innocently. Fate let out a slight, playful sigh as she straightened back up.
"Oh, come on Fate, it's not about winning or losing," said Nanoha, smiling sweetly. "It's about enjoying ourselves while shoving off the details of our wedding to our parents."
"I guess that's true," said Fate, returning her fiancée's smile. "But maybe I should have Alicia help me. Maybe we can actually score on you two-on-one…"
"Hey, leave me out of this!" objected Alicia.
"Go Fate-mama, go!"
Nanoha shook her head, smiling, happy that these three wonderful people had come into her life and become a part of her family.
"That was Fate's work, and Nanoha already knew her well enough that Fate could've made it through," said Makoto. Hanako sighed, rubbing her temples slightly.
"You are, by far, the most difficult person I have ever had to work with," she said. "Okay, fine, I'll concede this one. What about Kira and Lacus?"
Makoto actually snorted at that.
Clyne-Yamato Estate, Aprilius One
Lacus Clyne, the absurdly-youthful twenty-three-years-old former Chairwoman of the Asteria Supreme Council, hummed pleasantly to herself as she arranged the flowers in backyard gazebo of her home—the same one, in fact, in which her husband had recovered from a vicious battle back in the First War of Divinity.
Words couldn't necessarily describe how happy she was—though they were only a few months out of the war, they knew for a fact that the conflict with Horizon had been the final War of Divinity, and the state of the world meant no one would ignite a conflict again for decades.
The rosette ex-idol singer had finally been able to retire from politics for good and live her life for herself, the way that she wanted to.
But that wasn't the only reason she was happy; indeed, if that were all, she couldn't have been happy, given the losses from the war, among them her husband's childhood friend and her own ex-fiancé, Athrun Zala, in the opening global blitz by Horizon.
"Hey," said Kira Yamato suddenly, snaking his arms around Lacus and pulling her back against him; the rosette leaned into her husband's warmth, glad for their ability to be together; although Lacus had retired, Kira had not, and was kept busy by his job as the leader of the Asteria Defense Force (also sometimes known as ZAFT). "How you feeling?"
"Never better Kira," said Lacus, leaning her head against his shoulder and turning it just slightly to face him. "You?"
"Been keeping busy," he answered. "Mayumi and Misuumi have been huge helps there, but we're all still hoping Makoto will return. Misuumi really doesn't like having to lead FAITH."
"How's Makoto been?" asked Lacus, her good mood dampening a little. "I haven't seen her since… well…"
"She's been doing… okay, I guess," said Kira softly.
Their concern was understandable; they both considered Makoto to be their best friend, and Kira had even had a bit of a fling with her as encouraged by Lacus. For her own part, Lacus would've welcomed Makoto's presence in her relationship with Kira, all the more so because the redhead was the only person besides Kira that Lacus felt she could've loved romantically. It hadn't happened that way, and Makoto had instead become more of a sister to them, but the person they'd cared so much for had been destroyed by Horizon, and seeing the shell that was left behind was hard on both of them.
It was only made worse by the fact that Nicol Amalfi, Makoto's boyfriend and emotional crutch, had been killed in the final days of the war.
"I want her back," said Lacus softly. "I want our Makoto back." She closed her eyes. "I hate her; Lilith died too fast."
"I know," said Kira, "I know; I wanted that bitch to suffer the way she made Makoto suffer." He closed his eyes and shook his head. "Listen to us; if Makoto could hear us right now, she'd tell us to stop moping, ignoring her own advice the whole time."
"Yeah… this is supposed to be a happy time for us," said Lacus with a small smile.
"So," said Kira, arms shifted down slightly, one hand resting against Lacus's belly, "did you find out?" Lacus's smile grew.
"It's a girl," she said, "I was thinking about naming her after Makoto… so how does Michelle sound to you?" A rough English equivalence to Makoto's middle name, but…
"Yeah," said Kira as Lacus laid her hands over Kira's, pressed against her belly where their baby daughter was currently growing, glancing at the picture from their wedding sitting on the table. "Michelle sounds great."
"Kira and Lacus found their happiness themselves," said Makoto, "and if anything, I just made things worse."
"Yeah, keep telling yourself that," said Hanako, rolling her eyes. "Makoto, this is exactly the sort of thing I'm talking about. You just keep running and denying, and that's not healthy for you, and you'll never get better if you can't face what's happened to you and remember that you've done good as well."
Makoto snorted again, burying her head in her legs, still folded against her.
"Give me one real instance that I've actually helped somebody."
Hanako sighed in frustration; she knew that Makoto used to be able to acknowledge her own accomplishments, but she was just so broken now…
"How about Ami?"
"She'd have pulled through just fine."
"Really? Do you really, honestly believe that?"
Amaterasu Two
"So what's this surprise you two have cooked up for us?" asked Shinn Asuka from the backseat of Ami Hibiki's car as she drove him, his girlfriend and his younger sister in the general direction of the PLANT central shaft.
"Well, if we told you, it wouldn't be a surprise, now would it?" retorted Ami with a small flip of her blonde hair, violet eyes flickering to Shinn in the rearview mirror. "Really Shinn, I've kept bigger secrets than this from you for as long as I've known you. You can't expect that I'd reveal a small one that I want hidden."
That was true enough, in its way—when the two of them had first met, Ami, then going by the name Stella Loussier, had hidden away the fact that she was a soldier of Phantom Pain, the Blue Cosmos-controlled branch of the Atlantic Federation military during the Second War. However, long-term, Ami hadn't really kept secrets from him.
… and if she did, he supposed he'd never know about it anyway, so maybe she really was hiding other stuff from him.
"You're always so impatient Shinn," said Mayumi Taiyonoha, glancing back at her older brother from the passenger seat. "And here I thought that dating Yuki and joining FAITH would mellow you out."
Shinn said nothing to that, merely glancing away from his sister… only to end up looking directly at his girlfriend, Yuki Trinity, as she gave him a faint glare, though he couldn't fathom what she was angry about and simply chalked it up to another aspect of women, aka The Great Mystery Man Was Not Meant to Solve.
Of course, Shinn understood Yuki better than either of the two women in the front seats.
Ami was the younger sister of ZAFT's supreme commander and the sovereign of Orb, as well as a prominent member of FAITH. She was also the girl who'd been brainwashed to be a killing machine for Blue Cosmos, culminating in the Destroy Incident, when Stella had been made to burn three Eurasian cities after the nation withdrew support from the Alliance. That Ami had been Stella was perhaps her biggest secret from the public, and her actions as Stella still haunted her to this day, but it helped that she considered Stella a different person—Makoto had manipulated her SEED to purge the drugs destroying her body and the programming of Stella from Ami (Shinn, however, had never really figured out what the SEED was that they kept talking about).
Mayumi was half Shinn's younger sister, half another person entirely, both united into a single individual who'd been adopted into the Taiyonoha family. She was kind-hearted and seemed almost submissive despite being hyperactive, but packed the fury of an inferno in her small body. As Mariemeia Zabiarov, the person Mayu Asuka had been brainwashed into by Blue Cosmos, she'd committed her share of atrocities, but in the end, she'd been able to come to terms with her past.
The FAITH ace let out a small sigh, glancing out the window. He couldn't understand either of the two women in front of him; they were far more different from him then the average person due to their pasts, and sometimes seemed to be communicating in a language nobody else could comprehend.
Shinn suddenly felt soft fingers twine themselves with his right hand, and glanced back over to see Yuki smiling at him.
He really couldn't understand her at times, but she was the brightest part of his life now. After all the hardships he'd gone through, the losses he'd suffered, the pilot of the Knight Destiny Gundam was glad that at least she was still here for him.
He'd nearly lost Yuki nearly two years into the Third War, when she'd become caught in a battle with Aleksi Shimizu, who's insanity had extended to the romantic feelings she'd developed for Shinn during the Second War and manifested with her attempt to murder Yuki. If it hadn't been for Setsuna's timely arrival to deal with the insane blonde, then Shinn might've lost all hope for a happy life after the war. Yuki's injuries had still left her partially crippled for life… but she was alive, fully mentally functional and mostly functional physically.
They were both grateful for that, and Shinn had sworn not to hide from their relationship ever again.
Things had proceeded well for them after that. Shinn returned Yuki's smile and glanced forward again as Ami parked the car.
"Alright, we're here," said the twenty-two-year-old blonde, glancing back at her passengers. Shinn looked out the window and frowned.
"… Why are we in the shaft parking lot?" he asked slowly. Mayumi looked back at him with a cat-that-ate-the-canary-smile.
"Why because we're taking you two out to the new Cat's Eye Café," she said, "you know, that one everyone's talking about that is actually pretty much a free-floating restaurant? Best view of the stars you could ever ask for at dinner!"
Shinn and Yuki both started choking at that.
"I was able to get reservations," said Ami. "There are definitely advantages to being me. Now that I've arranged this for you, you are now obligated to be extra appreciative of the fact that I'm still here." The smirk on her face was audible in her voice.
"You saved Ami," said Hanako softly. "If not for you, she'd have died of withdrawal or guilt. You of all people should know how much you helped her."
"I… maybe," said Makoto softly. Hanako smiled.
"There, you see?" she said. "I didn't even need to think about it, but right there we've already found someone you helped."
"I…"
"And what about Louisa and Shani?"
Makoto looked away at that.
"It might've been more merciful to let Louisa die than have her suffer through Liz's death…"
"But isn't life worth living?"
Kohls Studio, Amaterasu One
She'd started out just drawing with artistry pencils, but over the years, Louisa Kohls had moved up past that, and was glad she'd done so. Her paintings had made it so much easier to just retire from life in the military for good.
Of course, the past couldn't be forgotten so easily… nor could the people.
Especially not for someone like Louisa, who'd basically taught herself to have a photographic memory.
She could still remember every detail of Elizabeth Dante's face, and more than that—she recalled every detail of her lover's body, every curve, every swell… everything.
She made use of that now, putting the finishing touches on her latest painting of a young woman with green eyes and light brown hair. It could almost have been mistaken for a photo of Liz instead of a painting.
But it lacked Liz's warmth and fire. In the end, it was just a painting. Louisa let out a small sigh as she put down her brush.
"You done for the day?"
The cerulean-eyed rosette looked over her shoulder to see Shani Andras, the man who was as good as her brother, standing in the doorway.
"Yeah, I think I am," said Louisa softly.
"You going there today as well?"
Louisa looked away, back at the painting.
She and Shani were so alike; it was the reason they were still looking out for each other even seven years after their original recovery. The two of them had been part of Blue Cosmos' original Extended experiments, dubbed "Biological CPU," and they were the only ones still left. It was all thanks to Makoto, who had liberated them from Blue Cosmos and helped them to recover their knowledge of who they'd once been. It had been quite the shock for Louisa to realize she'd been trying to kill her childhood friend, and for Shani to realize it was his own father who'd subjected him to the Extended experiments—indeed, Mikhail Andras had been the leading scientist in the matter, but he'd finally died fairly early in the Third War.
Despite their similarities though, there were more than a few differences; Louisa had adjusted back to normal life far more easily than Shani had, and had even been in a romantic relationship with both Makoto and Liz, before Makoto left the triad towards the end of the Second War. Afterwards, the relationship between Liz and Louisa had remained strong, right to the bitter end when Liz's M5 was vaporized by Lilith.
"I think…" said Louisa after a moment, "that I won't go today. I've been grieving for so long… I think Liz would rather I stopped by now. It's been almost a year; if she were around to do so, she'd probably kill me for going to her grave daily for that long."
"Did you at least say goodbye?"
That brought Louisa up short.
"Yesterday, you didn't say goodbye… it may not be the last time you'll visit, but…"
"Yes… I guess you're right," said Louisa, standing up and turning to Shani. She smiled weakly. "Yeah… we'll go… so that I can say goodbye to her, and let her know that I'm moving on."
"Life is short and too precious to waste; a single moment of happiness can be worth so much pain… if she could, Liz would thank you for saving Louisa, for letting them share that happiness."
Makoto didn't say anything; she just stared at Hanako for a minute or two before the ghost of a smile reached her lips, and Hanako smiled in response.
As long as she could lead Makoto through this, one person at a time, she knew that they could succeed.
"You're an amazing person Makoto; you've touched so many lives, saved so many people… have you ever thought that maybe now, when you need help… that all you would need to do is ask?"
Makoto didn't answer. Hanako wheeled herself over to the couch and grabbed Makoto's hand, pulling it towards her slightly and wrapping it in her own hands.
"You're loved Makoto," said Hanako softly, "so much, and by so many people… Kira and Lacus and Minako and Misuumi and Setsuna and me… and don't forget about Mana."
Makoto smiled a bit at that.
Memorial Garden, Aprilius One
Mana Taiyonoha stood alone among the monuments to the dead, staring at one in particular—the memorial of the Third War of Divinity.
There were so many names, more than most people could count, but Mana did it anyways, at least once every three days, and more often once a day.
Some of these people had died by her hands back when she was Eden, Horizon's ultimate weapon, the artificially created daughter of Kira Yamato and Makoto Taiyonoha, bearing the full breadth of Divinity focused into a single, theoretically perfect human being.
To an extent, they'd been right; Eden had been too much to handle, even for all the Children of Divinity united and it was only with the power of the TS Drive System that they'd been able to defeat and capture her, learning the truth of Eden's existence, seeking to bring her up properly and setting in motion the chain of events that ultimately destroyed Horizon.
But that would not erase the names from this memorial.
So many… but a few stood out: the first was Alexander Dante, because it was such a painful subject for Flay Allster, the way her son had died in a bombing by Eve, an insane clone of Flay herself trying to destroy any remnant of the original.
But there were others that stood out: Shiho Hahnenfuss, Shamal Kawazu, Chiaki Shirai, David Devalle, Miriallia Haw, Rebecca Kessel, Natarle Badgiruel, Andrew Waltfeld, John Alaric, Treize Zabiarov, Diana Kessel, Elizabeth Dante, Dearka Elsman, Rey Za Burrel, Eve Walser, Deici Scaglietti, Athrun Zala, Mu La Flaga, Murrue Ramius, Tolle Koenig, Asagi Caldwell…
So many names… and Mana would never know how many she was personally responsible for putting here.
Once she came to understand what she'd done, why it was wrong, and that she was not just the weapon she'd always believed herself to be, she'd made sure to go see her mother every morning and thank Makoto for arriving in time to help Kira and Treize Zabiarov stop Eden from killing anyone else. But for all that she'd managed to grow up and be more than the weapon she'd been raised and brainwashed as, Mana still couldn't understand her mother—why was her mother so different? To all of Mana's senses, it was like Makoto was dying, and it hurt, and there was nothing Mana could do about it.
But on Hanako's advice, Mana had continued to see her mother every morning and thank her for saving her from Eden.
"The world is better with you in it, Makoto," said Hanako, caressing the redhead's hand gently. "You might think that the world is better off without you, but I know you'll find that the world disagrees. And if you ask anyone, then the person who saved the world from Horizon wasn't Fate or Kira or Darryl or Misuumi… it was you. You were the one who led the final assault on Horizon. You were the one who stopped Seika when no one else could. You stopped Lucifer and brought back Darryl's message for me and Setsuna and the information he had on Horizon. You gave Fate the courage she needed to defy Horizon. You brought me back from the brink. You saved Kira and Treize in that final battle with Eden. You saved the world, and so many individual lives besides."
Makoto said nothing, but Hanako could feel the emotional twitch, and the redhead uncurled herself, letting her feet fall back to the floor.
"Do you understand? Makoto, you're an amazing person, and if you let it all be taken away from you, then Horizon won even in their destruction. Seika, Hyata and Liliana will have won… and I know you don't want that, and you're not the kind of person who could ever give them that satisfaction."
They were quiet for a few minutes as Hanako continued to caress Makoto's hand, the silence disturbed only by their steady breaths.
"Hanako?"
"Yes?"
"… thank you."
Minamoto Residence, Amaterasu One
About an hour later, Hanako let out a small sigh as she wheeled herself into her house.
"I'm home," she called, knowing her brother was in the house. She wondered what was up with his odd emotional state, especially when he didn't reply, and she headed to the family room where she found him sitting on the couch, staring blankly into space.
"Setsuna?"
"Misuumi. Ring. Engagement." That was all he said, never even looking at her. Hanako let out a small laugh at that, glancing around. She saw a stack of towels, wheeled herself over to grab one, then moved closer to Setsuna.
Whumph.
"Ah, hey!" said Setsuna, finally snapping out of it when she hit with her impromptu beating tool. "What was that for?"
"For staring off into space," said Hanako lightly. "So, Misuumi's demanding an engagement ring now?"
"I don't even know," said Setsuna, burying his face in his hands. "Women; I'll never understand them." Hanako responded to that by whacking him again. "Hey!" He paused, unable to come up with anything to throw at her, and let out a sigh. "How'd things go with Makoto?" He figured it'd be the same old story about Makoto being the most stubborn, self-loathing person Hanako had ever met; after all, that's what it had been for the last six months since the two started their therapy sessions.
"Things went well," said Hanako. Setsuna stared at his younger sister in shock, hardly able to believe what she was saying. "We finally made some progress. I've never felt more confident that we can pull through this."
"That's a relief," said Setsuna, smiling slightly, "Misuumi will be happy to hear that."
"Don't mention it to her yet," said Hanako sternly, "or anyone else for that matter. If you keep your lips sealed, I'll help you buy an engagement ring."
"I'll keep quiet, but I hardly need your help," he grumbled. Hanako's response was a smirk that sent shivers down his back.
"Oh? Have we forgotten who paid for this house and who brings home the real money?" she asked, sounding mildly sadistic. "My paycheck is about five times bigger than yours Mr. 'I-was-never-allowed-to-join-FAITH-proper-because-my-girlfriend-used-to-hate-my-guts-and-is-now-my-boss'."
Setsuna blanched slightly at that. It was true, after all—he'd been recruited to join the fight against Horizon by leveraging the truth about Hanako and Aleksi, by which point Misuumi was the leader of FAITH given Makoto's captivity and subsequent withdrawal from the world, and she hadn't exactly been fond of him when they first met. By the time things had eased enough that he would've been considered for FAITH normally, the FAITH Lieutenants had universally declared that he could never be allowed above the subordinate level on account of the relationship he was developing with Misuumi.
Also, Hanako was the greatest therapist in the world because of her gifts, and handled a truly absurd number of cases. She hadn't even charged that much to start, until the demands for her outweighed her supply of time, and she started having to steadily push up the price and establish a network of assistants, among other things, just to keep her own sanity and physical well-being intact.
"So, with that established, I'll be helping you both to pick out and pay for the engagement ring Misuumi is demanding," said Hanako. "Besides, if she's anything like the rumors say Makoto used to be, you just know that not giving her what she wants will result in her kidnapping you and tying you up in a dungeon somewhere to be used as her own personal plaything."
Setsuna looked thunderstruck.
"Hanako!"
The twenty-two-year-old brunette merely laughed in response.
Orb Parliament Building, Onogoro Island, Orb Union
Cagalli Yula Athha let out a small sigh as she closed the folder in front of her.
It was like this, day in and day out; sign this and that document, make this and that speech, listen to this and that government official ramble.
Of course, it was understandable with the rebuilding, but Cagalli was so tired and so tempted to just step down and let someone else take over her duties as the chief representative and sovereign of Orb, all the more so because she really was too young to be a good leader at only twenty-three, merely getting thrust into the position due to circumstances.
Her exhaustion went beyond that though; through the Divinity Wars, Cagalli had slowly but surely lost nearly all the people she cared about, and her friendship with the survivors had frayed and faded away until the only people left were her brother, sister and sister-in-law.
Her fiancé, Athrun, and her most trusted military advisers, Murrue Ramius, Mu La Flaga and Samuel Dante, as well as her friend and bodyguard Tolle Koenig, had all been casualties of Horizon's opening blitz, an attack so effective that it had pretty much crippled every nation on Earth, leaving Asteria the only power truly capable of fighting back against Horizon.
After that, well… there hadn't been much left for Cagalli to lose. She spent the entire war pretty much just going through the motions, up until she heard about her mother.
Via Hibiki was thought to have died not long after giving birth to Ami, but it turned out that, while Blue Cosmos had left her for dead after taking her baby from her, the earliest pieces of the organization that would become Horizon captured Via and put her in stasis; a clone of her was even created to act as a part of Horizon's leadership, capturing her brilliance but molding it into a tool of war for Hyata's crazed designs.
The clone, Noah, was eventually killed in battle when her ship was destroyed by the FAITH flagship Avalon, commanded by Sakura Takara. It was only a month later that they learned of the stasis prisoners and liberated them, learning the truth of Via's fate in the process.
Meeting her mother for the first time after that had been about the only bright spot for Cagalli in the entire war, even if it was dampened by the knowledge that her mother would never meet the man Cagalli had fallen in love with.
"How are you feeling?"
Cagalli looked up and found herself staring at Rondo Mina Sahaku, her strongest supporter in Orb and about the only reason she hadn't gone stark raving mad from everything.
"Okay I guess," said Cagalli. "I just… I hope we finish soon so that I can step down."
"That could be quite awhile," said Mina, though her tone was soothing. "If Orb is to remain independent, then we can't rely on the resources that have let others progress so much further with their recoveries."
"I know…" said Cagalli softly, "I know… but Mina… I'm just so tired."
"You're carrying a tremendous burden," replied the Orb noblewoman, "one that no individual your age should have to carry. But I know you can do this; until Orb is fully stabilized, we can't risk someone like Unato or Yuna coming into power again. Orb wouldn't be able to survive a repeat of the Second War."
Cagalli stared down at her hands.
"Lady Serenity… why did you have to abandon us?" she murmured to herself… though truthfully, she already knew the answer.
Cagalli and Mina remained in that room for some time, resting in a moment of silence.
Ran Cemetery, Susanoo Three
"Four months and you still come here every day."
Flay Allster took her eyes off the grave in front of her, looking back over her shoulder at the source of the voice, though her long red hair obstructed her view just a bit. Still, she didn't need to see the woman to recognize who she was from her voice.
"They're gone Minako… everyone's gone." The redhead looked back to the grave.
Christopher Dante/
Treize Zabiarov
May 2nd, 55 – April 1st, 78
Christopher Dante had been Flay's emotional crutch during the First War and she'd developed romantic feelings for him; they'd even, very briefly, been lovers before being separated, and he seemingly died on the final day of the war before they could be reunited.
He'd survived though, taken by Blue Cosmos, cut up and rebuilt and experimented on, eventually being brainwashed into a weapon fanatically dedicated to the Blue Cosmos ideology. Eventually, with the help of the woman now standing behind Flay, Minako Rei Arata, Treize had become something more and let go of what he'd been made to be, becoming an independent person towards the end of the Second War. Flay had, very briefly, dated Treize and the two had seen each other off and on for quite some time.
Then the Third War began and such things were pushed aside; Flay had ultimately let go of all emotional attachment to Chris and came to view Treize merely as a friend. And then came the attacks of Horizon's insane clone of Flay, obsessed with removing and more or less replacing the original. She succeeded in killing Flay's son Alexander, and that had been a massive emotional blow that had ultimately driven Flay into seclusion.
She returned to the battlefield to join in on the final confrontation with Horizon, planning to avenge her son and stop Liliana, perhaps blaming herself a bit for her clone's blatant insanity. She never got the chance though, knocked out of the fight by Liliana's superior machine and insanely powerful and unstable enhancements; Treize had saved Flay's life, but the damage he suffered ultimately resulted in the destruction of his mobile suit barely a minute after he destroyed Liliana's; the grave before Flay now was empty.
It wasn't just Treize and her son, though; hardly any of her old friends were still alive today, most of them lost to the Third War: her fiancé Sai Argyle and her old friends from Heliopolis Jessica Bradford and Misha Kaga, all killed in the opening blitz just like Tolle; Treize, dead in the final battle; Miriallia when her vessel, the Guardian, was destroyed in the penultimate Battle of Möbius.
In the end, Kira and Makoto were the only ones who'd been on the Archangel with her to survive all the Wars of Divinity, but Makoto was just as much of a wreck as Flay was, and Kira was always so busy with running ZAFT that he hardly had time to spend with Lacus as it was.
That left only two people Flay could really count on: her old teammate Lunamaria Hawke, and Minako, who'd been one of Treize's few friends.
The brunette pilot of the Venus Gundam brushed aside a loose strand of hair as she strode up to stand next to Flay, staring at the empty grave.
"Everything has to end," said Minako softly. "We think it'll last forever, but nothing will. One day, everything is gone; people, skies, stars…" The brunette turned to look directly at the redhead. "That's why we have to make the most of what we have. Flay, no one can live in the past forever… and you have to live, because otherwise, Treize's sacrifice meant nothing, and Eve will have won."
Flay choked out a faint, bitter laugh at that.
"I know… but that just makes it worse," she said, "because doing that to Treize doesn't seem nearly as bad as letting that bitch win."
Minako looked away at that.
To her, that was the worst part in all of this: in some small, seemingly insignificant way, Horizon had won. Oh, they'd all been wiped out, with many survivors among their countless victims, but even still, Horizon had forever scarred the Children of Divinity and everyone they held dear.
And there was little to Minako that scarred more darkly than a hatred that could never be forgotten. Grief and guilt, pain and loss, these could be made into things that made life more worthwhile, more worth living, but hatred just set another link in a vicious, unending cycle of self-destruction, leading only to oblivion.
Minako herself had been a victim of that, but she'd left it behind, and for so many years, they'd all managed to escape that, but now… now they'd be forever marked by it. Horizon had imbued them with such a massive sense of hatred, for all that they had done to destroy the Children, their loved ones, and the world they'd dedicated themselves to protecting.
Then the brunette thought about her cousin's strange daughter, and the ghost of a smile formed on her lips.
"After all this time, through all of this, we still have that," she said, drawing a questioning look from Flay. "There are still a few innocent people left in the world. If nothing else, we can call Vivio a victory."
It really was an odd relationship between Misuumi and Vivio, being what could be called a strange mix of mother-daughter and sisters, even if Vivio was being raised by Nanoha and Fate. But either way, Vivio at least remained innocent, unlike any of the rest of them, and she was just one of many children they'd rescued from Horizon and saved from destruction.
Those children were still innocent and safe; there was a victory Horizon could not take away from them.
It was enough to give Minako hope for the future… and perhaps it gave a sense of rekindled hope to Flay as well, for the redhead gave a weak smile as she turned and left the cemetery.
FAITH Headquarters, Amaterasu Ten
FAITH Captain Sakura Takara let out a small sigh as she typed away at her computer, more for the sake of doing something with her hands then to actually get any work done.
The daughter of the brilliant scientist Sera Takara, great-granddaughter of George Glenn himself, and the Seventh Child of Divinity, Sakura was a very special individual when you got down to it, and even without all of that, she was Asteria's most brilliant tactician and strategist.
But for all of that, she hadn't been able to save her friends; she lived with the Taiyonoha and knew what state Makoto was still in, and she blamed herself for that. She'd been so proud of what she was, incredibly certain of herself, but now she was almost bitter about it, because none of that had helped her to protect the woman she'd fallen in love with, and whenever Sakura went home, she was painfully reminded of that fact.
Her pain wasn't limited to the woman she loved, either—Sakura was constantly fighting with herself over whether or not she was at fault for the others. Only Misuumi seemed to have found her happy ending, with all of Sakura's other friends dead or miserable, and the worst part was that she knew she was being stupid and still couldn't stop blaming herself.
"Sakura, you're doing it again."
The redhead stiffened slightly, turning to face a woman who looked almost identical to Sakura except for her black hair and green eyes.
"Doing what Val?"
"Brooding," replied Val, "just like Faith and I have been telling you not to do." Sakura sighed.
Val's full name was Avalon and she wasn't human—she was an artificial intelligence, usually living within the systems of FAITH's flagship, a powerful warship also called Avalon. What was standing before Sakura now was a cybernetic body used by Val when she wanted to vacate the Avalon without needing to wait for help from others or move across systems not really designed to handle her presence.
All of the full AIs—Faith, Val, Inferno, Aisuru, Rue and Yukari—had such cybernetic bodies, but some of them had been moved to storage; Inferno and Rue had basically withdrawn into total cyberspace operation after the deaths of their human "parents," Nicol and Treize respectively. Faith normally lived in the computer systems of FAITH Headquarters, but had been staying at the Taiyonoha Manor lately to try and look after Makoto, since she was the person Faith had modeled herself after in development, and she frequently used her cybernetic body to try and comfort her "mother."
Aisuru, who was Kira's AI with a form modeled after Lacus, and Yukari, who was Nanoha's AI and had modeled her final form after Vivio, practically spent more time in their cybernetic bodies than in the computer systems intended to handle them. Perhaps it made sense, in a way, since the two of them were the brightest and most lively of the AIs.
"Sakura, is it normal for people who are brooding to go off on lengthy trains of thought during which they just stare into space? I'm afraid the data I'm finding on the matter is extremely inconsistent."
The redhead sighed.
"I really don't know either Val," she said, "and I'm sorry for brooding. I'm just really worried about everyone."
"Then shouldn't you do more to help them so that you're not worried anymore?" asked Val with a cute tilt of her head. Sakura let out a small giggle at that.
"It's not that simple Val," she said, "we're not computers. We can't solve everything through dialogue alone; it's not as simple as saying something, you have to do something and mean it."
"I see," said Val. "I'm afraid I still don't have the understanding of humans that Faith possesses, even though I am older than she was at the time of the Second War. Strange; I wonder if the refined process Dr. Takara used to program my original shell was perhaps not as strong as Faith's developmental system."
"Who knows?" said Sakura. "Mom died a long time ago, and she took so much with her." The redhead wrung her hands together in her lap slightly. "Mom… I miss you… I wish you were here. It seems like, if you were, maybe everything would just be alright again."
Clyne-Yamato Estate
March 27th, Cosmic Era 79
"She's adorable," said Aisuru softly, staring down at Michelle Yamato as the absolutely tiny baby girl slept.
"You say that all the time Ai," replied Lacus, glancing briefly at the AI who was a near-duplicate of her barring the pale skin, black hair and gold eyes.
"But it's true," said Ai. The cyborg turned to look at Lacus, who she considered her mother. "I'm looking forward to having a chance to spoil my baby sister."
"Only if you do it right," said Lacus admonishingly. Ai responded by sticking her tongue out at Lacus. "And no teaching her bad habits like that one!"
"Ah, but I learned it from you, remember?" said Ai, pouting. Lacus sighed.
Ai made it so easy to forget that she was not only a powerful AI smarter than any human could ever hope to be, but also the intelligence for one of the most powerful war machine's ever devised, the Eternal Freedom Gundam.
"It's been three weeks," said Lacus, "and you're smart enough and fast enough that a single second can be like a whole day, or somewhere around that. That's close to five thousand years for you since she was born, if my math is right. How can you still be acting like this?"
"Because I like being human? Also, Faith and Val might be that fast, but I'm not. Actually, those two are probably faster, but that's beside the point."
"Fair enough." It was definitely something of a common trait to AIs—they almost all seemed to enjoy being near-human. Only Rue and Inferno seemed to be exceptions, but then again, those two had always been the odd ones among their brethren, Rue because his "parent" was Treize, and Inferno for reasons that could only be guessed at, but which Lacus typically attributed to the fact that he'd developed directly in the shadow of Faith, who was not only the most powerful AI but the progenitor of all the others save Val.
"I'm glad though," said Ai softly, drawing a curious look from Lacus. "I mean about everyone… everyone just seems to be doing so much better. Flay and Louisa have moved on, Shinn and Yuki are engaged, so are Misuumi and Setsuna, Sakura seems to be doing better, Nanoha and Fate have gotten married—Kari's been pretty excitable about that—the world's finally begun to really rebuild, Cagalli's been able to retire, and Makoto…"
Lacus smiled at that—Makoto had really improved in the last seven months. She'd even attended Nanoha and Fate's wedding and was there for Michelle's birth, even got named the girl's godmother.
Faith was currently organizing a party for Makoto's birthday in five days, which would also be the one year anniversary for the end of the Third War, so they had quite a bit to celebrate, and for Makoto's sake, they'd put aside the grieving over the war for another day.
Still, for all the pain of the Third War… they'd made it, and while they'd been recovering, the last year had been a good one, as they were all finally given a chance to rest without the weight of Divinity's shadow cast over them.
It was all over—Divinity would never hurt anyone ever again, and the bright spots of Divinity could now be celebrated without that dark lining.
Suddenly, Michelle woke up and started crying, and Lacus let out a small sigh, though there was a smile on her lips.
Motherhood was exhausting… but it was worth it.
Taiyonoha Estate
Everything had changed. So many things and so much, and their lives would never be the same again.
But it was the small things that could make it worth it; just as small things made life worth living, so too did they help to heal from pain and suffering.
Sitting in her office, Serenity Sakaeru Taiyonoha smiled slightly, staring at the holographic monitors floating in front of her.
There were cameras throughout the Taiyonoha Estate, and their purpose was two-fold: security and easing operations for Faith whenever the AI wasn't operating through her cyborg body.
Really, she knew she should've felt guilty for what she was doing, but she spent so much time concerned for her family that she really didn't; besides, Faith would shut down the monitors if anything private were starting to happen.
Besides, it's not like she could hear anything and almost everyone was chatting away. There were Misuumi and Setsuna in one of the gardens, probably talking about their wedding plans, which most likely would involve Hanako "giving away" the groom. In one of the family rooms, Minako was talking to Mayumi, Mana, Sakura and Erika Taiyonoha (Serenity's adoptive daughter), as well as Faith, probably about their plans for Makoto's birthday party in a few days. Shizuka was in another office, chatting away on the phone with someone, Serenity sincerely hoping it was a prospective boyfriend or girlfriend, since her sister was now thirty-four years old and had only been in one serious relationship (one that went up in literal flames when her fiancé, Victor Cain, was killed in the Battle of Luna at the close of the Second War).
And finally, there were Makoto and Hanako in the former's bedroom. Serenity smiled, overjoyed that her daughter had finally recovered, and grateful beyond words for Hanako's work in healing some of the psychological scars Seika and Horizon had left on her daughter.
Suddenly, the monitor showing Makoto and Hanako shut off, and Serenity shook her head with a small smile.
The Taiyonoha family had been so heavily tied to the Divinity Wars… but at long last, the last Shadow of Divinity had been cast off. They could be at peace.
It was sometimes hard to tell just how bad Makoto had been, but between Hanako's talents for therapy and a strange ability to cope and heal, Makoto had come a long way from the broken shell she'd been a year ago.
It left Hanako quite giddy.
"And through it all, all the pain and suffering and death, we've won," said Hanako idly, slouching in her wheelchair a bit. "Horizon's lost; they failed in everything they set out to do."
"The world's getting back on its feet," said Makoto evenly, stretching herself across the loveseat, leaning against the armrest with her head on her arms; Hanako couldn't help but think of an imperial noblewoman, and suspected the effect was deliberate on the redhead's part.
"So it is," said Hanako, before giving Makoto a cocky smile, "and as your therapist, it is my professional opinion that the same is true of you. You can probably function in society now, and should perhaps consider returning to lead FAITH at some point, seeing as everyone wants you back and I think Setsuna really wants his fiancée to stop being his boss."
"If I did return, I'd just attach him to Misuumi anyway; she really enjoys bossing her fiancé around," said Makoto, returning Hanako's smile as she shifted slightly, somehow managing to appear even more regal. "As for me… I had help from the best; after all, my friends have always been the best of me."
"Our friends are the best of each of us," replied Hanako, the cockiness leaving her smile and being replaced with a warm fondness. "That's just the way of things; if we truly consider someone our friend, then they are a part of the best of us."
Makoto's smile grew a bit at that.
She'd probably never leave therapy completely, but she was stable, and for the first time in a long time, Makoto felt almost whole again. She'd seen so many happy things, and her goddaughter had become a symbol of hope for her, a clear sign that all the pain and suffering had been worth it.
And after all her suffering, all her pain, all her egotism and shattered pride, all her victories and defeats… at long last, after eight years of fighting, the Dauntless Angel of Faith was at peace.
"Well, I think that's the final chapter of Divinity closed," said Hanako, wheeling herself over next to the loveseat. "Divinity is over… but things are just beginning, huh?"
"Yeah," said Makoto softly, "yeah, I think they are."
Hanako smiled, taking Makoto's hand and pulling the redhead up into a sitting position, allowing Hanako to pull herself out of the wheelchair and into the loveseat next to the taller woman, leaning her head against the redhead's shoulder.
"And we'll be together forever," she said softly, "into the Neverending Tomorrow."
"In a future that will never end," said Makoto, cuddling the brunette—really, with no one able to understand each of them as well as they understood each other, this had been inevitable, if unprofessional.
But regardless, they were at peace; they were all at peace, at long last.
It was a peace that was more than a fleeting moment; for them, for their homeland, for their dear friends… it was a peace that would last an eternity.
Towards an endless tomorrow and a future that would never end.
Author's Notes: And with that, we put the final nail in the coffin for the original Divinity Saga. It was an extremely long trip, and I never did complete Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Divinity due to the distaste I'd developed for a number of characters.
This epilogue doesn't tell you everything; there's a lot of stuff in there hinting at what was meant to happen in SEED Divinity and never got a chance to, like Kira's mother, Makoto's relationship with Nicol, Nanoha's experiences, Setsuna/Leon's life turning around from being the cosmic plaything of SEED Serenity. And so forth.
I just wanted to give it something resembling proper closure, and this was it; Old Divinity is over, and don't ask for anymore. If you want to see Makoto again, the best place to look will be Mobile Suit Gundam Trinity, my reboot of the Divinity Saga.
Sayōnara, everyone. And farewell, to the Old Divinity Saga.