Trigger Warning: Given the nature of Bokurano, which has the molestation of a child and massive character death, do I really need to give a trigger warning? Either way, here it is. There will be graphic sexual violence towards the end of this chapter. (Now that I know what I wrote, yes the warning is needed. If you feel the last paragraph exceeds the standards of the FanFiction site let me know and I'll tone it down. But I am trying to express the thoughts and actions of a sociopath.)
Time: Same day as the previous chapter, late at night.
Speed of Wheel
Kako paced around his room, or at least he tried to. The ten-by-ten foot space didn't allow for much pacing, and lost in his thoughts he actually ran into the wall a few times. Guilt rode him, and while he'd died once and was given a second chance, he wasn't sure if there would be a third. When the time came to pilot MEarth he would ask to be the first, and he knew that request would be accepted; Moji's intuition said so. Two hundred times they'd asked the boy who would be the first pilot, and he'd answered Kako thirty-one of those times. That was how they'd teased reliable data out of the boy's intuition. You asked the question a whole bunch of times, and the choice he chose the most often was likely the right one. If it worked as well on lotto numbers Moji was going to be one rich kid, assuming he lived, and assuming he made it back home.
Kirie, mom, sis, Chizu, . . . . In the boy's mind the names of his many victims came and went, each torturing him with the deeds he'd done. Could Sakura deliver on her promise? That question haunted him. Would she for a person who'd spread such hate, such misery? He had his doubts. Yet all the others had piloted ZEarth back home, and now it was his turn. To do otherwise was to betray the person he hoped to become. But the need to run burned inside, and as before it was driving him mad. He paused in his frantic pacing to bury his face in his hands, wanting to scream. Help, he silently begged, knowing no one could hear him. Help, . . . . Turning he smashed his fist against the wall, leaving it smeared with blood. Uttering a weary sob the boy sank to the floor, the action causing considerable pain as his knees met the hard surface, driven by the brutal weight of the uniform he wore. The others were stronger, the boy screamed to himself. Why am I so weak? They didn't run. Why do I want to?
He forced himself to his feet to continue the agonized, weary pacing. Run, flee, his mind screamed, countered by the images of all the pain he needed to make amends for. If he ran he could never make amends, that he knew. He would've betrayed his friends again, and there was no way back home. There was no way he would ever be able to apologize to his family for the years of torment. As for Kirie, even though the boy was less than ten seconds away, he couldn't face him. Then there was Chizu . . . . The only way through was to pilot, by not betraying his friends again, and hoping Sakura filled her promise. If she did then he might make it home, and there he might find his sister and mother, maybe. He'd seen the footage Mirror had shown of the battles, and the awful doubt that either was still alive haunted him. So he would pilot, and he would die. He wouldn't run even if he had to smash his own legs to stop it.
Kako paused in his pacing, startled out of his internal diatribe by something. It took a second light, tentative knock at the door for him to realize what it was. With a lonely sigh he opened it.
"Hi," Maki said hesitantly, her eyes flickering to the left and then to the right, but never meeting his. "I, ummm, asked Chizu about morning sickness," she told him blushing, realizing it wasn't a subject a girl talked to a strange boy about. "I'm pretty sure she has it, but she just pushed the subject aside."
"Oh. Thanks." Not wanting company he started to close the door.
"Are you okay?" Maki asked, now focusing her eyes on the boy, peering at him with concern.
"Fine." He went to close the door again.
Maki hesitated, unsure of what to do. He wasn't; she could see the blood on the wall, but was it her place to interfere? We're a team, she told herself. He's a part of it. Still feeling unsure, she blocked the door with her foot. He's a bully, someone who gets his kicks from kicking others, but . . . . "You're not," she said, nodding towards the blood stain on the wall. "What's going on?"
"I'm going to die tomorrow," Kako stated. "Moji says the first battle will be tomorrow, and the pilot will be me."
Maki nodded. "But if Sakura could raise us once, she might do it again. Might." She herself was also unsure on that part.
"But why would she raise me?" Kako asked with the image of Chizu in his mind. Of all the things he'd done, that haunted him the most, though he wasn't sure why.
"She did once." Maki shrugged. "Maybe her standards aren't too high," she let slip, then cringed, regretting the harsh words.
"Obviously," Kako replied bluntly. "I am here, aren't I?"
"Sorry. I . . . ." She sighed, giving him a forlorn look, showing her own tiredness. "If you want to run, I won't tell anyone. I wouldn't blame you."
"Of course I want to, but where would I go?" He let the anger he felt show in his voice. "A person can't run from this, and if I did, what point would there be to living?"
"Unlike with ZEarth you chose to . . . ."
"I know that," Kako told her. "I know that, but now, . . . ." He turned away from her. "I chose to come here with a purpose, but now, . . . . But now I'm afraid."
Maki nodded. " We all did. She knew the goal most of the others had, but Kako's was unknown to her. "What purpose was it?" she asked?
Kako stood there, feeling as if he was on the verge of a nervous breakdown, of going crazy. The guilt in him spoke. "I tried to rape Chizu," he said bluntly.
Maki blinked, recalling what she knew of Chizu and the poor girl's past. Unbidden her foot snapped up into Kako's groin, sending him to the floor. The weight in her pant's leg slowed the blow, but that weight also added momentum. It'd been a savage kick, driven by pure rage, and the boy went to the floor, smashing his head on the bed, leaving a tiny smear of blood on its plastic frame. She stepped forward and placed her foot, and most of her weight, on Kako's chest. She opened her mouth to yell, to curse, and felt the need to hit the boy more and more, but . . . . She blinked, puzzled. His eyes bore into hers while he offered no resistance. She could kill him if she wanted, but those eyes. Confused, she watched as he turned purple and those eyes started to close. Frantically she stepped back, still unsure of what was stopping her.
For several minutes she stood there, just watching as slowly the purple faded and Kako's eyes flickered. Kill him, he's a monster, her sense of outrage told her, but as she continued to stare into his face something stopped her. It was filled with such pain and sorrow, such misery. What if it was my brother lying there, Maki asked herself, and while she wanted to deny that her brother would ever try such a thing she knew that wasn't the case. Much as she loved him, and at the moment believed him perfect, shed' learned the world was a harsh place. For all she knew his parents, her parents, might be dead, and who knew what sort of life he would have then, or what sort of person he might become And then there's Ushiro, she told herself. He used to kick Kana, but I think he might actually be nice. Confused, she watched the boy. "You're hurt," she finally said, feeling drained. "Lie on the bed." When he'd done so she led down beside him, and intertwined her arm with his, holding his hand. "Talk to me," she said.
Kako studied the sensation of holding hands with a girl, puzzled. Her justified outrage had been clear, yet now . . . . Then realization struck him. She's decided I'm worth saving, worth talking to, he realized, shocked. She hates me, despised me, but . . . .
"Why did you agree to pilot MEarth if you're so afraid?" Maki asked gently. "But don't mention any other atrocities quite that bad, okay? I'm at my limit."
"I was ashamed that I ran away," he started. "I wanted to make amends. And I . . . . I don't know how I could ever make it up to her, but I need to." Kako sighed. "I know it sounds weird after what I did, but I want to protect her. You don't just apologize for something like that, but now that I'm here I can see that my presence just makes things worse for her. I'm actually glad that I can't run, that I have no choice, because I'm a coward." He tilted his head to peer at the girl. "Everyone else is so strong. How?"
"I want to live," Maki answered quietly, thinking on her words. "I really love life, and I want to see my baby brother. I want to hold him and play with him so bad that sometimes I can't stand the pain in my heart. If I had a choice of course I would run, and if someone else had to take my place then I would cry, and I would feel guilt, but I'm like you, a kid. Let some adult deal with it." She gave a short laugh. "Strange, but now that I think about it, you're the reason no one else actually tried to run; you showed them the futility of that. Koyemshi proved he could grab us from anywhere, dead or alive, so we knew we had no choice but to accept it. Still, I had something I wanted to protect, my family, my brother. That meant I had to try my best. The same goes for most of us. Daichi has his sisters and brothers; he loves them like crazy. Ushiro has his family, especially his sister." Maki paused for a few seconds, thinking. "Look at Kirie. When he felt he had nothing to protect he was prepared to let the world end. When he changed his mind, when he decided to protect his mother, he fought better than any of us." She paused again, wondering what else to say. "What about you?" she asked. "Didn't you have anyone you love? People you want to protect?"
"No." Kako tried to think of the things he loved. "I love Chizu, I think. After what I did I'm not sure I know what love is anymore. Maybe it's just lust. How would I know the difference? But I would fight to protect her. And maybe Kirie. But they were both going to die. There was no way I could protect them."
"I know I love my baby brother, and my parents," Maki replied. "But I've never been in love. I wouldn't be able to tell you what it's like." She grew silent for a bit. "What do you like about Chizu?"
Kako gave a small snort. "I could say the way she looks, and that would be true. She's beautiful. And the fact she's so smart. But . . . ." He struggled to find words to express himself. "Maybe it is lust," he lied, feeling ashamed of his past. He waited for Maki to judge him.
Maki was silent for a long while. "If it's just lust then that's okay," she decided. "But you're hiding something, aren't you? What is it you're not saying?" She gave his hand a small squeeze. "It can't be worse than . . . . You know. I won't share what you say. I swear it on my baby brother, the person I love most."
Kako gulped, knowing the girl was telling the truth. Whatever he told her, she would never tell. "She's everything I'm not," he admitted.
"How so?"
"She's kind. She's strong." He paused. "You haven't seen her at her best. We went to the same elementary school for a short while. One day, when we were in fifth grade, she faced down four sixth graders who were tormenting a boy from our class. She risked getting beat up pretty bad by getting between them, yet she did. And while tattle taling is usually wrong, sometimes it's the right thing to do. She told on the kids. Few people spoke to her after that." He took a deep breath. "And no, I wasn't one of the kids. I started my bullying career a little later in life."
Maki snorted. "Okay. I was going to ask if you were," she admitted. "Why did you start?"
"it was the only way to keep from getting beat up myself. The bullies at the school I go to are . . . . Well, let's say they got a lot more brawn than brains. Even as a seventh grader I found I could make myself useful to them. But that only helped, and I was still the focus of their attention all too often. So I started redirecting it onto others. It's something I found I was pretty good at. But to fit in you got to play the part, so I also joined in when they went after someone. I don't know why, but it made me feel better."
"I see." Maki gave it some thought, noticing the way he'd said 'better' instead of 'good.' "So Chizu is someone you looked up to, but you became just the opposite?"
"Yeah."
"I've never been bullied. At least not to any great amount. And I've never been beat up." Maki shrugged. "So while I think what you did is horrible, I can't say I wouldn't do it myself. I imagine being beat up is pretty painful."
"Once or twice is just the way it is, but when it's every day." Kako sighed. "I should've done what Chizu did, but I'm a coward.
"Where does Kirie come into this?" Maki asked. "You said he was worth protecting?"
Kako went silent for a long time, knowing she would wait for his answer. "I got to apologize to you," he admitted. "I said I started in seventh grade, but that's just when I spread out. I've known Kirie for a long time, and I've never been kind to him. I'm not sure why he sticks around, but he's been my friend since forever. I'm also the reason he's here, the reason he's stuck in this mess. I bullied him into going to summer school." He sighed. "Damn."
"Weird," Maki replied, thoughtful.
"You mean cruel. Not sure how it's weird."
"Weird. I mean, if he hadn't gone to that class, then what would've happened to the Earth, our Earth that is? He faced the strongest opponent, and he was the only one who could've beat them. Strange to think our Earth only survived because of a bully bullying someone." She glanced at him. "Not that I'm saying it's okay, understood?"
"I know. I've known that since forever, and never stopped."
"Ever talk to the counselor at your school?" She frowned when Kako snorted loudly. "What?" she asked.
"Our school counselor is the guy who got Chizu pregnant."
"Oh."
Deep into the morning hours they talked, holding hands, resting comfortably beside each other. Eventually it dawned on Maki just how different the world Kako had grown up in had been. She'd had parents, even if they were adopted ones, who would've died for her, a baby brother she loved and craved to see, friends she trusted and gossiped with at a school where bullying wasn't tolerated, . . . . It was a whole different world with a different set of rules. So how could she judge? If faced with a beating every school day for years, could she say she wouldn't have given in? She wanted to say she was stronger than that, but she'd never been tested. Pain was not generally a part of her world. And if she'd faced so much hate, could she say she would not have learned to hate? To that she had an answer; she would have. Hadn't she been all too willing to despise both Kako and Ushiro? Even Micha when she'd learned of the girl's history. Didn't she still hate Kodama? And then there was Koyemshi and the masterminds. Not only that but what of pride? She'd never known Chizu could be so brave, yet she'd somehow felt superior to the girl. After all, she'd gotten pregnant when she was twelve or thirteen. Even at her school the girl would've been the subject of much gossip, little of it good. And until she'd seen him pilot ZEarth, hadn't she looked down on Kirie just a little for his weight.
She'd also heard, if not in words then from the tone of his voice, that Kako thought the system was broken, and with that she had to agree. She also understood that even if she now understood where Kako came from, that people like him, or rather people like he had been, had to be opposed. She believed he agreed with her on that too. Thinking, with her worldview twisting around her, she fell asleep.
Kako listened to Maki snore, her hand still in his. She'd listened while he poured out his soul; he'd held nothing back, and yet she was still here. He took a deep breath, following the flow of air, wondering how many more he would get to take. But while the fear wasn't gone, he now had things with which to balance it. His worldview had expanded to be more than just hate, and he found himself considering the people of this world. They met each other with nods and smiles. The children ran from place to place with glee and excitement, always friendly. How many Chizus were there on this world? How many Makis? How many Kiries? This Earth was a place that was good, and it was worth defending. He didn't want to die, but he'd made his bed, and it was acceptable. Content, he too fell asleep.
Yawning loudly, Maki stirred to consciousness. It was warmer than usual, and she was content as she rarely was since ZEarth had appeared. Wanting to go back to sleep, yet knowing that today was the first of the battles with MEarth, she forced her eyes open. For a second she was startled and frightened, finding she was spooning with someone who had their arm around her. An arm that she was clutching. Then the night came back to her and she relaxed. During the night Kako had not only spilled his guts her her, she'd done the same, talking about her family and friends, of her all too many concerns about their welfare. He'd listened to her as attentively as she had to him. He wasn't the monster she'd assumed, and they might even be friends.
Gently she tried to extract herself without waking him. She failed, and seeing his confused eyes open said, "Morning."
"Morning." He looked around, and then back to her. Turning red he quickly removed his arm. "Sorry," he gulped. "Sorry."
"My fault," she replied, standing up even as she gave another yawn. "I fell asleep here."
"Before I did," Kako admitted sheepishly. "I was going to wake you, but I was thinking, and then you were waking me up. Sorry."
"Oh well. Not like any damage was done," she said with a grin. "Now you can say you slept with a girl." She paused in that thought, frowning. "Just to make things clear . . . ." She wondered how to proceed.
"I know," Kako hurried to reassure her. "I'm still interested in Chizu, and even if I wasn't, I"m not the type you're looking for." He grinned at her, "You prefer . . . ." He blushed.
Maki blushed as well. "How do you know? Do any of the others know?"
"That woman Kodama stared at yesterday, he wasn't the only one staring. All of us were, but you were in my field of view, and I saw how your stare was more intense then even his was." He shrugged. "No, I can't say for sure, but I don't think anyone else noticed. And if they did, their thoughts got disrupted when his clothes turned invisible. You were the only girl who was totally disinterested in that, by the way."
"Oh. Don 't tell, please." She hated the begging sound in her voice, but she was scared.
"Maki, I swear." His gaze met her eyes, and he smiled at her. "You do know it's not as if they would care. But if you're truly worried about my telling then I release you from the promise you made. If I break mine then . . . ."
Maki shook her head. "No. I keep my promises." She smiled. "And I do believe I can trust you." She looked around the room. "When I get back home, if I get back home, I want a normal life. And gay or not, I want to live as a kid for a bit longer." Her gaze turned towards him. "Does that make sense?"
"Perfect sense. I think that's what most of us are hoping. To get back home, and be kids again. Just with the power to make a few changes for the better." Kako looked around the room. "All of this taught us just how messed up things are."
"For sure." She shuddered. "Was I really that close to getting caught. If Mirror had done to me what she did to Kodama." She went white. "I think I feel sick."
Kako laughed. "I would certainly have enjoyed the view more, but staring wasn't the reason Mirror did that?"
"They why?" She now turned red.
"When he said they were nothing more than filthy ants, it might've been loud enough for the woman to hear. I've looked at their version of the internet, and I noticed something. They allow pretty much anything when it comes to speech except for one thing. You can disagree with someone all you want, and argue with them to your heart's content, but you never use such a degrading insult. They're intellectuals, the whole planet of them, and if you got to resort to insults then you lose."
"Oh," Maki sighed in relief.
"Unlike at home, here they know kids are kids," Kako said. He looked up at her, staring her in the eye. "I like this place. It's worth protecting."
Maki grinned. "I agree." She looked around the room before turning back towards the boy. "Good luck today." It was all she could do.
"Thanks."
Maki opened the door to leave, hand over her mouth to cover another yawn. She paused, looking into the main room. Oh crap, oh crap, oh crap, oh crap, . . . . She was a girl with clothes disheveled, and bed hair that clearly had not seen a comb yet this morning. And she was coming out of a boy's room. At the moment she also had the undivided attention of every eye in the main room. Oh crap. There was nothing she could say that would be believed. For the most part they were now her friends, her companions in arms, but against this those things where worthless. Even at thirteen she knew that. Oh crap, . . . . Steeling herself, she slid the door shut, and walked around the room aware of how every eye was following her. Reaching her own bedroom she hurried in, trying to make it look like she was calm and composed. Oh crap, she kept thinking. Then she paused. Guess with this my secret is safe. She gave a short laugh and shook her head.
Kako left his room, and in the way of thirteen-year-old boys headed towards the table without washing his hands, eyes on a pile of food someone had gathered. "Good," he said, grabbing a sandwich. It was certainly different from anything at home, but it filled the stomach and satisfied the taste buds. He looked around, noticing the stares. "What?" he asked. "It is good," he added, holding up the sandwich when the looks didn't waver. "It is," he insisted.
Maki, knowing she had to face the music, stepped out of her room, hair now combed and clothes less disheveled. Once again she became the center of attention.
Oh, Kako though, not good. Pausing to think for a second he nodded at her. "Morning Maki. Thanks for the help last night. When you fell asleep on the floor I think I also fell asleep. Sorry. Hope sleeping there didn't cause you too much discomfort. And thanks for the talk, I was ready to run for the hills again." He smiled at her.
Maki relaxed. Most guys would probably have tried to keep the glory, yet he'd distinctly made it clear that she'd slept on the floor, and they'd talked. While she didn't like lying, this time she was running with it. "A few aches," she replied. "Next time we talk I take the bed and you take the floor."
"Agreed." He turned back to the sandwiches.
While a girl's word was worth nothing in this situation, a guy's was worth a lot. Disaster averted, Maki mused, and headed towards the sandwiches as well. It wouldn't do to seem like she was avoiding him, besides she was hungry. Around the room people went back to whatever they were doing before she'd made the scene.
"By the way," Kako's voice cut through the room like a knife, drawing everyone's attention. "I asked PinCushion Guy to do something last night. I'm wondering what he came up with." Everyone's eyes now turned toward's Moji.
"If I got to have a nickname, I would prefer Intuition Guy or something," he stated, glaring at the guy who'd mercilessly tortured him the day before.
"Okay, Something, what did you come up with?" Kako grinned.
Moji stood with a sigh, shaking his head. Turning, he faced the whole group. "Obnoxious Boy asked me to see what I came up with for three questions. Here are the results." He held up a chart. "In short when asked, 'Will we win?' I get nothing. When asked, 'Will we lose?' I get nothing. But . . . ." He grinned out at the crowd. "When I asked 'Can we win?' I get a response of seventy percent yes, and thirty percent no. Given the way this system works that means we can win; we just need to figure out how." Around him the moods of people increased. It was hard to believe that the death contraption called MEarth could win any sort of fight, but if their seer said it was possible then it had to be. Conversation levels increased, and while there still wasn't much cheer in the room it was distinctly less dour.
Sitting on a chair in the corner of the room, Mirror nodded and took another sip of something that was similar to hot chocolate. Waku is the leader, she mused, but Kako was the used car salesman who could sell anything to anyone. Despite the fact MEarth was nowhere near as strong looking as ZEarth, he'd managed to sell the group hope, and they were running with it. He'd also let them know that victory wouldn't come free of charge, that they had to work hard. It was the right balance. Standing, she walked past the boy, letting a finger momentarily brush across the back of his neck.
"Change to the uniforms without the weights," she ordered, watching as the kids scrambled to obey. Minutes later they disappeared and she was left alone, looking around the room with a worried expression on her face.
"Whoa, nice travel method," Machi said, playing the part of someone who'd never seen it before. "Where's the game?"
"You're in it," Drop Dead said, floating over to the girl. "Take a seat."
The group looked around. There were fifteen chairs in a circle, with a sixteenth in the center of the circle. Penny, the girl from the night before, was standing beside one of the chairs in the circle. Hearing the command she sat down, looking tired and gloomy. The group followed her lead.
"Rules are, you fight or the planet goes bye-bye," Drop Dead told them, snickering at their expressions. This was a job he clearly loved.
"Pretty nice graphics," Ushiro commented. "Almost looks real."
"it is real," Drop Dead roared. "Now listen up."
"So, are we the good guys or the bad guys in this game?" Kako asked, "Caused you know, I'm really good at playing the bad guy. "Around him the group nodded in agreement, while Moji just scowled at him, hand still wrapped in bandages.
"Who freaking cares. You're all going to die and I'm going to laugh as you do," Drop Dead told them, annoyed at the interruptions.
"I hope this game has some realistic sex scenes," Kako mused aloud. "I'm tired of dying a virgin." He clasped his hands together and bowed his head. "Please, if there is a god, let me have sex in this game." Around him the guys followed suit while the girls looked on in disgust.
"You're all going to die," Drop Dead roared.
"For real?" Anko asked, starting to look a bit worried.
"For real," Drop Dead gloated, moving over the girl. "Dead as a doornail." He cackled, laughing like a banshee. "Uh?" He stopped to look at the kids. "Panic," he told them.
Maki shrugged. "It's not like we got any choice in the matter, is there? So why panic?"
Drop Dead floated above the center chair, looking from one of the kids to the other.
"I hope there're girls in heaven," Kako mused. He looked at Drop Dead. "Are there?"
"How the hell would I know?" The creature didn't sound happy.
"Please tell us the rules," Waku said gently, looking not at Drop Dead but at Penny.
The girl closed her eyes, heaving a heavy sigh. "I'm sorry," she told them, "but this is real." She pointed at the center chair. "That's the pilot seat. Someone has to sit in it and pilot. When the fight is over, win or lose, they die. If they die then their whole world goes with them." Taking a deep breath she opened her eyes and looked around at them. "I'm sorry," she said again. "But I've seen so many worlds, and this mech isn't really good at fighting. I've never seen any world survive using it. I'm sorry." She looked down, avoiding their stares.
"Always a first time for everything," Waku and Moji said together, trying to soothe her. With her dark-blue eyes, dark hair, and olive skin the girl was quite attractive, and clearly the guys were eager to comfort her.
"Okay, okay," Drop Dead muttered. "We get these idiots once in a while who take some time to understand what's going on." He looked at the kids. "You do understand it's you lot I'm calling idiots, right? Please tell me you're not so dumb you can't understand an insult?"
"Are you made of ceramic?" Nakama asked. "I've tried pottery before, but whatever I make never turns out right. Who made you? We could share sob stories."
"No one made me," Drop Dead growled. "And I did turn out right."
"You sure? There's no shame in admitting it," Nakama told him with a comforting smile. "It's not your fault."
"We're starting," Drop Dead muttered savagely. "Next time I want normal kids."
"We're normal" Moji insisted. He pointed at Kako, "He's your regular bully, and as an idiot he's pretty normal as well."
"He's just your everyday PinCushion," Kako countered, pointing back at the boy. "He let me jab him with a needle over three thousand times yesterday, and he didn't even try to stop me." He looked around at the group and shrugged. "I would call that pretty idiotic."
Drop Dead flew over to Moji and studied the bandages on the boy's hand. "You're all crazy," he insisted.
"But there's normal everyday crazy, and then there's crazy crazy," Kanji insisted. "Now my mother, she's crazy crazy, but we're just normal crazy." He smiled at the creature. "See, we're normal. As normal as can be."
"Soon you will be dead as can be, I hope, "Drop Dead said. "Now who wants to die first." The creature rose above the group, clearly hoping to see them fight it out.
"I'll go," Kako said, standing.
"I think I should," Kirie said. "I'm the weak link here." He looked at Drop Dead. "Generally in these types of things the first fights are the easiest, right?"
Komo stood. "If I got to do this, I want to get it over with."
"Stop," Drop Dead screamed, sounding a little crazy himself. He flashed around, looking at the kids one after the other. "Oh, whatever." he finally said. "Just choose so I can get on to the next world."
"If no one wants to get beat up, then you had better take a step back," Kako said, looking at his two challengers. "I'm first." He smiled at them. "It's my turn."
"Well, dead is dead," Komo muttered. "But you got a bad enough reputation as it is without beating up a girl." She sat down.
Kirie looked like he was going to argue, but sat down when Kako glared at him.
"Okay then," Kako smiled, and took the center seat. "Let's see what this pile of . . . ." He frowned. "Can't call it junk because there isn't enough of it to call junk." He snapped his fingers. "I know. Let's see what this ball of twine can do. Still doesn't sound quite right, but what can one do." He shrugged. "And in ten minutes or so, will I really care anyway?"
"None of you will," Drop Dead informed him. "Behold the battlefield," he said mockingly. "Oh crap," he added a second later. The tough looking enemy mech was humanoid with shear-like hands that looked as if they could cut anything. In fact, the enemy mech looked like it had been specifically designed to fight a mech just like MEarth. It had three lights lit up, indicating three fights left. "Not another loss to crap-a-toid," the creature fumed. Turning on the kids, he roared, "Look, I want to be rid you all as much as you all seem to want to be dead, but kill that bastard or else." He pointed at the enemy.
"I take it you've met before?" Komo inquired.
"He's killed us fifty-three times," Penny said. She looked around. "That's fifty-three times out of fifty-three fights. We've never beat him. I'm sorry. With anyone else it would've been quick but he will try to draw it out."
"He added those shears just so he could beat us," Drop Dead fumed.
"He beat us thirty-eight times without them," Penny said with a sigh. "I hardly think he needs them, do you?"
"But . . . ." Drop Dead turned on the kids. "Kill him," he begged. "I just want to beat him once." Now he sounded as if he was sobbing.
"Just how many worlds have you been to?" Waku asked.
"Sixty-three," Penny replied. "From what I can tell, there's no way we should've met that guy so many times." She pointed at the enemy mech. "But they hate each other, and I think they're stalking us."
A screen popped up near the view of the enemy mech, and a creature similar to Drop Dead appeared on it. "So how's it going, ole friend. Ready for number fifty-four?"
"You're not going to win this time," Drop Deam screamed, sounding demented. "You won't."
Waku ignored the two as they threw insults at each other, choosing instead to peer around the enemy cockpit. The pilot was a boy of around ten who seemed to be quite happy as he stared back into their cockpit, looking directly at Kako. Something about him reminded Waku of Kodama, causing him to shudder a little. The boy had to know he was going to die, yet seemed careless of that fact. He doesn't care, Waku realized. He doesn't care at all if he has to die, just so long as he gets to kill. And he's excited; he's excited that he gets to kill a whole world.
"Are we going to fight or not," Kodama suddenly asked impatiently. "I got a book on construction techniques I want to read, and you stupid morons are wasting my time."
There was a brief silence before Drop Dead said, "Crazy, all of you."
Kako looked around the area, noting with relief that they were in a desert. What world they were on he didn't know, but there were no buildings in sight and no people.
"You have to destroy their cockpit," Penny informed them.
"Where is it?"
"I don't know . . . ." the girl started to say.
"Lower stomach, a little to the right," Moji calmly said, interrupting. "Only long range weapons are the eyes. It's a cutting torch." He paused. "But it's only effective within a kilometer, and it's like a blow torch. Seems like that machine really was built to beat this one."
"How do you know that?" both ceramic looking creatures asked.
"Moji looked up from his cellphone which had an image of the enemy mech on it. "Just intuition," he told them with a smile, and gave the two a little smirk before going back to the phone. On it questions popped up and he intuitively made guesses which the device recorded and compiled, showing a summary. "Legs are pretty tough," he informed them. "But the arms are weak. I'm guessing it's so they can't be tripped, and so they can cut us faster."
The enemy approached them, moving slowly with the arrogance of a cat about to play with a mouse. Frantically, Kako ordered MEarth to retreat. "The enemy disappeared."
"Huh," Drop Dead stated in shock.
"We've never moved like that before," Penny said, sitting up straight in her chair.
Seems wearing those blasted uniforms worked, Kako noted. Feels so light without all that lead that I'm not thinking about how we're in a death trap that's five-hundred meters long, and one-hundred high. More like how it would be on rollerblades.
"If we keep running, who would drop first?" he asked.
"They would," Moji immediately replied.
Waku nodded. "Running takes more energy than driving, and it's like we're in a big wheel. So we just keep running."
"Sheesh," Kodama quietly muttered. He took out his phone, opened it up to the book he wanted, and started reading. "What do you want, pipsqueak?" he asked a few moments later, annoyed with the way Drop Dead was staring at him. "I'm busy. Bug off snotball."
Kako stayed quiet, waiting for the enemy to come in range. It did so quickly, now running. Watching he noted how plumes of sand rose around its feet, and ordered MEarth to spin around in a circle, like playing spin-the-bottle. The boy smiled when a sandstorm rose, hiding MEarth from view, and quickly dashed off, putting distance between them and the enemy.
"Stay put," the pilot of the enemy mech cried. "I'm going to smash you," he added, sounding just like a spoiled rich kid.
Komo blinked and then smiled. "A stupid little kid like you smash us?" she asked sarcastically. She gave a howl of laughter, clearly mocking him. "Are you even potty trained?" She glanced across the room and nodded at Anko and Nakama.
"Does look like he has a diaper on beneath those pants," Anko added, picking up on what Komo wanted.
"We should strip him to see," Nakama mused, smirking at the boy.
"He's just a little toddler," Maki said. "It's only natural he have a diaper on."
Waku nodded, satisfied as the girls worked together to taunt the boy, making him mad. The movements of the enemy mech became more erratic, and that he knew would lessen the time they could spend fighting.
With the enemy rapidly closing in, Kako ordered MEarth to spin again, kicking up another screen of sand to hide them. Picking a direction he had MEarth quickly roll off. If the kid could be driven into a temper tantrum they could win.
"Boys, they're so stupid," Chizu muttered derisively. "Wonder how many times he's had that diaper of his changed today."
"Who knows," Komo shrugged. "I bet his peepee is tiny too. " She paused. "Maybe it's so small that he looks like a girl down there."
"We can check that when we check his diaper," Nakama said.
"Hey, he needs a nickname," Anko stated, sounding excited. "What should we call him?"
"Diaper Boy, of course," Komo, Maki, and Nakama chorused, giggling hysterically.
On the screen the boy had broken down into a fit of screaming about killing and smashing with no coherence at all to his rant. "Shutup," he screamed when his companions tried to quiet him down. "I'm going to smash them like ants," he added, shrieking loudly.
"Ants?" Anko mused. "I wonder who would have the bigger peepee. Him or an ant."
"The ant, of course," Komo, Maki, and Nakama again chorused together.
"If we can find it, let's chop it off," Chizu coldly suggested. "We can show our friends the world's smallest peepee."
The screen flickered off.
"I think it's safe to assume they won't be taking their time with us this time around," Penny said. "He's just going to tear us apart." She looked around, looking a little hopeful. "Maybe if we die fast enough I won't get saved. I will die too." She spoke the hope like a prayer.
Maki blinked, suddenly looking at the girl. "Sixty-three worlds, so you've seen more than eight-hundred people pass through here."
The girl looked back. "They die, and they leave me behind," she simply said, sounding broken.
"If the kid runs out of energy and dies, can they simply switch pilots?" Waku suddenly asked, looking at Drop Dead.
"They can," he replied. "So long as they got a pilot."
"Damn," Waku cursed. "So we can't simply outwait the kid." The boy's stomach twisted in upon itself, and he placed his hand over it. He'd started to hope, and then it'd been dashed. "Ideas, people?" he asked, working to sound confident.
"A large drop?" Kanji suggested, but then shook his head. "No drop would be large enough to hurt these things."
"if we had a map of the area, then who knows," Waku muttered, clenching his fists.
"Oh," Kodama looked up from his phone. "Just check 'current location' on your cell." He went back to his reading.
While Kako turned and twisted around the enemy, keeping him blind, Waku quickly flipped on his phone. "We're on . . . our Earth," he said. "I can download all the maps I want."
"He's getting tired of chasing us," Moji said. "Let him cut a few of the wires on this thing. You know, give him a bit of hope."
"Kay," Kako nodded, and let the sandstorm die down.
MEarth was just a line of wires placed along a few hoops, creating a wire cylinder. Fragile as it seemed it was still a half-kilometer long mech, and while it had no strong points, it also had no especially weak ones; other than, that is, the cockpit that was obvious in the center of the cylinder. Still, to reach it the enemy would have to cut any number of wires, or use the blow torch. Carefully, Kako rolled at the enemy, making sure to keep the center away from the blow torch. From what he could see the head would have trouble turning, so if he . . . . The edge of the cylinder hit the more powerful mech, doing no damage. But it did allow the boy a chance to cut a few of wires along the edge. The blow torch roared out, powerful and eye blinding, burning through several. Kako allowed over a dozen strands of wire to be cut or burned before he twisted away, glad that the enemy had no hands, just shears. Then he created another sandstorm.
"Got it," Waku said, screaming.
"If what you got is catching then stay away," Kako told him, not taking his eyes off the enemy. "Wait," he said, looking thoughtful. "I'm going be dead soon, so does it matter if I catch it?"
"Shutup, and drive north for two-hundred kilometers," Waku told him. "Then go east for twenty more."
Kako nodded. "Sure thing, boss." He grinned. "You know, this is just like school - I'm bullying a kid."
"Lucky us you're good at it," Moji snorted.
"Practice does make perfect," Kako tossed back. "So what's the plan?"
"Just a little something they . . . we built around eighty or ninety years ago. And be careful you don't go too far east." The boy shuddered. "It's very hot. Take out your phone; I'm sending you the map."
Kako nodded, taking out his phone. Glancing between it and the enemy, his eyes widened. "Very hot," he exclaimed. "Think they're heavy enough to break through?"
"They are," came the quick reply from Moji, "I'm sure of it." He beamed a smile at Kako. "Just don't mess up, Obnoxious Boy."
"Don't worry," he shot back. "If I mess up, there won't be any mess left to clean up."
"Hahaha," Moji said sarcastically. "But remember, if there's no mess to clean up, then there might also be no mess for you know who to fix up."
"Oh, . . . ." Kako went silent. "I'll be careful," he promised.
A civilization needs energy, and the people of this Earth had tried many means by which to obtain it. Geothermal was good. For the most part it was clean with what toxins it produced easily managed. But it was also limited, and not always where a prosperous civilization needs it. The answer had been simple, - create more. They'd dug a number of holes, each measuring a half-kilometer or more in diameter, down fifteen to twenty kilometers into the planet's crust. There, where temperatures reached as high as nine-hundred degrees Celsius, they found bountiful amounts of energy. It wasn't perfect, but in the real world few things were. After a while they reached into space to reap the nearly unlimited solar energy of their star. But the holes remained, and were kept in good condition should they ever be needed. They were, however, covered over to be safe and to return the land above to a somewhat natural state.
It was simple, Kako merely waited on the far side of such a hole, and waited for the enraged enemy to approach. The mech of the enemy was strong, and it's armor thick. It was also heavily heat-resistant. The fall didn't kill those inside, nor did the heat immediately finish them off. It was a wait of three hours before the end came, and victory was declared. The whole time Drop Dead flew around the room like a crazed bumblebee.
"Seems that's it," Kako said, sitting back in the pilot's chair, relaxing. "Weird. I don't know if those three hours were good or bad. Living longer is good for sure, but the wait was just agony." He sighed, and stood up.
"Panic," Drop Dead said, dropping down beside him. "Scream. Beg for your life."
Kako walked past the creature to stand in front of Kirie. "Thank you for being my friend," he said, and kneeling, gave the boy a hug. "I'm sorry I was such a . . . . Well, let's not scrimp on words now. I'm sorry I was such a bastard, Kirie. Never let anyone say that you're less than a great friend."
He stood and moved on to Maki. "Thank you for that talk. It saved what little dignity I had left. Thank you." He gave her a smile.
Turning, he then approached Chizu. There he knelt with his head touching the floor. "Words can't make up for what I did, but I am sorry Chizu."
He stayed there, kneeling, wishing he had some way to make it up to her, knowing it was futile. Each breath he took the boy studied it in extensive detail, glad for it. The wondrous sensation as each flowed in through his nostrils, and filled his chest. That it wasn't like last time he was grateful. There was no pain as he held each wondrous breath in, and slowly exhaled it. Then there was darkness.
The kids sat staring. It wasn't as if this was the first time they'd seen this happen, but now each of them knew what it was like. They'd each sat in the chair and piloted a mech. They'd each killed, destroying a world and with it all its people. And they knew that each of them would again sit there only to repeat those horrible crimes. They'd chosen this all too aware of what would occur, but now they doubted that decision. Were their dreams and hopes worth the cost? Play the game, or not play the game, either way a world would end, but when they played the game the blood was on their hands. And it wasn't as if they were strangers anymore. They knew each other. That some unknown girl had promised they would live now seemed a faint hope.
breathe, . . . .
Maki sighed, closing her eyes. "It had to be," she said firmly, knowing the thing she fought for was her baby brother. She left her chair to kneel beside the corpse, and took his hand into hers, recalling how they'd talked the night before, confiding and trusting. That they'd slept together, and how she'd awoke feeling so warm, knowing it was safe to joke with him.
breathe, . . . .
Kirie left his chair in shock. It was the second time he'd had to face the death of his friend; that he'd been through it once before didn't lessen the agony that now gripped his heart. He also knelt beside the boy, and let the tears run down his face.
breathe,. . . .
Chizu sat, staring with a heart that was too heavy for her to bear. Why am I here? she asked herself, and the answer came, to pay for what you did. This, she decided, was indeed a fitting punishment.
breathe, . . . .
Penny stood as well. In her world there was rarely anything to be happy about. Win or lose, the people she knew died. She'd long stopped trying to remember their names, nor could she ever hope to recall all their faces. But this time the boy who'd piloted this accursed machine had stopped the monster who stalked them. Maybe now he would stop. Maybe now those poor souls who had to sit in those chairs would at least have time to comprehend what was happening. She wasn't entirely sure if that was a good thing or not, but this was the child who'd made it possible. "Thank you," she quietly whispered into his ear, and placed a gentle kiss on his lips. She blinked in surprise. "He's not dead," she stated, shocked, looking around.
"What?" demanded Drop Dead who'd been happily savoring his victory by watching the grief of the children.
Kako opened his eyes, blinking. He recalled the futile act of trying to breathe and the despair that'd gripped him. Blinking again he realized that the warmth he'd felt had been Maki taking his hand, while the wetness had been Kirie crying. And the breath that'd filled his lungs? He looked up into the pretty, green eyes of the girl above him and smiled. "Dead or not dead, that was my first kiss. No way was I missing that."
"Damn kids," Drop Dead shrieked in outrage, trembling with fury. "Stop playing your fucking mind games with my fucking head."
The group collapsed to the ground as they appeared back in their apartment, the chairs having vanished from beneath them.
Kodama silently paced through the skyway, cursing Kako under his breath. For as long as he could remember he'd loved to play God with those beneath him, and today was no exception. In fact, today he'd expected to watch the most delicious prey of all die - a human. That'd been snatched away from him. Things had been going so well. That bastard had taken the seat, and for all the joking around the boy must have known he was going to die. It'd been fun to watch. It'd also been fun teasing Drop Dead. Certainly, seeing the dumb creature bounce around like some ceramic clown had been pretty cool. Then the battle had ended, heralding in the moment of truth. He wasn't sure why Maki had cried, and as for Kirie that guy must have a few screws lose to weep over the prick who'd bullied him for so long. Still, the misery had been exquisite, much like a fine meal. He'd drank it all in, savoring it. Then there'd been the corpse, that rotting piece of meat that was all that was left of a worthless piece of trash. He'd inhaled the scent of death, and known that the guy had suffered, that even as he'd joked, inside he must have suffered. Then that asshole had turned out not to be dead. What a freaking joke.
The boy gritted his teeth, struggling to contain the curses he wanted to scream at the world. It just wouldn't do. Sure they knew he'd killed a crab at the beach, and had taken a little harmless sport in crushing a few thousand insects when he'd piloted ZEarth, but he wasn't so sure they would understand this. Not being the chosen how could they? A die was rolled, and people died. That was the way of things. Only the chosen stood above that. For as long as he could remember that was the way of things. He recalled his time as a child, killing what he could. Pigeons by the thousands had fallen beneath his air gun. A few cats and dogs had been maimed. It was natural. Once he'd visited all the pet stores in the city buying a single puppy or kitten from each. Those he'd played with, slicing them open to see what they were like inside, or just jabbing them with a knitting needle to hear their cries of pain, of terror. It was the way of things. The strong preyed on the weak, and he as the chosen was the strongest of them all. Fate decreed it.
Standing still, Kodama looked down at the greenery below. Down there there had to be something to met the need that drove him, the divine obligation of a God to judge that which is beneath them. But did these people have cameras?
Chizu sat in her room, hand gently resting on her stomach, recalling the way Kako had woke up. Mirror claimed that some few people had a life force strong enough to pilot a mech and survive. That the boy must have stood at the brink of death, and it was only the kiss that saved him. Slight as it was, some of Penny's life force had entered Kako through that contact, and it'd been enough to tip the scales for the dying boy. That it was a one-in-a-million miracle.
The girl closed her eyes, faintly smiling. Surely it was okay for her to be happy that the boy was alive, wasn't it? Bad as she was, surely that was okay?
Chizu tilted her head, wondering how he was doing. Even if alive, he was still recovering in his room. Maybe she could visit him, and they could talk? She'd known him back in elementary school for a bit. There he hadn't been a bully, just one of the kids. He'd even seemed nice. When the others had stopped talking to her for being a tattle tale he'd actually started. It was only in seventh grade that he'd become one of the bullies. Still, they'd known each other for a while, and maybe . . . . She shook her head. No. There was no way a visit would be okay.
Hand still resting gently on her stomach she considered his apology, puzzled by it.
A knock disrupted her thoughts. Opening the door she saw Kodama there, and couldn't quite suppress the tired sigh she made. He'd been following her around for a bit now, and she knew what it was. Sex, with boys it was always sex. But who am I to judge, she thought, hand again gently brushing against her stomach. Wearily she started to ask what he wanted, to get him to leave.
"Hello," Kodama said, brushing quickly pass the girl before she could say a word. With his heel he slid the door shut. He studied her, excitement growing in him. This wasn't a cat, or a dog, and certainly not a pigeon. He gulped, eyes bright with exhilaration, with anticipation.
Chizu frowned, backing away, eyeing the door behind the boy. Trembling, knowing what was to come, she faced him, and took another step back. From his eyes she knew this wasn't about sex. In them she saw something bright, bright yet terrifyingly dark. She raised her hand to strike him, to make a dash for the door, and stopped. In her mind she saw the corpse of Kako when she'd killed him. Then her mind was flipping through all the things she'd done, all the things she regretted. Her sister, her father, her mother, her friends, . . . all those she'd betrayed. The people she knew who would never forgive her, who never could. I'm a bad girl, she thought, and lowered her hand, in some way savoring what was to come.
Kodama studied the girl, licking his lips. He'd followed her around for a bit during the last day or so, excited by her, yet puzzled by that excitement. It wasn't that he lusted after her. She was sort of cute, but nowhere near as beautiful as someone like Anko. it'd taken him a while to figure out that, like the animals he'd played with, she was shrieking in pain. Hide it as she may, she had the same look as the kittens he'd used that knitting needle on; that look of torment that always created a warmth within him. The others he knew wouldn't understand, and might even try to stop him, but with her that didn't matter because she wouldn't tell. His instincts told him that, confirming he had the right to judge her.
His first punch took her in the solar plexus, causing her to bend over, desperately gasping. He started to raise his knee, to crush her nose and shatter her teeth, her jaw; but held back, not wanting to leave visible marks on her. It took a second for him to resist that impulse, watching as she struggled on the floor to breathe. Panting, he started to strip her. Cute or not, that didn't mean he couldn't have his way with her. For him it would be fun; for her it would be anything but.
Something was wrong. Kodama watched the girl, knowing she was in hell, and he was the one who'd put her there. He was inside her, making her submit, to acknowledge him as the chosen who had absolute dominion over her, yet the excitement in him wasn't burning as it should. Furious, he studied her blank expression, those emotionless eyes, letting the rage in him build. Reaching he grabbed her chest, annoyed with how flat she was, and it caused him to wonder how others could find her so attractive. His fingers dug into her flesh, pushed by all the forced he could muster, and then he squeezed, making it appear as if she actually did have breasts. At least before the skin turned purple and blue and red. Inside him the fire started to burn, and he thrust into her again. When blood started to form in drops at her nipples he shuddered in ecstasy. When those ever so bright-red spots grew, running down over her chest, the rapture took him. The girl's shrieks rang loudly in his ears, vibrating his whole soul as the music of the gods sang to him.
End of Chapter
In the anime Kako is no worse than Ushiro, so I think he can be redeemed. Sure what he did was BAD, but Ushiro was beating up on a kid practically every day, which is also BAD.
Kako's talk of virginity while in MEarth, btw, was just another way of saying Maki's virtue was still intact.
I think you can already tell who the bad buy of the group is going to be.
