If one is left empty inside, how do they feel loneliness?
The Making of Fenrir's Monsters
*** Day 1 ***
"Come on, Umiko. Put your back into it." Sora insisted to her as they sparred in the Training Room. They still wore their custom-made suits, but inside the Branch they would wear a longer version of Sweeper coats over them. Sora wore the Noir, while Umiko wore the Blanc. They were each others opposites.
Her movements were much more swift than what should be possible with her heavy God Arc. There was more power in her swings, she had to hold back just so the room wouldn't be destroyed. The same thing applied to Sora. They were aggressive with each other, but not threatening. Each not backing down from the other but never going for the killing blow, it was like a violent dance. A storm embodied in a tiny room.
Garland watched their training from the top observing window with glee as the two Titans clashed with each other. The scientist and engineers observing as well were frightened by what they saw. These specimens that they've created have trashed the titanium Training Room like it was made of plastic and they were still holding back their true potential. By God... they've created monsters.
"Drop your God Arc, Umiko. It's time to go hand-to-hand combat." Sora instructed, dropping his God Arc on the ground.
"!"
"This is for situations when your God Arc will be seized from your grip. Now drop it and I'll explain what your body can do." Sora explained and charged at her. "Now brace yourself."
"!" She was taken off guard as she was forced to drop her God Arc to upper block from his fist. He bombarded her with punches and kicks which she dashed to the side to get out of their way as she struck back. Fists were continuous thrown back and forth that they were in a stale-mate. But that all changed when Sora form Borg Camlann tail needles that came from his lower arms and sliced at her, the size was still the normal equivalence so they acted more like blades on his arms. Umiko jumped back in surprise as the blade sliced her cheek. A slight crimson leaked from the cut. "!"
"Surprised?" Sora asked to her, bringing his blades into view as she cupped her injured cheek. "You can do something similar to this too. Your instincts should take over when you're in danger, after a while it will come at will. Give it a try."
Sora insisted as he thrust forward at her with his piercing blades. She felt no fear but her blood began to pump faster, excitement rushed through her and exposed itself through her eyes. Her pupils slit and her irises began to glow into a more Aragami-like eyes. As he came at her again, she blocked him with three-set Caligula blades that came from her arms. Doing a back flip kick one long Caligula blade shot out from each of her lower legs.
"Beautiful." Sora complimented to her as he jumped back. His pupils began to slit as well, the excitement began to make his irises glow. "But let's see if you can use them."
They clashed at each other with a speed that made the glow from their irises drag behind them like glow sticks. They continued striking at each other with wild abandonment as their savage nature took a hold of them. They didn't even realize that they had formed wings on their backs to take the fight airborne. Sora took on the wings of a Spartacus while Umiko's were more like a ivory angel wings. Things got carried away when Umiko accidentally shot out Divine projectile orbs from her hands. The battle stopped there as they both descended to the ground, cooling off from their battle adrenaline. Umiko looked down at her hand in subtle shock as smoke still steamed from it.
"Bravo." Garland slowly clapped down at them from the speaker, causing them to look in stead-fast at him from the viewing window. "This must be an added ability of a New-Type. I expect none the less from you two. But I suggest we call it a day before you two get carried away. Wouldn't want you two to accidentally take a bite out of each other."
"?"
"We can form Devouring mode just like our God Arcs." Sora explained to Umiko. Changing his arms into the familiar Devouring mouths of God Arcs, blackened by the Oracle Cells in his suit, then changed his arms back to normal. "It comes in handy during a battle. If you devour an Aragami with it during a fight it'll make you go under a blood rage. Chaotic power that will make you temporarily go into a berserk."
"So in reality, you no longer need your God Arcs." Director Garland chipped in.
"No..." Umiko stoically said, walking over to her God Arc to embrace it in her arms. "We will always be one..."
"Heh, of course. The life of a Gods Eater is an empty life without the presence of their extended limb." Garland replied back to her; not taking her last retort as a little act of deviance but simply stating a fact. "Besides, your God Arcs still have use since we just barely scratched the top of what you can accomplish."
"Should we continue with the training, sir?" Sora asked him.
"No, that's enough for the day. We can continue your progress tomorrow." Garland said down to them, arms crossed behind his back. "You two did well today. I am pleased with you both."
"Thank you, sir." They both said at the same time. Standing tall as they gave him a heart pound salute.
*** Days Later ***
*** Out in the Plains of Finland ***
"Listen to me well, Umiko." Sora instructed to her. "Your God Arc is your one true friend. It will never abandon you when you need it and it will always have your back."
"Yes... I know..." She looked down at her God Arc with hollowed eyes.
"The silent friend that will always listen and comply. Treat your God Arc well and it will treat you well."
"Why do you bring this up now?"
"You've always talked to your God Arc, but haven't you ever wished that it would talk back?"
"... At times... yes..."
"What if I told you they could?"
"!?"
"They Resonate with us, we just can't hear what they say. That is, normal God Eaters can't hear what they say. However, we have the ability to communicate with them now."
"Really? How?"
"Slice your hand on your God Arc." Sora instructed.
"!?"
"Your God Arc will now be able to absorb the Oracle Cells in your blood and temporarily evolve to the next level."
"?"
"Come now, Umiko. Don't you trust me?"
Reluctantly Umiko slid her hand along her God Arc's blade, watching as the God Arc soaked in the blood like a sponge. Her eyes slightly dilated as she saw her God Arc start to pulsate. Then it started to morph before her eyes. It just kept changing and getting bigger until it no longer looked like a blade.
"..." Umiko expressed nothing at the final transformation of her God Arc, but that didn't stop her from staring.
"Tell me, Umiko. How does it feel meeting your God Arc for the first time?"
"... I don't know."
*** Weeks later ***
Umiko's training had long since ended. Now she was out in the fields with Sora, exploring new abilities together as they went along with their orders. Garland would tag along with a hand full of scientists on a Chopper to see their progress in action, while still at a safe distance. It was on this cloudy day that an unanticipated event accured. They were in an area that was once a thriving city, now it was all rumble and buildings with more holes than Swiss cheese. Umiko and Sora walked along side each other on the remains of a tumbled over building, their boots protecting them from the broken glass.
It was a normal day, the same routine. Eliminate the Aragami and extract the core, nothing special nothing out of the ordinary... just a regular day for a Gods Eater. But suddenly after Devouring the core... Umiko saw something at the corner of her eyes. Something... big.
"Sora, what is that... that colossal?" Umiko asked, watching the giant as it marched along the open plains in the distance. The giant looked like a giant Mech, but carried its large blade on its shoulder like Gods Eater.
"That's a God Arc Soldier, cyborg God Eaters manufactured by Fenrir. Created from the Aragami parts and cores to be used as behemoths that fight against larger Aragami." Sora explained to her as he watched the God Arc Soldier march along. It's blade was dirty... it must've just got done taking out an Aragamic titan. "In a way... they are inorganic Aragami."
"Can you tell me more?" Umiko couldn't take her eyes off of the behemoth of Fenrir.
"They come in two varieties, Buster blade or Long blade. Looks like this one is a Buster blader."
"What an amazing specimen."
"Yes... but be wary. Their allegiance is on shaking ground... they are Aragami chimeras in chains. We have no idea if they'll turn."
As if it could feel them staring at it, the God Arc Soldier turn to stare at them. Its ruby eyes stared into Umiko's crimson, she could see its eyes sinking into her very being. She didn't understand it but... there was a link between them, that they weren't so different from each other. Both came into this world by means unknown to them, destined to fight for Fenrir because that is all they knew. Kindred spirits seen to the world as monsters.
Just as the two inorganic and organic- or inorganic, Umiko didn't really know- were lost in their own world a herd of Zhou Wang jumped out in an ambush at Umiko and Sora.
"Umiko, focus." Sora said to her, the only time he came close to raising his voice at her.
Pulling herself together, she dragged her eyes away from the God Arc Soldier in the distance and gave her attention to the Zhou Wangs. They handle the surprise attack with cool and collective heads. Umiko changed her arms into Devour mode, but as she bit into them she got nothing. The Zhou Wang just decomposed instantly after death, these rat-like Aragami from the Ogretail family were the only known Aragami without a core.
Sora and Umiko each took on two Zhou Wangs. The Aragamis seemed to have herded the two apart, but that was a little matter to the two God Eaters since the opponents were so weak. Sora was lead to the top side of a fallen building, while Umiko was lead further down to a rumble area surrounded by destroyed and half eaten buildings. But these Aragami were exclusive, they could only be summoned into existence. The Zhou Wangs only came in pairs of four, so that made Umiko wonder... where was their summoner?
As if speaking of the devil, the Yan Zhi appeared onto the scene. Like the love child of a Sariel and a Chi-You, the Yan Zhi came flying down at Umiko. Shooting three orbs at Umiko that seemed to follow her in mid air. She continued to dodge them, but they eventually exploded on the building behind her. As she continued to roll out of the way, Umiko failed to notice the Yan Zhi coming in for a slice attack.
"!" Startled by the sudden in coming of the Yan Zhi's claws, she braced herself for pain. But was in for the surprise of her life when the giant hand of a God Arc Soldier came smacking down on the Yan Zhi, crushing it like a mosquito. But the God Arc Soldier was far off in the distance, how did it get to her so quickly? More importantly, why did it come to her aid? Usually something of its size wouldn't bother itself with such a small opponent.
Umiko couldn't fathom why the colossal soldier would go through the trouble. But just as she began to contemplate the possibilities the fragile pieces of the building behind, loosen from the orbs explosions, began to collapse on top of Umiko. Unable to move the distance she'd need to get away in time, she shielded herself. Bracing for the pain that was to come, the rumble wouldn't kill her Oracle Cell enhanced body just... damage it.
But she was startled as the God Arc Soldier placed its hand out to shield her from the fallen rumble. What a curious action from their normal behavior Sora described. The God Arc Soldier looked down at her, once the rumble ceased its tumble it slowly retracted its hand back. She slowly got up again, looking into its eyes. Those eyes... they were the same as her's.
"Empty Eyes..." She said up to it. The God Arc Soldier brought his hand back out, holding his palm out to her. Taking the invitation, Umiko walked into its palm. The giant soldier brought her up to his face level as they both studied each other. "You could destroy buildings with your bare hands, yet you hold me so gently. Why is that?"
Far off in the distance, Director Garland watch this phenomenon in God Arc Soldier character with a grin. He had seen how the two reacted to each other, almost as if they were Resonating. Garland saw potential in this.
"Empty Eyes, huh? Eyes devoid of the worlds corruption and filth... eyes wide open, only filled with innocent curiosity. A fitting name." Garland said aloud to himself before addressing the other scientists with him. "Schedule more interaction time between those two. I would like to see where this goes."
*** Months later ***
There Umiko and Sora were, sitting on the roof of the Finland Branch on top of the shoulder of the God Arc Soldier Umiko called Empty Eyes. They all just sat there, watching the sun set.
"Sora..."
"Hm?"
"Do you ever wonder where our names came from?" Umiko asked looking into the distance. "Do you ever wonder who gave us our names?"
"I don't know, Umiko. ... I don't know..."
"Did we ever have last names Sora?"
"I don't know." Sora honestly answers. "Such thoughts are unnecessary weights. We're here now, that's all that matters. The past must stay where it belongs as we move forward, in the past. We don't need it, Umiko. We don't need it to survive."
"Is this... what they call sad?"
"Do you feel 'sad?'" Sora asked, looking at Umiko with curiosity. Could she actually be experiencing emotions?
"... I don't know..." Sora sighed, he knew it. They had become numb to emotions... and to the past. And yet... Umiko was still able to form a bond with an inorganic gigantic soldier.