Chapter 4: Hello...
October 22, 2001?
"No!", Takeru shouted, shouted in an air of silence. A dark black covers his vision, with the smell of rust and decay tickling his nose. Covered in sweat, panting for breath, he takes deep ones.
Whoa. That was nuts. I don't know what happened there. One second the Susanoo was about to fire, then….
Wait, the Susanoo!? What happened to it? Am I still in Sadogashima? Where is everyone!?
….
Calm down dammit! There's nothing I can do panicking. From the looks of things, I'm still in my TSF. That means the others might be still around-that is, if they're not dead yet. And if they are…
Fuck it. Time to call.
He switched on communications. "Valkyrie 10 to Valkyrie 1, report your position. Captain Isumi, can you hear me?" Static blared the radio. He tried again. "I say again, Valkyrie 10 to Valkyrie 1, report your position. Captain Isumi, can you hear me?" Still, static he could hear. "Ah, nothing. Well…", standing up to open the door, "nothing I can do here. Might as well get out and smell the roses."
The door opened, revealing a cloudy sky in view. Seems like the mech laid on its back, Judging from that view. Ain't the clear, blue sky, but it's better than rain. God forbid the rain.
Now one climb outta the mech later…..
…..
….
…
….and it's Sadogashima. He was right. No, not just right, but right on the damn money.
His mech laid on his back, just like he thought. But the whole body looked like it'd fall apart at any moment. Rust smothered the machine, an arm was missing, and the head was shot to pieces. The leg armor was cracked, revealing the exoskeleton wires, snapped in half and also rusted.
The top of the Shiranui provided an ample view of the area. The place was a battlefield. An old one, at that.
It bearer the similarities to Hiiragi. A once, beautiful location turned graveyard for fallen warriors. But it wasn't all grim, for in the distance, he saw a military base. A very advanced-ish base in the direction of the hive. Same spot even.
"The hell? I don't remember that.", he uttered puzzlingly. Confusion ran through him, bringing up so many questions. Questions he needed to answer.
Before that, he checked his exosuit, realizing that it's offline. And broken. The armored piece were scratched with claw marks, bite marks surrounded the neck area, and the rubber pieces were falling apart ever so slowly.
Meaning this suit's days are over.
He stepped the cockpit to check the compartments for any items of use. Oddly, he found 5.
A black t-shirt, a pair of country jeans, combat boots, a leather jacket, and a wolf necklace. Not sure why there's a necklace, but okay.
[-]
Ten minutes later, he got out looking much sharper.
The leather jacket was a hooded, long blue coat with a crimson X on its back, silver claw marks on the sleeves, and the Catchphrase 'Till all are gone' in purple wrapped around the collar.
Edgy? Or trendy?
"Whew. Thank god there was underwear. I'd be freezing my butt off.", he chuckled, "Though, why was it folded in the boots? Shouldn't that be folded with the jeans. Ah well." He shrugged his shoulders, jumped off the mech using the splayed out hand as a cushion, and headed for the base.
Along the way, he wondered why there was a necklace included. Not much to remember on jewelry.
The necklace in question was a silver wolf head containing a small black jewel on the cheek , and the phrase 'Hell's coming' molded on the snout. It was small, small enough to fit a keyhole, and the chain fitted nicely around his neck.
Though again, why is it here?
[-]
(Takeru's POV)
Brrr…..
Brrr….
Ha….ha….ha….
Ha...ha…..ha…...ha…..
Ha...ha…..ha…...ha….ha!
No! I'm almost there. I can do this.
Just a bit more….
…..
God, what is this pain in my head? It's like a TSF kicked me in the face.
And what are these memories? Are they mine? Some of them look like they're from the future.
Bah, never mind that. Gotta stay focused.
…..
…
…
….
….
…..
…
Yes! I'm just near the entrance. There's only two guards posted. Very low security, I gotta say.
Kinda like Yokohama.
Hmm? Looks like one of them spotted me. And they're pointing their gun at me. Seems I got no choice but to surren… der….
What is….happening to me? Why am I so….weak?
(Thud!)
I can't move. My legs gave out.
Why? Why won't my legs move!?
Come on, move dammit!
What's the matter with you, man? Get up already!
Get up! Get up, get up, get up!
Get up! Get up. Get…..up.
Get…
Up.
….
….
…...
…...
…...
"Hey, are you alright? Please hang in there!"
"This is bad. He's burning up fast! Call the medics, now!
"Yes, ma'am!"
[-]
2 hours later
Takeru lays dormant on a hospital bed, eyes closed to the brightness of the lights, covering the white room in a heavenly glow. The slow beeps of life support echo in his ears, only to be overtaken by sounds of talking in the background.
The voices sounded feminine, and they discussed an incident regarding an amputee sent back home. By the use of their words, they could be nurses.
His eyelids are tingled by the noise, opening ever so slightly, before blinking 3 times till they finally open. Immediately, he's blinded by the white light, moving his hand to cover them. That's when he noticed on nurse walking over to him. He removes his hand from sight.
"Hello, sweetie. Are we awake?"
"Huh?", he sounded quietly.
"You were very lucky. The checkpoint guards saw you collapse, and told me you were burning up badly. It's a good thing they got to you quick-Otherwise, who'd know what could've happened?" His eyes regained focus, now giving him a clearer sight of the nurse.
Small freckles surrounded her nose, spreading Dry, smooth lips covered by red lipstick, and long, raven hair concealing the right eye. Narrow, black eyes stare down, accompanied by a warming smilie.
Her uniform was an aqua skirt, accompanied by a blue hat, and a black cross on her front pocket.
He stared in awe of such beauty. Truly, he felt a surge more pleasant than combat ever conceived. What could he have done to deserve such….such… wonder?
"Um…. sir? Are you okay? You're staring too much." Her words broke his trance.
"Eh? Oh, I'm sorry. I just….. agh." He tried sitting up for a better look, gripping his aching head in pain.
"Ah, please don't push yourself! You're still in pain. Here, let me." Her hands steadied his body slowly to her eye level, then she adjusted the bed to match his posture.
"I will grab the doctor. In the meantime, if you need anything, press this button on the remote, and one of us will take care of you." She have a remote attached to the bed. "Alright. If that is everything, I'll just be on my way." She walks out the door, Takeru watching her as she leaves.
She was certainly a nice lady.
He turns to the remote, a small compact device capable of switching channels on the overhead TV. A single scoff was heard, and drops the remote on the bed. Who needed TV anyway?
No, what he needed was answers. Looking out the window, he saw nothing but a graveyard, full of TSFs, all bent, broken, and decaying outside, all alone in the cold. Truly a sad reminder of humanity's relentless spending on war machines, only for them to break on their first day.
This idea was common amongst soldiers. The TSFs themselves were merely infantry soldiers with flight, equipped with tank weaponry.
Their armor was flimsy, even with the later model's Super Carbon. Their Jump units provided endless advantages, yet still relies on old tactics.
And this was the result. A bunch of discarded trash best saved for the scrapyard. Junk easily meltable for the manufacturers to decompose. The perfect spot for looters and scavengers to waddle around, like starving hyenas searching for food in hibernation season.
Was this worth it? Was all that talk about ideals, beliefs, and fighting for what's right all worth the sight before him? Did anyone ask for this, let alone wish for it on a shooting star?
Was the Shogun wrong? Did he really have no resolve to continue? Sure, he has the resolve, but what does that mean in the face of this?
And why does anyone's beliefs even matter in a alien invasion? Aliens are attacking the earth, but that doesn't matter since apparently sacrificing your lives for the future of Earth-to ensure the next generation don't participate in war-can go fuck itself on the next stop.
What a disaster.
"I can't imagine it's like down there, freezing while basking in warmth." Huh? There's someone behind me. Must be the doctor. I can worry about answers lat-
…..
Oh my god. Who he saw surprised him beyond belief. It was Shirogane Takeru. Shirogane Takeru standing right before his eyes, sporting a fancy lab coat, white hair, and a U.N. uniform.
"Hello, Shirogane Takeru. My name is Shirogane Takeru. Pleased to meet you." He even sounds the same! He sat down on the bed, the two of them facing each other.
"You're….me?", the bedded one replied, utterly baffled at the sight. The doctor one shrugged.
"Yep. Down to my blood type and fetishes. Which, by the way, we keep secret from any 'n all curious about us ." His fetishes?
"W-What do you mean by that?"
"Come on. Don't you have a fetish for cat girls, nerdy types, and warrior women? You-or we- particularly screwed everyone in 207b, then rode off into the sunset afterwards. By that point, Alt V was activated. Remember?"
"I….remember Alt V activated. But I don't remember having….sex with everyone."
"Of course you wouldn't. The experience later on became painful, driving you to wish not to remember. That's not exactly a new thing."
"Tell me. If you're really me, then-"
"-how did I come to be, right?" Doc smiled at the patient.
"Well, my friend, the short version is….. your desires." Takeru was taken aback by doc's words.
"Huh?"
"Let me put it this way. How much do you recall from the last loop?", Doc questioned Takeru.
"What?"
"Just answer it. Don't be so rugged on your brain. One memory or two will do."
That's easier said than done, but if I'm gonna get out of here, I'll have to follow him. Not that I want, though.
But, now that mentioned it…
"There is one part I can vaguely picture, but it's… too fuzzy to recognize."
"Anything will do. What is it?"
"I recall….the XG-70 overloading before it fired the particle beam, then it just-"
"-exploded, right?" Takeru nodded, only to realize….
"Oh my god. I failed." He hung his head in shame. "I failed again."
"Yeah. You failed."
"How could this happen? I was so close. I was so close, yet…", his hand slammed the bed, "Why? Why now!? Why now, god dammit?!"
"Who knows. All i know is it's your fault." Takeru, stunned by his words, looks up in shock.
"What?", his words seething with anger.
"You took the easy solution every time you went back. All 368 loops. I counted."
"What do you mean by that? From where i'm standing, i took the best option given. Hell, since you're me, you knew exactly how i felt."
"Oh? Do regail me on my past selves' state of mind. I so must remember.", Doc crossed his arms.
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"...Powerless."
"What?"
"Ambitious, but limited. Hopeful, but fearful. Optimistic, yet cynical." The good doctor scoffed, baffled at his words.
"Really? That's my mind during those loops. Opposite emotions conflicting inside?"
"What else were you expecting?"
"Oh, i don't know…...Cowardice? Crybaby? Too lazy for your own good?"
This time Takeru scoffed, shaking in disbelief. Sad as it is, he was right. He's absolutely right. Those feelings matched his personality. But….. how?
Yuuko said if there was any contact with other Takerus, it'd mean diseater, which translates to the space-time continuum collapsing. Only, things are stable here.
"Now, let's get back on topic.", doc said as he stood, walking a few meters then stopping.
Takeru looks on his back, broken outta his trance, "Eh? Oh, right.", he clears his throat, "So, if you're me….. Then, how am i here, with you, and not sent back to October 22?"
"..."
"If i were to guess, i'd say this place is….some kind of hidden void between our worlds, designed to hold things in place till one of us steps outside."
"..."
"At least, that's what i think. Judging from your silence, you already know the answer, don't you?"
"..."
"I'm right, am i?"
"..."
"..."
"Indeed. You are correct. And that is why…..", Doc lifts his right hand, middle finger wrapped with his own silver necklace. This time, it was an ouroboros with a dragon and a turtle.
"Wait. You have a necklace too?"
"Yes."
"Then… "
"..."
"We know what to do, right?", Takeru got up from his bed, pulling his necklace off his neck.
"Hmm. We recite the poem-", Doc turned around.
"-said only in a loving relationship-", Takeru continued, walking towards him.
"-taught to us long ago by one equally suffering in her dilemma. The poem by-."
"-Suzumiya Haruka.", the two finished. Takeru now stood in front of Doc, putting up a hand with the necklace on his middle finger. Both had their thumbs ready to snap.
"You do remember what she taught us, don't you?". Takeru nodded, taking a small breath to prepare himself. She, among many others, gave him the courage to survive through harshness.
Her pure, sweet smile coupled with her kind, tender heart swayed him to keep moving forward.
And this moment is dedicated to her memory-or rather, his memory of her.
Forgive me Sumika, he apologized to his childhood friend, watching over him somewhere.
"Just as the stars can't be stripped of their shine
So too will our hearts be intertwined
So even if these hands come apart
Just know i'll always be in your heart."
Annnnnnd…..
3..
2..
1.
(SNAP!)
[-]
It is the year 2006.
Humanity stands triumph in the face of their enemy.
With their quick technological advancement, they constructed machines of higher power.
Machines of sheer power, unbeatable to the average grunt.
A space fleet lingers in orbit, guarding the atmosphere from incoming forces beyond the stars.
Such a fleet could only belong to a nation equipped with such strength.
But who, or what, is this nation? How have they achieved such power?
And why have 5 years passed?
(To be continued)
[-]
Author's note
So…...yeah. Jumping the gun here, but i hope you're still interested.
Though, i wonder how the Valkyries look 6 years later.
Anybody wanna take a shot at drawing?
If you are, send them to my deviantart. It's hartman762.
Good luck!