Once the Raygust materialized in Osamu's hands, he moved purely on instinct.

The person lifted his leg to kick him again, but it went flying as the brunette sliced cleanly through the knee and rolled to his feet. Blood splattered onto his uniform—

Blood?

Osamu almost dropped his weapon when his assailant's bloody leg rolled towards him, and the assailant himself let out a bloodcurdling scream as he held his new wound. Wide, terrified eyes whipped to his now bloody Raygust, and he resisted the urge to vomit.

Did…did I just…?

His downwards spiral of regret was interrupted when Dr. Mariposa herself dashed into the room, screaming in horror when she saw the person on the ground. "M-Musca!?"

Musca, Osamu's assailant, reached a bloody hand to his mother. "Y…you…were right…"

This is…wrong, every single fiber of the brunette's being screamed, this shouldn't be happening…!

"That won't matter if you die here and now!" Dr. Mariposa exclaimed, and to Osamu's surprise when she lifted her left hand he saw a ring that looked similar to Yuma's black trigger. "Disparador, encendido!"

The doctor wiped a tear off her face with a flourish, and a pair of bright, blue wings materialized behind her. A weapon that looked like a Kogetsu appeared in her hands, and Osamu's muscle memory kicked back in when she dove for him at lightning speed. He deflected the blow with Shield, but a sharp pain bit his chest where he was still wounded.

"I should have known!" she cried out, swinging at him again. "It's a blood stone, it need s blood! Why didn't I think of that!?"

Osamu didn't have time to comprehend what she was saying as they fought, mainly due the fact that despite being in his Trion body, he was still bleeding out from his previous encounter with Musca. He clashed blades again, and instinctually shouted "Asteroid!"

Dr. Mariposa jumped out of the way, but a stray bullet hit her in the shoulder.

"Shit!" she cursed, holding her now gushing wound.

This isn't right.

He hesitated again, just in time for an overly familiar katana blade rammed itself through his chest again a second time.

"Little…shit…" Musca huffed as Osamu collapsed again, holding his chest as blood spurted from his mouth.

The brunette glanced at Musca's discarded leg, then the glowing Trion substitute that held his assailant upright. They can use Trion at will, he thought when he heard Dr. Mariposa stand up behind him.

"Take your trigger, sweetheart…" she murmured, and Osamu felt her grin like dozen spiders crawling on his back. "Then you can finally take Meeden like you always wanted."

I said to find me a suitable test subject, not invade a whole country.

"You…lied…" Osamu choked out, violently coughing up blood. "…you…said…"

"I was telling the truth," Dr. Mariposa insisted, placing a hand on the brunette's head and ruffling it. "But my son wants a country, and it's a mother's duty to make sure he has the ability to do what he wants! It's his life after all, and he should be able to do what he wants with it!"

You should do what you want to…it's your life after all…

"I want to go home", Osamu murmured feverishly, his hand tightening around Raygust.

You look like you've found what you wanted to do.

Adrenaline surged through the bespectacled brunette, and with a war cry he swung his Raygust at Dr. Mariposa's outstretched arm, causing the woman to screech as it flopped messily onto the floor.

I'm not hesitating anymore.

Musca lunged forward and thrust his sword in retaliation, but Osamu was somehow faster. He parried easily, using his assailant's momentum to slip behind him and—without a second thought—plunged Raygust straight through Musca's back.

"Listen," he stated, holding Musca up as a shield, "because if you don't act fast, he's going to die."

Dr. Mariposa stopped short, eyes watering. "W-what makes you thing you have the right to—"

This is wrong.

Osamu twisted his blade slightly, causing Musca to cry out in agony. "Your love for your son does," he replied, "if you weren't lying about letting him live his life, that is."

Why am I doing this?

"…fine," the woman grit out, lowering her Kogetsu. "What the hell do you want?"

"You said we were on Tharsis," Osamu explained, ignoring the blood that was dripping onto his hands. "When will it approach Meeden again?"

Dr. Mariposa hesitated, and Osamu felt himself growing impatient. "He's bleeding out," he stated, twisting Raygust a little more and making Musca scream. "You shouldn't hesitate, or he'll die."

That's right.

"…your imprudence has perfect timing," she grit out, "we're in orbit around Meeden right now—I had expected to be done with the trigger by now, and I was right. I've even told the personnel when we were going to land back on Meeden."

I want to go home.

"And when is that?" Osamu questioned, idly wondering how he was able to keep standing so long—he was bleeding out still, and the fact that he was carrying Musca's dead weight was nothing short of a miracle.

"I've told you enough!" the doctor snapped, "What more—"

She halted when Osamu tore out Raygust from her son's chest, placing the bloodied blade to her son's neck.

"…tomorrow," she muttered, gripping her Kogetsu with white knuckles. "If you want, we can get this whole ordeal over with now—I'll take you to the room where we set up the portals and take you home if you want, just…leave my son alone."

This is wrong.

"Only if you promise to leave Meeden alone."

I don't care anymore.

"…fine."

Osamu dropped Musca with shield already equipped when Dr. Mariposa lunged again.

"You couldn't even wait until he got medical attention to stab me in the back?" Osamu asked,

"You don't get to question how much I love my …!"

Dr. Mariposa's sentence drifted off as her other arm hit the floor. Unlike Musca, Dr. Mariposa couldn't seem to replace her limbs with Trion, causing her to freeze as Osamu's bloodied Raygust stopped millimeters from her neck.

"Now," he said, his glasses tinting dangerously, "I'm going to question how selfish you are."

He barely moved the blade an inch when Dr. Mariposa broke.

"P-please don't kill me!" she wailed, eyes filling with terror. "I-I'll…I'll do as you say…!"

"Very, apparently," he muttered, taking the woman by the scruff of her shirt while keeping his blade steadily pointing at her jugular vein. "Lead the way."

"…I understand," she murmured as he was lead out of the Trion room and back into the blindingly white hallway—however, this time it was filled with what looked like heavily-armed security guards wielding various weapons.

"Call them off," Osamu commanded, "…please."

Dr. Mariposa rolled her eyes. "Well, since you said please…" she muttered, "Stand down. We're going to the Portal-Gate-Thingy so we can get rid of this stupid Four-E—"—Osamu pushed the knife ever so slightly into her neck, and the woman corrected herself—"—Test subject. If you value your paychecks then don't interfere."

"...Portal...Gate-Thingy?" Osamu asked, raising an eyebrow.

"My son kept calling it that when he was three," she muttered, "and it stuck."

The guards effectively lowered their weapons, and she lead Osamu through multiple, empty rooms. "For testing and storage," she had answered when he asked.

Finally they made it to a room similar to the control room they fought in before, with the same panels and TVs showing the same room.

…and that's when he noticed a small blood splatter on the control panel.

He jumped out of the way of a Trion beam, annoyed that he hadn't noticed that she had led him into a circle. What am I supposed to do now!? He thought furiously as he unconsciously sliced through the guard that kept shooting at him, hardly noticing the blood that splattered on his clothing.

And then Osamu's unlikely saving grace kicked through the Trion wall.

"Round two you son of a bitch!" Musca—who seemed like he was using more Trion to heal his wounds—laughed, drawing his katana yet again and diving for the brunette. He blocked the attack, but the force threw him into the control panel and caused him to press multiple buttons, all having different effects.

"Trion canons firing—"

"Now recording—"

"Wash cycle started—"

"Warning, Gate opening. Please stand clear."

The three of them stood there frozen as the voice went on—"Meeden Gate opened."

"Shiori?"

"Oh, hey Reiji," the Tamakoma operator yawned, stretching her arms as she leaned back in her chair. "Are you to get some sleep tonight?"

The redhead shook his head as he leaned against the doorframe. "Of course not," he replied, "not while Chika and Yuma are out there…"

"I'm sure they'll be fine," Shiori replied, "I mean, it's just defense duty. I'm here to make sure nothing goes awry. And we'll bail them out of there if those Neighbors show up again…though I doubt they will."

"You never know," Reiji murmured, "I mean…I know it's been two months, but what if they come after Chika again? I'm not sure if Jin's Side-Effect will keep her safe…"

Shiori sighed, pushing up her glasses. "You have to understand Jin's point of view," she chastised, "He's just trying to make sure humanity doesn't die off—besides, judging by what Kirie told me Jin's Side-Effect seems to be acting…off."

"I understand that," Reiji replied hastily, "I just…hope that Jin isn't cornered in a future that harms her—or anyone else."

"And that's perfectly okay," the brunette explained, "It's just that…lately it's been changing so much and he's trying to make sense of it all—and that doesn't normally happen. Maybe every once in a while, but it seems like this future is riddled with crossroads that lead to all different places—more than usual."

There are so many futures…

"If it's so stressful," Reiji asked, "then why use it in this case and put himself through all the stress? Why doesn't he just 'see what the future holds' like the rest of us do?"

"Because the future may 'hold' humanity's extinction," Shiori replied, "and he feels obligated to make sure that doesn't happen for obvious reasons. Haven't you heard the phrase, 'with great power comes great responsibility?'"

Reiji felt his shoulders sag as they were weighed down with guilt. "Yes, but—"

"I'm sure you understand," Shiori interrupted, "you've known Jin too long not to. It's just that you're upset because his actions are hurting our kouhai, no matter how necessary they are."

"…yeah," he admitted, "You're right. I shouldn't take it out on him—I'm sure he didn't ask for any of this…"

"It's not your fault," the brunette assured, "we were all hit pretty hard…we just have to hope Jin finds a good loophole in the future—but we also have to remember Jin sees the future, but it takes a hell of a lot to change it."

The redhead nodded in agreement. "…I should apologize for that black eye I gave him."

"I figured it spawned from that," Shiori sighed, "Jin sees the future, though even without that Side-Effect he wouldn't be stupid enough to try to scare you of all people!"

Kitora mumbled as she kicked a rock while wandering the Forbidden Zone during guard duty. It's not that she minded duty—she actually enjoyed honing her skills from time to time, while on the other hand she had time to relax after a long day of prancing in front of the press.

But today was too slow.

Sure she's had more than a few nights where she hasn't done anything in her section, but she always heard at least two or three other people fighting neighbors nearby. However, tonight was much quieter—she hasn't heard a single gate open yet, and she'd been out here for several hours now.

It was suspicious, not to mention boring.

The Arashiyama Ace knew better than to let her guard down, but as a result she couldn't alleviate her boredom. Sure she was tired and hungry and now in a very ill mood, but that didn't matter—it never has, and it never will.

...though she did wish at least something would happen.

"Warning, Gate Activity in Forbidden Zone," the alarm blared, "Warning—"

"Finally," Kitora muttered, easily making her way to the gate. "Now I can—"

"NICE TRY MOTHERFUCKER—!" a humanoid neighbor screamed as he flew from the gate and straight into the ace.

"What the—!?" Kitora couldn't finish her sentence when pain blossomed in her side. When she looked down, she realized that the person had cut her with an actual katana—and she was bleeding.

Bleeding!?

"Damn it..." he muttered, standing over her with his bloody sword. "You're not that Four-Eyed fucker..."

Four-Eyed...?

Now thoroughly pissed off, Kitora drew her Asteroid riffle and fired. He was right in front of her so there was no way for her to miss—

"What the fuck!?" she shouted as the bullets whizzed right through the Neighbor's head, causing him to wipe his forehead in confusion.

"Well that felt weird," he murmured, laughing slightly. "So that's what Trion feels like when you're in real life? It's all…tingly…"

This cannot be happening, she thought, holding her still bleeding wound.

"A-Arashiyama-sempai..." she choked through her com, "Get HQ...these neighbors..."

"Kitora-kun!?" Jun's alarmed voice crackled through her ear, "Are you alright!? I'm coming right now!"

"N-no!" she shouted, "Get back up…you'll…"

She drifted off when another humanoid neighbor jumped from the gate, this one rushing head-first into the idiot who stabbed her in a blur of teal and—

Wait.

Kitora watched in horror as the boy clad in a familiar, teal Border uniform and glasses viciously lunged at the Neighbor that had stabbed her in the stomach. The Neighbor attempted to counter, but the boy dodged and sliced his Raygust cleanly across his assailant's neck. His head went flying and landed right in Kitora's lap, and it took all of her willpower not to throw up as she stared up at the bloodied, bespectacled survivor.

"…O-Osamu-kun!?"

"What the hell?!"

Reiji jumped at Shiori's outburst. "What's wrong?!" he demanded, "What happened?!"

"I-Osamu's Trion signature is visible!" she replied, staring at the computer screen with wide eyes. "L-look!"

Reiji joined her behind the desk and peered at the screen. "That's him?" he asked, eyes wide with disbelief. "You're sure?"

"Absolutely!" She replied, typing furiously on her keyboard. "Maybe...just maybe I can communicate with him through the comms!"

"What if it's a neighbor with Osamu's trigger?" Reiji asked dubiously, "I mean..."

"There's only one way to find out," Shiori replied, "Osamu, are you there?!"

There was a long pause, and Reiji felt his fists tighten. "Contact HQ just in case," he said, "It might not be—"

"I'm here Usami-sempai," a familiar voice interrupted, "but I need help."

"Anything!" Shiori practically cried, "In fact, Chika and Yuma are out there on defense duty if you're in need of assistance!"

"...that's exactly what I needed," Osamu answered, "thank you."

Reiji raised an eyebrow, and Shiori shrugged. "Whatever gets him back here alive and in one piece," she murmured, "that's all that matters…Chika-kun?"

"Yes?" Reiji's kouhai answered immediately, "Is something wrong? I know a gate opened west of me—"

"Go there," Reiji cut in, "Osamu-kun just returned and he needs support."

Shiori slapped him on the bicep.

"What?" he asked, genuinely confused.

"You have to tell her that gently!" she chastised, "You don't want her to get too emotional on the battlefield, do you?"

"You underestimate my kouhai," Reiji replied, "I'm sure she'll be fine—she always is."

"…Kitora-sempai," Osamu acknowledged, bowing his head respectfully.

She took it back. She took it all way the fuck back.

Fuck being bored, she was completely terrified. Blood stained the Tamakoma agent's uniform and weapon, and his glasses tinted like he was the fucking son of the devil or something.

"…you're hurt," he stated, moving towards her but stopping after Kitora scooted away from him, screaming when the Neighbor's decapitated head rolled out of her lap.

"…w…what did you just do…?" she stammered, holding her wound. "What…what did that neighbor do!?"

"Musca!"

Another humanoid neighbor dove from the gate, except this one was a female with bright blue wings (though after a second take Kitora realized she actually had one wing—the other must have been cut off), two glowing Trion arms, and a face that looked no younger than forty. She landed/tripped onto the ground and rushed to the first decapitated Neighbor, tears running down her face as she sobbed over his body.

"You…you monster!" she shrieked, "You…you killed him!"

Kitora turned back to Osamu, whose face was disturbingly calm. "I had to," he replied bluntly, "it was him or her."

Her…? Kitora realized that he was referring to her and not himself, making her shudder. Doesn't that idiot care about his own life?

"Arashiyama-sempai…" she murmured, "…I need help…"

"I contacted HQ," he replied, "Chika and Yuma are on their way…what's happening!?"

"Humanoid Neighbors," she explained, "…and I'm kind of bleeding out—"

Before she could finish her sentence, her sempai appeared out of thin air beside her, eye filled with worry.

"Kitora-kun!?" Jun gasped, kneeling down to her. "What the hell—?!"

He stopped mid sentence when the female neighbor screamed again, lunging at Osamu with blinding speed. Osamu blocked with surprising ease and the two became a flurry of Trion and blood, causing Jun's jaw to drop.

"…is that…?" he asked, eye wide with terror.

"Yes, it is," Kitora replied, "And I'm still bleeding out. Can you please apply pressure to my wound!?"

Chika was laser focused on the Gate, finger shaking.

"So Osamu-kun made it back?" Yuma asked through the comm, standing right beside her. "I should go say hello."

"I-I don't think that's a good idea," Chika replied uneasily, "the last time Osamu and I encountered those neighbors…your real body will be hurt."

"My real body is already hurt," Yuma laughed, "But I guess rushing in there would be quite problematic, wouldn't it?"

"Chika," Osamu's voice suddenly crackled through the girl's comm, "Are you there?"

"I'm here!" Chika replied, eyes watering with tears as she saw him through the scope. "I-I'm positioned on the roof of HQ-I can see you now...are you hurt?!"

She looked closer and saw that he was covered in an alarming amount of blood. "…Yes," he replied, "I need you to do me a favor-aim for the gate."

"...okay...?" Chika murmured to herself, doing as she was told. "Ready."

"Alright, so listen closely," Osamu commanded, "Regular Trion don't faze these Neighbors. However I need you to shoot right into the gate—it'll close it and prevent more from coming in."

Chika's finger hesitated on the trigger. "B-but the—"

"It'll just close the portal," Osamu assured her, "quickly!"

Nodding with resolve, she fired.

The Gate exploded, and she heard Yuma whistle. "As impressive as ever," he congratulated, "It looks like those things that you set fire to during celebrations…"

"You mean fireworks?" Chika put in helpfully, "You're right, it does—"

She trailed off, eyes widening in horror as she stared down her scope.

"O-Osamu-kun!?" she screamed, her hands shaking as terror gripped her chest.

"…that's not good," Yuma muttered, eyes wide as he let out a shaky breath. "How did you…?"

Osamu knew he shouldn't be this calm.

However he found hinself not caring as Chika's blast caused the gate to explode, effectively distracting Dr. Mariposa long enough for Osamu to ram his blade straight into her chest.

"O-Osamu-kun!?" Chika and Usami screamed simultaneously in his ear.

"That's not good," Yuma muttered, "How did you…?"

"What the fuck?" Kitora demanded, while Arashiyama sat wordlessly in pure shock.

"O-Osamu-kun, don't kill her!" Usami shouted, "S-s-she could have valuable information about her country and their technology!"

The brunette sighed, mildly annoyed that he didn't see this coming. "Fine," he replied, tearing the blade out. He transformed Raygust with a shield, and before anyone else could respond he slammed it against the woman's temple as hard as he could. When she crumpled to the ground, the brunette heaved a sigh of relief.

Now that she was taken care of, Osamu turned to help Kitora with her wounds when he found a Meteora riffle pointed at his chest.

"Arashiyama-sempai...?" he asked uncertainly, "What are you—"

"You just murdered someone," he interrupted, "and I'm willing to bet you were going to kill her too before something changed your mind—either way, you're not going anywhere near her."

"I just saved her life," the bespectacled brunette replied almost emotionlessly. "I had no choice."

"Sempai—" Kitora tried to interject.

However, Arashiyama didn't seem to be having any of it. "Disengage your trigger," he commanded, "now."

Realizing he had no other choice, Osamu sighed and did as he was told. "Trigger, off."

Osamu's Trion body dissipated, leaving behind his old, worn out clothes from when he was first captured ("you're a test subject, not a model," Dr. Mariposa always muttered when he commented on them) and his multiple stab wounds that had magically disappeared during the fight. His trigger slipped from bloodied hands as he collapsed to the ground, blissfully letting the darkness carry him into unconsciousness.

Edited part of the next chapter into this one because it was to dang short...not to mention that it's not the mood that I wanted for that chapter, so nyeh.