December 2065

Today's the day.

Nonon's eyes shot open as this simple thought passed through her head. She stared up at the distant beige expanse of the ceiling, feeling her heart pounding in her chest until she was sure it would burst. It reminded her of nothing more than how she felt as a child each Christmas morning, except tinged with a panic that sucked the blood from her skin. Today was the day, alright. In a few hours she would either become the second human ever to wear a Kamui – or die.

A few hours… what time is it anyway… four-thirty! Nonon groaned - it was going to be more than a few hours. She threw her phone down with a stiff hand and, eventually, willed herself to roll over and try to nestle herself back to sleep. It didn't do the trick though and Nonon was left, cheek pressed up against the sleek surface of Uzu's bare shoulder, feeling twitchy and restless and deeply jealous. Look at how peaceful he was, limbs thrown all about carelessly, making those oddly adorable little muttering noises. It wasn't fair, but then it wouldn't be fair to wake him either. No, she'd leave him be for the moment, but he'd better appreciate that she hadn't forced him to wake up and join her in this hell later.

With anything better to do she rolled of the bed and padded quietly over to the mirror, rolling up her sleeves and shirt as though the products of a year of brutal training would vanish overnight. Of course, they hadn't; her muscles were still as built as they could naturally be for a woman of her short stature. She'd be considered dangerously thin if she didn't have a world-renowned biologist to lay out her nutrition (well Xenobiologist, technically, but close enough). And in cardio and gymnastics, where she always stood out, she was performing better than ever. Especially breath control, although to be fair that was to be expected considering she'd played more than her share of brass instruments. She ran through all these facts as if there was something left to forget, reassuring herself that she was as ready as she'd ever be. But then, Satsuki had reached a peak of fitness Nonon could never hope to achieve, her body honed to the theoretical maximum, and she'd barely survived. No way around it, if the Kamui decided it wanted her dead, she was dead.

She walked to laps around Uzu's apartment to clear her head, then settled back into bed. But sleep still wouldn't come; every inch of the sheets seemed rough and wrinkled and her stupid eyes were just unwilling to stay shut. So she grabbed her phone again and started scrolling. But who to text? Houka was the obvious choice, he would definitely respond, but Shiro had decided to intervene for the sake of his health and made her promise not text him after midnight. Satsuki? No, she was asleep, and besides you didn't just text Satsuki for no reason. Ryuko was right out, of course. And Mako would probably respond, she slept with her ringer on full volume (she was so excited about owning a phone since she hadn't been able to afford one before), but that level of unquestioning optimism wasn't something she could deal with at the moment. No, the only person she actually wanted to talk to was the one she had just decided not to wake up.

But then, Uzu stirred and her heart leapt. Oh, he woke up on his own!

"Uzu!" She whispered urgently. His eyes slid open just a hair, grey irises blank and uncomprehending.

"Go back to sleep," He murmured.

"Can't."

"Put… put the phone down then. Too bright."

"You could wear a sleep mask, you know."

"You could not text in bed."

"Okay no, no wait," Nonon set her phone down and leaned over him. We're not having this argument again, today of all days. He lazily raised a hand to her side, but it didn't make it all the way and settled for her wrist. "Do you know what today is?"

"Nooo…" He trailed off, thinking, "Wait, today's the day? Shit, that really snuck up me, huh?"

"It's okay. It snuck up on me too."

"Well. Uh." He was suddenly wide awake, although his brain didn't seem to have caught up yet. "You nervous?" He read the look in her eyes and smiled, "You shouldn't be."

"Let's not talk about that," Nonon said quickly, overcome but the sudden urge to be closer. He couldn't make her nerves go away with his words, but maybe she could forget, if only for just a moment. The surprised but not at all unwelcoming "oh?" when she straddled his waist helped, and so did the softness of his lips on hers as she silenced him. She held him there as long as he could manage, back arched into his bare chest, teeth knocking together occasionally – which she usually hated – until the long, satisfied sigh escaping his nose and the hands creeping up her sides told her he was ready. That, and the strangled noise in the back of his throat that was probably him running out of air.

"Heh, I didn't think you'd-,"

"-Shh," Nonon chided as she quickly slipped both his boxers and her own pajama shorts off – times like these it pays to have quick fingers and good flexibility – and then gracefully re-mounted him, letting out a squeaking gasp that was more involuntary than she cared to admit. Uzu looked up at her with a mixture between a giddy grin and a stunned groan. God, I really am dating a monkey, if this is all it takes to impress him, Nonon thought with a giggle.

In retrospect, she shouldn't have been surprised the first round didn't last very long. Even before she began riding him, she'd already been instinctively moving her hips in a very stimulating rhythm. And then she'd done that thing when they locked eyes – pulled that smug little smile with the raised eyebrow that seemed to say, "is that the best you've got?". That had, as always, driven him wild and lead him to finally yank her shirt off and squeeze her stomach so hard she thought he might actually manage to wrap his fingers all the way around her. Maybe she shouldn't have done that, maybe it pushed him too far before she was ready. Or maybe it was that nagging thought that this could be the last time – ever – that kept her from fully enjoying it. Either way she was disappointed when, suddenly, uncomfortably, he stopped thrusting.

"Hold on, you'd better -,"

"Ah, alright, alright," It was a remarkably conscientious move on his part and Nonon had to respect it. She, reluctantly, removed herself and finished him off with her hand, pulling his boxers back up make the results his problem. He didn't seem to mind though, and when he finally caught his breath he chuckled and twiddled a strand of her hair between his fingers.

"Now, where did that come from?" He asked as Nonon snuggled up next to him.

"I dunno," Nonon hummed, barely opening her mouth, "Just… in case."

"Now hold on," Uzu frowned and sat up a little straighter, "Don't talk like that. You're gonna be fine."

"You don't know that."

"I do so. These things always work out in the end."

"Real vote of confidence there, huh?"

"Well, I…"

"You don't have to reassure me, okay? I know it's a risk, I'm alright with that," She lied, trying to make convince herself, "It's the uncertainty that gets me."

"If you say so. And you're right, whatever happens, happens," Nonon only had to look at his face, or feel the way his arm around her shoulders held her closer than ever, to see that no matter what she claimed, he wasn't alright with that. "Oh wait, you didn't… uh…," He said after a pause

"Get off? Geez come on, you can say it," Nonon groaned.

"Well, you didn't, did you? Here, I'll pay you back,"

"No, no I'm good. I mean, you're going to. But let's just lay here a little longer, alright? We've got time to kill.".

They laid there in silence for an amount of time Nonon had difficulty keeping track of. But it did what even the sex couldn't and made her forget to worry about what was in store for her, if only for a little while. No surprise there, this was what they did best back during the war. Uzu let out a soft, appreciative chuckle.

"What's up?"

"I was just thinking about when Satsuki first recruited me. First thing when I met you, I thought you were the brattiest, most stuck-up little cunt on Earth. But you probably knew that."

"I did. And I thought you were the stupidest meathead jock -,"

"- I knew that too –,"

"– I mean, being that obsessed with fighting – I thought you'd had one too many concussions. Almost felt bad for you. Almost."

"And now look at us."

"You're still a dumb jock."

"And you're still a little brat."

"But you know what, I've warmed up to fighting thing, that's for sure. Did you know, this whole time I've been training, I've had in my mind this one stupid goal. Like, REVOCS and all that, that's just a distraction. But beating Ryuko, in a fair fight when she's at her full power? I said to myself 'that's when I'll know I've made it.'. It's dumb, really, but who else am I supposed to compare to?"

"Are you kidding? That's fucking awesome."

"Heh, I should have known you'd like it," Nonon said snidely.

"What's not to like? Hell, back in the day that's what I wanted too. Well, defeating her and Satsuki too. If I had the chance, you know I'd be in line right behind you."

"… Yeah, I'm sure you would…"

"Speaking of, you know I warmed up on your whole unhealthy obsession with Satsuki thing too."

"Yeah… maybe a little too warm though."

"I'm still sorry about that."

"It's fine. I wanted to be her, you wanted to fuck her. Not too different, really"

"We were stupid back then."

"We're stupid now."

"Yeah…" Uzu trailed off, then smiled sheepishly at Nonon in a way she had come to recognize, "You aren't gonna like this one."

"Oh boy."

"But with you wearing Saiban, it's like we're both getting what we wished for back then."

"Heh, you think I'm gonna be the new Satsuki? If I live through today, I'm not gonna replace her," Nonon fixed her face into a grim smile, tried to lower her shrill, scratchy voice to an appropriately dramatic pitch, "I'm gonna be better than her." Uzu's jaw hung slack, as though he'd been waiting to hear just those words, "Maybe not as a ruler, I guess, but as a Kamui wearer? I'll find a way."

"Now that," The look in Uzu's eyes was one Nonon had never seen before. Or at least, never seen directed at her before. Reverence. "That doesn't sound like someone who plans on dying today."

Somehow, the unbearable waiting had continued even after Nonon arrived at the lab. She got to watch the scientists setting everything up, everybody trickling in, Ryuko and Rei making eyes at each other, Satsuki pretending she wasn't annoyed by their unprofessionalism (it was nice to see she actually disapproved of something Ryuko did, for once). She'd long since run out of things to talk about, even with Uzu, and relegated herself to sitting on the couch, begging the universe to just get it over with. The universe didn't answer, but Houka, eventually, did.

"It's time. You may proceed to the test chamber," He said, and somehow Nonon found herself walking, down corridor, past the observation chamber where everybody stood with bated breath, down the stairwell to a darkened little corridor with a solid double door at the end. Just her and Houka now. He adjusted his glasses, a thin, excited smile crossing his face. "You ready?"

"As ready as I'm gonna be."

"Good," Houka handed her a short scalpel. "One more time: You cut your finger, put the blood on the Kamui, and within a few seconds you should hear a voice in your head. Then, it should leap up and attach itself to you. If it takes, you'll know."

"Seriously? That's it?"

"Well, that's everything that happened to Ryuko," Houka shrugged.

"Inspires confidence," Nonon said sarcastically. She knew full well Ryuko was designed to pair with Senketsu just as much as he was with her. Not exactly fitting comparison.

"Remember also that you should not follow Satsuki's example and try to subdue it. You have to establish a trust. Just follow the instructions and see what happens. Everything else is on our end. Although, it would be better if you undressed now, so it doesn't shred your clothing."

She complied with that instruction, Houka left, there was a beeping noise and the doors swung open, simple as that. She stepped out into the blinding light… and there it was.

She had to resist the urge to run the rest of the distance. There were cameras on, this was a historic moment, and she had to look dignified. But by the time Nonon reached the stark white table her hands were shaking, her heart pounding in her ears. It was really happening. That outfit, that Kamui was hers and hers alone. Whatever happened next, Nonon felt a rush of excitement knowing she'd made it this far.

The finished Kamui Saiban was a beautiful dress, that was beyond all question. It had less black trim than the original – most of the places where that had been were now replaced with a silver that glittered along with the original gold thread. And there was a new pattern embroidered onto the bodice to give it a little extra detail. Kinda looks like snakeskin. I guess that's what I get for letting Houka and Shiro help design it. She ran a finger along it, feeling a silky smoothness nothing like any fabric she'd ever known before, even Goku uniforms. Almost like skin. This is really a living creature, it dawned on her.

Up in the observation chamber she could vaguely make out everyone's faces through the glare on the glass. Everyone who meant anything to her was there: Uzu, Satsuki, Houka and Shiro, Gamagoori, Ryuko, Aikuro and Tsumugu, even Mako (for some reason) and Rei. All watching with an evident mixture of nerves and excitement. None of them would shy away from danger, even if that was because some of them didn't understand it, and they weren't looking away now. They had to know what would happen. Even Tsumugu, although he did look much, much more agitated than the rest – arms crossed, foot tapping furiously, deep scowl scarring his expression. But who could blame him? Nonon knew he wanted her to succeed where his sister had failed, but did he think it was possible?

Nearer to her, the floor started whirring and eight robot arms capped by the instantly recognizable cylinders of emergency rescue suction devices emerged from panels. That made her feel a little better. She took a deep breath to stabilize. No sense waiting any longer. Alright Saiban, let's see what you're made of.

Blood dribbled out from her forefinger as she, as gingerly as she could, set the scalpel aside. A thin red dotted line that struck Saiban on the breast, right above its eye slit. It vanished without leaving a stain and Nonon's heart skipped a beat, the corners of her mouth pulling nervously. That seemed like a good sign, but then Kamui hardly came with an instruction manual, and for a moment nothing happened. But then –

[You…]. The voice was just a faint howl on the wind, dry and raspy and barely sounding like a voice at all. But the moment she heard it Nonon stood up bolt upright, overcome with joy.

"Huh?" She breathed, the words didn't come right. It's happening It's happening It's happening It's happening!

~ "Nonon what's going on down there?" ~ Shiro's voice over the loudspeaker.

[You…]

"I-I hear it!" She shouted with a giddly little laugh. But then something else hit her. She clutched her chest over her heart as it went wild with overwhelming, desperate dread. No! No something's wrong! I need to run, NOW!

[GIVE ME YOUR BLOOD!]

"Wha - !" Nonon took a step back. No no no no not now! Not when I was so close! But it was already too late. The eye slits snapped open. It was already on her.

Everything descended into chaos.

There had been a plan, of course, but as soon as the Kamui wrapped itself around Nonon like an octopus, squeezing her so tight that you could see her ribs, all of that suddenly seemed very foolish.

"Get her out of there, now!" Aikuro shouted over the blaring alarms, pounding a fit on Houka's desk as he scrambled away at the computer panel. Houka guided the suction devices in, trying to angle it properly to seize her. But it wasn't easy, her body shuddered and jerked and bent over backwards, and the robot arms weren't fast enough to adjust.

"No! She may be able to overpower it on her own!" Shiro shouted back and Houka, torn between them, hesitated and missed an opening.

"That's no good!" Ryuko shouted, "She needs to sync with it! Sats, let me go in there!"

"No Ryuko, suction devices first! Houka! Remove her!" Satsuki's face was white, but as usual she was keeping it together about as well as could be expected. Much more so than Tsumugu, who was sobbing, clutching the sides of his head and ripping at his hair, reliving the worst day of his life. Rei had gone over to console him as best she could, realizing she wasn't helpful for much else at the moment.

"I am trying!" He shouted, and finally managed to get one within a few feet of her as she straightened up, clawing at her throat desperately. But then, as though gripped by an invisible hand, the suction device crumpled. And the others further away weren't far behind. "… No," Houka breathed, throwing his hands over his eyes in defeat as the robot arms were shredded by waves of raw energy screaming from the Kamui. His best friend, killed by his own invention. He should have seen it coming.

"What!" Uzu had been clenching the back of a chair with white, scared out of his wits but faithful that they'd be able to save her. Now his voice cracked under the strain, and he grabbed the chair and bashed it against the glass desperately "Nonon! Hang on! S-Someone help her!" Gamagoori joined him in trying to break the glass, but they had no luck. Mako's instincts, on the other hand, were a bit better. She'd vanished before and now returned with a first aid kit and a fire extinguisher. Not that it would do much good, but she stood there at the ready for whatever little help she could provide.

"Satsuki!" Ryuko shouted, and Satsuki looked over at her with a steely gaze and nodded. So it looked like it came down to the final continency.

Without even a running start, Ryuko kicked her legs into overdrive and blasted through the glass, leaving behind a billowing wall of furnace heat and rushing wind.

Everything was burning. The whole world was shrunken down to pure touch as violent stabs of pain sent lightning through her eyes and a deafening thud of blood in her ears. It was hard to think, impossible to move, and it was all she could do to stay standing.

[It's not enough! More! More! I can't go back to sleep! I won't! I won't face the dreams again!] Flashes of incoherent memory appeared to Nonon as Saiban howled into her head. An endless black field of swimming stars. Laying chained to an operating table, her innards ripped out, replaced, everything chopped up and spliced until nothing remained pure and unprofaned. Years of frozen, helpless agony. They leaked through with the dread and the all-consuming desperation. And pain too, she wasn't the only one who was burning.

Like a wounded animal. He'd do anything to escape this pain. Her sympathy was overshadowed by despair as the cold reality settled in. She was dying, and it was much slower and more horrible than she'd expected. Then all that, everything wasShe pictured her organs bursting like balloons in her tiny frame, bones crumpling into pulp as that precious, putrid meatbag blood spilled forth. Or was that Saiban picturing that? Or both? It didn't matter anymore. Maybe it had already happened.

No, no no no no this is all wrong! We were supposed to be friends, partners!

[Friends? After what your kind did to me, meatbag?]

No, I want – Oh god, I- I can't breathe! That was the final straw; as her hands leapt to her throat, scratching until her skin was red and raw, her conscious thoughts scattered to the wind. Pure surivival instinct, impotent as it was, took over and she thrashed and stumbled even more erratically. Still the constant drone of Saiban's thoughts and feeling leaked their way through. Run, run, run! Kill or be killed! It's him or me, me or her!

[Why, why won't you surrender? What's wrong with you, what do you want?] Now, frustration. The last meatbag had been so sweet, so willing. One little lullaby and she'd been practically begging him to take every last drop. But this one, he just – he couldn't do it anymore, he couldn't bend her to his will. [What did they do to me? What's wrong with me?]. This was no good – she would fight on the bitter end and die without surrendering, without letting him take her apart. And he would go back to sleep, back to the dreams. Such a tiny little volume of blood as he could extract while constricting her wouldn't last long. She couldn't actually survive, could she? Surely, he must have her hemorrhaging by now.

Nonon too, as the world began to darken and feeble strangled sucking noises emerged from her mouth, felt a last vestige of her own frustration. There had to be a way, some sort of puzzle. But she hadn't figured it out. She'd let him break her, and now it was too late. Why? Why couldn't you see I wanted to help you?

[You want to help? Then give me your blood!]

It's yours! She finally caved. No sense fighting anymore, not while she was sinking into this fuzzy void, her lungs weeping but every other part of her relaxing, suddenly rid of the pain. All of it!

The last thing she felt as her consciousness faded was Saiban's joy, relief, and glee. And a peculiar light feeling as his threads permeated her and started sucking her dry. It was almost worth it, it almost felt like her own joy.

She didn't feel the rough hands grabbing her as she fell, seizing her by the back with a grip both impossibly strong and delicate. What she did feel was what came next: A sensation totally unknown to either her or Saiban. Being ripped in half.

Saiban's shriek of pain echoing through her head was the first time since he'd awoken that he'd sounded truly human.

Hitting the ground shocked Nonon back to life. She sucked air back into her lungs involuntarily, even before her brain rebooted. When it did, nothing around her made any sense. She was… alive? But how? Her hands flew to her stomach –but her skin was wholly intact, no trail of entrails, just a few droplets of blood, not even a scar. She hadn't been ripped in half, so that meant…

Through the blinding light, a shadow loomed over her.

"…Ryuko…,"

[Let me go, you, you, what are you?] Oh good, he wasn't dead. Nonon watched as Saiban reformed in Ryuko's hand, swiftly going from a scrappy rag back to a fully formed dress that lashed and flopped like a fish, baleful orange eyes wild. It didn't do any good though, Ryuko wasn't even paying attention to him, just watching Nonon and breathing a sigh of relief when she stirred and tried to sit. Eventually Saiban went limp – Nonon could feel his despair and tell that he sensed that, in his present form, Ryuko was so, so far beyond him. It was like he'd been hit with cold reality, that if he had managed to kill Nonon, this thing would have made short work of him anyway.

~ "NONON!"~ Uzu shouted over the microphone ~"Are you okay?"~

"I'm -," Nonon tried to stand. Big mistake – she immediately felt a rolling wave of nausea, and within seconds her breakfast was on the floor. "I'm alive," She finally answered as she wiped her face. She couldn't even begin to explain what had just happened, nor could she ever hope to express how disappointed she was. Maybe there's still a way. Maybe now that he's awake and not on me I can talk to him.

"Eh, I don't think it worked," Ryuko shouted up to the observation chamber, "Do I absorb him now or what?"

[Absorb me! Now, hold on just a minute!] Saiban's panic was overwhelming. What had he gotten himself into? This world was so much bigger than he'd ever imagined, and with creatures like this wandering around – creatures almost as bad as the ones in his dreams – [I – I didn't mean - please, listen to me!].

"Yeah, alright bucko," Ryuko regarded Saiban, "Looks like this is the end of the road for you."

[I'll be good, I promise!]

"No! Please don't!" Nonon croaked, trying as hard as she could to raise her voice. Ryuko you barbarian! I was so close, I can't give up now! I can't go back to living how I used to, not after everything I've done! "Ryuko listen, please. Let me try again. I have to try again. I don't care if it kills me, if I can't wear him -,"

~ "Nonon NO!" ~ Uzu again, but she wasn't listening. She knew he was shocked, but compared to what she was feeling from Saiban that was a minor concern.

[You - you want to wear me? You'd really rather die if you can't wear me?] Since Ryuko had humbled him, Saiban's voice had shifted so dramatically. Before it had been a vicious screech, but now, not only was it human, it was oddly soft.

"Yes, yes I would," She responded quietly. Ryuko noticed what was going on, and Satsuki had too - she was staring down Uzu to keep him from jumping into the test chamber.

[You can hear me?]

"I'm the only one who can."

[I don't understand. I don't understand any of this. Why, little meatbag? Why would you? Where am I? What am I? What is this creature that's trying to kill me?]

Nonon couldn't even begin to explain it all. And there wasn't time anyway. But maybe, maybe there was some way for her to send something back. She thought, as hard as she could, about the old Honnouji days, the war, Ryuko and Satsuki and Senketsu and Junketsu and the unfettered power of a Kamui. About her year spent training, waiting for this day. She wasn't sure it was getting though until she felt a response.

[This is all real? Not dreams? This really happened?]

"Yes," Nonon said simply, and somehow Saiban could tell she was telling the truth. Saiban struggled to comprehend it all. This tiny little meatbag, sprawled so weak on the ground before him, was among her kind's greatest heroes? She'd been… waiting for him? And together, together they could unlock a power to rival his captor's? He couldn't believe it, she had to be crazy. Or she'd been dreaming too. What were a meatbag's dreams like, anyway? "Do you… do you believe me?" Saiban didn't answer right away, but he didn't get a chance before Ryuko intervened.

"Listen up," She barked, "Yeah, I know you can hear me. I don't know what you and Nonon are talking about, but I know you're confused now, and in pain, and you think all you need is a little blood so you stay awake. You want to stop that? The only way you're gonna feel better is if you let her wear you."

[You know that? How do you know that?]

"Here, look at this," She grabbed at her glittery red streak. "You see? I'm the same as you, I've seen all this before." That was when it clicked to Saiban that this one was the same Ryuko from Nonon's memories.

[Your name, she said it was Nonon?]

"Yes, yes that's right."

"Wait, hold on, what?" Ryuko turned to address Nonon, suddenly uncertain if her little speech had done the job.

"Shh! He's talking!" Nonon said quietly.

"Oh, sorry."

[Nonon. The other one, she had a name too, didn't she? Kinue. Is that right?]

"Yes. You remember that?"

[I don't know. There's a lot I don't know. Did I ever have a name? I don't think so.]

"You do. It's Saiban. Kamui Saiban."

[Kamui Saiban.] His instinctive understanding of human language allowed him to comprehend the meaning of the name, but not the context. Still it told him enough. [ I'm something very important, aren't I?]

"Yes."

[Nonon, I want you to try to wear me. It seems that, if this Ryuko is not lying it might be the only way for me. And if it not, it seems I don't have any other options. And I know you want to try again.]

"I'm ready." Nonon was beaming. She'd solved it! With a little help from Ryuko sure but that hardly mattered. And from Saiban she felt something approximating hope. Maybe all this nonsense they'd been dropping on him since he'd awoken was true after all. But he would try his best not to mess it up. If the alternative was having Ryuko rip him to shreds and consume him, he would do anything. "We're going to try again!"

There was some protestation from the observers, but Ryuko ignored it. "You serious?" She asked, and when she read the steel in Nonon's eyes she smiled and turned to Satsuki, giving her a nod.

"Proceed!" That was all the command Ryuko needed, and she stood Nonon up and handed her her Kamui, not especially gently.

This time Saiban let her put him on like a normal dress, only moving on his own to seal himself up in the back (there was no real zipper where there would be on an ordinary dress). She was wearing him, and it was nice to be clothed again, but nothing was happening.

[What happens now?]

"I don't know. There's some way to activate it, but I'm not sure," Nonon said nervously. Please oh please don't think we tricked you.

[Is this any better?] Was all Saiban asked, because he didn't really know exactly what he done either. But the result was instantaneous. It was like he'd walked into Nonon's body and turned the lights on. In an instant, all the pain and soreness Saiban's attack had left behind was just… gone. She was standing on her own, reveling in a feeling that she could never have imagined before, bubbling up from her heart. It was beating like so fast it might burst, and she knew she was hyperventilating too, but it was fine. She was fine. Everything was great. It was like some crazy drug.

Saiban too felt a wave of joy and relief as that eternal pain he'd been bearing perhaps since his creation simply evaporated. This was the truth, after all! Nonon grinned when she heard his voice, the first time she'd heard something near to happiness in it [I got it! Nonon now I understand why they changed me! This is wonderful!]

Everything was burning.

But not the same way as before. In fact, it was more like the exact opposite. Now, she was the fire, a roaring inferno of something beyond mere energy. She lifted her hands up and marveled at them, marveled at how they somehow looked exactly the same even while storm clouds billowed beneath her skin. No, actually they didn't look the same. Bolts of static electricity leapt off them, leapt off her entire body, actually. And they were glowing. Ryuko took a step back, grinning. Now this was more familiar.

"Ohhh whoaaa," Nonon mouth giddly. The glow was growing brighter, the blooming sensation inside her stronger. She was the tip of a vast, foaming iceberg of pure power hiding just below the surface. The thin veneer that kept it all from exploding out was only that faint separation between her and Saiban. Skin and fabric. And that wasn't gonna hold together much longer. This was nothing like a Goku Uniform. Just before the glow became blinding (blinding, but somehow not at all painful), she managed one last glimpse at the observation chamber. Through the shattered window she could see them, Houka, Uzu, Satsuki, all the rest, staring awestruck as the wind that cascaded off her whipped them. Even Satsuki! Satsuki was awestruck! Nonon and Saiban both were giddy, at this point they barely even knew why anymore. And then the separation was gone.

"Whoa…whoahaha…hahaha…hahahahahaHaHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

As Nonon's laughter devolved into a shrill cry of pure exultance, she could not longer hold the power inside her at bay. Everything went white as golden flames and a swarm of plasma flashes in the shape of four pointed stars immersed their body. Even Ryuko had to leap back from the towering inferno, even if it was just to save her clothes. But it didn't stop there, the flames shot up in a brilliant column, mushrooming across the ceiling and shaking the entire room until scraps of masonry came tumbling down. And within their recesses, cut off from the rest of the world, Nonon and Saiban both felt the change happen.

"I think next time we should do this outside," Houka said, chuckling as he tried and failed to maintain his usual detached attitude despite the soaring elation.

"Lucky for us I thought ahead and told everyone up above that we were firing the particle accelerator today, so it shouldn't attract too much attention," Aikuro said.

"Are the cameras still running? Please tell me they're still up!" Shrio shouted.

"Guys, shut up and look!" Ryuko and Uzu shouted almost at once. To their credit, they did. The view was more than worth it.

Underneath it all, the petite, pink-hair girl standing before them, chest heaving with fits of laughter, was the same girl they'd all known for years. But you'd be forgiven for thinking otherwise. From head to heel, every inch of her had been transformed. That pale, rosy hair was whipped up above her head, wild and flaming. Two long metallic antennae swept up from within it, curving backwards along the contour of her hair. Beneath that, the bruises on her face and neck were gone, smoothed over by glistening sweat and a lingering glow. And then there was Kamui Saiban himself. A bit like Senketsu, he extended over Nonon's shoulders and crept over the upper halves of her breasts, connecting down to his bottom half with silky, membranous strands that draped along her sides. Her pale skin blended with the silver accents, and the glittering emerald green and spiderweb lines of golden light stood out all the brighter for it.

The great, baleful eyes were positioned on long, thin shoulderpads – well, not shoulderpads exactly, they were far from robust. The only connected by a pair of hinges on both sides of her shoulders, curving with a sharp, aerodynamic profile like a wasp's wings. They tilted up and down, surveying their surroundings as Saiban finally really perceived where he was. The expression was inscrutable, but everybody there had seen Senketsu plenty and knew that wasn't necessarily a bad thing. Nonon flexed and stretched her arms, feeling firecrackers soaring through her muscles, and as she did Saiban's sleeves, double helices that slithered down her arms to large, scale shaped gauntlets, glinted in in the light. His tights were made in the same pattern, and with the slits in them and the delicate design of his shoulderpads Saiban showed even more skin than either Senketsu or Junketsu had. Not that Nonon minded, she'd known what she was getting into. And that very fact, now that the pain was gone, filled Saiban with a sense of great security. In this huge, scary world she at least knew what was happening, even if he didn't.

One final detail stood out, something totally novel that hadn't been seen on any Kamui before. A massive voluminous coattail that stretched all the way from Nonon's shoulders down to the floor and back up in a curl.

Mako was the first to speak: "Ohh WOW Nonon! You look awesome!" She shouted.

"Huh?" They're talking to me? What am I supposed to say? Nonon couldn't tell if she didn't know where to begin or didn't have anything to say. The only one she wanted talk to now was Saiban. Now that everything had worked out, he had so, so many questions. But they were coming anyway, crowding around all of a sudden, talking all at once.

"Don't ever scare me like that again!" Uzu shouted, grabbing her by the waist and hoisting her up, not caring about Saiban's shoulderpads stabbing into him. It took Saiban a second to realize they weren't under attack.

[Wait, who is this one? He's – what is he to you? You're thinking about something I don't understand. What were you doing with him? I don't understand this.] Nonon's face went beet red. I'll explain later!

"You scaredy-cat," She mumbled as Uzu pressed her to his chest. "I'm alright now. I'm great, actually."

"You sure are. Oh, and uh, Saiban, it's um, it's nice to meet you. My name is Uzu Sanageyama."

[Tell him I don't understand.]

"Look, I'll explain later, okay?"

"Uh…" Uzu trailed off. He would have asked something but Mako was jumping on the bandwagon with the introductions.

"I'm Mako Mankanshoku!" She chirped, holding out a hand for Nonon to shake, "It's nice to meetcha!"

"You know… I…," Nonon tried to articulate how dumb this was. "Oh fine," she groaned and took Mako's hand and gave it a good shake, "He says it's nice to meet you too."

[What? No I didn't!]

"Well it's polite!" Nonon hissed.

"Already talkin' to him, huh?" Mako giggled, "You and your Sunday Best are gonna get along great!"

[I don't understand this one either.]

"Join the club."

The rest of the group introduced themselves. Gamagoori was more congratulatory to Nonon for having toughed it out, Houka and Shiro immediately switched into data acquisition mode now that the danger was over, and Tsumugu had pulled himself together, but still looked shaken by everything. Nonon sensed no recognition from Saiban. When it was Satsuki's turn, all she did was smile gently and say, "I knew you could do it," but the rush of memories introduced her better than she herself ever could. And then, finally, Ryuko came back from her place observing everything with a happy little smile. She slapped Nonon on the back. Slapped her hard. Hard enough that it whipped everyone's hair around. And she took it like it was nothing.

"Welcome to the club, Nonon," She quipped. "I knew you had it in you."

"Wha-fuck off!" Nonon wasn't prepared for this oddly friendly response, "You were gonna absorb him, the hell you knew I had it in me!"

"Oh shit, you didn't see? I winked at you! I thought you were just being a good actor," Ryuko shrugged, looking truly regretful for having pulled that one on Nonon.

"You're serious. That was all a trick?"

"Well yeah. C'mon, you didn't really think I'd destroy your Kamui, right? You only get one."

"Rrrr, you jackass…"

[Oh, I get it! That's what I sensed in her. She had a… Kamui, that's what I am, isn't it? And he died. That's what's the matter with her. Do you sense it too?]

Nonon did. It was a second-hand feeling, but she could tell how Saiban saw the world. Everything had a presence, but Ryuko's felt like a mirage, half there, empty. She didn't know how to process this sudden burst of pity. But that didn't matter now. She'd thought that morning she couldn't be more excited, but now she knew that was nothing. She just needed everyone to leave her alone so she could focus on this indescribable electric feeling soaring within her. Ryuko, Satsuki, even Uzu, there would be time for them later. But they were just distractions, so small compared to what she was now.

For the first time in forever, she was alive.