Guyver Earth
It had been far more brutal than Agito thought it would be. The deaths of both Dr Balcus and Archanfel had spread outward from Japan. Chronos was in chaos but not only that, many of the secrets were now out.
Former officials and soldiers had flocked to them and Japan had quickly organized with the help of the Thunderbolts fighting the war.
Zoanoids had split, most of the civilians that had optimized stayed with them, but had been warned of the dangers of a Zoalord's control. Tetsuo's machine had been installed as transmitters and multiple sources as soon as it was possible.
In a mere 2 months things had swerved in their favor, but not easily. There were many corpses of allies and foes that had seemed to blur into a single fight. He had been more careful in extended battles since the last time against Balcus, but even as Guyver III, he saw Sho and his strange ally, Ryuko, fight far beyond expectations.
After a month, it was clear that Fukamachi had mastered the Guyver in so many nuanced ways that he was able to endure it for far longer than before. His use of the Gigantic followed suit as well. The combination of the 2 of them nearly always brought victory.
He also noticed that there was tension between the Segawas and Fukamachi. Mitsuki seemed to be dealing better with it, but Tetsuo himself seemed to be very frustrated and angry about something. Agito could see it all too clearly.
The girl with the strange outfit that could change from a midriff sailor uniform to barely there at all, clearly was close to Fukamachi. Mitsuki was cordial, but there was a coolness that had never been there before.
It was more than odd that Fukamachi was not trying to hide anything either. Even the dullest member of the Thunderbolts knew the girl was only interested in him.
A smirk formed on his face as he relaxed under the noon day sun. If only the regular soldier even knew half the truth about her. Life Fibers would have made the fight against Chronos more even, but Fukamachi was right, the price was too high. In many ways, they would be more dangerous than a Guyver.
Even so, the girl and her kamui had brought victory at a much cheaper price than if only the 2 Guyvers had won this battle. In the 2 months of blood and pain, Japan had been freed.
The coasts and every airport had been fitted with the telepathic jamming devices in short order, they used existing transmitters quite easily. The machine was proving their most valuable asset next to the Guyvers themselves. Without commands or controls, most Zoanoids were quite human in their movements. A great deal were innocent people forced to obey as well.
The remaining 10 Zoalords were still a large threat, but already there were reports of other resistance cells and former allies of the Thunderbolts popping up all over the world. Japan had lit the way for humanity to reclaim its world.
A part of him was still frustrated how much credit Fukamachi was getting, but it was mollified by how his fellow Guyver kept his word. He gave orders to the Thunderbolts in battle, but deferred overall command to him still.
Their fight was never spoken of and Ryuko even offered to fight him to help improve his abilities sometime. She was a spitfire a lot of the time, but she often seemed to be looking up at the stars between fights.
Now, Fukamachi was practicing something with her and they seemed to have run into a dead end with it.
Ryuko felt tired but nothing compared to Sho. He was drenched in sweat as he lay in the grass under the sun. They had been pushing hard, but it was like they could not do it again.
Now that Japan was free, Sho had focused on his promise to get her home. She felt a bit of nervousness there, because so long as they were fighting, it was easy to put off thinking about not being able to pull this off.
The ruins of the shed had been cleaned up quite a bit, but no more than that. The devastation from the fight with Archanfel still left burns in all directions. That cheeky other Guyver was sitting under a tree on the far hill watching them too.
Sho had been using the Gigantic to try and re-open the Rift, but to no effect. It had been so simple to open the thing before, he had been certain they could do it again.
Sadly, no matter how much output she gave Senketsu, they could not seem to open one. She was beginning to feel the nervousness turn to fear, the real fear she would never see Satsuki, Mako, or anyone again. She did not feel too badly about not seeing the crazy Mikisugi, but he had helped her a lot as well.
"There has to be a way, something to push open that Rift again," Sho was heaving as he said it, but he was clearly done for the day. He had been channeling the Gigantic and her energies once again, but to no avail. He did not even seem to find a crack in the air where the Rift had once been.
He was also unusually busy trying to find it. She had not been truly alone with him save on the battlefield, even now the other Guyver and the woman Shizu were with them if only on the hill. She knew he had had a huge fight with Tetsuo as well shortly after the briefing on her Earth and his time there.
You are not held to blame Ryuko. The siblings were discussing you when I was drying out one day and both agreed you are blameless. She blushed at the blunt spying Senketsu had done, but the people here did not totally understand how he worked.
"I still mucked things up a bit, but now I may be stuck here. Thankfully I have you to keep me company." She felt the surge of warmth that was happiness from Senketsu.
"That's it!" Sho suddenly got up and began to jog towards the camp up on the far hill. It was nothing crazy, just a few tents, but it had everything.
It would appear he might have an idea Ryuko. The slight twinge of exasperation she more than mirrored. To her and Senketsu, it was becoming pointless. Still, her eyes lingered on the shrinking form of Sho. She shook herself and got up to follow him and hear about this idea.
Tetsuo had never been more busy in his life than the last 2 months. The creation of the jamming machine had been a gamble and a hope in one. The telepathic commands and domination of a Zoalord was the true power of Chronos in many ways.
Thanks to the study of the Guyvers and even his time at Relics Point, he had begun to have a theory that it could be done. The fact that the crystals could resonate was how he had reverse engineered what to look for.
The rest was plain old jamming from military and civilian files.
Now he was simply burying himself in paperwork, or any work really, to keep his temper clamped down. Natsuki had stopped by and had brightened his day, but truly she did not know what was bothering him.
I love them both Tetsuo. I am not choosing nor forcing anything and I expect even less. Mitsuki has already torn into me but it will not stop how I feel. The words burned even months after hearing them.
Mitsuki was right that Ryuko was not guilty in this. Nothing had happened actually beyond admission of feelings from what he was told, but it made him mad. He wanted to hit things sometimes it made him that mad.
How could Sho be so selfish?!
The words made no sense in front of him now, and even what he had typed up was pretty much gibberish. He needed a break.
The building in Tokyo had been leant to the Thunderbolts for the express purpose of a point of contact and now as a hub of monitoring for any breach in the jamming net. The waves were not constantly broadcast as Chronos might suspect, but oscillating.
In other words, an invading force could suddenly find itself cut off without orders or become themselves again. Sadly, far too many of the current Zoanoid forces were willing participants, but thus far it had worked to snag away even more strength from the Zoalords.
This tactic had made them wary and the Guyvers were always ready for attacks. They also had a new unit being trained from the Zoanoids that had stayed and could attack from long range. There were dangers, but Sho was insistent and in that he agreed with him at least.
The water cooler was too damn far as well as the coffee maker, but the command room had far too many electronics to risk a spill.
He saw Sho then. He was pacing back and forth and mumbling about something. The furtive look and worry on his face almost made it impossible not to see the burdens riding his shoulders now.
Before it had been about survival and holding on to what he could, but now Tetsuo saw all of it, all of Japan, riding on his shoulders. It had to be getting quite heavy.
Pity finally broke a bit of the anger as he realized why Sho would not back off how he felt. How many months after he came back with the Gigantic and he had been found staring out about his father? Sho knew death hung over them all more than any other time and had not left regrets behind him anymore. Could Fumio Fukamachi have been saved if Tetsuo had pressured Sho into telling his father the truth?
Even so, he was still angry. So he kept walking to his goal and did not wave or draw attention.
"If it pushes it to the limit and nothing happens, I could be killed. Maybe it will just be like before and feel like I am being ripped apart again….or possibly…" The mumbling words finally got to him and he froze. He knew what Sho was pondering. He knew what he had been trying to do for a solid week now.
"ARE YOU INSANE?!" The paper cup of water splashed liquid all over him as he crushed it and charged his friend. The round eyes and jump back into the wall was almost comical but Tetsuo would not be derailed.
"You want to try and replicate the conditions of what nearly killed you before?!" It was theoretically possible, but the unknowns were incalculable. There was no way to know if it could even be repeated.
"I just—I just want to get her home Tetsuo. I want her to be with her family and friends and I want to have her avoid feeling sick or guilt about enjoying things here when people might think she is dead." The forlorn tone cracked it finally. Tetsuo suddenly realized Sho was not just talking about Ryuko, but about himself.
"You felt guilt having fun?" Tetsuo saw the flinch and flash of a pain in his friend's eyes. Suddenly the words from the report took on a new meaning to him. They were not just an explanation of what had happened to Sho, but that he was trying to cope with all that had happened.
They had been worrying and fighting Chronos, while he had faced not just Zoanoids, but this Life Fibers and the forces of humans allied against him and Ryuko. In all that report there was zero mention of what he did during peace time.
"Talk to me Sho, tell me what you left out of that report." He had talked with him about Ryuko and his feelings but the flush to his friend was not embarrassment, but nervousness. They returned to the command hub where Tetsuo could monitor equipment still but then he let Sho talk.
He heard about getting into Honnouji Academy and the simple school life with occasional strange instances that he held back. How the Guyver had become a protector of the 'No-Stars." He heard about the Mankanshokus and how Mako made his life both bearable and fun. Her antics sounded crazy, but a ghost of a smile graced Sho's face as he relayed some of them.
He also heard about the changes that occurred after Ryuko arrived. Tetsuo suddenly gripped the edge of the wooden desk and felt a tiny splinter pierce his thumb but he did not flinch. Sho had been battling with insane powers and even the Gigantic was only enough to cow them, not stop them.
He had found the threat to that world he had already covered in the debriefing after many battles and even being captured. He revealed a dream of Mitsuki suddenly made him summon the Guyver and escape to find Ryuko had been stripped of her kamui. Sho kept talking and Tetsuo found his anger fading away.
Mitsuki must have seen this or trusted some instinct that Sho had not betrayed her and as the story wound down to the final battles against Archanfel and Ragyo, Tetsuo suddenly understood. Ryuko was like Sho. They were both human and not human. They had been suddenly, and violently, thrown against insane powers and had to learn as they go with that they had to fight with.
As Sho had to ready himself to fight Archanfel, he had no one to turn to, so he thought. He had simply been focusing on helping Ryuko, and that was pure Sho, and in the process had forged a relationship that few could understand.
"Why are you looking at me like that Tetsuo?" Sho had been quiet for a few minutes and waiting. Shaking his head and pulling his glasses, he gathered his thoughts.
"I am thinking Mitsuki is a better person than me for starters. You told her right off and did not hide from the consequences, although I understand you were quite stupid about it." A small shared smile passed between them. Saying Sho was not quite adept at intimacy was an understatement. "Now that I have all this though, I am not angry anymore."
He saw surprise bloom and shook his head at his foolish friend. It would have been insane to not connect with someone in that situation and that Sho had not been alone all that time was a consolation.
"Stop feeling guilty about being human Sho, you did not betray anyone and you simply formed bonds like we did over the battle with Chronos. I am glad you found some rest and new friends, but I am still a bit miffed about loving 2 women thing." The crest fallen face was hard to take, but Tetsuo would not let him off the hook entirely.
"Even so, you are insane. We cannot replicate that Zoanoids ability and even when I took readings—" A light went off. Tetsuo began furiously typing into his terminal and brought up the old files when they had been desperately searching for Sho. He only prayed Balcus was as detailed as he was.
Once he had what he wanted, he brought up the files from Chronos Japan HQ. It had taken a team of techs a month to sort it out, but now that it was filed, he quickly found what he was looking for!
"Sho, we may not be able to replicate everything, but I think we can try something." He moved over and let Sho look over the two charts he had up. It was the missing piece they had been overlooking for 2 months.
Sho suddenly grinned widely and seemed to think of something.
"I got it Tetsuo, I know what to do!" A crushing hug was barely registered before Sho breezed out of the room. He shook his head at the quick turn of events, but glad he had been able to understand his friend again.
"You are insane Fukamachi." Agito stood crossed arms across his chest as the proposal was outlined to him.
"But we never thought about it before, about why I was able to make a Rift or move across the world in an instant. What if I just need a reference point, a connection to know where I am starting from and then focus on where I want to go." The dark eyes were not fevered now, they were certain. This was not some simple idea, but Fukamachi was overlooking something.
"And just how will you get back this time? According to you, it took both of you to do it." Agito smirked, thinking he had won the battle.
"I was exhausted then, we both were, and only together could we pull it off. I will be fully rested and able to come back with you as the anchor." It would seem he had thought it through. The part about them both being exhausted was hard for Agito to believe as they had fought and killed Archanfel over a considerable battle.
Still, if it worked, the process could be repeated could it not? They could potentially reach other worlds with the Gigantic and bring resources to this fight.
"No." He blinked his eyes as he pulled his hand away from his chin. He had not said a word but Fukamachi now stood resolute in front of him in his room. The bright steel walls were simply adorned and the bed was more cot than a true mattress, but it was what he preferred. Right now it seemed too small.
"I can read your face Makishima, I can tell exactly what you just thought. Trust me, we cannot open Chronos to other worlds and we have no idea what might come back with me if I did that either." Smirking that the boy had seemingly become a man in a short time, Agito changed tactics.
"Then you will simply say good bye to the woman you love?" It was not meant purely as a barb, just an observation.
The target hit home as pain was in his eyes briefly, but then Fukamachi became confident again.
"If I could, I would like to see her again someday, but that is not possible nor responsible. I have no idea what has happened on her world, but they have a long way to go to clean up the mess of Life Fibers. We have our own battle here, and both could take a lifetime. I will not deny I love her, but I will not deny her her home either." Agito was curious. Sho Fukamachi had been a weak willed and barely passable ally as Guyver I. His soft hearted approach and focus on the Segawas had left him open to many attacks. It had been easy to play on the strings and guide him at times but after Enzyme II and his regaining the ability to Bio-Boost, it had changed.
Gone was the boy, although he occasionally resurfaced, but in his place was a man that had faced battles and monsters. He had come through the fire as steel but not with ambition. A part of him envied that as it seemed to be working for him
Agito could see the changes that Fukamachi seemed to just adapt to without comment. The Thunderbolts had been impressed with him since his return and many approved what he had done and was doing.
It was not hard to see that if he wanted to, Fukamachi could have truly taken over not just the organization, but possibly Japan. Instead he had stayed out of the politics and made it clear he would protect humanity, in whatever form it took, with the Guyver.
This had the unintended effect, it seemed to him, of people supporting the Thunderbolts openly and the rudimentary government that had begun to form, made it clear they supported them as well. That last part was going to be a thorn in their side if they were not careful, but the sheer power of the Guyvers kept them in check for now.
Now he seemed to have no issue proclaiming that he held feelings for 2 different women and accepted the consequences. Thus far a peace had been proclaimed, but he doubted it would hold if they could not return Ryuko to her Earth.
"Fine Fukamachi, I will help with this next attempt. If it fails however, we shall have a very long discussion about the future of Ryuko Matoi." For a moment Agito felt a shift in the air. The eyes of the boy were gone, and even the confident leader vanished. In their place he saw something probably many Zoanoids had seen. He saw the monster staring back at him that would unleash its fury to protect its own.
The chill passed and Fukamachi nodded at last, but for just that moment, Agito appreciated the full changes that had come over the boy he once knew.
Sho felt nervous now. Both Tetsuo and Mitsuki stood on the hill on the windy but sunny day. It seemed like a day for a picnic or a game outside than manipulation dimensions, but Makishima stood patiently as Guyver III and Ryuko was Synchronized with Senketsu.
There were devices with dishes pointed at them, as well as several other Thunderbolts. It was as if the rumors had spread and those that had seen Ryuko fight and knew the truth, had come to see her off. The sweat on his palms made everything feel slick but he saw the steel blue of Ryuko's eyes look at him.
He felt a calm enter his heart and then looked up the hill to Mitsuki. She was holding her hands in front of her as if in prayer. For a moment he wanted to ask what she prayed for, but thought better of it. It was passed time to summon the Gigantic.
"GIGANTIC!" The world distorted as both armors closed over him. Always before he had tried to replicate the trip home, but this time he cast his memory back to everything. He firmly pictured his Earth and Ryuko's Earth.
"Come on Guyver, open the door." He said the words out of habit but he felt Agito next to him and strongly focused on him. The Control metal could visibly be seen to glow blue and he felt something.
It was just at the edge of his senses, but there was a something just there. He looked right at the ruins of the building and felt an instinct in the Guyver. Both his arms rose and the hands centered in a triangle before his vision.
He felt Ryuko's power with Senketsu spike and latched onto that as well. He was guiding their energies now and it was not like when Void attacked or the trip home. It was as if the world was an onion and he now knew how to see each layer.
The air began to vibrate and the wind instantly began to swirl around them. It was getting stronger, the image in his mind. It was getting so much clearer. It was not about power, but about application here. It was just like all the lessons he had learned, to nuance his control of the Guyver.
The delicate energies began to coalesce and for a moment, Sho felt he understood something important about the Creators and the world. It was gone, but maybe one day he could remember it.
The air suddenly became violently windy as grass seemed to flatten in all directions and trees swayed dangerously that had not been burned down by Agito or Archanfel.
Finally he reached out with his fingers and parted the sensation he had felt, a weakness in dimensions. The air rippled in a very familiar way and before he thought too much, he scooped up Ryuko and walked through the Rift once more. She was going home!
Tetsuo was stunned. It had been like a storm one moment, and then it all calmed as the Gigantic and Ryuko seemed to vanish into midair. Agito was on his knees and heaving but he could hear laughter too.
No doubt this success would mean future trips, but considering the power needed required a 3rd person, it was highly unlikely to happen again. That thought suddenly sobered him up as he heard crying.
He understood suddenly that Ryuko and Sho would never meet again and Mitsuki had known. She had known and dealt with the revelation of Sho's feelings. He had never forgotten his home or Mitsuki, but he was only human. What would he have done, trapped on a different world for more than a year and no way home? Would Natsuki have stayed in his heart, or would he have dealt with the hand he had and moved on?
The last of his anger vanished as Tetsuo saw how Sho had dealt with it. He had no doubt wrestled with his guilt and then had to face the worst Chronos and these Life Fibers could offer. He had no doubt there were stories both had held back because of the wounds they left. They were the same, so similar it stunned him to have not been more understanding. They needed their loved ones to keep them here on Earth.
Tears trailed down his face as he realized both Ryuko and Sho knew their love while valid and true, could never be. They were literally on their last journey and could never come together again.
He quietly embraced his sister and they mourned the pain their long time friend would feel. It would be a long road for Mitsuki and Sho to find their footing again, but it was worth it to them both now. Sho needed them more than ever before.
Somewhere Between
Senketsu felt pain again. It had been bad the first time, but this time it was worse. Without more Life Fibers to heal himself, even with Ryuko's own, he knew he was reaching a limit. The Gigantic was shielding them more this time and it was easier, but he knew he would be falling apart soon.
He had told neither of them of the danger as normal use had not bothered him at all. Now he gritted against the pain of being torn into by the energies around him and protected Ryuko. He could feel them both so clearly here, so much pain and repression of what they felt.
Humans are foolish sometimes, but in this instance he could not fault his 2 closest friends. They had found a person that understood their unique pain better than any words ever could, but neither could accept the next step because eventually this step would come. The goodbye.
Sighing that he was feeling old, he felt the shift back to reality as his threads began to burn.