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Radio names:
Valkyrie-01 Isumi Michiru
Valkyrie-02 Ichimonji Takahashi
Valkyrie-03 Hayase Mitsuki
Valkyrie-04 Munakata Misae
Valkyrie-06 Fukui Kukiko
Valkyrie-07 Fukui Ryuuseiu
Valkyrie-09 Kashiwagi Haruko
Valkyrie-13 Shirogane Takeru
Chapter 38 — Breaking Point
Conclusion
Mikoto
(Mikoto)
Amaaazing, Takeru-san's in a really tight spot, isn't he.
(Suzumiya Akane)
What're you talking about?
(Majima Takahara)
Mikoto-san! Is it possible you've mixed things up?!
Haa?
Silly Takahara! I never mix things up!
(Mikoto)
Why would you think that, Takahara-san? Takeru-san's 02, isn't he?
(Akane-san)
No no no! Ichimonji-chui's mark is 02! Shirogane's is 13!
(Mikoto)
Hoh?! Really?! Have I been watching the wrong TSF all along?!
'Takeru-san's actually beating Lt Takahashi?!'
My bad! They're totally right!
Who would've thought—I'd mix things up? It's like what everyone says, that there's a first time for everything! Haha~.
(Tsukiji Tae)
You'd have to be the d-d-ditziest ditz to mix up S-s-senjutsukis—
(Kashiwagi Haruko)
Yoo!
Haruko, in her Eishi outfit, joins us as she breaks off Tae. Tae-san has this habit of saying the most scathing insults like she doesn't know what she's saying when she really does, but I'm pretty sure she was in the middle of complimenting me this time around.
(Miki-san)
Kashiwagi-san! You're back!
(Haruko-san)
Ahaha~. Yep, I kinda died. Oopsie.
She giggles some more, scratching her cheek with one finger.
(Akane-san)
That's all you have to say? Shirogane sure roughed you up, it wasn't even funny!
(Haruko-san)
What more should I say, Akane? He got me fair and square.
'I got carried away a tad. I reeeally thought I'd seen an opening! And after Ryuu-chui warned me not to, too! Oh well, gotta keep that in mind for next time,' with shrugged shoulders, Haruko-san sighs and starts lightly knocking the side of her head, as though she's punishing herself.
(Takahara-san)
Don't beat yourself up, Haruko-san~. I've never seen piloting as wild as Takeru-san's~.
(Haruko-san)
Right? You oughta be worried, Akane. If I knew any better I'd think Shirogane was gunning for your position, ahaha.
(Akane-san)
Hrng...
Akane-san makes a sour face.
(Miki-san)
Huh—what's Suzumiya-san's position?
(Takahara-san)
She's in the Vanguard for the time being, in Mitsuki-chui's Flight~. Though Captain isn't convinced it's working out—
Suddenly, Akane starts coughing out loud.
I don't blame her, the air is rather dry down here.
Still—it was awfully rude of her to interrupt Takahara-san!
(Akane-san)
In any case. Asakura, are Captain and Hayase-chui coming out here too?
Asakura-san, who's been assigned a section of the Command Post a little further away from the main controls where Kouzuki-hakase and First Lt Suzumiya are, turns her neck to Akane-san.
(Takada Asakura)
Negative. They look so solemn the very idea of contacting them kinda frightens me, though I don't think they'll even hear me if I try. Hayase-chui is kinda pretending to mimic Shirogane-san's and Takahashi-chui's movements as they go. Isumi-tai has her eyes glued to the control logs.
(Haruko-san)
And I just passed by Kazama-chui dropping off a drink at Munakata-chui's simulator, so she's not coming out any time soon either.
Speaking of which, this is a five-star opportunity!
(Mikoto)
Ah! Can I see the inside of your simulator, Haruko-san?!
(Chizuru-san)
Will you keep it down, Yoroi? Some of us are still trying to watch here.
Eep!
Did I say that too loud? I think Kouzuki-hakase looked my way, too. But she also might've just been looking at some dandruff on her shoulders for all I know.
That might've been pushing my luck, anyway.
Although.
Is it just me, or have Meiya, Chizuru and Kei-san been oddly quiet so far?
Chizuru
'Were you speaking to me?' I ask Mitsurugi-san standing beside me, who had uttered something in a hushed voice. Not that I've ever heard those words from anywhere before.
I might not have heard her had she not been whispering to herself throughout the match. The first time she did, I shrugged it off when she paid me no mind. This time, however, I can't help but pursue my curiosity.
Does she even realize that she's muttering?
(Mitsurugi)
My pardons, Sakaki.
Huh, she's responsive this time, though I'm sure she'll just brush me aside agai—
(Mitsurugi)
'Tis the name of the sword art... employed by... Takahashi-chui.
(Chizuru)
The lieutenant's... fighting—style?
So that's its name, huh?
'Mugen Kidou'?
To be frank, learning of its name hadn't crossed my mind in the slightest. I'm still in awe, to be further honest, witnessing Shirogane hold his own against the likes of the ex-Royal Guard officer.
The very mention of the officer's name used to make Father break a nervous sweat in the days before Father took office, so widespread was his reputation.
Yet Shirogane has Lt Ichimonji Takahashi on the hindfoot, even.
Otherwise, I confess, their duel is rather captivating to witness. Sure, it's happening at a rapid, dizzying pace. Yet every time they exchange blows—there's a certain gracefulness, a certain fluidity and feeling of efficiency, in their every stroke.
So, finding out the technique's name had never occurred to me, though I won't deny that it's a pleasant bonus—
(Ayamine)
I've heard that term before.
I peek over my left shoulder.
(Chizuru)
You—have?
Ayamine—of all people—has heard of this particular fighting style?
(Ayamine)
When I was younger, tousan and I played a lot of fencing. He once said every Regent House has their own unique swordstyle.
'Mugen Kidou was mentioned at one point,' adds Ayamine.
Why's she so chatty out of the blue?
From her father, she says. From the late General Ayamine Shuukaku. Once loved and adored by the common folk, he had fallen from grace after the tragedy at Gwangju. His rank and profile no doubt would have placed him on familiar terms with members of the Five Regent Houses, whose heads themselves frequent the front lines.
(Chizuru)
Well, which House does that style belong to?
(Ayamine)
You talkin' to me?
She points a finger at herself, pretending to look confused.
Oooh how I'd love to get back at her...
So much for chatty Ayamine. Either way, that was odd—she never, never, talks about her personal life. I wonder if this one is an impostor, and the real Ayamine had been kidnapped and hidden in some top-secret bunker.
Fingers crossed.
At any rate.
I glance at Mitsurugi, who has turned silent. I'm positive she heard 'Ayamine', so I can only assume that she's feigning that she hadn't.
Perhaps I shouldn't have pursued the question after all. It might be a sensitive subject, in Mitsurugi's shoes. Though I can hypothesize that this swordstyle they mention—most likely has to do with her branch of the Shogun's family, for Mitsurugi to be versed enough to tell it apart.
I—wonder.
For Lt Ichimonji Takahashi to as well be proficient in Mugen Kidou, might that perhaps mean that the ex-RG colonel had once served her House? That would be news to me, should that be true.
(Ayamine)
Takeru's technique... is the same as his...
(Chizuru)
Takeru—?
Ackh! I hesitated!
It's still unnatural using his given name! I can't even use it without honorifics yet! How'd Ayamine get used to it so darn quickly?!
That aside, however—now that she's mentioned it, she's on to something.
How has that slipped past my notice! And I've been watching Takeru-kun intently this whole time too—!
Ahem.
I've been watching him every once in a while, more accurately.
It just hit me—what their swordfight reminded me of.
Why it mesmerizes me so.
Not long ago, during one of our field exercises. During Mitsurugi and Shiro—Takeru-kun's...—sparring match. Or sword dance, should I say.
Though this may be a fast-forward version of it, it had the same fluidity, the same elegant, breathtaking effect.
Takeru-kun—does. He does too know Mugen Kidou as well...
Was that what had upset Mitsurugi, back then?
Might this mean that Takeru-kun—had likewise once served under her branch's House?
Mitsurugi... it feels as though she knows a lot more about him than she has been letting on... and I envy that, much as I'm annoyed to admit. Is there something about Takeru-kun we should know too, Mitsurugi?
(Mitsurugi)
The tides have turned...
Mitsurugi again whispers.
What is it this time—?
(Ayamine)
Stop spacing out.
Don't give me that disappointed look, Ayamine!
I'm trying not to, you know!
And me, space out? That's rich, coming from you—!
I—see.
I see what you mean now, though.
At some point while I was lost in thought, Lt Ichimonji had started to chase away Takeru-kun. In the blink of an eye, Takeru-kun's suddenly on the defensive. Not only that—Valkyrie-02 is now moving even faster than ever!
Not without penalty, however.
(Chizuru)
That's absurd—his Senjutsuki's deteriorating at an alarming rate!
And yet—the lieutenant's vital signs are yet as calm as a stream of clearwater!
(Takada Asakura)
His TSF's restraints have been removed. At this rate, unless he ends the match in the next hundred ninety seconds, his TSF would do him in before Shirogane does.
So blurts Takada, probably because someone beside her had raised the observation.
Needless to say, I've been rooting for Takeru-kun since the outset (only as a show of team spirit, naturally), but for the first time in the whole match—Takeru-kun looks like he's in trouble.
More and more of Lt Ichimonji's hits are connecting.
Takeru-kun's reactions are no longer keeping up.
A hundred and ninety seconds doesn't sound like a lot of time, though if the lieutenant runs this same pace, that might be just enough time to dispatch Takeru-kun.
Though I'm not entirely convinced Takeru-kun's setback is solely the lieutenant's doing.
(Ayamine)
Something's wrong—
(Chizuru)
Something isn't right—
(Ayamine | Chizuru)
With Takeru(-kun)...
Die.
Die.
Die.
Takeru-kun keeps repeating the same words over and over.
We hadn't heard it at first, but his voice has been getting louder and louder.
Angrier—and angrier.
Why do I feel... so... much... rage?
What's gotten into Takeru-kun?
Mitsurugi? What are you doing—?
Takeru
Die.
Die, die, die die die die die die die die die die!
Why can't I kill this fucking Superior?!
How the fuck is this son of a bitch still fighting back?!
I—have to.
I have to kill it.
But.
It's winning.
I'm—losing.
(? ? ?)
Takeru?
It took Sumika away from me.
It made me kill Meiya...
It killed Tama.
And Mikoto.
Class Rep.
And Ayamine.
(? ? ?)
Takeru!
And just now—all too suddenly—Capt Isumi, and Lt Hayase.
Someone said... they're gone.
They're—gone.
Already?
All because of it—this bastard in front of me.
So I can't lose.
I must.
Kill.
(? ? ?)
Listen to my voice, Takeru!
It.
Pftt, fuck it all.
I'm even hearing Meiya in my head...
Kukiko
'Ryuu-nii?'
Hellooooo! Mercury to Ryuu-niiiii!
(Ryuu-nii)
Onee...chan?
Talk about finally!
(Cookie)
Wake up, dum-dum. You're in the middle of a practice match, you know?
On my retinal projector, 'lil brother shakes his head, as though he'd really just woken up.
Phew!
When Kouzuki-sensei showed me his vital signs, I was hella worried I was gonna lose him! I oughta thank her for alerting me in time!
(Ryuu-nii)
Did I... blank out...?
Huh? Did it happen again, Ryuu?
(Cookie)
What happened, 'lil bro?
(Ryuu-nii)
I thought I lost you—Nee-chan... I thought I—
'I had a feeling... you were in trouble... and I came running as fast as I could...'
(Ryuu-nii)
But when I got here… I thought that I'd lost you for good...
'That I'd broken my promise to mom and dad,' Ryuu-nii mumbles something before I interject.
(Cookie)
I'm alright, silly. C'mon, look at me.
'Look at me, Ryuu-nii,' I urge him to lift his head and see me in the hopes that it would ease his helplessness.
(Cookie)
See? What'd I tell ya. Everything's fine, right?
I then proceed to explain how the evil Aniki had snipped my transmission cables, so while I can no longer move my useless Senjutsuki, my radio's still okay. Come to think of it—did Aniki snip just my transmissions on purpose? Is it possible he had considered how Ryuu-nii might react?
Whatever Aniki's case, Ryuu's vital signs have started to normalize.
The damage had already been done though—
(Cookie)
Hey, mop up your nose.
Ryuu does as I say and wipes off the blood oozing out of his nostrils.
Not with his scarf, however. Like hell he'd dirty his scarf with nose blood, you know?
I wish you'd stop making me worry, Ryuu-nii...
Wonder if they've gotten hold of Motoko-sensei already.
Kouzuki-sensei has, on many occasions, made it abundantly clear that using this quantic casualty stuff takes a heavy, heavy toll on the human body. And lately, he's been getting even worse.
I mean—
I don't wanna say it 'cause I'm afraid putting it into words would give this idea some weird kinda power, so after reading this would you mind erasing it from you memories and pretend I'd never even thought of it? I wouldn't appreciate it even if you did.
I think—I feel like—my time is almost up.
You know?
I made him promise to never tell me, yet...
Why else would Ryuu jump the gun at the first sign that I'm in danger?
Ackh! I'm falling in love with my hero agai—
On a more serious note...
I—
I don't plan to bite the dirt any time soon...
And if I may be nakedly honest, even if for just this single sentence—I'm... afraid... of death...
Don't believe me for a moment if I pretend I'm not. In fact, call me out on my bullshit!
Every second that passes makes me yearn to see how the rest of my life's adventure would play out.
Not to mention I've barely even crossed out a tenth of my bucket list!
But I've also got another thing to worry about—I'm terrified of what might happen after, you know? What Ryuu-nii would do if I do come to pass. Like just now—the pressure suffocated him so much he'd almost had a cardiac arrest...
So...
Even if it's just for Ryuu-nii's sake, I've gotta stay above ground! And part of that is to not think up irresponsible thoughts like the one I just had!
So forget I even thought of that, a'ight?
Ughh—more blood is oozing out of his nose. I'd wipe it myself if I were with him, but here I am stuck in my useless virtual Senjutsuki. Screw this quantic casualty bullshit...
Fighting Keru-niichan must've taken everything you had, huh, my Ryuu? Although, to be able to survive the full brunt of an onslaught from big bro 'Keru, I'm honestly impressed, Ryuu-nii! Look, even Aniki's getting his ass beat!
That quantic casualty stuff does come in handy for some things, I suppose...
And to top it all off, you must've bolted your way here when you sensed I was in trouble.
But I'm really perfectly fine, promise!
See?
I blame these simulators.
The new upgrades have made it too—lifelike, you know?
(Cookie)
Look at him, Ryuu-nii. He's got this stupid smile on his face.
Trying to change the subject, I point to Aniki's visual monitors.
'Yeah, he does too,' Ryuu responds while sniffing and clearing up his nasal cavities.
Thank goodness, his heart rate is almost normal, though colour has yet to return to his face.
(Cookie)
He's enjoying this too much, that psycho.
Speaking of which—there's another freak of nature for you.
For as long as we've known Aniki, he's always looooved the thrill of a worthy fight. And the tougher the adversary, the more his excitement shows. He gets off on placing himself smack-dab in the middle of near-death situations, and the more likely it is to kill him, the more lively he becomes.
In other words—what might kill Aniki makes him feel alive.
Coupled with his perplexing sense of responsibility, it's like this profession exists especially for Aniki.
And I have a hunch that had something to do with why Kouzuki-sensei dumped him, though I'm not a hundred percent positive. I don't believe she shares the same thrill living on the thin divide between life and death.
Sensei thrives on guarantees and contingencies, you know?
I mean—I'm the exact same way, though I never have to worry about Aniki, you know? Even when you might think that he's done for, he somehow comes out on top one way or nother.
He's like a stubborn kamikaze diver who keeps coming back to life!
I'm almost convinced there's no way Aniki could possibly croak, you know?
Y'know what though—it's been a long time since I've seen Aniki enjoying himself this much.
(Ryuu-nii)
Ne, we can't win... onee-chan...
(Cookie)
Huh? What're you talking about? Look, he's starting to turn on Keru-niichan!
Whoa—Aniki's movements have suddenly accelerated! I wonder if they've taken out his Senjutsuki's safeties? He'd be on a countdown to breakdown if they have!
(Ryuu-nii)
I can't find a path, where we beat 13...
Ryuu continues.
(Ryuu-nii)
Before the match, I told Kouzuki-hakase we'd lose.
What's this now?
(Cookie)
Haa? That doesn't make sense, Ryuu. Why'd you challenge Keru-niichan knowing you'd lose?
As much as I want to keep watching their electrifying fight, I return my attention to my twin bro.
(Ryuu-nii)
I told you, nee-chan. Everything turns black, when I look at 13.
'It's almost as if... he's immune... to quantum causality,' Ryuu-nii reveals.
Quantum...causality?
Have I been saying it wrong this whole time? Why has no one corrected me?! Ryuu's so damn lucky—Dr Motoko is a much better teacher than Kouzuki-sensei (though don't let her know I said that!).
I guess I was right earlier, after all? When his vital signs went haywire—Ryuu did have one of those 'moments'. He must've perceived something, and whatever it was, it damn near caused him to keel over.
That was why I hadn't bothered trying to convince Ryuu that this was still just a virtual simulation, right off the bat. It simply wouldn't have been a good argument to bring up at that moment. Whenever Ryuu has an episode like that, he loses track of—well, almost everything—so the least he needs is more confusing info.
Gah!
Sensei, long ago, had said she could cure him of these 'moments' so that my Ryuu-nii could finally live a normal life, and I promised to do whatever she wants in return for that cure...
So between this promise and the promise to be my sensei, I have to keep doing her bidding.
Yet I feel like... I've gotten nowhere near the point where sensei could release my Ryuu-nii...
Soon though. I'm sure it'll happen soon enough.
And after that, when the whole war with the BETA finally blows over, I'd be able to put sensei's teachings into practice and fulfill my lifelong dream!
(Cookie)
I don't get it, Ryuu-nii. He's immune? What might that mean?
(Ryuu-nii)
I don't entirely understand it either, onee-chan. But when I shared the outcome to Kouzuki-hakase, all she said in reply was—
(Kouzuki-sensei)
Then you'd better not lose.
(Ryuu-nii)
Before I knew it, she'd switched you to the other team. After telling me not to lose, it's like she wants me to lose.
So that's what happened today, huh? Why the teams got switched at the last second.
Really though? Is that all there is to Kouzuki-sensei's antics, case closed?
(Cookie)
Hold on a minute, Ryuu-nii.
I don't pause, even while Ryuu tries to sneak a word in.
(Cookie)
I think Kouzuki-sensei truly meant it when she told you not to lose.
I can't say I'm positively positive, but I have a feeling sensei is conducting one of her experiments as we speak.
(Cookie)
Look—you've always said your perception of cause and effect is fixed. That no matter how hard you try or do things differently, the effect somehow ends up the same.
And if Ryuu-nii so much as attempts to somehow defy the outcome, it puts an even greater strain on his mental and physical health, to the point it's possible it might even kill him.
I know that within the STF Wing, before Operation Lucifer severely dwindled our numbers, there had been other guys and girls like Ryuu-nii who had attempted to twist fate following Kouzuki-sensei's directions.
All of them—were Ryuu-nii's close friends. That's how I had chanced upon befriending them too (they'd sometimes mistake me for Ryuu-nii!). Though they'd never openly admitted it themselves, something about sharing the same curse must've drawn every one of them to each other.
It's super weird—I'd imagine it's the same weird feeling that draws me to Keru-niichan.
Anyhow...
Every single one of them—has been long dead since...
Finish wiping your bloody nose already, Ryuu-nii...
(Ryuu-nii)
Motoko-sensei called it an acute case of Laplace's Demon.
Otherwise I'd have been able to escape this hive with Takayuki and Shinji...
Without the need to give it voice, Ryuu-nii's regrets reach me.
(Ryuu-nii)
She's always said that Demon's loophole has forever been a thorn in Hakase's side.
(Cookie)
May that as it be, if Keru-niichan is immune to your perception of cause and effect—what if sensei believes that Keru-niichan could therefore change that?
What if the future—isn't fixed, after all?
(Ryuu-nii)
Motoko-sensei would burst out laughing in her face—
(Cookie)
—zip it with Motoko-sensei for just one damn second Ryuu!
I'm obviously biased toward my sensei, no matter how much better or smarter her older sister might be!
But even so!
(Cookie)
What if, Ryuu. What if Keru-niichan really could change—everything?
Wouldn't you want to believe that?
(Cookie)
Isn't that why you challenged Keru-niichan, despite knowing you have no chance of winning?
Against an Eishi hundreds, maybe thousands of times better than you?
Don't you want to desperately prove to yourself that quantum causality—fate—can be wrong?
(Ryuu-nii)
I do... want to... break... free...
I want that... for you too...
Maybe then you'd stop being haunted by nightmares of your sister's end?
(Cookie)
Then you'd better not lose!
Go out there and prove Kouzuki-sensei right!
Sensei may have stacked the odds heavily against you, Ryuu-nii, but sensei has a notorious reputation for dealing in absolute guarantees. So—if you defy causality by opening a path to defeat Keru-niichan, even when the odds are completely against your favour, doesn't that smash Lafloss's Demon in the head for Kouzuki-sensei, once and for all?
'So kick his ass and win, Ryuu-nii,' I smile, wishing Ryuu-nii would smile back.
He nods instead, which—is alright too, I guess.
(Cookie)
You'd better hurry the hell up though, you're running out of time.
Aniki's Senjutsuki is on the brink of breaking down, and I hate to admit it but there's no way Ryuu-nii can beat Keru-niichan by himself under these conditions. Then the causality info he shared with sensei would really be proven true.
(Cookie)
Here, take my halberd. Aniki will surely make an opening for you, Ryuu-nii.
Valkyrie-07 grabs the melee blade from my limp Senjutsuki as it starts to mobilize.
(Cookie)
And one last thing, Ryuu-nii.
'Keru-niichan tends to guard his right side a bit more than his left.'
So aim for his left side, y'hear?
With my parting words, Ryuu launches himself back into the fray.
Heh.
Sorry Keru-niichan.
I know we're on the same team, but.
Ryuu and I are family, you know?
Takeru
There's no way...
I'd lose...
To scum like you...
I've finally... fucking finished it...
My sword...
I got it, dead center...
Straight through its heart...
It's... over—
(? ? ?)
Takeru.
Mei—ya—?
Where's her voice coming from?
(? ? ?)
This is not you.
Wh—
Why is—my PB Blade—stuck in a TSF?
What happened to the Superior?
Where did—the BETA—go?
(? ? ?)
Snap out of it, before—!
H—uh?
My—TSF.
Why is there a sword sticking out of my hip...?
When'd I get hit...?
My cockpit.
It's powering... down...
The door—it's opening.
Shit.
I thought I ended it.
There's a... Soldier Class...? Standing outside my cabin!
Fuck! Fuck fuck fuck!
I have to get out of here!
It's—coming in.
I—
I have a knife.
In my pocket.
I could still fight.
Clenching the knife, I—
—
Aniki, I know you can hear me, so hear me out.
Playtime's coming to an end.
You're at your limit and you know it.
I'm almost out of propellant, you're down to one sword and your Senjutsuki's on the verge of breaking down any second now.
So—our next move is gonna be our last, y'hear?
We can't lose, Aniki.
No matter what, we—we have to win.
So I need you—to fall on your sword.
Give 13 a wide, open hit.
An offer that great—can't be refused.
If all else, instinct would kick in and make him do it.
And—when he takes the hit.
Even if it's for just a single instant, I know where he'll be.
I swear I'll be ready.
So long as you take the fall.
I'll take care of the rest.
Are you up for it, Aniki?
Yuuko
Well, I'll be... what an unexpected turn of events, and an ugly picture to match.
Shirogane had put a sordid end to Takahashi with a direct impact to his TSF's center. The other end of his sword extends past the pilot's cockpit and exits at the dysfunctional Shiranui's rear end.
Shame this isn't real—I'm almost tempted to have seen him skewered alive. Skewered not just once but twice, as a matter of fact.
For not even half a breath later—more precisely, while Shirogane's PB Blade was still partway through Valkyrie-02's Shiranui (it hadn't even exited through the rear yet)—the Fukui boy had likewise stabbed Takahashi in the back. The tip of his PB Blade likewise protrudes the front face of Takahashi's center, reaching further beyond and arriving at—Shirogane's TSF.
To its exposed lower left torso.
A critical hit.
How curious—I gander that blow wouldn't have dealt as much structural damage had he struck Shirogane on the right flank, what with Shirogane's position and stance.
'Splash on Valkyrie-02 and Valkyrie-13,' Suzumiya announced promptly after.
Tsk.
As trustworthy as his sense of obligation has proven time and time again, the lengths he'd go through to carry out his duty, nothing short of death—honestly sickens me at times.
And to pair him with one as cold-blooded and loyal as him, who in kind wouldn't hesitate to do whatever it takes to carry out anything and everything I command him to with any means necessary, even at the price of burning down an entire landscape and disposing his ally—
Well, he has to. His loyalty is not free, not to mention involuntary.
After all, I hold his sister's life in my hands.
Ah, well.
So much for Laplace's Demon.
You should rejoice, Shirogane.
I—believe you.
I won't ask for your forgiveness, for I have done nothing wrong that needs forgiving.
Remaining skeptical and casting suspicion on all that I've personally seen and been a part of to date is not a fault I'll admit to.
Yashiro's projection had really rocked me off my groove...
At the end of the day, I have the vanity of a scientist, and any opportunity for convincing and satisfying the burden of proof is an opportunity I would gladly take again and again. Though it's also possible, in the depths of my denial, it was I who had personally refused to believe the horrors that I'd witnessed...
However—
I now believe you are without a doubt a Causality Conductor, for only the presence of a Causality Conductor, in direct contact with the causalities of the multiverse, could altogether collapse the linear metaphysics of Laplace's Demon.
Indeed—my whole tenure I've sought to construct the 00 Unit in the likeness of Laplace's Demon, one with the causality information that leads us to a future where we triumph over the alien invaders, only to have run into a dead end at every turn thus far. I'd even had to forfeit the lives of eight of my top backup 00 Unit candidates to get to where we are.
I had sold my soul to the wrong Demon, for it was never the Demon's intention to allow us to pick our own fate, as the fallen eight's sacrifices have proven. At the very least, they were not in vain, for with that knowledge we shall not fail when Kagami Sumika's time arrives, and perhaps that Fukui boy may never get a turn at the 00 Unit conversion procedure. Maybe that might set that incorrigible Takahashi's mind at ease at long last.
Tut tut.
In any event.
I can now say this without a shred of remorse—that I have nothing but the utmost gratitude to whatever had made Shirogane Takeru a Causality Conduit, for I surmise—nay, I guarantee—that each and every of the alternative worlds without him had never stood a chance at existence, and while the ones that had had him may not have always succeeded, they had at least been given a chance to fight back.
Though I've never realized it and though I will never outright tell him, Shirogane has always been the missing key to the fulfillment of my Quantum Causality Theory. The 00 Unit was always going to be incomplete without him, I even doubt its quantum-conductive nature would ever reach its fullest potential unless paired with the medium to communicate with the multiverse.
The perception of lateral dimensions has always been a cleverly disguised illusion the Demon had dangled in front of our eyes. It takes a Causality Conductor to ultimately attract that causality into our dimension and realize the effect into reality.
Hence, the partial completion of the 00 Unit would only ever accomplish as much as Laplace's Demon might allow it, but alongside the Causality Conductor, we get a chance at choosing our fated destination.
Hmm, is it perhaps I who has been sending Shirogane back through space-time over and over so that he might fill this loophole in my research? A gift to all the other Yuukos in an attempt to rectify my oversight?
Hah, on second thought—how ludicrous. I'd be too occupied with my own world, much less be any concerned for parallel Yuukos.
I do empathize with the grueling path Shirogane has gone through and the curious phenomenon that relentlessly sends him back here—
Yet, I am utterly grateful for his tragedy all the same.
Fret not however, Shirogane, for I have the means to pay you in turn.
And I not only mean that I'll assist you in determining the cause of the phenomenon and ideally put it to its eternal rest.
Suffice it to say, you have unwittingly opened up the possibility that your ideal world might not be beyond reach after all.
Isn't that worth rejoicing over?
Although—that would imply I've been wrong all along.
Subconsciously and unintentionally, I've been operating under the supposition that determinism was a surefire way for Shirogane to recreate our victory over the BETA in this world. And in my defense, it still is.
But let's posit for a moment he pursues his perfect world.
Should Shirogane deliberately change course, due to distributed causality—otherwise known as the butterfly effect—he'd end up having to go through a whole new set of causalities that may end up in our utter defeat, or the activation of Alternative V, yet again.
Who knows how many more infinite times he'd have to undergo this cycle of death and rebirth until he eventually reaches a future where we not only triumph over the aliens, an outcome akin to his prior loop, but he ALSO averts the extinction of his friends and loved ones.
Therein lies my uncertainty—that a perfect future like that might not even exist.
For all we know—his previous world was the singular, sole path to humanity's victory.
And above all else—that this might be one of the worlds where Shirogane ends up dead.
In the event I lose Shirogane, all might as well be lost.
I wouldn't give a damn in the off-chance he somehow achieves his wish a trillion more loops from now. This present timeline—this present world—is my world. Therefore, I can't afford to reduce this world to a paltry tryout for that idealistic pursuit. I refuse to make this lifetime one of the countless failed timelines that wind up forgotten.
So you could see why I'd sooner play this safe.
Having gotten that out of my system (I feel a bit better, oddly enough. That must be what a church confession would be like)—
Quantum determinism is not the end all be all, after all.
Causal order and space-time might not be the only basic ingredients of nature.
Tsk, being wrong—what a grotesque feeling this is. How in the world do people live this way? I feel like skinning myself to the bone is the only way to rid myself of this dreadful feeling.
As I was saying, the possibility of finding that ideal future is not beyond reach, as evidenced by tonight's mock battle experiment. There exists a means to 'polarize' the causal information of a particular timeline, Shirogane's latest loop for instance, without introducing Chaos into this one.
Which brings me to the following complication.
To accomplish all that without reducing my home to a failed, forgotten timeline—
There will be the consequence of—equilibrium. Or more specifically—what circumstances the multiverse might execute to preserve said equilibrium. Which in the quantum realm is uncharted territory, even for yours truly. It's not like anyone alive has ever been able to witness the repercussions of a quantum event in one world on another. Further, this concept of causal equilibrium gives me a queasy feeling within my cerebellum for reasons I have yet to fathom.
Even so, I'll delve into this abstract territory for you, Shirogane, even if it means having to start from the ground up. Though I'd have more luck working backwards—never mind, you need not know the minutiae of my scientific methods.
Fortunate for me, the final touches of the 00 Unit currently fall under Onee-sama's wretched hands, so while I have time to spare (a rare occurrence, if I do say so myself), I'd best revamp all my upcoming designs to revolve around the Causality Conductor.
Until I analyze the physics of it all, however—our plan remains the same.
I still require Shirogane to entirely eliminate the BETA first and foremost, which may yet need sacrifices from my STF. For naught has changed with my core theory, that only members of A-01 are able to find such paths, paths that brim with ideal sets of possibilities.
My point has yet to be disputed: determinism is still our safest route.
Perhaps not ideal, but safe nonetheless.
Causality Conductor though you may be, Shirogane, you would be the greater Demon to steer us off course into a bleaker future instead. In which case, I would have to personally undo the quantum events you choose to alter if it means getting us back on course...
Trust that I will work diligently to decipher the details, but don't even consider rushing me, because, like I mention, quantum equilibrium just doesn't bode well with me.
One measly misstep—might cost us the world, possibly the multiverse, as we know it.
Part of me still wishes that this experiment had failed. How straightforward my life from here on would have stayed had I remained in the dark. Then again—I'd never be able to still call myself a woman of science.
Thus, we'd best tread with the highest of cautions.
So until I do all that, Shirogane, we stick to the original plan.
Tough it out until then, and pray to whatever god you might worship that I would unravel this mystery in time.
Tch, I might even have to resort to Onee-sama's help again, should worse come to worst.
Now that I'm out of possible excuses to refute the visions Yashiro had shared with me a few days ago—if I succeed (and that's one cosmic if)—I might even be able to do something for Marimo...
Here I've been, believing my lone responsibility was freeing Shirogane from the shackles of the Causality Conductor, yet now I'm attempting to help him find this perfect world of his...
The mere notion of a meager possibility has stirred me...
Damn you, Yashiro...
You should've pulled me out the second I told you to.
. . .
Well.
What about you, Yashiro? What do you think?
I'm too talented for my own good, you say?
I'm not a mind reader like you, so use your lips, why don't you?
No, I'm not angry at you.
Just furious.
Simply livid.
Whatever.
I guess it's time I get to work.
I shall take my leave.
Before I do—
(Yuuko)
Isumi, can you handle this?
(Isumi)
Will do, Professor. You can leave Shirogane to me.
I'm confident she'd be able to diffuse this situation.
Maybe I shouldn't get too ahead with this venture I've just volunteered myself into.
Glancing one more time at the simulator marked 0-0-4 and at the erratic vital signs of its user on the overhead displays, I wordlessly wish Isumi the best of luck, then make my exit.
It would appear the Causality Conductor isn't Shirogane's one and only enemy.
