Human - Regalia_of_Blood_and_Flesh
He had never hoped and he had never waited.
There was never a reason for Tenryū Shokubutsu to wait for his father's return or hope that something would come up. If that man did not return then it was simply his choice not to do so. There was never a place for him to voice his own thoughts.
When he had been taken into the custody of his uncle, Tenryū Shokubutsu never said anything against it. If his uncle had decided to take him in then it was simply his choice to do so. There was never a place for him to voice his own thoughts.
Nothing good ever happened to him. Nothing bad ever happened to him. The world continued to turn, yet he never had anything to say on any topics involving it. His entire existence was one of simply being there, being a living person. Nothing had to happen and nothing had to be done about it. If he were to fade away then there would have been no issues.
Tenryū Shokubutsu never had a reason to voice his thoughts but did not want to lose his voice. There would be times when he would need to give answer - even simple ones. That may have been why he had decided to at least speak to himself at times, to make sure his voice would always be well enough to work. Times when he would use it freely hardly came up.
Those times they did come up were not too bad. Those times always involved his uncle or his uncle's friends. They all seemed fine upon hearing his voice. They were always considerate to him when he did not say a sentence right away. Yet they were still older and had other things to do.
That may have been why he was actually rather pleased once he found others who would listen to him speak. They would wait for him to finish speaking, never seeming to rush him and his words. When that number grew it was made all that much better.
At some point he had gained actual friends as well as a mentor. There weren't many of them, but he was happy with those few people. Just the thought of them was enough to put a smile on his face.
The amount of people was small - especially for one his age - but that was enough reason for him to be there. To stand before this enemy while also in front of his uncle; it was the least he could do at this point. Another fight may have been going on, but this was the best place for him to be. A place where the Black Trigger known as Shikifuku could become whole once more.
.
"..."
"If you want to ask something then go ahead and ask. That guy seems to understand what's going on right now. He won't be coming at us or try to make any escape until we make a move. So, what do you want to ask, Shokubutsu?"
Akasora looked down at his nephew while a single piece of Shikifuku spun around his wrist as if it was orbiting it.
"...Who is...that man...? ...He was...giving you two...so much...trouble... ...Sorry... ...I should not...have said...that..."
"No, no, you're fine. That's a completely valid question and a completely valid reason to ask it. I can't say I would have the same question if I was in an outside perspective." He looked back towards the man who was waiting for their actions. "And that man is-"
"Just some irritating man. There is no need to pay attention to him."
"That man is your Father."
Shinoda was quick to glare at Akasora. Everything he felt about those words were said through that glare.
For his part, Akasora looked as calm as ever.
"...I see... ...Okay... ...That explains...why he uses...Shikifuku...like that..."
"Yup."
Shinoda grabbed Akasora by the neck before pulling him down a bit so that their voices would not be able to reach Shobu, who was a few feet away.
The situation as it stood was bad enough with multiple battles going on at the moment, yet Shinoda found the time to scold his long time friend while their opponent waited. He tightened his grip of the other's neck with his glare only growing more intense.
"What the hell, Chishi!? Why would you tell him that it's his dad? You of all people know what that can do to the kid!"
"That's just it. I do know what that can do. That's also why I said 'Father' instead of 'Dad'."
"How does that-"
"Listen, Masafumi... You can yell at me all you want later. For now we have to take this guy out. Besides that, we still need to deal with the other issue that's currently going on around the city. Now isn't the time to be doing this."
"..."
"Hey-"
"Fine! But I will be making sure you get a rough beating later on for this."
Akasora gave a nod while smiling the whole time.
The two adults moved back towards Shobu.
"...Ah... ...Bo... ...Uncle... ...If I may..."
"Yeah? What is it? Can you fight?"
"...Yes... ...But I...wanted to...know if I could...have...the second part...of Shikifuku... ...That way...I can...fight my father...while you and...Shinoda-san...handle with...the other issue..."
"Hm? Shokubutsu, you know I have faith in your skills but... It takes both me and Masafumi to handle this guy. Even when we used Shikifuku against him, it just turned to zero since he has the third piece of it."
"...Yes... ...I know... ...But... ...I know...I can...win... ...If I...have Shikifuku...with me... ...I will...just use...both of...them at the same...time... ...That way...only one...will be...turned to zero..."
"EH!?"
"OH!?"
"...Ah...?"
Akasora and Shinoda gave either other quick looks towards each other.
Shobu looked at the two adults as if he said something he should not have. Confusion was on his face while the two adults looked at him with their own confusion.
"Hey, hey, Shokubutsu, you do know that you can't use two pieces of Shikifuku at once right? You have to always switch from one to the other. It is not made to use multiple pieces simultaneously."
"...That is...-"
"Incorrect?"
Shobu nodded his head.
"How!? A-ah! Sorry. I didn't mean to raise my voice. I'm just surprised saying that. Can you explain why we're wrong?"
Shobu nodded his head.
He looked up at the two adults with an amount of certainty that made both Akasora and Shinoda unsure.
"...Because I...have two...arms..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"HUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUH!?"
"Chishi, lower your voice! He's getting sad while that idiot over there is looking at us like we're crazy! He's been waiting patiently for us this whole time because we have the upper hand, but he might just attack because he thinks we have lost our minds!"
"Right, right. Sorry, sorry. Yes. I'm sorry. Ah! Please don't look down, Shokubutsu!"
Coughing into his hand, Akasora looked down at Shobu with a look of fondness.
He brought his hand up to take off the piece of Shikifuku he had been using. It had no effect while he was using it due to the fact that their opponent had the exact same Black Trigger in his possession. It had created a stalemate that they would not get out of.
The difference between him using it to create a stalemate and his nephew using it was that he would be stuck in place while Shobu would be getting results. It had not been shown to him yet but the fact of the matter was that it was best to try something new than to letting things continue on with nowhere else to go.
"Fine. You can use both pieces. But! You won't be fighting him by yourself. Masafumi and I will still be fighting here."
"He won't be fighting at all."
Tenryū Seidō lowered his head while raising his hand towards the single piece of Shikifuku around his wrist.
Akasora and Shinoda readied themselves once more.
"I'll be giving up on this fight now."
Shobu lowered his own arms.
"Against Chishi and Masafumi, I could manage. I know how they fight and what they can do. Against you, Shokubutsu, I would be unsure as to what would happen. You are an unknown factor that I can't bother to think about right now."
Akasora was quick to give a glare towards the man who had just insulted his own child.
"There is no point in continuing a fight where Shikifuku is forced to destroy itself over and over again without a solid outcome being guaranteed. Although that would be a fitting example of how we humans just love to start wars with each other."
Seidō took the single piece of Shikifuku from his wrist and tossed it over to the three standing a few meters away from him. His own Trigger was thrown over right after.
Shobu grabbed the third piece of Shikifuku and attached it to the two other pieces he held in his hand. A sense of relief washed over him as the Black Trigger became whole once more.
"Shokubutsu, go find people who can use those pieces and let them use it for a bit. Actually, give the mirror to the girl I was with earlier. Afterwards, take her to the base. She will be more useful that way."
"Hey, don't go giving orders to-"
"Do you want to end all this trivial fighting or not? As a last ditch effort, I'm sure that the current invaders will target the base with something big. That girl has enough 'Knowledge' to deflect a large attack. What's more, this will help her out in the eyes of others as someone who had helped Border. Do not forget your promise to me, Chishi."
"..."
Akasora clicked his tongue before turning to his nephew.
It had all made sense, but that was exactly why he hated the idea so much.
"He's right. As much as I loath saying that. Shokubutsu, give 'Emotion' to my idiotic student and give 'Willpower' to Kei. After that... Find that girl and give her 'Knowledge'. Take her to the top of the base when you have done that. We will deal with your idiot father."
"...Okay..."
A pink light started to come off of Shobu's feet as the Black Trigger known as Shikifuku started rotating around his wrist like the rings of Saturn.
With a burst of speed that could not be copied by any regular Trigger, he ran in the direction of the fighting that was currently going on.
.
Tenryū Seidō let out a sigh as he looked around at the destruction they had all caused.
"Now th-...!? What the hell!?"
"You didn't think I'd let you off the hook just like that, did you!? Be happy that if I did any more than punch you, I would also be going to jail for my violence."
"I am also holding myself back over here. If I wasn't in my current position then you would soon be dumped into the river with only a straw to help you breath."
"When did you two get so violent? I knew you were crazy, but I did not know you became psychopaths as well. Maybe you should be the ones who get locked up instead. I will run the risk of getting tossed in if it means keeping others away from you."
"Shut the hell up. We have a right to be pissed at you for everything you've done. We finally see you after you left and you go out of your way to screw us over by fighting against us. If you didn't do that then we could have somehow turned this situation into something that wouldn't get the press in our asses."
"This should be no problem for you guys. If it is then that is because you lot are just that inexperienced. That should be obvious for the General Director of Border and the Yagura Branch's director."
"How did you-"
"It isn't that hard to get information, you know. I just had to ask some people around here and they gladly answered. It is even more convincing when I show them a Trigger."
Seidō smiled to himself when he remembered the kind flower shop woman who had informed him about the current general state of Border.
Apparently she is a mother. I would not have guessed based on her appearance.
He faced his two former friends once one. This time the words that came out of his mouth were not ones of friendly banter, instead choosing a new set of vocals that made him sound serious.
"Now then... Can the two of you tell me why you had such faith in my child?"
"Well then... Can you tell us why have such little faith in your own child?"
"Because I know how that child is. He is not the type to actually do things for himself. That kind if thinking means he cannot put his all into what he does because there is no in it for him. His personality also keeps him distant from others to the point that he truly can't do anything since he has no one to do anything for."
"You are right about him not wanting to do things for himself. He is too kind for fighting and for going against anyone. That being said, you are wrong about his personality. It's because of his personality that he has people he can call friends now. My students consider him a friend and there are two others in my branch that are his friends as well."
"But they aren't here right now. He wouldn't have really been able to fight him."
"Actually, it's because we were the only ones here that he would have fought you. He probably wanted to smack you around for leaving when you did and for how you have been using Shikifuku this whole time. How you have been using the legacy his mother left behind." Akasora shook his head with a sigh. "In all honesty, I sent him off so that he would not be tempted to go against himself and hit you for this whole mess."
"You mentioning that girl did not help anything either. You really are an asshole."
Seidō furrowed his brows while looking between the two disappointed men.
Was I really that wrong?
While Rhinoceros Beetle 07 observed the intense battle between the Wanderers and Border from a short distance away, it confirmed Pyrínas' location in the middle of the fight with the naked eye.
Misaki Mitsubachi banged on its pure white surface from where she stood next to it.
At this point, even that was enough to have a clear effect on the cracks inside Rhinoceros Beetle 07.
"Hey, hey, hey! We seriously found him! We have to save him!"
"That would increase the risk of getting wrapped up in the combat activities currently occurring in the area... Even if the others have no intention of attacking us, we cannot escape the high probability of being struck by a stray attack... In addition, it appears some of those involved wish to prevent anyone from approaching Pyrínas... There is a danger of those people directly attempting to interfere if we approach him..."
And...
Rhinoceros Beetle 07's analysis indicated it no longer had the durability to withstand a battle of that class thanks to the cracks continuing to form within it.
Of course, if it informed the children of that, there was a danger of the breadth of their actions shrinking even further. With an already risky situation, the beetle wished to avoid lessening their freedom of choice.
"Then what do we do?"
"I will analyze their attack patterns and calculate out how wide an opening we have... ...Human vision shrinks further than people realize when they are focused on something... At first glance, this area looks like a wide open space, but it is actually like a labyrinth with fluidly changing routes, so if we move based on set rules, we can safely-..."
Rhinoceros Beetle 07 trailed off.
The artificial voice created by its giant thin wings suddenly stopped.
Michelle, Stepney and Mitsubachi had suddenly disappeared.
No, that was not accurate.
Someone had entered "within" Rhinoceros Beetle 07.
In a mysterious space void of color and sound where not a single leaf on the surrounding roadside trees moved, Rhinoceros Beetle 07 focused its attention forwards.
At a spot a mere 5 meters from its cannon barrel stood a large man with white hair who seemed like he could wear any sort of clothing and be natural in it.
His eyes contained a dark light that was only found in those who had continuously walked down the hidden back roads of life. The thin smile on his lips seemed to contain all forms of confidence. Despite Rhinoceros Beetle 07's cannon being at such extreme close range, he did not remove his hands from his jacket pockets.
In that world where all color had faded to black or white, that man alone contained color.
It was as if he was illuminated as that world's sole king.
"...Pyrínas..."
Rhinoceros Beetle 07 was unable to tell whether it was actually using its wings to produce its artificial voice or not, but it muttered that name all the same.
And even as it made that deduction, it denied that possibility.
No.
That could not be true.
The real Pyrínas would not expend any of his power for a mere pawn like Rhinoceros Beetle 07. If he wanted to, he could create hundreds or thousands of powerful pawns in an instant.
And yet...
The colorful monster slowly moved his mouth.
"So am I something like your aspiration?"
"..."
"C'mon, don't just sit there. I'm the aspiration you created for yourself. I'm the wall you automatically set up to define what you think Pyrínas is."
It did indeed seem this was not the real Trion Soldier.
This was similar to someone having a mental breakdown due to the massive stress of constantly hiding behind cover in fear of a sniper hiding in some unknown location of the darkness.
"You would know best why something like me has appeared. With a set amount of time having passed since you parted ways with Pyrínas, you are turning into something else. But you yourself refuse to admit it. You are afraid of losing your powerful personality as a portion of Pyrínas. You hesitate to lose it and you are frozen up with regrets. ...That is why I am here. I am here to remind you what you are about to lose. I am here to supplement your data image of what your original form was."
The cracks were even now continuing to run through Rhinoceros Beetle 07 and it could completely collapse at any moment.
Its actions taken to slow the progress of the damage and to compensate for lost internal data may have been similar to those of a human holding a wound to slow blood loss. It did not matter if those actions would actually save it or not. Whether one had received a fatal wound or one's entire body had been skewered, one could not help but carry out those actions.
But...
If its wavering essence was compensated for by renewing its data image here...
"It seems you have put off killing some brat with your pathetic misconversions, but that ends here," spat out that someone.
His tone made the beetle loathe being a part of him, but no tone of voice could have sounded more like Pyrínas.
"Who are you?"
That question reached Rhinoceros Beetle 07.
It reached it.
"What should you do to act like yourself?"
In the end, the real Pyrínas had not seen the need to do a single thing despite the fact that Rhinoceros Beetle 07 had suppressed the clear relationship of master and slave. He had done nothing and left Rhinoceros Beetle 07 unable to explain the logical inconsistency of its own actions. When that happened, Rhinoceros Beetle 07 would need to take a second look at its own essence in the role of slave rather than master. In that process, it would need to rewrite itself using Pyrínas as the starting point.
It could be said to be similar to a computer infected with a virus that would activate when the computer rebooted.
Once that was done, one need only wait until the inevitable freeze. The passage of time and buildup of work would ultimately lead Rhinoceros Beetle 07 into a catastrophic situation.
"You must have understood this from the beginning," announced that someone with a mocking tone. He announced the decisive factor. "Your greatest enemy was not Pyrínas or the enemy beetles sent by him. It was yourself after you gained the trust of the targets and remained physically nearby. ...You must have had the opportunity to explain this to the targets, but you told them there were only two threats, didn't you? Why? It wasn't because you could deny this possibility. It was because you would be forced to think about it if you put it in words."
Rhinoceros Beetle 07 searched for the words to deny it.
Rhinoceros Beetle 07 searched for the words to deny it.
Rhinoceros Beetle 07 searched for the words to deny it.
But Rhinoceros Beetle 07 was unable to speak a single word in response. Of course it could not. This was not a game where multiple players revealed their hidden cards on the table one at a time. All of the cards were known and the beetle was going over the answers all on its own.
And so it could not stop the words of that someone.
The words merely continued.
"It is easy enough to claim to be someone other than Pyrínas. But who are you really? Can you truly define yourself with some other name? The titles you have acquired in this short time are 'someone opposing Pyrínas' orders', 'someone working to become independent of Pyrínas', 'someone who wants to become something other than Pyrínas', and 'someone who originated from Pyrínas'. No matter how hard you try to get around it, you cannot escape the name Pyrínas. If you force yourself to deny your very core, you will lose your essence and be unable to even define what your physical body is."
He did it so easily.
He did it so definitively.
He crushed the budding hope that Rhinoceros Beetle 07 had obtained.
"That is why your true essence is that of a slave. No matter how much you struggle, you cannot reboot yourself as a new type of master."
If Rhinoceros Beetle 07 did not become something other than Pyrínas, it could not refuse the order to kill Michelle, Stepney and Mitsubachi.
But no matter what it did, it could not completely reject Pyrínas.
Ergo...
Rhinoceros Beetle 07 could not protect those three children.
"It is simple logic," whispered that someone. "As long as you are a part of Pyrínas, you cannot hesitate to kill your proper target. If you are hesitating, that reluctance to kill must be coming from some portion that is not Pyrínas. There is something you have gained in this short time... something that the targets trust. When you decide to kill using that excess portion of yourself, you determine that you are 'betraying' the targets."
He was about to speak a decisive statement.
He had made the running start to get there.
"So release yourself from those conditions."
That someone spoke those words that were like a password to release the safety device on some giant weapon.
"Let this kind Pyrínas forcibly give you your orders. Kill the targets while selfishly resenting me."
The conclusion was clear.
Rhinoceros Beetle 07 could not become something other than Pyrínas.
No matter what.
Countless shots were fired from the single body that stood in the middle of the battlefield. They accurately targeted Jin and the other Border agents. They would be difficult to evade. And even if they succeeded, they had nowhere left to go. Pyrínas' ultimate absorption ability gave him as much time, resources, and strength as he wanted. He was the worst possible enemy for the Border agents who had limited amounts of Trion.
They would eventually reach their limit, they would eventually find themselves cornered, and they would eventually lose.
Pyrínas did not have to worry about when or where that eventuality occurred. He only needed to wait for its arrival no matter how long it took. He did not have to worry about his own consumption. If he merely waited for victory to come his way, his wish would be granted. It was the ultimate wastefulness, the ultimate laziness, and the ultimate desecration. The Trion Soldier had gained the ability to extend the idea of 'sitting and waiting' to a level where it threatened to bring humanity to extinction.
Those malice-filled shots and their power filled with murderous intent were produced infinitely and rushed towards their targets. Simply by repeating those countless attacks, he could safely and surely pierce his opponents if he waited long enough.
"What was the point of it all? Now that it comes to the end, I just have to wonder. Miden, Aftokrator, Galpoula, Ypirétis, 'All the World's Cancer,' Wanderers... How ridiculous. So this is what it is like to leave the realm of what can be counted with numbers. I guess that was the extent of society."
Jin and Border could do nothing.
It did not matter how much talent they had or how much effort they put into extending their ability.
"I guess winning is not always a good thing. It can be disappointing. Finding out how low the wall was can be truly disappointing. I suppose I learned one thing from defeating you worms."
By repeating that simple task over and over again, he would knock down and wash away the human culture that had been built up so carefully.
Or so it should have been.
The giant system that was Pyrínas and the Pyrínas System suddenly stopped.
"?"
A look of confusion appeared on Pyrínas' own face.
The power of the multiple shots stopped just before reaching Jin and the Border agents.
One of Konami eyebrows moved and she said, "Hey, what's going on? Does this mean it's okay for me to smash you to pieces? Of course, whether your answer is yes or no, I'll be turning you to nothing."
"What?" quietly muttered the Wanderers' ultimate weapon as if the word had just slipped out.
No.
His lips could no longer make any movement greater than a slight tremble.
"The transmission rate is...? But...the material data system signal...hasn't changed. It can't have changed..."
"..."
Jin alone remained silent.
The elite had been continuing using his foresight to lead the future in a direction that would be beneficial for them all.
That was the only conceivable possibility.
"It can't have... It can't have changed...and yet... What did you do? Even if you interfered with the Trion's internal lines...even if you reversed the signals, you shouldn't have been able to make it past that individual block. And yet... What...what did you-...!?"
"Oh, I get it." Finally, Jim spoke as if he understood it all. "I guess it was a part those infinite possibilities that always comes up. I see, I see... Heh heh, that makes sense. I find it hard to believe a fragment like that would appear within you, but the odds really were infinite. Something like that must've gotten mixed into that network of yours."
"What are you... What are you talking about!?"
"It wasn't me," replied Jin.
His response was the simplest response there was.
"I'd say it was you that stopped you."
Clicking his tongue, Pyrínas muttered something under his breath as he looked at Jin.
Just then everyone who was there felt a rumbling feeling. A large shadow went over them all, making them look up.
A giant falcon-like soldier hung in the air. It looked rather plain, expect for the giant canon attached to it. It started building up energy and seemed like it was aiming right at the Border Base and all of the agents there.
This particular soldier was known as Revolution. It was made to rival an Ilgar. It had three times the destructive power when using its canon and was twice as sturdy as it. The ultimate weapon that could be used by the ones who decided to do their test on this day.
At that moment...
"Hey. What's seriously the matter?"
The white Rhinoceros Beetle 07, Michelle, Mitsubachi, and Steoney waited near the large battlefield while watching for a chance to approach the intense battle there.
But...
Rhinoceros Beetle 07 was unable to respond to Mitsubachi's question.
Its consciousness was focused on the image of Pyrínas that only it could see.
"...I see..."
"That's right," responded the image.
"So...that's it..."
"So what will you do?"
Its thick horn-like main cannon slowly moved. Its aim wavered. As the master, Pyrínas was giving a command to Rhinoceros Beetle 07 who was the slave. He was commanding it to quickly kill the three children who stood nearby.
The only way to escape the basic order to kill was to acquire a personality beyond Pyrínas.
But Rhinoceros Beetle 07 was nothing but a slave, so it would break apart the instant it lost the supporting pillar of Pyrínas.
Therefore, Rhinoceros Beetle 07 could not reject the order to kill.
The formula was perfectly sound.
However...
"...I never had to become anything other than Pyrínas," said the beetle.
"What...?"
"...There was never any need to forcibly think about acquiring a new personality."
"Wait a second. That response was not in the preset version of Pyrínas!"
The sound of cracks running across the beetle's body rang out.
The red light in its eyes flickered unstably like a malfunctioning light.
"...I..."
The cracks had finally become visible on the outside of its body.
It was as if those cracks were in payment for resisting something.
But it did not stop.
Rhinoceros Beetle 07 did not stop speaking.
"...I am!"
Suddenly, the red light in Rhinoceros Beetle 07's eyes completely disappeared.
It had ceased to function.
Or so it appeared.
But that was not the case.
"...My name is..."
The light came back on immediately afterwards. But it had changed from red to green. The previous coloration that had indicated an error became a vivid green as if to announce it was now running properly.
"...My name is Pyrínas, a separate entity from the Wanderers' ultimate Trion Soldier, yet still the same being, and someone disconnected from the Pyrínas System."
Some might have described it as a flower blooming.
The cracks continued to appear from within the white Rhinoceros Beetle 07. Without hesitation and without indecision, the beetle completely shattered. And what appeared from within those glittering fragmentary particles was...
A single white man with a green light in his eyes.
A small cracking noise could be heard.
It had come from Pyrínas' rugged face on that large battlefield he had complete control over. More accurately, it came from the small crack that had appeared at the corner of his mouth.
"Don't...mock me..."
He groaned.
He muttered.
That was all he could manage any longer as authority over the giant system that was the Pyrínas System began to transfer elsewhere, but "the thing he had been" shook off that restriction and shouted with all of his strength.
For better or for worse, the strength of his will may have been one of the reasons the Ultimate Trion Soldier had been able to climb so high.
His rugged mouth split apart and his entire face opened and closed like a cheap toy.
"Don't mock meeeeeeee! Th-this is... This is all mine. I am me! P-Pyrínas System is produced from my mind...from my Trion and core. How could that...how could the power I brought about myself betray me like this!?"
"It no longer matters who was first," said Hatomi as if he was not in the middle of the battlefield. "What the Trion connects to is no longer an issue. You obtained the infinite, so you broke past the need for that kind of thing, right?"
"...!"
The throat belonging to that which had been Pyrínas convulsed.
There was a sound of something hitting the ground.
Jin saw that it had been Takato Mei and Ninomiya Masataka and tension left his shoulders.
Mei started to speak up, having heard it all.
"Being too powerful is its own problem, Trion Soldier-san. When a network made up of flexibly replaceable equipment has a portion become isolated from the rest, the isolated portion becomes a small network of its own. And you have the ability to replace lost body parts like a planarian. In other words..."
"The one who stopped him is also Pyrínas. ...Or may be it would be better to say the one who stopped him is now the Pyrínas," said Hatomi.
It was only during that last statement that Hatomi did not smile.
He showed his respect for someone he had never seen who was not there at the moment.
"There had to have been a lot of different things that made up the whole of Pyrínas. And a lot of those things would normally be invisible due to the great concentration of the whole. But when the network became isolated, things not normally seen rose to the surface. Like the gum syrup built up at the bottom of an iced coffee being scooped out."
"There would have been the cowardly side of you, the short tempered side of you, the vain side of you...and the kind side of you. But who would have thought it would be this form of our greatest weapon that would wrest control away from the rest?"
The desire to protect someone had won out over the desire to kill someone.
The desire to create something had won out over the desire to destroy something.
The desire to stop a fight had won out over the desire to continue a fight.
"I take back what I had initially thought," said Hatomi without hesitation. That was something he did not often say. "The Trion Soldier that our former and current leader made is one hell of a weapon. It was wasted on the likes of you. And it was clearly too much for you to control."
"Ah...ah..."
"Come to think of it," added Sanshū with a puzzled voice over to the Wanderers and the broken Trion Soldier. "Do we have any proof that this one was actually the core? His mind was scattered over the system, and this one was the closest to the surface. But nothing says what showed itself on the surface was Pyrínas' true nature. Weren't you just battling the very outer layer of his mind this whole time? Then again, even just that was no easy task, so I guess Pyrínas really is no normal Trion Soldier. ...Oh, and make no mistake. I wasn't complimenting you when I said that. I was talking about the real one."
"Aaaaahhhhh! Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"
Each time the thing that had been Pyrínas forced his body to move, more and more small cracks formed. He was trying to defeat Jin and Border by any means necessary. So that he could stop them from speaking. So that he could avert his gaze from that uncomfortable information.
But he could not manage it.
That final bit of power must have finally been taken from him. It may have been a mistake that he had held that power at all, even if temporarily.
A high-pitched noise rang out.
A certain line had been crossed.
A portion of the shots broke and the destruction continued in a chain reaction. Everything that made up the thing that had been Pyrínas noisily crumbled. Just like a child grew into an adult and just like an adult grew into a parent, that giant system grew into something more refined by eliminating the immature portions that remained even in the core of the personality.
"I...I'm bre...I'm breaking? I...I am...the Wanderers' Ultimate...no, I went beyond that... Why is this happing...for such a ridiculous reason?"
"There will probably be nothing left to prove you were ever here," whispered Hatomi. That someone who was continuing to collapse clearly twitched when he heard that. "Even if a massive amount of data and a body are left concerning Pyrínas, that data and body will not be referring to you."
Those were his words.
Those were the words the living could pass onto the dead who would disappear from this world.
"But don't worry."
"Wait...no...stop..."
There was nothing he could do in that final moment.
But the thing that had been Pyrínas had a sudden thought.
He recalled the moment in that subway tunnel when that white Rhinoceros Beetle 07 had suddenly left his control and taken an irregular action.
He did not think that beetle had been given anything special. He had not set it up that way. The issue was who had been in that same location at that time.
A certain girl with pink hair and a small body.
Sthénos.
She was a Trion Soldier with the ability to detect when a Neighbor was near, and she also held the hidden possibility of using Trion Soldiers' cores to distort their orders.
Hadn't Pyrínas once made the following estimation of that girl?
But there was an issue with that.
Sthénos would need the Trion Soldier to have a core to distort. The beetles had no such thing.
They all shared a core known as the Pyrínas System.
In that case...
Whether consciously or subconsciously, the one who had incited the change in the single piece of that system's white Rhinoceros Beetle 07 had been...
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! H-her! That biiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiittttttttttttttccccccccccchhhhhhhhhhhhhh! No! No! Noooooooooooooooooo! Revolution! Destroy this whole damn plaaaaaaaaaaaaaace! Destroy this whole city for all I care!"
The second-in-command ignored that someone who suddenly cried out.
He said, "If you wish to leave some evidence behind, I will make a mark for you."
The entire battlefield shook so roughly it seemed like the very foundation would break.
Multiple totem pole-like rods shot out of the ground, slamming into the breaking Trion Soldier with enough force to break through him. His totem pole-like rods pierced through the center of that something that was just barely maintaining its form and it finally completely shattered.
Hatomi brought his hand to his own neck.
While supporting his weight with what looked to be another totem pole-like rod, the second-in-command looked around the area. With no one left to command it, the attacks and weapons began dissolving into the air, leaving nothing behind.
"...So it's over."
"What's over?" said Jin with a shrug.
He spoke as if all that intense fighting had been nothing but a quick glimpse of scenery on the way to their destination.
"We still have to deal with you."
With the final command from the broken Trion Soldier, the falcon-like soldier fired its powerful shot that seemed like it would take everything out.
The moment it had fired, multiple things happened.
In three different places of Mikado City, colors glittered brightly for people to see.
Atop the headquarters of Border the color yellow glowed brightly as a thread that seemed more like rope.
"H-how do I use this!?"
"...Just focus...on making...a shield... ...Sticking out...your arm...helps..."
Doing as she had been told, "Tenryū Aonegai" lifted her arms while concentrating on making a large shield that would deflect anything that came in contact with it.
The large attack that came from the Trion Soldier known as Revolution clashed with the yellow shield that covered the entirety of the front of Border. The difference in power started to become appears to when the yellow shield that was raised towards the sky seemed to be sustaining no damage at all.
After a few more seconds the results came.
The large attack had disappeared from the sky.
The yellow shield had won.
Within the skies of Mikado City a pink light shone in the form of two dots.
"I guess I get to have the most fun since I am so high up."
Tsukiko Yuki smiled as he looked down at his target.
The difference in air between his current location and that of the ground did not seem to bother him as he continued to fall at an increasing rate.
"Kei-san better be ready down there."
The color pink started to envelope his entire body as his target continued to get closer. It continued to due so until it seemed more like a burning flame than that of a glowing star.
Once he made it to his target the time seemed to stop for a single moment as he used all his weight to crash into Revolution. When time continued to move on he was alone in the air. The target that he had hit had disappeared from the sky and was no crashing into the ground with enough force that it could have been compared to a meteor.
"Maybe I went a bit overboard."
On the ground near a large battlefield blue could be seen in the form of a long blade.
"I have never been able to use a Black Trigger like this. I should thank Akasora-san later on."
With a grin on his face, Tachikawa Kei watched as something akin to a meteor fell from the sky at a speed that would have been hard to catch.
Since it would be almost impossible to catch, there had been only one other thing for him to do with the situation.
A large blade made of blue light continued to shrink to the point of it being the skies of the standard Kōgetsu, yet he held the blade as if it weighed nothing at all. The size seemed to fit well with the yellow shield that flew into the sky and the pink power that fell from that same sky. It was a true show of willpower to face such a terrifying attack from the Trion Soldier that was falling like a meteor.
Using his full body to swing the blade around, Tachikawa made his single attack.
He continued to spin while increasing the speed of his swing. His eyes were trained on the falling object in the sky while his attack continued to generate power.
Once it had been close enough, Tachikawa made a great leap into the air without thinking about what would happen if he took a direct hit from the the falling object that seemed to be indistinguishable anymore. When his blade finally connected with the object it seemed as if the cut was clean enough to make sure that nothing from inside came out.
"It would be bad if both parts hit the ground at the speed. I'll just have to cut it up some more."
With little effort and a quick hand, Tachikawa let loose more slag see towards the objects. The number of objects started increasing as they became smaller and smaller. Enough to where they seemed more like small rocks falling from the sky.
That had started a rain of the pieces that had made up the Trion Solder known as Revolution.