When they spoke, the two of them seemed to radiate a strange energy as their eyes glowed blue in shock, with neither one of them managing to fully process that one fact as they stared at him in complete and utter shock. In response to their words, however, Graham simply laughed as he nodded.

"Indeed! It was naught but a minor issue, after all!" assured Graham with a wide grin.

Minor issue… MINOR ISSUE?!

"MINOR ISSUE?!"

"GRAHAM AKER! YOU JUST SINGLE HANDEDLY DESTROYED THE ELDRITCH GOD THAT RULES OVER THIS PART OF THE WORLD WITHIN THREE HOURS OF ARRIVING IN THIS WORLD AND YOU CALLED THAT A MINOR ISSUE?!"

"THE SIGNAL TOWER IS A BIG BOSS, AND YOU DEALT WITH IT LIKE IT WAS NOTHING!"

"I know how overwhelming this may seem, but I just did that," assured Graham gently as he patted Mono over the head. "After all, I have long since surpassed even the Asura!"

"Hmph… well… r-regardless… the Signal Tower is truly gone. I no longer feel its stranglehold on us," commented the Thin Man as he rubbed his chin. That did quite a bit to ease the tension in the cockpit as Mono nodded in acknowledgement at his words. Now that he thought about it, he felt a little better. It felt as though a weight had been released from his shoulders now that the Signal Tower was demolished, and it felt pretty good…

"Yeah… I feel pretty good, now that I think about it," agreed Mono as he smiled and clasped his hands against one another as he fidgeted a little on Graham's lap. However, as he did so, both the Thin Man and Graham itself took note of how… disheartened the boy appeared to be as he slouched his shoulders down a little and removed Graham's helmet from atop his head.

Upon removing his borrowed helmet, the boy flipped it around and stared at it wistfully before turning around and passing it back to Graham, much to his amusement.

"You… can have it back, Graham-" began Mono reluctantly, only for the soldier to raise a hand up to stay him.

"Unnecessary! I have very little need for a helmet, Shonen. I know of your affinity for hats, and as such, you may keep it!" assured Graham as he patted Mono over the head. As he did so, however, the soldier saw that Mono appeared a little hesitant as he rubbed his upper arm reluctantly, and at that, Graham raised a brow as he eyed the child awkwardly. "Is something the matter, Mono? You seem to be… upset about something."

"O-Oh! It's nothing! I… just… remembered some bad things," assured Mono weakly as he slouched a little and eyed Graham uncertainly. Not long after, however, the child forced himself to smile as he looked Aker directly in the eye and continued. "S-See? It's just a bad memory… that's all…"

"Would you like to share the memory?" asked Graham as the Thin Man noticeably winced a little, though the soldier ignored him as he eyed his charge worriedly. "There is no need to be afraid. I swear by my pride as a Flag Fighter that I shan't share your thoughts with anyone less you wished for it!"

The genuine tone that Graham had spoken with assured Mono that he was sincere, and at that, he rubbed his upper arm uncertainly as he spoke.

"A-Alright then… I'll tell you…" muttered Mono as he shifted his knees up to his chest and hugged them. Graham remained solemnly silent as he listened to the Shonen speak about his adventure.

The child spoke of the Wilderness and the Hunter that attempted to kill him at every given second, the School and the Porcelain Bullies and their overlord-esc Teacher that resided within, the Hospital with the horrific Mannequins that were brought to life by the insidious Doctor and finally, he spoke of how how he… inadvertently killed himself… and how he had ended up trapped in the Signal Tower in the first place.

Once he was done, Mono finally turned to look Graham in the eye as he looked for a reaction to the end of his tale. What he got, however… was a blank stare as the pilot found himself glaring at the Thin Man in subdued silence. A purple aura was slowly surrounding the pilot as he did so, and for the first time since they first met, Mono found himself afraid of the Solbrave Commander…

For the most part, Graham had found himself unphased by his tale. He had heard Mono's story in the past. When they had first met, the Thin Man had told it to him, after all.

What the Thin Man did not tell Graham, however…

"You did not tell me of the other. The girl in the raincoat. Six," accused Graham as he narrowed his eyes at the Thin Man on the screen. For his part, the Thin Man didn't appear to be regretful as he stared back at Graham passively, though before long, he sighed in irritation as he nodded.

"Yes… I was not entirely truthful to you, Graham Aker," confirmed the Thin Man as he had the decency to at least sound a little guilty. Even so, he showed no sign of regret as he closed his eyes and continued. "But it was a necessary evil. That child… that monster… she does not deserve to even be mentioned."

"If that were the case, then why do I sense doubt behind your words, Thin Man?" asked Graham as he sharpened his gaze further, prompting the aforementioned man in the hat to flinch a little as Graham continued. "She dropped you. She dropped both of you. That is the case, is it not?"

"Yes. She abandoned us! Even after we went back to rescue her!" confirmed the Thin Man, with him raising his voice in anger as he spoke. When he realized that he had yelled, however, the Thin Man lowered his had in embarrassment as he cleared his throat. "I… apologise for that, Graham Aker. You… you must understand. I… no, we… all Monos… we have all suffered so much because of Six."

The anger was very apparent as the Thin Man's power began to spread through the Brave unit's cockpit. The unit's cockpit monitors began to tear a little as his anger rose, though before it could get too bad, the older Mono groaned and calmed himself as Mono clung onto Graham fearfully.

"... apologies. I… lost control there," apologised the Thin Man as he exhaled sharply, and at that, Graham gingerly waved him off as he smiled gently.

"I know of your pain, Mono," assured Graham as he placed a hand atop the younger Mono's head and stroked his hair gently. The child blushed a tad as he did so, seeming unsure as to how to feel about the parental gesture as Aker continued. "Or, at the very least, I know of how it feels to lose yourself in anger."

"Explain, if you may," urged the Thin Man curiously as Graham chuckled and leaned back on his cockpit chair. His eyes remained shut as he did so… and he remained silent for a long while, much to the worry of his charge as he reached a hand towards the soldier, though right before it could reach his shoulder, the pilot suddenly spoke up.

"When I was a much younger lad… late twenties… I… fought a Shonen that proved to be more than a match for me," began Graham, smiling as though he were sharing a joke as he spoke. Both Monos present appeared worried for him as he continued, though they remained respectfully silent as they listened. "This Shonen… his strength was commendable, and I found myself growing fond of him. It was a feeling… a feeling that could only be called…

"Love."

Both Monos blinked in confusion as they eyed Graham curiously, though he continued on regardless as he placed a hand over his eyes mournfully.

"But as our battles intensified… it slowly but surely began to move past love. Yes, indeed… my feelings towards the Shonen had transcended love… it had turned into hatred… and even then, I deluded myself into thinking that it has moved beyond even that. I believed… that our bond was but a construct of destiny itself!" continued Graham with a smile, though this one was one of regret as he exhaled sharply. "And as time went on… I… I threw everything I had away as I dedicated my life solely to fight the Shonen.

"My brethren were robbed from me, my skies were sullied… and my pride as a Flag Fighter had been shattered by the actions of the Shonen… and I found myself lost in anger as I longed to settle the score between myself and the Shonen…"

Blinking a little at his words, the Thin Man found himself frowning at just how… familiar this all sounded. Like him, Graham had found himself lost in anger due to a single person's actions… though that did beg the question… the question of how he managed to break out of the cycle of hatred, prompting him to remain silent as Graham lifted his head up to look him in the eye as he continued.

"And then.. The fateful day came. The Shonen… he returned… and we clashed our blades several times over. We fought against one another in earnest… and ultimately…" continued Graham, smiling a little at his Bushido days as he spoke. "Ultimately… I lost."

"You… losing…?" muttered Mono in utter shock, seeming to find the mere thought of that to be baffling as he stared at Graham Aker with widened eyes. At that, however, the pilot laughed heartily as he nodded gently.

"Indeed. Though I may appear unbeatable, even I have my limits," assured Graham as he chuckled bitterly. "But regardless… the Shonen spared my life… and he left me with these parting words… he said that… he would live. He would live… and seize tomorrow. That is how he fights.

"And… that I had to live as well… to live and fight for a better tomorrow."

"Evidently, you took the young man's words to heart," pointed out the Thin Man as he crossed his arms. In response to that, Graham Aker chuckled and nodded.

"Perhaps…" muttered Graham as he recalled his sacrifice to allow that Shonen to slash into the future. He wouldn't admit to regretting that decision, of course. As a Sentimental Virgo, he found that going out with a bang as large as that one was probably the best way to die. "But regardless, Mono, you understand. To maintain your anger leads to nothing but a lifetime of pain. A lifetime of obsession. A life that is wasted. It would be wise for you to abandon this path before it is too late, especially now, as you have been freed from this time loop."

And what followed were a few seconds of silence as the older Mono took a few moments to consider Graham's words… and before long, the hatted man sighed and tipped his hat forwards.

"...very well. I… I'll try to release this grudge of mine, alright? No promises," grumbled the Thin Man as he kept his hat tipped. That seemed to be enough for Graham, however, as he nodded.

"It's enough for me, Mono. Now… let us go find your friend!" urged Graham as he smiled down at the child in question. At that, however… Mono appeared surprised as he stared up at him.

"You'll… help me find her… find Six?" asked Mono, with his eyes widened with hope as he spoke. At that, Graham chuckled as he nodded.

"Indeed! I am more than willing to help you find your primadonna!" confirmed Graham as he offered a thumbs up. "It matters not where she is, for I shall clear the distance, no matter how great!"

"Y-You're the best, Graham!" proclaimed Mono as he resisted the urge to hug the older man. Vice versa, however, the pilot in question chuckled and patted him over the head.

"Your praise flusters me, Shonen! But let us not delay! Let us be on our way!" proclaimed Graham enthusiastically as Mono smiled back at him, though before it could get too wide…

"B-But… where exactly d-do we start searching at first…?" muttered Mono in utter confusion as he stared over at Graham, and at that, the Solbrave Commander opened his mouth to respond, only to shut it when he realized that he had no clue either…

And as a result, both Graham and Mono turned towards the Thin Man, who sighed a little via his on screen appearance.

"Fine…"

I was writing Tekketsu No Kyojin Remastered when I decided to just take a detour and update this story first because why not. Next story to be updated will be that one.

All outros for this fic will be two sentences because it amuses me-