We've Been Waiting for You — a Hero
My name is Koishi Komeiji. Is this my fault? What was I supposed to do? What am I supposed to do? Please answer. If you can hear me, then please answer.
Koishi Komeiji's eyes fluttered open. Where was she now, she wondered?
Out in the middle of the desert, with nothing but miles upon miles of dunes stretching out in any given direction. Behind her, a train track. And the burning wreck of an engine, painted in blood and bone. She was on her belly, crawling away, a light trail of crimson drawn under her, in the shifting sands.
Somehow, she knew this place was not safe. That she had somewhere important to go. That she was the only survivor of a terrible tragedy. No — an act of sabotage. It was hard to say. She lived in a world that knew only war, only endless territorial disputes. People have tried to live their lives in the midst of a horrible thousand year war, but once in a while, even on the home front, disaster strikes. That was the way of things. And now Koishi found herself to be claimed as another loss of a hostile world.
Koishi crawled away, inch by inch, thinking only of her moment by moment survival. Like an animal, she crawled forward not knowing where to go — only from a base sense of fear and preservation etched into her heart. Suddenly, a boot stepped into her vision. Koishi took a ragged breath in and craned her neck upwards to see a tall figure — face obscured by worn wraps and a goggle meant to keep the sand out, and a gun slung across her back. The figure knelt down and seized her by the chin, turning the head this way and that, as if to evaluate a cut of meat.
"You're her, alright," the figure said, pulling aside her tinted goggles to reveal a pair of golden eyes. "The one the prophecy spoke of. Some hero."
"Wha—" Koishi's voice came out hoarse. "Who—"
"You can call me Mr. Hat. For thousands of years, my people have been stewards to these lands, which now have become another front for your cursed war. Three hundred years ago, a prophecy was delivered by the matriarch of my village — that there would be a foreigner who would deliver our people from this place, to a safe harbor. I wonder… are you that person? Or rather, are you ready to be that person?"
"Guh…" Koishi let her head fall back down into the sand. "... I just want to go home."
"Aw. Is this not doing it for you?" Mr. Hat said, tearing off her costume to reveal her usual outfit. "Let's see… I'm sure I could cook up a more interesting story for you."
"Christ… they're everywhere!"
A Vijoka bearing a massive sword, no less than three-quarters its own height, boosted toward a weapons satellite before bringing its weapon down, smashing the station into scrap.
"Acquiring lock."
Suddenly, from out of its view, a barrage of beam fire took a pass — the Vijoka deftly dodged out of the way, weaving between the weapons fire with an ethereal grace.
"We're entering the engagement range. Pick your targets."
Cresting over the horizon of Koishi's surface, flickering lights. Hundreds of massive slugs flew across space, impacting the Vijoka and shaking up its pilot. An opening presented itself.
"We have a critical weapon failure on weapons platform 38!"
Then, a massive missile coming from just out of sight smashed into its golden head, causing the whole mechanism to crumple under the force. Not a moment later, the missile erupted into a ball of blinding light, vaporizing everything caught in its blast.
"That's a kill! Keep the pressure on!"
"Watch it!"
A whip, composed of myriad particles twirling and swirling in sync, latched onto a satellite and pulled it back until it smashed into the Vijoka of its origin. Slowly, the steel and alloys that made up the hull of the caught satellite started to melt and corrode into nothing, as if caught in an unseen field of carnivorous microorganisms.
ANTI-DESTRUCTION TYPE COMBAT VIJOKA
"Please be advised — combat effectiveness in zone three has dropped below 50%. We're redirecting every available asset on standby to assist."
A beam of violet cut through that Vijoka, leaving in its wake a gaping hole where its upper body should've been. But while most Vijoka would've been taken out of commission by a hit like that, this one hellishly pulled itself together, snatching wayward particles and molecules from the void to reconstruct itself in a convincing facsimile of its former self. Sluggishly, it looked in the direction of the fire to identify its next opponent.
Another Vijoka, buried under piles of blocky equipment painted in blue, shouldering a massive rifle that glowed white hot from the heat it generated, and sporting the crest of the Coalition on its right shoulder. In a smooth motion, the auxiliary arms of that machine reached behind to retrieve additional weapons from its equipment pack. It shouldered four massive machine guns in each arm, and readied itself for combat.
ANTI-LOVE TYPE COMBAT FRAME
The Anti-Destruction Vijoka once again sent its fluorescent whip forward, aimed to latch on to the Anti-Love Combat Frame. However, jerking the controls to the side, Zhongmou was able to force her machine to twirl away at the last second, missing the lash by mere inches. In an act of retaliation, all four of the machine guns spooled up and fired, unleashing a truly frightening cloud of hot lead.
Her opponent, sluggish and dull as it was, raised its arms to shield itself. Most of the bullets smashed into the armored chassis of the beast to varying effect, but many more dissolved in the field, disappearing into nothing far before they could make contact with their target. It let out a low growl before using its whip to snatch and pull in another nearby weapons satellite. This one dissolved as easily as the first, but instead of being used to patch the machine, a wicked looking rail cannon constructed itself out of thin air on the chassis of the Anti-Destruction type Vijoka. Electricity crackled along the rails as the gun spooled up and readied to fire.
"Warning. Rail-type weapon lock detected. Administering combat stimulants," the onboard computer chirped. A hissing noise issued from nearby as a needle plunged into Zhongmou's body, depositing a veritable drug cocktail of who-knows-what. Her grip tightened and she winced, but she put up no resistance. She grit her teeth as her eyes focused on the enemy. The whole world to her seemed to slow to a crawl.
With a mighty crackle, the rail cannon fired at blinding speeds, offering Zhongmou a window of a second or so to dodge. And dodge she did, such that the electromagnetically propelled projectile grazed her, shearing off metal ribbons from her machine's outer armor, but missing any vital system. Not a moment later, Zhongmou's machine fired another beam from its rifle and dragged it across the enemy Vijoka, incinerating a majority of the machine and reducing it to slag.
However, just as quickly as it had been pared down to base components, it rebuilt itself back to its original form, slightly incomplete, but operational. It scanned its immediate surroundings to find another weapons platform to prey on… With a swing of its lash, it latched onto another weapons satellite and started to drag it in. But this time, Zhongmou would not let it be.
Turning her weapons upon her own allies, she fired another beam of pure, concentrated energy at the weapons satellite being dragged away, incinerating it to a crisp and denying the enemy Vijoka its source of repair. Then, in an immediate follow-up attack, shoulder mounted missiles deployed and fired, careening off into space toward their target. Those missiles split, deploying countless micro-missiles, which all barreled toward the enemy at frightening speeds. When they impacted the enemy Vijoka, they exploded into prismatic spheres of pure energy, erasing enough of the Vijoka to render it destroyed.
"This is Centcom to all remaining assets in zone three — position has become untenable. Retreat back to secondary positions and standby for new tasking."
"Lieutenant Lee copies," Zhongmou said into her communication set. But before she was about to retreat back to secondary positions, her entire screen lit up with enemy contacts. Coming in from every conceivable angle — Vijokas of all makes and models. Surrounded by hundreds of enemies, cut off from support, and with nothing but the weapons she had strapped to her machine. "... I might be delayed."
The Argo pivoted around Pike Station, shining a bright light along the hull of the station. Inside, behind heavily tinted windows was a chaotic battlefield fought along the cramped corridors and compartments that made up the sizable station. Moon rabbits of old, dressed in outdated uniforms and equipped with the highly advanced weapons and armor of yesteryear—clashing against the disparate forces of the Coalition. Placed next to the Lunarians, they looked like nothing more than a motley band of raiders, dressed in their cobbled together armors, seams stitched and restitched, plates made of recycled materials, weapons that ran the gamut of sophistication—a bolt action rifle here, a beam rifle there, and a loose cavalry sword lost somewhere in the chaos. When mass production was rendered impossible by the destruction of factories everywhere, as well as the infrastructure that supported them, this was the result.
And yet, they fought valiantly, grizzled and organized as they were. These moon rabbits were not children that had hardly the need to fire a gun; these humans were not the bystanders that lacked a purpose to fight. They were the leftover survivors, who knew the nature of conflict intimately and—at the drop of a pin, the flash of a fired gun—dove into an almost instinctual response to fight and to struggle.
Eirin, at the head of the Argo, picked up the speaker of a radio set and pressed a button on the side of it before speaking.
"This is Eirin Yagokoro of the Argo. Any allied assets still remaining on Pike Station please respond," she said, before letting go and setting the speaker back in its slot. She might've been tempted to open fire right then and there, but with no information on who was who in that chaotic mess of battle, there was no telling if she would hit an ally.
For a few long moments, there was silence. Then, a crackly voice over the radio.
"This is Lieutenant Aina of the 34th. We read you."
Eirin's hand shot to the speaker. "Lieutenant? Where's the Captain?"
"KIA, ma'am. Shot and killed after our retreat from the control room. I'm currently acting head of the operation."
"... Very well. I need an update on the situation."
"We've cleared out the engineering deck. Most of the rail system has been cleared of enemies as well. We're currently working on a solution to the busted system, but progress is slow with most of our guys busy fighting. Even if we could get the rail system back online, there's still the control center to worry about… We can't fire anything without it, and last we heard, it was occupied by enemy forces."
"Understood. Change of plans, then. Lieutenant, take your men and stage an assault on the control room. The Argo will focus on the rail system. I'll do the fixing and the Argo will provide fire support as necessary."
"Alone, ma'am?"
"Alone. I'll manage."
"Yes, ma'am. We'll keep you posted on our progress. Lieutenant Aina out."
"Satori, take the controls," Eirin said as she reached over and locked a helmet onto her suit. She unbuckled herself and pushed off from the captain's seat to the rear airlock. "Princess, join me, if you will?"
"Got it," Satori said, taking Eirin's place at the front. Kaguya followed Eirin's example and went with her to the airlock.
"You're going to be covering us, alright? You are under no circumstances to leave the area until the rail cannon is fixed. The operation will be screwed if it doesn't, so we'll need you nearby in case we get any moon rabbits on us."
"Fine," Satori said, buckling herself in.
"Say the words."
"Excuse me?"
"I need to hear you say the words, Satori," Eirin said, halting to look back at Satori.
"What's with you? I'm not going anywhere. I'll keep the Argo here and cover you, so just go already."
"That'll do." Eirin slipped into the airlock and punched a key to open the outer door to the void. Satori watched as the two slipped out into the void before moving out to their objective.
Squeezing her eyes shut, Yukari took a deep breath—and then shut off the communication set built into her helmet. Dozens of overlapping transmissions, panicked calls for help and clipped final words—silenced in a moment. Yukari refocused and redoubled her efforts, this time slower and more measured. Inch by inch, the seam stitched into reality itself expanded upwards and downwards, in a dynamic push and pull motion.
Suddenly, from the corner of Yukari's vision, a flash of bright white. Then, the wires which had dug into Koishi so firmly went slack. She froze.
"Maribel?"
Yukari's breath caught in her throat, though whether that was from the sheer exertion she placed herself under, or because she understood what had happened…
"Hey, Maribel. Maribel! Let go!" Kyokai materialized in front of her once more and seized Yukari by the shoulders, desperately trying to shake her out of the trance she was caught in.
A loud roar that permeated even the emptiness of space came from behind her. And it called her name.
"Maribel! Damn it!"
An impact in her left side that caused things to pop and crack in ways that they shouldn't have sent Yukari to the side, freely careening and spinning in the frictionless expanse of space. Broken from her concentration, Yukari let out a gasp for air as various flashing lights and warning signs projected themselves on her helmet display. Then, an abrupt stop as she slammed into a smooth chunk of metal—debris from one of the stations that used to be behind her. As her vision cleared and came into focus, Yukari laid eyes on a truly frightening sight.
A dragon, the spitting image of the Dragon God she used to collaborate with, locked claw to claw with a massive scaled appendage that extended from one of her gaps—tied at each corner by a characteristic red bow. But Yukari had done no such thing…
"Is that… Toyohime?" Yukari breathed. She didn't notice it at the time, but in the commotion, her communication set had turned back on.
"You just couldn't stay dead, could you?" A projection of Kyokai spat. "So you're the psycho bitch that killed my husband?"
"You…" the white and violet dragon rumbled. "You took everything from me."
"Did I? I think you did that well enough yourself."
That white dragon opened its maw, and from a point deep within its throat, a flash of pure white energy. But before that energy was unleashed in all of its explosive destruction, another gap opened, from which a claw shot forwards and upwards, driving its neck upwards. A dazzling beam of energy fired out, missing the gap and instead slicing a station clean in half. Before Toyohime could react properly, the claws withdrew and a larger gap sliced itself open, revealing a myriad of eyes staring out at her… accompanied by a glowing pair of red dots.
A dragon, red white and blue, shot out of the gap with its teeth bared. It wrapped its claws, its wings, and its tail around Toyohime before clamping down hard on her neck, drawing blood. Unlike Toyohime, who looked as the quintessential eastern dragon as her father was, this new dragon was stockier, more wicked and vicious—a western dragon. The familiar horns that jutted out from its head confirmed what Yukari already knew.
Tangled up with Toyohime, thrashing about and holding her in place was Kyokai. Or rather, the form that Yukari herself had sealed away, as a part of their covenant.
"I won't let you. I won't let you have her. I won't let you hurt her." Toyohime craned her neck around, pivoting around the point that was now gushing thick, boiling blood. She opened her mouth, bared her fangs, and clamped her mouth around the heavily scaled portion of Kyokai's neck. Her teeth were hardly able to break skin, but Toyohime had other ideas. Another flash of white light. "She's mine… SHE'S MINE! MY daughter, you hear me!? YOU—you… You don't deserve her. If you lay so much as a FINGER on her, I'll reduce you all to ash!"
The entire area around the two were illuminated in a blinding flash as the beam fired, burning away scale, skin, and flesh. Kyokai cried out in pain before jabbing a claw into Toyohime's soft underbelly and smashing her with a swing of her tail, sending Toyohime reeling backwards, bleeding and heaving. Kyokai herself stumbled backwards on the flap of her wings, a portion of her back reduced to smoldering embers and blackened flesh. But, stoic as she was, she stood firm, measured and steady.
"You didn't even give birth to her—she isn't your kid. You're going crazy over a kid that ain't even yours? The hell's wrong with you?" Kyokai casted a glance back at Yukari, who had only now started to regain her composure. "Maribel. Spreading myself a little thin here, but… I've still granted you your powers. It's up to you what you do with them. I'll keep the daughter-in-law in check."
Yukari grit her teeth and gave a nod in acknowledgment. She pushed herself off of the chunk of space debris and to the location of the half formed gap in reality, which receded slowly without her constant attention.
"What's wrong with me? What's wrong with ME?" Toyohime let out a rumbling cackle. Here, confronted by a woman who counted herself as a part of her own messed up family, she felt that the absurdity of her life had finally peaked. Being lectured by a woman who she hardly knew—though she had, in a sense, ruined Toyohime's life just by existing. For a flickering, ephemeral moment, all Toyohime could do was laugh. Her entire life was a play—a farcical comedy—and she was the headlining character. "You… you whore! Getting with my father! You planned this, didn't you? I know you did—conspiring against me! Against Kaguya. Everyone is! From the start, the universe contrived itself to make us suffer! To think the whole world was against us from the start… Clearly, I have not killed enough people, if I still have to suffer this. Amends will need to be made. I'll have to make up for lost time—starting with you."
Kyokai's brow furrowed. "You're probably the most insane person I've ever met. Ha. You know, I'm really starting to understand why he never loved you."
Yukari activated the thrusters on her suit and stabilized herself in a position where she could continue to pour power into the gap. She extended her arms and took a deep breath, before the distant pounding returned to her ears.
All the scales that lined Toyohime's back bristled with murderous intent. For a moment, her face twisted into an expression that defied definition—but at the forefront, was a sort of scalding anger that came through her wide, wild eyes. "... Take it back."
"Why would I, when it's true?" Kyokai steadily stared Toyohime down. A slight smile creased across her lips. All Kyokai needed to do was to buy time. Nothing she said had to necessarily be true—so upon finding a weak spot in Toyohime's psyche, it felt appropriate to press it. "He told me everything, you know? About how ashamed he was that he created you at all. About how he wished you had never even existed, or how he wished you would've just dropped dead. Saved us all some trouble and embarrassment."
"No… He didn't. He didn't say that! You're just…" In her own vulnerable state, Toyohime's mind started to desperately form connections between unrelated events. Nothing about what her father did made sense. But upon hearing Kyokai's words, they suddenly might've. No matter what kind of answer it was, be it fraudulent or outlandish as Kyokai's words were, Toyohime wanted something to make it make sense. To Toyohime, the very concept of reality itself started to melt and distort—fact and fiction combining into a wicked slurry. The letter she received… that wasn't the kind of person her father was, was it? But back when she still used her powers to peek into the future, she never dared to see into her father's—it was possible that he said those things.
"Yeah, and why do you think he wanted to have another kid, huh? Wanted to start again and right some wrongs. I mean, yeesh, it's not every day that you accidentally father the antichrist, right?" Kyokai took a sharp breath through her teeth. "Especially not one so… sad. I mean seriously, you're really pathetic, throwing a tantrum like you were born yesterday. I get second-hand embarrassment just looking at you—I don't even want to think about how ashamed I would be if you were really my kid. Probably would've killed myself by now if I had to live with that. If your father were here, he'd agree."
"Ah!? And you know my father so well!? You're… you're lying. Everything that's come out of your mouth has been a lie! A filthy lie…" As she trailed off, it was abundantly clear that what she said was not a declaration. The words were more meant for herself than they were for Kyokai.
"Better than you, that's for sure." Kyokai's eyes narrowed. "Before you showed up and ruined everything, your father and I were happily married for… oh, I don't know. Give or take a few hundred years. You probably were still in diapers when he left you for greener pastures. And you still hold onto an idea of him that doesn't even exist, just to serve your own fantasy. Pathetic, that's what you are. That's what you'll always be."
A beam of light sliced across Kyokai, but she managed to dodge it at the very last moment, singeing the outer layer of some of her scales, but nothing more. She couldn't help but laugh. "Oh what, someone tells you the truth for once and you throw another tantrum? You gonna cry, too?"
Long since pushed past breaking, Toyohime only had this to say:
"I think I'll settle with killing you, instead."