When the pain disappeared and Jason/Arion opened his eyes, he found himself in very different surroundings. He was nowhere. To be exact, he was standing, or at least he thought he was standing; on a place full of mist.
"Oh shit," Jason/Arion muttered, having a very good guess of where he was.
"'Oh shit' it is. You done it again, congratulations," a sarcastic female voice with a heavy British accent behind him spoke.
Hearing the voice, Jason/Arion slapped his forehead and slowly turned around.
"Hi Death," he greeted timidly.
"Don't you 'hi' me, you miserable little worm. I'm really getting tired of meeting like this," the woman said, folding her arms.
Death was a tall woman, her tube t-shirt, jeans and boots were all in black. She had a pair of really dark sunglasses, framed by her long, straight and glossy black hair. A pair of luscious lips painted in black was just about the only facial feature he could see: the rest of her face was shrouded by a veil-like effect.
The overall effect was mildly disconcerting, because she had deathly pale skin. She popped the bubblegum and then spat out the wad. Jason/Arion could see even the gum was black before it disappeared into the mist below him. It seemed he wasn't really standing on solid ground after all.
"Sorry," Jason/Arion muttered, not bothering to look at her in the face. He gave up on trying to know Death's face a long time ago, Death was a being who could materialize as anybody/anything. Once, purely to annoy him after a particularly humiliating end several hundred years ago, Death had appeared as a bunch of flowers(19).
"Why do you keep getting yourself into these situations? First you get a bloody katana in your gut a few months back, and now you're bleeding on the floor with a gunshot wound," the woman known as Death continued.
"Look, it's not my fault," Jason/Arion said defensively.
"Oh, can the bullshit, mate. You should have walked away the first chance you got," the woman snorted.
"Cut me some slack, alright? It's not as if I go around looking for homicidal maniacs," Jason/Arion grumbled.
"You Exodusians are really giving me a bad rep, you know that? I shoulda nixed Life's idea for Protoculture from the beginning... bloody do-gooder," the woman complained.
"Hey, I got nothing to do with that."
"Bloody 'ell you don't," Death said stubbornly.
Jason/Arion sighed. "Must we go through this again? We talked about the same thing too many times."
"You're damned right we have. And at the rate you're going, it seems we're gonna talk about it for many times to come. I, for one, am bloody arse tired of seeing your face here."
"But I don't even want to be here," Jason/Arion reminded her.
"How do you think this is going to look to the Almighty upstairs huh? What about telling the Lord of Darkness down there 'Sorry Oh Damned One, but that was an Exodusian, yeah, bloody shame but he won't be coming to stay at your place. Sorry 'bout that, eh?'" Death ranted.
"I'm headed to Hell?" Jason/Arion asked, aghast.
"After all the trouble you caused me, I bloody hell hope so!"
Jason/Arion was depressed, and his face showed it. "Sorry about all this, Death, but you know I'm just trying to do my best out there..."
"Why do I always get the complex ones as my piece? Chaos is having a ball with his guy, your friend Eadric. Hell, even Order is enjoying his time with your other friend Jeffrey. But noooo, I always get the difficult ones. Must be one of Fate's jokes, that cruel woman..."
"Sorry..."
The woman/being known as Death sighed, taking pity on her/its visitor.
"Alright mate, just relax, you poor sod. You'll be back there soon," she said.
"That's not the problem. I mean... am I even doing the right thing? Should I just do what you said and walk away?" Jason/Arion asked.
Death put her hands on her hips, and Jason/Arion got the distinct impression that she was rolling her eyes.
"Now you listen up good, and since you're stupid, I'll say it real slow. You are unique, just like everyone else," Death started to say. Then she paused to consider her words, and Jason/Arion gave her a look.
"Ahem. Nevermind that," Death said brusquely, "You know what people say about each having their place in the universe?"
"Yeah."
"Lovely. Well bloody shove that into the garbage bin and let it rot. In your case, you were chosen at random, and no, not even Chaos was involved in that. And luck of the draw is that you're bloody stuck with me. You know what that means? Death follows you wherever you go. Live with it."
"You got to be joking. Death is telling me to 'live with it'? What kind of advice is that!?" Jason/Arion yelled.
"The only kind I can give, of course."
"It's just not fair..." he mumbled.
"Tell me about it. I don't get much time to play The Game a lot and I got you as my piece. Fat lot of good you've been to me," Death shot back.
"So what you want me to do?" Jason/Arion asked.
"Well, The Damned One has been asking for some special souls. Those Kuronosukai characters you and those cutey Hanagumi people you sent me that time made Him pretty happy, see?"
"Uh huh," Jason/Arion grunted, not particularly pleased to hear that. "Why? They are bad guys anyway. I thought He rather be having them around causing more, er, deaths."
"Yeah, but they came back after you people killed them once, right? And The Damned One bloody hates it. 'ell, -I- bloody hate it."
Jason/Arion winced.
"Yeah, so when you Exodusians are finally, really dead, you can bet we're gonna party," Death said, confirming his worst fears.
Jason blanched, not really looking forward to that day.
Death's black lips twitched in a smirk. "Got you afraid there, didn't I? Don't worry, you guys won't be checking in at R.I.P. Hotel anytime soon. The Game, remember?"
"...No, I don't, and I don't wanna know," Jason/Arion said. "Get back on that 'special souls' thing you're talking about," he suggested.
"Right. I'm bloody disappointed in your progress with these Kokkikai wankers so far. Get on with it," Death explained.
"But we don't even know who they are!" Jason/Arion protested.
"Are you daft? Who do you think just shot you?"
"B-but, Saki-"
"You really are dense, aren't you? She's one of them, obviously. You should have seen past her boobies, you bloody pervert."
"I did not look at her boobs!" Jason/Arion yelled, blushing.
"Ah, pipe down. I'm just making fun of you, like how you keep doing to that Ogami boy," Death grinned; revealing even, white teeth.
Jason/Arion took a deep breath. "She's really one of them?"
"Look, I know you tried to be friends with her. She might have even appreciated it. But that doesn't change the fact she just tried to kill you. Not to mention she hexed Reni into following her orders to destroy the Hanagumi. You have a major bone to pick with her, trust me. Just take my word for it, and bloody take her down, alright? She would even like it there."
"And this will make The Damn-, uh, I mean, 'Him' happy? Why? We haven't killed any of the Kokkikai yet, and I thought He liked evil guys running around causing destruction," Jason/Arion wondered.
"What, is this your 'Arion is Stupid' week? They brought back that Aoi Satan guy, didn't they?"
"Oh, yeah," Jason/Arion said, remembering how the former leader of the Kuronosukai was revived and then killed again some time ago.
"'Yeah' it is. Between you and me, I think He's just hot to get His hands on that Saki woman. Not to mention, even the Almighty's pissed that the Kokkikai got another guy brought back to life too. Oops."
"Huh?"
"Ah, forget that I said that," Death said dismissively and waved her hand over Jason/Arion's face.
"Huh? Forget what?"
"I didn't say anything," Death replied blithely.
"...What? You erased something from my memory again, didn't you?" Jason/Arion said accusingly.
"I did nothing of the sort," Death said smoothly. She then cocked her head to a side, as if listening to something.
"Damn. It seems it will be some time before you're going back," she said a moment later.
"Er, okay," Jason/Arion muttered. From experience, he knew the time he spent in this limbo would not be relative to the time in the living world. An hour in limbo could mean all of ten minutes in the world, perhaps. There wasn't a fixed time scale, another Exodusian friend had told him he was in limbo for five minutes, but when he came back to the world five whole years had gone by.
"I said you'll be back there soon, alright? Quit worrying!" Death said, reading his facial expression.
"Can't I just go? I hate this place," Jason/Arion pleaded.
"Hm. I've been looking at you from time to time, and that card game you played with the Hanagumi, what was that called?"
"Uh, it's called 'Koi Koi Taisen'."
Death snapped her fingers, and a deck of cards appeared in her hands.
"How do you play it?" she asked.
"Well, it's kinda like normal Hanafuda..."
Some time later...
"You're good," Jason/Arion said grudgingly after his fourth loss in a row.
"I know I am," Death smirked.
"Are you sure you're not cheating?"
"Oh look, it's time," Death said airily, conveniently changing the subject. Before Jason/Arion could say anything, she snapped her fingers and a burst of light flooded his senses...
...and he awakened on the floor, a mass of stickiness on the his clothes. There was a wave of aching pain lingering throughout his body, but the sensation reminded him that he was back in the living world.
The stinging pain continued as the destroyed tissue around the bullet wounds slowly knitted back together and healed. Within his body, the protoculture-laden blood enveloped the bullets and ground them into nothingness.
Jason gasped at the pain, taking quick breaths as his heart pumped harder, bringing color back to his ashen face.
It took him a moment to realize that the base's alarm was ringing. The Hanagumi had probably sortied without him, but Jason slowly dragged himself up to his feet.
He had to warn them of the traitor. He had to...
He slipped on the pool of his own blood and fell down heavily.
...He had to get some help, he realized belatedly.
"Jason? Oh my god, what happened?!"
Blearily, he looked up to see Kaede's concerned face.
"Hi," he said wearily.
"Are you alright?" the Japanese woman asked, turning him in a sitting position.
"I'm... ok. Get me to... my Koubu."
Kaede took one look at the bloody mess on his chest and noted the two puncture holes in his shirt. She frowned.
"You're in no condition-"
"Kaede. You should... know what I am, right? Trust me... I'll get better," Jason interrupted.
Kaede took a deep breath, nodded and pulled up the Exodusian, helping him stand by shouldering an arm.
"You know what's happened?" Kaede asked as they walked slowly.
"Saki..."
Kaede nodded. "Captain Kayama's investigation has confirmed it. It seems she's a Kokkikai mole. Somehow, she is controlling Reni's mind, and both of them are outside wrecking the city. The rest of the Hanagumi have sortied to rescue Reni."
"Reni... took out the Eisenkleid?"
"Yes," Kaede replied grimly. "But the Hanagumi outnumber Reni, I'm sure Ogami-kun can get Reni back safely. Do you really need to go out there?"
"I... I have a score... to settle with Saki..."
---
True to his word, Jason got better as they approached the underground base. When Kaede first discovered him, he could barely stand. After several minutes, he could walk with the Japanese woman shouldering him.
By the time he reached the control room, he could walk with a with Kaede just holding onto his arm. After he had changed his clothes in the locker room, the Exodusian walked out with a slight limp, although he was still wincing in pain every once in a while.
"Am I too late?" Jason asked as he stepped into the control room, trying to favor his right leg without showing it. Kaede followed soon afterwards, looking on in concern but held her peace. She quickly proceeded to her own duties, coordinating the various elements of the Teikoku Kagekidan teams.
"About time you got here. Where have you been?" Yoneda demanded as soon as he saw him.
"Old man, you -don't- want to know. How long have Reni been gone?" Jason asked as he pulled on his long trenchcoat in the control room.
"About twenty minutes. The Hanagumi went after Reni soon afterwards," Kasumi told him from her station.
The Kazegumi girls, as usual, were already in their own unit uniforms, busy manning their consoles in the base under the theater.
"How did Reni get the Eisenkleid out without warning?" Jason asked.
"Kohran was doing some maintainence in the hangar since rehearsal didn't happen. She said she saw Reni suddenly climbing up... and just drove out," Tsubaki replied.
"And Saki?" he asked, needing to hear it.
"We had our eyes clouded all this time," Yoneda replied somberly. His hand clutched where the sniper bullet had hit him. Even if the wound had healed, the knowledge that a traitor might have caused it was still painful.
To make matters worse, it was Yoneda himself who had brought in Kageyama Saki to them. He had unwittingly recruited a mole to be his secretary, allowing the Kokkikai access to his documents and schedules. The potential for future disasters resulting from his error in judgement was enormous.
"We've got incoming live feed now!" Yuri said excitedly. Her fingers flew over her console and the main screen in the briefing room lit up.
It showed an external view from one of the Koubus, presumbaly Ogami's. Smoke was choking the skies while debris littered the streets. From the camera's viewpoint, it seemed that they were already fighting downtown. Steam-cars were flipped over, shop windows broken and there was a broken fire hydrant spewing a geyser wastefully.
"...Tsukigumi reports civilians have been evacuated. Other teams are cooperating with local authorities to seal off the area," Kaede reported. Yoneda nodded grimly, but there was still the matter of subduing Reni.
The camera's field of view was limited, but from the briefing room, they could see the Hanagumi Koubus and Orihime's Eisenkleid surrounding Reni's blue mecha from all sides. There was no sight of Saki, nor any of the Kokkikai beasts and minions.
It seemed the chaos and destruction was caused by Reni and the Hanagumi's efforts to restrain their wayward German friend.
"Reni! Can you hear me!?" came Ogami's voice, loudly and clearly despite the cackling static of the tactical communication network.
"Reni!" Iris's voice called plaintively for her friend. Iris had quickly taken to liking Reni since the silver-haired teen's arrival. Perhaps it was because Reni's age gap with Iris was the smallest compared to the other Hanagumi girls, but the cheerful and active Iris absolutely adored the quiet, mild-mannered Reni.
Ogami had told Jason about how Reni seemed to opened up recently, ever since their holiday trip, before the sudden change and clamming up again when they returned to the theater. And now Jason knew that the woman known as Kageyama Saki was responsible.
Reni did not respond to either Ogami nor Iris's calls, as if the German was deaf to their desperate pleaing. Instead, the blue Eisenkleid brandished its massive lance warningly.
"Everyone, look out and don't give Reni an opening!" Ogami warned.
"Roger!" the girls voiced said in unison, minus Iris.
As the circle around Reni tightened, Ogami tried talking again.
"Reni, I know you can hear me... don't give up! I'll bring you back, Reni!" Ogami promised.
Just then, there was a tremendous explosion. A nearby shop-lot was instantly toppled over, engulfing the area with dust and debris. Instinctively, the Hanagumi took steps to shield themselves, breaking the encirclement on Reni's Eisenkleid.
"Is everyone alright!?" Ogami yelled.
"Hahahaha!" a woman's voice laughed loudly. Jason's eyes immediately hardened as he watched the scene unfold on the screen.
As the dust began to clear, there was a tall outline of a steam-powered beast. Six more silhouettes of the hated steam-beasts also appeared, but it was the lead machine that caught the Hanagumi's attention.
It was easily one of the most humanoid steam-beast they had ever encountered. Instead of the plodding nature of the previous customized machines they had faced in the past, the one before them now was tall and sleek, with long elegant legs and claw-like pincers for hands. The violet-colored machine gave the impression of a lady-like grace and movement, indeed; it had a metallic fan with serrated edges on one hand, a macabre parody of the Japanese fan dancer.
It was a machine designed to suit a woman, and there was no mistaking who the woman was, perched on the shoulder of the tall beast.
"Saki!?" Ogami called out in disbelief. Despite being briefed by Yoneda before the sortie, Ogami still wanted to believe Kageyama Saki was not a traitor.
"I need to get out there," Jason told Yoneda, "Ogami might not be willing to see this to the end."
Yoneda nodded. "Go, then," the commander said simply. Jason felt that Yoneda had suddenly aged ten more years when Saki's face appeared on the screen as an enemy.
As he strapped himself into his Koubu, Jason couldn't help but feel rage. Saki had wormed her way into the Hanagumi's lives, and she played with their lives.
While his red and black Koubu headed towards the battle area, Jason tuned into the audio/visual tactical channel to watch the ongoing scene.
"Saki, what are you doing!?" Ogami demanded.
"Hahahaha, the person known as Kageyama Saki is nothing more than a fiction, a fake! There is no such person!" she laughed.
Then she snapped her fingers, and a gust of purple smoke enveloped her dramatically. When the smoke dissipated as quickly as it had arrived, Kageyama Saki's appearance had changed.
Instead of the long, straight hair and bangs, the woman now had shorter, wilder hair. Her customary secretary's dress disappeared, replaced by a form-fitting, revealing leather costume.
"My real name is Suiko... Suiko of the Kokkikai!" the woman proclaimed proudly.
Even as the Hanagumi drew shocked breaths with their worst fears confirmed, Ogami didn't give up.
"I don't believe that! Somewhere inside you, Kageyama Saki is alive!"
"Hmhmhm, do you really need proof then?" Suiko smirked. She snapped her fingers, and Reni instantly reacted. The blue Eisenkleid's lance began to spin rapidly, ready to drill its length into anything.
"What have you done to Reni!?" Orihime demanded.
"Reni belongs to -me- now!" Suiko said triumphantly.
"Reni..." Iris whimpered.
"Attack! Kill them all!" Suiko screamed. She slipped into her purple machine as the smaller steam-beasts accompanying her lurched forward to attack.
As the battle was joined with the Hanagumi tangling against the enemy machines, Ogami watched Reni's every move.
'Reni is still wavering!' he thought, noting how the German's Eisenkleid was slower than usual.
"Everyone, split up and engage! I'll try to get Reni!" he ordered.
"Roger!"
"Big brother, please get Reni back safe!" Iris called before joining in the fray.
Suiko herself did not bother to wade into the battle, where the Hanagumi mecha dueled her minions one by one. She stood aloof from the fights, paying attention to the drama unfolding between Ogami and Reni.
"Reni! I know you can still hear me!" Ogami yelled.
"Such sentimental nonsense. Reni, attack and destroy!" Suiko commanded.
"Orders... acknowledged," Reni confirmed and moved in. Ogami's white Koubu barely had any time to defend the lunge from Reni's lunge.
"Reni, you don't have to do this!"
But Reni lunged the drilling lance again. This time Ogami couldn't evade, and the shrieks of metal filled the air as the lance sheared part of his white Koubu's shoulder armor.
"Ogami-san, surely you can do better than that. You don't expect to get out of this if you don't fight back, do you?" Suiko taunted.
"Saki, it's not too late... stop this! You and Reni can still come back to us!" Ogami pleaded.
Reni's lance found its mark again, this time grazing the side of the knee of Ogami's leg. The jarring impact caused by the spinning lance was enough to bring the white Koubu to one knee. Immobilized for the moment
Suiko dramatically yawned to show her disinterest. "Reni, be a dear and shut him up please," she drawled.
"Y-you...!" Ogami was at lost for words.
"Target acquired," Reni replied in a monotone. The drilling lance was raised, ready to plunge into Ogami's Koubu.
"Reni!!" Iris screamed, seeing the scene.
At the same time, there was a explosion behind Suiko, throwing the Kokkikai woman slightly off-balance.
"What!?" Suiko said, outraged at the interruption.
"W-What..." Reni said in a more distant manner, as if Iris's voice somehow reached through the muck running about the German's mind.
Distracted, Suiko turned around to see Jason's black and red-trimmed Koubu arriving, breaking up her steam-beasts' formation.
"Y-You!" Suiko spat in surprise.
"Nice to see you again, Saki. Or should I say, 'Suiko'," Jason replied as acidly.
"How did you get here?! You're supposed to be dead!" Suiko demanded.
"I die hard," Jason said, not batting an eye.
"Persistent insect!" Suiko yelled with anger. With speed deceptive of her machine's size, Suiko charged directly at Jason, waving the sharp steel fans in raking blows.
Without their leader directing them, the steam-beast cohort fell apart confused, easy prey for the highly skilled Hanagumi.
As the others ripped apart the steam-beasts,, Ogami and Iris approached the disoriented Reni. Warily, they moved in closer towards Reni's blue Eisenkleid, unsure if the German was friend or foe.
"Reni, can you hear me?" the leader of the Hanagumi asked gently.
"I... where..." Reni's groggy voice came over the tac net.
Her higher psychic profile telling that Reni was coming out from under Suiko's spell, Iris stepped in closer to her dear friend.
"Reni, do you recognize Iris? It's Iris, your friend!" she said, all the raw and truthful emotions of an earnest child in her voice.
"...friend?"
"Yes! Iris is Reni's friend... Reni is Iris's friend!! Come back to the Hanagumi, Reni!" Iris continued, tears threatening to spring.
"We are all your friends, Reni. We all are," Ogami said expansively. And at that moment, the rest of the Hanagumi girls surrounded Reni and called for her.
"Reni!"
"Listen to us, Reni!"
"Please come back!"
It seemed an eternity seemed to pass before Reni's voice filtered through the radio channels again.
"...Captain... I have returned."
Iris was so happy that she completely forgot that the battle was not yet done. But Ogami couldn't find the heart to admonish the little French girl who popped out from her bright yellow Koubu and ran on foot towards Reni.
Reni obliged released the Eisenkleid's cockpit. As soon as she climbed down from her blue mecha, Iris jumped into her arms in full view of the others.
"Reni is smiling," Ogami realized.
"Captain, you have done well to reach Reni's heart," Maria commented in praise.
"Thank you, but the battle isn't over yet," Ogami replied, looking off at the direction of the Jason-Suiko battle. They had gone far off, with Jason luring the turncoat to the city limits.
"Do you think we can do the same to... Saki-san?" Sakura asked.
"Only way to find out. Iris, you stay here with Reni. The rest of you, follow me! We'll go help Jason!" Ogami ordered.
"Roger!"
---
"Are you done running yet?" Suiko taunted as she delivered yet another swipe with her edged fan. The armor on Jason's Koubu shrieked as the serrated edges gouged deep, drawing parallel scars.
"Eat this then," Jason retorted, twisting his Koubu's gun arm and fired. The gattling cannon spun and spat bullets at high speeds, causing a spread of damage all over Suiko's purprle machine.
"You have to do better than that!" Suiko laughed. Her bigger, taller mecha backhanded Jason's Koubu, causing it to crash.
"Damn it!" Jason seethed at his situation. He knew he had let his anger took over his better judgment, and now he was at a disadvantage against a hard-hitting, mobile opponent.
"You know, I do enjoy knowing you. But like people say, good things come to an end," Suiko said conversationally as her mecha closed in for the kill.
"Tell me..." Jason said as he brought his Koubu up to one knee. He thumbed the communication settings, so that the distant Hanagumi could hear the conversation he was about to initiate with Suiko.
"Tell me, were you really playing us all for fools all this time?"
Suiko's mecha paused. But her voice was still sarcastic and full of venom.
"What do you think? Of course I enjoyed it... stabbing self-righteous idiots like you people in the back is one pleasure I can never forget."
"Did the time you spend in the Hanagumi mean absolutely nothing to you?" Jason insisted, half-pleading.
"A very serious question. I will have to reflect on this... No, they don't!" Suiko mocked.
"Did you really laughed when I offered to be your friend?"
"Let me tell you a secret. Remember the fox that attacked your precious Maria? That was me!
"What!?" Jason gasped.
Suiko smirked, her tone filled with evil. "I had every intention of ripping her throat out before -you- came and interrupted me. And once I've gotten rid of you, I'll do it for sure!"
"Yeaaarrghhhhhh!" Jason growled with guttural instinct. With surprise on his side, his Koubu leaped from its kneeling position and drove its sword arm directly into the gut of the purple monster.
Crying in pain, Suiko's machine lurched over, nearing falling on top on Jason's black and red mecha. Only the upward thrust of the blade kept them standing even as the weight caused the Koubu's feet to dig into the soft soil.
A minor explosion rocked Suiko's machine, and one arm blew completely off.
'I must have ruptured a fuel line,' Jason thought.
"...Jason..." Suiko's voice called. But it was softer, and reminded Jason of someone else.
"Saki?"
"I'm sorry... for things to have... turned out this way," the voice said, coughing. Jason's eyes widened; he could imagine that she was coughing up blood.
"Saki!"
"I'm... your enemy... but..."
"Are you alright?!"
"I... I had to do it. I'm sorry... but, I had to do it..."
"Don't say anything! We can still help you!" Jason interrupted again.
"Saki-san!" Ogami's voice joined it. From his screens, Jason could see that the rest of the Hanagumi were approaching fast.
"No... this is the way I want it to be..." Saki said.
"I-" Jason started to say, but stopped. What could he say? He was the person driving the final blow into her machine. Even now, her blood could be mingling with the fuel, dripping down the blade onto the grass below.
"Shh... there is no need..." Saki continued.
"Saki-san! Saki-san!" the Hanagumi cried as they neared, knowing that they won't make it in time to save her.
"It was nice... knowing all of you..." Saki whispered.
"Saki? Saki!" Jason yelled.
"Goodbye... and thank you..."
Then a spark finally touched the leaking fuel, and the purple mecha exploded into a fiery ball of heat and light. Jason's Koubu was blasted back, the intense fireball scorching his Koubu and charring the armor.
"...I'm sorry..." Jason sobbed.
---
There was a somber mood in the theater in the time that followed. Unlike the customary delight that followed a successful sortie mission, a heavy and gloomy atmosphere prevailed.
The next day, anonymous cleaners came and cleared out Saki's room. Nobody else wanted to do it. The last of the boxes being taken away, Jason took one final look at the empty room before locking the door.
"It wasn't your fault," Maria consoled him.
"I know... but could I have done better?" Jason asked.
"There was nothing else you could do. I would have done the same in your place," Ogami added.
"But I should have realized... she deliberately gave me an opening... walking up without any guard... she really wanted to die..." Jason said morosely.
"Perhaps she did. But Saki-san did came back to us before she died," Sakura said.
"She was thankful for our friendship. But she couldn't abandon her ties to the Kokkikai. This is the end she wanted," Maria said.
Jason nodded with a heavy heart.
"We must never allow the Kokkikai to cause people turn to the darkness and do such harm again," Ogami said resolutely.
"You got that right, Ogami-han!" Kohran chimed in.
"That's right! Who knows if they will resort to such dirty tricks again? We must stop them!" Kanna said, clenching a fist.
"...Yes. We must," Jason agreed slowly.
"...Captain," Reni interrupted. The silver-haired young German girl slowly approached Ogami.
"Yes, Reni?" Ogami said kindly.
"I... I apologize. It was my error that lead to this situation," she said formally, traces of regret in her blue eyes.
"Reni..."
"I will fight... for myself... and for all of us," Reni said determinedly and smiled.
"Reni smiled! Reni smiled! Wai!" Iris cheered. Her demeanor was infectious, and soon the Hanagumi laughed their gloom away.
---
That night, Jason had a weird dream. It was as if he was ethereal, witnessing a bizzare scene. It was a beach scene, complete with moonlight. But the sea was a sea of crimson...
There was a devilishly handsome man, despite his red-skin. His black hair was combed and slicked back, glistening in the light. He was dressed in formal evening clothes, all the charm and suave of an old-school crime boss, complete with a thin cigarette between his fingers.
There was a woman there as well, and when Jason saw her his blood ran cold and his heart ached. It was Saki, or rather, Suiko. The dead Kokkikai member looked very much alive, dressed in a silky smooth blue satin dress that reached her ankles.
"Be mine," the man said, in a powerful, seducing voice.
"My my... what if I refuse?" Suiko purred.
"I assure you, you don't want to know," the man smirked and grinned evilly.
"You really do know how to charm a woman, you handsome... devil," Suiko said and laughed gaily.
"I take it you accept?" the man asked and opened his arms.
Suiko took a step and embraced the red-skinned man. "You don't need to ask me twice," she said and cuddled against the distinguished-looking man.
"Most excellent."
As the scene faded out, there was a snickering, familiar voice in Jason's mind.
"I told you she would like it there," the female voice said in a thick British accent.
When Jason woke up the next day, he remembered nothing about the dream. But somehow, he felt much better, as if a burden had lifted from his shoulders.
"It is going to be nice day," he told himself.
---------
(19) Humiliating end – from another UPA story, an adventure long long ago and a place far far away...
"Oh shit," Jason/Arion muttered, having a very good guess of where he was.
"'Oh shit' it is. You done it again, congratulations," a sarcastic female voice with a heavy British accent behind him spoke.
Hearing the voice, Jason/Arion slapped his forehead and slowly turned around.
"Hi Death," he greeted timidly.
"Don't you 'hi' me, you miserable little worm. I'm really getting tired of meeting like this," the woman said, folding her arms.
Death was a tall woman, her tube t-shirt, jeans and boots were all in black. She had a pair of really dark sunglasses, framed by her long, straight and glossy black hair. A pair of luscious lips painted in black was just about the only facial feature he could see: the rest of her face was shrouded by a veil-like effect.
The overall effect was mildly disconcerting, because she had deathly pale skin. She popped the bubblegum and then spat out the wad. Jason/Arion could see even the gum was black before it disappeared into the mist below him. It seemed he wasn't really standing on solid ground after all.
"Sorry," Jason/Arion muttered, not bothering to look at her in the face. He gave up on trying to know Death's face a long time ago, Death was a being who could materialize as anybody/anything. Once, purely to annoy him after a particularly humiliating end several hundred years ago, Death had appeared as a bunch of flowers(19).
"Why do you keep getting yourself into these situations? First you get a bloody katana in your gut a few months back, and now you're bleeding on the floor with a gunshot wound," the woman known as Death continued.
"Look, it's not my fault," Jason/Arion said defensively.
"Oh, can the bullshit, mate. You should have walked away the first chance you got," the woman snorted.
"Cut me some slack, alright? It's not as if I go around looking for homicidal maniacs," Jason/Arion grumbled.
"You Exodusians are really giving me a bad rep, you know that? I shoulda nixed Life's idea for Protoculture from the beginning... bloody do-gooder," the woman complained.
"Hey, I got nothing to do with that."
"Bloody 'ell you don't," Death said stubbornly.
Jason/Arion sighed. "Must we go through this again? We talked about the same thing too many times."
"You're damned right we have. And at the rate you're going, it seems we're gonna talk about it for many times to come. I, for one, am bloody arse tired of seeing your face here."
"But I don't even want to be here," Jason/Arion reminded her.
"How do you think this is going to look to the Almighty upstairs huh? What about telling the Lord of Darkness down there 'Sorry Oh Damned One, but that was an Exodusian, yeah, bloody shame but he won't be coming to stay at your place. Sorry 'bout that, eh?'" Death ranted.
"I'm headed to Hell?" Jason/Arion asked, aghast.
"After all the trouble you caused me, I bloody hell hope so!"
Jason/Arion was depressed, and his face showed it. "Sorry about all this, Death, but you know I'm just trying to do my best out there..."
"Why do I always get the complex ones as my piece? Chaos is having a ball with his guy, your friend Eadric. Hell, even Order is enjoying his time with your other friend Jeffrey. But noooo, I always get the difficult ones. Must be one of Fate's jokes, that cruel woman..."
"Sorry..."
The woman/being known as Death sighed, taking pity on her/its visitor.
"Alright mate, just relax, you poor sod. You'll be back there soon," she said.
"That's not the problem. I mean... am I even doing the right thing? Should I just do what you said and walk away?" Jason/Arion asked.
Death put her hands on her hips, and Jason/Arion got the distinct impression that she was rolling her eyes.
"Now you listen up good, and since you're stupid, I'll say it real slow. You are unique, just like everyone else," Death started to say. Then she paused to consider her words, and Jason/Arion gave her a look.
"Ahem. Nevermind that," Death said brusquely, "You know what people say about each having their place in the universe?"
"Yeah."
"Lovely. Well bloody shove that into the garbage bin and let it rot. In your case, you were chosen at random, and no, not even Chaos was involved in that. And luck of the draw is that you're bloody stuck with me. You know what that means? Death follows you wherever you go. Live with it."
"You got to be joking. Death is telling me to 'live with it'? What kind of advice is that!?" Jason/Arion yelled.
"The only kind I can give, of course."
"It's just not fair..." he mumbled.
"Tell me about it. I don't get much time to play The Game a lot and I got you as my piece. Fat lot of good you've been to me," Death shot back.
"So what you want me to do?" Jason/Arion asked.
"Well, The Damned One has been asking for some special souls. Those Kuronosukai characters you and those cutey Hanagumi people you sent me that time made Him pretty happy, see?"
"Uh huh," Jason/Arion grunted, not particularly pleased to hear that. "Why? They are bad guys anyway. I thought He rather be having them around causing more, er, deaths."
"Yeah, but they came back after you people killed them once, right? And The Damned One bloody hates it. 'ell, -I- bloody hate it."
Jason/Arion winced.
"Yeah, so when you Exodusians are finally, really dead, you can bet we're gonna party," Death said, confirming his worst fears.
Jason blanched, not really looking forward to that day.
Death's black lips twitched in a smirk. "Got you afraid there, didn't I? Don't worry, you guys won't be checking in at R.I.P. Hotel anytime soon. The Game, remember?"
"...No, I don't, and I don't wanna know," Jason/Arion said. "Get back on that 'special souls' thing you're talking about," he suggested.
"Right. I'm bloody disappointed in your progress with these Kokkikai wankers so far. Get on with it," Death explained.
"But we don't even know who they are!" Jason/Arion protested.
"Are you daft? Who do you think just shot you?"
"B-but, Saki-"
"You really are dense, aren't you? She's one of them, obviously. You should have seen past her boobies, you bloody pervert."
"I did not look at her boobs!" Jason/Arion yelled, blushing.
"Ah, pipe down. I'm just making fun of you, like how you keep doing to that Ogami boy," Death grinned; revealing even, white teeth.
Jason/Arion took a deep breath. "She's really one of them?"
"Look, I know you tried to be friends with her. She might have even appreciated it. But that doesn't change the fact she just tried to kill you. Not to mention she hexed Reni into following her orders to destroy the Hanagumi. You have a major bone to pick with her, trust me. Just take my word for it, and bloody take her down, alright? She would even like it there."
"And this will make The Damn-, uh, I mean, 'Him' happy? Why? We haven't killed any of the Kokkikai yet, and I thought He liked evil guys running around causing destruction," Jason/Arion wondered.
"What, is this your 'Arion is Stupid' week? They brought back that Aoi Satan guy, didn't they?"
"Oh, yeah," Jason/Arion said, remembering how the former leader of the Kuronosukai was revived and then killed again some time ago.
"'Yeah' it is. Between you and me, I think He's just hot to get His hands on that Saki woman. Not to mention, even the Almighty's pissed that the Kokkikai got another guy brought back to life too. Oops."
"Huh?"
"Ah, forget that I said that," Death said dismissively and waved her hand over Jason/Arion's face.
"Huh? Forget what?"
"I didn't say anything," Death replied blithely.
"...What? You erased something from my memory again, didn't you?" Jason/Arion said accusingly.
"I did nothing of the sort," Death said smoothly. She then cocked her head to a side, as if listening to something.
"Damn. It seems it will be some time before you're going back," she said a moment later.
"Er, okay," Jason/Arion muttered. From experience, he knew the time he spent in this limbo would not be relative to the time in the living world. An hour in limbo could mean all of ten minutes in the world, perhaps. There wasn't a fixed time scale, another Exodusian friend had told him he was in limbo for five minutes, but when he came back to the world five whole years had gone by.
"I said you'll be back there soon, alright? Quit worrying!" Death said, reading his facial expression.
"Can't I just go? I hate this place," Jason/Arion pleaded.
"Hm. I've been looking at you from time to time, and that card game you played with the Hanagumi, what was that called?"
"Uh, it's called 'Koi Koi Taisen'."
Death snapped her fingers, and a deck of cards appeared in her hands.
"How do you play it?" she asked.
"Well, it's kinda like normal Hanafuda..."
Some time later...
"You're good," Jason/Arion said grudgingly after his fourth loss in a row.
"I know I am," Death smirked.
"Are you sure you're not cheating?"
"Oh look, it's time," Death said airily, conveniently changing the subject. Before Jason/Arion could say anything, she snapped her fingers and a burst of light flooded his senses...
...and he awakened on the floor, a mass of stickiness on the his clothes. There was a wave of aching pain lingering throughout his body, but the sensation reminded him that he was back in the living world.
The stinging pain continued as the destroyed tissue around the bullet wounds slowly knitted back together and healed. Within his body, the protoculture-laden blood enveloped the bullets and ground them into nothingness.
Jason gasped at the pain, taking quick breaths as his heart pumped harder, bringing color back to his ashen face.
It took him a moment to realize that the base's alarm was ringing. The Hanagumi had probably sortied without him, but Jason slowly dragged himself up to his feet.
He had to warn them of the traitor. He had to...
He slipped on the pool of his own blood and fell down heavily.
...He had to get some help, he realized belatedly.
"Jason? Oh my god, what happened?!"
Blearily, he looked up to see Kaede's concerned face.
"Hi," he said wearily.
"Are you alright?" the Japanese woman asked, turning him in a sitting position.
"I'm... ok. Get me to... my Koubu."
Kaede took one look at the bloody mess on his chest and noted the two puncture holes in his shirt. She frowned.
"You're in no condition-"
"Kaede. You should... know what I am, right? Trust me... I'll get better," Jason interrupted.
Kaede took a deep breath, nodded and pulled up the Exodusian, helping him stand by shouldering an arm.
"You know what's happened?" Kaede asked as they walked slowly.
"Saki..."
Kaede nodded. "Captain Kayama's investigation has confirmed it. It seems she's a Kokkikai mole. Somehow, she is controlling Reni's mind, and both of them are outside wrecking the city. The rest of the Hanagumi have sortied to rescue Reni."
"Reni... took out the Eisenkleid?"
"Yes," Kaede replied grimly. "But the Hanagumi outnumber Reni, I'm sure Ogami-kun can get Reni back safely. Do you really need to go out there?"
"I... I have a score... to settle with Saki..."
---
True to his word, Jason got better as they approached the underground base. When Kaede first discovered him, he could barely stand. After several minutes, he could walk with the Japanese woman shouldering him.
By the time he reached the control room, he could walk with a with Kaede just holding onto his arm. After he had changed his clothes in the locker room, the Exodusian walked out with a slight limp, although he was still wincing in pain every once in a while.
"Am I too late?" Jason asked as he stepped into the control room, trying to favor his right leg without showing it. Kaede followed soon afterwards, looking on in concern but held her peace. She quickly proceeded to her own duties, coordinating the various elements of the Teikoku Kagekidan teams.
"About time you got here. Where have you been?" Yoneda demanded as soon as he saw him.
"Old man, you -don't- want to know. How long have Reni been gone?" Jason asked as he pulled on his long trenchcoat in the control room.
"About twenty minutes. The Hanagumi went after Reni soon afterwards," Kasumi told him from her station.
The Kazegumi girls, as usual, were already in their own unit uniforms, busy manning their consoles in the base under the theater.
"How did Reni get the Eisenkleid out without warning?" Jason asked.
"Kohran was doing some maintainence in the hangar since rehearsal didn't happen. She said she saw Reni suddenly climbing up... and just drove out," Tsubaki replied.
"And Saki?" he asked, needing to hear it.
"We had our eyes clouded all this time," Yoneda replied somberly. His hand clutched where the sniper bullet had hit him. Even if the wound had healed, the knowledge that a traitor might have caused it was still painful.
To make matters worse, it was Yoneda himself who had brought in Kageyama Saki to them. He had unwittingly recruited a mole to be his secretary, allowing the Kokkikai access to his documents and schedules. The potential for future disasters resulting from his error in judgement was enormous.
"We've got incoming live feed now!" Yuri said excitedly. Her fingers flew over her console and the main screen in the briefing room lit up.
It showed an external view from one of the Koubus, presumbaly Ogami's. Smoke was choking the skies while debris littered the streets. From the camera's viewpoint, it seemed that they were already fighting downtown. Steam-cars were flipped over, shop windows broken and there was a broken fire hydrant spewing a geyser wastefully.
"...Tsukigumi reports civilians have been evacuated. Other teams are cooperating with local authorities to seal off the area," Kaede reported. Yoneda nodded grimly, but there was still the matter of subduing Reni.
The camera's field of view was limited, but from the briefing room, they could see the Hanagumi Koubus and Orihime's Eisenkleid surrounding Reni's blue mecha from all sides. There was no sight of Saki, nor any of the Kokkikai beasts and minions.
It seemed the chaos and destruction was caused by Reni and the Hanagumi's efforts to restrain their wayward German friend.
"Reni! Can you hear me!?" came Ogami's voice, loudly and clearly despite the cackling static of the tactical communication network.
"Reni!" Iris's voice called plaintively for her friend. Iris had quickly taken to liking Reni since the silver-haired teen's arrival. Perhaps it was because Reni's age gap with Iris was the smallest compared to the other Hanagumi girls, but the cheerful and active Iris absolutely adored the quiet, mild-mannered Reni.
Ogami had told Jason about how Reni seemed to opened up recently, ever since their holiday trip, before the sudden change and clamming up again when they returned to the theater. And now Jason knew that the woman known as Kageyama Saki was responsible.
Reni did not respond to either Ogami nor Iris's calls, as if the German was deaf to their desperate pleaing. Instead, the blue Eisenkleid brandished its massive lance warningly.
"Everyone, look out and don't give Reni an opening!" Ogami warned.
"Roger!" the girls voiced said in unison, minus Iris.
As the circle around Reni tightened, Ogami tried talking again.
"Reni, I know you can hear me... don't give up! I'll bring you back, Reni!" Ogami promised.
Just then, there was a tremendous explosion. A nearby shop-lot was instantly toppled over, engulfing the area with dust and debris. Instinctively, the Hanagumi took steps to shield themselves, breaking the encirclement on Reni's Eisenkleid.
"Is everyone alright!?" Ogami yelled.
"Hahahaha!" a woman's voice laughed loudly. Jason's eyes immediately hardened as he watched the scene unfold on the screen.
As the dust began to clear, there was a tall outline of a steam-powered beast. Six more silhouettes of the hated steam-beasts also appeared, but it was the lead machine that caught the Hanagumi's attention.
It was easily one of the most humanoid steam-beast they had ever encountered. Instead of the plodding nature of the previous customized machines they had faced in the past, the one before them now was tall and sleek, with long elegant legs and claw-like pincers for hands. The violet-colored machine gave the impression of a lady-like grace and movement, indeed; it had a metallic fan with serrated edges on one hand, a macabre parody of the Japanese fan dancer.
It was a machine designed to suit a woman, and there was no mistaking who the woman was, perched on the shoulder of the tall beast.
"Saki!?" Ogami called out in disbelief. Despite being briefed by Yoneda before the sortie, Ogami still wanted to believe Kageyama Saki was not a traitor.
"I need to get out there," Jason told Yoneda, "Ogami might not be willing to see this to the end."
Yoneda nodded. "Go, then," the commander said simply. Jason felt that Yoneda had suddenly aged ten more years when Saki's face appeared on the screen as an enemy.
As he strapped himself into his Koubu, Jason couldn't help but feel rage. Saki had wormed her way into the Hanagumi's lives, and she played with their lives.
While his red and black Koubu headed towards the battle area, Jason tuned into the audio/visual tactical channel to watch the ongoing scene.
"Saki, what are you doing!?" Ogami demanded.
"Hahahaha, the person known as Kageyama Saki is nothing more than a fiction, a fake! There is no such person!" she laughed.
Then she snapped her fingers, and a gust of purple smoke enveloped her dramatically. When the smoke dissipated as quickly as it had arrived, Kageyama Saki's appearance had changed.
Instead of the long, straight hair and bangs, the woman now had shorter, wilder hair. Her customary secretary's dress disappeared, replaced by a form-fitting, revealing leather costume.
"My real name is Suiko... Suiko of the Kokkikai!" the woman proclaimed proudly.
Even as the Hanagumi drew shocked breaths with their worst fears confirmed, Ogami didn't give up.
"I don't believe that! Somewhere inside you, Kageyama Saki is alive!"
"Hmhmhm, do you really need proof then?" Suiko smirked. She snapped her fingers, and Reni instantly reacted. The blue Eisenkleid's lance began to spin rapidly, ready to drill its length into anything.
"What have you done to Reni!?" Orihime demanded.
"Reni belongs to -me- now!" Suiko said triumphantly.
"Reni..." Iris whimpered.
"Attack! Kill them all!" Suiko screamed. She slipped into her purple machine as the smaller steam-beasts accompanying her lurched forward to attack.
As the battle was joined with the Hanagumi tangling against the enemy machines, Ogami watched Reni's every move.
'Reni is still wavering!' he thought, noting how the German's Eisenkleid was slower than usual.
"Everyone, split up and engage! I'll try to get Reni!" he ordered.
"Roger!"
"Big brother, please get Reni back safe!" Iris called before joining in the fray.
Suiko herself did not bother to wade into the battle, where the Hanagumi mecha dueled her minions one by one. She stood aloof from the fights, paying attention to the drama unfolding between Ogami and Reni.
"Reni! I know you can still hear me!" Ogami yelled.
"Such sentimental nonsense. Reni, attack and destroy!" Suiko commanded.
"Orders... acknowledged," Reni confirmed and moved in. Ogami's white Koubu barely had any time to defend the lunge from Reni's lunge.
"Reni, you don't have to do this!"
But Reni lunged the drilling lance again. This time Ogami couldn't evade, and the shrieks of metal filled the air as the lance sheared part of his white Koubu's shoulder armor.
"Ogami-san, surely you can do better than that. You don't expect to get out of this if you don't fight back, do you?" Suiko taunted.
"Saki, it's not too late... stop this! You and Reni can still come back to us!" Ogami pleaded.
Reni's lance found its mark again, this time grazing the side of the knee of Ogami's leg. The jarring impact caused by the spinning lance was enough to bring the white Koubu to one knee. Immobilized for the moment
Suiko dramatically yawned to show her disinterest. "Reni, be a dear and shut him up please," she drawled.
"Y-you...!" Ogami was at lost for words.
"Target acquired," Reni replied in a monotone. The drilling lance was raised, ready to plunge into Ogami's Koubu.
"Reni!!" Iris screamed, seeing the scene.
At the same time, there was a explosion behind Suiko, throwing the Kokkikai woman slightly off-balance.
"What!?" Suiko said, outraged at the interruption.
"W-What..." Reni said in a more distant manner, as if Iris's voice somehow reached through the muck running about the German's mind.
Distracted, Suiko turned around to see Jason's black and red-trimmed Koubu arriving, breaking up her steam-beasts' formation.
"Y-You!" Suiko spat in surprise.
"Nice to see you again, Saki. Or should I say, 'Suiko'," Jason replied as acidly.
"How did you get here?! You're supposed to be dead!" Suiko demanded.
"I die hard," Jason said, not batting an eye.
"Persistent insect!" Suiko yelled with anger. With speed deceptive of her machine's size, Suiko charged directly at Jason, waving the sharp steel fans in raking blows.
Without their leader directing them, the steam-beast cohort fell apart confused, easy prey for the highly skilled Hanagumi.
As the others ripped apart the steam-beasts,, Ogami and Iris approached the disoriented Reni. Warily, they moved in closer towards Reni's blue Eisenkleid, unsure if the German was friend or foe.
"Reni, can you hear me?" the leader of the Hanagumi asked gently.
"I... where..." Reni's groggy voice came over the tac net.
Her higher psychic profile telling that Reni was coming out from under Suiko's spell, Iris stepped in closer to her dear friend.
"Reni, do you recognize Iris? It's Iris, your friend!" she said, all the raw and truthful emotions of an earnest child in her voice.
"...friend?"
"Yes! Iris is Reni's friend... Reni is Iris's friend!! Come back to the Hanagumi, Reni!" Iris continued, tears threatening to spring.
"We are all your friends, Reni. We all are," Ogami said expansively. And at that moment, the rest of the Hanagumi girls surrounded Reni and called for her.
"Reni!"
"Listen to us, Reni!"
"Please come back!"
It seemed an eternity seemed to pass before Reni's voice filtered through the radio channels again.
"...Captain... I have returned."
Iris was so happy that she completely forgot that the battle was not yet done. But Ogami couldn't find the heart to admonish the little French girl who popped out from her bright yellow Koubu and ran on foot towards Reni.
Reni obliged released the Eisenkleid's cockpit. As soon as she climbed down from her blue mecha, Iris jumped into her arms in full view of the others.
"Reni is smiling," Ogami realized.
"Captain, you have done well to reach Reni's heart," Maria commented in praise.
"Thank you, but the battle isn't over yet," Ogami replied, looking off at the direction of the Jason-Suiko battle. They had gone far off, with Jason luring the turncoat to the city limits.
"Do you think we can do the same to... Saki-san?" Sakura asked.
"Only way to find out. Iris, you stay here with Reni. The rest of you, follow me! We'll go help Jason!" Ogami ordered.
"Roger!"
---
"Are you done running yet?" Suiko taunted as she delivered yet another swipe with her edged fan. The armor on Jason's Koubu shrieked as the serrated edges gouged deep, drawing parallel scars.
"Eat this then," Jason retorted, twisting his Koubu's gun arm and fired. The gattling cannon spun and spat bullets at high speeds, causing a spread of damage all over Suiko's purprle machine.
"You have to do better than that!" Suiko laughed. Her bigger, taller mecha backhanded Jason's Koubu, causing it to crash.
"Damn it!" Jason seethed at his situation. He knew he had let his anger took over his better judgment, and now he was at a disadvantage against a hard-hitting, mobile opponent.
"You know, I do enjoy knowing you. But like people say, good things come to an end," Suiko said conversationally as her mecha closed in for the kill.
"Tell me..." Jason said as he brought his Koubu up to one knee. He thumbed the communication settings, so that the distant Hanagumi could hear the conversation he was about to initiate with Suiko.
"Tell me, were you really playing us all for fools all this time?"
Suiko's mecha paused. But her voice was still sarcastic and full of venom.
"What do you think? Of course I enjoyed it... stabbing self-righteous idiots like you people in the back is one pleasure I can never forget."
"Did the time you spend in the Hanagumi mean absolutely nothing to you?" Jason insisted, half-pleading.
"A very serious question. I will have to reflect on this... No, they don't!" Suiko mocked.
"Did you really laughed when I offered to be your friend?"
"Let me tell you a secret. Remember the fox that attacked your precious Maria? That was me!
"What!?" Jason gasped.
Suiko smirked, her tone filled with evil. "I had every intention of ripping her throat out before -you- came and interrupted me. And once I've gotten rid of you, I'll do it for sure!"
"Yeaaarrghhhhhh!" Jason growled with guttural instinct. With surprise on his side, his Koubu leaped from its kneeling position and drove its sword arm directly into the gut of the purple monster.
Crying in pain, Suiko's machine lurched over, nearing falling on top on Jason's black and red mecha. Only the upward thrust of the blade kept them standing even as the weight caused the Koubu's feet to dig into the soft soil.
A minor explosion rocked Suiko's machine, and one arm blew completely off.
'I must have ruptured a fuel line,' Jason thought.
"...Jason..." Suiko's voice called. But it was softer, and reminded Jason of someone else.
"Saki?"
"I'm sorry... for things to have... turned out this way," the voice said, coughing. Jason's eyes widened; he could imagine that she was coughing up blood.
"Saki!"
"I'm... your enemy... but..."
"Are you alright?!"
"I... I had to do it. I'm sorry... but, I had to do it..."
"Don't say anything! We can still help you!" Jason interrupted again.
"Saki-san!" Ogami's voice joined it. From his screens, Jason could see that the rest of the Hanagumi were approaching fast.
"No... this is the way I want it to be..." Saki said.
"I-" Jason started to say, but stopped. What could he say? He was the person driving the final blow into her machine. Even now, her blood could be mingling with the fuel, dripping down the blade onto the grass below.
"Shh... there is no need..." Saki continued.
"Saki-san! Saki-san!" the Hanagumi cried as they neared, knowing that they won't make it in time to save her.
"It was nice... knowing all of you..." Saki whispered.
"Saki? Saki!" Jason yelled.
"Goodbye... and thank you..."
Then a spark finally touched the leaking fuel, and the purple mecha exploded into a fiery ball of heat and light. Jason's Koubu was blasted back, the intense fireball scorching his Koubu and charring the armor.
"...I'm sorry..." Jason sobbed.
---
There was a somber mood in the theater in the time that followed. Unlike the customary delight that followed a successful sortie mission, a heavy and gloomy atmosphere prevailed.
The next day, anonymous cleaners came and cleared out Saki's room. Nobody else wanted to do it. The last of the boxes being taken away, Jason took one final look at the empty room before locking the door.
"It wasn't your fault," Maria consoled him.
"I know... but could I have done better?" Jason asked.
"There was nothing else you could do. I would have done the same in your place," Ogami added.
"But I should have realized... she deliberately gave me an opening... walking up without any guard... she really wanted to die..." Jason said morosely.
"Perhaps she did. But Saki-san did came back to us before she died," Sakura said.
"She was thankful for our friendship. But she couldn't abandon her ties to the Kokkikai. This is the end she wanted," Maria said.
Jason nodded with a heavy heart.
"We must never allow the Kokkikai to cause people turn to the darkness and do such harm again," Ogami said resolutely.
"You got that right, Ogami-han!" Kohran chimed in.
"That's right! Who knows if they will resort to such dirty tricks again? We must stop them!" Kanna said, clenching a fist.
"...Yes. We must," Jason agreed slowly.
"...Captain," Reni interrupted. The silver-haired young German girl slowly approached Ogami.
"Yes, Reni?" Ogami said kindly.
"I... I apologize. It was my error that lead to this situation," she said formally, traces of regret in her blue eyes.
"Reni..."
"I will fight... for myself... and for all of us," Reni said determinedly and smiled.
"Reni smiled! Reni smiled! Wai!" Iris cheered. Her demeanor was infectious, and soon the Hanagumi laughed their gloom away.
---
That night, Jason had a weird dream. It was as if he was ethereal, witnessing a bizzare scene. It was a beach scene, complete with moonlight. But the sea was a sea of crimson...
There was a devilishly handsome man, despite his red-skin. His black hair was combed and slicked back, glistening in the light. He was dressed in formal evening clothes, all the charm and suave of an old-school crime boss, complete with a thin cigarette between his fingers.
There was a woman there as well, and when Jason saw her his blood ran cold and his heart ached. It was Saki, or rather, Suiko. The dead Kokkikai member looked very much alive, dressed in a silky smooth blue satin dress that reached her ankles.
"Be mine," the man said, in a powerful, seducing voice.
"My my... what if I refuse?" Suiko purred.
"I assure you, you don't want to know," the man smirked and grinned evilly.
"You really do know how to charm a woman, you handsome... devil," Suiko said and laughed gaily.
"I take it you accept?" the man asked and opened his arms.
Suiko took a step and embraced the red-skinned man. "You don't need to ask me twice," she said and cuddled against the distinguished-looking man.
"Most excellent."
As the scene faded out, there was a snickering, familiar voice in Jason's mind.
"I told you she would like it there," the female voice said in a thick British accent.
When Jason woke up the next day, he remembered nothing about the dream. But somehow, he felt much better, as if a burden had lifted from his shoulders.
"It is going to be nice day," he told himself.
---------
(19) Humiliating end – from another UPA story, an adventure long long ago and a place far far away...