A.N: Hello, everyone! Here is the third chapter of this commission fic! I hope you like it!
Chapter Three: Fighting Chance
"Chiaaaaaakiiiiii!"
Sonia screamed in despair as she saw her classmate plummeting to her death after sleepily walking off the roof. Tears appeared in the corner of her pale blue eyes as her hand failed to grab the Ultimate Gamer's in time.
Inside, the Ultimate princess's heart was screaming in pain, wondering how such an innocent time could have taken such a tragic turn. In a second, Class 77-B's beloved Class Representative would be as flat as a pancake. Chiaki would die without even knowing how she found herself on the roof in the first place.
The blonde felt miserable.
"Take this! You'll pay for what you did to our beloved Captain!"
Meanwhile, in the short-haired girl's dreams, her ship and Sonia's were making an all-out attack on the final villain. With blazing determination in her eyes, the dreamy Ultimate Gamer fired on all cylinders, intending to take down the enemy general and avenge her fallen comrades.
No matter what happened, she couldn't let them get away with their crimes!
"We'll get them, comrade! This is easy as dye!"
Chiaki sweatdropped, dodging the enemy's missiles to get closer to their target. Sonia followed her, cutting it close a few times. The new Captain prepared to fire her strongest missile, which was sure to utterly destroy the enemy!
"This is where it ends! You're going do- ARGH!"
The girl's eyes widened in terror as she saw an evil grin on the enemy general's face, and a massive rocket hit her straight in the engine of her ship. She panicked as she began to lose control of her vessel, feeling it spiraling down into the planet's atmosphere.
"I-I've been hit, Captain Nanami!" Sonia exclaimed. "I-I am falling down with my ship!"
Before hopelessness could overtake her, the video game aficionado tried everything she could, deciding not to go down without a fight. However, no matter what she tried, she couldn't stop her endless descent. She bit her lip in fear, firing all the rockets at her disposal.
"W-We can't lose now! D-Death is not an option!" Chiaki declared, fighting through the tears. "I-I won't let the Captain's death go to waste!"
Yet, for all the hope still in her, Chiaki's ship was hit again, making it crumble even faster. She barely held on to her commands as the despair of her incoming demise invaded her. Whoever this foe was, they had outsmarted them. Chiaki's heart clenched in pain.
"Zzz... the heroes... don't always... win..."
The gamer's sleepy mumblings went unheard as she held tightly onto her Switch with one hand. Sonia felt the bile go up her throat as she closed her eyes, unable to watch any longer.
"Captain... I'm sorry..."
With those final words, Chiaki neared the ground, her death approaching. It was the end of her journey, both on her console and in her dreams. The Ultimate Gamer had fallen to a strong enemy, and this was one battle she would never recover from.
"This is boring..."
Still standing on the rooftop, Sonia gasped in shock as a dark blur shone in the crimson night, dashing before her eyes too quickly for her to properly make it out.
"Zzz... Soft landing...?"
The Ultimate princess's despair wandered as she stared at the dark figure standing down on the ground. She could not see them very well, but there was one thing she could see well enough: the sleepwalking girl in their arms, Nintendo Switch safe in her hand.
Y-Yes! Someone caught Chiaki! WOO-HOO! In a second, all traces of despair disappeared from the blonde's mind, replaced by a new and shining hope in the form of the unexpected hero. I-I have no idea how something so lucky could happen, but I'm happy Chiaki got a croak of luck!
"Thank you for catching Chiaki, mysterious stranger!" Sonia shouted from up there, waving her arms at Chiaki's savior. From what she could make out, the figure appeared to be that of a tall boy with absurdly long black hair. "You saved her!"
The boy didn't answer, glancing at the girl in his arms. Chiaki's sleep had not been disturbed in the slightest by her fall, and her fingers were already moving back to the buttons of her console, which was also still running.
"Zzz... Very confused... I think..."
Sonia noticed the boy's expression looked devoid of any and all emotions. He just stared at her classmate's face intently. However, something happened when the princess thought of running down to check up on the gamer and properly thank her savior.
Naturally, she had expected him to leave her to lie on the ground. After all, she would have done this if she were in a hurry. But the boy didn't. Sonia was caught by surprise when the mysterious individual ran instead, his long hair flowing behind him as he did.
"W-Wow, such incredible speed! M-My eyes can barely follow him!"
From where she stood, the Ultimate Princess watched as the boy ran with Chiaki in his arms, only stopping in front of the fountain they were carefreely walking in earlier. There, he stopped, forcing Sonia to wonder what his intentions could potentially be.
It took the blonde some time to catch up to him, and she was out of breath upon reaching the fountain. Sonia put her hands on her knees and breathed heavily, smiling at seeing the safe and still sleeping Chiaki. It was a massive relief for her. She was mad at herself for having been so negligent, but Chiaki's safety was most important.
The boy noticed her and wordlessly acknowledged her presence. He placed the Ultimate Gamer on the bench near the fountain, the sound of her cute snoring the only thing heard for a moment apart from the gentle night breeze.
Before the princess could say anything to thank him, he beat her to the punch and spoke first. "Watching her wander around in her dreams..." he trailed off, and Sonia noticed the slightest bit of hesitation on his otherwise emotionless face. "It seems somewhat interesting... I suppose the old personality wanted to watch over her in her dreaming state..."
Sonia listened curiously, multiple questions echoing in her mind. The old personality...? What an odd statement! I wonder what he could have meant by this...? Without much of a clue, the Ultimate Princess decided not to press him. Honestly, she was too relieved to know Chiaki was safe to say anything.
"Are you acting as her guardian in all of this?" the long-haired boy suddenly asked, his voice perfectly neutral and devoid of emotion.
"Y-Yes, quite...!" Sonia stuttered, feeling her cheeks get a little hot as she fiddled with a strand of her long hair. "I-I am, um..." T-This is very embarrassing... "I-I suppose you could say I am her guardian angel for the night... Simply there to keep her company and ensure she stays out of trouble..." Sonia sighed. "I am ashamed to say I have failed in that regard, letting an incident like this occur..."
The boy's red eyes locked on Sonia, giving her the chills. He looked very intimidating when he stared at her like that. It made the girl wonder if he might be mad at her for letting Chiaki walk off the roof. Perhaps this boy was someone Chiaki knew, after all.
"How you judge your actions is of no interest to me," the stranger said, his tone turning from uninterested to cold. "From now on, I will observe this girl from afar. You will continue your previous guard over her and remain by her side no matter how long it takes for her to awaken and no matter what danger she might get into in her current state," he ordered, giving Sonia a look that told her that 'no' was not a possible answer. "Understood?"
Of course, Sonia didn't intend to let her beloved Class Representative alone in the middle of Hope's Peak. This is why she had decided to follow her on her sleepwalking journey in the first place. However, given the glare she was receiving, the princess gulped in fear and gave a weak nod.
"I-I shall not abandon Chiaki!" she said with a shaky voice but lots of conviction. "I am the future queen of Novoselic, after all, so I will keep my word and watch over Chiaki, no matter how long it takes!"
With that being said, Sonia would be lying if she said she wasn't curious. She figured the boy was an acquaintance of Chiaki's, but she had never seen him on campus, and the gamer had never mentioned anything about such a mysterious-looking boy, either.
Perhaps I should ask Ms. Yukizome when I get the chance... There is a chance he has heard of him... He sounds very interested in Chiaki's situation, after all...
"That will be all. Goodbye."
Without another word, the boy disappeared as quickly as he had initially shown up. Sonia watched as he ran off to places unknown, and after she blinked, he was already nowhere to be seen. The princess stood there as perfect silence returned before she turned to tend to her sleeping classmate once more.
"I gave my word that I would watch over you, Chiaki! No matter what dangers might lie ahead on our adventure together, I shall not fail you again!"
Meanwhile, in Chiaki's dream world, her ship was nearing the end of its fall, gravitation pulling it toward an unknown planet. However, before they could collide with the celestial body, the newly promoted Captain's hand was taken by a mysterious individual. He leaped skillfully inside Sonia's vessel and rescued her as well, guiding them both to safety.
The two girls looked at each other, wondering how they had managed to make it out alive. They had been falling to despair a few moments ago, imagining how painful their demise would be. Chiaki looked at their unexpected savior.
He was a mysterious-looking dark-haired creature, looking at them with eyes that were so empty, it frightened Sonia. Still, their relief overcame any other emotions they could possibly feel.
For some reason, I feel like... I have already seen him... I think... "Hey, hey. Thank you for rescuing us," Chiaki said.
The savior's expression didn't change one bit. He looked at the two girls with very minor curiosity. "What are you fighting for, up there in the stars?" he asked unemotionally.
"We fight to save the galaxy from the throes of evil!" the dreaming gamer replied with gusto. "But our Captain was shot down by the cruel enemy general." She sighed, sadness filling her voice. "We tried to get revenge, but the enemy outsmarted us and nearly killed us." A grateful smile graced her lips. "That is until you showed up and saved us."
The dark-haired creature's expression got tinged with some surprise. "You want to fight against an enemy who has way more power and who is nearly impossible to defeat?"
"Nothing is impossible!" Chiaki said passionately, cutting her savior and getting in his face with a disagreeing pout. "As long as we don't give up, things will work out in the end!"
The two stared at each other for a while, the Ultimate Gamer unwilling to back down until she had convinced him. It mattered to her. She and Sonia had seen their Captain lose his life before their very eyes. Giving up now would be dishonoring themselves!
"What a boring answer... Still, in spite of that naïve answer, you do not appear to lack belief..." He sighed. "I suppose that is a little more interesting..."
In the real world, Sonia approached the sleeping Chiaki, noticing her slumber appeared to be peaceful, regardless of the life-threatening she had found herself in only a few minutes prior. Her hands were nowhere near her console for once, showing how deeply she was sleeping.
"Chiaki? Wake up!" Sonia asked, gently shaking her slumbering form. "We must return to bed for the rest of the night, okay?" Seeing she was not getting through to her, she shook just a little harder. "Chiaki?"
Instead of answering, the gamer drowsily stood up from the bench and grabbed her Switch. She rubbed her eyes before holding her arms in front of her like before, effectively making her look like a zombie.
"Mechanic... we need to... level up..." she mumbled.
"H-Huh? A-A mechanic? L-Level up?" Sonia held her hand to her chin in thought. "What does that mean, comrade?"
The only response she got to that question was snoring, making her sweatdrop. Sonia had not yet gotten used to her half-awake, half-asleep state. It made communication quite tricky. Still, it was pretty amusing.
"Chiaki?" she asked again, hoping to get a better answer this time... or any answer at all, to be honest. "Where should our adventure go from here?"
The short-haired girl put her hand in front of her mouth and yawned loudly, making her partner feel sleepy for the night. "I am Captain now... survived the attack but... we need to avenge... the former Captain..." A small frown appeared on her tired face. "Zzz... we're not... strong enough... Need to... become stronger... ourselves and... our ships..."
Sonia was surprised. She wasn't sure what "getting stronger" meant in this context, but she was willing to give it a try, given it wasn't dangerous. If anything, it was part of what made Chiaki's sleepwalking cute. She didn't need to understand every little thing.
However, something else caught her off-guard. Chiaki called herself the new Captain and said we needed to avenge the former Captain... What could have happened...? The princess smiled. If her friend was having fun, she didn't mind playing along for a bit longer.
"Alright then, comrade... I-I mean Captain Nanami!" she quickly corrected herself. "Where do we go from here?"
Her voice innocent, the blonde let herself be guided by her classmate toward their next destination, which would, hopefully, not be as hazardous as their previous one.
The two classmates entered one of the lab buildings, passing by the rooms where current and former Ultimates studied their respective fields of expertise. The lights in the hallways were off at this late hour, and quite frankly, Sonia didn't know what Chiaki was expecting to find in there.
"Zzz... Can upgrade... weapons and ships... here... I think..." the sleepwalking girl muttered, leading the way towards the engineering lab under the princess's watchful eye.
I would be astonished if the lab were to be open at this hour of the night... She thought, the face of her friend and classmate Kazuichi flashing before her eyes. The Ultimate Mechanic was most likely asleep back at the dorms. No matter how excited he could get at the thought of repairing something, Sonia figured he would not stay up that late.
Still, it appeared as though the Ultimate Gamer would not quit until she reached the lab, so Sonia decided not to argue. They quickly got to the right door, which was easily recognizable due to the smell of oil permeating the hallway.
"...Mechanic..." Chiaki grabbed the doorknob and turned it frantically, shaking the door as hard as her sleeping state allowed. "We need your... *BUMP*!"
Sonia sweatdropped as her friend crashed into the door, leaving a small bump on her exposed forehead. It would take more than that to deter Chiaki Nanami, though, as she kept going at it, trying to open a door that was obviously locked. If anything, the Ultimate Princess thought her efforts were cute.
To be honest... even if, by chance, Kazuichi was still inside the lab (which was made even more unlikely considering the lights inside were off), Sonia wasn't so keen on visiting him. After all, their relationship was... peculiar, to say the least.
The blonde didn't hate him, of course not. Kazuichi wasn't a bad person, only a little simpleminded. The Ultimate Mechanic had her respect as a fellow classmate and Ultimate student, but... she had never really connected with him. She didn't mind being friends with him, but it was clear to everyone in the class that Kazuichi sought more than just friendship.
Unfortunately for him, it was not going to happen any time soon.
As Chiaki grumbled and started kicking the door, Sonia's thoughts drifted to someone else entirely, even if the mechanic would be furious to hear about that.
I'd much rather spend time with Gundham... Perhaps he has some odd antics, but his stories are much more enjoyable to listen to and partake in! And, well... he does smell a lot better...
The Ultimate Princess's heart beat to the thought of her Ultimate Breeder crush while her sleeping friend kept on struggling against her new and perhaps most fierce opponent yet: a sturdy locked door.
To be continued...
A.N: I hope you liked it! Please leave a review, and I hope you all have a good day!