5 hours before current events...
Mireya, along with Iota's parents, had been waiting anxiously for what seemed like forever. No one had said a word to each other since their children had left the room, they only sat in cold silence awaiting news of their children's state.
All Mireya could do was sit still and twiddle her thumbs idly, and Iota's parents sat with perpetual looks of worry on their faces. No one knew what to expect, although they did have their hopes, as well as their fears.
After what seemed like forever, an unfamiliar man in a white lab coat entered the room holding a holopad. All three of the parents immediately stood up, eager to learn about the conditions of their beloved children.
"My daughter, she's alright isn't she? Tell me she's alright!" Iota's dad said almost immediately, his voice full of worry
"What about Hiro? Is Hiro okay?" Mireya asked desperately
The man in the lab coat gave an awkward grin as he held his hands up in front of him, as if he was trying to shoo them away.
"Please, calm down for a moment, I only just got here," the man said as he took a couple steps back as he recomposes himself
As the man straightened himself out, the parents waited anxiously for their results. Finally, the man began to pull up the data on his holopad before speaking.
"To answer your quickly asked questions, yes, your children are both fine. The procedure went without a hitch," the man said with a professional smile
The parents collectively sighed a sigh of relief as they felt the huge weight being lifted from off of their chests. However, they should have known better, as they had already forgotten Kitaroshi's previous warning.
"However...I'm sure you were already made away of the high likely hood of memory loss if I'm not mistaken?" The man asked
And just like that, the weight had been reapplied.
"Y-yes, yes we were," Mireya said nervously
The man nodded his head as he scrolled over his data
"Well, as you're already aware of, memory loss was a highly likely byproduct of the procedure. In both of your children's cases, memory loss has indeed been observed," the man said, keeping his calm composure
"You mean...our children...don't remember anything about us? Anything about the lives they had in this world?" Iota's mom asked with tears slowly forming in her eyes
"Well...yes and no," the man said
"What's that supposed to mean huh?" Iota's father asked rather aggressively
The man read over his data again before speaking
"Well, your children are actually quite a remarkable case. You see, what ended up happening is that they actually ended up retaining quite a bit of their memories from their modern lives. The only catch is that they have no emotional connection to those memories," the man said
"Emotional connection? Does that mean that even though they may remember us, they don't have any feelings for us anymore?" Mireya asked sadly
"That is correct. However, this is actually quite a promising outlook. The fact that they retained some of their memories means that with the correct reconditioning, we should be able to make them remember both of their lives without any of their collective memories or emotions conflicting with one another," the man said with yet another professional smile
Although both parents were understandably worried, they did indeed have hope that they would get to see their children again. Not their past selves as saviors of the world, but as how they remembered them, their wonderful children whom they raised with love.
They eventually asked if they would get a chance to see them again, they simply said that it was not possible at the moment, as Kitaroshi still had business with them. Two guards eventually entered the room, and the man said that the guards were here to escort them out of the building.
Both families were understandably confused, as they felt uncomfortable about leaving their children behind, but the man assured them that their children would be returned to them in mere hours.
As the parents left the building, many thoughts swam through their heads. However, within all of their thoughts, the one that stood out the most were the ones of hope. It was the hope that they would see their true children again...
30 minutes before current events...
Mireya sat alone in her home in lonely silence. She had made herself some green tea and had tuned in to her favorite tv show. However, she wasn't even watching the show, and her untouched tea had already gone cold.
For the past few hours, all she had done was sit around and worry about her son. Only thoughts of Hiro flooded her mind, completely removing her from her surroundings. She replayed memories of her and Hiro, as well as her late husband, spending time together
Such happy memories, she wondered if she would ever make memories like those with Hiro again. As she cycled through her memories, one in particular broke her out of her self imposed trance.
It was a memory of Hiro during his father's funeral. Hiro at the time had told her that together, they would make it through the hard times that even he knew were coming.
"Oh what am I doing...I shouldn't be doing this to myself," Mireya thought to herself
As Mireya stood up to grab the tv remote, a loud boom resonated through the air. After that, many more quick and repetitive booms sounded through the air, neither of them decreasing in volume.
The sounds of exposing subsided after about half a minute. Almost immediately after, a siren began to sound throughout the city. Suddenly, the show she had been watching turned to an emergency news broadcast. Mireya, for the first time, turned her attention to the tv.
"We interrupted your regularly scheduled program to bring you an urgent emergency broadcast. At the time, the Franxxinus Industries tower located in the center of the city sustained critical structural damage after a series of explosions tore through the western section of the tower. According to eyewitness reports, several objects were seen colliding with the western tower before the explosions occurred. As of this moment, this is being described as a large scale terrorist attack. All residents are being advised to stay indoors-"
Mireya quickly turned off the tv and rushed outside of her house. As she got outside, she was immediately hit by a wave or orange light tearing through the dark sky. In the distance, she saw the tower, the tower that her son and his childhood friend were in, going up in fiery blaze.
"Oh god...Hiro...Iota," Mireya said as she fell to her knees
Mireya simply looked on helplessly as a pillar of fire rose into the night sky above...
Current events...
"Corvic, on your right!" Hiro yelled as he pointed past Corvic's shoulder
Corvic looked to see a soldier standing up, pushing a large chunk of feeling off of him as he stood up. Almost immediately, the soldier pulled out an armed plasma grenade and threw it towards the kids.
Without thinking, Corvic moved into the path of the grenade and swatted it away with his plasma rifle like a baseball bat. The grenade flew through an open window and exploded outside.
Zero Two quickly pulled out the handgun that Corvic had given her and fired multiple shots at the enemy soldier, who had aimed his rifle at Corvic.
The soldier fell to the ground, and this time, they didn't get up
"Oh man...those were probably the toughest ones yet," Hiro said as he sat against a large chunk of debris
"Yea, probably because that was the largest group we've encountered Darling," Zero Two said as she sat next to him, nuzzling her head against Hiro's shoulder
Before sitting down, Zero Two and Hiro had carefully laid Kitaroshi down on flat ground so Corvic could easily tend to his wounds. Kitaroshi's condition was only deteriorating, as his breathing had become heavy and gravelly, and the medical tape used to patch his wounds was once again soaked with blood. As Corvic changed the tape, a look of pain washed over his face as a painful groan escaped his lungs.
"Hang in there Juugo, we only have seven floors to go before we're home free," Corvic said as he applied new tape
"Ah...finally...I was starting to *cough* think that maybe...*cough* you had just decided to...to take your sweet *cough* time," Kitaroshi said before wincing in pain
"Yea, if by taking my time means having to blast through group after group of Quadriad grunts," Corvic said as he finished taping up Kitaroshi's wounds
As Corvic sat Kitaroshi up, Kitaroshi noticed Hiro and Zero Two comforting each other nearby. He gave a weak, yet sincere smile.
"Ugh...those kids...no matter how bleak things may be, they always seem to *cough* be there for each other," Kitaroshi said
Corvic looked over at the two and smiled as well.
"Yea...they got each other's backs...just like me and you huh?" Corvic said with a chuckle
"Yea...except you always *cough* have my back," Kitaroshi said
"Don't kid yourself Juugo, we've always been here for each other, just like them," Corvic said as gestured towards the two cuddling teenagers, who had somehow gotten their hands on some food, and were quickly eating it
Kiraroshi simply nodded in agreement as laid his head back.
Corvic stepped out to the ledge of the building, overlooking the battle that ensued outside. Corvic watched as franxx tore at each other in the skies above, and he watched as the simultaneously fell from the sky and crashed to the ground below.
Corvic could see lights in the sky in the distance, most likely belonging to more franxx. He couldn't tell if they were friendly or if they were hostile. The only thing that Corvic knew was that there were seven floors standing between him and safety.
Corvic turned away from the ledge and walked over to Hiro and Zero Two, to whom he took a seat next to.
"So...how are you two holding up?" Corvic asked as he pulled several small water bottles out of his bag
"We're surviving. We only have seven more floors to go right? We can get through the rest of this for sure," Hiro said tiredly
"Always looking on the bright side aren't you Darling? Have you forgotten that there's probably dozens of soldiers between us and the ground floor?" Zero Two said with a smug smile
"Oh yea...I totally forgot that part," Hiro said sarcastically
Corvic laughed before checking his inventory for weapons and ammunition.
"We have seven floors to go before we reach the ground floor. I have seven clips of ammo left for the plasma rifle, and two plasma grenades left. Thankfully, one clip is all I should need for a single floor of soldiers, as one clip gives me about 80 shots," Corvic said as he reloaded his rifle
"Well...what happenes if there's more soldiers than we think?" Asked Zero Two
"Then we use the grenades."
"And what happens if you run out of ammo and grenades?" Hiro asked
"Then we're fucked," Corvic said bluntly
Hiro and Zero Two enchanted a look of uncertainty between one another. They knew that there was absolutely no way things would go their way when it came to escaping the tower.
"Hey Corvic...let me ask you something," Hiro said as he adjusted himself so he was facing Corvic
"Yea kid, what is it?" Corvic asked
"What do you think our chances are? You know...of getting out of here that it," Hiro asked
Corivc remained silent for a moment, as if he had to think of his response.
"Well...if all goes right, which probably won't happen, then we have a pretty decent. If all doesn't go right...which it most likely will..."
Corvic paused a moment before finishing
"Then our changes aren't that great."
Hiro and Zero Two didnt say a word often, they let Corvic's words hang in the air like a bad omen.
Minutes passed as the four survivors sat and listened to the sounds of conflict outside of the walls of the tower. No one was really sure what to expect when they would eventually begin their climb down to the bottom floors.
As they sat and listened, the morning sky began to form above, shades of dark pink and magenta sneaking in to push away the darkness of night. Seeing this as the perfect time, it was unanimously decided that this was where their journey to the ground floor would resume. Grabbing all essential materials, the four survivors prepared to venture onward
"All right, you both know the drill. You two stay behind me and keep Juugo safe. I'll keep the soldiers occupied long enough for you to find cover, then I'll go all out. Is that understood?" Corvic asked as he loaded a new cartridge into his plasma rifle
Hiro and Zero Two gave a nod of understanding as they each slung one of Kitaroshi's arms over their shoulders, hoisting him off of the ground.
Corvic gave a nod of understanding in response, and with that, the four continued downward to what they hoped would be safety
Western Tower Floor 6...
The four moved quietly throughout the floor, being careful where they stepped so as to not make any sudden noises. For a tower that was being infiltrated by an enemy strike force, this floor in particular was surprisingly quiet.
The bodies of tower workers and security officers littered the floor, but there was not a single Quadriad soldier in sight.
"Something about this seems wrong. Shouldn't there be at least some defense on this floor?" Hiro asked as he observed his surroundings
"They only need to fortify a few floors to keep people from reaching the bottom floor. My guess is that the squads above were only meant for survivors trying to make it down from the upper floors. The squads on the lowest floors are most likely armed to the teeth so that way they can keep any rescue parties from being able to evacuate straggling survivors," Corvic said as he too checked his surroundings for enemies
"So what you're saying is that we're going to be in for a fight?" Zero Two asked
"Unfortunately...yes," Corvic said
"Yea...but it's nothing *cough* you can't handle...ri...right?" Kitaroshi asked painfully
Corvic didn't bother responding, and Kitaroshi didn't bother with asking again. He didn't have to ask to know that his oldest friend, someone who dealt with trouble for a living, sometimes had uncertainty about his odds.
As they continued to cautiously move throughout the floor, the true carnage that the Quadriad could unleash became all the more apparent. They began to find the large groups of corpses lying in piles, stuffed inside small offices and storage closets. The smell of death was all around them, suffocating them as they continued to walk among bodies.
"I've never seen this much death up close. It's...unsettling," Zero Two said
"Neither have I, but it's the smell that I hate the most," Hiro said with an expression of disgust plastered on his face
"Yea, nobody likes the smell of charred flesh and bones, especially that of people. I'm ashamed to admit it, but one can become used to it," Corvic said
They continued to maneuver their way through the crippled rooms and hallways until they found a way down to a lower floor. Corvic's original plan was to use an emergency elevator shaft to get to the bottom, but crushed rubble, as well as the elevator itself, had cut them off from the ten lowest floors. Since using it was no longer the case, the used holes in the floor to move to the next lowest floor.
"Finally, a way down," Hiro said, followed by a relieved sigh
Convicted jumped down the hole first to make sure that there were no enemies waiting for them down there. Once he gave Hiro and Zero Two the all clear, they carefully jumped down with Kitarohsi on their shoulders.
Western Tower Floor 5...
"One down...four to go," Corvic muttered to himself as he raised hi rifle in front of him
"Heh...almost there..." Kitarohsi said weakly with an equally weak smile
"You shouldn't be talking, every bit of life left in you counts," Zero Two said
"Haa...I already *cough* completed my mission...its best if...it's best if you leave me here," said Kitaroshi quietly
"We are not leaving you here, not after what you did for us," Hiro said in a serious tone
As Corvic listened to the two teens argue with his friend, be him him, a cold feeling crept over him. As he looked around, some things began to stand out to him, the worst of which being...
There wasn't a single body on this floor...
Corvic also noticed that the debris around them shouldn't be where there were. Chucks of the ceiling where there were no holes, almost perfectly build walls blocking off certain hallways...
Corvic knew what this cold feeling was, this feeling of impending dread...
"Oh shit...It's a trap..."Corvic said to himself load enough for the others behind him to hear
Zero Two and Hiro both stopped talking and looked at Corvic. Corvic heard something hit the ground in front of him and bounced off the ground a few times. Corvic quickly turned to see what had hit the ground...
What he saw made his eyes widen in fear.
"BOTH OF YOU, GET-"
Corvic didn't get to finish, as the grenade that had landed in front of him went off with an explosive bang, sending debris and shrapnel flying in all directions. About as quickly as the grenade went off, the gunfire ensued.
"Damn, they were waiting for us!" Zero Two said as she and Hiro ducked behind cover
"They must have known we were coming, it was probably one of the squads we encountered earlier!" Hiro said loudly over the sound of laser fire
Hiro and Zero Two peeked out from behind their cover to quickly get an idea of their surroundings. Within the split second of looking out form behind the massive chuck of ceiling that was their protection, they saw all that they needed to.
They could see several men blocking their escape in front of them, and they assumed that there were more hiding on the other side of the hallway they were blocking. After taking a split second look, they quickly ducked down again.
"Great looks like we're pined," Zero Two said angrily
"They wont let up will they? They probably have guys supplying them with ammunition back there too," Hiro said
As the two tried to assess their situation, Kitoroshi slowly and painfully sat himself up next to them.
"They're...*cough* *cough*...stalling," Kitaroshi said
Zero Two and Hiro looked at him with confused looks.
"Stalling? What could they possibly be trying to buy time for?" Zero Two asked
"Yea, I mean, we're all trapped in a two way hallway. They are the ones blocking the other side, so what could they be waiting..." Hiro said as his voice trailed off
A look of fear crept onto Hiro's face as he looked at the empty hallway behind them, the one they had just come from.
"Darling, what's wrong?" Zero Two asked as she looked at him in concern
"They're going to flank us."
"What?"
"Zero Two...they're going to flank us. They stalling because there's probably another squad of those guys coming from behind," Hiro said with a panicked tone
Zero Two quickly picked up on what Hiro was saying. These soldiers had weapons, but they weren't advancing at all. They were staying where they were, as if they were merely guarding an exit.
Hiro took another peek over the rubble to get a better sense of their situation. Hiro noticed Corvic was struggling to get up on the ground nearby, his legs severely wounded by debris and rubble.
"Crap, Corvic is hurt...badly," Hiro said
"How bad?" Zero Two asked as she ducked away from a laser bolt
"His legs are pretty torn up, it looks like he can't get up," Hiro said
Zero Two looked over the rubble and glanced at Corvic before quickly sucking down again
"Shit, you're right. He's not walking anytime soon," Zero Two said angrily
Zero Two and Hiro knew they were in trouble, but without any solid means of retaliation, there was nothing they could do. Hiro tried looking over the rubble one more time, but what he saw on the other side made his eyes widen in fear.
"Oh shit...ZERO TWO, GET DOWN!" Hiro said as he grabbed Zero Two and brought her to the ground
On the other side, a soldier launched a trio grenade straight at the group. Lucky for them, they all missed, the first one going over their heads and blowing out a wall behind them. The first two landed in front of them and detonated on impact. However, the blast was strong enough to send Hiro and Zero Two flying back, with Zero Two tumbling over the edge of the now opened wall.
"DARLING!" Zero Two screamed as she fell out of the tower
"ZERO TWO!" Hiro said as he quickly grabbed her hand to stop her from falling to the ground below
It may have only been a four story drop, but one wrong fall was enough to kill her.
"Hang on...I got you," Hiro said as he struggled to pull her up
Neither of them noticed that the firing had stopped...
As Hiro pulled Zero Two back into the tower, she immediately hugged him, in which he responded by hugging her back. However their moment was quickly interrupted but the sound of a gun cocking behind them.
Hiro and Zero Two looked up to see that the Quadriad soldiers were holding them at gunpoint.
"Stand up," said the soldier who was aiming his rifle right at their faces
As they both stood up, two soldiers brought the injured Kitaorhsi and Corivc to where they were, and threw both of them on the ground.
"I'm sorry...I failed you..." Corvic said quietly
"Quiet scum!" One of the soldiers said as he kicked Corvic across the face
One of the soldiers pulled out a communicator and activated it, speaking into to give a status update.
"Commander Cyrus, we have apprehended the targets, along with two extras..."
Outside the tower...
A black and red Franxx stood watch over the battlefield in the sky, observing as his forces and the enemy clashed in the early morning sky. Though no one could see it, he was watching with a smile.
"Commander Cyrus, we have apprehended the targets, along with two extras," A soldier said through his communicator
"Good...I'll will send a transport unit to collect the targets," Cyrus said through his communicator
"Understood sir, but what about the others?" The soldier asked
"Who are they?" Cyrus asked
"They appear to be Franxxinus Industries CEO Juugo Kitaroshi and some random shower security enforcer..."
Western Tower Floor 5...
"Ah...so you've captured HIM...I'm impressed. However, we have no use for them. Kill them both," Cyrus said in a sinister tone
'"Understood sir," The soldier said as he deactivated his communicator
As he did so, the floor started to shake, and the floor was flooded with bright light as a franc slowly hovered into view outside the tower.
"This doesn't look good for us, does it Darling?" Zero Two said as she looked at Hiro with a sad smile
"Yea...to think our reunion would be so short," Hiro said with an equally sad smile
Kitaroshi, who had been forced up onto his feetlooked at the two with sad eyes. He then looked down at Corvic, who had a look of defeat in his eyes.
"Shit...I didn't think it would really have to come to this," Kitaroshi said as he snuck his hand inside of his back pocket
Removing his hand, Kitaroshi pulled out a magnetic detonator and held it in his hand. As he did so, the Quadriad soldiers grabbed him by the shoulders and pulled him forward, hitting the ground with a painful thud.
"Hey, keep your hands off of him!" Zero Two said angrily as they forced Kitaroshi to his knees once more
"Shut your mouth, he'll be the first to die," the Quadriad soldier said
Hiro, Zero Two, and Corvic all look on at Kitaroshi with helpless looks. Kitaroshi looked back with only sadness in his eyes. However, there was something else.
"Corvic, your job as my bodyguard is hereby terminated," Kitaroshi said with a smile
"Juugo..." Corvic said as he struggle to get up
"Corvic, this is my last order to you, should you choose to accept it..."
...
...
"Protect those kids," Kitaroshi said with a smile as he revealed the detonator in his hand
Corvic's eyes grew wide as he saw Kitroshi use all of his strength to turn around and throw the magnetic detonator onto the franxx that was hovering outside of the tower.
"What was that? What did he throw?"
"It's a bomb!"
"Kill him!"
The soldiers raised their guns, all of which pointed at Kitarohsi. Kitarohsi reached into his pocket again and pulled out an ID card, and quickly tossed it to Hiro.
"Basement level 4...you'll know what to do when you get there. Both of you..."
...
...
"Both of you are ready."
As Kitaroshi smiled at them one last time, the Quadriad soldiers opened fire, quickly filling Kitaroshi full of holes.
A few memories flashed through Hiro and Zero Two's minds as they watched the man who reunited them get riddled with holes. They remembered the cheerful man they met when they had only just arrived at the tower. They remembered his giddy excitement and his carefree attitude. They remembered what kind of man he was...the kind man who brought them together again...
They watched in horror as a man who they had grown to consider a friend fall to the ground, his eyes sad and lifeless...
Nobody had any time to process what had just happened, as before anyone even realized what had happened, Corvic had already grabbed both Hiro and Zero Two in his arms.
"Hang on," Corvic said as he brought the two to the edge of the blown open wall.
Hugging the two, Corvic rolled off and over the edge of the tower falling to the ground. As he did so, the detonator on the Quadriad franxx went off, taking out one of its thrusters. Losing control of itself, the franxx flew up into the air before diving right back down into the fifth floor above, exploding in a fiery ball of light as the floor above was blown apart.
The three survivors fell to the ground, with Corvic landed back first as intended, shielding Hiro and Zero Two from the blast. Rubble fell from above and Corvic crawled on top of the two to shield them from falling debris.
The three lay there for almost a full minute before Corvic finally rolled off of them, breathing heavily. Hiro and Zero Two stood up and looked up at the burning floor above them, finally letting out what had just happened.
Hiro fell to his knees as he watched the burning flames above.
"He died for us...after everything he had already done...he died for us," Hiro said as tears began to form in his eyes
Zero Two knelt down behind Hiro and wrapped her arms around him. Unlike Hiro, she didn't have a look of sadness in her eyes as she looked up at the flames. Although she too could not hold back her tears, they were not those of sadness...
They were tears of anger...
Behind them, Corvic gazed up at the fire, a distant and almost empty expression etched on his face.
"Juugo...you dumbass...that was supposed to be my job..." Corvic said quietly
Everyone was letting the realization that Kitaroshi was dead. All three had their own reactions. Hiro felt sadness and regret, Zero Two felt anger and hate, and Corvic was simply too shocked and emotionally drained to feel much of anything at the moment.
Hiro finally stood up and pulled out the card that Kitarohis had given to him moment before his death. Hiro looked at the card, his expression of sadness being replaced with one identical to Zero Two's
"Darling, what is that?" Zero Two asked as she looked at the card
Corvic had taken notice of the card, and a small smile crept across his bloodied face.
"So...he thought you were ready. Giving you that before heroically dying...that is so like him," Corvic said
"Corvic, what is this for anyways?" Hiro asked
"That's a class one access card, capable of gaining entry to every room in the tower," Corvic said
Hiro looked at the card with a look of determination on his face.
"He said to go to Basement Level 4...what exactly is down there?" Hiro asked
"Go find out," Corvic said as he slowly moved his hand towards the entrance to the west tower
Hiro and Zero Two began to run towards the entrance, but after a few steps, they stopped.
"What about you?" Asked Zero Two
Corvic let out a painful laugh.
"Go...I'll be fine. Now go on, get down there already..."
...
...
"Make those bastards pay."
Hiro and Zero Two rand towards the entrance of the western tower, and they soon found themselves in a ruined lobby.
"There," Zero Two said as she pointed to an elevator shaft
Hiro and Zero Two ran over to in and peeked through the mangled doors. They looked down into the shaft and saw that it went pretty far down. Regardless, they had no choice.
They both jumped into the shaft one after the other, clinging onto the cables. Slowly but surely, they began their descent down in the darkness...
Franxxinus Tower Basement Level 4...
After prying the door open, Zero Two and Hiro were hit by a wave of light. When their eyes finally adjusted, they found themselves in a room filled with only partially assembled franxx.
"Oh wow, there sure are a lot of them," Zero Two said as she looked around the massive hanger
Hiro, who was also taking in his surroundings, noticed a large door at the very end of the hanger, a door with one massive number sequence on it.
"016002...that has to be what Kitaroshi wanted us to find," Hiro said as he pointed towards the door
"It must be, those numbers are our Parasite designations," Zero Two said
The two began to run towards the door, which was a good distance away from them, but they eventually made it to the massive door. As the looked at the door, Hiro saw a small scanner on the door.
"Alright Kitarohsi, lets see what you wanted us to find," Hiro said as he placed the card against the scanner
A huge metallic crash could be heard, and the loud metallic clicking as the door slowly began to open. Behind the door was light, and as the door opened, that light began to shine through.
But it was what was behind the door that wade Hiro and Zero Two look on with shock and awe.
The tall slender figure, the white and orange plating, the massive lance perfectly crafted for battle, all of it stood magnificently before them. The memories the two had shared, the battles they had fought, the love that had made them live as one, all of it began replaying in their minds as the sight unfolded before them.
It was a vessel that they thought they'd never see again, an elegant machine that only they could pilot. A symbol of their love...standing before them...
The lost franxx, Strelitzia, stood before them...
"It can't be..." Hiro said in amazement
He and Zero Two began to walk towards the franxx that they had once fought together in so many centuries ago. Everything looked exactly the same, absolutely nothing had changed about it.
"It looks just a beautiful as ever Darling...the symbol of our union," Zero Two said with a smile
As they walked up next to it, they saw two Parasite suits hanging on a rack, along with other gadgets and tools. Hiro and Zero Two both exchanged looks of determination.
"You know what we have to do, right?" Hiro asked as he looked at Zero Two
"You don't even need to ask, Darling," Zero Two said
Outside the tower...
"Sir, we still haven't established contact with out recovery team," a Quadriad franxx said as it hovered next to Cyrus's black and red franxx
"Well then...it seems that they have failed," Cyrus said
"What should we do sir?" The Quadriad franc asked
"There is nowhere for them to run to...we will find them in time," Cyrus said
The battle raged on in the skies, but unbeknownst to Cyrus, as new player was about to enter the fray...
Franxxinus Tower Basement Level 4...
Neither of them ever imagined they would be stepping inside of a franxx again, let alone Strelitzia itself. Neither of them ever imagined they'd wear Parasite suits again, and yet here they were.
Hiro was now clad in a black Parasite suit with blue veins of light spread out across its surface. Zero Two's was black with rosy red colored veins.
"You look good Darling, very manly," Zero Two said with a seductive smile
"You look pretty great yourself," Hiro said
The two pilots, now clad in their new gear, stepped onto a platform the was next to Strelitzia. Once they were both on, Hiro pressed a button that made the platform begin to rise into the air towards Strelitzia's head. It came to a stop, perfectly aligned with a door located on the back of Strelitzia's head.
Hiro and Zero Two stepped towards the door, and saw a handprint scanner next to it on each side. Hit and Zero Two both placed a hand on one of the scanners, and a robotic voice spoke out to them.
"DNA scanning successful, pilots 016 Hiro and 002 Itoa recognized, Strelitzia Prime access granted," the voice said
The circular door opened, and Hiro and Zero Two stepped inside. The cockpit looked almost exactly like they did in the old days, almost nothing had changed except for a few small technical aspects here and there.
"Wow...I never thought we'd be back here," Hiro said as he locked himself into position
"Neither did I, and yet here we are again. It seems the world still needs pilots like us Darling," Zero Two said as she locked herself into position as well
Once the two were locked in, the screen in front of them lit up, revealing the hanger they had been standing in minutes ago.
"Pilots in position, systems operating at 85% capacity, weapons operating at 92% efficiency, full system readout: 88% maximum efficiency."
"Well, I guess this will have to do," Hiro said with a smile
"Both pilots confirmed, life support systems online, pilot vitals green...begin neural connection?"
A small panel appeared next to Hiro, and one appeared next to Zero Two as well. Hiro looked down at Zero Two, and Zero Two looked up at Hiro.
"Let's do this Darling," Zero Two said with a smile
"Agreed," Hiro said
Both of them pressed the button...
In an instant, they could see each other's memories flooding one another's minds, memories of their life together centuries ago. They saw the battles they took part in, the friends they had lost, the war that they had won.
On top of that, they also saw memories they thought for sure had been lost. Hiro saw Iota, the girl born into this world, going to school and playing with friends. Zero Two saw Hiro, the Hiro born into this world, attending a funeral.
Above all else, they each saw a shared memory, the momentary of them reuniting for the first time, under the Great Sakura on that fateful night.
"Zero Two...I remember, I remember everything!" Hiro said happily
"Yes Darling, I remember everything too!" Zero Two said with equal happiness
Outside on Strelitzia Prime, its face lit up with a happy and determined smile. Strelitzia Prime grabbed its massive lance, and looked up at the ceiling above.
"We've done it Zero Two, we've become one once again!" Hiro said
"Yes Darling, we will share our wings once more!" Zero Two said
Strelitzia Prime fired its thrusters and blasted through the ceiling above, blasting its way to the surface...
Above Ground...
Corvic was still lying on the ground, although he had managed to roll over onto his back. He was looking at the morning sky, and the battle that was roaring above him.
"Haa...I wonder if those kids made it..." Corvic said to himself
Suddenly, Corvic felt the ground began to rumble, and without warning, a blazing ball of orange light blasted up from underground, rocketing into the sky above. Corvic looked upwards with a smile.
"Hell yea...I knew you guys could do it..."
...
...
"Juugo knew this day would come, the day when you would share your wings once more."
...
...
"He always saw this day coming..."
...
...
"The day that The Jian..."
...
...
"Was REBORN..."
Wooo, look at that, longest chapter yet. This will be a nice way to bring this story into the new year of 2021, which isn't looking too great at the moment. For those of you who are wondering what most post rate took a staggering drop, it's because all of the previous chapters had actually already been written beforehand.
This story was first created by me on a website, infamously known as Wattpad, in April of 2020. It wasn't until a little while ago I decided to post on as well. Now that envy thing is up to speed, posts will come every 1-2 weeks from now on.
Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed this long chapter, and I'll see y'all next time.