WARNING:
This story contains spoilers for God Eater 3, up to the end of Chapter 6. I know my writing isn't the best and Hugo is probably a bit OOC but I just love him and the MC so much together. I might rewrite the ending to this story at one point as I am not too happy with it. Maybe I'll even add some more chapters, who knows. For now, enjoy!
UPDATE: 26. DEC 2020 – I was bored and cringed at the sloppy writing of this so I rewrote most of it and added a few chapters. Merry Christmas!
Luca
. . .
"Remember, you're my accomplice in all this."
"As long as we're together, we can do this."
"I've got you by my side after all."
These and many more of her and Hugo's past exchanges were swirling through Luca's head as she mindlessly stared at the log in her hand, scanning the details of their next mission. The mission that was supposed to ultimately return Phym to them, should Hugo's plan work out.
Hugo…
Luca sighed, confused and irritated at her inability to focus on the task at hand and shut down the tablet she was holding, tossing it on a nearby table. She turned around and buried her face in her hands, resting her arms on the cold steel of the railing, letting her mind wander.
Out of everyone in their group she was by far the most level-headed. Next to Hugo at least. Her impeccable focus and dedication when it came to preparing for missions and strategizing were only amplifying her formidable skill in battle. Today, though, she was unable to concentrate on the plan that was discussed a few hours prior.
"Okay, fine. But how do we know the Ash Aragami will show up when we need them? Wait… 'You guys'? What are you gonna be doing?" Zeke asked, the suspicion in his tone not lost.
"Taking a walk with the Ash Aragami of course. I'll be leading them to the transport. I'll figure something out."
Hugo's words still rang hollow in her head.
"You idiot." She cursed under her breath.
The noise of the elevator door opening momentarily snapped her out of her train of thought but as she saw the figure stepping out onto the bridge her eyes narrowed. Hugo's gaze found hers and he slowly made his way across to her. Her emotions must have been written all over her face because Hugo was oddly hesitant when he crooked a smile and greeted her with a small "Hey."
"That face… You haven't changed since we were kids." He said with a small chuckle and moved to stand beside her.
She huffed, frustration and annoyance still apparent in her expression but she couldn't help but chuckle in return. A heavy silence fell over them, then. Luca didn't know how to address the issue and wondered if maybe it was better left untouched. The plan was to be set in motion and as much as she hated having Hugo put himself in danger, all by himself no less, she had to admit that this plan of his seemed to be the only chance they had at getting Phym back. Her expression turning sour again, it was Hugo who broke the silence instead, causing her to shift her attention back to him.
"Come to think of it, we haven't done any work apart since we got out of Pennywort…"
His voice trailed off, and Luca stopped to think that maybe … Hugo was just as nervous about the upcoming mission as she was. For them, fighting together, side by side, had become second nature by that point. But … it was more than that. It wasn't just the fighting. They had been together ever since they were kids. Growing up together, living together, fighting together, surviving together. Being together.
"Hugo.." She breathed, looking at him with anxious eyes.
"I know." He said quietly in response, eyes downcast and lips pursed.
Words were not needed to explain what either of them was thinking. They could reach each other with disturbing ease, and both knew that this was a line they mustn't cross. They've always had a sort of mutual unspoken understanding that their previous and current situation did not allow them the luxury of acting on their feelings or urges. Back at Pennywort their sole purpose was surviving the horrid conditions they had to live under and trying to keep the children who were imprisoned with them alive as best as they could. Now on the Chrysanthemum they had to prove their worth to Hilda, fight for their freedom and protect Phym. Wasting time exchanging pleasantries or letting emotions cloud their judgement when in battle was simply not an option given their circumstances. She knew that. Hugo knew that. They both knew, but... As Hugo pointed out, this was the first time they were going on separate missions since they were paired up at Pennywort. The first time they can't support and protect each other on the battlefield.
"Hugo." She said sternly, her voice steely and leaving no room for argument. "Promise me you'll come back alive. Promise me you'll be careful." She hesitated before adding; "Promise you'll come back to me."
Hugo's eyes widened slightly, taken aback by the force in her voice. This might have been the most openly either of them has ever expressed how much the other's life meant to them, the closest one of them has come to overstepping that invisible line. Lingering touches and longing looks were the most they allowed themselves to relish in but this time it was different.
"Promise me, Hugo", Luca urged. Her voice had a slight edge to it, desperation slowly seeping through.
Hugo smiled and brought his hand up to rest on her shoulder. "I promise. After all, we agreed to fight for our future together."
And he meant it. She could see that despite his calm exterior he was just as uneasy about letting her go off alone as she was, but he also seemed confident in his plan. Confident that she would succeed. That they would succeed.
His hand felt heavy on her shoulder and she heaved a sigh, looking over to the tablet she was holding earlier, knowing that she had to get it together and focus to do her part in this plan properly. To not let Hugo's efforts go to waste.
"Together." She repeated his words, emphasizing his promise to her, before continuing; "I'll see you on the other side." With a small smile she brushed past him, shoulders touching slightly. Making her way over to the table and grabbing the tablet she tossed there earlier, she stopped just before stepping into the elevator.
"Be careful." She said quietly, barely above a whisper but loud enough for Hugo to hear, before letting the doors close behind her.
Just barely escaping the Nemain's charge attack, Luca darted behind a collapsed rock formation and pressed her back against the cool stone, panting heavily. Cursing under her breath she rummaged through her pockets with one hand while pressing the other down on an especially nasty gash on her left arm. "Damnit, damnit…" Frustrated, she shifted so that her position allowed her to survey the battlefield. The Nemain was currently focusing its span of attacks on Zeke, slowly pushing him back and into a corner.
"Oh no you don't…" Luca murmured threateningly before charging out of her cover and towards the Aragami.
"Lulu, I'm out of healing pills! Cover me while I close in on it from behind!"
Lulu acted immediately and positioned herself behind Luca, shooting a few healing bullets her way before switching back to her dual knives, ready to step in and strike at Luca's command.
Luca readied her sniper, took aim and fired three precise shots at the Nemain's head, causing it to stagger and momentarily halt its fury of attacks.
"Zeke!" she screamed, "Hit its blades with your hammer while it's down!"
Zeke did as he was told and crushed the Aragami's sharp daggers under his enormous hammer, successfully rendering them useless. Lulu came in from behind and slashed open its legs with her knives causing the creature to fall to the ground with a blood curling scream. Seizing the opportunity Luca rushed forward, delivering the killing blow with immaculate precision by burying her blade in the Aragami's head.
"Is... Is it over…?" Lulu asked with a shaky voice, eyeing the unmoving form of the Nemain.
Luca watched the remains of the creature slowly dissolve and being swallowed by the ground before turning to her teammates.
"Yeah. According to our mission log this was the last one."
As soon as they got back to the Chrysanthemum, they all but collapsed on the Bridge. Keith came running over to check on his brother, but Zeke only waved him off with a lazy grin.
"Piece of cake.", he laughed and promptly passed out.
Luca rolled her eyes but chuckled, standing up and offering Lulu a hand to help her stand.
"He's just exhausted." she explained to Keith, offering him a reassuring smile. "We're fine. Admittedly, we underestimated how much more difficult an expedition would be with one member less in the squad, but we came out of it without any serious injuries. The mission objective has been completed and the path is now clear of Aragami."
After delivering her report and getting the cut on her arm patched up in the infirmary Luca made her way back to the Bridge to speak to Amy but stopped short of the reception desk. The lavender haired girl was furiously typing on multiple keyboards, her eyes never leaving the four big screens in front of her. Her brows were knitted in what could only described as helpless frustration and an uncomfortable feeling of heavy dread started to form in the pit of Luca's stomach.
"Amy..." she started carefully, trying not to let her anxiousness shine through but desperate to know of Hugo's mission status. "Are there any news from Hugo? Has he sent us the signal yet?"
Amy looked at Luca with a mixture of pity and fear and though Luca almost expected the next words that came out of Amy's mouth, she was not prepared for how soul crushing the reality of it felt.
"N-No, we have not had an update yet and lost his signal some time ago. It has been a while since he set out. He's almost at his limit for the Ashlands."
Luca closed her eyes and balled her fists, trying desperately not to lose it in front of Amy. She nodded at the girl in front of her in acknowledgement and made her way to the residential block, the thoughts in her head running wild. When she got to the female quarters she let herself collapse on her bed, letting out a sigh and burying her head in her pillow.
"You promised me to come back alive. Don't make me regret trusting you.", she murmured into the soft fabric.
She doesn't know how long she was laying there staring at the ceiling when Amy's sudden voice over the intercom made her jump. Quickly making her way back to the bridge, she joined her circle of friends who were already gathered around the navigator's desk.
"There it is! Hugo's sent us the signal to start the mission!"
Luca's shoulders sacked in relief and she broke out in a smile. Looking over at Lulu and Zeke, they quickly nodded at each other and made their way to the terminals, preparing for the next part of the mission.
. . .
Standing on top of the cliff, they observed the spectacle that was unfolding before them. Explosions left and right, the ground shaking underneath them whenever the Ash-Aragami let out a terrifying growl and lastly – the fall of the cargo and the Aragami into the depths of the unknown, the ground swallowing them whole.
"There's reckless, and then there's Hugo…" Zeke pointed out with a proud grin and Luca couldn't help but sport a small smile of amazement herself.
That reckless idiot. He really went and successfully lured the Ash-Aragami to the cargo transporter without getting himself killed.
"Right," she exclaimed and readied god arc. "Now we've got to do our part. Focus on what we've discussed and stay alive. Our main priority is locating Phym and bringing her back with us safely."
Zeke and Lulu nodded before they all made their way to the collapsed cargo area.
. . .
Fighting off an Ashborne in an enclosed space with as many twists and turns as this one proved to be a lot more difficult than they originally anticipated. Dodging the Balmung's devour attacks was almost impossible and not more than once did Luca have to take a hit. Bloodied and battered she sighed in relief when the beast finally collapsed, seemingly drawing its last breath. Without hesitation she turned and ran towards Phym's tiny form, still unconscious and propped up against the wall. Carefully cradling her head in her lap Luca slowly stroked Phym's head, humming soothing melodies into the girl's white hair.
"Please be okay..." she muttered, her heart breaking at the thought of the sweet girl being chained and imprisoned like a monster.
A voice brought her back to reality and tears threatened to form in the corners of her eyes when her gaze locked with Hugo's.
"You did well… Our mission was a success," he said with a small smile, addressing the other three before looking back at her.
Luca collected herself and let out a chuckle.
"All thanks to your heroic efforts. Say, was it really necessary to put on such a show?" she teased and raised an eyebrow at him, not even trying to hide the relieved smile that was firmly placed on her lips.
"Ah.. haha, you know, if you have to deal with life-threatening situations daily, you might as well make it a little fun, right?", he replied with a shrug of his shoulders and a wink.
Back on the Chrysanthemum Luca parted with her friends and carried Phym into the female quarter where she gently laid the girl on her bed to rest. While the others were getting their injuries checked up in the infirmary, Luca decided to stay with Phym for now, relishing in the quiet of the dorm room. She hadn't noticed just how exhausted she was. The missions took everything out of her physically and Hugo's absence and her worry for him had exhausted her mentally. This was precisely why they could not allow themselves to even consider entertaining the feelings they might have for each other. Given their life as God Eaters they had to be in excellent shape at all times and focus solely on the mission objective and their own survival. Too dangerous the world outside. Letting their mind be clouded with fear and worry was as good as signing their own death sentence.
Luca heaved a sigh and stood up from the bed, stretching her sore muscles and peeling her blood covered jacket off her shoulders when a knock brought her back to reality. With sluggish steps she made her way over to the door and couldn't hide her surprise when Hugo stood before her.
"What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in the infirmary with the others?" she asked and turned her back to him to continue to take off her blood-soaked gear, leaving the door open for Hugo to step through.
"I was the first to be done. No injuries, so they let me go already," she heard him say, followed by a click of the door falling shut.
"Show-off," she said with an amused tone while unlacing her boots.
"Luca."
At the sound of her name she looked up at Hugo who was still standing by the door but now slowly made his way across to her, coming to a stop near her bed where Phym was still soundly asleep.
"I'm proud of you. Without you, this mission wouldn't have gone as smoothly as it did. You did well."
He trailed off before adding with a grin "But I guess I didn't expect any less from you. You are a devil out on the battlefield, after all."
Her expression softened at his words and she smiled wryly.
"Thank you for keeping your promise," she replied and turned back to her boots. The urge to hug him and tell him just how relieved she was threatened to overtake the rational part of her brain, so she busied herself with her gear instead. By doing so, the suddenly pained expression on Hugo's face was lost on her. After getting out of her boots she folded up the sleeves of her uniform, revealing a few deep cuts, some of them still dripping blood.
"Hey. Make sure to get yourself patched up in the infirmary after the others are done," Hugo said with a stern voice and gave her a look that clearly expressed how dissatisfied he was with the state she was in.
"It's fine, these are nothing major. I've come out of battle looking way worse. You should know," she replied with a slight laugh in an attempt to lighten the mood. Judging by Hugo's expression though it had the opposite effect.
"Luca-" he began when she cut him off.
"I know, I know. I'll make my way over there after I've gotten out of these clothes."
"I promise," she added when she met Hugo's gaze.
He sighed but nodded and made his way to the door, seemingly taking her words as his cue to leave.
"We need to meet with Hilda to discuss where to go from here. Meet me in her office when you are done," he said before opening the door and giving her one last smile before disappearing into the hallway.
When he was gone Luca let herself fall back onto one of the chairs, leaning her head back and letting out a deep breath.
"Why does this have to be so hard sometimes…" she whispered to herself when an unexpected touch made her jump and yelp in surprise. Next to her stood Phym, regarding her with a confused expression.
"Mommy… why you look sad?" she asked and cocked her head to the side.
Luca chuckled.
"Can't hide anything from you, can I? Mommy isn't sad, don't you worry about me." She paused and regarded the little girl before drawing her into a hug.
"Mommy's just got to figure some things out."