Entry 15: Planting the Seed of a New Tomorrow


Shinn wasn't sure how long he'd blacked out for. A part of his mind felt it was something to do with a kind of 'cosmic shock' from forcing his way through dimensions. Checking the operations timer, he was relieved to see it had only been a few seconds.

"Shinn!" he heard Cagalli's voice call out. Jerking his controls, Shinn quickly straightened the Impulse out.

"I'm okay," he replied, noticing the Strike Rouge approach on his left monitor.

Then, he noticed the blue skies and white clouds. The far flung mountains and the low valleys. The crystal clear lakes and small wooden houses. There was no mistaking this view...

"Gensokyo," Shinn muttered. "We made it... It's Gensokyo."

"This is it, then?" Cagalli asked, taking in the view. "It's... it's beautiful."

The moment, however, was ruined by the beeping of oncoming danger. The Impulse and Strike Rouge dodged out of the way of oncoming beam fire.

Approaching them from below at alarming speed was the Destiny.

"Kishin Sagume!" Shinn yelled. "Guess it's just too much to ask you to die!"

"I will not go down!" Sagume yelled back. "Not until I've killed you! Shinn Asuka!"

An unusual feeling washed over reality. For a moment, Shinn wasn't sure if he should be afraid of it or not, until a recent memory resurfaced.

"Christ, we get it. This dimension doesn't have magic, so your ability to reverse thing with words doesn't work."

"That's it," he muttered. This was, to an extent, Sagume's home turf. As strange as it was, magic was now on the table.

"Cagalli!" Shinn called out. "We have to keep her talking!"

"What? Why?" Cagalli replied. "I don't know about you, but I'm really wishing she'd shut up about now!"

"No, don't you see?! It's what the Lunar Rabbits were talking about all those days ago!" Shinn said. "Her words reverse things! There's magic here! If she's keeps talking about killing us, they by her own ability, she won't be able to!"

"That's..." Cagalli paused, recalling the time she heard about Sagume's ability. "If it were any other guy suggesting that, I wouldn't believe it!"

Another onslaught of beams shot their way, and to Cagalli's surprise, they were much easier to dodge.

"We'll have to be careful where we shoot," Cagalli said. "Can't risk causing too much damage to the surrounding environment!"

"Copy that," Shinn replied. "Now, let's begin our counter!"


On the bridge of the Archangel, Murrue and Natarle let out small sighs.

"It's a quiet day, huh?" Murrue said.

"It really is," Natarle replied. "You'd think we'd have grown tired of them after five months, yet here we are."

"Everyone else has remained rather diligent, though," Murrue commented. "Yzak and Flay took most of the group out to look into Akyuu's request, Athrun's out on yet another date with Kosuzu, Mu's doing his routine checkup on Kira. It's... simple, now."

"Murrue, this sort of peace is what all proper soldiers strive for," Natarle responded.

Then, as if responding to a taunt, one of the consoles began beeping.

"Just couldn't last, could it," Natarle sighed, as she walked over to the station in question.

"What is it?" Murrue asked.


"What is it?" Kosuzu asked.

"Mobile Suits," Mu answered, looking through his binoculars. "Two models I don't recognise, and... a red Strike?"

"Red Strike?" Miri repeated. "Where did they come from?"

"No clue. Can't even tell which one's are friends or foes," Mu said. "We should get back to the Archangel. They're probably understaffed with everyone out and about."


"They really just can't give us a break, huh?" Athrun asked. "Hasn't even been a hour since we fought Nagae Iku."

"No rest for the wicked, I guess," Kira commented.

Tenshi gave him a look of concern. "Will you be alright?" she asked. "I know you just got off your first real fight in a while, but..."

Kira smiled softly, and pat Tenshi on the head. "I'll be alright," he said. "I feel that I am ready, at the very least."

"Unfortunately, I don't think I'll be able to back you up, though," Athrun said. "Hisoutensoku's still in for maintenance, after all. Guess I'm relegated to the bench."

"Don't worry, Zala-san," Reimu said. "I'll be sure to pick up your weight."

"She's right!" Cirno exclaimed. "That just means you can join us while we wait, Artorias Salami!"

Athrun gave the ice fairy a flat look. "That one was on purpose, wasn't it?"

Kira chuckled lightly. "Well, Reimu?" he said, addressing the Shrine Maiden. "Shall we?"

"I'll give you a head start," Reimu said. "Wouldn't want to steal all the fun."


"Well, that's problematic," Marisa commented. "Three new 'bots, going at it up there."

"One of them looks like the freaking Strike, too," Yzak said. "Today's just a weird day."

"You mean, after the whole 'DNA coding' and 'blowing up a ritual alter'?" Flay asked.

Sanae didn't comment, only continued to stare at the Mobile Suits that fought in the sky. "The Impulse and Strike Rouge... fighting together?" she questioned. "And, against the Destiny, too... What is going on?"


While the whole 'reversing a situation' was working for them, Shinn and Cagalli still had a hard time keeping up with Kishin Sagume. Because unlike Sagume, the Natural and Coordinator had to worry about their battery levels.

"Damn it, there's hardly any openings!" Shinn exclaimed, unloading the head-mounted vulcans on the Impulse. "Starting to think my idea wasn't so great after all!"

"Hey, it's better than nothing!" Cagalli responded, firing her beam rifle from below her enemy.

The Destiny moved with speed and precision, and the illuminating exhaust of its wings made it harder to track.

In the time it took to blink, the Destiny had appeared behind the Impulse, and shot it in its Force Silhouette pack. Cursing, Shinn ejected the pack, and knowing that he probably wouldn't survive the landing in MS form, ejected the Core Splendor.

"Die already, Shinn Asuka!" Sagume yelled, unloading the CIWS' on the small jet. Shinn attempted to dodge, yet a few stray bullets struck the wings and thruster.

"Shinn!" Cagalli yelled, kicking the Strike Rouge into full throttle and tackling the Destiny. Unlike the Impulse, the Strike Rouge, even with it's Aile Striker pack, didn't handle atmospheric flight the best. Better than most MS' of its generation, but it couldn't fly; only hover.

Cagalli managed to drag the Destiny to the ground, before she was thrown off, and the Phase Shift armour wore off.

Cagalli struggled to get the Strike Rouge to rise. Completely out of fuel, it seemed. The Destiny loomed in the distance, glaring at her.

"I... Will not take this defeat!" Sagume screamed, as she fired her beam rifle. "Perish, you filthy human!"

Cagalli grit her teeth, biting back tears. "Dad... Kira... I'm sorry..."

An explosion echoed, but Cagalli didn't feel the embrace of death. Hesitantly, she opened her eyes.

She saw smoke through the camera, but it was blocked by a familiar silhouette. Her eyes followed those black-white-and-red legs, to its red and blue torso, red and black Aile Striker pack, and that red-white-and-yellow head. It was like looking in a mirror, in a way.

"Who?! Who dares get in my way?!" Sagume yelled.

The pilot of the Aile Strike gave a small smile to himself. Then, over the comms, he spoke. "Kira Yamato!" he yelled. "Aile Strike! Taking off!"


The Strike charged forth at the Destiny, which attempted to flee to the sky, but was quickly cut off by a well timed shot from the Strike's beam rifle, forcing a dodge.

The Destiny aimed its rifle at the Strike, yet instead of the Mobile Suit's face, the barrel was pressed against its shield. The trigger was pulled, and while the top half of the shield was destroyed, so too was Destiny's rifle.

The Destiny staggered back, and attempted to unfurl it's beam cannon. The Strike, in response, jammed its own beam rifle down the barrel, and fired, destroying both.

"What... what the hell are you?!" Sagume shouted. "How can a puny human go toe to toe with me?!"

Reaching to it shoulders, the Destiny drew its two beam-boomerangs and threw them at the Strike. Keeping his cool, Kira drew both beam sabers from the Aile Striker pack, and with calculated precision, cut the two boomerangs in half.

If Kishin Sagume wasn't afraid before, she was down-right terrified now. "I... I won't lose to the likes of you!" she screamed, drawing out the Destiny's Arondight sword.

Kira noticed something in the air change. He wasn't sure what, but at this point, he had a battle to focus on. The Arondight swung down fiercely, and lodged itself into the ground where the Strike once stood. A clear, easy opening to take advantage of. With a single swing of the beam saber in its right hand, the Strike cleaved the forearms off the Destiny from the elbow, leaving them attached to the sword.

The Destiny staggered back, shocked. "I... wha... How can I..." Sagume stuttered out, at a loss for words. "I can't... not like..."

In a panic, the Destiny took off to the skies, fleeing from its foe. The moment it turned its back, however, the Strike had already closed the distance, and with a single slash from each of its sabers, had taken the wings from its back. Panicked, Sagume reached for a particularly unique piece of cloth kept under her seat, the Lunar Veil, and tapped into its power of transportation.


From Kira's perspective, it was a weird sight to see. As the Destiny fell back to Earth from it's barely 30 meter jump, a ball of white light had escaped from its back, and shot off into the sky, leaving the Mobile Suit to fall lifelessly to the ground.

"Did they give up?" Kira muttered, as he slowly approached the Destiny. Using the Strike's foot, he flipped the Destiny onto its back, and pulling out one of the Strike's two Armour Schneider knives, levered the cockpit hatch open.

"Empty," Kira said. "That light must have been some kind of teleportation spell, then. But, why's a Gensokyian piloting an MS?" Shaking off his confusion, Kira opened his comms. "Kira to Archangel, do you read me?"

"Archangel reads you," responded the voice of Athrun. "What's your status?"

"Winged MS has been defeated, but the pilots escaped somewhere. The red Strike's still intact, but out of juice from the looks of things, and the third Suit's MIA. Miri still not back yet?"

"None of the others are back yet," Athrun answered. "Just our luck that the one day the ship's understaffed is the day something big happens."

"We're nothing if not consistent," Kira said. "What should we do about the third Suit?"

"I'll go out and look for it," Athrun said. "We were able to track where it crashed, and knowing Reimu, she'll probably get there first."

"Guess I'm in charge of the Strike Sister, then."

There was a brief pause over the radio. "Don't think that name's gonna catch on, buddy," Athrun said, before the connection was cut.

Kira let out a small sigh, before his eyes drifted to the severed wings at his feet. Casually, he picked one up and examined it. "These things gave that Mobile Suit some serious thrust," he observed. "I wonder if Nitori could build them into a Striker Pack." Tossing it aside for the moment, Kira began moving towards the red Strike, which had turned grey at some point. "Can you hear me?" Kira spoke up. "Don't worry, I'm here to help."

The cockpit of the red Strike opened, and out staggered a familiar face.

"Geez. What the hell took you so long, Kira?" asked Cagalli casually.


Hakurei Reimu flew high above the trees, sighing slightly. "Guess I gave too much of a head start, huh?" she said to herself. "He's really pulled himself up, I guess."

"Yo! Reimu!" called the familiar voice of Marisa, who approached at speed. "You see that showing?"

"Of course I did, Marisa," Reimu responded. "I gave him a head start, after all."

"Sounding a little sour, aren't you?" Marisa asked. "Well, at least the kid's back on his feet again. So, what are ya doing out here?"

"One of the machines crashed around here somewhere," Reimu answered. "Figured I'd at least pull some weight and see if they're still alive."

"How neighbourly of you," Marisa said. "You're really warming up to those guys, ain't ya?"

"D... don't patronise me!" Reimu exclaimed, huffing in embarrassment. "This and that are two different things, got it?!"

Marisa triggered at Reimu's display, before her expression softened into a kind smile. "Still, I'm glad," she said. "You're managing to open up again. That's a good sign."

Reimu's expression turned sad briefly. "I know. And... it took doing so much harm to others for it to happen," she muttered. "I wonder... what would he say if he saw me now?"

"Careful there, Reimu. Down that road is Hell."

Reimu nodded sadly, then noticed something in the distance. "Over there, look," she said. "I think that's our crash site."

"I see it," Marisa said. "Tiny thing, ain't it? Smaller than those Skygraspers, even."

The two lowered their altitude drastically, flying towards the site. "Let's just hope the pilot's alright," Reimu said. "And, ideally, on... our..."

Her words trailed off when the mech in question finally came into sight; a tiny, five meter long jet. A machine that the two recognised well.

"Oi... you're kidding, right?" Marisa asked hesitantly. "It's... gotta be just another model of it, right? I mean, there's two Skygraspers and all that..."

Reimu could barely form a word in her mouth, instead opting to fly down to ground level as quickly as she could.

The cockpit of the Core Splendor popped open as she approached, and it's pilot, who looked to be about as tall as Reimu, tumbled out and landed on the ground.

"Ow," the pilot muttered. "That was my face."

While he was face-down, the pilot couldn't quite be identified, but Reimu was currently 95% sure she knew who this was. That voice... it was unmistakable.

As he forced himself up, the pilot's helmet fell off, revealing a familiar head of black hair.

"Wish I could have gone for a better landing," he said quietly. "Going through trees is always a bit... too..."

He paused, looked up, and red eyes locked with hazel.

Looks of shock etched into the faces of both Hakurei Reimu and Shinn Asuka, as they stared at each other.

Reimu's purification rod fell to the ground gracelessly. "It... can't be..." she muttered in disbelief. "Shinn..?"

"Rei...mu..?" Shinn muttered. "Is it... really you?"

Shinn forced himself to his feet, yet before he could stand upright, he tripped over himself, and began to tumble forward.

"Look out!" Reimu called, quickly catching him.

That moment alone broke any possible illusion they thought they were under. The warmth of her hand on his shoulder was enough to prove it once and for all.

A single tear broke free from Reimu's eyes. "This... this is real..." she muttered. "You're... really here."

Shinn let his hand drift, and fall on Reimu's arm. "It's... not a dream, or a memory," he said in disbelief. "I... I've really made it back... finally..."

Reimu wrapped her arms around Shinn tightly, sobbing openly. "You... when did you get so short?" she said in a sad laugh.

Rather than being offended, Shinn laughed as he returned the hug. "Don't judge me," he said. "I had to take the long way back."

Off to the side, Marisa lowered the brim of her hat, hiding her expression. Considering herself to be a third wheel for those two, she elected to hide the tears of joy she shed for them.

"Heh... Way to do the impossible, kid," she muttered. "Good to have ya back."

Then, ruining the moment, something honked, startling the three greatly. There, behind Marisa, sat Athrun Zala, driving a flatbed truck.

"Sorry to interrupt you all," he called out, "but you folks look like you could use a lift."

"Could you not have timed this better?!" Reimu shouted. "I mean, really!"

"Sorry, sorry!" Athrun quickly apologised. "Didn't exactly know that... well, this was going to happen."

"Couldn't have just let it play out, could you?" Marisa asked.

"Mobile Suits fall out of the sky, and the best we can do is sit around?" Athrun asked. "Probably not the best idea. Also, are you crying?"

"Don't be stupid," Marisa responded. "I just caught something in my eye."

"Oh yeah?" Reimu asked. "What'd you catch?"

"What else?" Marisa said, raising her hat. "Tears!"


It took some work, but Kira had managed to carry the red Strike, the Strike Rouge, back to the Archangel, with Cagalli taking up occupancy in his cockpit.

"Lunarians and Lunar Rabbits, huh?" Kira said. "I've met a few here in Gensokyo, but they never struck me as the type to wage war like that."

"Lucky you," Cagalli said. "The only Lunarian we had the displeasure of meeting was Sagume, the bitch piloting the Suit you just totalled. Good work on that, by the way."

"Well, things haven't exactly been peachy for us, either," Kira said. "We've had to improve quite a bit ourselves, and since you were last with us, we... we lost Tolle and Sai."

Cagalli's expression turned to shock, then sadness. "I... I'm sorry," she muttered.

"Don't be," Kira said. "It's not your fault, after all. We've... made amends, at the very least."

The radio began to beep. "Archangel to Strike, do you read?" spoke the familiar voice of Miriallia.

"Loud and clear, Miri," Kira replied. "Finally got back from your trip?"

"From all the way at the Hakurei Shrine, might I add," Miri answered. "Natarle already gave me the rundown, though it seems you've already got things sorted."

"One enemy MS down with an escaped pilot, another missing, and I'm carrying the last one. You'll never guess who's riding shotgun right now."

Cagalli chose this time to speak up. "Yo, Miri. Been a while, huh?"

"Cagalli?!" Miri exclaimed. "Oh my god, it's been forever!"

"Half a year, girl, calm down," Cagalli laughed.

Kira smiled. "Miri, mind if I ask what happened to Athrun?"

"After Mu and I got back, he took the truck out to search for the missing third MS," Miri answered. "Our radar also picked up that Reimu and Marisa were in that area, too."

The radio buzzed once more. "I can confirm that," came Athrun's voice. "I'm currently en-route to the Archangel with plus three passengers and plus one tiny jet."

"Is Shinn alright?" Cagalli asked.

"Don't worry, bud," the voice of Marisa piped up. "He and Reimu are currently napping this trip out in the back of this bad-boy."

There was a slight pause. "Am I... suppose to know who this is?" Cagalli asked.

"Kirisame Marisa," Kira answered. "You've not met before; she's a local."

Then, there was a sudden beeping of an alarm. "Heads up, Kira. Something's just appeared in the sky," Miriallia said. "It's... some kind of rip in the fabric of reality?"

"A rip?" Cagalli asked. "Tell me, is there a warship, several lifeboats, and a few dozen Mobile Suits coming out of it?!"

"Scanning... can confirm. The lifeboats have identifier codes linked to Orb, too," Miri answered.

Cagalli let out a sigh of relief. "Oh, thank God. They made it."

"Allies, got it," Miri concluded. "Lieutenant La Flaga, you get all that?"

"Every last word, Miri," Mu La Flaga spoke up. "Skygrasper's fuelled and ready to go. I'll guide our new friends down."


Blue skies. An endless horizon. Seas of green. This was the view that greeted the crew of the Eternal when they finally left the Boundary.

"It's... amazing," Kuzzey muttered. "We actually made it..."

"Oh, ye of little faith," Yukari said. "I've done things like this before. Not on this scale, sure, but still."

"I can only hope Shinn and Cagalli made it," Lacus muttered. "Or, if not, that they ended up somewhere safe."

"While I cannot speak for the girl," Yukari said, "that Eloper is something of a cockroach. I'm sure he's still kicking around."

"Woman, you need to lay off the kid," Andrew called out. "I don't know what beef you had with him, nor do I get this whole 'reincarnator' jazz, but he's only 14."

Yukari shrugged dismissively, seeming done with any further comment on the topic.

Then, Meer called out. "We're getting an incoming transmission, ma'am!" she called out. "Origin of the signal is... a Skygrasper?"

"Put it through," Lacus instructed.

There was a slight buzz, before the connection was established. "Hello, hello! Can you all here me?" spoke the pilot. "You folks look like you've been through the wringer. If you need a place to crash, might I direct you down to the Misty Lake?"

"That's... Mu!" Kuzzey exclaimed. "Mu La Flaga!"

"That voice... That you, Kuzzey Buskirk?" Mu replied. "You son of a gun! Glad to see you're still alive!"

"Glad to hear there's still friends out there," Andrew spoke up. "Now, you said something about a lake?"


It took a while, but before long, the Eternal had safely landed in the waters of the Misty Lake, just off the shore, with the Mobile Suits and lifeboats taking up space on the land.

Mu parked his Skygrasper on the edge of the crowd, and watched as Naturals, Coordinators, and... rabbit people, got out of all the machines.

"Huh. Didn't know we had youkai in the Cosmic Era," Mu noted casually. "Wait, who am I kidding? We would have known if we did."

"Afraid things have been a bit more complicated, Hawk," a deep, familiar voice spoke. Mu turned, to see an all too familiar face.

"Ledonir Kisaka," Mu said, "glad to see you're still alive and kicking."

"Not for the enemy's lack of trying, mind you," Kisaka replied. "Right now, though, I'm worried about the young lady."

"Cagalli? She crashed down here about half an hour ago," Mu said. "Same as that other kid. Kira and Athrun are getting them back to the Archangel right now."

"They're fine?!" Kisaka asked in surprise, before letting out a sigh of relief. "Thank God. I do not think Lord Uzumi could rest peacefully if Lady Cagalli followed him so soon."

"The Lion or Orb is dead?" Mu asked, shocked. "That's... crap, man. I'm sorry for your loss."

The two men shared in the sombre silence, until a faint rumbling was heard in the distance.

"Please tell me that's friendly," Kisaka said. "I think we've all had enough of fighting for one day."

"One moment," Mu replied, taking the radio from the Skygrasper. "Mu to Archangel, are you guys moving the ship?"

"Archangel to Mu," came Miri's response, "we are indeed moving the ship. Make it easier to share supplies."

"Ten-four, Miri." Mu hung up the radio. "Yeah, it's just us."

Kisaka let out a sigh of relief. "Thank heavens for that." He then noticed Mu snicker to himself. "What? Is there something funny about what I said?"

"Trust me, buddy," Mu said, "we've got quite the story to tell ya."


Shinn slowly began to open his eyes. When had he dozed off? Some time after getting on that truck, he believed.

As his ears picked up the sound of mechanics tinkering away at machines, people moving to and fro, as well as the faint sensation of large-scale movement, his eyes told him that, right now, he was located in an unfamiliar hanger.

There was something substantially different to this hanger. It felt less... professional, he guessed.

His eyes wandered for a brief moment, before falling on the dozing form of Reimu at his side. At that moment, his heart felt lighter, and he gave a small smile.

"This is probably the most peaceful I've ever seen her," someone unfamiliar commented. Shinn looked up, to see a brown haired boy with purple eyes watching over them. "Good afternoon, Shinn Asuka."

"G... good afternoon," Shinn responded. "Do... do I..."

"We haven't met before," the boy responded. "I'm Kira Yamato. Cagalli's told me a bit about you."

"She's alright then?" Shinn asked. "That's a relief. What about that woman? Kishin Sagume?"

"Bailed, after I cut her winged MS up," Kira answered. "Certainly an odd one, that woman."

"More like a royal pain in the ass," Shinn muttered.

At this point, Reimu began to stir awake. "Finally awake, Reimu?" Kira asked.

"Yamato..?" Reimu said groggily. She looked around in a slight daze, until she finally saw Shinn, and smiled lightly. "Ah. So it wasn't a dream."

Shinn returned the smile warmly, not saying a word. Kira, for his part, looked rather awkward. "I... feel like I'm out of place here," he muttered. "How do you two know each other?"

"It's..." Reimu hesitated briefly. "It's a long story, okay?"

Kira, rather than pressing the matter, smiled. "Alright. If you ever want to share it with me, or anyone, we'll be here to listen."

It was a generally sweet gesture, one that caused Shinn to pull Reimu closer to himself, as if he were being threatened. "Back off, buddy," he threatened.

Kira didn't take offence. In fact, he laughed at the sight. "It's alright. I've no plan to steal your love."

While both Shinn and Reimu got noticeably flustered, the ship shook, then came to a complete halt. "Ah, looks like we've finally landed," Kira noted.

"Landed?" Shinn asked. "Landed where?"

"The outskirts of the lake!" called out Athrun from across the hanger. "Your allies landed there, after all."

"My allies... you mean the Eternal!" Shinn exclaimed. Then, a look of potential horror etched its way onto his face. "Then... Mayu!"

With that, he sprinted off in a panic, leaving behind two very confused people.

Shinn quickly made his way outside, and scanned the scene in front of him. People he assumed were the crew of the Archangel helping unload the Orb citizens who remained, on top of aiding the Lunar Rabbits who all looked various forms of dishevelled. Shinn was quick to pick out Rey and Lunamaria in the crowd, and from that, came the spark of relief.

With those two, he saw Sara, Miyu, and more importantly, Mayu Asuka.

"Mayu!" Shinn called out, running forward.

Mayu looked his way, and a wave of relief washed over her. "Shinn..." she muttered, before breaking out into a full sprint. "Shinn!"

The siblings embraced each other tightly. "Thank God..." Shinn muttered. "If... If I'd lost you again... I..."

To everyone who watched this, the scene of two sibling embracing would easily be considered the highlight of the day. From a few feet away, Reimu and Kira watched, smiling.


Kishin Sagume walked the streets of the Lunar Capital, seething with rage.

She had been, for lack of better words, been utterly humiliated. Three years of campaign against the Cosmic Era, burned to the ground by that boy, Shinn Asuka.

The feathers on Sagume's one wing were perpetually ruffled. No one, Lunar Rabbit or Lunarian, dared to approach her, in fear of what hell she might inflict upon them.

But, Sagume could not speak her grievances. If she did; if she cursed Shinn's name, then no doubt causality would flip on its head in some way.

"Is your pride really so weak that a single loss is enough to throw you for a loop, Sagume?" spoke the voice of one of Sagume's long-time acquaintances.

Sagume glared hard at the violet haired woman in red. "Watatsuki no Yorihime," she spat. "Spare me your platitudes. I want none of them."

Yorihime let out a small scoff. "Then, why draw attention to them?" she asked. "Your complacency got the better of you, and the fact that you held a knife up to the backs of your own soldiers was your undoing."

Sagume let out a rage-filled groan. "Still your tongue, you wretch of the Defense Corps!" she hissed. "I've no need for your pity, nor your criticisms! My plan..."

"Hinged on outdated foreign technology that you looked into at a surface level," Yorihime finished. "Your 'plan', as it were, was held down by your wanton disregard for the lives under your command. No, perhaps it was more your disregard for life in general."

Sagume's hand lashed out at Yorihime's throat, only to be intercepted by the latter's sword stopping less than an inch away from the former's throat.

"You have your orders from Lord Tsukuyomi, Kishin Sagume," Yorihime said. "Face it; you're benched. Toyohime and I will be leading the assault from now on."

Removing the blade from Sagume's throat, Yorihime began to walk off. "You... you think YOU'RE a better choice for the assault?!" Sagume shouted. "You, the Watatsuki sisters, who in these three years of campaigning, haven't killed a single Earthling?! You, who seems to go so far out of the way as to spare every one you can?! You're kill-count is only in buildings!"

Yorihime cast a glare over her shoulder. "If you are not prepared to die yourself, you should not be prepared to kill," she said. "It's funny how easy it is for us, who threw off traditional mortality, forgot that simple fact."

Once Yorihime had finally left the area, Sagume punched the nearest wall.


A/N:

On the shorter side, maybe, but after the endevour that was Chapter 13? It evens out, I think.

Now we've got Kira's return to form, the union of two factions, the reunion of two lovers, and slight insight into the Lunarian machinations.

To be honest I had originally planned for Yorihime to have a similar disposition to Sagume, but... well, every army needs reasonable generals, me thinks.

Well, time to press on.