Arc 1 - Prophecy of Three
Chapter 6 - The Servant of Terra, Gaia
"FUCK! Why the hell did you press it-AHHHHH!" Issei was being a bit whiny as his wounds were being treated by Amy.
"Mattaku, you're quite a pain, Ise-senpai." The young woman admonished as she continued applying alcohol onto the boy's wounds.
"Warn me a bit, would you?"
"Okay. Here."
"AHHHHH!"
Motohama can only shake his head as Issei had been screaming and whining about the pain. Vali, on the other hand, suppressed a chuckle. "Well, I can't say I don't expect him to not scream, but still…" Motohama couldn't help, but resist a chuckle.
"Oi oi, he's been hit on the head by rubble." Vali gave a bit of a disgruntled look.
Motohama immediately gulped. "R-Right…"
"AHHHH, FUCK!"
"Don't be too loud, sempai. Mou, this is a pain to take care off." Amy muttered with exhaustion. Motohama and Vali could only roll their eyes as Issei continued to cry out in pain.
"How will he be?" Tsubasa asked as Matsuda was placed on a hospital bed. His uncle, Shunya sighed at the question before taking a simple sip from his cup of coffee.
"He'll be fine...it's a miracle that he survived the entire ordeal…" He admitted as Leah brought a bouquet of flowers, placing them by a vase.
"I sure hope he pulls out of this." Leah held her hands together.
"I'm sure he will, he's too stubborn to die." His uncle laughed good naturedly. "So why are the two of you here?"
"Supervisor." Tsubasa answered simply.
"I just want to give him flowers to brighten up the room." Leah answered with a bright smile.
"Well, I guess Super GUTS is filled with extraordinary people, huh? I should expect nothing less...well...I'll leave him to you two."
"Haiiii~" Leah waved as the man got out of the room. "Tsubasa-sempai, you think Matsuda-kun will pull through?"
"...Maybe."
"I was...expecting a more solid answer."
"Well, I'm not a doctor."
"Weren't you-" Tsubasa turned at her sharply, causing the girl to cut her sentence off early. "..."
"...Apologies." Tsubasa sighed as she grasped her face. "Just...I'm just stressed...I'll leave him to you, Leah."
"O-Okay…" Leah mumbled in fear as Tsubasa exited the room.
A few days passed as Motohama packed up his things, Osaka was no longer viable as the Sphias had caused considerable damage to the city when they split into smaller cells. Now he was scheduled to be in Germany, or more precisely, the city of Munich with his cousin as he was relocated there as the Osaka University had been closed down for reconstruction.
He had heard about the GUTS in Europa being slowly modernized due to its lack of advanced equipment against the Sphias. "Oi, Motohama!" He could hear his childhood friend call out for him.
"Ise?" Sure enough, Issei was walking with a bandage on his head. "Oi oi, aren't you supposed to be in bed?"
"I can't miss you after I missed Matsuda's departure. Especially if it's out of Japan."
"...Haha…" Motohama chuckled at his friend's tenacity. "...Right then." He put the last bag into the taxi. "...I'll be away for a few weeks…"
"...Ah, stay safe."
"And...after I graduate, I'm going to move to Germany."
"Eh?"
"It's for further studies." Motohama sighed. "Dad wants me to follow through with my mother's dreams."
"...But that's-"
"That's my dream." Motohama cut off. "I want to follow through with my mother's dream…" His eyes really didn't leave room for an argument.
"...Good luck then." Issei can only give him a vote of good luck.
"Yeah, thanks…" As Motohama put his last bags in, he turned to Issei. "Well…"
"You're gonna come back before graduation, right?"
"Yeah, definitely." Motohama grinned with a nod. "Don't slack off your studies, alright?"
"Same to you."
"At least I'm getting back up to my feet, Ise." The glasses-wearing student laughed. "Seriously though, don't slack around again. You and Matsuda are one of the worst in the grades." Motohama elbowed his friend. "So...I'll see you around later on."
"Yeah...alright." As Motohama opened the door to the rented driver to the airport, he looked back to Issei and waved before entering. Issei sighed as the car began to start up and puffed some smoke before it began to pull away from the parking lane.
Motohama sighed as he laid his head onto the car seat. He felt his phone vibrate before picking it up and saw who was calling him. The moment he laid his eyes on the screen, he already felt a bead of sweat forming as his father was calling.
…
Mustering up some courage, he picked up. "Hello?"
"Akio, are you on your way?" The gruff voice of his father came through. Motohama Akio bit his lips before he answered.
"Yes, father." The boy answered. "What is it?"
"No, nothing, I am just simply checking up on you." The man simply answered.
"...I see…" Motohama nodded to himself. "...I'll see you soon then."
"Akio-"
Motohama already hung up as he put away his phone. Honestly, he hated speaking to the man, who let his mother die. He was the sole reason she perished, and adding to that, he hated the fact that he was also powerless to save her himself.
He hated that feeling so much.
"Hey, kaa-chan."
"Yes, Ise?"
"What are we eating tonight?" Issei had been on the shower before he came out and asked his mom. If there was any difference, it would've been the muscles that he had developed, both from training and bodily adaptation to his powers.
While not buffed on the outside, he was more than capable of taking care of himself with the superhuman strength, speed, dexterity, stamina and durability. Not to mention, Tiga's Fighting Style that he adopted.
"Rice and Curry, your favorite." She smiled gleefully, Issei grinned as he came up to the table, leaving the towel he used by the sofa. "Ah ah ah." The woman wiggled her finger. "Put your towel back to the bathroom, dear."
"Ah...ahahaha, sorry, kaa-chan." He did as she told before the two sat down. "Itadakimasu!"
"Partner!"
'Ddraig? What is it? Can't you see-'
"It's urgent!"
'Fine, what is it?'
"Devils. Surrounding your house. I can tell that these aren't the ones which are in your house nor is there the Host of the White One."
'Wha-'
"ENERGY SPIKE!"
"Mom! Get down!" Issei lunged for his mother as he grabbed her by the shoulders and got her to the ground.
"Issei!? What's gotten into you-" A torrent of green lightning blasted through the back window and destroyed the living room. "KYAAAHHH!"
"Mom! Stay hidden!" Issei quickly got her to the basement that they had. "Please. Don't come out, I'll-"
"You're going to come with me, young man! I don't care what happens, you are-"
"SAVE IT!" Issei roared as he held his mother's hands, a desperate look on his face. "I'm not gonna lose you like we...I lost dad...I'm not gonna stand around anymore. Now go!" His mother looked at him in shock.
"Please...don't get hurt…" She can only croak out.
"I can't promise that, but I'll definitely come back. Trust me." His mother hesitantly nodded before closing the door to the basement.
"How touching." He heard the voice of a female teenager. "Touching that you nobly sacrifice yourself for your mother. Truly a noble deed indeed, I'll promise you that I won't touch her."
'Ddraig, any clue to the bitch?'
"As far as I'm concerned? No, but there are nine Peerage Members within the vicinity. Our best bet is to wipe them out as fast as you can. Tiga or not, use me or not, blitz through them and pulverize them. We cannot let others know of our existence."
'Right.' His plan was set into motion, but the locations were not optimal for Issei to engage the Peerage as while he knew the locations, it was only the general direction and not pinpoint accuracy of where they were. "What do you want?"
"As you can tell, I had a peaked interest in getting Peerage members. You are a likely candidate."
"So she is willing to jeopardize territories, huh? The Satans are really letting their legitimacy be questioned." Ddraig snorted as Issei soon saw reflections on the window, that's two. Then his eyes shot for another window. Three. Four. Five. The other four were nowhere, other than two being by his back.
"And what about it?"
"I want to make you mine, join me and you shall receive all the riches and dreams you would always dream off." She grinned, the offer sounded tempting, but Issei knew better than that.
But still, the boy winced internally on that sentence. "Sorry, that's not gonna happen." Issei flipped the table towards the Devil before he moved his arms to perform the Ranbalt Light Bullet. As the Devil fired off a blast of green lightning at the table, destroying it and causing splinter and ash to form, she found herself being shot at by a barrage of light bullets.
"Wha-" Her Rook, a beefy fat man smashed through the wall beside her before shielding her from the light bullet barrage, the being quickly took the attack head on, the bullets exploded within reach. Issei quickly turned and fired a Hand Slash at the window, slashing through the wall, but not hitting anything. However that energy slash definitely made the ones behind the wall jump in surprise.
Issei deduced a radical decision, he quickly took his phone and called Vali's number in the emergency section before he slid it towards the fridge's base gap. "Please make it in time." Issei quickly ran towards the stairs, going to the second floor before he began to sprint.
"After him!" He could hear the bitch yell. Issei quickly hastened his sprint and jumped out of the window, breaking through, the world went slow as he saw a pair of Devils outside the house. Meaning that they were all squaring up to make sure that they could gang up on him.
He didn't know any tactics, but it was a good start, for him at least. Issei quickly began his sprinting session, the empty streets of the night quickly led him to run towards a more desolate area for him to settle this. 'Ddraig! How could we win this?'
"They're dead the moment they mess with you. Sadly, due to the lack of adaptation, you are only capable of some level of Light Bending and a limitation of using me...as a Sacred Gear, mind you."
'Damn it!' Issei quickly took a stand within the middle of the desolate zone that was awaiting demolition. He could sense nine signatures, three coming through from the front, two on the sides. They stretched their lines thin, instead of trying to brute force him.
An intimidation tactic.
"Hohhh, so you aren't as fragile as I thought you were. Surprising." She mused, the bitch as Issei watched was a woman with purple hair, draped with some red highlights, her eyes were green, her skin was fair, she was wearing a more or less professional office uniform. But her hairstyle made her look like a bitch. But she had a nice body appearance, he's not gonna lie. He didn't really pay attention so that was on him, mainly due to adrenaline and the fast paced fight there was.
"Boy, just use my power. You're not gonna survive without it."
'What's our chances of winning?'
"You'll be able to put up a fight, but in a battle of attrition? Yeah, err, let's not talk about the odds of winning and more to you surviving." Issei got to a fighting stance.
"So you want me, but have you really been respecting borders? I mean, I know I'm cool and all." Trying to provoke her by gloating all about himself.
"Oh please, shut the fuck up. If anything-" The bitch began to blabber her lines. She bought into it, he can only prolong the blabber as Vali was on her way.
'Come on, Val, where are you?'
Vali quickly teleported to Issei's house and discovered it to be an utter mess, the neighborhood had been quiet, must've been a sleeping spell around the area. Issei must've been too strong for it. Getting into the house, she called his number and heard the ringtone ring below the fridge.
"Was he trying to contact me discreetly?" She didn't mind that, but then found a signature by the basement door. She cautiously turned towards said door before stepping towards it. Opening it, Vali dodged a broom handle to her face. "Woah, Hyoudou-san! It's me, Vali!"
"V-Vali!?" Issei's mother looked panicked as she came out of the staircase. "I'm sorry, I-I-I was on edge...the moment I heard something crash and turn silent, I thought that they were going after me next-ISSEI! WHERE IS HE!?"
"I-I think he called me to ensure your safety...I...hold on, please, call the police. I'll try and find Issei!" She quickly turned to find Issei, his mother, however, grabbed her arm in protest.
"V-Vali-chan, I don't think-"
"Hyoudou-san, I understand, but I'm not going to stand around and just let Issei alone on this."
"...Stay safe."
"I will." What was surprising was how Issei's mother was resistant to such a spell, was it really a spell or was everyone just so ignorant on the matter?
Issei was finding himself outmatched, the moment she finished her speech, he was quickly played around like a dolly. Enhanced durability and stamina aside, it didn't kill his pain receiver. "Ahh fuckkk…" Issei jumped around the zone, trying to dodge, run and all that. Jumping alone, he could jump 30 meters into the air, but he couldn't fly, not to mention that the Devils can actually fly.
"Come 'ere, little boya!" Issei jumped from building to building before he considered using the Spark Lens or Boosted Gear.
"Damn it."
"Made your mind up?"
'No, not yet.'
"We don't have all day." Ddraig sneered as the ground below Issei began to crack and crumble. "Make up your mind already."
…
'Ddraig, boost me.'
"Now we're talking!" A green glow appeared on Issei's right forearm, before he manifested a red gauntlet with emerald orbs.
[BOOST!]
Issei felt his power rise twofold, as he soon jumped out to the air before he landed and smashed the ground, causing a massive dust cloud to emerge and engulf the zone.
"One problem, partner."
'And that's…?'
"Well, we're stuck on Twice Critical."
'...Meaning…?'
"You can only boost once."
'A single boost is all I need, what happens if I make the gauntlet disappear though?'
"Nothing much, you just have less armor."
'Then make it disappear for me, more speed for me to deal with these scumbags.'
"...Don't get too cocky."
The Twice Critical Gauntlet disappeared as Issei clenched his fist. "Alright, let's do this!" Hand Slash, Ranbalt and Zeppelion were his only Light Bending Skills, but that hadn't stopped him from using a Specium formation beam like he did last time.
Sensing the nine Devils beginning to make their move, Issei was going to fight with lacking vision as all of them did. The only thing is that he has no chance of friendly fire. "I'll blow you away!" Putting both hands to a '+' formation, he fired a wave of light that engulfed the zone and brightened the night sky. The overwhelming blast of light sent some of the members flying.
Issei quickly hopped to a building top, the dust cloud that emerged blinding his vision.
"Two down."
"Only two?"
"More like out of commission than dead as well. Stay vigilant, partner. The fight's just started." Ddraig spoke as Issei nodded to his partner. "On your left!" Issei quickly see a figure burst out of the smoke, it was a man, with a massive amount of muscles on his figure, carrying what seemed to be a greatsword. Issei quickly jumped back and off the building before firing off a hand slash, which was sliced in two.
"Fuck." He can only run as the finisher based attacks were far too powerful and wasteful to be used every time. So that left him with simply Hand Slashes and anything non-finisher. "How do I do this!?"
"I forget that you're not that skillful to face these kinds of enemies. If it were brute force and straightforward you would've wiped them off."
He still got a long road to clear before being considered skillful. Issei landed on another ruined building before he was met with a girl dangling upside down. "Hey-ho."
"...Hi?" Issei gave her a confused answer, said girl was possibly no more than his age or younger, having short black hair tied into a twin tail, her brown eyes meant that she is human…or was rather. She had fair skin and it would seem like she was Japanese or Asian in general.
"Geez, sorry about everything. But master's words are her orders."
"Can't you fight her? Why are you helping her?" The girl looked a bit blanked out.
"...I dunno, maybe because she helped me? But then again, I already am her pawn to be used…so...sorry in advance." The girl took out a pair of hammers before swinging at Issei.
"Woah!" He didn't expect her to pull two construction-grade tools in a fight like this. She quickly threw both hammers towards him before taking out a massive wrench that was more akin to a sledgehammer's size. Being all metal, means that every strike will definitely hurt.
Issei got to the defensive-evasive strategy as the girl began running at him, changing her line of movement at random, throwing Issei's logic off. "Partner, just blast her already!"
'But-KUH!" His thought turned to words as he was uppercutted by the abdomen by the girl with her wrench.
"Sorry." She muttered before Issei was sent flying through the ceiling of the building. Issei landed facefirst, his body twitched as he tried to get up. His body felt numb.
Really numb. His body wasn't listening to his brain no more, he could barely feel his backbone as well. Tiga's factors weren't integrated fully within him.
"Look at you...broken into pieces, struggling like a puppy, how adorable…" The bitch mockingly laughed. Her four members besides her with the girl among them.
"Screw you…"
"Now...I only need to turn you into a puppet...but...how about I play with you before turning you into one?"
"Fuck...off." Issei muttered, the heiress laughed before stopping.
"Well, it's been fun. Now anything you have to say?"
"Not on my watch, bitch!" A familiar voice came through before a blur of white smashed between the two. The area was immediately clouded by the dust and grime of the ground.
"What the-who do you-..." The bitch fell silent as standing between the two was an armored white entity with blue glowing eyes, gems and wings. The helmet unfolded revealing Vali's face.
"Ise, you alright?"
"...I'll live." Issei croaked out of his damaged throat. Blood spurted out of his mouth.
"Ise!" Vali turned towards the boy as he shook his head, clenching her hands, she directed her eyes to the perpetrators. "So you're the ones who've been causing the ruckus." Her eyes were blessed with fury, the blue orbs glared at the perpetrators. "But I do think you know who I am."
"S-So what!?"
"Don't talk like that, Schnelle." The woman, Schnell Naberius gritted her teeth as the heiress in front of her glared back. "We both know that we can't simply pick off servants from whatever place we want. Unless you are willing to receive repercussions."
"...Che, whatever. Runo, gather Ali and Chii-No. We're getting out of here."
"As you wish, m'lady." As the Peerage disappears from sight, Vali can finally turn her back to find Issei grabbing a structure to lean on.
"Ise."
"Val…" Issei muttered before he grinded his teeth from pain, his hand around his stomach. "S-Sorry-"
"Fuck the sorry." Vali said, as she kneeled and deformed her armor, causing it to disappear. "I should've been the one saying that."
"...Nah." Issei gave a stupid grin before having an urge to puke. He turned before doing so, Vali could only gasp as blood was puked out of Issei's mouth. "Urk...t-that…" His voice began to turn into a whimper as his skin was paling.
"Oi, Ise, stay with me." All of the wounds were internal. "Internal wounds all over the place...this…"
"I-Internal bleeding, w-what kind of bullshit is that?" Issei slowly grinned. "That's...urk, where the…blood's supposed to...be…"
"Erk…" Vali nearly laughed as tears began to pour out of her eyes from remorse. "Ise...I…" She felt a bit lost, but there was one thing she could do. "Hold on, I'll bring you to the Sitri's Hospital. Keep cracking jokes." Mostly to keep a steady intake of air and continue to keep the throat clean as well as keeping him awake.
"...That's...the only one, erk, I can think off."
"Well, think off something else." Vali focused as she formed a magic circle, she tried to get rid of the tears as she grabbed Issei's arm.
"...All I got are terrible dad jokes and christmas cracker jokes."
"...Tell me one."
"What wobbles...in the sky?"
"...what?"
"A jellycopter."
"That's terrible."
"What did I tell you?" Vali snorted a laugh as she helped Issei move towards the portal. "Wanna-"
"Let's not talk about them shitty dad jokes and christmas cracker jokes."
"But they're, ack, fun." He spilled a bit of blood from his mouth.
"...If I can shut you up, I would, but then you'd die."
"Please, I'm too cool to die-"
"Shut."
"Okay." Well, there goes his cool and edgy moment for once.
Motohama sat in the lounge as he waited for his flight, the airplane had been delayed due to some concern over engine maintenance. As he read the news, three Ultramen were seen on Mars, then the one in Japan that he saw and the one reported in Germany. Three of them were fighting against kaijus that appeared on the site.
It was official, the world's gone cuckoo. But then again, after everything that had gone? It was kinda tame he gotta admit. He sighed as he soon saw that the flight that he was gonna take.
It was going to be a single trip with no in betweens after the revelation of using more advanced jet liners, it was like a concorde, but a bit slower, but beefier and still faster than an average jetliner.
It was an in between so to say, a hybrid of sorts. "Gate 5B is open. Please proceed to check into the Gate." He sighed as he took his bag and began to walk towards the Gate, looking at his ticket and gripping on his bag's strap. As he walked down the line, he couldn't help, but feel as if he was being watched before looking around.
An eerie feeling in his mind as he soon saw within the crowded area, a young girl, no more than his age at 17, taller than him, standing on 5 feet 7 inches, white hair in a bobcut with a strand going diagonally downwards to her right, her icy blue eyes staring right at him. A chill went down his spine, as fear crawled into his senses.
She smiled, it was more calculating and cold than a genuine, pretty smile from a foreigner. But within the crowd she disappeared out of sight, Motohama can feel air enter his lungs before he looked back at his ticket. Felt his bag strap and look at the line. "Oh no." He quickly realigned and got to the back of the passenger at his front.
But still he couldn't really take his mind of the girl, who stared at him right in the eyes.
"Matsuda's gonna be alright, right?" Leah asked as she looked at the boy's condition, a life support strapped to him, oxygen fed to his mouth and nose, his breathing was stable, his heartbeat was also stable, but the most bizarre thing was how his bones weren't cracked, but rather his heat signature was too hot for his body to have handled at 47 degree celsius and still be stable.
"...I...don't know." The doctor muttered as he looked at his board chart. "It should've been impossible, but...we need to run more tests. We must've miscalculated something. Not everyone can handle this type of fever that well and still be stable."
The members can only watch as the doctor scramble his paper reports on his board in confusion, logic said it wasn't possible, facts said the same thing and yet the boy still lives and is still stable for the time being. "Doctor, is it possible that it might be a miracle?" Mark asked as if it was obvious.
"...A miracle is all well and good, but this is not some type of every day in the work miracle as you say. This is just...out of this world...I...I need to recheck, excuse me please." The doctor looked flustered, a bit tense and looked kinda insane for a moment.
"I...don't like that guy…" Mio muttered, feeling disturbed by his presence.
"Me neither, but he is one of the leading members at medical care." Feng muttered out. "So I don't know if there are any qualified doctors who might be able to take care of Matsuda…"
"...It's weird though…"
"Eh?" The members turned to Leah.
"...Matsuda is...reckless as hell, but...when he gets hurt, his body...just…" She pointed to where the bloodied hand was, when she lifted it, no form of scars were visible. No form of where the slit that caused blood to spill was visible. "...It heals...like...it healed him to the point where there is no visible damage…"
"...Look, Leah, maybe you're just overthinking about it." Mio spoke to the girl, who looked a bit scared.
"...Yeah...yeah, that...definitely is…" Leah looked like she was light headed. "I...I'll be in my room, excuse me, everyone." The girl bowed a bit before getting out of the room. The members looked at each other.
"...She'll be fine, she'll hop right back." Kirishima assured the woman, who looked downright paranoid from what was happening. "Look, let's just...focus on the good part. Matsuda's doing just fine for the time being, let's just focus on that."
"I know, but...I can't help, but imagine what might become of Matsuda if he is able to fight a fever that hot…"
There was doubt within the group of four as they looked a bit worried. "I mean...it might be...no...even if it is, without Matsuda's consent, that'll be a crime to do so. A capital one at that…"
"You mean...human experimentation?"
"Yes, not to mention how dangerous it might be…" Feng muttered out. "No matter what, while I trust the TPC, I'm not trusting that doctor."
"...By the way, have you guys seen Tsubasa-chan lately?"
"From what I heard, Kazanari still has work to do as a student, and had to write several write ups for Matsuda's performance. She's still his supervisor and a class captain afterall." Kirishima shrugged.
"She does have a lot to work for, huh? Makes my problems so small…" Mark commented before being bopped by Feng.
"Baichi, you only spray and pray your guns, you don't do much shit either way. Maybe pilot the plane, but that's it."
"Wha-I still read history-!"
"Like hell you do, dumbass. You often just play video games when no one is looking." Mio and Kirishima can only look away as the guy blinked at the statement.
"Y-You've gotta be kidding me...years of training to play video games undetected...ruined!"
"Let's not get too dramatic. But you gotta fix your mind, Mark."
"Y-Yeah, w-will do."
"But still...I'm worried about Matsuda." The topic was quickly changed as Mark and Feng nodded in agreement. The boy is in a bit of conflict that may brew up.
Motohama had settled on his premium compartment in the Airliner, that had to minimize and compact the number of crew it could hold for more resources to be added. It was kinda spacious to be honest, only one hundred people aboard with food that can last them twelve hours straight and an adaptive cycle to keep the passengers adapted with the jetlag.
As it was time for bed, Motohama had gotten ready to sleep before he decided to turn on the television screen, only to find that it was filled with static. "Eh?" He looked a bit confused and tapped on the screen. He turned on the button to call a flight attendant.
"Yes, is there something I can help you with?" The woman came, but the screen lit up and showed a show immediately.
"I...wait…" Motohama looked a bit confused. "Err...I...nevermind, sorry, my television screen blanked out for a moment."
"Well...it might've been a maintenance mistake, should we move you to another seat, perhaps?"
"N-No, I wouldn't like to bother, but thank you."
"Just call when you need anything." The boy nodded before he looked at the screen, confused. Then it blanked out again, now turning black, then it had dots of purple and yellow.
And in a moment, Motohama saw that the dots began to do a Star Wars Hyperdrive sequence, all of the dots began to elongate with the middle being the point of disappearance. "W-What the-" Then he suddenly found himself in a vortex of purple and yellow, everything within gone with the chair being the only thing asides him getting transported. "W-Where am I!? H-Hello!?"
The moment he saw an exit, he quickly felt the solid and comfortable feeling of his seat disappear as he soon found himself floating through the air. Within a cave colored in a blood red scheme, spires formed with lava flowing through. He could see a Giant of Light, an Ultraman, glowing with a radiant red glow fighting what seemed to be a massive mole-like kaiju.
He had never seen the kaiju before, but that didn't matter as the Ultraman soon smashed the kaiju backwards and did a cartwheel backwards. Then extended both arms to his side then began to put his forearms against his head and bent his body into a smaller figure, beads of light appeared and gathered around his forehead before forming a massive strip of light like on the blue Ultraman from before. Then he bent his body forwards, hands thrown backwards as the strip of light made contact and caused multiple light strips to appear and make elliptic lines around the kaiju.
The kaiju exploded into smithereens as the Giant stood up with a hint of pride and self-confidence within the stance. Then turned towards him. "...You're Ultraman?"
The being simply nodded. Motohama had nothing to say, his throat was dry and he was speechless for once in his lifetime. "I...Is this a dream?"
"No, it isn't." Instead of a man's voice that he assumed would come out from him, he heard a woman's voice and that was when he saw the woman from before hovering by the cave with the blue giant from the television.
"You are…?"
"Who I am is not important. What is important is that you are the most likely candidate to inherit the second's mantle of being the Protector of the Earth as did Tiga being the Protector of the Light and Agul the Protector of the Seas."
"...What?"
"In other words, you are a candidate to be an Ultraman."
"Eh? EHHHHH!?"
"As expected, however...do know that there only three within the Prophecy of Three. Tiga of the Light, Gaia of the Earth and Agul of the Seas. The Imposter of the Third or as you know him as Ultraman Dyna is not within our ranks."
"...Wait, so we have four Ultramen?"
"The being known as Dyna is an outside equation, a being not of the prophecy."
"But...why are you telling me this?"
"I have not been able to make contact with Tiga as he is being guarded by the heir of Lucifer…"
"...I...what? Hold on, Lucifer is guarding Tiga?"
"His human host anyways. I wish to say that I will not be making moves until I secured a partnership with you, the candidate for Gaia." The woman spoke with a hint of coldness.
"...So let me get this out of my system...Devils are real?"
"As you and me and how ice is cold and how water is wet. The Devils, God, Angels, Fallen or not, they exist, alongside every mythology you know of. Either they are extinct, isolated, weakened or still holding to what is left of their faith within the human realm."
"...But why?"
"They rely heavily on beliefs. And the Christian God as you've known him is placed on one of the highest places due to the amount of believers they have gathered around the globe."
"...Wow…"
"However, he had been killed."
That was the moment Motohama looked at her blankly. "...Killed? What? Wasn't he immortal?"
"No being on this planet is immortal. They are just harder to kill than anything. The moment Earth is destroyed, they also perish. God did not create the World, the Universe, that is a lie. He has yet to mention the existence of the beings known as Aliens. And they are as real as they can get. Any questions?"
"Can I ask for who the host of Tiga is?"
"Hmmm, no, I do not think it is the time for you to know his name. Perhaps when you show me that you are more than competent to know such a secret."
"...But how can I trust you?"
"The moment you made eye contact with me, I already know that you are the candidate for the Second. I can just as easily kill you if I wish to, the Ultramen, while they protect this planet are not meant to protect the humans, therefore any casualties are acceptable."
Motohama held his breath as the woman's fury of cold and minced words got through to him. "...I...I understand."
"And let's not forget all the things you love and care about."
"A-Are you...blackmailing me?"
"Are you smart enough to piece them in?"
"...Fine, I'll accept." Not accepting would mean death to anyone he cares about...well, that wasn't nice to say, but it conveys the thought well.
"Good. Otherwise Gaia might've needed to find a new successor."
"...But why?"
"Hmmm?"
"Why contact me now?"
"The time is late, too late as far as I can tell. With the Imposter of the Third, or, as you know him as, Dyna making his appearance, his motives are questionable and I wish to eliminate that factor as soon as possible and as clean as it gets."
"But won't we have another set of hands on deck?"
"If you are that naive, then I suppose I-"
"No, but, why make such rash decisions quickly?"
"If you let a weed live for a day, it will grow and it will be a pain to remove, if you pull it when it comes up, there won't be much of a hassle." The woman explained.
"...I…"
"In anycase, any way we can get rid of him indirectly...would be beneficial as I wouldn't like it when I am being chased by the military." The woman waved off.
"...I...I see…"
"That's all the time we have...choose wisely, Motohama Akio. For your next choice might be the last mistake you make in life."
Motohama swallowed a lump of saliva, as the woman began to disappear. "...Wait!"
"What?"
"...Who are you?"
"...Gloria...Just refer to me as Gloria." With that she disappeared with the giants and he was pulled back to the vortex and back to reality.
"Hahhhhhh!" Motohama coughed up erratically. His eyes were a bit tired out and his mind was fuzzy. He still had vivid memories of that encounter. "...Me...an Ultraman?" He knew how stupid he was back then when he shouted that he wanted to be ultraman.
And later in life, regretted saying that as Ultraman's job...was far harder than he first thought it to be. To fight and protect the people, the pain one must go through, the decisions one must make. Oh yeah…
It's all coming back to bite him in the ass.
Shunya watched as his grandfather's clock began to tick. In this time of year, no one used a grandfather's clock, but it was to remind him of his ill fated brother, who had disappeared into the light. He breathed in and out as he watched his nephew slowly recover.
"I'll definitely fulfill the promise...Shinichi." He muttered as he stowed the clock away, as he got up to leave, he turned his head slightly to Matsuda, who still hadn't woken up. "...Get well soon, Matsuda."
"Yoooo, Akio-chan!" Motohama sighed as his cousin, a woman by her 20s called out to him. She was a black haired girl with brown eyes, a uniform with the blazer buttoned up, standing at the height of 5 foot 5 inches.
"Ahh, errr, Ari-san, how are you?" He asked, trying to start the conversation.
"Oh, it's been fine. So, you just got here. No worries, my boyfriend will be picking us up on the pick up zone." She grinned.
"I...err...alright?"
"What's with that tone? Well, I guess this is your first in this place, huh?" She ushered onto the Munich Airport. "I'm not supposed to be surprised, they did a number on the remodel."
"So, err...where am I staying?"
"Why, with me and my boyfriend, of course." She answered as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"...Eh?"
"What, got a problem with that arrangement?"
"N-No, but...doesn't that...maybe...intrude your privacy?"
"Haha, no worries, as long as you don't hog the living room, your body will be intact."
"Alright...wait...what do you mean 'will be intact'!?" He called out as the two got out of the building.
"Whoops, that slipped out, my bad~"
"No, what do you mean by that!?"
"Ah, our ride's here."
"She ignored me…" Motohama slumped down before he got into the car. "S-So, err, hallo?"
"No worries, he speaks Japanese." His cousin shot him a knowing look.
"Well, no worries, kiddo, you're in good hands." The man in the front had blonde hair and fair skin, the reflection from the front mirror showed his green eyes.
"This is my boyfriend, Vincent Maximillian von Veils, a great place he came from." Indicating the von title.
"Nein nein, it's not that great, your cousin likes to make things a lot more hyped than its supposed to be." The man gave a tired look on his face and eyes.
"A-Ah, still…" Ari tried to do a comeback, only to come up with nothing and pouted. "Hmmmmm…it was a nice place."
"...I don't know that there was a city named Veils in Germany."
"It's a small village, probably not recorded on maps from international nations. Kinda common here…"
"...Mhm…where are we going?"
"Well, we are going to the university where you might be interested in. We have many things going on, well, it's more of an academy...than a university to be honest…"
"...I never asked, but...what's the Academy's name?"
"You never did research?"
"I would, but dad never gave any names, just to pack my stuff and go to Osaka, but then turned to Germany, since Osaka was still at risk."
"I see...nevertheless, the name of the Academy is Alchemy Stars. Which is actually based on London, but you don't have me there."
"And Osaka?"
"I was supposed to be there, but you know…" She trailed off, letting the younger cousin sigh.
"Yeah, I got your point there."
"Anyways, anything you wanna share?" Vincent asked with a look of interest.
"Hmmm, nothing really…"
"Too bad...would've loved hearing some things you had back home."
"I'm not into them…"
"Eh, to each their own I guess."
"This place is huge…" Motohama muttered as he looked at the Academy's building.
"Oh yeah, home to a lotta kinds of smartasses." Eri grinned as she exited. "C'mon, we'll show you around, Aki-kun." Motohama looked a bit sour on the name he was called, but simply sighed in annoyance.
"Alright…" Going into the lobby, it was simply...simple actually, it was grand, but simple. The television wasn't a big ass screen, there were sofas with tables, some filled by students who were doing their own experiments, coding or playing games in their free time. The lobby's receptionist was doing her own task before noticing.
"Ah, Aria, Vinny, I take it this is the new observer?"
"Yep, he's the boy, alright, Marie." The woman smiled as she looked at Motohama. "Right, my name's Marie Anton, but call me Marie. I'm a student here, part timing as the receptionist." The woman in question was in her 20s, had silvery gray hair and cerulean blue eyes, her outfit was basically a formal uniform, with her hair being tied to a ponytail.
"Ummm, Freut mich, dich kennenzulernen? Mein name ist Akio Motohama."
"Hmm, rather crude German, but he got the spirit." Marie concluded with a chirp. "Now, I got the papers worked out, so he's staying with you guys in your complex then, huh?"
"Yeah, his father asked us, since he's always been lonely."
"Forever alone?"
"Don't rub it on me…" Motohama looked visibly irritated.
"Ja ja, do you have the keycard for him?"
"Oh right, here you go." Marie took out the item before siding it onto the desk. "Just remember that most of the stuff are high tech and quite volatile."
"I-I see…"
"Either way, have a nice day~" The trio went through the halls.
"Is...does everyone have a nee-san complex?"
"No, not really. But then again, they just want to have someone to tease. You, mein freund, are the perfect target for women who wanted a little brother. Including Aria here." The man jabbed his thumb on the woman's boob.
"...Do that again, and I'll rip you into pieces." Aria looked a bit angry.
"You'll get used to this side of her, if you-"
"WHO THE FUCK DOES THAT!?" Motohama barked out.
"Him/Me." Aria and Vincent answered respectively.
"He's a perverted idiot and thankfully, I'm the only who understands him. So that's a win for him."
"And...you agreed?"
"Yeah, not everyday that you get a hot blonde German übermensch get up man."
"...Wha-"
"It's my taste! Don't question it!" Aria looked very flustered.
"Are you right at the head."
"Not ever since I dated him, no, but he does things well, so another plus for me."
"What kind of things?"
"Quantum Science, or more or less, what we are trying to prove is real would be Teleportation, by breaking atoms and transporting them through space and time to the correct place."
"And the time?"
"It should be instantaneous, of course, breaking the atom, would mean pain...lots of it. Which leads us to a lot of designs and such to maybe teleport someone without the breaking atoms thing."
"...That's some advancement."
"That's Alchemy Stars, for ya, kiddo." Aria popped in. "Geniuses all over the world join in and build some advanced shit from sci-fis, well...not always, but still kick ass tech."
"Any other breakthroughs?"
"Well, three years ago. Come, it's easier to show than tell." Vincent gestured before increasing his pace. Aria just shrugged, causing Motohama to sigh at his cousin.
The two siblings soon got into what was a hangar with Vincent standing in front of a thing covered with a drape. "This, mein dear cousin-in-law, ehem...introducing the Experimental Jet Fighter. Fighter EX." Pulling the drape, the object was a grey jet fighter, which looked stubbier than the traditional jet fighter. "This fighter has a Top Speed of Mach 8, and is armed to the teeth."
"M-Mach 8!?"
"Oh, it was designed to be fast, alright, it needed engines, so we engineered them to be able to take it to the next level. The cockpit is pressurized, it is also adapted so you don't need extensive equipment to pilot it. The G-suit is now unnecessary as this thing adapts the environment for the pilot, then the Repulsor Lift integrated to it, lets the Fighter hover around and go against Gravity. Then the armament, it's armed with autocannons with a rack of missiles, depending on the size as well. Sad to say, we don't have Interception Missiles, only unguided rockets, since I'll be honest. Mach 8 jet fighter would probably have its missiles be slower than the jet and would possibly instead chase the jet itself."
"...This took...3 years?"
"3 years of assembly, 5 years to properly finish the design proposals, 4 years to think of it."
"...I...how?"
"Alchemy Stars, kiddo, I was the Head of Project and Aria was my second-in-command, best one at that."
"Yaho!"
"But...why do they not field this?"
"Well...it's the same reason why the MBT-70 wasn't produced."
"It's expensive and it tends to be an ass to maintain, therefore, we create two jet fighters using a similar thought. However these things are still at prototyping phase by the European Union, their plan was to have them be the vanguards of GUTS Europa with how the Crimson Dragon's abysmal performance against the Sphia. As you had seen, they pushed more budget for us, so we can field them...by...a few days." Aria looked a bit hesitant. "Actually, we weren't aware of when they will be fielding them."
"Either way, they'll be better than the conversions." Vincent shrugged. "Those base models aren't for combat as well."
"Wait, they weren't?" Motohama looked a bit surprised.
"They were Search & Rescue Vehicles, but were soon retrofitted with some matching weapons, which were ordered by a Commissioner in fear of what the future might bring. Other than that, this might be the best candidate for the Next Generation of Non-Stealth Fighter Jets."
"I mean with Mach 8, I guess there is literally nothing that can catch up to it."
"...Let's not shoot ourselves by the foot with that jinx." Vincent muttered out.
"Yeah, sorry."
"Well, other than the EX, we still have other projects to look at. Now I'll need to put this cloth back on."
"This is why we never want to remove it, Vin."
"I realized that, Ari." Aria just gave her cousin a knowing look, Motohama can only watch as the man climbed back up to drape the cloth over the aircraft.
"Mind if I lend a hand?" He asked.
"Ah, sure, just grab the diagonal end from where mine is."
"Sure." Well, Alchemy Stars Academy seemed to be quite an advanced research academy all things considered.
"And I passed out again…" Issei got up, feeling his stomach being numbed the fuck out. He came to see…
Vali sleeping by her chair with a blanket over her. "...I gotta stop hurting myself real bad." It was becoming unbearable on how much a burden he was being to Vali, the fact that she was constantly worried about him, guilted him so much. "Oi, Vali."
"Ermmm, ten minutes more…" Issei put on a tired knowing look.
"Yeah...she deserves it…" He laid back, not bothering to try and wake her up, the room was clean, white and basically a bit roomy and professionally kept well. "...This is...where am I?"
Looking around, he lowered the bars of his bed before getting up to his feet, a bit numb, but nothing new. He slowly walked towards the window, it was closed, so he pulled it up to find. "...This isn't Kuoh…" It was obvious as he found the sky was colored in purple and blue. "...Where the fuck am I?" He looked a bit concerned as he tried to walk, but suddenly felt a jolt of pain on his leg. "Fuck." Trying to force his leg to work, he made it worse as he felt a crunch and fell to the floor.
The impact made Vali jump a bit, eyes opened, a bit groggy and foggy before she found Issei on the floor. Her eyes immediately lit up in alarm. "Ise!" She quickly got his arm around her neck and helped him get up. "What were you thinking, getting out of bed in your condition!?"
"Vali?"
"Not n-"
"Where the fuck am I?" Vali fell silent, now learning why Issei was panicking and shocked.
"...We're in the Underworld, or well...the equivalent of Hell at least."
"...Oh…" Issei looked blankly, looking away from her, his lips forming a smile, a disturbed one at that. "I...I...should've seen this coming...the...Devils...Angels, God being real." Vali ignored the pain of his name, as she was more concerned about Issei than that.
"I...sorry, I didn't tell you this sooner…"
"...It's fine, I just...need time to take this in...and fuck does my leg hurt…"
"You weren't supposed to be walking all over actually, your leg is being healed after all."
"So...what is this hospital?"
"Serafall Memorial Hospital. Well, it's the best Hospital in the Underworld, so there's that."
"...I'm gonna go broke…fuck, no way can I be paying for the service..." He muttered loudly, only for Vali to give out a weary smile.
"I'm...paying for it actually."
"Welp, debt trap life I guess then."
"D-Don't consider it like that, just...think of it as me...errrr...treating you for the mess of my kind."
"I...That's not how it should work...I mean, sure they were...Devils, but you weren't the one...GAH! This is painful…" Issei complained as he laid on his bed. "...Sorry, a lot to take in and a lotta shit I got in mind…"
"Again, I understand that. It's not everyday that you turned out to be a bearer of light, find out mythologies are real, get into a battle with Devils and...all things considered in a span of a few weeks."
"I...sound like a broken record player at this point, honestly…"
"Yep." Vali nodded. "Anyways, don't worry, I'll try to cover your expenses, you got into this mess involuntarily, and I happened to be the one to receive the dreams and all that."
"...I still feel kinda guilty."
"That's fine, just know that I'm here if you need me."
"...Thanks, Val."
"Val, huh…" She gave him a smile. "Yeah, that works for a nickname."
"Right...thanks for saving me last night."
"I should've been more aware honestly…"
"Well, you saved me so that's cool and all." Issei nervously laughed. "...But, still...you sure-"
"Yes, I'm sure, Lucifer dammit, no need to ask about how much you owe, you fight for your life already. That's enough payment for me. You saving the world is more important than money."
"...Really?"
"Yes."
"That's...good to hear…but do your parents know that you are well...associated with me?"
"No, but...well, it's not from the lack of trying...we-we'll get to the subject later on, alright?" Vali tried to change the topic, Issei wasn't much of a person to pry her secrets, so he nodded.
"R-Right. So...what now?"
"Well, for one, my grandpa's investigating the matter, so...right, err…yeah, that's about it. I was too much in a rush to think about anything else."
"I...see...h-how's my mother?"
"She's fine, last I heard, she was talking to the police. I would've called her, but...ehhh…"
"You don't have her number?"
"Basically. Yes." Vali looked a bit embarrassed. "Errr, so she's probably panicking…"
"...Fuck...Fuck! Do you have your phone?"
"Yeah, you can call your mom from here, we have a connection with the Human Realm."
"That's...convenient."
"Better than needing to teleport here and there, y'know? Just like VPNs."
"I can relate...sometimes…" But either way, he pressed the numbers on Vali's phone before the line got through.
"And before I forget, here, your phone I found under the fridge." Issei looked thankful as he was about to say his thanks, the line connected. He gave her an apologetic gesture, to which she nodded at, fully understanding the situation.
"Hello? Kaa-chan?"
"Ise! Where are you?! Are you safe!? Are you hurt!?" The woman's outburst could be heard even when not on speakerphone, for Vali, it was mostly thanks to her more enhanced hearing.
"I'm good, kaa-chan. Vali took good care of me." Vali blushed a little from the compliment. "Hold on, kaa-chan." Putting his hand over the voice receiver, Issei looked nervous and confused. "What do I tell her?"
"W-Well, tell her you're at the hospital due to some errr...complications and worries from me!"
"I, errr, I'm at a hospital, right now...Vali took me there to figure out some stuff out." He lied to the woman, knowing full well, how fatal his wounds could've been.
"Ise…"
"Yeah, kaa-chan?"
"You...don't need to lie to me."
"Lie? What do you mean, kaa-chan?" Issei gave a bit of a fake laugh.
"I raised you, I taught you all the talents you had and forgot, I fed you, I cared for you, I bathed you. And I know you are talented in some cases, but never at lying. So please tell me...are you actually alright?"
…
Issei was at a loss of words, had him been lying to his mother really that see through and transparent? If so...for how long did it last? But...that wasn't the important thing for the moment. "...I...I'm not sure…"
"...Rest up in the hospital, I'll send a letter of absence to the school to excuse you for a few days."
"Thanks...kaa-chan…"
"Just rest, alright? I'll be fine on my own...for the time being…" Issei heard his mom sigh with a bit of a voice crack. "Just...stay safe, alright?"
"I will…"
The woman hung up as Issei looked at the phone. "...So that's how much your mom loved you, huh?"
"...Mama's boy as they say." Issei can only laugh dryly. "...Can I?"
"Yeah, I...I'll...check things out…" She took her phone back and left Issei to think about the situation he was being put in. Being an Ultraman came with a cost he knew, but nothing at the level of what he was feeling. Endangering your loved ones? Constantly having your life be in danger? Never sure on how you can survive? Keeping his identity a secret?
Issei grabbed his head before hitting it. "Ah...Ahaha...what the hell…" Then the flash of his father's face came back to him.
"So why didn't you save me? With that power?" He asked, his voice dead and blank.
"I...I didn't know...I didn't know that…!"
"You failed me, you had this from birth and you discovered it now? Where were you when I needed you?"
"Please...just stop." Issei can't help, but feel helpless as his father's tireless soul continues to ask him questions. "I don't know...I didn't know I had this until...please, dad...I don't know why it came out late. I don't know!"
He sobbed, tears running down as his form curled up to a ball, ignoring all pain as adrenaline pumped and numbed the sensation. He rocked back and forth, looking terribly distressed and unhinged. "Ise-...I-Ise?" Vali came into the room and found Issei's unhinged look. "Hey, Ise...are you...alright?"
"I'm sorry…"
"Eh?"
"I'm sorry, I don't know why…"
"Ise, what are you-"
"I don't know why…" Vali didn't interrupt now as she realized that he was having an episode. "Why didn't this come to me so I could save you? I don't know. I'm sorry, dad. I just don't know. I just don't know...I only wanted to stay with you…" He sobbed, his voice coming to a higher pitch.
"Ise…"
"Leave me alone...I don't want anyone, but myself…" He remembered the memories when people tried to help him, only for him to push them away and make them never come near him again. Friends, relatives, doctors and all that.
"...I'll...give you the time you need...just call me when you need anything." Issei stood silent as Vali exited the room, feeling helpless as Issei can only push everyone away. Pushing him past his limit might be the last thing she needs to do, because a rampaging Tiga in the Underworld is not something the Underworld can handle, especially when he fires his beam attack and destroys everything without a hint of mercy or care.
Motohama can only look around his new living space. "This is...really spacious." He can only mutter out as the living room was equipped with a 16" flat screen monitor with a few gaming consoles. "And you have Playstations!?"
"Ahaha, yeah, we try to make the place liveable." Vincent laughed nervously.
"So...err, where am I sleeping?"
"You're gonna be sleeping in my room, since obviously you won't like how Vinny smells and how my bed is a single bed." Aria gave herself a self five, Motohama looked a bit deadpanned.
"Excuse me, but whaaaaaaa…?"
"Oh, shut up, we've been sleeping together for two years and then now you're not comfortable with my bed?"
"I mean, no. But...yes?"
"I see you are going for-"
"We're in a relationship, Vinny. Any more words and I'm evicting you."
"Yes ma'am."
"So, errr...Ari-san-"
"Aki-kun, just call me Ari-nee, okay? We've been doing this for years without ends and now you're going formal?"
"Sorry…Ari-nee."
"Nostalgia. Alright then, I've cleaned up my room and hopefully everything is how you like it if not, then we'll go shopping."
"I'm sure that I'll probably be just fine with your room."
"Don't be too sure," Aria winked. "If there is anything, just call."
"Alright…where is the room?"
"Down by the hallway, it's marked with my name and the fact that it's also on the right hand side, third door."
"...Okay then."
"After you put up your stuff, we can go out, walk around, go shopping, do some adult chat, discuss your adulthood-"
"Woah woah, that's a lotta subjects." Vincent stopped the woman from continuing her barrage of words.
"And what's wrong with that?"
"Wha-what do you mean what's wrong? The kid's gonna lose it if you go too far."
"Ehhhhh? No way. Sorry, Aki-kun, it seems like puberty didn't really go well for the both of us."
"I...err, I wouldn't say that it's puberty, but...errr…"
"Yeah, let's not dwell on that. Quick! We must go to the mall and such! Buy you some German souvenirs! It'll be great!"
"...I...I'll just follow your lead then."
"C'mon! Change clothes, take a shower, get yourself up and running and we'll march out in style!" His cousin fistpumped into the air, being the dork she wasm
"Give me a second."
"That's a second."
"Give me a few moments then."
"Okay. One. Two. Three-" Motohama quickly brought his suitcase into his cousin's converted room, it was…
Well, for one, she hadn't changed her brand of shampoo, but it's all over the place. Her bed was plain, despite her dorky attitude, it was a simple blue bed with a rather firm pillow and a bolster…
Well…
He was a fan of them, so his cousin knew him pretty well and remembered very well about things he liked.
Guess two years of sleeping in the same room by the age of seven and ten really did get her to know him better.
The trip outside was kinda...underwhelming. There wasn't much going on as Motohama thought as Munich was quite nice as a city compared to Tokyo. Germany had advanced quite well enough and had contributed a lot in developing their cities.
The Munich Central Park had been a massive hit as the park was renovated. The three of them had been sitting by the benches, Motohama was unsure on what to talk about as he felt a bit left out when they talked about a topic he didn't really know much about.
"Hey, Aki-kun, what do you wanna be when you graduate?"
"I have no idea actually…"
"Hmmm, oh, oh oh, did you remember when we were kids? In the evening we would always rewatch that tokusatsu show."
"Ultraman?"
"Yeah! Don't you wanna be that fighter pilot?"
"Ehhh, I was more interested in...maybe engineering actually…"
"Engineering, huh? Well, look no further, I can teach you that in no time and I can spend the rest of the years studying with you!" She hugged her favorite cousin, Motohama can feel her breasts making contact.
'They grew…a lot…' He can only keep a straight face for so long with no evident blush. "I...yeah, I guess so. Wouldn't trouble you, right?"
"Me? Nah, but ready your ass when you gotta learn stuff you don't from Highschool." As she was about to continue on, a massive thunderclap resounded.
"Holy shit!" Vincent muttered as he stumbled to his back. A massive wormhole appeared by the sky, slowly forming a storm-like atmosphere, lightning came striking through the clouds before a massive silhouette appeared from within the dark spot. A massive glimmering blue object made of what appeared to be crystals came out and crashed upon an office building, a lot of the people began to panic and run as the shell smashed through the building and caused a tremor around the city.
"We gotta evacuate, Ari-nee!"
"But I wanna see what it is!"
"It's a kaiju for all we know, so let's get out of here!" Motohama cried out before Vincent helped him at bringing the woman from her resisting position.
"So what the hell is that thing?" A member of GUTS Europa asked as the Vice Captain, Victoria looked at the screen.
"Pierre, I need a sitrep on the matter." The crew of twelve pilots were being briefed as this was going on.
"The current standing of the Unidentified Object is about 80 meters tall. Weighing...approximately 90,000 tonnes."
"90,000 tonnes? Are you sure that's not a miscalculation?" The Vice captain asked, not wanting to misheard a thing from her subordinate.
"No, ma'am, it's...it's 90,000 tonnes without a doubt."
"Adler, what's our plan?" The captain of the Squad, Adler, was a man of 5 feet 7 inches, he had blonde hair with a few streaks of silver and white, despite being around his 30s, his eyes being blue and his skin being fairly white despite the times he had been on field duty.
The man simply just...made gestures, to which the woman draw up the plan on the screen with an interactive pen. "So, listen up, people. Team Donner, you are on Patrol duty to make sure that the thing doesn't make any sudden movement. Team Blitz, you are placed to reinforce Donner if the thing turns out to be a monster. Team Hermes, you're on reserve for the time being."
"Ah fuck, we got placed on reserve?" A Team Hermes member complained.
"Alright, I and the Deputy Captain, Johnson will follow in with the Prototype Fighters, Fighter SG with Captain Adler on the Fighter SS…that's such an ironic name to give to a Fighter." Adler just gave her a deadpan look, knowing what she meant, the name Sky Surfer could be easily changed with something less pleasant. "R-Right. GUTS Europa! Deploy!"
"Roger!"
The city of Munich was placed on high alert as medical and policing personnel quickly tried to regain control over the populace. A lot of casualties were reported, with many men and women as well as children being reported wounded, dead or missing.
A few waterline pipes were ruptured due to the tremor and how deep the object had got through the ground. "Damn that thing really did a number."
"It destroyed a building and caused a few other buildings to also collapse, mostly due to its weight...that's one heavy object…" Motohama can only nod on his to-be cousin-in-law's assessment.
"How heavy do you think it is?"
"I dunno for sure...but, personal estimate...50,000 tonnes?"
"That's heavy as hell…"
"Yeah, but a few buildings fell, so it's gotta be heavy as hell…"
"True…" Then Motohama can see a group of GUTS Wings, two Crimson Dragons and a GUTS Wing 2 colored in red and black, accompanied by three GUTS Crimson Dragons, which were flying around the vicinity. Mainly to keep an eye on the thing more than anything.
"So they still haven't sent the new ones yet…" Aria looked at the bunch, the Fighter Jets had been surveying the fallen object before the land began to rumble. "W-What's happening!?"
The object quickly had a golden appendage broke through its apparent shell before a kaiju opened up the object and smashed out of it.
The kaiju was 77 meters tall, having a red scale based body, its frontal torso was covered with blue crystal like pieces, shaped in diamonds, golden ornamental plates covered its body and extended to its upper sides, its back was covered in carbon backplates, its glowing yellow eyes glimmered with a horn popped out of its head's rear, forming a crescent, arcing forwards, a pair of golden sickles for appendages. The kaiju simply opened its maw and screeched.
"A k-kaiju...in Munich!?"
"Not again!" People began to whip out their phones even in the midst of panic and terror.
"Captain, the shell is apparently a capsule for a monster." Victoria reported. "How should we proceed?" A morse code was coded in, reading "Engage". "Roger. All Units prepare to engage the monster."
"Roger!"
"GUTS Wing 2, you are tasked to provide Heavy Fire Support. All Crimson Dragons, follow our lead. We'll divert its attention and make way for Wing 2. All Dragons, Formation 3-1."
"Understood, following formation."
"Engage."
"C'mon, Ari-nee!"
"Not now, I think I see them!" In the distance, three Fighter Jets of different coloration and shape began to descend before they began to accelerate as they pulled up. The Crimson Dragons fired their hyper laser cannons, the monster screeched out in pain.
PIARRRRKKKKKKK! SKREEeEeEe!
The after-cry of the being was pitched low and high, but it was apparent that it was pained by the attacks. A few Eurofighter Typhoons also joined in the fight as they fired their missiles at the being.
They were seen with limited success as they were not made in the mind of penetrating a monster's hide. In addition to their slower acceleration speeds, they were more vulnerable than the Crimson Dragons.
"Look at them, Vinny! Your hardwork paid off, big time!"
"Well, yeah, but...they're using them like normal Jet Fighters…"
"...Yeah…" Motohama silently excused himself before he heard a whisper of "come here", a sweet female voice spoke to him.
…
There were a few things going through Motohama, and they were 'why did it sound like his late mother', 'who said that', 'where did it came from', 'how was no one else able to hear it?', 'what did it want?' and 'since when was he able to hear this kind of thing?'. He didn't recall that he had Issei-level hallucinations.
"Akio…"
That voice…
"Kaa-san?"
"Come." He soon saw a gist of a red long skirt, fluttering in the air, glistening with its silky and shiny fabric. His mother's favorite dress. "Let me show you."
"W-Wait, kaa-san!" The boy called out, not seen by anyone as he soon ran towards who knows where before arriving at the Center of the Park.
"Akio."
"Kaa-san? Where are you!? Is it really you!?"
"You will know soon enough, however…" He heard a flicking voice that came from below him, the bricks began to have their borders light up before a five by five brick wide platform below him shifted downwards. Then he suddenly realized things were too quiet, he looked up to find the birds frozen in place, the debris frozen in the air, the kaiju's blast was not moving, not even fluttering from its blazing form.
"Eh?" He can only mutter out in shock, as only he was able to move in this plane of existence.
"Come to me."
"Wha-" The ground below him suddenly disappeared and he was forced to fall within the hole that manifested. "AHHHHHHHHHH!"
Then he saw it, within the darkness, light emerged and just like within the flight to Munich, the Hyperspace-like scene began as he soon saw the tunnel that led to the caverns. There he saw. "Ultraman!"
The being nodded towards him. "What...how did you-? I don't understand...what is happening? Why did a kaiju fall from the sky!?"
"Soon all your questions will be answered, Akio." Motohama turned to find a black haired woman with black eyes, wearing a beautiful red silk dress, ornamented with details of flowers and dragons.
"Kaa-san?"
"How has my sweet child been doing?" Her permanent cold face asked with genuine affection, he could feel the warmth, but not from the looks of her face.
"I...wha?"
"I know that this is a lot, however. Trust me. Terra, Mother Earth as you know her, had entrusted me to speak for her Servant, Gaia."
"Eh?"
"...You see, Akio. The Earth had three Guardians, as you recalled. Tiga of the Light. Gaia of the Earth. Agul of the Seas. Gaia has been the entrusted Servant of Terra, you are the next in line to be his candidate."
"I...wait, why me!? As far as I know-"
"It is because of my bloodline. I am the last heiress to the Gaia Dynasty of Europe, while impure from the blood of the Easterns. The Three Guardians had decided to divide their territories to cover the kaiju attacks. Agul with the Seas and land beyond this very continent, Gaia with Europe and Tiga with Asia. However they are a group who aid each other in battle and as you see, without Gaia, Earth is crippled with two Guardians and an outsider of Earthen origins."
"...Wait, why are you telling me this?! Why was Gloria speaking to me then!?"
"Gloria had not been the appointed of Terra, however, she is the Voice for Agul. Even then, you will need to be the Bearer of the Light."
"...I...I'm going to be Ultraman? For real?" It felt as if his life was quite a lie.
"...Yes."
"I...but why me? Surely, there's someone-"
"Gaia has entrusted this power to you, there is no one else who bears my bloodline. None are worthy. None are alive. You are the sole survivor of Gaia. So please…"
"I…" Remembering how he was going to team up with Gloria against Dyna had left a bad taste on his mouth. But what if Agul showed up and won over the kaiju? "Don't I have the time to think?"
"Time is up the essence...we cannot rely on any Guardian as they need rest and to adapt to their new situations." Then a manifestation of the situation formed, the kaiju fired off Light Shots and blew up jet fighters like child's play. The Wing 2's railgun fired off, but despite being the most powerful airborne artillery, the damage was lesser than expected.
"Then…"
"The more time is wasted, the more time it will give the monster time to destroy, even if this space and time is manipulated, it doesn't stop the damage from continuing.."
"...I'll do it." He forced himself to speak. "I'll become light!"
"...Then become the Light. The Light is within the Servant. Thank you, Akio." His mother's form began to dissipate, Motohama looked shocked and surprised at what he witnessed. After years, he wanted to tell her all the things he had been able to do. Clenching his fists, Motohama looked at the Titan.
(Play Ultraman Gaia OST - The Light is in the Servant)
"...Ultraman Gaia…I'm...thank you...for letting me meet my mother again." Despite not being able to speak to her more than just now, it was better than nothing. Then Gaia began to extend his arms towards him. "I...what are you doing? Are you testing me?" He asked, confused.
Motohama can only mimic what the Titan was doing before he saw beads of light appear. "Eh? This Light…" It began to form around him. "It's...warm...this light is from...no, the Light is in the Servant...this light is coming from me?"
Then his body flashed with an intense infrared light, reaching towards where the skies and stars would be, Motohama could only call out his name. "Gaia!"
(End OST)
As the monster, codenamed Cosmic Organism Vanguard or just COV for short, continued its rampage across the city, a majority of the crowd which was recording it, began to panic. Running from fear before a pillar of red light appeared out of the ground, by the street it stood. A lot of people turned and shielded their eyes as the intense light began to die out. Then from said pillar, came yet a different Ultraman. Falling to the ground, he landed heavily, causing multiple cars to jump and pillars of dirt to fly.
As he stood, the Titan's features were seen, the form was similar to Tiga's with his mohawk style, but without a Crystal on his forehead, the sides of his head were respectively given two gold markings, his form was mainly red and silver, on his chest were two golden bands, filled in with red, and by the inner band, laid a curved horizontal band, making an inner inverted triangle which had silver within and the color timer in the shape of an inverted triangle like Agul's, although it was wider.
The kaiju screeched as he had found a foe in his territory. The Titan, Gaia had appeared and with it the world had just gained a Fourth Guardian.