"They're getting away, can we pursue?"
"Mm. The Filament System and me will both support you to our fullest capabilities."
"Well, lets get going then."
A shock wave along with it's associated sonic boom was left in their wake as their wing binders fully extended outwards, dual long boosters roaring out.
All the while, a serious expression filled her face as she felt a cracking sensation in her ribs, refusing to allow the pain to show on her face.
Yawning out loud in boredom, Nine Alpha allowed his gaze to lazily rest upon the silent figure seated across him, her legs crossed as she sat on her white greatcoat, a side of her face partially obscured in the shadow cast by the cap she was wearing.
"Don't look so down, Iota. The two of you were just never meant to be."
A slight twitching of her cheeks was the only indication he received that she had heard him, considering how she had her eyes fixed on the wall over his shoulders for the entire length of their trip thus so far.
Smiling to himself, Nine Alpha continued.
"Allow me to express my admiration for you, Iota."
Her eyes flickered towards him for the briefest of moments at his praising tone, surprised as she was by the shift in his methods.
Nine Alpha couldn't help but inwardly smirk at being finally able to attract her attention.
"I mean, I'm amazed at how much of a difference a change in treatment can make in developing your partners." Nine Alpha spoke as he continued, "Who could have known that the key to finally achieving the compatibility scores you've always sought after was but to make him fall for you."
Winking at her, as if they were sharing a secret between them, he mockingly congratulated her,
"You're blossoming into a fine woman, Iota. You've even managed to turn a celebrity pilot like Code 016 into fodder."
A vicious snarl broke out from Zero Two as she locked her furious eyes onto him, promising death and violence.
"Darling is not fodder."
Chuckling at how easily baited she could be regarding Code 016, Nine Alpha's smile grew as the conversation continued exactly as he had planned.
"My mistake then. I guess that I should have called him 'fertilizer' instead."
Allowing himself to be pulled towards her as Zero Two harshly gripped at his collar, Nine Alpha found himself enjoying the purity of her emotions as she allowed them to be put on full display openly for all to see, the glowing of her eyes and horns notifying him of her state of absolute rage.
"What's wrong, Iota? Hit a little too close to home?" he taunted.
Raising her fist at the smug little jerk in front of her, Zero Two prepared to smash his skull to bits until his brain matter splattered against the floor of the transport plane.
That was until she heard the next words leave his lips, sending chills down her spine as she found her rage leaving her.
"I was watching you during the Kissing Operation."
Zero Two's eyes widened at that revelation, Nine Alpha had been observing them during that battle? That meant-
"Did you enjoy consuming his life force?"
No no no she did not, he was lying! There was no way she felt even a speck of enjoyment during their time in Stampede Mode. Her tears were proof of that.
Stumbling back in shock, Zero Two tried to ignore the churning in her tummy as she refuted his accusations.
"I-I don't know what you're talking about-"
Dusting off his uniform, Nine Alpha cut off her frantic denials as he mercilessly forced her to acknowledge the existence of her heart's darkest desires.
"Come now, Iota. It's unbecoming of you to lie towards your family. I know the real you better than anyone, even compared to that fake, Code 016."
Angered at his arrogant declaration, a look of disgust filled her face as Zero Two spat at him,
"Not everyone is as sick as you."
Undeterred by her disdain, Nine Alpha strode forth, breaching her personal space as he did so, whispering into her ears.
A shiver of disgust rolled through her body as her ears betrayed her and processed his speech.
"It must have felt different than the hundreds of Stamens you previously had drained dry."
Hot breaths splashed against her ear as he continued, forcing the darkest, most toxic parts of her heart to the surface.
"Considering how much affection you held for him, it must have felt truly satisfying. Tell me, did you enjoy the sensation of his soul breaking down, binding itself to your very blood cells, as you drunk deep into his well of vitality?" A smirk grew across his face as Nine Alpha relentlessly continued his assault. "Did you enjoy absorbing every drop of his life essence into your body? All of his love, affections, feelings and blood. Every drop returning to you as you squeezed him dry, enforcing your ownership over him."
Pitched breaths of stress came from her as Zero Two frantically denied him.
"No! You're wrong! I didn't enjoy it one bit! I was crying my heart out as I forced myself onto him!"
Pulling back as he fixed his gaze on her panicked eyes, Nine Alpha proceeded to finish off Zero Two's torment.
"I'm sure you did. But somewhere, deep within your heart, a small part of you was happy that from now until the end of eternity, fragments of Code 016's soul would have been inside of you for the rest of time."
He was wrong! She didn't want that at all! That sounded sick and deviant!
Darling was hers so...
Darling was hers so...
Darling was hers so...
Darling... belonged... to her?
Would it be really be so bad if she could make Darling stay by her side... forever?
Even if...
That meant...
Consuming him?
Her loud, stressed breathing rang out along the hull of the transport plane as the seeds of doubt were planted in her mind by Nine Alpha, who merely observed her mental breakdown with increasing amusement.
The squeaking of wheels announced the arrival of Nine Zeta as she interrupted their conversation, pushing along a trolley of fine consumables as she did so.
With a casual wave of his arm, Nine Alpha cocked his head as he questioned the hunched over Pistil in front of him, her hands clutching at her chest.
"So what will it be today, Iota? Coffee, tea or juice?"
"Tracking multiple targets of opportunity. Our entire weapons loadout is ready to engage."
"Just as well. Commencing attack."
Stretching out her body in the Stamen seat, Nine Delta opened a line to the rest of the transport plane's security detail,
"How much longer do we have to babysit Iota? My backside is getting sore from sitting around all day." she looked towards Epsilon, complaining all the while as she did so.
"We're getting close to our home Plantation. Just keep your eyes peeled for anything suspicious." he reminded her.
Nine Delta looked around her at the trio of units that were parked on the roof of the massive transport plane, standing guard as their current altitude was not suited for them to cruise alongside the transport plane, it was far too high up for that. With that in mind, she scoffed at the idea of anyone managing to pursue them at this height ceiling.
"Hey, Alpha! This is far enough right? There's just no way anyone could have followed us this far out."
Swirling the flute of sweet wine in his hands, Nine Alpha's eyes came to a rest over Zero Two, who had returned to her usual manner of fixing her stare over his shoulder after their previous interaction, as he proceeded to rub salt into the pink-haired Pistil's wounds.
"Guess Code 016 isn't coming for you after all. He must have his hands full with that adorable fangirl of his." A mocking smile grew across his face as he spoke. "I must say, they make a cute couple, don't you think so as well?"
The tightening of her eyes delighted him. Assured of his success, Nine Alpha couldn't help but indulge himself as he started gloating about his victory.
"I would know better than anyone else. After all, it was me that pushed Code 015 over the edge."
A noise of surprise spilled forth from Zero Two's throat upon hearing his admission, the noise turning his mocking smile into a feral grin as he bared his canines towards her.
"How did it feel? To have your entire world stolen from under you? My only regret was that I couldn't be there myself to witness your agony."
Choking sounds came from Zero Two as her body shuddered, her head lowered in an attempt to use the shadows provided by her APE issued cap to avoid the shame of giving Nine Alpha the satisfaction of watching the tears spill down her face.
As Nine Alpha hovered over her sobbing form, his shadow casting it's length over her as he did so, Zero Two felt a not so gentle grip on her jaw force her face upwards.
Her watery eyes met his delighted, sadistic ones.
"Forgive me for such uncivilized behavior, but your crying visage is truly a work of art. One can hardly help themselves when faced with such beauty."
Zero Two could only close her eyes as his face approached hers, his tongue revealing itself from his parted lips as Nine Alpha moved in to seal his victory and humiliate her at the same time. He wanted to finish her off by licking her tears and savoring the taste for himself.
"I always get what I want, Iota. Have you not realized this by now?"
As the disgust and shame within her reached its peak, with her eyes shut, Zero Two prayed for her salvation.
Drunk as he was on his power trip from his assumed victory, Nine Alpha had forgotten a single difference that separated Zero Two from every other Parasite on this planet.
While every other Parasite took in Papa as their figure of worship, Zero Two deviated from the standard teachings of APE.
The savior she held faith in was not a distant, condescending figure in the skies.
For Zero Two possessed a personal bonafide knight.
And he always answered her cries of help.
Always.
"Rifle, B-Mode!"
"I'm increasing the output!"
"Firing!"
A streak of orange magma energy whistled past the glass windows of the transport plane, the latent heat of it's beam making itself apparent even through the hull of the transport plane.
Recoiling in shock at the sudden attack he found himself under, Nine Alpha rushed to the landline mounted outside the transport plane's flight deck, his mind shifting into combat mode as he barked commands into the receiver.
Meanwhile, the tear that was rolling down Zero Two's cheek fell and splattered against the floor, escaping it's previous fate.
"Whats going on!? Delta, status report!"
Panicked comm chatter filled the air instead, frustrating him to no end.
"Is he insane!? That was live munitions! Does he intend to start a civil war?"
"Record that as a hostile action! Nines, prepare for combat!"
"Hey... Delta... What the hell... is that?"
Snarling to himself at being ignored, Nine Alpha barged into the cockpit of the transport plane. As he was about to order the pilots to descent towards combat altitudes, Nine Alpha found his voice falling away as he gazed upon something which had no right to exist.
With the telltale orange glow of magma energy lighting up it's barrel, their voices rang out, clear and confident over the open channels.
"It seems that your hunch was correct. They were around this area."
"...Yup, its all thanks to Strelizia. All I did was follow my heart and she did the rest for me."
"A guidepost of love, those were your words, weren't they?"
"Yep. However, given that it's not battle-seasoned yet, I'd say that an unerring support is needed. Don't you agree?"
"Indeed."
"Also, we have to rescue Zero Two."
"Shes... in that transport plane, yes?"
"That's right. And Nine Alpha has to be in there as well, so don't let your guard down."
Pushing the crew aside in frustration to access the communications module on the dashboard, Nine Alpha snarled at the machine currently hovering over their transport plane, it's wings extended out behind them.
"What is that? Is that... Strelizia?" he demanded.
"Yes, it is the Hi-Filament Strelizia."
Flaring his nostrils in irritation, Nine Alpha growled out his anger.
"Werner you old scoundrel, I can't believe you were making that thing behind our backs. Still, no matter how much you enhance an experimental machine..." his voice trailed off.
As he heard the uncertainty in Nine Alpha's voice, a teasing smile broke out on Hiro's face.
"It still won't match up to you, is it? Honestly, I'm not confident either..."
Chuckling out at his honest admission, Nine Alpha shook his head at the absurdity of a single unit taking on the entire Nines squadron as Hiro continued in his teasing voice.
"The frame is untested, the controls are too sensitive and the Hyper Jammer is still offline. With all that said, my only worry right now is..."
His chuckling transitioned into a sharp bark of laughter.
Opening his eyes once more, revealing the blue glow of his irises, Hiro couldn't help but grin out as he finished,
"If I can suppress its power and rescue Zero Two without having you all killed, that is."
His laughter immediately died out as Nine Alpha found himself snarling at the ridiculous declaration he had just made.
"How absurd! Do you truly believe you can do that?!"
A serious expression returning to his face once more, Hiro roared his intentions out for all to hear.
"I'm not leaving until Zero Two comes home with me! Try me and find out!"
Switching back to his secure channel for his squadron, Nine Alpha barked out his orders, a furious expression on his face.
"All units, begin your attack!"
Delta's voice came through as she clarified their instructions.
"What about you, Alpha?"
Glancing back towards the passenger cabin where Zero Two still remained seated, he snapped back at her.
"I'll secure Zero Two, the three of you should be enough to take him down." Moving as he spoke, Nine Alpha warned. "But be careful, we're still above the operational ceiling for our units, I have no idea how that thing is even flying at this altitude but until we descend to combat altitude, do not get knocked off the roof of the plane."
A smirk grew on his face as he added a final condition to their orders.
"Oh, and Delta?"
"Hm?"
"Don't go too far playing around with him. Bring him to his knees in despair, but don't deliver the final blow. You must not deprive me of this pleasure."
A flirtatious giggle came through the receiver, her voice eager with glee.
"I was already planning on that, it would be a shame to smash his cute face in and ruin his good looks."
Nodding to Zeta as he ended the call with Delta, Nine Alpha returned to his seat across Zero Two as he taunted her.
"This works just as well. What better way is there to crush his spirit with despair than to deny him at the very last moments before the finish line?" His eyes bore into her, goading Zero Two as he did. "Watch closely, Iota. Watch as your precious Code 016 fails in his quest for redemption and gets crushed by the weight of reality."
Gazing out the window, her fingernails leaving scratch marks on the glass panel as she did so, Zero Two watched as he stared down his trial, outnumbered against APE's elites.
"Darling..."
The transport plane was descending to combat altitude, he noted, as they circled around it. They were above still above the operational ceiling of the models used by The Nines, thus the three opposing units still remaining on the roof of the massive transport plane merely raised their Magma Lances against him, not making any further moves outside of that.
They're buying time. Once they reach combat altitude, they'll kick off and engage us.
Clicking his tongue, Hiro narrowed his eyes as he tried to decide on their opening moves. He had no wish to kill any of The Nines, they were still technically considered allied forces, after all. Murdering an allied troop was still a capital crime, no matter the circumstances.
And on a more personal note, Hiro had no wish to followup his mistakes with even more mistakes.
However, he had no guarantee that they would extend the same courtesy to him, considering The Nines did not answer to regular military justice. Thus he found himself in a dilemma, he was outnumbered against APE's Special Forces, forced into a non-lethal stance against foes which might not play by the same rulebook he carried.
Not to mention that all of their armaments easily classified as lethal weaponry. Even a stray shot could cripple or outright kill someone. He couldn't rely on Hi-Filament's weapon systems.
"Two minutes until the transport plane reaches combat altitude." Ichigo's calm voice notified him, the utmost seriousness she felt at the moment making itself known through their shared connection.
We need to disable them.
Nodding to himself, Hiro made his decision. Ensuring that their communication channels were set to "OPEN", considering The Nines did not share any common frequencies with them, it was the only method he had to contact them.
Also, he wanted Zero Two to hear his voice.
Holstering the rifle on it's back, he pointed Hi-Filament Strelizia's shield towards the cluster The Nines had formed on the roof of the massive transport plane, Hiro fired the non-guided small missiles, twin trails of smoke following in it's wake as they lazily approached the trio of units.
As both small missiles slowly approached them, Nine Gamma found himself baring his teeth at the perceived insult.
"He's toying with us! As if that naive attitude will work on us now!"
Casually sidestepping the missiles along with the rest of his squadron, he watched as the explosive munitions continued their lazy journey into the sky behind them.
Just what the hell is he thinking, fighting us with the kid gloves still on? He's going to have to die for that.
"Come on!" he roared. "At least use one of the fancy weapons you have strapped onto that machine of yours!"
As Ichigo turned her head to meet his eyes, Hiro noted that from her furious expression , she probably felt the same way as Nine Gamma.
"Use the Volcano Rifle! At this range, we can hit them!" she criticized.
Shaking his head at her suggestion, he rejected her appeal.
"I can't. It's too powerful. We might accidentally hurt someone."
Ichigo felt herself jerking back in shock at his decision, snapping her reply as she did so.
"Is this any time to be holding back!? Zero Two is counting on us!"
Exhaling a harsh breath, Hiro slammed forth his controls, forcing forth a burst of acceleration as he made his intentions clear.
"I just need to close in!"
With the Volcano Rifle holstered on his back along with the signature roar of their dual long boosters, Hiro directly charged them onto the roof of the transport plane. Landing on the roof as The Nines scattered away from his haphazard charge, Hiro immediately found himself locked in close combat with The Nines, desperately dodging the stabs of their Magma Lances where he could, and having them graze Strelizia where he found dodging impossible even with his speciality in close quarters combat.
"This guy, he's good!" Nine Beta grunted.
"Just keep at it! He can't dodge forever!" Nine Gamma hollered as he continued the relentless swings of his Magma Lance, covering the angles that his fellow Nines had left for him.
"Don't hit the cockpit too hard! You'll ruin his cute face!" Nine Delta grinned, as she left an ugly charred mark on Strelizia's shield. He might have twisted at the very last moment to negate most of the damage, but she had claimed the first solid hit onto him.
It was her personal mark on him.
As he executed an emergency mid-air flip that left his Pistil wincing from the G-Forces, Ichigo found herself snarling at his naivety.
"Do you think this is a game, Hiro!? They're killing us by inches here!"
Jerking back the joysticks on her seat as she assisted Hiro in another dodge, barely avoiding their impalement in the process , Ichigo felt the firm grip of his hand on her shoulders as he defended his actions.
"Who's playing around!? I take it seriously when my life or someone else's is on the line, so I'm doing all I can to save Zero Two without screwing up any further, all right!?"
Within the passenger cabin of the transport plane, Zero Two's cheek twitched as she remained in her seat listening to the entire scene, his words reaching her through the speakers in the plane.
Grimacing at his words, Ichigo proceeded to boost them upwards in an attempt to get them clear of the frenzied melee.
"You're not going anywhere, cutie!" Nine Delta yelled out.
Tow cables fired from the hilt of her Magma Lance wrapped around them as Nine Delta grounded them back onto the roof.
With a cry of pain as Ichigo felt the feedback from the cables pulling at Strelizia wash through her body, Hiro had managed to land a single roundhouse kick with all of their available power onto Nine Gamma, it's impact forcing him off the roof of the transport plane.
"What the-!?"
His scream of surprise rang out loud and clear as his Franxx entered a spiraling freefall towards the earth.
"Gamma!"
With a growl of frustration, Nine Beta followed after him, diving off the roof of the transport plane to execute a retrieval before his Franxx could crash land onto the earth.
"Delta! I'll leave Code 016 to you!"
Vocalizing her approval, Nine Delta turned towards him and winked as she brought her Magma Lance down upon him.
"Just you and me now, cutie!"
Bringing his wrists up to block the tip of her Magma Lance, Hiro felt Hi-Filament Strelizia sink into the roof of the transport plane, the scraping sounds of steel rang out as ugly damage marks formed on it's roof.
"If you surrender right now, I'll promise to put in a good word for you in our after action report to Papa so you can avoid the firing squad. Can't guarantee the same for your Pistil there, though." she mocked.
Feeling the strain of holding back her Magma Lance from skewering them seep into his very bones, he screamed over the groans of abused steel being pushed to it's limits as red warning symbols flooded the world around them.
"Can't you raise the output any further!?"
"I can't! I dare not push the Magma Fuel Converter any harder, it might suffer a meltdown! I told you this machine wasn't ready!"
Wincing at the sensation of the roof slowly giving way as they sunk deeper into it's bulkheads, Hiro desperately pleaded with his childhood friend.
"She's overpowering us! Can't we just tough it out for a short moment!?"
"I said I can't! If the Magma Fuel Converter goes, we all go! Including this transport plane with Zero Two in it!"
Snarling at how far he was risking himself for that horned girl, Nine Delta redoubled her efforts into pressing down her Magma Lance, it's sizzling orange tip now dangerously close to Hi-Filament Strelizia's faceplate.
"It's too late for that! Zero Two now belongs to us, The Nines! You had your chance and you blew it!"
"Even so, I still have to try! Because a life without Zero Two isn't a life worth living at all!" Screaming out his defiance, Hiro put his entire heart into the pushing contest he found himself in.
"And whats so special about a partner like her?! With your celebrity status, you could have the pick of the litter when it came to Pistils! If you just wanted a Pistil from The Nines, you could even have had me!"
Blinking away the sudden rush of moisture in her eyes, Ichigo found herself muttering under her breath, inaudible to anyone else.
"It's not like I don't understand your feelings, Delta..."
Ignoring the commotion around her as she reached for the communications module, Ichigo called out to the one person who she knew was listening more closely than anyone else around.
"Zero Two... You're listening in, aren't you?"
"Hold still! I'm not planning to crash land with you!" Nine Beta complained.
Switching to the secured frequency used by The Nines, Nine Alpha ordered,
"Once Gamma's unit has been successfully retrieved, link up with Delta and finish off Code 016."
Shutting off his communicator, he smirked at Zero Two, her eyes downcast as her body shook with every tremble of the transport plane as the dramatic clash on the roof continued.
"Seems like desire alone isn't enough to change fate."
Allowing condescending compassion to enter his voice, he continued,
"It's for the best, Iota. If you return to him, you'll only end up consuming him once more. If your affections for him run as deep as you claim, you'll stay right here in this transport plane."
Her harsh, ragged breathing was his only reply.
"After all, hes managed to find happiness just fine without you. With Code 015 by his side."
Gulping down the saliva in her throat, Zero Two couldn't find the strength to deny his words, as she remembered the screams of pain she had put him through. The blue pulsing mass on his chest that had caused his entire body to break down.
And she couldn't forget the scene where she had walked in on them, during a moment of passion.
Perhaps they weren't meant to be, after all.
"Zero Two... You're listening in, aren't you?"
Of course she was, what did Ichigo take her for?
Nine Alpha's eyebrows raised in amusement at the sound of Ichigo's voice directly addressing her, but he made no further interruptions beyond that.
"You can hate me if you wish, because I was the one who manipulated Hiro."
It wasn't that simple, even if she was telling the truth. Darling made a promise and he broke it, along with her heart.
"But right now, Hiro's trying his best for you. I wish you could see him right now, he's crying like an idiot while screaming out so loud its making my ears hurt. Really, he looks like a complete fool."
Darling...
"We'll apologize as many times as we need to, as long as it takes."
A sniffling sound came through the speakers as she spoke, it seemed Ichigo was tearing up herself.
"I won't get in your way anymore. So please, forgive Hiro."
Distantly, she could pick up the clash between him and Nine Delta along with their words.
"The first time I met her, Zero Two dazzled me with her brilliance! She was confident, held her head high and possessed the resolve I lacked! I found her more beautiful than anything else in this entire world!" His voice cried out as he refuted Nine Delta.
"I promised my life to her, and I broke it, along with her heart. Because of my weakness, I lost my way! But, no longer!" he yelled out, his voice pitched from emotions. "These past weeks, I was the happiest I'd ever been my entire life! And I don't want to lose that! So the only thing left now that I can do is to dedicate the remainder of my life towards her, even if she hates me, spits on me, looks down on me with cold eyes, I will always love her! Because-"
Her heart jumped as she felt a familiar warmth caress it, as if he was right there, petting her head like he always did.
"Because you are the shining star that lights up my world, Zero Two!"
With a trembling hand, Zero Two felt her face as she heard his declaration.
It was warm to the touch.
What an idiot he was. Saying something so embarrassing like that for everyone to hear.
She would have to punish him later for that.
"Hmmph, nice try but-"
Nine Alpha found himself cut off by a sound of amusement from Zero Two as she rose from her seat, chuckling to herself at his silly, heartfelt admission as she did so.
"How can I leave after that?"
Gritting his teeth from frustration as Nine Alpha saw his best laid plans fall apart before his very eyes, he ordered Zeta forward to apprehend their runaway squad mate.
As he saw the body of Zeta being flung backwards to crash into an entire aisle of seats, Nine Alpha could only snarl out his fury, his usual well honed civil demeanor giving way to his true self.
"Stop! What are you doing, Iota?"
Her cheeky grin was his only reply as Zero Two sprinted towards the rear fuselage of the transport plane, her hands on the lever that controlled the opening mechanism of the ramp.
With the hissing sounds of depressurizing air, a storm of gales flooded the passenger cabin, sucking out the silver trolley that had carried their consumables along with the broken seats that Zero Two had smashed when she tossed Nine Zeta like a ragdoll against them.
With a beaming grin on her face as she allowed the gales to rip off her APE issued greatcoat and cap, pink hair billowing behind her as she turned towards Nine Alpha who had his hands shielding his eyes from the blades of wind.
"Think about what you're doing, Iota! If you cross that line, you'll be guilty of desertion! An enemy of APE!" He called out to her.
"Never liked them much anyway. Big deal." Allowing the warmth in the heart to flutter and fill her body, Zero Two laughed as she took a step backwards, her white boots clattering against the lowered ramp of the transport plane.
"Are you planning to fight the entire world alone? Even for you, there are limits to Papa's patience!" Panic filled his voice as Nine Alpha found himself unable to control his emotions.
"I'm not alone. Darling is there."
Zero Two took another step back, now teetering on the edge as her pink hair blew forward and threatened to cover her face.
"Iota! We're thirty thousand feet in the air! This is outright insanity!" Nine Alpha desperately tried to reason with her as he stretched out his hands, hoping she would reconsider her suicidal act.
However, the cheesy smile never left her face for a single moment as Zero Two shot down his appeal.
"I'm not insane."
She giggled towards him.
"I'm in love."
Closing her eyes, Zero Two leant back and allowed gravity to take hold of her body, pink hair billowing outwards as she fell.
"IOTA!"
Clasping her hands in front of her body as she assumed the classic pose of a resting Princess, the horns on Zero Two's head glowed red as she sent out her call to the one she held dearest to her heart.
Catch me, Darling.
Jerking in surprise at the whisper that touched his mind, his eyes and horns glowing blue as they picked up Zero Two's thoughts, Hiro felt a fresh wave of strength fill him as he shoved Nine Delta's Franxx off of him, boosting past her into the sky as he did so.
"Zero Two!"
He immediately brought up Zero Two's free falling body onto the main display as he zoomed in onto her, his heart fluttering at the pose she was assuming. Glancing downwards towards the twin bands of platinum that he had slung around his joysticks, he spoke directly to the bird of paradise.
"You can do it, right, Strelizia?"
The single warm throb he felt in his heart spoke of it's acknowledgement. With his eyes and horns glowing ice blue, Hiro fully embraced the advantages his newfound hybrid nature afforded him as he simply became one with Strelizia, feeling as if the entire Franxx was but a mere extension of his body. Inhaling deeply and allowing the surging connection to ease itself over his entire being, Hiro soared towards his falling Princess.
"Haah..."
Gasping out in pleasure as she felt the mental embrace of her darling hold onto her tightly, Zero Two's eyes shot open to witness the form of a beaming Strelizia closing in on her, it's hands welcomingly outstretched.
"Darling..."
A loving smile crossed her face as she stretched out her arms as well, in the form of an embrace towards Strelizia as it's boosters shut off, allowing natural gravity to have it match her speed of descent.
As the distance between her and Strelizia lessened to but a few meters of separation, it's hands came behind her in a soft and gentle manner. Slowly, surely and gently, it's interlaced hands moved ever closer, Hiro understanding better than anyone that he had to be careful with the laws of physics, lest he accidentally hurt or injure Zero Two in the process.
With every passing moment, Strelizia's hands removed another meter between them.
Finally, with a soft, painless thud, Zero Two felt her back touch and land on the steel palms of Strelizia, safe and secure in it's hands.
Raising herself in a standing position, Zero Two faced herself towards the cockpit of Strelizia, awaiting the moment of truth.
Feeling the breath hitch in his throat as she filled the entire screen of their main monitor, Hiro felt a warmth rest across his hand.
"Go get her. She's waiting for you."
Ichigo's eyes refused to meet his as she graciously admitted her defeat. The quivering of her lips being the only outward display of the torrent of emotions currently surging through her.
Nodding to her, Hiro gave her a comforting pat on her shoulders as he rose from his Stamen seat, grabbing the twin bands of platinum as he did so. Ichigo automatically shifted Strelizia into it's autopilot, where it continued to operate under minimum power conditions, controlling their descent into a slow and steady pace.
Flicking the switch that controlled the opening mechanism of the cockpit's hatch, Hiro hurried wiped his nose onto the sleeve of his Stamen suit. There was nothing he could do about his red, puffy eyes but he had more important issues at hand.
As the chest compartment of Strelizia raised open to reveal the cockpit's hatch, Zero Two forced a neutral expression on her face as she braced herself for the long awaited reunion between the both of them, current relationship issues not withstanding.
With the sounds of hissing air, the cockpit's hatch opened up to reveal its occupants.
"Code 016 has successfully retrieved Iota?"
Nine Alpha winced at Delta's furious voice over his communicator as he stood in the suiting pods aboard the transport plane.
"Just hang back and observe until they get into the cockpit. Any sudden moves and we risk Iota falling to her death. I'll be deploying soon."
Shutting off his communicator in frustration, Nine Alpha slammed a fist into the metal frame of the suiting pod.
The neutral expression on her face immediately broke as she noticed the blue horns and eyes that mirrored her own.
Darling is a beast like me now. I've... changed him.
Hot tears welled in her eyes as she realized the magnitude of their partnership. Unknowingly, she had corrupted him. Turning him into the very same half-breed hybrid as her, tainting his pure humanity in the process.
What have I done?
Hiro's perceptive eyes tracked her gaze as Zero Two stared at the new protrusions on his forehead, before a sorrowful expression broke out on her face and tears started to roll down her cheeks.
Pushing past the urge to wallow in his guilt and self pity for his previous crime of infidelity as he laid his eyes on Zero Two, Hiro resolved himself to not fall into the trap of his own selfishness.
He had to push on.
He had to keep moving forward, he couldn't risk stopping now.
If he did, the fumes of his courage would fail him and his entire life would be spent returning to those moping days.
No matter what, Zero Two came first.
Her happiness was his happiness.
"Zero Two!"
Calling out to Zero Two to alert her towards the insane stunt he was about to pull, Hiro found himself mimicking her previous words.
With courage, anything is possible. Move forward. Don't stop.
Don't fail her again.
With his horns and eyes glowing blue once more, Hiro jumped.
Even though they were at Papa knows how many thousands of feet in the air, in a controlled descent towards the earth, and that there was a gap between the cockpit and Strelizia's hands where Zero Two stood, he jumped towards her.
With the twin bands of platinum in his hands, he jumped.
Towards her.
The sight of the usually confident, outgoing and noisy girl going completely speechless as she frantically readjusted her location as she flung her arms open to catch him was a real feast for the eyes, Hiro noted.
Zero Two is kind of cute when she gets flustered too.
Screeching noises of panic poured forth from her throat as Zero Two followed his figure which loomed ever closer.
With the sound of hearty laughter, Hiro found himself landing into her embrace as the kinetic energy that he had gathered from his momentum pushed them into a twirling motion, which Zero Two couldn't help but follow through as she laughed along with him.
And thus they twirled in rounds, sharing their embrace as Hiro found himself lifted by the arms she had wrapped around his waist, Zero Two not being shy in the least as she utilized her superior physical strength.
Her touch, her scent and her voice along with the sensation of their hearts beating against each other.
Their chests pressing themselves so eagerly against the other's, as if they were communicating through their bodies the voices of their beating hearts.
And in rounds they continued to twirl.
He had horns now, and as such, it was possible for Hiro to finally fulfill his greatest desire when it came to Zero Two.
A horn battle.
Since her guard was down, Hiro performed the first strike, knocking his horns against hers.
"Yeowch!" her nose scrunched up in surprise, Hiro laughed at the shock in her eyes.
"Getting cocky just because you have horns as well, huh? I'll show you the difference in our experience." she growled at him.
Well, crap.
"Ouch!" he cried out, as Zero Two smacked him on each side with her horns.
Grumbling to himself, Hiro performed an immediate, tactical counterattack.
"Horn Kiss!"
Jabbing his horns onto her forehead, Zero Two winced her eyes at the poking sensation.
"Horn Strike! Take this!" Yelling out her made up name for the attack she had just invented, Zero Two panted out her threats as she nuzzled her horns into his head, giving him the klaxosaur equivalent of a noogie.
"Surrender! You have no hope of winning!"
Through his yelps of pain, Hiro signed his peace treaty.
"You win! I offer my unconditional surrender!"
As they both panted to regain their breath, their eyes locked on each other's, with the creeping sensation of guilt filling his body once more.
But for that moment where he had made Zero Two laugh, he was happy.
It's time.
It seemed that Zero Two felt the same way, as her expression became tinged with sorrow.
Sucking in the deepest breath he could, Hiro once more pushed forward, leaving the old passive self behind as he gazed into her eyes. His body was shaking from a mixture fear, guilt and shame. But he had to push on, it was either that or potentially losing Zero Two forever.
This time, this time, he wouldn't falter.
There was no other option, he had to endure the unendurable, even if she shamed him, even if she spat on him, he still had to keep trying.
For the rest of his life if he had to.
Even if he had to crawl over a path made of shattered tears, he would never stop chasing Zero Two.
He couldn't change the past, but he could change the future.
Their future.
Unfortunately, as his lips parted to begin one of the many apologies that he had prepared for their reunion, Hiro had underestimated just how much pain her attentive turquoise orbs could inflict upon him as he shared her gaze.
"I...I...I-I..."
The dam broke.
Hiro broke.
His courage, already long pushed to its breaking point, failed.
Now in a complete mess of tears and sobbing cries, Hiro utterly broke down as his voice emitted nothing remotely intelligible to the human ear. It was a repeating cycle of guilt and shame. The more shame he felt at breaking down in front of Zero Two, the harsher his wrecking sobs were, which fed into a feedback loop into the shame he had felt.
Feeling her eyes water from the pain her heart felt as she observed the wretched mass of shame and guilt self-destruct in front of her, Zero Two gingerly outstretched a hand towards him.
"D-Don't look at me!"
The sheer fright that was contained in his usual soft, gentle tone shocked her enough to retract her hand, clenching her shaking fist as she did so.
"Aren't you disgusted by me?"
His shaking voice, fit only for a broken tool masquerading as a human being, rang out as Hiro self-destructed under the enormous pressure he was experiencing.
"I cheated on you, you know."
Taking slow, steady steps towards him, her heart shattered as Zero Two noticed the involuntary flinch from his body as she approached him.
He's killing himself.
Darling is hurting.
She glanced over to the open cockpit of Hi-Filament Strelizia, where Ichigo had tears running down her cheeks, mouthing words towards her as she shook her head.
"Don't let him go."
She was right, darling was trying his best.
He had chased after her in Strelizia, knowing the risks of going against APE's Special Forces.
He fought the entire Nines squadron while handicapping himself to avoid harming anyone, thus taking the high road.
He heard her voice somehow, even though she never spoke a word during her initial free fall from the transport plane, and rescued her with the hands of Strelizia.
He faced her head-on and placed himself to be judged by her, as difficult it must have been for him.
Ever since that day where he fell, darling made a conscious effort to choose every single correct decision, no matter the cost.
Exhaling to herself, Zero Two made her decision.
"Yes, you did."
A retching sound came forth from his body as Zero Two acknowledged his crimes.
In his hyperventilating stress, Hiro never noticed her wrapping her arms around him, warm, soothing strokes on his back as she rubbed it.
"And I took away your humanity from you. So we're even now."
Adding extra strength into her embrace as she felt him try to struggle free, Zero Two continued the back rubs, hoping to ease his hyperventilation.
"I... I messed-"
Feeling a hard grip force his gaze to lock onto hers, Zero Two's deadly serious eyes spoke of her conviction.
"It's going to take a while for me to trust you again, but killing yourself over it doesn't make me happy either."
"I don't deserve to be-"
Shushing him harshly with a hard press of her fingers on his lips, Zero Two placed her foot down.
"That's up for me to decide, it might take a while for me to forgive you, but eventually, I will." She stated. "Because no matter what, you are my darling. That hasn't changed in the slightest. All that's left is for you to forgive yourself."
Shuddering from the storm of emotions rolling through his body, Hiro asked,
"You mentioned about forgiveness. I know its pretty childish of me to ask but..." His voice trailed off.
"But?" She cocked her head in query.
"How long do you think it'll take?" He asked shyly, glancing away in embarrassment as he did so.
Make an exaggerated motion of scratching her chin in deep thought, Zero Two spoke the words that he would remember for the rest of his life, her tone filled with ease.
"Who knows? It might take my entire life for me to decide, so I guess you're gonna need to stick around to find out."
Hiro felt his entire body lock in place as he froze, his mind not trusting the information that his eyes provided him with. No matter how much his eyes visually processed the scene in front of him, his brain refused to comprehend it.
Zero Two had her left hand proffered towards him, a warm blush on her face.
"Hurry up, the wind is making my hair messy."
With shaking hands, Hiro thanked the stars above that the material of his Stamen suit gave him the friction needed to handle the platinum rings that the Doctor had passed onto him.
As his trembling hands picked up the band that once belonged to Karina Milsa, he moved forward to slide it onto her left ring finger.
Like a passing of a torch from a generation that sought forgiveness for their sins of sending out countless children to the battlefield, the platinum band would soon find itself with a new owner.
"Wait a second, don't rush it."
Hiro blinked, had he forgotten something important? An official witness perhaps?
Maybe Ichigo could be their... What was it called... Marriage Officiant?
Was that how marriages even worked?
A sigh broke through his frantic, panicking thoughts.
"Say something romantic before you put it on. Jeeze, I can't believe I'm getting married to someone as hopeless as you."
Well, that was sudden. He had to say something romantic? But his mind was frazzled blank from the entire days events.
"...Like what?" He asked blankly.
Zero Two fought the urge to facepalm at his confused look, cute as it was.
"Don't ask me! Make something up that sounds cool! That's what you're good at, right?"
Hiro blinked once more as he said the first thing that came to his mind.
"I love you, Zero Two. I want to be with you forever."
Zero Two made a sound of embarrassment as she felt her entire face flush with heat.
Stupid darling was way too dangerous to her heart with his honesty at times like this.
"I said something romantic, like a pledge or a promise! Why did you have to confess your love?" She squealed, as she covered her face in embarrassment with her other hand.
"But a love confession is romantic." He pointed out.
"That's such a classic darling answer. Shut up and put the ring on before I change my mind!" Zero Two demanded, childishly complaining as she did so.
With a gentle motion, the ring slid into place.
After an eternity of wishing, her Prince was finally hers.
With muted awe, Zero Two could only gaze upon the ring on her fingers with disbelieving eyes.
We're bound for life now. He actually did it.
He's my Darling now.
I'm not his partner anymore.
Inhaling a deep breath as Zero Two came to terms with her new status, she found herself blushing at the idea.
I'm his wife.
"Now its my turn!" With a giggle, she grabbed the other platinum band from his hands.
With the largest, cheesiest grin ever plastered on her face, Zero Two teased him.
"Time to put out, Darling! You're hitched to me for life now!"
Shaking his head to release the heat that had filled his face from his noisy, pink-haired soon-to-be wife, Hiro proffered his left hand towards Zero Two, glancing away in embarrassment as he offered his future to her.
With a deep breath and a serious tone unlike her usual self, Zero Two stated her promise as the platinum band hovered near the tip of his ring finger.
"From the beginning of the day until the end of night, the first and last things I shall think of is you."
A breath pitched itself in his throat as Hiro felt the sensations of the band sliding to fit securely on the third joint of his ring finger.
"Till death do us part."
Her hands clutched at his as she spoke, turquoise eyes engraving herself into his very soul.
This is it.
I'm married now.
I fulfilled the promise from that day under the snowy tree.
Theres only one last thing to do.
Chewing on his lip as he allowed the happiness to flush itself inside his entire body, he shyly glanced towards Zero Two, who seemed to have gotten the hint he was giving out, judging from the nod she had responded with.
Entwining their hands together, Zero Two closed her eyes as she leant forward, tilting her head slightly sideways as she did so.
Mirroring her actions, he brushed against her lips. Gently pressing them together.
A chaste touch.
The tickling caress on his face as her long pink hair billowed in the wind.
Savoring the salty taste of their mutual tears flowing down their faces, Hiro embraced her tighter than ever.
The beating of their hearts synchronized as their chests molded against each other's.
The glowing horns of red and blue lit up as their minds formed a permanent and mutual bond.
Zero Two.
Darling.
Together, we are one.
Yup.
Hissing out at the pain that stabbed at her heart, Ichigo coughed into the palms of her hands as she watched them seal their marriage with a kiss.
The bright, sticky red substance made for a disgustingly compelling sight against the white of her Pistil suit.
Rubbing her fingers together in order to verify the viscosity of the red liquid, Ichigo could only allow a single tear to leak from her eyes.
"I'm happy for you two."