Noting the addition of the third vital sign inside Strelizia, the operator called out,
"We have a confirmed retrieval of Code 002! She's secure in the cockpit!"
Loud cheers rang out in the Command Center of Plantation 13 alongside with a smattering of applause. Even Werner couldn't help himself but nod approvingly. Turning towards the Strategic Officer of Plantation 13, he spoke.
"It's time then, shall we send out a transport plane to retrieve them?"
Furrowing his eyebrows, Hachi grimaced as he found himself the bearer of bad news.
"Not yet. The airspace in the combat zone is still contested."
Making a sound of disbelief, Nana found herself demanding him to offer a more detailed explanation.
"What do you mean, combat zone? Zero Two has been successfully retrieved! The operation is a success!"
Pulling up the tactical map and expanding it such that it filled the main display of the Command Center, Nana felt her heart sink as Hachi pointed out the red dots converging on their location.
"The Nines are surging forward to engage him."
"The layout is different..."
Amazement filled her voice as Zero Two hopped into the cockpit of Hi-Filament Strelizia in tandem with her darling, hands tightly interlaced with his as Ichigo brought the both of them as close as she possibly could.
Feeling the comforting warmth spread from their joined hands to the rest of his body flushing him with happiness, Hiro led Zero Two towards the Stamen seat.
"Yeah. The doctor really outdid himself this time."
Glancing down at Ichigo as she passed by her in the Pistil seat, noting the stains of dried tears that marred the pristine, fair skin of her cheeks as she did so, Zero Two comforted her.
"Thank you for bringing him back to me, Ichigo."
A stiff nod was her only reply.
Smiling to himself at the peace treaty between the two romantic rivals, Hiro seated himself in the Stamen seat, Zero Two latching onto his arm as she clung to his side. Hiro felt a warm blush splash against his face and tint his cheeks pink as he found himself lost into the teasing gaze of his wife, her soft fingers stroking the ring on his hand and causing his breath to hitch in his throat.
Noticing his cute reaction, Zero Two cheesed at him, her pearly whites dazzling him with it's beauty.
A flirty wink soon followed as she leaned closer, her eyes lidded and sultry.
Blushing at the sight presented before him, Hiro released the nervous tension in his body as best as he could, mirroring her motions and tilted his head, his lips parted.
"Hiro!"
Making a sound of surprise as Ichigo's voice snapped him awake, he turned towards her, his neck giving off a crick of protest as he did so.
"We're counting on you to bring us both home to Plantation 13."
Her serious voice filling him with resolve, Hiro nodded as he shouldered the responsibility now set upon him.
"Right!"
"Darling."
A squeezing motion on his hands along with her breathy voice notified him of Zero Two's call. Returning the squeeze and feeling his heart skip a beat at the pitched intake of breath from Zero Two when he did so, Hiro locked his gaze onto her as he spoke.
"I heard your voice in my mind, plain as day. That made me so happy."
Raising their interlaced hands to place them upon his chest, where the hammering of his heartbeats were felt by Zero Two as he continued, displaying without question the sincerity that he felt at the moment.
"Because you called out to me, I felt like I finally understood my reason for living. It's not a lofty, vague goal like piloting the Franxx or protecting everyone."
Flashing a sweet, pure smile towards her, Hiro made clear his newfound purpose.
"I want to be by your side forever, for the rest of my life. I can't imagine a day without you, Zero Two."
Zero Two's cheeks had the ability to match the color of her hair, it seemed. Hiro idyllically mused to himself as he enjoyed the honest reaction on her face.
"As do I." she confessed, shaking her head to clear the heat that gathered and dulled her mind as she did so. Raising her face to meet his, Zero Two admitted the truth.
"I missed you every moment that we were apart."
Taking his free hand into hers, Zero Two placed his other hand onto her chest, pressing down and allowing it to sink into her. Beneath her soft globes of fat, Hiro could feel the rapid heartbeats that matched his, allowing him to know that Zero Two felt the same way around him, nervous and lovestruck.
Nodding to her as he made a sound of happy acknowledgement, Hiro spoke,
"If what my heart tells me is the real thing, I feel like nothing is impossible for me right now."
Clenching their hands currently placed on each others chests, Zero Two letting out a gasp of pleasure as he did so, Hiro finished his speech.
"I'll bring you back home, no matter what. Just bear with it a little longer, okay?"
Making a face of surprise at the determination he displayed, Zero Two nodded as she smiled, tears leaking from her eyes.
"Yes!"
Closing her eyes for a moment to steady herself, Zero Two nodded as she blessed her darling to storm the battlefield.
"Then I shall leave it to you-"
A warm wetness pressed itself against his lips, a kiss that lacked tongue but wasn't chaste either. Arcing his back to press himself into the kiss, Hiro found a noise of complaint leaving his throat as Zero Two pulled away, a string of saliva connecting them for the longest time before it snapped in place.
"My beloved Darling."
Pressing his horns against hers to recharge his resolve, Hiro boosted them forward.
"I'll get us through this!"
The dual long boosters on their rear roared out as Strelizia shot out towards the approaching earth.
"Nngh...!"
Jerking back in shock as Zero Two made out a noise of pain, her body recoiling from the G-Forces without a Pistil suit to assist her, Hiro quickly apologized as he immediately reduced their current speed.
"Limiting maximum combat speed to 350 kilometers per hour. You can work with that, right, Hiro?"
With a flick on her console, the boosters on Strelizia wound down from a roar to a purr as Ichigo capped their top speed and acceleration to compensate for Zero Two's lack of a Pistil suit.
Noticing the strain evident in her voice, Zero Two appealed,
"Ichigo, let me pilot Strelizia! Your body can't take much more of this!"
With a shake of her head, Ichigo rejected her appeal.
"You can't, Zero Two. I understand your feelings of wanting to pilot with Hiro, but Strelizia isn't ready for you right now. It still requires too much fine tuning and adjustments for me to hand it over to you at the moment."
Reinforcing her statements, she waved her hands at the multitude of controls that now surrounded the Pistil seat.
"Besides, this thing is more complicated than it looks."
Sticking her tongue out at the joysticks on the Pistil seat, the multiple foot pedals and the console display brimming with information, Zero Two made a face as she concurred.
Sighing to herself, Ichigo groaned out loud towards Zero Two.
"I'll teach you how to operate it when we get back. In any case, our top priority now is to escape. Please leave this to Hiro and I."
Placing a placating hand on Zero Two's shoulders, Hiro reassured her of Ichigo's intentions.
"Zero Two, Ichigo isn't stealing Strelizia away from you. Right now, she's the only one with flight experience regarding the new control scheme. Once we get back safe and sound, Strelizia is all yours. It belongs to you, after all."
Puffing her cheeks out, Zero Two surrendered to the combination attack by the childhood friends. In return, Zero Two pacified herself by clinging on to his arm as tightly as she could, snuggling against him.
"Just don't forget you still owe me a honeymoon after this."
Giving her hair a quick, loving ruffle, Hiro agreed.
"We'll fly anywhere you want, with Strelizia."
Allowing the boys to brush past her carrying the supplies that they had used for their trip to the beach, Kokoro stopped in her tracks as she noticed a splatter of blood on the glass windows of the Parasite Lodge's entrance. Her eyes followed the trail to rest upon the owner of the liquid life force, now pathetically twitching and rolling besides a nearby bush, red staining it's feathers.
With a voice that caused Miku to pause beside her, she called out.
"It's bleeding."
The broken bird chirped at the sound of her voice, as if it was sending out a cry for help, it's left wing bent in an awkward shape.
"Poor thing."
Pity entered Miku's voice as she commented on the sight before her, a frown appearing on her face as she spoke. Twintails swayed as she shook her head, moving air as she did so. As she was about to comfort Kokoro over the distress she saw about to break out on her face, Miku found herself interrupted by a familiar drawl.
"Leave it be! A bird that can't fly is destined to die soon, anyways."
Upon hearing the heartless words spoken by her partner, Miku spun on her heel as she chided him for his lack of empathy.
"Either help out or go away, you idiot! Making comments like that isn't useful at all!"
With a quick undignified "Hmmph!" at her scolding, Zorome turned away and made for the Parasite Lodge, the crate of camping supplies still in his arms.
Turning back to Kokoro once more, Miku suggested,
"I'll go look for a twig, that way we can put a splint on his wing."
Nodding her approval at her suggestion, Kokoro waved Miku off as she took the wounded bird into her hands, tenderly stroking it as she did so.
Nine Delta's eyes ticked in frustration from her location on the roof of the transport plane. Strelizia had begun to escape them, it's wings extended behind it as it soared.
Zero Two was escaping back to that forsaken Plantation to continue playing house with that fake, Code 016.
With a snarl in her voice, she demanded orders from her squad leader.
"How much longer, Alpha!?"
The response that came through infuriated her to no end.
"I need seven more minutes to deploy."
Narrowing her eyes at his reply, Nine Delta kicked off from the roof of the transport plane, thrusters belching out orange flames behind her as she immediately moved to conduct a pursuit.
"Delta, wait! Beta and Gamma are arriving soon. Form up and we'll overwhelm him all at once."
"Screw that! He's still inexperienced, I can handle him on my own. Nine Delta, conducting pursuit of retreating hostiles!"
Switching off her intercom as she sped off, Nine Delta couldn't help but grin to herself when she noticed the slow speed they were moving at, allowing her to catch up with ease.
Crying out as she felt the sizzling tip of Nine Delta's Magma Lance barely graze their sides, Ichigo found herself snapping at Hiro.
"Dammit, Hiro! Can't you shake her off!?"
Using the controls to twist Strelizia once more to avoid another incoming stab, Hiro grimaced at the relentlessness of their pursuer.
"We can't outrun her, not without hurting Zero Two. So lets try to lose her in the terrain, like a canyon or a ridge if possible."
A quick squeeze on his hands informed him of her feelings, her voice downcast as she spoke.
"It's my fault for being such a burden..."
Without the aid of a Pistil suit to pharmacologically reduce the strain on her body from G resistance, nor its kinetic foam material lining to reduce the shock of impacts, they were forced to limit Strelizia's performance for her sake.
Turning back to add extra weight behind her next words, Ichigo pointed out the logical flaw in his 'plan'.
"These guys are combat pros. They aren't going to stop coming after us until they're either killed or disabled. Even if we successfully flee, they'll simply bring the battle to Plantation 13. All of our friends are there, they'll be dragged into this as well."
Taking sharp, rapid breaths of stress as Ichigo dismantled his ideals of ending their current engagement without needless bloodshed, Hiro panted out his reply.
"I know that! Believe me, I know that better than anyone! But what you're asking of me is to commit murder! I can't..."
Forcing Strelizia to descend towards the ground to land with a plume of dust blowing outwards, Ichigo faced them towards the single unit pursuing them.
Towards Nine Delta and her partner, Nine Epsilon.
"Line in the sand, Hiro. We have to stop her here-"
Slamming Strelizia's red heels down onto the ground, with the associated thundering sounds of impact, Ichigo relayed their current assignment.
"Prepare for combat."
Drawing the rifle that had been holstered on their backs the entire time, Ichigo levelled it's barrel at the Franxx that had landed opposite them. Overhead, the transport plane loomed, reminding Hiro of the most dangerous member of The Nines and his lingering presence.
The weight he felt in his hands couldn't seem anymore sickening if he had tried.
The squeezing pressure on his arms reminded him of the responsibility he currently shouldered. Ichigo was right, it wasn't just Zero Two anymore. He had a duty to ensure that everyone came out of this alive.
Including Nine Delta.
With a tap of the trigger, he fired.
Recoiling in shock at the explosion at her feet that showered dirt and dust all over her unit, Nine Delta snarled at his naivety.
"That idiot! He had a clean shot and he didn't take it?"
The warning shot that he had fired at her infuriated her to no end, even now he was trying to brush everything off?
What did he expect them to do after his insane stunt? To link hands and sing songs of friendship?
How childish.
Holstering the rifle once more on their back, Hiro called out to her, with Strelizia's arms spread out as a gesture of peace.
"Why are you even forcing a fight!? Just let us go and no one has to die here today!"
Crinkling her nose at the pleading tone in his voice, Nine Delta couldn't keep her expression from darkening as she spoke, harshly rejecting his idealistic nature.
"It's too late for that. Also, I owe you a debt of gratitude. Thanks to your insubordination, The Nines now have the excuse they need to limit Zero Two's freedom. Even the Doctor won't be able to shelter her from something of this magnitude."
Glaring at him, she continued.
"Just give it up already! Or else I'll have to smash your cockpit and drag you out of there myself!"
Refusing to accept her escalation, Hiro pressed on, rejecting her statements as he did so.
"You can't! There's enough sadness and hate in this world as it is, just let Zero Two have her happiness!"
Ichigo muttered to herself, bitterness lacing her voice at Hiro's desperate efforts to reach out to Nine Delta.
"You're just wasting your time..."
Gritting her teeth as she felt the beginnings of a headache form at the ridiculousness of his words, Nine Delta ignited her Magma Lance, it's orange tip lighting up and sizzling in the air as Hiro continued his pleading.
"Stop it! If we keep fighting, the cycle of hatred will continue! Our hearts will break down and we'll lose what makes us human!"
Fury bubbled within Nine Delta as his words reached her ears, with a tone so harsh it caused Hiro to flinch, she screamed.
"Shut your mouth! You insolent fool! What do you know about fighting and hatred? Idling away, safe and sound as you were in a rear sector. When we, The Nines were Papa's most faithful! We had to stain our hands with the red blood of humans, not just the blue of klaxosaurs! I even had to butcher Parasites who were wavering in their faith and live out my days with their screams in my head-!"
Hiro's eyes widened at the revelation of APE's darkest secrets before him.
"Your precious happiness with Zero Two can go to hell for all I care! My hatred runs too deep for something as lofty as 'happiness' to dispel it!"
Rearing the Magma Lance in her hands, Nine Delta screamed herself hoarse as she flung the lance towards them. Hiro cringing at the whistling sounds of doom it made as it cut through the air.
"Now roll over and die!"
Frustrated at Hiro's inactivity as he stared in frozen shock at the incoming projectile, Ichigo snarled as she slammed on the thrusters, boosting them upwards to avoid their impalement.
"Hiro!"
Turning his gaze to fall upon her, Hiro spoke, desperation tainting his voice.
"Ichigo! If we don't stop her soon, the rest of The Nines will arrive and we'll be outnumbered-"
Feeling her heart sink at the frantic look in his eyes, Ichigo tried to reassure him.
"I understand what you're going through right now, but nothing we'll say will change Delta's mind. We have to eliminate her."
Astonished at her coldness, Hiro shook his head once more.
"Strelizia isn't a heartless killing machine! Brute force won't solve anything! She's just enslaved and indoctrinated, that's all! Delta just stopped questioning her situation like I did back then, it's not the real her!"
With the dual long boosters on their rear roaring as he charged, Hiro declared.
"I will stop her!"
As the distance between the two Franxx closed, Ichigo could only mutter to herself, cynical bitterness tainting her voice, inaudible to anyone except for Zero Two and her enhanced hearing.
"You're right, she is enslaved. By a broken system perpetuated by APE and the Yellow Blood Cells that courses through our veins."
Using the shield to deflect and parry the stab by her Magma Lance, now crashing against the ground, sending plumes of dust outwards as he disarmed her, Hiro grabbed the wrists of her Franxx. Fighting to keep her resisting unit controlled, Hiro poured every bit of sincerity in his voice as he pleaded directly with Nine Delta, their machines now no less than a few meters apart, locked in a physical struggle.
"Please listen, Delta!"
Canines flared as she jerked against the controls on Epsilon's Pistil suit, trying as she was to overpower the white and red Franxx before her.
"Is this what you really want? Is this what the real you wants!? Not Nine Delta, the Parasite of APE... But Nine Delta, the person!"
Her grip slackened on the controls as her traitorous mind processed his words, depicting a world that went beyond piloting Franxx. Where she had a purpose beyond being a cog in the machine called APE.
Snarling at the pilot of Strelizia who had induced his Stamen into temporary inaction, Nine Epsilon snapped at her as he continued struggling against Strelizia's grip.
"Snap out of it, Delta! He's just trying to trick you! Remember Papa, the one we swore an oath to serve!"
Nine Delta blinked as she felt her entire world shrink on her, Hiro's voice reaching out to her.
"Delta!" Hiro cried out.
A tear welled up in her forest green eyes as it threatened to spill out and trickle down her face.
"But... This is all I have. Piloting Franxx... Serving Papa... I don't have anything else to live for-"
Her voice cracked as she blinked the tears away from her eyes.
"I don't even...I don't even have a name like you."
Squeezing her eyes shut, Nine Delta raised her head in sorrow as she admitted her deepest insecurities.
Deep down, she was jealous of the fact that Zero Two alone possessed a unique name among them.
That she had managed to break free of their cage, and carry within herself the courage to defy Papa.
She was but a mere cog in a machine, built to serve APE and Papa.
Nothing other than Papa existed in her life.
His voice rang out, clear as day, encouraging in it's tone as he urged her to look beyond her past.
"Then find something to live for! It's too sad to live for nothing but hate and anger. I used to think that my mission in life was to play whatever role Papa demanded of me, but that's not true at all!"
With every word he spoke, she felt the stabbing pain in her heart increase, along with her headache. How could he find the strength within himself to say such treasonous words? Why wasn't he of the same obedient stock like every other Stamen?
Wincing at the throbbing pain in her head, Nine Delta countered as she desperately tried once more to shake off Strelizia's grip on her machine.
"Look around you! There's nothing to live for in this broken, dying planet! The only thing that awaits us Parasites at the end is death, the only question being which sortie would be our last. In a screwed up reality like this, it's only normal for us Parasites to find comfort in someone like Papa!"
"Even so!-"
His voice rang out,
"I want to believe, if we hold on tight to our dreams, if we never give up, if we never become closed-minded... I know that a chance will come. To find a happy ending, for each and every one of us."
Zero Two's eyes widened at the words he spoke, calling back to the conversation they shared during the Kissing Operation.
With his eyes and horns glowing blue, Hiro declared.
"Because this is proof of the possibilities that exist within the human heart!"
A blinding flash of light shone forth from Strelizia's blue horn on it's head as it lit up in blue, dazzling in it's brightness. With a forceful motion, Hiro knocked Strelizia's horns onto the Franxx it was restraining, sounds of ringing steel echoing out as Strelizia's horn crashed against the head module of the opposing machine.
Jerking forward from the shock and pain, disbelief leaked out from his voice as Nine Epsilon as he called out.
"The hell is he doing...?"
Opening his heart, Hiro put his faith into the same ability that had allowed his mind to pick up Zero Two's thoughts earlier during her freefall. As he exhaled, Hiro reached out with his hands, searching for any possible way he could pass on his feelings to Delta.
With a stirring within him, Hiro followed his instincts. His mind was so focused on his task such that Hiro did not even recognize the worried shaking of Zero Two as she tried to break him out of his trance.
Nine Delta froze in her Stamen seat as she saw his blue-skinned, ethereal form approach her, horns and all. Recoiling in fear and disgust, she screamed out, clawing the air as she did so.
"Stay away from me!"
Frantically switching his gaze between his breaking down partner and the image of Strelizia displayed on the main screen, Nine Epsilon panicked.
"What's happening?! Delta...! Delta...!"
"Don't come into my mind!" she shrieked.
Orange, ethereal horns appeared on her even as Delta screamed her rejection, her body's genetic makeup betraying her as it made the mental connection.
Angered at the distress coming from his partner, Nine Epsilon snarled as he poured every ounce of strength he had into breaking out from Strelizia's hold upon them.
Gently turning the hyperventilating Pistil's face towards him, forcing her to lock gazes onto him as he did so, Hiro calmed her.
"These inky, black clouds that surround you... There's no point in allowing it to dictate your life."
Staring at the blue horns that framed his head, Nine Delta felt a fresh wave of revulsion fill her body as she matched his horns with the ones owned by Zero Two. Grabbing the wrists of the ethereal form before her and pushing him away with a hard shove, she rejected his attempt at breaking through to her.
A cry of pain left Hiro as he was violently shoved against the Stamen seat from the feedback of Delta's rejection, clutching his chest as he did so. His body twisting and turning as Hiro tried to cope with the stabbing pains in his heart from such a forceful rejection.
At the sight of that, Zero Two's worry grew.
"I don't know what you're doing, but let my darling go! Delta!"
Panting out from shock, Hiro pleaded, his hands reaching outwards towards her.
"Don't let the anger and hatred consume you, Delta!"
Breathing harshly as she slumped over in her position on the Stamen seat, Nine Delta spoke, her tone carrying such bitterness it made Hiro wince.
"Artificially created children like us are always consumed by their creator's wishes. My way of life isn't wrong!"
Shaking his head at her faulty logic, Hiro appealed to her.
"That's not a wish! It's a curse!"
Pearly whites revealed themselves as Nine Delta bared her canines, her voice rising in it's intensity.
"It's the same thing! You're supposed to carry out what was entrusted to you! That's our duty as Parasites bound by a blood oath to Papa who gave us life!"
Her voice reaching it's peak, Nine Delta snarled out the perceived hypocrisy she saw within him.
"And you're one to talk-!"
Flinching at her accusing tone, Hiro couldn't suppress the shivers of stress that ran through his body as she screamed, wrinkles forming on his cheeks from his grimace.
"You, who merely happened to come across your current hybrid form and powers through sheer circumstance from piloting with Zero Two! What do you know about us, who were nothing more than her cloned backups!?"
"...Clon-" Zero Two mumbled, her brain failing to process the impact of her statement.
"Clones...?" The other two pilots in Strelizia's cockpit finished for her.
Reeling back, Nine Delta screamed, her voice echoing throughout the battlefield.
"That's right! So get out of my way-!"
A knee rose and impacted against Strelizia's midsection, causing Ichigo to jerk forward, bits of red liquid flying out from her lips to stain the purity of her white Pistil suit.
"SISTER!"
Immediately boosting them backwards into the sky, concern flooded his mind as he heard the racking coughs coming from Ichigo.
"You...see now? You've tried your best so... Lets just shoot her and make a break for it."
Wiping her mouth on her sleeve, Ichigo continued.
"I'll raise the rifle's output to the maximum. We'll close in and get her with one clean shot. Hiro-"
Her hard voice made him wince at it's frost.
"I'll pull the trigger, I'll take responsibility for it."
As they circled around the lumbering Franxx, who had just retrieved their Magma Lance from the ground, Hiro felt hesitation entering his voice.
"Ichigo..."
Her patience running thin from the circus she had to endure to get here, Ichigo found herself snapping at Hiro.
"Do it! Do you want to bring Zero Two home or not!?"
Stiffly nodding as Hiro felt the tears well up in his eyes, he glanced at the Franxx that aimlessly paced in their general direction, it's Magma Lance held slack against it's sides.
"Glory to Papa... Glory to Papa... Glory to Papa..." Her dazed mumbling repeated itself as Nine Delta blankly gazed at the white and red maiden of steel circling around her.
Hiro couldn't suppress the cringe borne out of stress as he listened to Delta repeat herself in a daze, a deep frown etched on his face.
"Glory to Papa... Glory to Papa..."
In an desperate attempt to shake Delta out of her daze, Hiro aimed Strelizia's right arm at the now immobile Franxx standing stock-still, her voice still repeating itself without pause. The machine gun on it's right forearm revealed itself from it's coverings as the chattering of high-caliber shells came to life. Dust and dirt splattered all over Nine Delta's Franxx as the warning shots kicked up the soil around it.
With a sharp snapping of it's neck, it locked gazes onto the attacker who had just unloaded on them. The Magma Lance came to life as it powered up with it's magma fuel, it's telltale orange lighting up it's tip.
"Delta! Please come back to your senses!" He begged.
Unleashing her frustration, Ichigo snapped at him once more.
"Give it up, already! She's too far gone for that!"
With a final, pitched scream, Nine Delta charged at them, Magma Lance levelled and pointed to kill.
"GLORY TO PAPA!"
Pushing them forward with the ignition of their boosters, Strelizia countercharged, rifle aimed towards her.
A warm, reassuring squeeze on his right hand told him he wasn't alone.
"Whatever happens from here on out, darling tried his best. So don't blame yourself."
His shaking voice called out to Ichigo as she aligned the lock-on to guarantee a hit.
"Ichigo... we shouldn't-"
Her furious voice cut him off and made him flinch at it's tone.
"And what!? You'll place your bets on Delta coming to her senses right at the very end!? That's risking all of our lives on a mere possibility!"
Twitching ticks formed on his eyes as Hiro felt the pressure mount on him, the distance between the two Franxx shortening with every second. With a resigned sigh, Ichigo comforted him.
"Just close your eyes, Hiro. I'll do it."
As the grip on his arm tightened from Zero Two's reassurance that she was at his side until the very end, squeezing his eyes shut-
Hiro screamed his lungs out.
Her crying visage as she admitted that she knew nothing of a life outside APE and Papa.
Through his closed eyes, Hiro heard Ichigo let out a deep exhale. Indicating the very final moments as she mentally steadied herself, preparing to take Nine Delta's life.
"I don't even have a name like you."
His mind recalled at how her sorrowful voice whispered, returning to the conversation they had just moments before.
"DON'T SHOOT!"
Snapping his eyes open, Hiro made a sharp tilt to Strelizia as Ichigo fired, the orange beam of magma energy going wide and missing it's mark.
With a snarl on her face, Ichigo brought up their shield just in time to protect them from the now unavoidable impact. Crashing sounds of steel rang out as both Franxx slammed into each other, Nine Delta's Magma Lance leaving a deep, ugly gash that left charred scorch marks on their shield.
Clutching her body from the pain of the impact, Ichigo found herself hissing away the tears of agony that had gathered in her eyes.
As he executed an emergency roll on the ground to avoid them sharing the same fate of the other machine that suffered the impact, who laid on the ground in a crumpled heap, it's faceplate deactivated, Hiro found himself staring at the rain of exploding debris falling towards the Earth, his jaw dropping at his insanity.
"You just doomed your own allies onboard that transport plane!" His horrified voice spoke, as he watched the dots scatter, the human bodies of the transport plane being flung out as if they were specks of black snow against the blue sky.
Nine Alpha had sliced his way out of the transport plane's fuselage with his Franxx, causing multiple explosions to rock throughout the transport plane until one of them had found it's fuel storage, setting the entire thing alight in a flaming fireball.
"Who gives a damn about the lives of insects like them? The crew onboard the transport were nothing more than expendable resources!"
Spiraling down towards them, his Magma Lance ignited and ready, Nine Alpha grinned.
Through their shared synchronization bond, a secondary ripple of tension rolled over him. It seemed that Ichigo was sharing the same feelings as he did.
And for good reason, because-
APE's number one pilot was on the field, and judging from how the red slits that passed for eyes glowed on it's faceplate...
He was out for their blood.
"Prepare for anti-air combat! Hiro, intercept him!"
Blinking away his shock at the new entrant in the battlefield, Hiro nodded at her orders. Scrolling through the display of her console, Ichigo selected the Twin Long Cannons from her Weapons Control System.
Racking sounds rang through their hull as the rear mounted Twin Long Cannons depressed themselves to lock into it's firing position on Strelizia's shoulders.
With a quick snap, Hiro relayed his needs to his Pistil.
"Load high explosive, proximity fuse!"
A chunky thump sounded off as the shells slid into their breeches, the cycling process reassuring in a way. They were preparing to deliver their munitions at the fastest possible continuous pace, unlike Delta, who seemed to carry a soft spot for him, Hiro had no illusions of his chances of a deescalation with Nine Alpha.
Nothing less than a full barrage would suffice for a pilot of his caliber.
"Munitions, up!" Ichigo called out. "Target, 6500 meters out and closing fast!"
The belching orange flames poured forth from the boosters of the opposing Franxx, leaving smoke trails through the bright, blue skies of the late morning. With the grace and elegance that spoke of his skill at piloting, the airborne machine weaved and ducked as it made its approach. Even from within the separation provided by the distance and the cockpit of their machines, Hiro could sense the arrogance that radiated off from his form.
"He's coming within cannon range in 27 seconds. Hiro, get ready! I'll assist with the targeting."
This was it, Hiro exhaled. The final boss of his trial, so to speak.
APE's final solution to any stubborn problem on the battlefield that refused to roll over and die for them.
Nine Alpha.
The clicking sounds and the flashing red lights of a successful lock-on brought Hiro back from his pondering, with a squeeze of his controls, the Twin Long Cannons fired. The world around them shook as Strelizia compensated for the recoil, it's red heels sinking into the brown soil of the ground. Loud sounds of impact were heard as the shell casings crashed onto the ground besides them.
The whistling sounds of traveling munitions cut through the air as they shot out, speeding towards the weaving Franxx that casually added twirls to it's motions, speaking of the confidence that it's pilots possessed.
When the high explosive shells had neared it's target, they exploded, black smoke blooming forth in a massive cloud. As Nine Alpha's Franxx shot out sideways from the black cloud, boosters active in it's wake, Hiro found himself cursing under his breath.
"Shot, wide! Target has not been reduced! Adjustment to follow, left 50! " Ichigo announced.
Taking a deep breath to steady himself, Hiro focused once more, his vision tunneling on the acrobatic Franxx currently growing steadying larger on their main display.
"Gotta calm down." he breathed.
Slamming Strelizia's heels onto the ground once more to reassure himself as another set of shells loaded themselves in the Twin Long Cannons, Hiro made the compensations that Ichigo had fed him. With Nine Alpha now only five kilometers away and closing, Hiro steadied himself as he followed Ichigo's tracking.
When the flash of red lit up his screen once more, Hiro squeezed.
Another roar came forth as the shells left their barrels, sharp whistling sounds filling the air as the rounds flew. Another set of impacts announced the crashing of the casings that had landed on the ground besides them.
The flash of an explosion lit up the sky, Hiro praying with all his heart that he had at least managed to disable or even scrape against his Franxx. But as his eyes betrayed him with the sight of Nine Alpha bursting out once more from the black cloud, Hiro felt his heart sink. A pitched intake of breath beside him notifying him of Zero Two's current feelings of tension.
"It's fine!"
Snapping his head towards the calm voice of his Pistil, Ichigo continued.
"I'm better at shooting combat anyways. Hiro, hand over the controls. I'll personally get him for you."
With just three kilometers separating them from Nine Alpha, Hiro mutely nodded as he allowed Ichigo to take the controls. A quick input on her display allowed her to load their second munition type into the Twin Long Cannons.
"Loading, HVAP rounds." she announced, glaring at the white and red knockoff of Strelizia that approached them as she did so. "I'll slice you in half with a direct hit, Nine Alpha."
It was a promise she intended to keep.
Narrowing her eyes at the weaving Franxx, mocking them with it's graceful twirls and bobs as it soared, Ichigo smiled.
Because Nine Alpha was about to get a rude awakening. For Hiro's speciality laid in close combat, his other pilot stats were mediocre to average at best. She was different however, for she spent considerable efforts to perform as an reliable all rounder, with no specific weakness in any field.
If Nine Alpha thought they were done just yet, he was dead wrong, for Ichigo had a final trick up her sleeve.
It was obvious in hindsight, to be honest. If Hiro as a pilot specialized in close combat, there was an obvious dilemma of even getting him close enough for his dominance in that particular field of warfare to display itself.
And that was where she came in, a Pistil who was an natural jack of all trades, with a slight focus on evasion and ranged combat skills.
Her skill set was made to compliment his, after all.
She assisted him in maneuvering their Franxx to close in, and sat back relaxing as she watched Hiro tear them apart in melee combat.
After all, a lot of people tended to forget that her piloting code was lower than even Hiro's, for good reason.
A fact that she took great pride in.
Switching off the aim assist, Ichigo exhaled as she watched Nine Alpha's movements become erratic. With a click of her tongue upon identifying his movements, Ichigo frowned.
He's smart. Adding random variability and feints to his movements as he closed in, fully recognizing that the travel time of projectiles would be decrease as the distance shortened.
Nine Alpha truly is APE's best pilot, his brain matching his brawn.
"Ichigo, shoot him! He's getting closer!" Hiro worried.
Not yet.
She needed to lure him closer to maximize their chances of a hit. They had only one chance at this distance, there wouldn't be enough time for another shot. And thus, she had to make it count.
As her targeting crosshair followed the boost dodges he was throwing in as he brought his Magma Lance to bear, Ichigo cleared her mind, erasing all distractions from the outside world as she did so.
Focus.
Her forest green eyes sharpened as Ichigo ignored the urging calls from the duo behind as they urged her to fire. Distantly, she could start to trace the smoke trails that Nine Alpha left in his wake from the boosters, her mind creating a series of afterimages as she did so.
A pilot, no matter how skilled, is still a slave to the laws of physics.
A delighted grin formed on her face as she pieced together the gap in his defenses. Her mind formulating a plan to finally smash the stuck up blonde jerk's ego to pieces.
There's a delay between his boost dodges. He's most vulnerable when he reaches the end of a boost dodge, it takes him a split second to boost dodge away in another direction.
I'm sure Nine Alpha knows it as well, which is why he honed himself until he had managed to reduce the delay of executing successive dodges down to a fraction of a second.
But...
The smile on her face widened until laugh lines started to form as she gleefully realized,
In that single moment, Nine Alpha is defenseless.
The last kilometer of distance separating them was crossed.
"Ichigo!" Zero Two cried out.
Just a little bit closer.
Seven hundred meters.
"Ichigo!"
It seemed it was now Hiro's turn to call out for her, urgency filling in his voice. Shaking her head at his lack of trust, Ichigo continued waiting, her breath held in her throat.
Five hundred meters.
With the opposing Franxx so close that it filled the entirety of their main display, Ichigo steadied herself as she tracked Nine Alpha's final leftwards boost dodge.
As it reached the end of it's traveling distance, Ichigo couldn't help herself but grin as she fired. Twin Long Cannons roared over their shoulders as they spat out their tungsten slugs at a supersonic speed, the thundering cracks proof of it's breaking of the sound barrier, the rounds truly living up to their namesake of High Velocity.
Game over.
I've beaten APE's number one pilot.
"Did you think it was going to be that easy, you fool!"
His mocking laughter rang out as a dumbstruck expression filled her face at the sight before her. With it's Magma Lance moving so fast that it turned into an orange blur, Ichigo's brain failed to process the illogical insanity that presented itself before her.
With a tiny, high-pitched sound, Nine Alpha had parried the solid slugs of tungsten.
Impossible...
That was completely...
Impossible...
As her eyes followed the now useless rounds sail away from his frame, Ichigo could only stare in muted shock at the wrist mounted launcher he pointed at them, mumbling in a daze as she watched it fire a small, sticky projectile towards them.
"CIWS... Shoot... Shoot it down..." her dazed voice mumbled.
Jerking awake at the sound of her voice, the machine gun hidden in Strelizia's right forearm roared to life as it revealed itself, the loud chattering of high caliber shells firing off as Hiro sprayed out a wild burst in a desperate attempt at shooting down the projectile currently heading towards them.
The solid shells went into a wide arc as every single one of them missed the projectile in flight, Hiro's panic not helping his aim at all. Attaching itself to Strelizia's chest, the sticky bomb unleashed a EMP pulse, electromagnetic current washing over Strelizia. The rolling waves of current sending Ichigo's body into a twitching fit as entire systems short-circuited and powered down, Strelizia's faceplate deactivating.
Wiping the blood that was now flowing down a side of her face as she steadied herself from the sneak attack, Ichigo's rapid breathing rang out as she desperately pleaded, fingers running over the blank display of her console.
"We came so far! Not now! Please don't reject us, Strelizia!" She cried out.
Frantic pleading continued as Ichigo desperately tried to restart Strelizia, repeating the startup process each time, her voice rising with every failed attempt.
"Seems like you've got this all covered, Alpha. We just about done here?"
The voice of Nine Beta rang out as two additional machines, the knockoff Strelizias used by The Nines, landed and surrounded them. Flanked by Beta and Gamma, with Nine Alpha directly facing him, Hiro felt the noose tighten around his neck. Delta was still crumpled against the ground, her machine deactivated, but that didn't count for much considering the odds that now faced them.
A wave of sorrow filled his heart as he felt Zero Two burying her face into his neck, her ragged breathing revealing the emotional state that she was in. Sharing her feelings, Hiro shuddered at the situation they found themselves in, surrounded by The Nines in a disabled machine, powerless as they awaited their end in the darkness of the cockpit.
As his gaze fell upon Ichigo's frantic form as she hopelessly tried to restart Strelizia, Hiro resolved to play his final card.
Pulling away from Zero Two's warm embrace, giving her a final nuzzle into her hair as he did so, he rose from his seat. Feeling his heart ache at the whimpering sound that she gave off as he peeled away from her, Hiro flipped the switch that controlled the cockpit's hatch.
With the hissing sounds of depressurizing air, morning sunlight pierced through the darkness and lit up their world. Fresh, sun-warmed air kissed at their skin, it's touch refreshing and enjoyable.
"Are you crazy, Hiro!?"
As she watched him brush past her to step out onto the ledge provided by the lowered cockpit's hatch, though clenched teeth, Ichigo hissed her disapproval.
With his hair blowing in the wind, it's strands dancing around and tickling his face, Hiro spoke with The Nines.
Ignoring the queries coming from Hachi's form as he questioned the operator, his body hunched over as he squinted at the status update displayed on the screens, Nana's hard gaze turned towards the frowning elder besides her.
"I distinctively remember the blueprints for Hi-Filament Strelizia including electromagnetic shielding in it's design." she accused.
A frustrated sigh released itself from his lungs, Werner pinching the bridge of his nose as he felt the beginnings of a headache form.
"Like I said... We might have been a little rushed in it's deployment."
Letting out a derisive snort, Nana quipped.
"Well, I hope when the time comes, I don't have to share a cell with you two. Papa is going to have our heads for this."
The headache increased in it's intensity, infuriating him with it's distraction. Massaging his temples, Werner snapped at his assistant, his voice rising as he did so.
"Like I said, it won't come to that! Just... Just have some faith, Nana. That boy will come through for us, he's always have."
Grimacing at the frustration evident in his voice, she whispered.
"Faith... huh?"
Staring at the large screen of the Command Center as it displayed her charges surrounded by The Nines, along with Strelizia's blank, deactivated faceplate, she prayed.
"You guys just want Zero Two to return to The Nines, right?"
Calling out to the Franxx that surrounded him, Hiro's voice rang out loud and clear in the still air of the battlefield. The silence following his words filling Hiro with tension, as every set of red, gleaming eyes set itself upon him. Pressure mounted and stroked the nervousness he felt stirring in his stomach, Hiro gulping the lump that had formed in his throat as he pushed on.
Raising his voice, he pressed the machine that stood directly opposing him.
"In that case, lets negotiate her return! Nine Alpha!"
Clenching his fists, Hiro yelled out his request. Wincing at the cacophony of mocking laughter that followed as The Nines jeered at him, Hiro fixed his eyes forward, resolving himself to endure anything for Zero Two's sake.
He would not back down. Never again would he allow Zero Two to be separated from his side.
Even if he had to join The Nines to stay by her side, he would.
On the sidelines, the crumpled form of Nine Delta's Franxx twitched.
As the mocking jeers and laughter died down, the amused voice of Nine Alpha came through, drawling in its delivery.
"Hoooo? Didn't anyone teach you, Mr Imitation Hybrid?" He laughed, teeth bared in hostility as he continued his mocking. "That you cannot negotiate with a predator, when your head is in it's jaws."
He took a step forward as he raised his Magma Lance, it's orange tip lighting up as it activated.
"And right now-"
Rearing the throwing arm of his Franxx back, Nine Alpha sneered.
"I am the predator, and you are-"
Hurling the Magma Lance with as much force as he could, Nine Alpha screamed his fury at the boy who was a splitting image of his accursed squad mate, his horns and eyes dyed blue to her red.
"THE PREY!"
Tears welled in Hiro's eyes as the shockwave of the Magma Lance slamming itself into the ground in front of Strelizia knocked him backwards. Drops of liquid sorrow were flung into the air as Hiro numbly reached out towards the closing hatch, Zero Two's arms embracing him from behind and catching his fall.
As if to hammer home his failure, the voice of Nine Alpha penetrated their cockpit, his joyous malice evident.
"Feel free to smash anything but the cockpit! Do it!" He hollered.
With the sounds of sniffling, Hiro felt warmth splash onto his arms as Zero Two lifted him onto his place at the Stamen seat. Pressing his face into his palms, the mounting stress of his failure building within him, Hiro glanced towards his Pistil-
Towards Ichigo, if she had any last minute plans she could offer him.
From the waves resignation that rolled off her slumped figure as she slouched in her seat, with a sinking feeling in his heart, Hiro already knew the truth.
With her bangs casting shadows over her face, Ichigo broke his heart as she spoke.
"You can't fight reality."
The sheer bitterness that tainted her voice made his avert his gaze as sickness filled his being. Ichigo's words hitting closer to home than he would have liked.
"No matter how much we want for something, the fact remains that desire just isn't enough to beat fate."
Flickering her downcast eyes towards the couple on the Stamen seat, Ichigo spoke forth the words that damned them all.
"I would know that better than anyone, myself."
Tugging motions on his arm brought his attention towards the smiling face by his side, Hiro feeling his heart shatter into tiny pieces as he recognized the gentle smile on Zero Two's face.
With a painful warmth that crushed his heart, Zero Two patted his hands as she reassured him.
"Its alright, darling. Your feelings came through to me." Tears rolled down her eyes as she spoke. "You were there when I called out to you, and you tried your best until the very end for me."
Swallowing the overflowing sorrow that leaked from her beautiful turquoise eyes, Zero Two flashed the purest smile she could towards him.
"I will never forget you."
.
.
.
At that very moment, a part of his mind broke, never to return.
Exhaling into his palms, Hiro visualized The Nines as their machines surrounded him, their shadows casting over Strelizia as they approached. Their hands reaching out to take her away from him.
Just like how it had been when he tried to protect **** *** from the faceless guards.
A high-pitched ringing sound filled his ears as it washed out all the noise of the outside world.
"*******!"
Static began to creep into his vision as it flickered, grey began to bleed into what had previously had been a colored world.
"** **!"
From the intense stabbing pains that pierced his mind, cracks began to form in his reality, as his brain tore itself apart at the memory bleed it was experiencing.
Distantly, the shrill cry of the Jians called.
With his pupils dilated and unseeing, Hiro answered.
A shrill scream filled the hallways.
Jerking his head at the piercing cry of pain, Hiro ran towards the source, down the endless hallways of Garden.
As the screams grew louder, Hiro could only put his hands over his mouth, fighting the urge to retch at the sight behind the glass window panel as it presented itself towards him.
There, strapped to a operating table, naked and filthy, was a red-skinned beast child surrounded by the faceless medical staff of Garden. With wide, quivering eyes, Hiro could only watch as a medical laser moved over her palms.
With a flick of a switch, the medical laser powered up, searing a large hole into the flesh of the beast child. Her screams began once more as she shrieked in pain, the bindings rattling as she fought against them.
"Stop it! Stop hurting her!"
Banging his fists on the glass, Hiro screamed. The glass rattled but did no more, no matter how much force he put into his fists pounding on them.
Looking around him for a solid object to break the window with, his eyes rested on a familiar figure for the second time.
"Don't just stand there! Help me rescue her!"
He snapped towards the child wearing a fur-lined coat, his childhood self merely observing him with his hands in the pockets of the coat.
"I tried."
Frowning at his reply, Hiro snapped at him.
"What do you mean, 'you tried'?"
A sigh released itself from his childhood self, as he moved to his side, his hands gripping the wrists of his Stamen suit as he did so.
"These are all just our memories. You might not remember, but you were here, once."
Tugging at him to follow, the child motioned.
"Come, take a walk with me."
Allowing himself to be led by his younger self, Hiro kept silent as they walked down the twisting bowels of Garden's hallways. The only sound between the both of them being the pattering of footsteps. In the background, the screams of the beast child were getting softer as they progressed.
Clearing his throat, he spoke up.
"Is it fine to just leave her there...? She's in pain."
A frown marred his boyish looks as he replied.
"It's just a memory, she's not really there anymore. Come, follow me. There's somewhere we need to go."
Pushing open the double doors that led into the outside world from Garden, Hiro flinched at the freezing wind that washed over his face, chilling him to the bone. With a finger, his childhood self pointed towards a pair of footsteps that trailed off into the snow.
"Hurry! We can't stay here for long."
Nodding his acknowledgement, Hiro knelt down to allow his childhood self to climb onto his back. With his longer legs and more developed physique, giving a piggyback ride to his younger self was the only way to have him keep up.
Hurrying after the trail before him, kicking up snow as he ran, Hiro rushed towards the forest, where he and Zero Two had once made their promise.
"There you go... All better!"
Giving the bird a quick pet, Miku couldn't help but allow a smile to grace her lips as she watched Kokoro splint it's wounded wing. With her hands still on her knees as she bent over to observe the process, she turned towards the kneeling ashen-blonde besides her.
"Nice work, Kokoro! You've always been the best of us when it came to taking care of others!"
Shaking her head in embarrassment as a blush overtook her cheeks at the compliment, Kokoro refuted her words.
"It's nothing, really. But, I don't think this poor bird is going to fly anytime soon." She frowned.
A sad smile crossed on her face as she watched the wounded bird stagger, it's balance ruined by the additional weight on it's busted wing. A comforting hand came down on her shoulders, Miku beaming as she watched the broken bird try it's best to return to the skies, a couple of hops being the best that it could manage.
"Sometimes, just the effort alone is infinitely more beautiful than the result."
Glancing over towards the bird as it hopped around, attempting to flap it's wings in the process, Kokoro found herself concurring.
Broken as it was, it was beautiful indeed.
In the deepest, darkest part of a forest lived a strong and beautiful beast princess.
His lungs burned as he ran, the arms of his childhood self wrapped around him to avoid being thrown off at the speed he was sprinting at.
Beckoned by the moonlight, she wandered into a country of humans, and in the moonlit garden of a small castle-
Stumbling from a bad footing, Hiro fell to his knees, kicking up snow around them. Coughing out the discomfort in his lungs as he wheezed for breath, he rose and made to sprint once more.
She fell in love with a prince.
As his loud panting rang out in the forest surrounding him, small rodents scattered out of his path as he ran.
But the princess was a beast, with ashen wings on her back.
"Hurry!" The voice on his back urged.
"I know, dammit!" Hiro cried out, the stabbing pain in his head intensifying as the memories replayed themselves during their journey.
Not knowing what to do, she went to see a witch who lived at the edge of a forest and said, "I want to live as a human. I want to be united with him."
"We're close!"
Gritting his teeth as he pushed past the burning of his muscles, Hiro ran with all his heart.
The witch replied like so: "I can help you if you offer me your wings. But keep this in mind. No matter how you disguise yourself, you are a beast-
"We're here!" He called out.
Skidding to a stop, his childhood self jumping off his back as he did so, Hiro bent over, hands on his knees as he caught his breath. Breathing harshly as he steadied himself, allowing the burning of his muscles to subside, Hiro rose his gaze towards the massive tree that was sacred to them.
and you will consume the prince's life one day."
Where the red-skinned beast child, now clothed in rags, was cowering in fear as the crowd of security troops and caretakers advanced upon her, weapons raised. A short distance away, the bloody form of his childhood self lay broken, his bright red blood producing a beautiful contrast against the whiteness of the snow.
"Why are you showing me this? I know I failed to protect Zero Two. There's no need to rub it in."
Turning towards the young child that stood beside him, Hiro accused, his tone none too gentle.
"You're wrong."
"...!"
A sound came from his throat at his honest answer.
"I failed to protect her, because I'm just a child who doesn't have the power to protect anyone."
Rising his eyes to meet his, he affirmed the differences between them.
"But you are not me."
With unhappiness rising from the frustration at the blind faith placed on him, Hiro spoke, his voice rising.
"In but a few moments, I'm going to lose Zero Two forever! So yes, we are the same! We both failed to keep her safe!"
A hard grip on his wrist silenced him, as he spoke.
"The situation is different this time, right now, you have the power to change the ending of that picture book."
Harsh, mirthless laughter spilt forth from Hiro as the words left his lips.
"It doesn't matter if I'm an adult or a child, as long as we both remain the 'prince', we've damned ourselves to follow the same path as that picture book!"
Pretending to be a prince and calling her a princess was what gotten them into this mess in the first place. This was reality! Did he really think placing fantasy titles allowed them to avoid the cruel ministrations of the broken planet around them?
Shaking his head at the folly of his older self, young Hiro spoke.
"There you go again. Don't you see? Being so tunneled-visioned all the time on the ideal of being a 'prince' is whats holding you back."
Blinking at his words which confused him, Hiro spoke, tilting his head as he did so.
"What do you mean?"
Rolling his eyes and grumbling to himself at how much of a dumb person he had seemed to age into, young Hiro sighed as he prepared to set his older self straight.
"If the 'prince' isn't useful, just be something else instead. Be whoever she needs, don't shut yourself out by stubbornly sticking to an unrealistic ideal."
Feeling the weight of his body lighten as his form lost it's opacity, signalling that his time was up, he squeezed his hand in reassurance, glancing upwards as he did so.
"Besides, you're not alone, aren't you?"
As he felt his corporeal form fade away, young Hiro could only flash a smile at the dumbfounded expression on his silly, older self.
"She's watching, isn't she?"
Blinking his eyes as he felt the disintegrating particles leave his fingers, Hiro pondered over his words as he looked towards the massive tree.
Where the red-skinned beast child cowered in the shadows of the looming figures over her.
Something more than a 'prince', huh?
Shifting his fingers as he felt the dust that lingered on them, Hiro nodded as he finally understood what was required of him. Striding forward, he made his way towards the back of the gathered crowd, their focus still on the cowering beast child before them.
Steadying himself, he called out her name.
"Zero Two!"
In but a moment, every head had snapped to place their gaze upon him. With hushed whispers among themselves, they discussed the newcomer who had interfered with their capture.
"Awwi!"
With a pitched cry of happiness, the beast child scrambled towards him, the panicked cries of her captors sounding off as she dove and weaved between their legs, dodging their grabby hands as she did so.
Flinging herself towards him and diving behind his form as shelter, she hissed her hostility towards the faceless guards.
Hiro could only smile at how adorable she was being as she snarled at her captors, all the while clinging to his leg as she did so.
"It took me a while, but I'm here for you now, Zero Two."
A quick hand signal was communicated between the guards. With the sounds of racking weapons and cycling bolts, dozens of red laser sights lingered on Hiro as he stared down the barrels of their rifles.
"And I'll never-"
Whimpering sounds of fear came from behind him, causing the muscles in his cheeks to tighten at the fear she was forced to endure.
"Leave your side, ever again."
A single familiar throb greeted Hiro as he placed his hands over his heart, his eyes closed as he raised his head towards the cloudy, downcast skies above them. Clutching at the sensation that filled his heart, Hiro made his summon.
"You've been watching all this time, haven't you?" He whispered.
Multiple clicking sounds rang out as the guards flicked off their weapon safeties, forming a symphony of promised death.
"Strelizia."
The bird of paradise announced it's arrival with a snowstorm.
The blazing gales of wind from behind him caused his dark hair to billow as the guards and captors dropped their weapons, their hands forced to shield their eyes from the blades of wind.
Roaring boosters added to the storm of snow and wind around them. Up above, the downcast, grey clouds were cleared away. The sunlight breaking through and bringing life to the frozen landscape.
A loud landing impact from behind sent snow scattering all around them, the dark shadow of Strelizia's form looming over them, consuming Hiro and Zero Two in it's cocoon.
Cowed by the might of Strelizia, the gathered crowd fled for their lives. Rifles and magma tipped pokers scattering onto the snow covered ground as they fled.
Keeping his eyes fixed on the retreating guards the entire time, his attention was snatched away by a soft, feminine breath tickling him.
Warm, loving arms wrapped around his neck as she embraced him from behind. The firmness of her chest molding against his back and causing a breath to hitch in his throat from the pleasurable sensation they provided, twin peaks digging into his Stamen suit.
Resting her head on his shoulders, hot breaths splashed against him as a sweet, familiar voice cooed honey into his ears.
"To call upon me like this, I'm blushing." She giggled.
Chuckling to himself at her voice, Hiro smiled as he lowered his gaze.
"Of course. After all, I made a promise to forever remain by your side. Right, Zero-"
A smile that fell off as a pair of huge, ashen wings came to form a cocoon around him.
This isn't Zero Two!
As every warning bell went off in his mind, Hiro surged forward, breaking out of her gentle embrace.
Turning to face the unknown entity that had the audacity to mimic Zero Two's lovely voice, his eyes widened as he drunk in her form.
"Two...?"
Staring back at him was a carbon copy of Zero Two, pink hair falling past her shoulders to grace her pretty face. Even the red horns and eyeliner that she possessed were replicated.
Tracing his eyes down her nude form, a hormonal part of his mind noted that this imposter had managed to sculpt her... assets perfectly.
Basically, if one ignored the large, ashen wings on her back and the steely grey irises in her eyes, the naked female in front of him was a picture perfect replica of Zero Two.
Down to the curves on her butt-
Coughing into his hands as he forced his eyes away, Hiro shifted in place as he tried to hide the growing problem he was facing. A blush lit up his cheeks as Hiro pulled at the collar of his Stamen suit to allow some of the toasty heat that had built into his body to escape.
Cheesing at him the entire time, the imposter awaited him to finish, leaning forward and coyly tilting her head as she held her hands behind her, pink hair falling forward to provide a modesty cover for her chest.
She even smiles like her, I wonder if she smells the same-
Rapidly shaking his head to pull himself together, Hiro determinedly fixed his eyes onto her steel grey ones, doing his best not to let his judgement be swayed by the mounds of fat that shifted in place as she breathed.
"I need your help." His tone soft, Hiro pleaded his case.
Her smile grew every wider at the sound of his voice, if it were possible, the edges of her lips reaching upwards as she grinned.
"And at the end of your rope, you finally came to me for assistance? You must truly be desperate."
Licking her lips, Strelizia spoke.
Nodding towards the bird of paradise, he confessed.
"I want to change the ending of that picture book. So help me, Strelizia."
Strutting up to him, her bare feet leaving marks in the snow as she breached his personal space, Hiro noted, despite the severity of his current situation-
Yes, she did indeed share the same sweet fragrance that wafted from Zero Two whenever she embraced him.
Blinking as he felt his face flush with heat, Hiro could only stare at the unclothed beauty before him as she traced a finger across the chest of his Stamen suit.
"Using magic, comes at a price. I can't guarantee your life if you go through with this." She winked.
Tilting her head, she smiled.
"But you already know that, don't you?"
"Yeah." He nodded.
Caressing his heart, she whispered to him, her voice kind and affectionate.
"What'll it be?"
Lidding her eyes, she exhaled, her sweet breath splashing onto his face.
"If you want off this ride, now's your chance."
"You, the flower of love who stands before me, answered my summons. That alone should tell you everything."
Clearing his mind as he prepared to sacrifice everything for Zero Two's sake, Hiro replied, conviction and resolve in his steady voice.
"I'll pay any price you ask for your assistance."
The edges of her lips curved as the beginnings of laugh began to leave her. Tilting her head in surprise as amusement filled her steel grey eyes, Strelizia unleashed a loud, hearty laugh that soon turned into a cackle as she twirled away, dancing on her bare feet, long pink hair tossing about from her motion.
Clutching at her stomach as she wiped away the tears that had formed on her eyes from her lengthy laughter, she shook her head.
"So many terrible things are done for love. For love will men sacrifice themselves and crush their enemies. For love even a peaceful man will go to war. For love, man will destroy himself, and willingly."
Shrieking laughter rose once more from her form as she cried out.
"It's funny isn't it? They named me after the flower of love, but the worst crimes in human history were committed under the influence of passion!"
Panting out as she caught her breath, Strelizia hopped towards him once more, ashen wings forming a cocoon around them, sealing off the outside world. Inside the darkness of their private realm born from her wings, the only thing that Hiro could see were the shining glint of her steel grey eyes.
Her hands reached out to stroke at his horns, his newfound symbol of inhumanity.
The humanity that he had discarded to be by Zero Two's side.
With a soft voice, she spoke.
"Never lose sight of your love, my child. Everything starts from there. Whatever happens from here on out, as long as you remember your purpose. You will never wander so far from her side that you can never return."
As Hiro watched the beating red core of his soul be slowly drawn out from his chest into her palms, the baseball sized blood red orb throbbing and pulsing in sync with his heartbeat-
With a smile on his face, Hiro teased.
"Will you be charging for that too?"
A sharp laugh came from her at his quip. Winking at him, she grinned.
"It's a freebie."
In the darkness of the cockpit, a pair of bright blue irises lit up.
"I... I want to protect Zero Two."
Closely followed by a pair of horns.
"I won't let them take her away from me, ever again."
Releasing his hands that were respectively gripping at his face and chest, Hiro laid them on the controls.
"Grant me strength-!"
A vision of a crying, red-skinned beast child beneath a mistletoe tree came forth.
"Strelizia!"
"...!"
Sounds of surprise came from both Pistils as the wounded bird took flight, it's wings brushing against their faces as it flew past them.
With red liquid dripping from it's body, leaving a trail of blood in it's wake, the Jian soared.
Against all odds, it took flight to the skies.
A plume of dust exploded outwards, the shockwave of the effect sending Nine Gamma reeling back as red colored the exterior of Hi-Filament Strelizia. A deep, rumbling roar came forth as Strelizia slammed it's red heels forward, sending fault lines to fracture across the earth.
"It activated!? Tsk!" Squeezing an eye shut in shock, Nine Beta spoke, worry filling his tone.
"Strelizia..."
In awe at the rebirth he was witnessing, wonder washed over his form as Nine Alpha murmured.
Inside Strelizia's cockpit, Ichigo could only smile as she watched strands of her blue bangs, the ones that she had kept longer on a single side, turn white before her very eyes.
"Hmmph. So this is how it feels."
Feeling all the pain that she was enduring the entire time leave her body as her soul itself merged with Strelizia and became one, Ichigo grinned.
Within the Command Center, the pulse readings for Strelizia's pilots spiked to the measurable limits of their pulse tracker. With shock in his voice as he watched the positive and negative pulses both cap themselves at 199, Hachi exclaimed.
"What's this!?"
Strelizia's circuits were completely fried from the EMP attack! How had it managed to reactivate itself?
"Sync rates are capped at 199! All sensors are reporting errors in their measurements!"
With a frown on her face, Nana snapped at the operator.
"Who's connected!? Is it Zero Two?"
As the operator brought up the image of a blue-haired Pistil on the screen, with her negative pulse capping at 199-
Along with her heart rate monitor as it breached 150bpm and continued climbing, Nana's heart sank.
"SHUT IT DOWN!"
The blood in her veins turned to ice at his roar. In her entire time spent in service as his assistant, Nana had never heard him raise his voice in that manner.
Pushing past her with his cane, Doctor Franxx clamped a hand onto the cowering operator.
"Use my override code! Shut Strelizia down, now!" He ordered.
Hastily typing in the manual shutdown code, the operator flinched at the loud rejection as the system flashed red and screeched in her ears.
"Strelizia is rejecting all attempts at interference!" She cried out.
Smashing his teeth together, Werner slammed his fists on the console banks.
"He locked us out!? It's too early for that! Now's not the time to force it, boy!"
Furiously shaking his cane at the main screen which displayed their status, Werner bellowed.
"Stop it, you foolish boy! If you keep going, you'll be absorbed into the machine!"
With his bright blue pupils dilated and unseeing, his mind having fled to distant shores, Hiro spoke, a feminine tilt to his voice layering over his speech patterns.
"My charges, I shall take flight once more."
As his voice reverberated and echoed with that feminine tilt, Zero Two shivered at the unease filling her body. Frantically shaking his shoulders to bring him back to reality, Zero Two knocked their horns together, as she desperately sought him out through their connection.
"Darling!?"
Undeterred, he continued speaking in that unnatural, layered voice.
"Decide whether you want to resist or accept your ending."
The lack of response as she skimmed through his surface thoughts frightened her.
"Why can't I hear your voice, when you're right here?"
Turning towards the blue-haired Pistil tensed in her seat, Zero Two screamed.
"Ichigo! What did you do to my darling!?"
The shadowed expression cast by her bangs was her only reply, her consciousness too absorbed into Strelizia to even register her words.
A smile cracked on her face as Ichigo bathed in the fresh morning air as it kissed Strelizia's hide, feeling it as if it were her own, her mind speaking out for her as she finally succeeded in reaching a depth of connection she never had before with the one person she cherished the most.
Right now, I feel you closer to me ever before.
I know what you're thinking like the back of my own hand.
No matter what happens from here on out,
I was glad that I could be by your side until the very end, Hiro!
Thank you for naming me and granting me happiness!
Feeling the blood heat up in his veins at her confession, Hiro sucked in the deepest breath he could, relishing in the freshness of the morning air as it coursed through his lungs, his irises glistening blue as they shrunk and refocused themselves.
His voice returning back to it's normal tone, Hiro declared.
"With the blood of two races coursing through my veins, the flame of life burns once more!"
Blue flames belched from Hi-Filament Strelizia's thrusters as it rose skywards, it's wing binders fully extending to their maximum length behind them.
"To strike down all who threaten her, is my duty that I shall fulfill with all of my strength!"
Detaching from underneath it's wing binders, the four armor bits buzzed overhead, their barrels alight with the orange glow of magma energy.
"I swear this on my blade, as Code 016..."
Drawing the hidden Magma Saber from Strelizia's hip, it's steel glinting under the morning sun along with a high-pitched ringing sound as he displayed his blade, Strelizia's arm outstretched as he gripped it.
"No, Hiro!"
Allowing the shield to crash onto the ground, kicking up dirt in the process, the Magma Stakes on Strelizia's left arm crackled as it readied itself.
"Knight-!"
He roared as orange Magma Fuel surged forth and ignited the Magma Saber, it's grey blade now lit up in orange as it sizzled in the cool, morning air.
"Of the Princess!"
With the superheated blade trailing behind them, Strelizia charged.
Unnoticed to the naked eye, lines of microscopic cracks begun to form on his horns.
A/N: Happy New Years. See you in 2019.