AKB0048 BATTLESHIP KATYUSHA, PRATCICE ROOM 3
"So, Hikari-chan—no, Yuuko-san, what are we gonna talk about here?" Honoka asked as she leaned on the wall of the practice room.
"Hey, Honoka-senpai, which practice room do you usually enter when you want to practice alone?" Yuuko suddenly asked.
"Practice, you say… Hmmm… I'd say the second one," Honoka answered plainly.
"Oh, I see…" Yuuko waved of her disappointment, as the trainees were using such a special place. "Honoka-senpai, which weapon did you specialize in?"
"I'd pick the micsaber, and make that two of them," Honoka answered as if she knew this was turning to an interview.
"Oooh, I love using two micsabers! Damn, Honoka-senpai, you're so cool!" Yuuko beamed at Honoka like a child.
"Th-Thanks…" Honoka muttered as she stared at Yuuko in a weird way. Yuuko saw this and stopped beaming.
"S-Sorry for the outburst. I just… feel more energetic, getting to finally ask you anything, he he…" Yuuko apologized and scratched her head.
"N-No, it's nothing… I'm just surprised that someone would actually see me like you do," Honoka admitted, which made Yuuko more excited than before.
"But, Honoka-senpai. What we came here for is not for an interview," Yuuko said as she wore a smile big with pride. "I want to challenge you to a dance-off! To see who's better."
"Dance-off, you say…" Honoka, taken aback, spouted. She looked at Yuuko, who was waiting for her to answer "yes". To this, Honoka smirked, because she saw herself in the current Yuuko, who didn't like to lose to anybody. "Sure. I'll take you on."
"Great!" Yuuko shouted, suddenly hitting the peak of excitement. "Then, which dance do you remember?"
"How about Beginner? I got a feeling that it burned itself into my head," Honoka gave her answer, all the while doing stretched in order to prepare herself for dancing.
"Beginner, it is," Yuuko confirmed, and then went for the speakers. On the count of three, the intro "In your position, set!" was played out, and the song finally started.
They danced to the beat, and Yuuko was amazed that Honoka still remembered the dance after so many years of departure from the group. The verses played out, and the respective Yuukos gave their all into the song. They nailed each dance move as if to mirror each other. It was going well for the both of them.
But when the chorus hit, Honoka seemed to have lost her passion. She slowed down, and then finally stood still. Yuuko watched the whole thing. She stopped along with her too.
"… So you're still affected, huh," Yuuko gave her observations.
"… Yeah. I believe I've lost my voice and my dance, as well," Honoka told Yuuko. "Tsubasa-san's a good person. She was the one who made me remember that idols existed, and that I had to tackle being an idol. She made me realize my goal. She's that important, yet she…"
Honoka sat down and hid her face, but she didn't cry. There still had to be a way to get Tsubasa back.
"Maybe she's just in the Center Nova dimension, and I can meet her by achieving so," Honoka said, with her eyes blazing with hope. "Maybe she's still alive somewhere and is just waiting for me to come retrieve her. That's right, maybe I'll bring Anju-san and Erena-san along with me. Maybe we can find her easier that way! And maybe if I do my best, just maybe… Tsubasa-san will come to me, pat me on the head and say that I did I great job. I… I can do just that, right? Right?"
Yuuko listened through all of them, though she didn't feel bitter about Honoka mouthing Tsubasa's name all the time. She just smiled all the way through. She felt the same way, after all. Missing someone meant bargaining after anger.
"You're great, Honoka-senpai," Yuuko started out of the blue. "I've looked up to you ever since I saw your face in the hall of photos back in Akibastar."
"E-Eh?" Honoka sounded as she turned to look at Yuuko who was staring at the mirror wall in the room.
"You inspired me. You inspired everyone even after you went Center Nova. I may not have witnessed it, but I'm sure you did it with a bang. Even Acchan told me how you looked like. You were shining so bright, like a supernova."
"… Acchan, huh…" Honoka muttered as she remembered a purple-haired girl inheriting Maeda Atsuko's name days before she went Center Nova. "So I was inspiring back then, huh…"
"Yeah. You were the one who inspired Acchan to be the next Center Nova," Yuuko added, which should trigger the thought that every Center Nova disappeared after reaching that peak. "Just as she became Center Nova, I inherited Yuuko-san's name. I also went Center Nova once. But Acchan told me I had lots more to accomplish, so here I am."
"Some Yuukos make it back from that dimension, huh…" Honoka said as she looked up and chuckled a little. "I was taken from that dimension to go back in time and protect Earth, to assure that AKB remained AKB before the revolution broke out. I met lots of friends and even made an idol group myself, performed through concerts. I had someone to look up to, and that was Kira Tsubasa. I may have been in AKB, but Tsubasa-san was… dazzling. Until now do I look up to her. But now…"
"Senpai…" Yuuko looked at Honoka and smiled a bit herself. "Come on. We've got practice, Honoka-senpai!"
"E-Eh? But I've lost my dance and voice, right?" Honoka doubted, but Yuuko pulled her up and patted her back."
"But you said you wanted to meet that Kira Tsubasa, right?" Yuuko countered, which surprised Honoka. "If you wanna meet her, then you gotta try your best. Your dance skills have been rusty for years, haven't they?"
"N-No, they haven't!" Honoka denied.
"Then, it's all good!" Yuuko smiled encouragingly. "Let's try Beginner again, shall we?"
With this, Honoka had no other choice but to give in. She smiled and stood beside Yuuko. "Let's do it!"
AKB0048 BATTLESHIP KATYUSHA, BUNK ROOMS
Erena and Anju still haven't recovered from Tsubasa's death. After all, they were the ones who were Tsubasa's closest friends. They stood beside each other for years, and a single blow just ripped their bonds apart.
They had heavy bags under their eyes. They began thinning out from the loss in appetite. They haven't even stepped a foot outside of the room ever since. In just a span of three days, A-RISE lost their image.
They were at their usual beds, asleep. Their room was warm enough, but all they felt was the cold air around them, that they had to use blankets in their sleep.
In all of sudden, they gained consciousness. Erena was the first, and Anju came next. They looked at each other and wondered what woke them up. A crash, maybe. Noise outside?
What woke them up, however, was not either guess. It was a melodious voice. This voice belonged to Sono Chieri. The song Chieri was singing was not familiar to the two, but they understood the message.
From a distance, Yuuko was drying herself from a recent bath when she saw Chieri singing before the door of the bunk room Erena and Anju were in. In order not to disrupt Chieri's singing, she hid before the curved hall and listened through the song.
It was Hoshi no Mukougawa. So she's trying to bring out the two.
It didn't seem like anything special. It was just a song meant to be sung to those who happen to be missing someone. Yuuko though it was normal, but once it hit the chorus, a brilliant light shone through the hall, thus surprising Yuuko. She peeked at the scene and saw Chieri with blindingly bright Kirara surrounding her as she sung. With this many Kirara before her, Honoka assumed that this girl has become a Center Nova at least once.
Yuuko walked out of the venue. She smirked as if someone challenged her to another competition for the Center Nova.
Damn, this generation is full of girls with high potentials.
DES BATTLESHIP GUSION, TRAINING ROOM
Ryuko herself had been practicing for days. Swordfights, wrestling, gunnery and mech stimulation. She was doing this all by herself in a span of three days by far, with no one to practice with and no opponent to dare challenge her.
All this because she was preparing for a body installation that will "erase her humanity", according to Dr. Shimada. She was ready to accept it, as long as she obtained the strength she needed to defeat AKB. This body installment operation was named Alaya-Vijnana by the scientist.
She knew the risks. The operation itself could put her to a long-term coma. Death was her worst-case scenario. But she was ready for that. She was willing to take the risks and let Shimada install that system unto her. So long she could complete her goal.
When she finished practice, she wiped the sweat of her face and walked to her bag. There she kept her refreshments, extra towels, spare clothes, and a diary. Ever since Shimada told her the results of the Alaya-Vijnana system, she wanted to spend the last bits of her life as a human by reminiscing the old times. Her past. The reason she joined AKB, as well as the reason she quit.
That reason being Ooshima Yuuko the 6th, Kousaka Honoka.
BONUS SCENE: MASSIVE CRUSH
OUTER SPACE, OUTSIDE AKB00048 BATTLESHIP KATYUSHA
Honoka seemed to be in deep thought while staring out into space. Of course she had to. She couldn't half-bake the battle she was going to be involved in. She was also worried about Tsubasa. She worried for Anju and Erena. She worried for everybody in the ship. What if they were in danger because of one mistake I've done?
Just as she sighed, an AKB LAS sped before her eyes. The mech took her breath as it twisted along space.
Honoka happened to look at its skills in flight when a girl rushed in from behind her. She was also surprised by this and looked at the girl. The girl stood beside Honoka and turned to look at the LAS speeding along. From what Honoka heard, the girl was named Megumi Wanaguchi. Besides that, Honoka knew nothing about her, but the way Megumi looked at the mech with eyes of wonder and pure interest made Honoka blurt out:
"You have an interest in the pilot inside that LAS, don't you?"
With that statement, Megumi blushed in an instant, and turned to face Honoka. "Wh-What are you—?!" She was about to burst when she looked at Honoka's face. Honoka was smiling at her, as if to tease. "G-Geez! Everyone here gets the same damn idea!" Megumi blushed harder, but she hid her embarrassment by running away.
After that, Honoka smiled to herself and sighed. Ah, love…