Must Be Dreaming
Orchestration I: Threshold
"Awakening"
'Awaken, Sasuke!'
The white egg contrasted violently against the black backdrop surrounding it. There was a voice calling out to him. Who?
'Awaken!'
'Sasuke? Sasuke…' was that his voice? Was that his name?
"I'm… " the curve of the egg cracked. A brilliant red orb opened suddenly. The egg's shell shattered. He lips mouthed the next word before he spoke.
"RahXephon…" The world was black, a single drop of light fluttered to the depths below. The abyss rippled.
The sky quaked. A wing shattered the heavens reflecting on the egg. The water below crashed violently against the tiled floor, splashing around Haruno Reika as she smiled admiringly at the titan before her.
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
The fortresses in the sky slowly faded out of view. The four enemy vermilions flew in sync threw the sky. Fortissimo moved steadily forward. Missiles launched from the crafts at the dolem, but they proved unsuccessful in their attack. The violet haired pilot of the red vermillion glared at the giant creature in frustration.
"Damned Mu…"she cursed. A voice filtered through her intercom system.
"Unidentified craft, five o'clock!" The target was locked on to as it rose from the facility located in the water.
"It's not a D-1. What is it?" she wondered aloud, terrified and fascinated at the same time. They fell back in formation as they locked on to the target; missiles were launched in unison at the object. Again they are unsuccessful.
"Nani?!" she exclaimed leaning forward in her seat.
It was human shaped, with complete arms and legs unlike the dolems. Wings covered its blue face; most of the body was white save for select areas patterned with gold, red, and blue. Behind its wing like mask a brilliant white light began to charge, the sound of a laser cannon preparing to fire could be heard. He attacked, destroying five of the vermilions; the crimson vermillion being the only one to move to safety in time. As the light cleared from the giant's path, Fortissimo came into view. It prepared an attack, releasing its sonic wave upon its opponent, who only twisted violently before raising its large hand to reflect the assault back. Fortissimo careened to the ground, half of its face blown away.
Allegretto moved in, its eerie song echoing across the battlefield. The fortresses completely disappeared. The titan hunched forward, its wings recovering its face. The battle was over for now.
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
"Hiranipra has returned to its original coordinates."
Multiple smaller screens appeared within the single monitor. The woman suited in teal sat in her high backed chair watching the giant from the recent battles, intrigued.
"Ollin has been recovered. We have transported him to a nearby medical facility."
"Is this satisfactory?" Masayoshi Fugaku inquire, turning to gaze at the female.
"Yes, there were some irregularities, but it went according to plan," she responded, unconcerned.
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
Kanto General Hospital
Uchiha Sasuke glanced around the hospital as nurses and doctors rushed from patient to patient frantically.
"Excuse me," he called to the nearest nurse.
"Yes?" she asked, fiddling with papers on the desk before her.
"Was there a girl with me when I was found?" She turned to face him fully before answering, drawing her clipboard closer to her chest.
"I'd heard that you were the only one. Oh, I'm sorry," she apologized before rushing off to answer the phone that had begun to ring. Sasuke's eyes grazed over the numerous injured citizens within the room.
"Uchiha?" Sasuke turned to look at the nurse he had previously been speaking to.
"You're Uchiha, right? They said there's nothing wrong with you. Your mother's coming to pick you up, so get dressed and go wait for her." The woman received a dull stare in response.
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
Sasuke made his way down the hall of the hospital slowly, pausing only to listen to the solitaire occupant's portable TV device as it played the news.
'Our Defense Force fought with dauntless courage against the attack of the Invaders, which started yesterday at 8:45.They successfully protected the peace of the capital. The enemy forces were helpless before the might of the Defense Force's new weapon, and…'
A shrill chirping sounded in his ears as imagery flickered before his eyes.
A cracking egg…
Haruno Reika…
Wings…
Faces on the front of flying fortresses…
Exploding aircrafts…
Half destroyed dolems…
Sasuke collapsed against the wall in pain, hands gripping his head at the rush of memories.
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
Uchiha Mikoto drove a deep green car; her 17- year-old son, Uchiha Sasuke, seated in the back.
"Mom…"
"What is it?"
"Did you see the new weapon in action yesterday?"
"Yes, I did, though it was from far away."
"You know the opponent that fought the new weapon? Wasn't it sort of shaped like a person?"
Mikoto's eyes cut to the left to glance in the rear view mirror at her son. Sasuke leaned forward in his seat.
"Wasn't it a big human sort of thing with wings on its head?"
"I didn't see anything like that, nor was there any such thing. Not even on TV."
"Okay, then that's fine." Silence ensued briefly.
"Hey, is it okay for you not to be at the lab?"
"Of course, it's for my dear son." Sasuke's expression displayed the joy he felt that his mother would make such a comment.
"I didn't know you had a side like that."
"You're tired. You should take it easy and rest for today."
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
It was night time before Sasuke attempted to contact Haruno Reika. He stood in the living area, lights off, phone pressed to his ear as he waited patiently for her to pick up on the other end.
"Yes? This is Haruno. Hello?" Sasuke sighed in relief, she was okay.
"It's Uchiha."
"Sasuke?"
"Why did you suddenly disappear yesterday? I was worried that you might be hurt or something." The question had been nagging at the back of his mind the whole day. He could feel the smile in her voice as she spoke.
"Thank you. I'm okay. What about you? Were you okay afterwards?"
Uchiha Mikoto slowly descended the stairs. Sasuke paused as he noted her approach.
"Yeah, it'll take too long to explain everything to you, so I'll talk to you at school tomorrow. Bye."He quickly hung the phone up as he turned to face his mother.
"A friend?"
"Yeah, from my class." She followed his ascent up the stairs with her eyes, waiting until he disappeared within the confines of his room before making her way to the phone. She held the receiver to her ear as she pressed the redial button.
'The telephone number you have dialed is currently not in use. Please check the telephone number and dial again.'
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
Sasuke stared at the empty seat diagonally to his right as the teacher droned on about extinct civilizations' languages. His eyes shifted to gaze out the classroom window as images of a woman with shoulder length pink hair and bright green eyes drifted through his thoughts.
'I'll tell you, if you come with me,' she pulled the shades from her face, her eyes remaining downcast,'about the blue blood.' Her eyes shut as she drew in a breath before staring directly into his eyes. 'About everything in this world.'
"Uchiha! Uchiha Sasuke!" he was pulled back to the present by his teacher's calling. He stood slowly from his seat.
"Yes, sir?"
"Uchiha, you're next!" the teacher exclaimed, annoyance lacing his tone.
"Sorry, I wasn't listening" he replied nonchalantly. Behind him Hyuuga Neji's hand rose in the air as he called out.
"Teacher, Uchiha is always saying that it's a waste of time to study the language of countries that don't exist anymore." The teacher signed in irritation.
"Look here, it's true that England, America, and so on are gone now, but novels and music written in English still exist. You guys all sing some Beatles in karaoke, don't you?"
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
Outside the school gates a grey car sat idly, occupied by the black suited lanky man from the day before.
Within the convenience store across the street a young woman with cotton candy hair stood eyeing both the vehicle and school, her ever present sunglasses balanced atop her head.
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
Students chattered amongst themselves inside the classroom during break. Sasuke sat with his two best friends, Asahina Tenten and Hyuuga Neji.
"They put in three stitches, but they say it won't leave a mark," Tenten affirmed.
"Right after she got hurt she turned all pale and started trembling," the brunette beside her teased. Tenten's face scrunched up in indignation.
"A girl's skin is a totally different story than a guy's!" she exclaimed, attempting to smack Neji who stuck his tongue out at her.
"At any rate, it's good it wasn't anything serious," Sasuke replied, drawing Tenten's attention away from abusing Neji.
"By the way, what were you doing after we got separated?" Silver eyes locked on his.
"The thing is, I was running towards Akiba, when I ran in to Haruno." The trio's gazes' fell on the absent girl's desk.
"Haruno?"
"You know Haruno, Haruno Reika. She didn't sound any different on the phone though."
Tenten frowned as she met the gaze of Neji who held a similar expression.
"Hey, Uchiha, I don't really see what you're saying." Tenten said slowly, but before she could go on a voice cut through their conversation.
"Good morning." Haruno Reika stood peering at them, a determined look flashing in her eyes. Tenten gazed back peculiarly before greeting the tardy girl.
"What's up, Reika? It's rare for you to be late." Neji cut Tenten off.
"Haruno, could it be one of THOSE days?" he questioned with a grin. Tenten's cheek's flushed red as she slammed her fist on top of Neji's head. Reika approached Sasuke.
"Thank you for yesterday."
"Sure…"
"Oh, I smell something suspicious!" Neji declared, his expression smug.
"Moron, what are you suspicious about?" Sasuke couldn't stop the blush from coloring his cheeks.
"Your denial makes it even more suspicious!"
Tenten smiled as she watched the two out of the corner of her eye; Reika giggled at their antics.
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
The end of the day found the two on the school's roof top by the pool. Reika crouched on the number four diving platform as Sasuke stood beside her.
"I don't think that was a dream or anything." Sasuke gazed thoughtfully at his reflection on the pools surface as she spoke.
"If you say you saw it, then that giant must have been real."
"Do you think so?" Silence stretched between them before she replied.
"It is a mirror that reflects the truth. One who will tune the world." Sasuke watched her inquisitively as she stood from her crouch.
"It's true. If you so desire, I think you'll even be able to meet it again." She cocked her head to the side, pinkish-red locks falling across her face as she looked at him.
"Okay, Sasuke?" He didn't respond as he observed her.
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
Sasuke made his way up the sunset painted street to his house, surprised to find a letter addressed to him when he checked the mail. He laid his sketch book on the small table in his room before seating himself on the bed. He peered curiously at the envelope in his hand before ripping the edge off and pulling a picture from inside. He blinked in surprise at the image of the red tuning fork shaped dolem and the creature he had been pondering over for the better part of the day. Upon further inspection, a note was found scrawled on the back of the photograph.
'Don't you want to see how the world truly is? Meet me tonight at 2AM in Shakujii Park.'
Sasuke stared at the note before focusing his attention on his recently completed painting of the girl with the ribbon tied around her neck.
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
Lights illuminated the island facility. Deep within the confines of Tokyo's government building the dolem Fortissimo was slowly recovering from its encounter with the humanoid winged creature. Masayoshi Fugaku watched from within the operations room.
"What's the status of the repairs?"
"It is still in the process of restoring itself. One more hour until it is completely restored."
"How is it doing?"The swift change of subject did not encumber the ginger-haired woman in the least.
"It is still sleeping," Kushina stated," It shows absolutely no signs of awakening."
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
Sasuke shut the door to his mother's room as quietly as possible after checking that she was asleep.
The guards outside the house lay slumped on the ground against their car, courtesy of Sasuke's green eyed stalker. She watched from within the car as Sasuke left his house, her lips curving up in to a smirk.
She pulled up at Shakujii Park at five passed two a.m. Sasuke raised his arm to block the blinding light of the car's high beams.
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
Sasuke watched her from the corner of his eyes as she drove. His gaze flickered back and forth between the road and the woman next to him.
"What did you mean that you would show me the truth about the world?"
She responded without looking at him.
"That photograph looks familiar to you. The news on television is suspicious. You feel like someone is hiding the truth. That's why you came, right? Am I wrong?"she glanced at him from the corner of her eye with a knowing smile.
"Or did you want to see the pretty lady you saw yesterday?"she teased. Sasuke sat back in his seat, unimpressed with the comment.
"I told you that I wasn't interested in older women."
"You're not very endearing," her tone was light, indicating she was not offended. He stared grumpily at the dashboard.
"Do you know how many humans are on Earth right now?" He turned to face the window as he scoffed at the sudden pointless question.
"You talk like the teachers do at school," she dismissed his remark.
"Never mind that, answer me."
"Twenty-three million people."
She smirked as she answered him, her tone mocking.
"No, six billion people." He processed her statement slowly, his eyes widening as he turned to her with a look of incredulity on his face. She pressed down on the gas, swerving between cars as they headed for the military base. A uniformed man moved to stand in front of the yellow and black stop indicator. He quickly changed his mind of upholding such a foolish action when it appeared the vehicle was not going to slow down. He dove for the booth, slamming his fist into the alarm button. Sirens blared from horns all over the base.
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
"Please let me out!" Sasuke implored of her. She pushed forward, her brows furrowed in determination.
"If you want to know the truth, shut up and come with me!" the car screeched to a halt moments later beside an aircraft.
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
Uchiha Mikoto scowled at the two men before her begging for forgiveness as she held the phone to her ear.
"In the TERRA VTOL?" she questioned the person on the other end.
"Yes, Ma'am. Sasuke is being held hostage. Our hands are tied." She shut the phone off, her gaze falling on her subordinates.
"I will head for the Shrine."
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
The once half destroyed head of Fortissimo was complete.
"Dolem Fortissimo, restoration complete." Kushina frowned as the red light on her control board beeped and flashed.
"What's wrong?" Fugaku demanded.
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
Haruno Reika walked confidently across the rippling water in the Room of Rah.
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
"This is… An unknown response pattern!" Kushina exclaimed, uncertain of what action to take.
"It's in the Room of Rah! Hurry up!"
"It's no good! I can't get it on the monitor!"
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
The blue aircraft prepared to take flight.
"We're going to charge through the wall and get outside. Got it?!"
"What did you say?! A Wall?!" Sasuke stared at the back of the woman's pastel pink head.
Pale slim fingers flew across the control panel.
"It's too late to stop me now!" she shouted, adrenaline rushing through her veins.
'Accelerator, ready. Hyper-cruise, ready. HSFC, okay.'
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
Uchiha Mikoto held the phone to her ear as they sped for the Shrine of Xephon.
"The controls are not working?" Masayoshi Fugaku replied from the other end.
"Something is happening in the Room of Rah!" sweat ran down the side of his face as he stood straight, shoulders tense.
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
Haruno Reika stood before the giant winged being. The wind slowly picked up momentum as she extended her arms out to her sides.
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
Viridian eyes widened as the machine moved with a mind of its own.
"What's wrong?" Sasuke questioned at her panicked exclamations.
"This can't be…" She stared in wonder as the control stick functioned on its own.
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
Reika inhaled deeply before her lips parted to release a long note. A continuous 'La' fell from her mouth as she stood upon the shoulder of RahXephon. The wings opened at her call.
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
Sasuke's mouth parted as Reika's song reached his ears.
"It's no good at all! What in the world is going on?"
The ship began its descent to the Room of Rah.
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
Mikoto stood behind the two men acting as guards in the elevator, arms crossed over her chest as a finger tapped impatiently against her forearm.
"If it moves, activate the Dolem at once, "she commanded," I will head for the Room of Rah."
"What about the TERRA unit?" Fugaku queried through the speaker system. Kushina quickly relayed the information she had gathered.
"Unable to monitor. It is believed to be descending."
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
Sasuke pulled at the seatbelt strapping him in. The pink haired woman turned to him.
"What's wrong Sasuke?"
"I have to go. There's… Someone waiting for me" He gazed unseeing, eyes wide, pupils dilated.
"Sasuke, get a hold of yourself!" she yelled at him. She took in the appearance of the dome shaped room, her eyes flickering to the RahXephon.
"Come here, Sasuke." Reika beckoned him. His seat was launched from the cockpit as the rest of the vessel crashed through a pillar.
The green eyed female pulled herself onto a column as the aircraft sank beneath the waters, her gaze seeking out Sasuke.
"Sasuke!" she grit her teeth as he ignored her call.
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
Mikoto stepped in to the room after the uniformed guards.
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
Sasuke walked steadily towards the RahXephon, disappearing moments later within it.
The world was black, a single drop of light fluttered to the depths below. The abyss rippled.
Sasuke's eyes flew open. RahXephon's following soon after.
Sasuke's head jerked side to side, sweat beaded on his skin, everything was spinning. He was panicking, his vision going in and out of focus.
'What's happening?' eyes darted from right to left. Images flashed across his mind once more.
An egg cracking…
Faces on the front of flying fortresses…
Wings…
Exploding aircrafts…
Half destroyed dolems…
Haruno Reika's face shattered in to millions of pieces…
Sasuke pressed his hands to his face, gripping his hair and skin as he threw his head back to scream.
The water within RahXephon's egg poured out in waves.
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
Allegretto and Fortissimo's songs echoed as they sang. Fugaku stared at them in shocked horror.
"Is it resonating?!"
.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.
A chunk of debris flew at Mikoto, knocking her to the ground. RahXephon's eye rolled to look at her. She kneeled on the ground, left hand placed over her cheek as a guard fretted over her.
"Mom?" Sasuke's eyes twitched in horror as blue liquid splattered the concrete. His mother turned to face him, blue blood trailing over her cheek, down the length of her jaw where it dripped from her chin to the floor below.
"Yume no Tamago"
"Tell me
Love, right now
Tell me
Where is it
Tell me
When will people awaken
The resonating song
Makes the doorway of time flicker
Ah, Rahxephon
Fly me to the music
Tell me
Love, right now
Tell me
Where"
Preview:
A rainbow bridge...The doorway to reality…
The wall that hinders is the fabricated planet.
The world where I exist…
Must Be Dreaming, Third Movement: "Welcome to Our Town"