A/N: I forgot to put in Yuki's power stats... oh well, it seems that not a lot of people read the last chapter anyway.
Some people are saying that Yuki's Voice of the King skill is too cheat. I did not write out its limitations because of the excitement of the story. Well, Yuki's 'Voice of the King' skill can be used on both SSS2 and NPCs, since it essentially 'forces' a 'command' into the system. Much like Lelouch's geass. However Yuki's skill can only be used at a maximum of two times a day. It can only affect those within natural hearing range, meaning that it would not work through cellphones or recordings or even the PA system. Not even an amplifier would work. Yuki must pronounce her orders correctly and precisely. Any vague orders will not be obeyed. Orders that contradict the basic instincts like 'kill yourself' does not work. Yuki's order for the SSS2 to retreat is not against basic instincts. The last problem with the skill, and the biggest... is actually with Yuki herself. She represents Pride, and because of that restricts the use of the skill herself. It is due to her pride that she does not resort of under-handed tactics to get people to follow her orders, unless it is an emergency.
Yuki is practically the second strongest person in the organization, second to Kurogane Kou. Though she is powerful... there is a secret. It will all be revealed in the end.
[Angel Program SSS2 Division leader archives]
[Accessing Division leader records]
[Access denied]
[Rerouting]
[...]
[...]
[...]
[System Error]
[Accessing back-route]
[...]
[...]
[...]
[Access granted]
[Displaying records of Division 1 leader: Taeno Yuki]
Name: Taeno Yuki
Age at death: 17
Sex: Female
Height and Weight: 154 cm [Error] kg
Division: 1, Fort
Alignment: Chaotic Evil; Pride
Weapons: FN Scar (rank B), Walther PP (rank D), Beretta 92 (rank C), Tokarev TT-33 (rank C), Sovereignty (rank SSS), [Error] (rank [Error] )
Strength: A
Agility: A
Endurance: B
Luck: C
Abilities:
- Voice of the King (rank A)
- Knights of the Crown (rank S)
- Might of the Empire (rank SS)
- Royal Lineage of Royalty (rank [Error] )
- Chains of the Dominion (rank [Error] )
Angel Beats!
What We Live For
Operation 22
The meaning of Strength
"I want another Operation!"
Yuki shouted, banging her fist into the table like a child throwing a tantrum.
"Don't be foolish, Yuki-sama! You've only just recovered from your wounds!"
Kaname shouted back, slamming documents onto Yuki's desk. Yuki cringed back at the sight of those documents, but clenched her teeth and swept the documents off her desk.
"Your aide is right, Yuki. You should rest."
Ein said, bending over to pick up a fallen file.
"We managed to get the student council to act! And we also managed to push the ones behind all of this to show themselves! I'm sure with one more push, we could drive them all out into the open!"
Yuki shouted back. Ein narrowed his eyes at Yuki, somewhat angry at her.
"Are you even listening to yourself? You're mad! We're still trying to recover our losses from the last operation and you're talking about a new one?"
Ein snapped at Yuki, something he was extremely reluctant to do. But Yuki was insane. She was losing what was left of her sanity to the battles, to time.
"But we're this close, Ein! So close I can taste it! Don't you ever wonder why it is so weird that amongst the Student council members, we do not know anything about the student president?"
Ein was caught off-guard by that statement. It was true that while the student council and the disciplinary committee were their enemies, the SSS2 had really no idea who the student council president was. No one had seen him or his picture. Not even his name is known. He is a complete enigma but it is for sure that he does exist.
"... What makes you think that he will appear? We've tried doing Operations for over forty years and yet he still has not shown his face."
Ein replied, certain that Yuki did not have any good ideas. Yuki, on the other hand, merely smiled.
"This time is different. This Operation is different, because we have this guy."
Yuki tapped on the photo with the phased out 'SSS2' member.
".. Him? He's an NPC, a spy for the enemy."
"Exactly. Because of the Operation, we discovered him, and also, the number of Angles who appeared were almost the same in number as that day during the battle of Big Site. This is clearly not a coincidence-"
"Because you don't believe in coincidences, right."
Ein sighed, realizing that arguing against Yuki was useless from the start.
"This sort of spying tactic cannot be achieved with even the Type A angels. This is definitely the work of a human... the one the NPCs called their 'creator'."
Yuki narrowed her eyes as she said that. The Intelligence division had only just managed to discover that there was indeed someone behind the Angels and their attacks. The attacks were not random, they were calculated. They showed strategy that no computer program could manage. All would point to the mysterious student council president to be the one behind the attacks but none had even seen him. Would another Operation drag him out? It was true that due to this Operation, the actions taken by the NPCs were inconsistent with the theory of them being controlled by a program. Thus it would stand that a human was responsible behind their sudden change in tactics and aggression. But who was it? It certainly wasn't Tenryuu Shuusuke as they had clear evidence that he had no relation, or love, to the student council. So who could it be?
"... Fine, so what do you have in mind?"
Ein resigned to his fate. Bad idea. Yuki smirked, her eyes twinkling with mischief.
"Since Operation: Switch was able draw them out this much, we should work along those lines. I propose Operation: Miko, Operation: Maid, Operation: Nurse!"
Ein knew it. Yuki did not have any good ideas.
Katsuragi wondered how things had gotten this far out of hand. Standing at the edge of the track field with enough catapults, cannons and artillery to level a small country standing behind him, Katsuragi was getting a sinking feeling that this was all wrong. And it was going to get worse.
An hour before
Katsuragi was holding back the little girl called Masamune Shoka when Himura Yuuko, the boss of Guild, came over.
"Yo, Shoka-chii, I see you're having fun."
Yuuko smiled broadly. Shoka-chii?
"Does this look like fun to you? !"
Shoka demanded, knocking Katsuragi's hand off her head.
"So? What's this little fight about?"
Yuuko asked, her eyes telling Katsuragi that she was planning something. Definitely planning something.
"Yuuko!"
Shoka cried, running to Yuuko like a small child running towards her mother.
"This rude guy doesn't believe that I am the leader of the experimenters!"
Shoka cried as Yuuko stroked her head.
"Ah, I see, so he was bullying you, wasn't he?"
Yuuko soothed the crying girl.
"T-tell him, Yuuko! Tell him that I'm a squad leader!"
"Right right... Well, Corporal Katsuragi, it is true that Shoka is a squad leader. It is also true that she is one of the founders of this organization."
Yuuko explained to a shocked Katsuragi and for some reason Shoka was nodding her head with a slightly smug look on her face.
"And it's also true that she has the body and mind-set of a ten year old, likes to cry, can't do things on her own and is easily bullied."
Yuuko went on, now saying things that Shoka obviously did not want said.
"Wha- Yuuko!"
"And though she wants to be recognized as being older, no one actually bothers. Also-"
Yuuko suddenly grabbed Shoka tightly with her arms with an extremely evil smile.
"-she is my toy."
[Katsuragi is thinking dirty things]
"W-wait a minute! Yuuko! What are you talking-"
Before Shoka could finish, Yuuko picked up Shoka with relative ease and tossed the leader of the experimenters up into the air.
"Y-Yuuukoooo!"
Shoka's voice echoed as she flew up, reached the critical height of her flight, then plummeted to the ground. Yuuko extended out her arms to catch Shoka, but somehow Yuuko missed the landing spot, resulting in Shoka crashing into the ground. Yuuko and Katsuragi both stared at the body that was Shoka before looking at each other.
"... Oh well, she'll revive later."
Yuuko waved it off.
"Don't just kill me off so easily!"
Shoka suddenly stood up shouting.
"Oh? You're back? Ah, it must be so good to be young. Able to revive almost instantaneously."
Yuuko nodded.
"I'M NOT YOUNG! And call me onee-sama! I'm older than both of you!"
"Right, right, Shoka-chii."
"CALL ME ONEE-SAMA!"
Shoka shouted at Yuuko who was clearly having fun at the smaller girl's expense.
"But you sure don't look like an onee-sama to me."
Katsuragi muttered off-handedly, which triggered a sort of mental damage for Shoka.
[Shoka suffered 999999 damage]
"I-I'm drinking milk everyday! I'll be sure to out-grow both you one day!"
"But you haven't grown at all. Not in height... or in 'that' region."
Yuuko pointed out, more specifically, Shoka's chest. Shoka looked straight down. Nothing, flat, a clear line of sight straight to her legs. A runway.
.
.
.
.
.
[Shoka is now depressed]
Hugging her knees, sitting by the corner of the room, drawing circles in the floor while muttering words that only made her fall deeper into despair.
"... I'm short... I'm flat... Even when I drink so much milk, I still can't grow... I know, it's because this is the afterlife... I can't change myself in the afterlife... Even though I came at the same time as Yuki, I still can't be like her... people don't even treat me with the same respect as her... I can't be like Yuki... even my chest isn't developed like hers..."
Katsuragi was now feeling guilty and depressed for getting Shoka into this sort of predicament, but it wasn't like he knew how to get her out of it.
"Well, let's leave Shoka to her ramblings. She'll get out of it tomorrow, or when someone offers her a sweet. So Katsuragi, you're here as a form of help from Yuki, am I right?"
Yuuko turned to Katsuragi, who nodded to the answer.
"Good. The truth is, during the last Operation, we were asked to deploy some mines across the track field. These were to be used in case of an emergency. Well, the emergency came but not at the track field. That's just one more strike against the Intelligence division. But enough about that. The problem with this is that there was a mix up in the orders and it turns out we deployed too many mines. The track field is currently closed off by the Diversion division to both SSS2 and NPCs till we can clear it. So this is where you come in."
Yuuko explained, passing Katsuragi a-
"... What is this?"
He asked to Guild leader.
"Hm? Can't you tell? It's a mosaic."
.
.
.
"Mosaic?"
He asked.
"Mosaic."
She confirmed.
.
.
.
Indeed, it was a bunch of distorted pixels that was sitting in his hand. Why does it give off the feeling that it is something so horrible and disturbing that it can not be shown on television? In the first place-
"... How?"
"What do you mean how?"
Yuuko asked.
"How in the World did you create a mosaic? ! It's is not possible! Illogical!"
At that, Yuuko's nerve snapped a little.
"... Eh? Impossible? Illogical?"
Yuuko's aura was starting to flare up. Katsuragi was about to say something else, but an experiment suddenly pulled him back.
"Boy, I don't know who you are, but do not say those words in front of Boss.. EVER! Just take the portable mosaic device and leave it!"
The experimenter stressed as other experimenters swarmed in to cool off Yuuko. With ice packs.
"... Phew, anyway, you will also need this."
Yuuko said, handing him a hard helmet used on construction sites with the words 'Safety First' printed on the side. Safety first. Yeah right.
"We need people to clear that field and we're already tied down in Guild trying to replenish the ammunition and medical supplies. I've already sent word for our clearing crew to arrive at the scene. You just need to be there and help out. Oh, and this is a joint mission with the other Divisions, it is more or less an Operation. Informal, but still an Operation. Operation: Mine-sweeper."
Present
Operation: Mine-Sweeper. What a direct sort of naming sense. But still, what was with the catapults? Cannons and artillery aside, why catapults?
"Are you corporal Katsuragi? Sent by the boss, right?"
A member of shield walked over to him, saluting as he approached. Katsuragi saluted back though he wasn't exactly feeling like following protocols at the moment.
"I need you to look through this list."
The shield member said, passing him a clipboard. Katsuragi looked the list. The first few pages were basically the description of this Operation in brief. The next page was a list of those involved. The list was placed according to rank and Katsuragi saw his name being at the top despite having higher ranking people involved.
"... Why me? There are warrant officers and even a lieutenant here."
Katsuragi asked.
"That's because you were chosen by Boss to oversee this Operation. In addition, you're a Wolf member."
A Wolf member. Although the Wolves were meant to abide by the same ranks as other divisions, in reality the Wolves held three times as much power as they should. In other words, a Wolf private would outrank a sergeant. Katsuragi, being a corporal, was at the same rank as a second lieutenant, beating the sergeant, staff sergeant and warrant officer ranks. So he was more or less the highest ranking one here. Unofficially. Katsuragi sighed, flipping through the next few pages. Ammunitions, weapons used, supplies and all sorts of other details. Some details Katsuragi would rather not get into.
"Ah, Corporal, it might be best if you review the last page. The Boss said it was very important."
Last page? Katsuragi flipped to the last section and on it read 'List of participating members' underwear-'
.
.
.
.
"... Is this for real?"
Katsuragi asked the shield member, who nodded his head. Katsuragi took a deep breath in-
"LIKE HELL IT'S IMPORTANT!"
Katsuragi shouted, slamming the clipboard onto the ground.
"Well, we have to start either way."
The Shield member said, looking over to where the rest of the involved participants were gathered.
"... Right, so let's go."
Katsuragi walked over to the group followed by the Shield member. This would be Katsuragi's first time overseeing a mission larger than a squad based one and personally, he did not really feel like doing it. Still, something bothered him. There were obviously more people involved than needed. If this Operation just required the use of cannons and artillery to clear the field, then the number of people far exceeded the amount of cannon batteries available. In the first place, where in Guild did Yuuko hide these cannons? And-
"... Sergeant."
"Yes?"
"... Where are the ammunitions?"
Katsuragi noted the clear absence of cannon shells, giant rocks or anything. What was going on here?
"Hm? They are right here, Corporal."
The sergeant replied.
"Like I said... where are they?"
"And like I said... here."
The sergeant repeated, pointed forward.
"But I don't see-..."
Katsuragi then realized what the sergeant was pointing at. The large gathering of people.
"... Don't tell me."
Was this the reason behind the large gathering of people? THEY were the ammunition? Did they know this? Did they even sign up for this? !
"Shall we begin?"
The sergeant asked. Was this really alright? At this point, Katsuragi felt like if he said something, he would definitely lose. Not sure what he would lose, but he will lose.
"... Alright."
Katsuragi knew that he should just resign to his fate. Whatever that fate may be. And fate... was to launch people into the air.
"200 metres!"
"200 metres!"
"Fire!"
BOOM
The cannon erupted, sending a screaming SSS2 medic high into the air.
"... He sure flew far."
The shield sergeant noted.
"... He sure did. Was he wearing a helmet?"
Katsuragi asked, tracking the trajectory of the flight with a pair of binoculars.
"He was suppose to-"
"Sergeant! The last one dropped his helmet before firing!"
A sudden report came in.
"... Guess he didn't."
Katsuragi said, just as the medic crashed into the ground on the track field. No explosion.
"Hmm... sector F-4 is clear."
The sergeant noted, putting a flag on a grid map laid out on a table.
"Next, we should fire at G-7."
"That's pretty random."
"And who isn't these days?"
Sitting down on the ground to rest, Yamato looked over by the training field where half of the new recruits were lying there dead. This training regime was harsher than what she went through, though in return there was an absence of the live training exercise. Probably after that incident with the 'Spawner' type Shadow, the exercise has been taken out of the training.
"Yo, good job out there."
Sakagami Tomoyo said, walking over to Yamato.
"... It's nothing."
Yamato replied, looking at the recruits slowly revive. The weak, the powerless. She could sense it in them. But she also sensed the drive. The drive to be stronger. They will be strong. They cannot do anything but be strong. It is only the weak who understand the true meaning of strength and what it means to get there. Yamato was the same. She was in the same position as them less than a year ago. But what about now? Was she any different from before? Did she obtain the power she was looking for? Or was she looking for something even more?
"Hey Yamato."
Tomoyo called out to her, making Yamato snap out of her thoughts.
"Yes, Sakagami-san?"
"Why don't the two of us head over to the cafeteria to get a drink?"
Tomoyo offered. Yamato was quite surprised to hear that from Tomoyo, since Tomoyo showed such ferocity during training. In fact, it would not be wrong to classify her strength at a squad leader level. So why wasn't she one? Kyou returned at one point during the training to check on things, and Tomoyo wasn't all to happy about Kyou running off without warning. The two faced off in an extremely tensed battle, and Yamato thought she was dreaming when she could 'see' the aura radiating from the two seniors.
Somehow or rather Kyou's aura took the presence of a large wild boar, while Tomoyo's aura took the appearance of a large bear. In any case, the conflict showed Yamato that Tomoyo had enough strength to rival Kyou, the second in command of the Assault division. So why wasn't Tomoyo a squad leader? She did not even have command over a small group. An old friend of Kyou yet she was only a lieutenant ranked soldier in Kyou's War Boars. Did she not feel like having that power? Did she not feel anguish of being powerless?
"Yamato?"
Tomoyo asked once more, puzzled as to why Yamato wasn't answering.
"... Okay. But is it fine to leave the recruits?"
Yamato asked.
"Them? Just leave them. Kyou will be back soon anyway. Besides, Ayane looks like she's having fun."
Tomoyo pointed to the field where the recruits were. Ayane was squatting beside one recruit, poking him with a stick. Was that called fun?
"Come on."
Tomoyo pulled Yamato by the arm and dragged the girl off. After dragging Yamato back to the cafeteria, passing by the exploding track field, Tomoyo headed straight for the food ticket dispenser.
"Want anything?"
Tomoyo asked, to which Yamato shook her head.
"Really? I'm rather hungry, and the food that gets served over at camp is quite dangerous to eat. No clue why no one has ever changed the cooking roster yet."
Tomoyo shivered as she thought about it. Pressing the button for niku-udon, she took the ticket that was dispensed before heading over to the cook's line. After grabbing her bowl, Tomoyo walked over to an empty seat to eat. Even at this time, there were still students walking about. Yamato watched Tomoyo slowly eat her meal as more explosions could be heard from the track field. An Operation must be under way, though Yamato had to question the field being littered with bodies. Still, what sort of Operation requires them to blow up the track field?
"...Uughh..."
A sudden and eerie groan startled Yamato, making her turn. Though she shouldn't have.
[Encounter: Scary face]
"..."
.
.
.
"KYAAH!"
Yamato screamed as she tried to run away from the scary face, falling off her chair in the same process.
"Ha ha ha ha!"
Tomoyo nearly fell off her own chair from laughter.
"Tha-that was priceless!"
Tomoyo sniggered as Yamato crawled back into her seat. The person with the scary face was actually a guy. Looking half dead, with the whites of his eyes showing and with a strange drool from his mouth, the guy really acted and looked like a zombie.
"W-who is he?"
Yamato stammered, still afraid of the guy as he lumbered towards Tomoyo.
"He's Kisaragi Setsuna. Former War Boars unit fighter. Also formerly a student of mine."
Tomoyo said, turning around and reaching into her bag, pulling out-
[Tomoyo equips carton of milk]
"... Milk?"
Yamato stared in puzzlement at the carton of milk in Tomoyo's hand.
"Ah, this guy needs milk to get himself started each day. Since he was my student, I had to take care of him everyday. Guess it was a habit that was hard to die out."
Tomoyo smiled softly, opening the carton of milk before standing up.
"Oi, Setsuna, over here."
Tomoyo called out to the lumbering zombie, who had wandered off terrorizing other students in search of his milk. Setsuna turned around in response to Tomoyo's voice, just as Tomoyo lunged forward and rammed the milk carton into his mouth. It impacted Setsuna so greatly that he fell backwards with the carton still stuck in his mouth. Isn't that what people call dead? But then, Yamato noticed that Setsuna was actually drinking the milk. Soon, he was revived and well. Wiping the milk from his lips as he tossed the milk carton aside, Setsuna walked over to Yamato and Tomoyo's table.
"Yo, Shishou, thanks for the save."
He smirked.
"I'm no longer your teacher, Setsuna. You're a Guardian now, you should be able to do things like this yourself. What, were you up all night again? Playing that flute of yours?"
"It's not a flute! It's an ocarina!"
Setsuna shot back defensively.
"They're all the same. Blow air into them and sound comes out."
Tomoyo waved him off.
"Anyway, you're up pretty late. Usually you would be asleep till evening."
Tomoyo said. Setsuna sighed, looking out of the cafeteria towards the track field where another loud explosion could be heard.
"It's all that noise. Can't get a decent sleep with all of that explosion. Anyway, my leader is making another move soon so I'll also be heading out soon."
Setsuna explained. Yamato suddenly noticed that Tomoyo's expression was slightly pained upon hearing that.
".. I... see."
Tomoyo muttered.
"Well, got to go. Thanks for the milk."
Setsuna said, turning off to go.
"Hey! Wait!"
Tomoyo suddenly shouted. Setsuna turned around and Tomoyo tossed him another carton of milk.
"Take one for the road."
Tomoyo said. Setsuna smiled and nodded, before heading off. Yamato did not know that he was a Guardian. Sure didn't act like one. In the first place, he was trained by Tomoyo? Tomoyo actually trained a Guardian? A Guardian is one who had the skill to stand at the top of the organization and that meant that if they were trained by somebody, that somebody had to be of a certain calibre. Sakagami Tomoyo. Why wasn't she a Guardian even with so much power? She wasn't a squad leader, a division head or anything. She was just a member of Kyou's War Boar team. A Lieutenant. A nobody.
"... Senpai. May I ask you something?"
Yamato blurted out. Tomoyo looked to Yamato, before closing her eyes.
"It's about Kisaragi Setsuna, right?"
Tomoyo said, to which Yamato nodded. Tomoyo sighed, stirring the contents of her bowl off-handedly.
"I trained him because he had potential, and he had the drive. Everyone has a darkness in their hearts, something that they cannot forgive, cannot let go. A regret that is so strong that it binds them to this place, to the past. A regret that forces them to change, to evolve... to fight back. Setsuna... I trained him because he wanted me to."
Tomoyo said, her gaze looking into her bowl as her voice trailed off.
"... Senpai, if you could train a Guardian, why aren't you in the Guardians?"
Yamato asked and Tomoyo flinched a little.
"... I chose not to be with the Guardians. When Kou created the sixth division, she invited me to join her but-..."
"But you refused?"
Yamato asked.
"Yes... I refused. Kou regarded me as a friend so she respected my wish to stay with the Assault division though Shiki went with the new division. Fujibayashi Kyou, Sakamoto Shiki, and me, Sakagami Tomoyo. We three we known as the three 'warriors' of the assault division back then. Kou was the rising star in the newly formed Wolves. Things back then were so quiet. So peaceful."
Yamato knew of this story. She had heard rumours amongst the Assault division. Kyou of the Boar, Tomoyo of the bear, Shiki of the sword. They were always together but then the Battle of Big Site resulted in heavy losses, the appearance of the Angels, and the fracturing of the Organization.
"But why didn't you join? Senpai had the power and skill to reach whatever it is you are aiming for-"
"And then what? ! What happens after you get that power you wanted? !"
Tomoyo suddenly flared out in anger, surprising Yamato and all others around. Tomoyo sighed, sitting back down in her chair and taking a deep breath to calm herself down.
"... Not everyone in the Organization wants to gain power, Kusanagi."
Tomoyo said, opening a can of key-coffee to drink.
"... I once sought power as well. Twice, actually."
Tomoyo admitted, taking a sip from her coffee.
"Senpai?"
"I wanted power, strength, the ability to change my own fate... but as a result... I became blind to all that was important to me. In my hunger for power, I sacrificed everything... but what I found at the end of that road to power... was only darkness. Solitude and despair... those were what awaited me."
Tomoyo muttered. She sighed, leaning back in her chair. Shaking the contents of her can, Tomoyo looked straight into Yamato's eyes.
"Are you willing to lose everything in order to gain power?"
"... I've already lost everything."
Yamato replied. Tomoyo closed her eyes at that, shaking her head.
"I'm not taking about life, or the things you held in life. What I'm talking about... is your sanity. Your memories of your life. Your own soul. Can you risk all of that? Would you do it for power?"
Yamato was caught off-guard by Tomoyo's sudden change in personality. But... what Tomoyo said did have some truth in it. Tomoyo leaned back in her seat, seeing how Yamato was starting to doubt her own decision.
"I did say that I hungered for power twice, didn't I? You see, my parents didn't always get along. My house was a mess. My brother and I.. we could do nothing to stop it. I merely turned my attention else where, picking up fights in the streets, trying to prove that I did not need protection from my parents. To prove that I could live on my own. To prove that... I wasn't a child any more."
Tomoyo said, making Yamato a little surprised. Tomoyo did not seem like the delinquent type.
"I was strong. I defeated many gangs back then and I was feared by many... but... because I was strong, I did not see the person next to me. The one who mattered. My brother. My brother, being sick of my family being torn apart, jumped into the freezing river. He nearly died back then... but because of what he did, he brought my family back together. My brother... a young boy with no strength or power on his own. He managed to do what I couldn't with my power. Because I desired strength and power, I forgot what it took to be a family."
"... Senpai."
"The second time... was again, due to my inability to see things for what they were truly worth. My brother loved the Sakura trees near my school, so I tried my best to become the student council president to try to prevent the planned cutting down of those trees. I knew that if I had the power of the student council, I prevent the cutting down of the trees. I needed that power, wanted it. To right the wrong I had done on my family... on my brother. I worked hard, trying to get rid of my own old delinquent self, trying to put up a proper image. But if it weren't for... 'him'... I would not have made it."
Tomoyo's voice sounded strained when she said it. It was something hard for her to talk about. It was a scar etched deep into her heart.
"He worked hard for me to get to where I was, ignoring the protest of others. He covered for me, helped me in finding allies and supporters. He saved me. But... we could not be together. He was a delinquent, I was the student council president. Fate would not have us together. While I did save the trees my brother loved, I lost the person that I loved. I had found out the hard way that once I had gained all of this power... that standing at the top of everything was a very lonely experience."
She paused a little, her grip on the can tightening.
"I failed once more... to look and see what it would cost me to gain the power I desired. When I realized what I had done, it was nearly too late... The time we spent together was short lived. Because I was blind to all others, focused too much in my thirst for more strength that I had cut short the time we could have been together... He died... a year after I graduated... I told him that I would chase him, no matter where, no matter when... he told me that it was not my place to be at his side, but I refused. I-... I wanted to make up for lost time. But that time was not granted to me. In the end... I was left alone."
Tomoyo muttered, voice getting smaller. Yamato wasn't exactly sure what to say, what was needed in order to comfort the depressed senpai. But instead, Tomoyo simply grabbed her coffee and drained it in one gulp.
"...Pwah! That hit the spot."
Tomoyo said once she finished her drink. Why did that sound like something an old man would say?
"I later learned from Kyou... the Fujibayashi Kyou I met in here at least, that that was only 'one' possible scenario in my life. A common friend we had... Kotomi, had researched something along the lines of parallel worlds. Sounds kind of far-fetched, but... I believe it. I believed that there would a World where I did not commit the same mistake as before... or maybe a World where he chose someone else... had a family and lived a long and happy life... Either way... my life ended in pieces."
Parallel Worlds. Yamato knew of it from Hamuko and Minato, two of the same person but from different Worlds.
"Well, that is my opinion. Kyou doesn't think that I should force you to follow my ways. After all, both Kyou and Shiki have sought power because in life they too were powerless. There is a clear line between those who have power but failed to use it... and those who did not have power. Ever heard of the phrase 'power corrupts'?"
Tomoyo asked, to which Yamato nodded. Almost every has.
"While getting more power may be good, it is important to know where you stand. Do not aim for something over your limit or over what you need. Be mindful of those around you, those who have to suffer for your power. In order to obtain your own dreams, you must be prepared to crush the dreams of those around you. Are you ready for that?"
Yamato thought about it. To obtain her goal of power... what did she need power for? To satisfy herself? Or for something else? Who would suffer for her to obtain that power? Her friends? Those who want the same power? Katsuragi? Katsuragi had supported her throughout their time together in the Wolves. He was always behind her, trying to get her to relax and slow down. She knew that he was trying to get her to rest. Her relentless drive had made her forget even the most basic of things but he was there to provide them for her. Whatever happened, Katsuragi was always there.
"... Looks like you know who matters to you now."
Tomoyo smiled a little.
"You know what must be done to obtain your goal, and now you know what you must do once you have that power. There is a fine line, one nearly invisible, between gaining enlightenment... and insanity. Do not lose that reason for gaining power and you may not lose yourself."
"... Thank you, senpai."
Yamato bowed in thanks. Tomoyo smiled and nodded.
"Good. Since you know this now, I'll train you myself."
"... Huh?"
"I will train you to be as strong as you can be. It's been awhile since I trained a Wolf. Kou was the last one though she made it too easy to teach."
Tomoyo added, making Yamato surprised.
"T-the sixth division head?"
"The one and only. I taught her some techniques and the rest are self-taught. Well, she was strong from the beginning, but she hungered for more. Whatever happens, Kusanagi Yamato, do not end up like Kou. The darkness that she faces is not something any human being should go through."