Jinguuji Marimo
December 10, 2001
Hiiragi ruins
It was indeed unusual for Jinguuji to just wander out of the base with no arrangements in mind, she was worried about her old training squad that was rumoured to have stood face to face against the extraterrestrial being that envenomed this earth.
Jinguuji heard that Capt. Shirogane led the newly formed Special Task Force into battle when the unexpected BETA attack swarmed Area 2. No one had foreseen this accident, it was beyond everyone's wildest dreams that this base, Yokohama Base would so suddenly be assaulted by BETA without any warning. So it was even more remarkable that they were dealt so swiftly with very little loss of life on the side of the soldiers.
"—ah! Instruct— Sergeant Jinguuji!" A UN Fubuki surfaced itself to the side of Jinguuji. She instantly recognized the voice to belong the second shortest (but flattest) member of the 13th squad, Yoroi Mikoto.
"2nd Lt. Yoroi. Are you still on patrol? DEFCON 1 has already been lifted, most Eishis were ordered to return to base."
"Yes, but we're told to continue guarding this area until told otherwise. It was Captain Takeru's direct order!" The outward speaker transmitted Yoroi's explanation loudly.
"Really? That's quite abnormal for Capt. Shirogane to ask the squad of that."
"We thought so too, but Takeru was very serious and wasn't willing to back down at all! Thanks to that, we still haven't gotten any chance to rest." Jinguuji was getting more and more concerned for the cause behind Capt. Shirogane's instruction.
"Do you know where he is?"
"Takeru left his TSF about ten minutes ago. We don't know where he went right now, his frame is right there though." The giant machine pointed its finger toward the shadow of another fighter crouched behind some wrecks.
"Did he have a reason for leaving?"
"He didn't say anything at all, Takeru just suddenly got up and left."
"Alright, thank you, Second Lieutenant." Jinguuji bid her farewell to the fresh Eishi and went to investigate the leader of her old cadets.
—
The dirt above the ground marked a single pair of footsteps further into the ruins. After some inner-debate, Jinguuji chose to follow the passageway in her attempt to locate Capt. Shirogane.
The walls corralled in on her as if it wished to squash her between two hard surfaces, yet at the end of this man-made and alien-wrecked tunnel was a small gap that appeared to lead to a more open area.
Before Jinguuji could cross the border, she overheard some unnatural noises. The sound that resonated was a faint, but rather disturbing one. It mostly resembled the tumult of meat and flesh being ripped apart, commonly done by the monstrosities known as BETA.
Jinguuji instantly drew her sidearm in preparation for an incoming attack. However, when no said assault took place, she was again hesitant about continuing her exploration.
"Sitting here won't do any good…" Jinguuji quietly whispered some facts to herself before making up her mind and navigated to the other side of the small breach between destroyed buildings.
—
"…Captain?" What Jinguuji witnessed wasn't the brutality she came to expect from the BETA or the traumatic death of another human. It was still a brutal beat down, nonetheless.
"…What… are you doing…? Captain…?"
For some individuals, the scene that was apparent before her might not even be viewed as a picture of violence. A lone young man sat casually by himself, beside him was a pile of meat that used to be human's most hated enemy. His back was facing Jinguuji, within his hands held a piece of blade stained with the red blood of what should be a Soldier-class; now only served to be a very ineffective wiper for the young hero's knife.
"…Marimo-chan… well, this is quite awkward." Even in this setting of disgusting war, the Captain still held his prideful look and playful smirk when he turned about to face her.
Shirogane Takeru
Hiiragi ruins
The jaw of the Soldier-class was surprisingly weak, or maybe I was just too good for it.
"Come on, bitch. Bite me! DO IT!" Our short dance was cut even shorter once my patience ran out.
"What? You can chew off her head, but my arm is too much for you?" Of course, I understood the BETA couldn't close its jaw not because my arm was in its mouth, but due to the metal pipe stuck in between its teeth. The rod was at a perfect length for holding open its mouth and sturdy enough to keep it open.
"If you can't even kill a single person. Then what does that mean for me? Am I someone who couldn't even protect a single person from a weak ass alien like you?" The knife stabbed in its maw was twisted at will as the Soldier-class only let out cries of what should be assumed in agony.
Come on, say something! I tried communication with ESP to no avail.
"You fuck, how unproductive can we get here? Just fucking die already." My blade was pulled out of the creature's mouth with warp speed and stabbed as hard as possible into the top of its flesh multiple times, where I supposed the head should be.
A revolting scream later, the BETA carcass flopped limply onto the cold surface below me. Even with its life completely drained from the body, I was still repulsed with its appearance as the gore almost caught my suit on its way down.
"Ahh… how anticlimactic." Now that the dead alien was by my side, I decided to sit down and clean my knife with its white flesh. Watching the creature's skin not absorb its own blood served to remind me how utterly useless this BETA was.
This ninja BETA was probably surprised when it first noticed me by the sound of metal hitting ground, if BETA could be surprised, that is. The hateful stare I shot this monster went completely unanswered as I didn't even know if that thing's eyes worked as intended.
Still, I wanted a fight so I was getting a fight. A little while later the BETA finally remembered to attack me, then with its walking on its weird legs and dragging its fat ass, the Soldier-class nudged toward me no faster than a regular sprinter. With its mouth wide open and arms outstretched, my hatred burned within my heart as I sensed my feet ready to move at a moment's notice.
But apparently, all my preparation was for naught.
I was clearly disappointed by its display of incapability when the creature reached out its hands in slow-motion for me to dodge casually to the side. Seeing that it missed, this ugly alien turned and extended for my body once more, then it missed again, and again. That happened for a couple of times until I got bored, seriously bored by how totally unbelievably weak it was.
So while shouting a few insults that I couldn't remember and it couldn't understand, I punched its hideous face a few times to miniature effect. The bug got hard skin, I'll give it that much.
Following that, we hopped around for a bit; I stopped punching its face because for some reason, this weak bitch was still taller than me. Now that I think about it, maybe I could ride on its back if I had a saddle? Could be fun, if nothing else.
In conclusion, I eventually got tired of playing and put the monster down for good, which brings us back to now.
—
"…You sickening shit… hiding in a hole like a cowardly bitch until the fighting ended. Just to take a bite out of…" She didn't deserve to go out like that. Marimo-chan was a caring instructor and a brave soldier.
"If she were to die… she should be out there, on the frontline, defending and protecting this world from you aliens. Not be snuck up on by a single BETA… she was cheering for me that time. It all happened so quickly too…"
This was atypical even for someone who underwent thousands if not millions of the same timeline. I saved Marimo-chan more times than necessary for me to count. And yet, my mind wouldn't let go of that single failure that was the result of my own inability.
"Goddamn it…"
—
"So then… what're you doing here, Sergeant?" Finally noticing Marimo-chan in the corner with her gun primed, I called out to her in my most relaxing manner possible.
"I just came looking for you, Captain." The military in Marimo-chan answered me instinctively.
"Now that you found me, what would you like?"
"Ahh… no, I just came because your squad is still on patrol."
"Right, I'm finished here so let's get going." Marimo-chan must be very confused by all this. On the other hand, I was literally just done recalling the events.
"Captain, wait! Can I just ask the reason you're here?"
"I was tracking down a Soldier-class, that's all." Retrieving the pistol I threw to the side earlier, my feet were already bringing me out of this depressing place.
"Without your gun, sir?"
"I wanted to see how good I am. I'm very good, by the way." My dry laugh wasn't enough to convince Marimo-chan of the condition.
"Captain… please, if you want to, come and talk with me okay?"
"Yeah, sure. But let's just get out of here."
Jinguuji Marimo
Outside Hiiragi ruins
The American TSF flew en route to the Yokohama Base hanger along with the rest of the company under the command of its Captain. Jinguuji was riding alone aboard the jeep that she drove out earlier this day. Within the labyrinth of her mind, she couldn't help but recall the many instants between her and the very talented leader superior of the 13th Squadron.
The way he calmly reported his takedown of a BETA Soldier-class with perfect fighting skills was still quite vivid within Jinguuji's mind. Sure, the BETA was and still is the most hated creature of all time on this earth and Jinguuji felt no remorse for the alien itself.
It was the pure tranquility and composure of his execution that bothered Jinguuji to great depth. The rank of Sergeant meant she was somewhat limited in her options of confronting Shirogane. She could report his behaviour today to the Vice-Commander, but her sixth-sense was warning her to abandon that idea before anything dangerous could actually take place.
"Shirogane Takeru…" Jinguuji unconsciously murmured the name of her most special cadet.
At first, Shirogane appeared to be so amazing that even she doubted his origin as a human. The image of a boy who disregarded his draft exempt to join humanity's fight against their nemesis was blown away without any trace when he showed astounding talent in all form of combat. While still carrying around a loose character, he secretly bore the burden of every tragedy and the result of every decision.
Jinguuji wanted to believe that the being who covered himself in an aura of confidence and pride was just a regular man behind the mask. Much like her old high-school classmate, she could easily identify the equivalence between Yuuko and Shirogane.
Both of them put on a cold façade for their audience and at the same time, hid all of their pain and suffering under the counter so no one would suspect their abilities. It was as if fate itself had picked those two to be tragic heroes of their time, to suffer for the masses and save this world while sacrificing themselves.
'…Is there… nothing…?' Jinguuji always wished to be of assistance to her friend on this base. However, Yuuko's research was the furthest away from Jinguuji's own field of expertise. Likewise, Shirogane was a soldier that will be sent to the frontlines without break until his expiration date finally welcomes the young Eishi.
Even so, Jinguuji was determined to help out those two in any way she can. Maybe there's nothing for her to achieve at this moment, but eventually Jinguuji believed that she could be of support for her two friends.
Shirogane Takeru
Hanger
"Alright, gather up team! I'm going to make some announcements like the good squad leader I am so pay attention!" The last one to congregate was Tama, since her TSF was parked the furthest away.
After I fought a Soldier-class mano-a-mano like a total badass and embarked my TSF again, the team got their permission to return back to the hanger. They were all tired to a certain degree but it was nothing they hadn't geared up for by now.
"So, how's everyone one doing?" No response was observed for fifteen seconds after my question.
"…I believe… we did quite well today, did we not?" The first reply came from Meiya.
"True that. We fought for almost an hour on the field today. Everyone must be tired after all that intense moments. The panic, the fear and the confusion all have settled right now. So tell me, how do you all feel about your first real combat situation?"
"…It was so, so, so SOOoO scary!" Mikoto took the first place in expressing herself.
"T-that's right! It's all thanks to Takeru-san's calm orders that I didn't get too nervous and actually remembered the training!"
"I was really shocked by the destructive abilities of the BETA. I can't imagine what would happen if Takeru wasn't the one in command."
"The adrenaline rush… super real." As expected, my team was still scared by the BETA. Luckily, our total victory brought them some reassurance.
"That's good, you all should get used to this fighting, as that is our lives from now on. Still, your performance today deserves praise and that's what I'll be delivering. Get yourselves cleaned up and gather by the PX. That's it, Archangels, dismissed."
"Yes, sir."
PX
"Welcome, my squad mates! This is for all of you." Being the first to arrive at the PX gave me the required time to bring out my preparations.
"…What?" It was upsetting no one understood the meaning of the glasses I set up.
Before the seven girls laid a nicely decorated table covered by a piece of cloth. The stripe spotted fabric held eight sets of elegant glasses about ten centimetres high, along with some other simple dinning tools such as forks and spoons.
"What're you making us do, Takeru-chan?"
"Do none of you know what this is?" Everyone shook their heads horizontally as the gesture for deny.
"Shot glasses." The only sign of intelligence came from Kasumi.
"There you go. Clever girl, Kasumi!" I patted her head with emphasis on her comprehension, she shook around like a true rabbit in disguise.
"Of course we knew that these cups are! My question is why did you bring them out in the first place?"
"For drinking… obviously." It must be unfortunate for Class rep if she couldn't fathom my intention as I mocked her.
"Ahha? Aren't we underage for alcohol? The law stated that no one under the age of 20 can drink or smoke." It was priceless to see Class rep uphold such regulation in a world where children were sent to fight man-eating aliens.
"…Class rep… too young too simple."
"For you to be this strict… my apologies, Sakaki."
"Chizuru-san, I'm sorry but no one follow those laws anymore." Some brutal shutdowns caused Class rep to retreat back into her mental shell.
"Ahha… I don't even care…" Class rep sighed as she wiped her face repeatedly.
"Anyway, to celebrate the survival of our very first real battle. I thought you all would appreciate some fine liquor for this occasion. You can also view this as a celebration for our graduation, which would also be appropriate."
"Realllly!? Yaay!" Mikoto clearly approves of my method of celebration, or she just really wanted to try some drinking.
"Awwwa… this'll be my first time drinking alcohol…! I feel so mature now!" Tama must also be excited to join the adults.
"You all will be big girls from now on! Let's get started, I'll bring out the food as well."
—
Every cup in front of my team was filled with sake, for the first round we decided to have something light to ease in the mood.
"Now if you would, Takeru." After Ayamine poured the drinks, we all raised our cups high into the air.
"Yes… now then, as the commander of the Special Task Force 13th Squad, the Archangels. I would like to congratulate everyone for graduating and surviving our very first battle with an amazing Kill-death ratio and zero losses."
"Others might say that this kind of result only happens once a blue moon. And they would been right, until now. As the elite of the UN, nope, the elite of this planet. We will continue that record until all alien creatures are exterminated from this earth. To the world, to the Archangel!"
"Cheers!" Eight shot glasses clashed together as the liquid flowed within the cup. We all swallowed our very first liquor simultaneously as a team that will overcome the future.
"Whaaaa! That felt great! Takeru-chan! Let me pour another one!"
"Shut up, woman! That's not how this drink works!"
"Owieee!" I batted down Sumika's attempt at a refill, this dumb girl reached out for my bottle with zero manner.
"How was it, Kasumi?" After sending Sumika packing, I switched attention to Kasumi whose still emotionless as always.
"It tasted like vodka, but weaker."
"EHH?! K-Kasumi-san had vodka before?" News to my ears likewise.
"Yes." Now that she mentioned it, this triggered a bit of my memory from the past when I force fed her some vodka just to see Kasumi drunk… it's only illegal if I get caught, right?
"Uwaaa~ that was great!"
"Indeed! Takeru! Bring another!" Slamming down her cup shortly after Mikoto, Meiya and the rest all demanded a refill.
"Alright! More coming up!"
—
"We all enjoying the drinks, right?" I got collective nods from the table of girls.
"The alcohol runs smoothly down one's throat, not too heavy and not too weak. You have my praise for this fine selection of drinks, Takeru."
"Nice, glad you like it, Meiya." With a pleasant grin, Meiya downed another cup.
"I have a question, Takeru. Is it alright… for us too, you know… drink all this expensive liquor? Actually, where do you even get the money for all this?"
"Actually, I must say I am interested similarly." Meiya charmed in after Class rep asked first.
"Nah, I'm rich!" I shut down Class rep's question with one line.
"That is like… so not responsible."
"Factual, Sakaki. Takeru has no sense of earnest even in this age." I only laughed at those names they called me.
"Ahaa… how I wish my countrymen could also enjoy this luxury together. However, this is a reward from Takeru and I shall not dwindle its value." Announced Meiya in a poetic fashion after she drank another shot.
The members of my Company were thoroughly enjoying their prize. It was a good moment of victory for all of us, a needed victory. They had to be ready for the fight, yet not despair when the unforgiving reality homed in to strike down their pride.
"Hey, team. Attention here, I actually have something to say." The girls lowered their voices and turned to me immediately. Each of them silent as could be, concentrating on my impending words.
"All of you are Eishis who survived the eight minutes of death while fighting in one of the most difficult battle, why do you think that is?" After a few seconds of quietness, Mikoto raised her hand to speak.
"Is it not because your excellent commanding skills, Takeru?"
"Sure, I can say that. But that's not really all true now. As I said before, all you girls are special, extremely special at that." The soldiers all focused in on me as I stated.
"Now I don't know if you remember this or not, when Marimo-chan was still our instructor, she talked about what determines who lives and who dies, right? Why don't we review that again? Let's pick on you first, Class rep." It was a classic lesson I will teach them, a lesson one must find within heart in order to face true terror.
"Um… I think it is the will to fulfill one's objective." Classic answer, as expected of Class rep. Her personality that took everything with utmost seriousness will be a great advantage on the battlefield.
"How about you, Meiya?"
"I believe it to be the skill of the Eishi." Meiya's ability to control a TSF was second to only us the time-travellers, after all.
"Tama?"
"Err… the strength of the Eishi's mind is very important, right?" A cheerful answer from a strong girl.
"Ke— Ayamine then."
"…I think it's piloting skills." Coming from Ayamine whose belief was very pertinent to herself, this was also not a shock.
"Mikoto."
"I think it's the Eishi's decision-making. If we're on the battlefield, a little misstep can doom everything, right? So a strong will to make snap decisions is very important." Mikoto's mental capability was also high above many.
"Huhu, how about you, Kasumi?"
"Piloting skills." Her answer was not a surprise, unlike when I first realized Kasumi's superb skills at controlling her frame.
"Sumika, what you think?"
"A strong will is very important! With the right mindset, we can do anything!" Her answer may sound foolish, but she herself never doubted that creed.
"I see, so Class rep, Tama, Mikoto and Sumika values the mental side while Meiya, Ayamine and Kasumi think actual skill is more valuable. Hehe, quite interesting."
"What about you, Takeru-chan? What is more vital to you?"
"Huh? Obviously both." I saw multiple attempts at faceplam after publicizing my thoughts.
"Look, it's like when a kid has to pick between two gifts. Why not just take both?"
"This is… I cannot say I did not foresee that coming." With a light smirk, Meiya shot me a friendly gaze.
"Exactly, my point is that both are very essential for an Eishi, especially the eight of us. We need both a strong resolve and amazing piloting skills to survive the upcoming war." They all slightly nodded at me as I continued.
"Your resolution will become your strength as you fight for your ideals. And your mastery in combat will in turn grant you the ability you need to success. Both are paramount, because both are the same thing. To strive for victory means to grasp any and every source of strength you will come upon, since you'll need to be as powerful as an Eishi can be."
These teachings were forever printed in my head through years of failure and regret. I came to a point where I have nothing else to lose, yet at the same time everything I own was on the line.
"Such wise words… Takeru truly is a man worthy of his achievements."
"Capt. Takeru… so cool."
"I completely understand those words, thank you, Takeru."
"Ahh, Miki also knows what you mean, Takeru-san!"
"This is like wiseman of the mountain wisdom!" I shall properly totally ignore Mikoto's comment.
"Now your piloting skills will be trained painstakingly during our training sessions almost every day from now on. So let's work on some of that determination. I'm by no means an expert in finding a foolproof way of decoding a person's heart, everyone thinks differently and there really isn't a solid answer to all your problems."
"With that said, I have confidence that when we as Eishis, have a clear goal in mind, a sense of duty empowers us and strengthens our resolve. So let's think of three things that we want to achieve, make it two personal ones and one general topic." Once the girls understood my meaning, they searched within their minds for the most suiting answer.
"Guess it is hard to say this in front of others, huh? People don't even need to know what you mean, you just need to have one; I think that's what's most important. I'll go first while everyone considers theirs. Hurmm…" I said that, turned out the time-traveller also needed some time as well.
"Alright, I got it. I want to protect this world and all of humanity." I may have lost sight of that aim before, but what I lost I found.
"I want to protect all of you in my team." Some members blushed a little hearing that.
"And I want to lead humanity to victory, one day." That was no doubt an ambitious dream, still I had more than enough motivation to achieve it.
"Huhu, that is just like you. I shall state mine next: I wish to protect this country, the people of this land."
"I wish to protect this team, protect those that will fight alongside me."
"Finally, I wish to find myself. An identity that belongs to me alone." A brave goal for a brave girl, Meiya was all that. Never once giving herself to others, never once taking the wrong path.
For some time, nobody was brave enough to speak their thoughts. It was obviously natural this squad filled with highly influential connections would have some trouble talking about their dreams.
"…No one, huh? Guess I'll go next: I want to protect this country as well, this tomorrow of Japan… the tomorrow my father works to keep safe for the people…"
"I want to succeed my missions, together with my teammates."
"Also, I want to one day… become a politician, maybe after all this war… ends."
It was a difficult life Class rep endured; her mother died when she was young, her father fought hard for this country and sacrificed precious time he could have spent was his daughter. Nevertheless, the Prime Minister was alive and well, and as long as people live, things can change for the better.
"I want to protect this nation as well… same as my dad." It was the raven haired daughter of a General that spoke next.
"…Then, all of you, I want you all to live."
"And… I want to see the truth… one day, I want to know what happened."
Ayamine was herself, nobody else and nothing more. She sought to continue a story. It was not a brave story or a heroic story, it was only a story about people; about the people that lived and the people that died.
Some more time passed anyone else made themselves heard.
"Errm… Miki… Miki wants to protect the U-UN that her P-Papa worked so hard for all the time!"
"And of course M-Miki also wants everyone to be safe when we fight!"
"Then… one day… Miki become a great TSF pilot! So she can be proud of her own duty!"
The daughter of the undersecretary, Tamase. She started her career as a naïve, innocent soldier fighting against the same foe as everyone else. So with those child-like eyes she will see a beautiful world again, a peaceful earth that she crafted using those tiny hands.
"Ohh, my turn, my turn! I want to protect this world too, with everyone!"
"Then I want to come home safely with everyone at the end of our fights!"
"As for the last one… I wish to know… what dad is doing all this time… hopefully he's safe…"
Mikoto really had a troublesome father, that much was certain. He added pressure into the life of an otherwise relaxing, albeit sometime nonsensical girl. Still what Yoroi did, he did it for the good of Japan. We were soldiers that fought honourably for the safety of this nation, and he worked behind the scenes to keep that harmony.
"I'll go next: I want to defend this world together with everyone, I want everyone here to remain safe when we fight, and… I want to keep this… keep our way of life."
Kasumi knew nothing else until Sumika and I reached out to this poor girl without a home, it was saddening the only world she saw was this one of devastation and death. Maybe one day, I could show it to her too; my old planet, my old home.
"Then I'm last! I want to protect Takeru-chan's world! I want to protect Takeru-chan's dreams! And I also want to protect Takeru-chan's friends!" With a moderately sluggish look, I chopped Sumika's head hard.
After all, there was nothing for me to add to the will of a girl that had nothing left but me. We are really destined to be together; Sumika and I, two people's voyage for two people to bear.
"Owieee!"
"What're you doing, dummy? I just told you to have a general one, aren't those all personal?" How slow could this girl get?
"Ahhh, but I don't have anything general! I have nothing else other than you, Takeru-chan!" The innocent smile of a child did not pair well with that sentence drowning in darkness.
"That's… very well then, acceptable." Seeing no other method to bring back our old atmosphere, I simply motioned my hand to stop the others from questioning.
"Welp, we took a sweet nosedive by the end, but other than that I think this was quite fruitful. Everyone has their own dreams, right?" I got even stronger nods than before as reply.
"Then we'll work to realize those from now on. As a team, we'll have no failures, we'll have no loss, and we'll be the victors at all times. That's it for now, back to drinking, everyone!" I lifted my glass and the girls soon followed.
"Cheers!"
—
How… why does this happen every goddamn time?
"Ah~~ Take-ru-chaaaacn~~~! Wheeere aaare yooou~~? Yahoooo!"
"S-Sumika~~! D-do not bother Takeru without my pp-ermission~~!"
"Nyahahaha! It's… i-it's like I'm a bird~~!"
"Lalalala~~ t-this is sooooo great!"
"…"
"~Wh-aat's wrong… Ayamine…! Don't just sit in the corner by yourself now~~"
"Takeru-san, help."
"Nope, what can I do?" If stopping them was only as easy as Kasumi said it to be.
At first, our schedule was perfect for enjoying our alcohol usage. But just like when we went to the hot springs that one time; shit hit the fan at the speed of light when a change I didn't even notice took place. The only saving grace was that Kyozuka-oba-chan closed off the PX before this mess could escalate, or everyone's sorry asses would be getting dragged away by the MPs right now.
"Hahahaah~~! T-this is so great!" How can a supercomputer be drunk was beyond me.
"Takeru~~! I honoured our promise even now! Whe-where is my reward for my performance?!" There was literally nothing to help this group of drunkards.
"Nyahaha~~! Kasumi-san is soooo soft!"
"Right~~!"
"Takeru-san, help." While it was terrific that Kasumi was great at holding her liquor, she was useless in stopping these intoxicated idiots.
"C-come play with us~ T~Taker~u-saan!"
"S~oooo much fuun~!" Two very drunk and underdeveloped girls threatened to turn me into a criminal unwillingly. Unwillingly, because I was very willing to do that, minus the drunk part.
"…What is happening here? You did this, Shirogane?" The person that would salvage this situation turned out to be Yuuko-sensei.
"Well, you see…"
—
"Goddamn it… Shirogane. And I was wandering why the PX is off-limits."
"Welp, I was underprepared, I'll admit." How could one man, although a very handsome and smart world saviour, contain six drunk heads without hurting them?
"Here, I got this. Just knock them all out with a strong drink."
"Sensei, I only joked when I called you a mad scientist. You really want that to be the truth?"
"Just watch, Shirogane. You'll learn something from this."
—
Nobody would believe Yuuko-sensei's plan could actually take effect, then again, they also wouldn't solve this difficult dilemma in the first place.
Yuuko-sensei fetched some vodka, rum and some kind of tequila out of thin air and just poured them all into one bottle with many other mixings. After serving them one shot each of whatever venom sensei stirred up. The girls were out cold within seconds of their lips touching the glasses.
"Sensei… this won't cause alcohol poisoning, right?"
"No, this method is safe as long as they're somewhat tolerable to alcohol. This was how we would knock out Marimo back when she would get uncontrollably drunk in high school." That sounded like a genius plan we didn't apply in the old world. Unfortunately, Marimo-chan here got the nickname "mad dog" for a different reason, anyway.
"Well then, my job here is done. You'll clean this up, right?"
"Not an option, really."
—
With Kasumi's help. The bodies of my senseless teammates were dragged back to their respective rooms one by one. With that done, I cleaned up the mess of our dinner party. Being a Captain had never benefited me this greatly until now, having the power to shut off the PX for an hour after dinner time saved me multiple questionings from our dear, old MPs.
"Okay, I think we're done here."
"Yes." The PX had finally been renovated back in its former glory.
"Let's head back. Nothing left to see here."
"Yes." The madness induced party ended with the departure of the final two participants.
Shirogane's room
"—hello? Capt. Shirogane, are you in?" Someone lightly knocked on my door before I could change into my sleepwear.
"Yeah, door's not locked. Come in." From the voice, Marimo-chan was the only person that should be outside my room at this hour.
"Excuse me." The entrance unbolted slowly for Marimo-chan to walk in. She showed me a quick salute only to be waved off yet again.
"Please don't make me raise my hand, I'm lazy like that." I perched down onto the bed to further prove my point.
"Huhuhu, alright then, Captain." She giggled quietly.
"Here, have a seat. I'm not pleasant enough to prepare you any tea, so just work with that."
"Of course, Captain. I apologize for disturbing you at this hour."
"Not a problem. Again, I'm just lazy myself." I pulled out the chair that was tucked under my desk for Marimo-chan. She adjusted herself swiftly onto the seat.
"So then, to what reason is your visit addressed to, Marimo-chan?"
"I… I-I just thought that I would drop by and see how you're doing." Some serious practice was in demand to hone Marimo-chan's trickily skills.
"And what have you observed here?" If Marimo-chan figured that I would be the one to break this ice, she figured wrong.
"…Your hair, Captain. Don't you think it's a bit on the long side?" What a strange concern for her to hold.
"This? I'm keeping it around this length because it reminds of my olden days." The haircut in question was much messier, or stylish compared to the original me, depending on who's asking.
The left bang over my front was slightly longer than my right fringe, creating an overall very untidy haircut with cuts all over the place. A forelock on the back side of my head constantly had a habit of curving up, many tries to put down that strand were implemented but when none were met with success, I just gave up because the work that was put in was not worth the result.
I will never admit this, but during my travels, I was also infected by the disease of having an Ahoge. The saving grace here was I didn't lose my intellectual abilities like Sumika; also mine wasn't capable of bending to form a heart, nor capable of being a long range antenna.
"But still, isn't this a little long for a male? I'm not judging or criticizing you, of course!"
"This isn't even the longest. I grew it out down to my shoulder one time." That was during my Imperial days, I never bothered to shave down this hair.
While my oldest haircut, the classic boyish look was discarded long ago. I didn't want to let it grow all the way back out, either. My current hair length was to the nape of my neck, but the front bang was limited down to only a little below the eyes.
"Really? I can't imagine that. You just don't look like the kind of person to grow their hair that long."
"I'm not. This is a way of remembering, I guess. My past… wasn't much of a comedy." With that, the topic returned to what Marimo-chan wished to discuss when she first entered my room.
"…That's true for all of us, I guess. I didn't come from the land of rainbows and unicorns either."
"Say, what happened in your past, Marimo-chan?" Might as well listen to that story again.
"Eh… you sure you want to know?" Maybe heeding her story again could entertain me during this melancholy hour.
"Why not? I'll tell you my past if you tell me yours." A fair trade was established between two veterans of the army.
"Okay… you know, I was inspired to be a teacher when I was in middle school, so I started studying really hard. But then, the BETA moved east and the school curriculum had to be changed to something more like basic military training. I dropped out of college after one year, entered the Imperial Army's Officer Candidate School and trained to be an Eishi instead." Marimo-chan looked back on the road she journeyed through that led her to where she was now.
"At that time, I thought the only way to bring back the schools I wanted to teach in was to end the war with the BETA… I was really young those days. My scores in basic training and class were quite good. But not like I can ever hope to beat you, hehe. After I was commissioned, the army put me in charge of a company, probably because my marks."
"The company was mostly recruits and my old squad mates, that was when we still didn't have any combat experience. So then we charged onto the front lines in high spirits… only to be completely defeated. The plan failed and the frontline crumbled. When I was still confused by that situation… all my subordinates… my old squad mates all died."
"I'm sorry to hear that." The past was something that no man should be able to change. Even with my gift, I could never help those that lost their lives before my time. Marimo-chan shifted a little and continued her story.
"At first, I hated myself for what I did, I fought with a deathwish to try and forget the pain. Still some time later, I started thinking about what I should do as the survivor, and based my fighting around that. That was when someone decided I was worthy enough to be transferred to an instructional squad.
"It was Yuuko-sensei."
"It was absolutely Yuuko. Huhuhu." We shared a short laugh together.
"Anyway… it's funny, really. I couldn't become a teacher because of the war, but I ended up being an Instructor in the Eishi Training School. Thinking back to those times, I would like to believe that the reason I was allowed to survive was so I can use my experience to help as many Eishis as I can. That is the only way I can make it up to my subordinates…" Silence overfilled my room, we both sat still for a good minute. Even when I already knew about this tale, it was still merit listening to again.
"That's… everyone have stories like that. I guess it's time to tell mine next."
"If you don't mind, Captain." Our promise wasn't difficult to keep, I just needed to watch my words.
"When I first got here, I had no idea what was happening. My old world was so peaceful, it was such a safe place to live that I didn't even have to worry about… anything. But then everything happened so fast, my life, it changed in the blink of an eye. By the time I realized, the BETA was already on our doorsteps. I wasn't even ready for the army. I suppose you can say I was forced into the military without any previous knowledge of it."
"So then I joined the squad and trained together with my old squad mates. We trained and trained, preparing to fight the BETA. I pride myself with my TSF piloting skills and was way too overconfident in my abilities. Our first combat, it was kind of like today. When the BETA just came out of nowhere, we were doing an exercise outdoor that day and they just attacked our forces, destroyed us when we weren't expecting it." That history wasn't something that I was proud of, but still a part of me nonetheless.
"All that time I acted as the hotshot of my unit. The second I saw the BETA I just lost my head. I panicked hard, couldn't think rationally at all. I endangered the rest of my squad and freaked out. But somehow during that mess. I survived my first encounter with the BETA while high on stims and drugs. All of the stars aligned that day, as not only I lived, but I distracted the BETA for the supply to reach the front."
"That's not bad, right? You survived the eight minutes of death, after all." If only Marimo-chan heard the end of that tale.
"Even if others saw that as an achievement, I certainly did not. My TSF was wrecked, my self-assurance was totally ruined. And like any responsible adult, I sat on the ground grieving over spilled milk."
"So then my old instructor came over, trying to comfort me. She reassured me of my success, that I survived the eight minutes. Told me her own past and failures. She taught me that when you get to the point where you can laugh at your mistakes, you'll find new things to replace what you lost…" I could clearly witness how shocked Marimo-chan was at hearing her own quote from another person.
"…Did she tell you that…?"
"Yeah, so I thought that I finally gotten over my lost, right? I was ready to face reality, ready to overcome my mistakes. But nope. When I turned my head only ninety degrees to the right… my old instructor was lifted… by the teeth of a… of a soldier-class…"
"…I…! I'm so sorry." My story wasn't even that heartbreaking compared to any other. And the icing on this cake was the personal connection we shared when I told it to Marimo-chan.
"It's nothing, really. I have gotten used to failure long ago, it's just those mistakes still come back and hunt me from time to time."
"Now when I remember back to that day, all I see is this field. It's the same field we trained on, the same field that the BETA attacked us on and the same field she was brutally killed on. I just get distracted by this from now and again." I was getting pathetic all over the place. My mask of poise and determination was starting to crack under the pressure from my accumulated years.
"Then what else can you see, Shirogane? Is it only death?"
"No… I remember the good times too. When we had fun, when we pursued the dreams together." Good times were those days, days that I cannot return to.
"Do you regret fighting for this goal?"
"Never, the meaning of my life lays by the end of my journey." Marimo-chan moved off her chair and joined me on the bed. She rested beside me, holding my hand as I present my cause.
"Then you're fine, Shirogane. You remember your old friends. They may have passed, but their wills still lives in you. And you should remember the times we spent together. Nobody's death is meaningless, you have to honour their memories and continue down your path." That was the same as what Marimo-chan taught me years ago.
"Yeah, I'll save this world, Marimo-chan. I am a world saviour. I'll save this earth, just haven't done it yet." Her eyes widen a tiny amount, too small for me to pick up her surprise at that time.
"You're not alone, Shirogane. I don't know who exactly you're fighting for, I don't even know who you are before your enlistment. Nevertheless, I know that you'll remember them, if they're with you, you'll cherish the moment. If they're not, you will honour their memory. I believe in you, Capt. Shirogane."
"Thank you, Marimo-chan… I'll save everything, for everyone." My resolve didn't waver that day, it only strengthened to greater height.
"I know. You're different, Shirogane. You're the embodiment of your team's success, of our success. Just like the cherry blossoms outside the base. You represent the idea of victory now." And for the first time in decades, Marimo-chan patted me. With the warm hand of my teacher that I had long since forgotten, she laid her hand on my head like the old teacher that she used to be.
"We'll keep fighting, we just can't stop."
"You're right, humanity depends on our victory… your victory."
—
A reasonless world we live in. A disordered cause we fight for. Together we danced with death; together we sang to defeat. But this world of madness still held its logic, it still operated by the same standard as the old earth. So it only made sense for me to tear down those rules and rip away this logic. Nothing can stop my feet from taking one more step, no one will rob me of my future. I will take everything for my own, the power to stop this insane world will be between my hands.
A future I will craft will be a future for all.
Author's note
So I'm back from a week of absence, to bring you all this super short chapter, of course. Pacing, right? What a pain in the ass. You know, I got another week of education before winter break lets out so I should be able to get a lot done by that time. I am thinking about doubling down on chapters for next week but if that doesn't happen, it will be the week after that. So I own you guys a double chapter week sometime.
In other news, shout out to Fallout 4. The game that almost made me fail like seven exams. Terrible game though, what do you mean I can't have AP Bazooka hair or antenna Ahoge? 0/10 IGN. (Seriously, I really have to stop playing Fallout 4.)
BETA done by Chad001. Errm… so why can't you run in a camping ground? You can only ran, because it's past tents.
Here's your joke, didn't say it got to be good.
Made a ninja edit because somehow I missed it. Nothing to see here, go back to your days now.
Also Favourite and review and all that stuff, do it if you wanna, I'm out.