Gamer4 in. Well, this has been much longer in coming than it should have been. But, at long last, here it is: the final chapter of the Live Alive mini-series. Thanks to anyone who's stuck around this long. Without further adieu, let's wrap this thing up.
Disclaimer: In honor of the occasion, a very special not-disclaimer, direct from Live A Live, the Buriki Daioh song! Go, go, Buriki Daioh! Ima wa mukashi no babironia! Hagane no kobushi ga ten wo tsuku! Igyou no majin wo taosu tame Ikari de hi wo tomose! Atsui kokoro ga yobisamasu! Buriki! Daioh! Ware to ari!... Yeah, I didn't understand a word of that either.
Epilogue
Reunion
Jeff and Paula walked quickly together through the streets of Threed, making their way to Saturn Valley. "So, Poo's not going to be coming today?" Paula asked.
"No, doesn't look like it," Jeff shook his head. "He is the prince of Dalaam, after all- he has to be responsible sometimes."
"I still find it hard to believe, honestly," Paula admitted. "I mean, Ness just shows up one day and starts ranting about all these things that happened... Onette being attacked, us helping him out, the trip through the deserted city..."
"Yeah, it's pretty strange," Jeff agreed, "but he showed us, remember? Hard to believe, but he was telling the truth- all that really did happen..."
"Hey, guys, how's it going?" Ness suddenly appeared before them, stepping out of a nearby alley.
"Oh, Ness, we thought you were in Saturn Valley already," Paula greeted him.
"Yeah, just thought I'd come over and let you know..."
He motioned them to him conspiratorially. "It's all good, guys, it's all good." With that, still with a dead-serious look on his face, he lifted his baseball cap from his head and returned it there, upside-down. "Check it!" he smiled, then turned and dashed off.
"Wait, Ness, Saturn Valley is... that... way..." Paula shook her head. "I really wonder what goes through that boy's head sometimes..."
"I'm not sure I want to know," Jeff muttered. "Come on, let's get going..."
XXXX
"No, I don't remember anything like that," Ness shrugged when they confronted him about it later on. They were all in the middle of Saturn Valley, along with a group of onlooking Mr. Saturns, the Apple Kid, and Jeff's father, Professor Andonuts, who were milling around a strange device in the shape of a sphere, but decorated to resemble a Mr. Saturn.
"Ness, don't mess around with us, alright?" Jeff said. "You very clearly did, there's no reason to not admit it."
"No, seriously, I don't know what you're-" Ness stopped himself abruptly. "Oh. Ohhhhhh. Oh. I think I've got it!"
"We're ready now, my boy," came a voice from behind him, and Ness turned to see Professor Andonuts standing there. "The first trial of human time travel. I'm so glad to be here at this moment..."
"It's alright, Dr. A!" Ness exclaimed happily. "Now I'm certain that this is gonna work!"
Everyone gathered round as a hatch opened in the side of the strange contraption, and Ness entered. Several strange groaning sounds later, and the machine faded out of existence.
"Now what?" Paula wondered out loud.
"Now we wait," Jeff noted, closing his eyes and leaning his chin against his chest.
A moment later, the groaning sounds once more filled the air, and the machine reappeared. The hatch opened up, and Ness came out. "BAM! Totally works!"
"How can you tell?" Professor Andonuts wondered.
"No, he's right!" Jeff spoke up, with a burst of understanding. "It really does work!"
"Now you got it!" Ness grinned. "Well, no reason to beat around the bush here much longer, I guess!"
"You have everything you need?" Jeff asked. "You know where to find them all- when to find them all? You're sure you're all ready?"
"Yeah, it's cool, Jeff, it's cool!" Ness nodded excitedly. "Well, back in a sec!"
He closed the hatch, and once more, the machine faded from existence.
"How did you know?" Professor Andonuts asked confusedly.
"Just a hunch," Paula smiled, gazing at where Ness had disappeared, his hat upside-down on his head.
XXXX
"I think I see one..." Sandstorm muttered quietly, stalking through the grass alongside Fireheart.
"Yeah, you got it," Fireheart agreed. Ahead of them was a mouse, scurrying through the brush. "You want this one?"
In answer, Sandstorm simply dropped into a stalking position, slowly but steadily making her way towards the furry creature. A second later, she pounced, and it was pretty much over after that.
"We're on border patrol," Sandstorm noted. "Feel like sharing this one?"
"Sounds good," Fireheart concurred. The two of them gathered around the mouse and began devouring it.
"Too bad Graystripe couldn't come today. He's off on another one of his mysterious outings," Sandstorm mewed.
"Yeah... too bad..." Fireheart muttered. He knew, of course, what Graystripe was up to, but Sandstorm wasn't to know about Silverstream.
Abruptly, Sandstorm stood erect, her ears pricked. "Do you hear that?"
Fireheart stood up, listening as hard as he could, and was finally able to detect a faint groaning sound. However, to Sandstorm's surprise, he actually seemed happy to hear it. "Just a second," he muttered, stalking towards it. "I'll be right back."
He ran through a nearby bush. The groaning sound once more filled the air, than disappeared. Sandstorm waited only a moment before following, only to discover an empty clearing. "Fireheart?" she wondered confusedly.
XXXX
"Why this particular castle, Link?" Zelda asked, gazing up at the stone structure above her.
"It holds... a special significance for me," Link explained as well as he could.
"This castle is an old fortress of the Sheikah tribe," Zelda noted. "That's what Impa told us... but it's been abandoned for years now. What's so special about it?"
"Just... some important things happened here, that's all."
Zelda eyed him with trace amounts of suspicion. "You've been acting odd lately. You've always been close to Impa, of course- she is like a mother to us- and yet you seem particularly fond of her ever since... a week or two ago. And offering your help with everything around the castle... acting as though you hadn't seen it for a long time..."
"I could explain," Link acknowledged, "but somehow, I doubt you'd believe me."
Link led the way into the castle, in and down and up and around halls that Zelda couldn't recognize, but which Link appeared to know quite well. Finally, they discovered a large chamber that seemed to be the throne room.
"What is that?" Zelda gasped, spying an oddly-decorated, large metal sphere.
"Ah," Link smiled, seeming strangely satisfied. "It's about time. Don't worry, milady- I'll be back momentarily."
With that, he stepped up to the orb, which opened for him, and stepped in. And, right there, in front of Zelda's wondering eyes, a groaning noise filled the air, and the strange object began to vanish.
XXXX
Ranma and Akane were on their way to school, Akane on the ground, Ranma walking up on the fence, as usual. Ranma had a question for Akane, but was fumbling on how exactly to ask it.
Akane had been acting... unusual lately. She'd always had a rougher side and a softer side to her, but lately, he'd been seeing much more of her softer side. Not that he was complaining about not routinely being beaten over the head with a mallet, mind you, but it did seem somewhat strange to him. Off the top of his head, he couldn't recall any significant events that might have led to this change...
"Say, Akane," he finally spoke. "Is... is something up?"
"What do you mean, Ranma?" she asked, glancing at him.
"Well, just... you've been a bit... different lately..."
"I told you already, Ranma- I just rethought things a bit, and came out with a new perspective," she smiled at him.
Ranma faltered- she really was cuter when she smiled.
Abruptly, a loud groaning sound filled the air, and Ranma quickly leapt to the ground, adopting a defensive stance. "What's that?" he gasped as he did so.
Akane, however, seemed far from distress- a smile was crossing her face. "About freaking time," she muttered. "Just a second, Ranma, I have something to take care of. See you at school!" And without further adieu- or further explanation- she took off down a nearby alley. Ranma stared after her as the groaning sound filled the air once more.
XXXX
"Mmm... these things are good," Ron smiled blissfully as he helped himself to some classic Honeyduke's chocolate.
"Do you ever stop eating?" Hermione shot an amused glance at him.
"Hard for him to stop, really, he never gets anything at that sty he calls a home," came a derisive sneer, and the three of them saw Malfoy passing by, an amused smirk on his face.
"Malfoy," Ron grimaced as they set off back down Hogsmeade's main street. "I'd like to get my hands on him..."
"Anything to say, Harry?" Hermione asked, turning towards their black-haired comrade, who gave a start upon realizing she was addressing him.
"Oh... uh... well, honestly, he's been bothering me much less lately," he shrugged.
"Yeah, I've noticed," Ron agreed. "Throwing insults at you all through potions yesterday and you didn't say a thing!"
"Personally, I'm proud of you, Harry," Hermione smiled at him. "Finally taking my advice to heart..."
Before conversation could continue, however, she was distracted by something at their feet. "Oh- are you lost, little kitty?"
Looking down, all three saw a cat with bright orange fur, crossing right in front of them and planting himself on the ground to gaze up at Harry with a plaintive mew.
To Ron and Hermione's bewilderment, Harry seemed unduly delighted to see the cat. "It's time?" he asked- and the cat seemed to nod. "Do you mind...?"
The cat cocked its head to the side in a 'Well, if you must' kind of way. Harry turned to the others. "Yeah, he's probably a stray- I'll try and find whoever lost him. Don't wait up!" He reached down and picked up the cat, taking off in the other direction.
"...What the bloody hell was that all about?" Ron wondered.
XXXX
The crew of the S.S. Tasha gathered in the break room for breakfast. Jin, Momo, chaos, and Shion were all smiling at the most recent addition to their ranks- the robotic KOS-MOS KP-X. Their guest on the ship, Lieutenant Virgil, meanwhile, was firmly refusing to meet her eyes.
"Doesn't he like her?" Momo asked of chaos, who was nearest.
"I think he's had some... bad experiences with robots in the past," chaos tried to explain as gently as he could.
"But that wasn't KOS-MOS's fault!" Momo objected.
"Give him time, perhaps he'll warm up to her."
KOS-MOS rose from the table and advanced to the kitchen, returning a moment later with a cup of coffee, which she presented to Virgil. Everyone stared. Virgil wasn't violent, but he glared at her as she stood there. "I am aware that some of my kind have caused you a great deal of trouble in the past," she spoke, blunt and concise as always. "However, I do not wish for there to be any enmity between us- I give you this as a peace offering, if you will accept it."
To everyone's surprise, Virgil accepted the coffee, and gave a grudging swig. A look of surprise crossed his face. "Huh... pitch black, bitter, and hot as hell- that's coffee. How did you know that's how I like it?"
"A wild guess," KOS-MOS shrugged before returning to her seat.
The others were on the point of questioning her further when the captain of the vessel, Jr., appeared in the doorway. "Did we pick up some new cargo recently?" he asked.
"Not that I am aware of," Jin glanced up from his morning cup of tea. "Why do you ask?"
"Because this weird hunka metal just appeared down in the cargo holds. Anybody know what it is?"
He crossed to a nearby monitor, typed in a few commands, and brought it up- a large metal sphere decorated to look like a bizarre creature nobody present had ever seen before.
"I've certainly never seen anything like it," Shion shook her head.
"If you will excuse me," KOS-MOS stood. "If it is alright with all of you, I wish to examine the object closer. I will not require assistance."
Everyone glanced at Jr.- it was his call, after all. The red-haired boy shrugged. "Well, I can't see any harm in it. Have at it, KOS-MOS."
KOS-MOS offered him a respectful nod as she left the room. About half an hour later, she returned.
"About time," Jr. glanced up from where he and chaos were exchanging some witty banter. "What's up with it?"
"It is nothing to be concerned about. I have dealt with the issue." Looking at an arm, she suddenly turned towards her creator. "My external appearance is down 5%. Shion, I need to be cleaned."
XXXX
It was late afternoon in Tokyo-3 as Shinji bustled around the apartment he shared with his guardian, Misato, and his roommate, Asuka Langley Soryu. He was putting together an early dinner for the benefit of the former, who had duties to take care of at Nerv later that day.
"And make sure to make that curry extra spicy," Asuka ordered him around. "Don't want any of that bland crap, got it?"
"Got it," Shinji affirmed.
Asuka eyed him. Shinji had changed recently- he didn't say much about it, but she could tell. That 'Got it' just now wasn't the passive, weak-willed phrase that it would have been before- he wasn't doing this because he was being told to, he was doing ti because he wanted to.
Though she wouldn't admit it to anyone, the day this change had come over him was the same time she'd felt a change in herself. She couldn't tell why, but she felt much differently towards him than before- it felt as though he'd done something wonderful for her, but as far as she could tell, he hadn't... it felt like it was something huge, something she should never have forgotten, but somehow managed to.
Leaning back to wonder about this a little more, she was surprised when the doorbell rang.
"I'll get it!" Shinji offered, heading to the door and opening it to reveal a blue-haired, red-eyed girl on the other side.
"Ikari-kun," she greeted him.
"Ayanami," Shinji nodded, looking slightly nervous.
"There is a young man at my apartment asking for you," she told him. "He is strange- he seems to be from America, but speaks fluent Japanese, and is dressed in a striped shirt... jeans... a baseball cap..."
Very perceptibly, Shinji brightened. "I'll be right over!" he smiled.
"Shinji?" Asuka glanced back at him.
"Can you finish dinner tonight, Asuka? Please?" Shinji asked her. "This is something really important!"
Asuka had been on the verge of giving him a firm 'No,' but seeing his face, she felt something stirring inside her. She simply couldn't bring herself to refuse him. "Alright, baka, I'll take care of it," she assured him. "Just be sure to make it back in time, so I can show you how real curry tastes!"
Shinji gave a smile, a nod, and dashed out.
XXXX
Gendo Ikari sat alone in his room, plotting, as ever. All his schemes were coming together, all according to the scenario laid out in the dead sea scrolls...
Abruptly, he looked up as the door opened. On the other side was his son, Shinji, dressed in his usual white shirt and black pants. "Father," Shinji greeted him with a slight nod.
"Shinji," Gendo glowered at him from behind his steepled fingers. "You have something you wish to say to me?"
"There's... there's something I need to tell you... but I don't quite know how to put it."
"Speak quickly, and cease wasting my time."
"Well, the thing is... how do I say it..."
"I think what he's trying to say," came a new voice, and Gendo started as another boy entered the chamber, "is that there's been a security breach around here. I'm afraid it's quite extensive."
The new boy was tall, with untidy black hair, round glasses, and a scar across his forehead in the shape of a lightning bolt.
"Oh, yeah, that's right," Shinji smiled at him. "That's what it was."
Fury coursed through Gendo's body. "You allowed outsiders into the depths of NERV headquarters?"
"Nah, brah, nah, he didn't let us in!" came a cheerful-sounding voice as another boy stepped in, dressed in a yellow-and-blue polo, jeans, and baseball gear- complete with bat hanging at his side. "We just kinda let ourselves in- nothing to worry about!"
At his side was a fiercely-orange cat and a young woman with blue hair. "Yeah, it's true," she agreed with the baseball-clad boy. "It was quite a sight. But the thing is... we've been hearing quite a few things about you and what you've really been doing here. We thought we'd stop by and let you know that we really don't approve."
"And you think that you can tell me what to do?" Gendo asked furiously. He pressed a button under his desk to call for his guards.
"If you're calling for back-up... I'm afraid it's useless," came a new voice, coming from a blond man in full green gear, entering the room with a woman resembling Rei Ayanami with much longer hair at his side. "We already took care of your bokoblins out there."
"Wait- you didn't kill-" Shinji gasped.
"Human casualties- zero," the Rei lookalike assured him. She then turned her eyes towards Gendo. "Chances of interference... also zero."
Gendo was really starting to sweat now, but the true last straw was when the cat leapt up on his desk, sat down in front of him, and spoke, glaring directly at him as it mewed, "So, why not tell us about these SEELE twolegs before things get ugly?"
XXXX
And, this marks the true end of the story. A little longer than I expected, about nine pages compared to the five or six I described last time. Before we wrap everything up, I'll set you guys up with the credits I always run at the end of my stories, describing the roles each character played within this retelling of Live A Live- going story by story, in order of appeareance, we have...
Warriors Chapter: The Singing Cave as Prehistoric Chapter: Contact
Bluestar as The Leader of the Tribe
Graystripe as Gori
Fireheart as Pogo
Nightstar as Leader of the Rival Tribe
Blackfoot as Zaki
Sandstorm as Bel
Blue-Eyed Beast as O-D-O
Ranma ½ Chapter: The Wild Gang as Kung Fu Chapter: Inheritance
Akane Tendo as Li Kuugo
Wu Ya as Odie Wang Lee
Ranma Saotome as Sammo Hakka
Ryoga Hibiki as Xin Shan Quan Master/ Yuan Jou
Legend of Zelda Chapter: The Rescue as Bakumatsu Chapter: Secret Orders
Lady Gavran as Ode Iou
Vaati as Miyamoto Musashi
Link Faron as Oboromaru
Impa as O-Robo
Sheik/Zelda as Ryoma Sakamoto
Earthbound Chapter: The Scouring of Onette as Wild West Chapter: Wandering
Ness as The Sundown Kid
Jeff/Paula/Poo as Mad Dog
People of Onette as People of Success Town
Corvus as O. Dio
Harry Potter Chapter: True Magic as Present Day Chapter: The Strongest
Harry Potter as Masaru Takahara
Ron Weasley as Tula Han
Hermione Granger as Moribe Seishi
Varnas as Jackie Iaukea/Odie Oldbright
Talia as Namcat
Cormac Mclaggen as Max Morgan
Draco Malfoy as Great Asia
Neon Genesis Evangelion Chapter: The Mysterious Child as Near Future Chapter: Flow
Misato Katsuragi as Toei
Shinji Ikari as Akira Tadokoro
Unit 01 as Buriki Daioh
Asuka Langley Soryu as Matsu Kenichi
Rei Ayanami as Taro
Karasu as Odeo/Odeo's followers
Gage as Watanabe
Xenosaga Chapter: Ghost in the Machine as Sci-fi Chapter: Mechanical Heart
Shion Uzuki as Kato
KOS-MOS KP-X as Cube
Momo Mizrahi as Rachel
Jin Uzuki as Huey
chaos as Kirk
Lieutenant Luis Virgil as Corporal Darth
Rubedo 'Jr.' Yuriev as Captain of the Cogito Ergosum
RV-10 as OD-10
Teen Titans Chapter: Skyfall as Medieval Chapter: King of Demons
Raven Roth as Sir Oersted/Odio
Dick 'Robin' Grayson as Hash
Terra Markov as Straybow/Watanabe's father
Victor 'Cyborg' Stone as Uranus
Garfield 'Beastboy' Logan as Princess Alicia/Watanabe
Starfire as King of Lucretia
Hive Five as Armstrong
Slade Wilson as Previous Demon King
Aaaaand... that's about it. Managed to stretch this out for another couple pages, but this time, for real, it is complete. Thank you all once more for coming this far. For the final time this mini-series... please R&R, constructive criticism embraced, flames, not so much, Gamer4... out.