Prologue: Bellum Aeternum

Another day in a war without end…

"Carrier Class! It's pouring reinforcements on top of us!"

"God damn it, get clear. Long live the Shogun, Long Live Japan!"

"Stand down!" Takeru cut through the radio chatter with a booming battlefield voice. "This is Captain Shirogane Takeru of her Highness 1st Royal Guard Regiment; pull back to the secondary defense Line!" He pushed his Type-00 Takemikazuchi to its fullest potential in wing formation. Inside, Takeru narrowed his eyes. The damn Carrier Class only plagued the Seattle defense line every few years. Practically speaking, the BETA were more or less on equal footing with humanity. After all, the End of the World did not discriminate. No, they were all in the same boat, struggling in a manmade hellhole. Still, after all that, after all those sacrifices, these damn monsters refused to die!

"You're grinding your teeth, Captain," 1st Lieutenant Sato Yuki commented with a chuckle.

"Captain, please refrain from such brutish displays," 2nd Lieutenant Watanabe's sage voice quipped. "We are the royal guard; one must face duty stoic and resolute."

"Sorry, guess my peasant blood's boiling." Takeru sighed, then rolled his head, popping his neck and shoulders. "Anyways, we'll reach the main BETA line in 120 seconds; maintain formation. We'll break through their lines and deliver the payload into that son of a bitches asshole-looking mouth!" Takeru smirked.

"Tch," Watanabe clicked his tongue, frowning. In truth, Takeru had grown to love getting a raise out of Watanabe. While the entire Regiment was of noble background, Takeru was the only commoner among them. His position was granted through experience, skills, and a small number of connections.

"Ahaha, The Captain will keep doing that if you keep reacting, Watanabe-Kun." Yuki giggled to herself.

"Cut the chatter; we're here. For Japan, for her Highness, for Humanity!" Takeru fired both his 36mm autocannons. The squadron followed through and immediately cut a bloody swath through Tank, Grappler, and Destroyer Class BETA.

"Aagh!" an Imperial Type-94 Shiranui fell and instantly had several Tank BETA crawl atop it. The Pilot screamed in sheer terror, desperately trying to move his manipulators to draw his combat knife. Takeru, in his flyby, flew in low, sliding on the salt grounds, drew his Type94 Blade, and slashed the Tank class off the fallen Pilot in one fluid motion.

"I didn't order you to die; retreat at once!" Takeru barked at the Surface Pilot before rejoining his squadron.

"Y-yes, Sir!" the Surface Pilot righted his machine and rejoined his squadron.

"Captain!" Watanabe shouted.

"I see it!" Takeru rushed forward; the Carrier BETA beached on the Salt Flats opened its gaping maw allowing a cornucopia of BETA onto the beach.

"That heat signature!" Yuki gasped, her ordinarily jovial face twisted in dismay.

"I know, Laser Class!" Takeru cut a bloody path through the BETA and ejected his S-11 charge from the skirt armor, grabbing it mid-air. He pushed to the mouth of the Carrier BETA, and the creature quickly began closing its mouth. "Shit!" at the final moments, the creature's mouth closed around Takeru's TSF's arm.

Look out!

"Mother-" He was cut off as a warning blared in his cockpit. A tank class grabbed his TSF's leg and crawled up, breaking his right thruster. Takeru immediately shot it off with the back-mounted 36mm guns.

"Captain gah!" Watanabe screamed before he was swallowed up by the BETA horde.

"Captain, set the time and eject now!" Yuki pleaded as the rest of the squadron desperately fought off the swarm in a semi-circle formation.

"Got it!" Takeru set the timer and hit the cockpit eject.

Error!

A morbid smile passed Takeru's lips. "So, this is how it ends. Class Rep, Ayamine, Tama, Mikoto. I'm coming home," Takeru muttered, remembering his fallen comrades and friends.

"Captain!" Yuki screamed before she, too, fell to the BETA horde.

"My ejection system is not working; all remaining guards fall back now!"

"But," one of his guards protested.

"Now!" Takeru shouted, leaving no room for argument.

"Tch…it was an honor Captain Shirogane." The Honor Guards fled the field, and instantly several Tank Class began crawling all over Takeru's TSF.

Takeru sighed, and for what felt like ages, his shoulders relaxed. The blaring warnings of his TSF, the sound of the BETA clawing his armor apart, everything faded away. Takeru looked to his left at Meiya's Katana lodged inside his cockpit. At least you got to live, my love. Takeru closed his eyes and took one last deep breath as his cockpit screeched open. An ugly red claw reached for him. Takeru smirked and flipped the BETA the bird before he slammed his fist down on the SD detonation button.

"Shirogane," Shogun Koubin Yuuhi, safely in Fort Lewis, watched the Carrier class BETA and the closest friend she ever had blip out of existence on the display map. She wanted to break down right then and there. But she was the Imperial Shogun; such luxuries were for others, not for her. So simply, she closed her eyes and allowed herself a melancholy sigh. She would mourn him another day. Yet the silence that overcame the command center was evidence of the respect and admiration Shirogane Takeru had gathered from them in his long years of service. "Carrier Class and Laser Class have been destroyed…" an operator finally spoke up.

"Roger that, the US bombers have reported they will be arriving at the combat area in 300 seconds to mop up the rest of the BETA."

"Thank you, please continue doing your best, everyone; please excuse me." Yuuhi bowed her head politely to the staff before she exited the command center.

100th Battle of Seattle

20 years after Operation Babylon

Takeru opened his eyes to a vaguely familiar white ceiling. He brought his hand out from under his bed sheet and reached out. He blinked and felt tears well behind his eyes. Takeru hoisted himself into a sitting position and looked around a room he hadn't seen in years. Finally, he swung his feet over the bed and stood up. Instantly memories flooded his brain, Operation Babylon, his friend's final stance. The Great Ocean Collapse, humanity refusing to go quietly into the dark night, and The final moments of his life. Takeru looked at his alarm clock.

08:00 A.M October 22nd, 2001

Takeru gasped and let the floodgates open. He cried, but instead of sobs, he could only laugh. Was he crazy? Did he imagine everything? His friends' deaths, Meiya escaping into space. Takeru wiped his face and did what he remembered doing all those years ago. He got dressed in his school uniform and packed his school bag. Then, he walked downstairs to the same silence he remembered. He walked up to the door and felt something he hadn't felt in a long time crawling up his spine. Fear, fear of what awaited him outside.

Come on, Takeru, you're a grown man…sort off; if this is purgatory, get yourself out and get back in the fight. Humanity still needs you!

Takeru opened the door to a blinding morning. He exited his house, and the desolate waste of his homeland greeted him. He walked a few steps forward before he turned to the remains of a TSF where Sumika's house used to be. Takeru dropped his bag and felt a new emotion surge through him. Hope, it was hope, and it infected him like a virus; it took over his every being. He was here again, back where it all began for him. Back before Alternative V was enacted. But, after the initial euphoria wore off, something else flooded his mind. Memories of Meiya and the last time he held her in his arms.

"Meiya," Takeru felt tears sting his eyes again. Damn seems I'm back to being my crybaby self again. Takeru smiled mirthlessly and wiped his tears. But, no matter what, he wanted to see her again; he wanted to hold her again. "Meiya, Meiya," Takeru took a step back and turned on a dime.

"MEIYA!" Takeru shouted her name and sprinted towards Yokohoma Base. I'm going to save you. I'm going to save everybody I love. Please wait for me, Meiya. I promise to stop Alternative V; I promise to stop Babylon! I'm going to save mankind!

Okay, so I finished the Muv-Luv og trilogy. All I can say is I am not okay, and this is less a fix-it but more how I would have followed up Unlimited. This is the loop where Takeru changes things. However, there is one key difference. This Takeru lived through Operation Babylon and the events of the day after until he reached his 30s'. This Takeru's strength of will was strong enough to overpower Kagami's mind erasing part of the reset. He remembers everything from his previous life. He will have snippets of the other lives from the various loops. But more importantly, this Takeru has lived through hell for 20 years and has reached a level of maturity and mental fortitude to make him the soldier humanity needs. This will not be cannon-compliant, and many deviations will happen.

Also, this Takeru picked up Lt Munanake's habit of being a flirt to have women keep their distance, as even after 20 years, his love for Meiya never left his heart. I hope you guys enjoy this Takeru, who will pretend to have a particular taste in women to ward off the women his younger self attracted. In fact, this somewhat backfires as he ends up attracting the women who didn't like him so in his previous loops. So you know, enjoy the light-heartedness. Because while not canon compliant. War is hell, and the war with the BETA will always demand sacrifices. But Takeru is still Takeru, so you bet he will try his most damn to keep as many people alive as he can.