A/N: I don't own World Trigger
Mimics
Chapter 66: A Mother's Love
Yugo sat on the window seal, staring out the window to look down at the river below.
"You have a perfectly good chair you can sit in at your desk."
"Kido." Yugo greeted, turning his head to see his friend in the doorway with Mogami peaking in over his shoulder.
"Move." Mogami said, pushing Kido into the office so he could enter as well.
Kido rolled his eyes and gave his friend's shoulder a light shove back.
Mogami jogged into the room and stole Yugo's chair behind his desk to relax in. He leaned the chair back and propped his ankle up on his knee and folded his arms behind his head to use them like a pillow. "It just isn't fair that you have such a comfy chair which you don't even fully appreciate since you choose to sit over there."
"I'm the one who has to run this place and keep order. I deserve what comfort I can get for all the work I put in." Yugo retorted.
"Which you fail at." Kido grumbled.
"Keeping order does not pertain to you two going to war over coffee makers constantly breaking." Yugo argued. "I don't even understand how they keep breaking."
"Because Mogami keeps replacing the broken one with a cheap one and it doesn't last." Kido shot a heated glare towards Mogami.
Mogami dropped his foot to the ground to straighten himself. He turned the chair to return the glare towards Kido. "Maybe if you didn't feel the need to drink fifty cups of coffee a day, it wouldn't keep breaking. We aren't made of money, Kido. We can't afford a fancy coffee maker that will survive your addiction."
"That is an exaggeration. I do not drink fifty cups a day. I would never sleep if that was the case." Kido snapped.
Mogami rolled his eyes. "I don't think you sleep anyway." He grumbled under his breath.
"For all the money you spent on constantly buying cheap coffee makers, you could have brought a nice one by now." Kido continued, aggravated.
Yugo raised a brow. "What are you so mad about today?" He glanced towards Mogami. "Did the coffee maker break again this morning and he didn't get his coffee with his lunch?"
Mogami picked up a pen off Yugo's desk to fiddle with it. His glare lessened a bit as he shared a look with Kido.
Yugo turned on the window seal to plant both of his feet on the floor after he noticed the look. He would not have survived as Border's Commander-in-Chief if he was an oblivious idiot. "This isn't about a coffee maker it seems."
Kido stared at Mogami for a few seconds longer, having a silent conversation with him before turning to Yugo when Mogami just shook his head, refusing to be the one to speak up. "Mogami told me why you two were trying to kill each other yesterday."
Yugo raised a brow, twisting his head towards his friend who was still staring at Kido as it seemed he didn't want to face Yugo. "Really? You couldn't even wait for me to tell him. It's my business."
That got Mogami to turn sharply to Yugo, forcibly pointing the pen he was playing with at Yugo. "This is Border's business. You're our Commander-in-Chief and you're just leaving!"
Yugo leaned back against the window, relishing the coolness of the glass seeping through his shirt as it would help keep him from getting heated in this conversation when it seemed Mogami's frustration from yesterday hadn't been completely quelled. "I thought we got pass this when we talked last night."
Mogami scoffed, throwing the pen back on the desk. "I accepted the fact that I can't talk you out of doing this, Yugo, but that doesn't mean I have to like it."
"I understand this is your choice, Kuga, and we can't stop you from doing what you want, but don't you think this is something we need to discuss? You've been in charge since we formed and the ones our allies constantly talk with. You just leaving could hurt us." Kido said.
Yugo laughed. "Please, Kido, Border isn't just one person. I handled the official stuff to form these alliances, but you've all been there right alongside me. You are just as trusted as me by them. Our alliances aren't going to fall about if I leave. So, since I don't need to be here, I'm going to follow my dream of exploring the Neighborhood."
"The reason we got this far was because of your side effect. It allowed us to discern the authenticity of what they wanted from us."
"It certainly made it easier when making allies, but life isn't meant to be easy. If it is too easy to get what you want, then you're on the wrong path." Yugo grinned at his friends.
Kido rolled his eyes. "Says the guy with a cheat code."
"Hey, it's only helped us make friends with some Neighbors." Yugo swept his arm to motion towards the whole office. "But the rest of this? Building Border, learning about Neighbor technology, learning how to use it and build Triggers, learning how to fight, this is the hard path. You're the only one of the three of us to actually finish college, Kido, because Soichi and I were too distracted with wanting to learn about Neighbors to actually be proficient students."
"And yet, look at where I am. Broke and living in a rundown water facility."
"Excuse you," Yugo said in mock offense. Kido and Mogami never let him forget what kind of building he chose on the cheap when they needed a place to operate from. "I think we've done quite well in making this place our Border base. It's quite homely now."
"You could have left at any time, Kido. You didn't have to follow me and Yugo down this path." Mogami pointed out.
Kido slammed his hands down the desk, meeting Mogami's stare with a challenging one. "That was never an option. I went to college to study up on finance and running an organization so at least one of us knew what we were doing so we didn't jump into this like headless chickens running around."
"Oooh, finance, huh? And still can't get us money to afford a quality coffee maker?" Mogami taunted.
Kido's brow twitched in annoyance.
"But can also afford a brand new car?" Mogami added. He glanced towards Yugo. "How does that add up?"
Yugo pinched his nose and sighed.
"That car was a Border expense to get us around and you let Shinoda-kun destroy it!"
"Considering your aggravation without coffee in your system, a coffee maker should be at the expense of Border too and yet you cheap out there."
"You're the one who keeps replacing it with cheap junk!"
"I don't have access to the limited funds! That's your job! I've been paying out of pocket to replace the coffee machine so you could show a little appreciation."
"I can't justify an expensive coffee machine!"
"Justify to who?! We're the ones who founded Border! We don't answer to anyone!"
Yugo slammed his wallet on the desk between his two arguing friends, efficiently shutting them both up. "I'll buy the best damn coffee maker that exists if you two shut up about the coffee maker."
Mogami blinked down at the wallet sitting between them. "What do you care? You're leaving."
Yugo scowled. "It's like I told you last night. You two are going to be working together without me from now so this war about the coffee maker ends now. Geez, instead of fighting, find a compromise. You don't need to always fight. Find a way to compromise that both sides can agree to."
"Says the guy who chose the most offhand method he could find to lead." Kido said.
Yugo turned away from them, rubbing the back of his head. "I'm not the kind of leader who gives orders and expects absolute obedience. We all need to choose our own path." He approached the window once more to look down at the river. "It's like the ocean. There are many different paths to lead to it. The world is full of rivers that will all eventually connect to the ocean." He turned and grinned at his friends. "We're walking down different paths now, but one day, our paths will connect once more. That's a promise. This isn't sayonara." Yugo approached his friends once more, looking first at Mogami then resting his gaze on Kido. "When you least expect it, I'll barge back into your lives and I expect to see greatness from Border, Commander." He clapped Kido on the shoulder as he said, never breaking eye contact.
Mogami leaned back in his seat, whistling in surprise at the sudden declaration while Kido just stared in shock at his grinning friend.
Kido twisted his chair around to stare at the window, leaning back in it in a seemingly relaxed state. Yugo hadn't lied. He had returned when they least expected it, but it was in a way that none of them wanted.
In return, Kido had done what Yugo had asked. He had brought power and agents into Border, growing Border exceptionally from the tiny group they were when it first formed. It wasn't in a way that Yugo had intended as Kido made Neighbors out to be the enemy after the large-scale invasion while Yugo was looking to make friends and connections with Neighbors.
But, it was like Yugo said. They all had to choose their own path to take, and after the wars their allies had been involved, the war that destroyed Aristera, after seeing a good portion of their city destroyed by Neighbors invading them, Kido made the decision to go down a different path from what Yugo envisioned. Border couldn't survive in the shadows any longer and with Ruka's help, they had the power to grow Border. It wasn't a hard sell to make Neighbors the enemy after the first large-scale invasion as it showed people the terror of Trion Soldiers and caused much anger towards them for the destruction of their home, the death of family and friends, and the kidnapping of others.
The death of so many friends in Aristera and then a large-scale invasion just a few months after that showed Kido that they would not survive without more strength behind them. They couldn't continue to stay small and hidden anymore so he made the tough call to villainize Neighbors.
Kido always agreed with Yugo and Mogami about Neighbors. They created Border together because they were fascinated by the Neighbor's world and wanted to learn more, but then Yugo left and was never heard from again and then Mogami got killed. His two closest friends were just gone and he was left running Border alone.
He went against Kuga and Mogami's dream because he had to. He had to be a hard commander because they couldn't remain as they were. He had to take this small organization and raise it into a much bigger one and reorganize how it was run because with how fast Border grew practically over night, he couldn't do it all alone.
It's why he didn't protest Shinoda and Rindo arguing against what he was doing and forming their own paths in Border. He chose his path of how to grow Border quickly so Shinoda and Rindo had the right to go down their own paths for Border which involved staying true to what they believed. Rindo would never turn his back on Neighbors just like Yugo would do and so he stayed inside Tamakoma. Shinoda would never turn his back on those who needed help and would protect the city from attacks while trying to cooperate with the rest of Border and their differing views, just like Mogami would have done.
Kido's finger brushed over his scar. The scar he received in a war fighting to help his allies. This was the reminder of how weak they were back then as all they could do was save Ruka, Yotaro, and their Mother Trigger. He would not allow Border to continue to remain that weak so he would do whatever it took to make Border stronger.
Despite that, he wasn't willing to completely forego the past. Despite his stance, and though he would never say it, he didn't completely hate Neighbors. Doing so would feel too much like turning his back completely on the past and the dream he, Yugo, and Mogami all shared as bright-eyed, naïve young adults. It's why he was never completely against the idea of Rindo doing his own thing and accepting Neighbors into his Branch. They would be safe there. Allowing stray Neighbors a safe haven in a Border branch was what he could offer them.
His problems with Yuma months ago was that he was a stray Neighbor they knew nothing about so he gave Miwa squad the go ahead to go after him. From there, it just dissolved into a bigger mess because anything to do with a Kuga was destined to be difficult. It was the Black Trigger and Tamakoma seizing that power that caused the biggest issue once it was revealed Yuma was Yugo's son. He held no ill will to the Kuga family. That's why Yuma being Yugo's son was irrelevant to the issue back then because all he cared about was the power imbalance happening among the fractions.
Once it had been resolved, Kido had no problem with Yuma joining because he was sure any child of Kuga Yugo was one that could be trusted and would have similar morals to Yugo, which was proven correct to him when he saw the boy in action, especially in the Aftokrator invasion. He would keep his promise. As long as Yuma followed Border rules, he would be protected by Border. He would have all the same rights as any other agent.
Which meant during a Neighbor attack where he was being targeted, Border would help him as much as they could. The safety of agents was a huge priority to Border because without the agents, they didn't have anyone to fight back against Neighbors. It's why Shinoda made it a priority for agents to not fight against Rabits alone when Aftokrator attacked. None of their agents were disposable.
And none of his agents were weak-willed. They have all certainly proven that through their tenacity when none of them ever chose to back down from Yugo and Mogami. All of them had gone so far out of their way to help against the Mimics. For some, it was simply a sense of duty to stop the Neighbors from getting what they want, but for others, it was because they wanted to help their friends who were suffering from being haunted by their past.
Whatever their reason for choosing to work so much overtime to deal with this, Kido wouldn't question it. He didn't even need to step in to give orders to the agents. They had all been willing to step up to the battle just because Tamakoma had requested help. Despite the different beliefs the factions held, when it came down to it, the agents were all willing to work together because at the end of the day, they were all on the same side and fighting for the same thing.
The protection of the city.
Guarding HQ.
Protecting their comrades.
And perhaps, preserving the legacy of the past.
That was what Jin and Yuma alongside all of Tamakoma and Shinoda had been working towards. Very few people actually knew Mogami personally and even fewer knew Yugo so the events of this week wouldn't mean much to them, but for those who knew them, it was an insult to their memory. Mogami and Yugo were very well respected by those who knew them so to have the agents see them as lowly enemies would sting.
It wasn't just Yuma and Jin who were frustrated by this.
Kido was as well.
Before Yugo was a father to Yuma.
Before Mogami was a mentor to Jin.
They were his childhood friends and Border was their legacy.
Maybe it was vastly different than when it was started and perhaps it would be a bit hard for them to recognize it now, but they were still the ones to lay down the foundation for Border to grow from. Even though Kido took Border down a different path, he did not want to see the memory of his friends tarnished like this.
After seeing Mogami last night, Kido was able to see just why Yuma and Jin were so frustrated. He truly looked and sounded just like his old friend but with a twisted sense in him that made him attack them. Kido wasn't an active combatant so he couldn't go after Mogami or Yugo to protect their legacy, but he could give permission when Yuma pleaded for the chance to stop his father before his legacy could get destroyed any more.
Perhaps that was why he agreed to this crazy plan.
He wanted to see Yugo stopped as much as Yuma did.
*Mimics*
Kitora stared coldly at the computer as she stood behind Haruka's chair. Since she couldn't participate in the mission today, she was hanging around her squad's operation room to keep an eye on the battle going on in the Restricted Zone. It was frustrating to have to sit on the sidelines like this. Granted, if she was out in the field, she wouldn't be doing anything anywhere since from what Satori told her, Yuma requested to take on Yugo solo.
The worse part of her frustration came from the fact that Kuga Yugo forced her and Arashiyama into a bail out earlier which left them trapped on the sidelines while Yugo escaped from Border.
"I can see it on your face. You're being too hard on yourself again, Kitora."
Kitora and Haruka looked up from the computer to look at Arashiyama on the other side of the desk. "How can I not?" Kitora asked. "We got blindsided by Kuga-san when we were supposed to be keeping an eye on him."
"It's unfortunate that we couldn't prevent him from using the Black Trigger seals." Arashiyama replied. It was the whole reason they didn't allow Yugo to sit alone in a prison cell. None of them believed he would remain there forever.
"We've been facing off against Kuga-kun's seals all week in the form of battles against Kuga-san and from his Trion Soldiers. We knew what to expect." Kitora said, frustration causing her to dig her nails into the back of Haruka's chair. She was A-Rank. She was among the best of the best of Border agents. Despite that, these past few months have been teaching her how to fail, and it all started the day she met Osamu and Yuma at their school after the Marmod attack. She struggled as an agent in the beginning because of her low Trion, but she didn't let that stop her and she found the path she needed to succeed. She took great pride in her work and skill as an agent so she hated failing, and that was what began to happen when she met an Ilgar for the first time. She was unprepared for its self-destruct feature and needed saving to prevent the city from getting destroyed. Then, she got herself turned into a cube during the Aftokrator invasion. And now this week had been failure after failure for all the agents.
It was frustrating to deal with.
But, it was because of those failures that she found herself improving. Each time she failed, she was self-assessing how she could improve and prevent herself from making the same mistake again.
Despite all the extra training and improvement though, she still couldn't stop Yugo from escaping.
"You're trying to take on too much blame here." Haruka said. She leaned back in her chair so she could look up at Kitora. "Kuga-san had been acting like a model prisoner since he surrendered to us."
"Was it to get us to drop our guard?" Kitora said.
"We never dropped our guard, Kitora." Arashiyama said. He tapped one of Haruka's monitors. "I checked the video logs of the prison after we bailed out. The bullets that killed us were from seals planted on door to his cell. I don't know too much about how Yuma's seals work, but from I worked out in the video is that Kuga-san used a very powerful multiplier so the attack could break through the barrier and kill us."
"A powerful multiplier?" Kitora took a moment to think back to Yuma's match against Shun, Kageura, and Midorikawa last night. If she recalled correctly, Yuma had very nearly destroyed the training room they were using when he sent Shun flying with a Bound seal, and according to Jin that was just a Triple multiplier. Jin said at least a Quadra multiplier would be needed to break through the Trion barriers they used for their prison and training rooms.
Arashiyama nodded. "Kuga-san never approached the barrier while we were watching him which means he planted it on the door at some point before we went in there to relieve Katagiri and Ichijo of guard duty."
"Don't let Tachikawa-san hear that. He'll start complaining about Kuga-san's ambush strategies again." Haruka said amused. She heard all about Tachikawa's complaints and how he wouldn't let that first meeting with Kuga Yugo go from Kunichika.
"He would have had to have that seal planted there for hours then." Kitora said, ignoring the Tachikawa comment as they all already knew about his frustration in his failure from that day. "Can he do that? Does it consume Trion to plant a seal and just keep it hidden until he decides to activate it?"
"No idea. Those are questions better asked towards Yuma." Arashiyama replied, though he had a feeling Yuma wouldn't be very open about that. To learn anything about Yuma's Black Trigger, they had to get information from Osamu and Jin, and he could tell from that meeting that Osamu wasn't exactly comfortable outing Yuma's Black Trigger abilities. Considering how the Kido fraction sent A-Ranks to steal Yuma's Black Trigger months ago, he couldn't fault Osamu for his distrust.
Kitora's eyes drifted back to the computer, frowning as she looked at Yuma's Trion signature. For a while now, she had been watching it disappear and reappear. What was he doing? "If he takes care of his father today, I have no reason to concern myself with the answer." It would be better for both of them that way. She didn't want to hound Yuma for answers when he was already having a hard enough time as it was. Even when Yugo was no longer a Border issue, Yuma was going to need time to recover from this attack that had been very difficult mentally for him. Kitora wasn't going to badger him with questions that would likely bring up painful memories just because of their association with the Black Trigger.
*Mimics*
"Saving the Black Trigger means killing Dad to stop him draining it." Yuma said. "That's been our plan since Jin-san defeated Mogami which restored Fujin's power. My problem is that I can't beat Dad in a fight. I never could." He looked down at their hands and slipped his hand free of his mother's. "I had never been able to land a single hit on him when we trained together."
"Nope." Eleni tapped Yuma's forehead hard enough to push his head back a bit. "You're not the kid he was training. You're a fighter in your own right. If you think this is just like those training session and that you can't do it, you won't be able to do it."
Yuma rubbed his forehead, frowning. He knew that. It was the same mistake that Osamu was making months ago. His lack of action and being too cautious affected him greatly in battle. It was the opposite of Yuma who was naturally a very aggressive fighter, but when it came to Yugo, Yuma had trouble facing him seriously because when he looked at Yugo, he just saw his past mistakes. That caused Yuma to lean into a more defensive style of fighting which had been hindering him.
However, that was not how he was today. Today, he was here to stop Yugo because his resolve was no longer going to falter.
"Dad became an even tougher enemy now that he has access to the Black Trigger." Yuma snatched the old Trigger from his pocket. "We're fighting with the same weapon set here. Trigger on." Yuma's body swapped out to his combat Trion body. He rested a hand on the hilt of one of his swords at his side. "These types of swords don't match my preferred sword style so it's hindering me."
"Why not just focus on using your Black Trigger then?" Eleni asked.
Yuma shook his head. "It's too damaged for me to want to risk activating. We're already draining it of power even faster by throwing seals at each other." He glanced down the tunnel again. "I know neither of us want to fight, but the fact that he won't come down here to meet us makes me think that he's going to attack me the moment he sees me again so he is avoiding me again."
"You're right that Yugo wants to end this, but he got a taste of that Black Trigger again when you handed it over to him. It's like a drug to him as it relieves him of the burning sensation to complete his mission to retrieve it and steal all its power and lifeforce." Eleni said.
"A drug, huh?" Yuma thought back to Mogami from the other night. He remembered that crazed, angry look in his eyes after Yuma went to take Fujin after Mogami healed him. He had no control left to want to help Yuma after he gave everything up to keep Yuma alive. The power from the Black Trigger gave him the control he needed, but when it was gone, he was back to being a Mimic focused on his mission and Yuma was getting in the way of said mission. "I guess that's why he keeps coming back. It's an addiction to him since it gives him a relief from the pain he is in."
"Except in freeing himself of that pain, he causes himself a new kind of pain." Eleni gave Yuma a pointed look that Yuma didn't notice as he was looking down the tunnel again.
Yuma rubbed at his neck, recalling the feeling of Mogami's hand on his neck. If that was how Mogami acted after giving up his Trion to save Yuma, it wasn't surprising Yugo's attitude kept switching back and forth. He held onto Yuma's Black Trigger for less than a day but that was enough for him to steal a lot of power. The next time they saw him after Yuma got his Black Trigger back after his team and Miwa squad retrieved it and Suwa and Katori had their own fight with Yugo, Yugo had surrendered to Border. He had the presence of mind after all that to stop the fight but all those fights had left him drained and he used all the Trion he had sapped from the ring. That meant he was losing control.
The Black Trigger when held by the Mimic allowed the power and life force to be stolen that much faster which allowed for the person the Mimic was transformed into to be more like their real self. Or, at least, gave them the chance to fight harder for what they truly wanted. For as much as the Black Trigger was restoring the lifeforce to the transformed Mimic, their Trion and power only lasted so long and when they used it all up, it affected their control over their real self. Fake self? Transformed self?
Yugo only held the Black Trigger very briefly before Eleni took it from him to return it to Yuma, but how much did it help him? He did call Eleni here in that brief moment of holding the ring so surely it helped somewhat. As long as he wasn't fighting and using up that Trion, Yugo's control would last longer. Yuma needed to take this time to think of a new plan. He couldn't just keep throwing his ring at his dad's face in the hope that he would steal enough power from it that he would be like Mogami and give up the fight enough that Yuma could plunge a sword in his chest.
Like his mother said, throwing his ring at Yugo was just being too reckless. He was lucky doing it the first time that Yugo didn't immediately leave to go to Meraki when he had the chance. If he kept throwing the Black Trigger at Yugo, it was likely one of those times, Yugo wouldn't be able to prevent his programming from controlling his actions and he would leave Japan.
Yuma ran a finger over his ring. Even through his gloves, he could feel the rough cracks rub against his fingertip. Eleni said to win this, the Black Trigger needed to be saved. He needed to get the power back in his Black Trigger that Yugo stole. When Mogami died, power and Trion returned to Fujin. It would be the same for Yugo. The purpose of this fight hadn't changed.
Eleni stepped forward to her son. "What do you think of your father right now, Yuma?"
"I think he's suffering." Yuma's eyes softened. "I wanted to hate him when the Mimic first stole his appearance, but the more I interacted with him, the more I saw how he hated himself. Him and Oji-san."
Eleni raised a slender brow, confused as to who 'Oji-san' was, but didn't interrupt her son to ask.
"They don't want this and hate what they are being forced to do. I'm not going to add any more hatred on top of that. It makes it harder when I allow myself to see the Mimic as Dad since it will make it hurt that much more when he dies, but I managed to survive going through his death once. I can do it again." Yuma said, though he wasn't sure if he was assuring his mother that he was strong enough to handle it or if he was just trying to convince himself. Either way, it was not something he could let himself think of right now as it would only distract him from doing what he needed to do.
"Aionia were never meant to cause pain like this. I just wanted to save people from having to go through the grief of losing a loved one." Eleni said softly.
Yuma turned to face his mother, hating the guilt shining on her face. "Good intentions don't matter since other people will find a way to weaponize anything, but this isn't your fault, Okāsan. None of us are to blame for what Meraki has done." His hand curled tightly on the hilt of his sword that he still had sheathed at his side as he had no desire to pull it on his mom again. "They have been working on this for ten years. They saw your design and came to Tropoi to steal it. I don't know why they are attacking us with them now, but I don't blame you."
Those seemed to be the right words as Eleni's guilt ever so slightly eased. It was the same words Yuma needed to hear the other day after he caused Yugo to first appear. He got them from Chika when she told him he wasn't to blame and his friends were just worried.
Yugo and Eleni needed to know too. This wasn't their fault. He needed his parents to know he didn't blame them and was just worried for them. He didn't want Eleni to feel it was her fault this happened because she wanted to create a new Trion Soldier to help her through the loss of her mother. Eleni had no way of knowing in the future her project would be stolen and she would be killed.
Yugo needed to know that he wasn't at fault. He was just a victim to Meraki who was using him as a pawn to steal a Black Trigger and a soldier who could use it. Meraki wasn't trying to restore people to life with Mimics to help those who lost them. They didn't have any good intentions here like his mother did when she first came up with the concept of Inchoate.
"Any words of advice?" Yuma asked. "Beyond focusing on needing to save the Black Trigger."
"Yugo is a strong strategist and powerful fighter who knows how to play the game. He knows how to win and he knows how to drag a fight out when he is in a tough spot."
"That's not advice. That's just a fact."
"The advice, Yuma, is that emotions always skew everything." Eleni brushed Yuma's bangs out of his eyes. She knew he was a warrior that had seen much. It was evident by the way he held himself and how cautious he was to approach Eleni, but his face looked so young. It was the face of a child still clinging to a child's youth that he would have grown out of by now had he not been trapped in a Trion body. "And when it came to you, that was when he was always the most reckless." Her eyes flicked down to Yuma's glove covered hand that hid the Black Trigger. "Which is proven by that Black Trigger. Just because you want to create a Black Trigger doesn't mean you successfully will, but he attempted it anyway for you."
That wasn't really a plan. Making Yugo see Yuma and face what he was doing had been Yuma's strategy already.
Seeing the frustrated look on Yuma's face, Eleni shook her head fondly. "It's not about forcing him to acknowledge you and your past, Yuma. He died to save you in the past, right?"
Yuma nodded.
"What you need him to see is the current you. The you that he saved and the you he is killing by being here."
"He's already seen that." Yuma protested.
"Has he?" Eleni asked.
Yuma traced a finger over his face. There were no longer cracks on his body as Mogami healed him, but before Mogami did that, Yugo had faced him and stared at him while his body was breaking. In that moment, when they stared at each other, Yugo had felt like the loving, concerned father he was before his death, even if it only lasted for a few seconds.
"You just said that to win this, we needed to save the Black Trigger, but now you're saying that he needs to see the current me? You're not making any sense." He scowled at his mother. "I hate when people beat around the bush. Just say what you mean."
"Yugo's will still exists in him because Meraki copied my design of Aionia that I refused to finish since I knew to complete it, the power of a Black Trigger would be needed to revive the person. They haven't changed my design much except to make it a weapon."
"Again, stuff we've already established."
"No," Eleni leaned down to get in Yuma's face. "You're not listening. He is still the same man you remember, Yuma. He is still the father that laid down his life for his only son."
Realization of what his mother was telling him dawned on Yuma and left horror growing him. She really couldn't be suggesting this. If this went wrong...What happened to not being so reckless anymore?
*Mimics*
"How are things looking?"
Jin saw Konami looking at him from the corner of his eye, but didn't reply to her question right away as he was still staring down at the destroyed road as he searched the shifting future before his eyes. He hadn't seen Yuma's mother making an appearance today, but she did come in the form of a Trion Soldier so he couldn't predict that. Something about her being here now has caused a changed in the future. "Besides, Kuga-san and his wife, there are no more enemies here so that's a plus at least. Nice shooting earlier, Reiji-san."
"Be sure to thank the other snipers as well." Reiji replied, not taking his eyes off the scene before him even though it was just an empty, quiet road right now. "Not all of them are confident about shooting a target they can't see. I'm sure they were worried about hitting Yuma."
"I would have warned Yuma if I saw someone hitting him." Jin said. It was a good thing Yuma wasn't scared of having his allies shoot enemies around him.
"I don't care about that! Yuma! How are things looking for him?" Konami demanded. She hated being up on this roof, just watching Yuma have to face his parents alone. She couldn't even help when Trion Soldiers appeared because Jin wanted to keep all the agents away from the Kuga family so the snipers took care of them from a distance.
Jin held a hand up towards Konami, asking for peace.
"Silence is not reassuring." Karasuma said. He kneeled down by Reiji's side and rested an arm on the ledge. Staring down at an empty street was pretty boring, but that boredom was offset by his worry for what Yuma was doing. Konami's complaints earlier about being frustrated that they couldn't see Yuma and if he was okay or not were truly valid. Knowing that Jin predicted Yuma's death this week was doing nothing good for their nerves.
"Yuma is alive, but that is something you already knew. I know you're asking for the future, but we're at a crossroad." Jin replied. "This isn't something we can interfere in."
"We can't do anything to push it into our favor?" Konami asked.
"Unless you want to get Yuma killed, no." Jin replied.
"Well, you didn't have to say it like that." Konami complained.
Jin sighed. "I'm not trying to be mean, Konami. It's just, us interfering in the fight would only hurt Yuma. Yuma's mom appearing has shifted the future somehow."
Karasuma turned halfway around to look at Jin standing behind them. "For the better or the worse?"
"Hmmm," Jin tilted his head as he thought that question over. "Undecided."
"What good are you?" Konami muttered.
"I will say that Yuma's chances of surviving this have significantly increased." Jin replied.
"His mother had that much significance?" Konami asked.
Jin hummed thoughtfully. "No idea if it was her influence or if Yuma has just managed to push his father to a point that it altered the future." He turned his back on the road and looked up towards the sky, watching the clouds drift lazily. "Maybe all of it is tying together in such a way that it will save his future." And then, they could all go back home to Tamakoma together. This painful week could finally be put to rest.
*Mimics*
"This is turning into a damn fairy tale." Yuma grumbled to himself. If Mogami was here to hear this, he would be laughing his ass off at Yuma. He cannot believe Mogami and his mother were working down the same train of thought. Their logic behind it was just different, but they were essentially both suggesting the same thing.
Yuma slapped his cheeks. "Okay, I can do this."
Eleni raised a brow.
"This is so stupid." Yuma immediately grumbled, dropping his hands from his face. He twisted his head around to crack his neck. He could do this. It was simple. It was so simple and stupidly reckless and why was this his life? He knew that life wasn't fair, but did it have to be this completely unfair to him?
"So, you know, I didn't suggest this to Yugo."
Yuma turned to face his mother, confusion on his face. "What?"
"I spoke to him about my Aionia, but I didn't give him any suggestions as to what he could do to stop himself."
"Why?!"
Eleni tapped her chin, thoughtfully. "I was concerned if he knew what he needed to do to beat Meraki at this game, his Trion programming would get in the way and prevent him from doing it. My original design of the Inchoate wouldn't have this issue, but since I don't know the full changes to make them into weapons known as Mimics, I didn't want to take that risk. You will only get one chance at this, Yuma, so you need to make it count."
"Right," Yuma closed his eyes and took a deep breath. This was so stupid. He could not believe he was going to do this again. Should he warn his friends to stay out of this no matter what? Opening his eyes, Yuma turned down the tunnel, but before he could take a step, he felt arms engulf him from behind and a kiss was pressed to his temple.
"You're going to be fine," Eleni whispered into his temple.
His side effect didn't activate. His mother truly believed this was all going to work out. That didn't mean it would. It simply meant Eleni had so much trust in Yuma and Yugo to get through this with the result that both sides wanted.
"Thanks for the advice, even if I hate it." Yuma said.
Eleni pressed her lips to her son's temple once more before her arms slipped away from him.
Strangely, the lack of warm arms around him made Yuma felt empty. He wasn't even big on hugs, and yet, he was missing those arms wrapping protectively around him. It was just like when Yugo hugged him earlier. Yuma was craving something he had lost so long ago.
"Good luck."
Yuma nodded, but didn't find his feet moving like he wanted as a question was still hanging on the tip of his tongue. Before he could voice it, Eleni beat him.
Eleni sat back down on the rubble she was sitting on when Yuma came in, crossing her ankles and resting her hands on her lap. "I don't need to be here to see this. In fact, I would prefer if I wasn't."
Yuma's shoulders stiffened at that, very aware of what his mother was requesting. Without interference, an Inchoate transformed into someone lasted a few hours because that was when the Trion used would run out. The other way to dissolve the transformation...
Yuma's hand landed on the hilt of his sword, but it froze there as he found himself unable to find the strength to pull it out. He looked at his mother, the gentle, loving expression and how much she wanted to help her family. She didn't choose a side in this. She simply wanted her father and son to be at peace.
Yuma turned his back on his mother.
It was just an Inchoate wearing his mother's face.
It wasn't difficult.
There wasn't anything difficult in this.
Yuma gritted his teeth, refusing to look back at his mother. "Tell me something, Okāsan, did he really stay away this whole time just because he was scared of attacking me again if he saw me?"
"He wanted to give us the chance to speak."
"So, you could tell me how to win?"
"Because it's been ten years, Yuma."
"I didn't even remember enough about you to miss you." Yuma said bitterly. He didn't want it to be true, but it was. Yuma had always been closer to Yugo because he spent eleven years with him. He only got five years with his mom which meant she was mostly a blur in his memories.
"But I remember you very clearly, Yuma, and I wanted to see the man you grew into. It's been a long time for you, but it's been barely any time for me at all. Your love may have faltered because a child can't remember their early years that well, but my love for you has never stopped."
Yuma swallowed. Eleni and Yugo. He wondered...what would life...no, that was not a path he could walk down again. What ifs were not a path they could live on because the past was already set in stone. He couldn't look to the future if he was constantly looking back.
Yuma put a hand up to his ear. "Shiori-chan, I need–"
*Mimics*
"You know, when they asked for sentry, I was expecting more explosions." Yoneya lounged back on the roof, resting his back on the ledge as he stared at the sky.
"Yoneya-senpai, please take this more seriously." Kodera scolded.
Yoneya waved off his scolding. "They want snipers in case Kuga gets in trouble. I don't even know why I'm here right now."
"They wanted backup in case Kuga tried to leave the area. We don't want him to escape again." Narasaka corrected. "It wasn't about sniping anyone if Kuga got himself into trouble since he was insistent on handling this alone."
"It should have been knowing the kind of trouble he can find." Yoneya replied. He twisted his head on the ledge to glance down at the road. Yuma had better make it out of this just fine. He owed them a lot for all the overtime they'd been putting in to help him with this and Yoneya was going to make sure Yuma paid. He couldn't just give Yoneya one solo rank war because he thought he would die this week. Nope. He was going to pay Yoneya back with hundreds of solo rank wars.
"Narasaka." Yuma's voice buzzed in his ear.
Yoneya raised a brow. He certainly hadn't expected Yuma to want to contact his team for anything. While Yoneya and Yuma got along quite well, the rest of his team, specifically Narasaka and Miwa, were not the biggest fans of Yuma. While they had been helping Tamakoma with the Yugo and Mogami problem, it had been more out of obligation than anything else.
"What is it, Kuga?" Narasaka asked.
"I need you to shoot my mom." Yuma requested.
Narasaka raised a brow at the request. "You want me to do it instead of one of your friends?" He knew Toma was here. He would have been the best shot at this. Or even Azuma as well.
Yuma was silent for a moment before saying, "I can't ask this of a friend."
"Because you'll hate the person who does it." Miwa said, getting his teammates to glance at him, but he didn't spare them a glance. He had spent this whole sentry mission standing behind his team, being annoyed that Yugo had gotten them to this point by escaping the prison cell. It had been really annoying to have gone home last night and then to return to Border today to learn their base got attacked by Mogami and Yugo last night, Yugo surrendered to Border, Yuma got himself kidnapped, Jin went out to kill Mogami, and then Yugo just decided to escape after giving himself up.
It was one night.
Fourteen hours of pure chaos.
It certainly matched the disarray they had been facing all week.
"Your team already doesn't like me. It's easier this way." Yuma replied in such a matter-of-fact tone. He didn't sound at all offended that most of Miwa squad weren't big fans of his. To Yuma, it was just a fact of life like how grass was green or the sky was blue.
"Alright," Narasaka said. He didn't need an explanation. A Trion Soldier was here and he needed to kill it. That was his job. It was all that truly mattered to him. "Do I need to deal with her dodging me?"
"No."
Yoneya watched Narasaka from the corner of his eyes as he lined up his rifle with the help of Ren and their radar so he could do this in one shot. It was strange. Yuma had insisted all week that he could handle his dad, though that obviously wasn't true. He had trouble facing his father, but he wasn't even trying with his mother. He was immediately pawning off the job of killing his mother to someone else. Either Yuma learned the lesson from everything he went through this week or it was just different with his mother.
*Mimics*
Yuma's fingers curled tightly over his ear as he listened to the confirmation from Narasaka that he would do as he asked. It would have been easier to ask Reiji or Toma or Azuma to do this. Their aim was just as good as Narasaka's, but Yuma couldn't bring himself to make the request to them. He never had any problems with them, but if he asked them to kill his mother, that would be all he thought about when he saw their faces. It was easier to ask Narasaka who he wasn't close to at all. It would still be in his mind when he saw Narasake, but it would be easier to deal with it since Yuma rarely ever saw the sniper so he wouldn't have to be reminded of Narasaka's shot tearing through Eleni.
"You need to relax, Yuma. I died years ago."
"It's just setting things right." Yuma finished.
"Exactly."
Yuma stared down into the dark tunnel that was only lit by the sun shining through the holes behind him. After talking to his dad and mom this week, Yuma had realized the truth in Mimics that he never realized. Before Meraki stole the design, they were called Inchoate and were the first phase of his mom's real goal, Aionia, that she later decided to not complete. Once upon a time, bringing people back to life through her Trion Soldier was Eleni's dream, and yet, here she was, asking to be killed.
Where did she find the strength?
Eleni didn't even remember her death. If Yugo and Yuma hadn't spoken to her about it, she wouldn't have been aware of it, and yet, she had no fear in asking for this. She was going against the true purpose of her Inchoate.
She was only here to guide her husband and son.
"Okāsan, I l–" Yuma's voice was drowned out by the sound of Narasaka's shot tearing through the road above them, leaving rubble raining down behind him, and the bullet slamming into Eleni's gut, blasting her to pieces.
Not that Yuma saw as he still refused to turn to face where his mother was sitting. Not that he would have been able to see anyway as the rubble from the road had also separated mother and son.
Yuma breathed out slowly. It was just righting things. Eleni never should have been here to begin with.
Even knowing that, even knowing Eleni was fine with it as she asked for this, for some reason, Yuma felt the familiar sting of pain he felt when he watched Yugo die. For all that Yuma didn't trust the appearance of his mom today, somewhere during their conversation, he began to feel the warmth of a mother's love again just in time to lose it a second time.
There was no time for Yuma to think on what he was feeling though. He had to find Yugo and try what Eleni suggested, even if he absolutely hated the plan she gave him.
*Mimics*
"Jin-san."
"What's up, Usami?" Jin asked.
"I have a message from Yuma-kun." Shiori's voice buzzed in Tamakoma-'s ears. "He said whatever happens in the next few minutes, that he wants no one to interfere no matter what."
Konami twisted around to stare at Jin with a raised brow. "Know what that sounds like?"
"That Yuma has a reckless plan in mind?" Karasuma suggested.
"I'm sure it's something he wouldn't do if he didn't think it would work." Reiji replied. "Remember, he did beat Viza with a reckless strategy."
"Barely." Konami muttered.
"Barely or not, he still won." Jin said. It could be argued that Yuma tied with Viza since they both lost their combat bodies at the end of their fight. However, since Yuma was still able to fight without his combat body since he lives in a Trion body, only Viza was completely knocked out of the battle. That was why it was Yuma's win. Even so, he didn't think Konami would appreciate knowing exactly just how reckless Yuma's last move in that fight was. It would just stress her out that Yuma would be attempting another reckless strategy if she knew what kind of stunts Yuma would pull when he was desperate to finish a battle.
"Jin."
"Kazama-san," Jin greeted the new voice demanding his attention. "What can I do for the esteemed Kazama squad?"
"Don't joke around right now."
Jin could practically hear Kazama rolling his eyes at him.
"Kikuchihara said Kuga was talking of a plan to deal with his father with his mother."
"Is that so?" Jin figured Yuma's mother was taking part in this someway. The future started to shift quite heavily when she appeared. "What kind of plan was it?"
*Mimics*
Kazama glanced towards Kikuchihara, giving a small jerk of his head in silent order.
Kikuchihara frowned as he recalled the conversation he heard a few minutes ago.
"Yugo's will still exists in him because Meraki copied my design of Aionia that I refused to finish since I knew to complete it, the power of a Black Trigger would be needed to revive the person. They haven't changed my design much except to make it a weapon."
"Again, stuff we've already established."
"No," Eleni said. "You're not listening. He is still the same man you remember, Yuma. He is still the father that laid down his life for his only son."
"No," Yuma said.
"If you want to end this war, this is what you need to do." Eleni replied.
"Why?"
"Because your life is still tied to the Black Trigger and now it is tied with Yugo's. You need to restore the power of the Black Trigger, but only one person can do that and he will only do it for one person."
Yuma swallowed thickly.
"They didn't really specify any particular plan, but from the way they spoke, it seems they understood something without saying it." Kikuchihara said. "Kuga and his mother said they need to focus on restoring the power to his Black Trigger, but Kuga himself cannot do that."
"Because Black Triggers steal life away. If he did it, it would kill him." Utagawa said.
"It's also because he is not the creator of the Black Trigger." Jin's voice came over the comms. "It wasn't his Trion or life force that created it so if Yuma tried to fix it, it would become a different Black Trigger, if he succeeded at all."
"Only Kuga can repair the Black Trigger by dying." Kazama said. "Which is something we already knew."
"It seems that Yuma's mother was implying something else though if she felt the need to reiterate that point. Nothing else was said?"
"No," Kikuchihara replied. "Just that even if Kuga Yugo is currently a Mimic, he is still the man who gave his life to save Kuga's. It seemed to imply that Kuga Yugo would only do what needed to be done for his son. It sounds stupid to me since he is also the man that has almost cost Kuga his life multiple times this week. Can we really trust what his mother is telling him to do?"
"Yuma is the one with the lie detector side effect so I'll trust his judgment on this." Jin replied.
"Jin," Kazama said, trying to bring the conversation back to the point. "From what Kikuchihara told me, it sounds like there was more to this than what we know. How exactly did Kuga get into this situation where his life got tied to a Black Trigger?"
"We've been over this. His real body is sealed inside the ring." Jin explained.
"But how did it happen?" Kazama insisted. "How do you seal someone else's body inside a Trigger?"
"Good question. I don't know exactly how Kuga-san did it since I clearly don't know as much as he does about Triggers and Trion."
"My apologies. Wrong question. Why did he do it?" Kazama demanded. He could already feel a headache forming. Jin was being obtuse about this on purpose.
"Because Yuma was dying." Jin replied. "I thought that would be obvious, Kazama-san. There was no reason for Kuga-san to give up his life to create a Black Trigger unless Yuma needed him to do it. Why are you asking about this now?"
"The implications of what his mother was suggesting to Kuga made it seem like they want to push Kuga into a corner." Kazama explained.
"Push who into a corner? Yuma or Kuga-san?" Jin asked confused.
Kazama's brow twitched in annoyance. If Tachikawa hadn't already claimed annoyance over Kuga Yugo, Kazama would be the one ranting about all his frustrations this week and most of them simply came from the surname–Kuga.
"Both," Kikuchihara answered, seemingly unaware of Kazama's internal annoyance over the Kuga family name that was probably going to haunt him for a long time after this week.
"You think so?" Utagawa asked.
Kikuchihara nodded. Being the only one with the full conversation as he only gave cliff notes to Kazama and Utagawa, Kikuchihara could say whatever Yuma and Eleni were discussing sounded dangerous and reckless if it didn't work out how they thought it would. Since they were relying on Kuga Yugo to react in the way they needed, they were basically playing with fire as Yugo had been unpredictable all week. "You've been trying to keep him alive all week, Jin-san. Whatever he decided to do–"
"Yuma already asked that we don't interfere." Jin interrupted. "He is aware of the recklessness of what he is going to do and asked that we stand down. He clearly thinks this is what he has to do so I'm going to respect his wish."
"Even if it gets him killed?" Utagawa asked. "I'm not trying to be difficult, Jin-san, but Kikuchihara wouldn't argue if he didn't think there was a high degree of danger in this."
"Aww, are you concerned about Yuma?"
"Not at all." Kikuchihara replied bluntly. "But considering the effort everyone has put in this week to stop the Mimics, it would feel like a complete loss if he died now."
"I am." Utagawa said as he got quite close to Yuma while they were on the same team during the away mission exam. He never hated Yuma for being a Neighbor in the first place. The only time he ever took his Neighbor status into account was before they had met since he was part of the team assigned to steal his Black Trigger. It was never personal for him. In fact, of the squads that were ordered to go after Kuga that night, it was only personal for Miwa squad since they had the most members with a grudge against Neighbors. After that night, he had no reason to associate with Yuma since they were in different friend groups, but he did give Yuma a lot of credit for his strength and creativity in battle which was why he chose him for the exam. Since he had to spend that time in close quarters with Yuma and help him with his Japanese, Utagawa could say they became close allies, possibly even friends.
"How sweet." Jin replied. "But, please remember, Yuma is a part of my branch and I am one of the first friends he made when he came to Japan. I wouldn't just sit idly by if I didn't think there wasn't a good chance of this plan actually succeeding."
"And what is the plan?" Kazama asked.
"No idea." Jin replied.
Kazama pinched his nose between two fingers. If he wasn't in a Trion body, he would swear he would have a migraine by now. Honestly, he didn't even believe for a second that Jin didn't know what the plan was. He had to have something with side effect by now and simply didn't want to voice the plan to a team that was disagreeing with Yuma and Jin on this.
"Yuma didn't say when he told us to not interfere so I'm guessing we wouldn't be happy about it." Jin continued. "But, even not knowing the plan, the futures I'm seeing have a really good chance of being favorable to our side which is why I am agreeing to Yuma's request. Please, do the same."
"The man who is always scheming his way through problems is not manipulating the situation this time around?"
"When it comes to Yuma, I usually don't have to." Jin said, his grin practically being heard in his voice. "I just put him where I need him and he destroys the problem without me having to tell him anything. It's worked thus far. Also, this situation has led to a very difficult week with pieces constantly shifting the future so it made it very hard to manipulate things in our favor."
"Clearly. We've lost more than we won this week." Kazama said dryly.
"As long as we win the last battle, it's our win though." Kikuchihara said. Though, it was more of a win for Yuma and Jin since they were the ones to decide to take Mogami and Yugo on solo for the final match up. Or, what they hoped would be the final fight with Kuga Yugo.
"Knowing what I do about Yuma, I'm going to trust him with this." Jin added.
"Trust doesn't win fights." Kazama pointed out.
"No, but neither does thinking someone is going to fail before they even start."
*Mimics*
Yugo sat on the ground, leaning against the wall with his head tilted back and eyes closed. His son and wife had spent a long time talking while he hid in the tunnel, just trying to focus on his breathing. He wanted to ignore the call to follow his wife to take the Black Trigger back from her, so he was forcing himself to sit here and just breathe. It gave him something to focus on. He just needed to distract his mind.
Though, for as much as he wanted to distract himself, he couldn't quite push Yuma and Eleni from his thoughts. For that reason, he was still half paying attention to their Trion signatures in the distance. He couldn't see or hear them, but he could pay attention to their location like this.
It was for this reason that when a new Trion signature tore through the air and destroyed the Trion signature he had marked as his wife, Yugo's eyes had snapped open. His hand slammed on the wall behind him as he began to push himself to his feet, but stopped halfway. His fingers dug into the harsh brick as Eleni's Trion signature completely faded away.
"She's not real." Yugo muttered. Eleni had died a long time ago. Yugo was quite aware of this fact because he had to live with her death and his failure to prevent it for six years before his own death. He couldn't let himself forget that he simply brought her back here as an Inchoate–something he swore he would never do as he didn't agree with the purpose of them.
Bringing Eleni here as an Inchoate had been a moment of weakness from Yugo when he was forced to acknowledge just how much he was hurting his son. He needed Eleni here. She would help him through what he was doing.
"Is Yuma dead?"
"Not yet."
"Then, you haven't failed yet." Eleni leaned forward and planted a kiss on her husband's lips. "And you never failed me. I may not remember how I died, but I could never blame you. I know you would have fought your hardest to save me, and I'll know you'll put in that same effort for Yuma."
"I didn't save you though."
"But you will save him." Eleni promised. "Because my Aionia were never meant to be weapons. You are more than just a Trion Soldier. The purpose of Aionia were to make them into fully living beings that had once passed on. A way to revive someone. If Meraki stole my design, then how much of it did they copy? You can feel it, can't you? Your own will. You are more than what Meraki demands of you."
Yugo turned his hand over to stare down at his palm. The hand that held a sword for years to protect his friends and family, to keep himself alive, to fight for what he believed in.
The hand that was now being used to hurt the ones he cared about.
By Eleni's guess, Yugo could be the one in control. He was a Mimic, but considering his goal of survival using the Black Trigger, Eleni determined that the Mimics were a complete form of Inchoate–the Aionia but with added programming that made them a weapon against Meraki's enemy.
Despite that programming, Yugo had a will of his own. Half of him was a Trion Soldier and half of him was the man known as Kuga Yugo.
According to Eleni, he was the one in control here.
Obviously.
That was why he could give memories of Eleni to an Inchoate.
Yugo just needed to find the strength for his will to overcome the programming enough that Yuma didn't have to die for him. He felt like he was so close to getting to that point. There was no anger at Yuma coursing through him, though to be fair, he hadn't felt anger or hatred to Yuma at all this week. It was simply despair as he was forced to target Yuma to get the Black Trigger.
His will was what he needed. It told him what he wanted. He used it to give him a chance to meet Eleni again and he would do the same to stop himself.
That was easier to say than do though.
Summoning Eleni to his side didn't go against his programming. It in nowhere affected the mission. If he tried to do something that stopped him from stealing the Black Trigger that was when his blood began to burn him from the inside out. Anything else beyond that was free gain to him.
He called Eleni in a moment of weakness from hurting Yuma and the desperation to see his wife. Where were the simple days when it was him, Eleni, and Yuma in Tropoi?
A moment of desperation which turned to sorrow as Eleni's Trion signature was wiped out. He called his wife here just to let her get killed a second time. It was obvious that she wasn't going to be able to stick around since she was an Inchoate, but he didn't let himself think on that until this moment when the sniper killed her.
This was why he never wanted to use Inchoate to see his wife one more time because it was hard enough to have his wife killed the first time. He didn't want to see her briefly as an Inchoate just to have to lose her a second time, and yet, this was what he did.
The sound of rubble shifting had Yugo opening a single eye to see Yuma coming to a stop a few feet away from him, staring blankly at his father. No anger, no hate, no sorrow. Just a blank expression.
It would seem that Yugo wasn't the only one hurting from having Eleni die a second time, but there was no time for Yuma to dwell on any of the feelings he had so he chose to instead close himself off from it.
Yugo had to do the same.
But, he was just so tired.
Of everything.
Yuma tilted his head in consideration as he stared at Yugo slouched against the wall. "When did we reverse roles?" He took a step closer, letting his Trion body dissolve away and raised his hand slightly to show off his ring. "Only difference is, I'm not going to create a Black Trigger to save you."
Yugo shifted in confusion until he realized his and Yuma's position. So similar to that day five years ago only with Yugo in Yuma's spot and Yuma in Yugo's spot. He snorted and pushed himself up a bit, but stayed sitting on the ground still. "Good. You're too young to be making a choice like that."
"Old enough to use a sword, old enough to make the sacrifice." Yuma retorted. "But, it would be something neither of us want, and for once, I'm going to abide by what you want me to do."
Yugo opened his second eye to fully take in his son. "Oh?" An amused smirk tugged at his lip. "First time for everything." He knocked his head back against the wall. Yuma always had his own idea of what he wanted to do and how to do it when he was a kid. He was not someone that took orders easily. It was like he thought he knew better so he would just go out and do it. It truly showed how much of a child he was. Kids hated being told not to do something. When they got told not to do something, they would go against the order just to make a point. Stubborn foolishness.
Perhaps, this maturity Yuma was showing was because he truly hit rock-bottom after Yugo's death. His stubborn foolishness destroyed his life and he finally began to understand the lesson that Yugo wanted him to learn. It shouldn't have cost him everything though. Children make mistakes and they learned from them. The lesson shouldn't involve such heavy consequences though. It wasn't fair to kids, but then again, life wasn't fair.
Life was–is–a much crueler place than kids could comprehend when they are just that–kids.
"So, if I order you to give me the Black Trigger, you will?" Yugo asked.
"No." Yuma said bluntly.
"Thought you were following my orders now?" Yugo replied.
"Correct, yours." Yuma stressed. "And what my father and mother want is for me to survive. To do that, I will break through the Mimic's order and follow the underlying order that is from Oyaji." A slight glow protruded from his ring as he activated it and the black armor wrapped around him. "To survive." His eyes narrowed in on his father, meeting those tired eyes with his cold ones. "No matter the cost."
