Hades Project Zeorymer Fan Fiction ❯ Meiou Shojo ZEORYMER (Hades Maiden ZEORYMER) ❯ Episode 4: First Steps, Part I - You Can [Not] Go Home Again ( Chapter 4 )

Episode 4: First Steps, Part I – You Can [Not] Go Home Again

Time stopped, and all sound in the area faded as a heavy, smothering, silence settled in. Slowly and gradually, a new mysterious noise could be heard. It started as a low rumble, seemingly emanating from the very air itself. Its deep resonance caused shivers and gooseflesh to spread among the gathered populace.

The baritone pulse steadily grew louder and more booming in its timbre. Soon, both the ground and air began to quake at a progressively more intense pace. After reaching a thunderous level of volume, the sound paused, and then a new intonation issued forth. The twin roars combined to form a single, uttered word:

[MEI~OU]

As the bellowing vocalization faded, it was replaced by the howl of rushing wind and a vision of blinding light. Traveling as a translucent, spherical wall of kinetic force, the glowing wave of energy rapidly spread out and upward. The wave grew stronger and faster the further it moved. Fissures began sprouting in the road and pavement, and windows and light fixtures unexpectedly shattered with the tinkling of glass and bursts of ozone.

Hovering above the town, the attacking helicopter and three aerial drones gallantly tried to maintain their positions against the swell of blazing energy. However, they too eventually gave way as they were pushed past their tolerances by the blast of destructive force. Crumpling against themselves with a screech of shearing metal, the machines then exploded in successive airborne fireballs as their onboard fuel ignited. A cloud of smoke filled the sky over the small rural village, and bits of smoldering ash and metal rained down from above.

Masato stood atop an intact, circular patch of pavement in the devastated town road. Burning light slowly faded away from his eyes and armored gauntlets. The orb in his chest-piece likewise settled into a gentler glow. As his arms gradually lowered to his sides, Masato blinked multiple times. His face wrinkled up in a combination of confusion and horror as he slowly took in the scale of the ruin around him.

Well done, Hades Maiden, well done…

It was gone, it was all gone! Nothing remained of the quaint little village save for charred, smoldering piles of rubble, melted steel, and shattered concrete splintering outward from where Masato stood. On more intact pieces of debris, shadowy, human-like outlines marked the last standing positions of the town's former residents.[1[2] Small piles of ash, sitting on the ground beneath each afterimage, slowly scattered in the lingering breeze.

"No…"

Eyes wide, Masato slowly turned in a slow circle, tears forming and lips trembling as he grasped the extent of the carnage around him. As he completed half a rotation, his gaze drifted down to three, ashy, body-like shapes huddled on the pavement beneath him. Bending down, he gently placed one hand on the largest form—likely Sachiko's father—and then gasped as it and the two smaller figures beneath it crumbled away in a puff of soot and dust.

"No!"

Falling to his knees, Masato reached down into the pile of remains, searching, grasping, for anything—absolutely anything! His fingers eventually curled around a strip of scorched leather. Pulling the find out from the dusty mound, he wiped away flakes of grime until he could read an inscription on the leather band, written with marker in a messy, childish script: "PUGI".

"NOOOOOO!"

Gasping for air, Masato bolted upright from his bed. His face was flushed and dripping with sweat as he struggled to catch his breath. Resting his hands on his knees, Masato waited until his heart rate and breathing both slowed, his shoulders slumping as the tension eased away. Once he felt slightly more settled, Masato looked and wearily took in the now, familiar surroundings of his Last Guardian hospital room.

A cursory glance down revealed that, yes, Masato's body was still very much female. Letting out a sigh, the transformed boy closed his eyes, leaning forward and resting his head on his legs as he curled them up to his chest. Turning his head sideways, his eyes fell on a digital clock mounted on the opposite wall. Reading the lightly illuminated numbers informed Masato that it was early morning, though still well before dawn.

Sighing again, Masato rested his chin between his knees, staring blankly over his legs as his brain slowly woke from its former state of slumber. From what he could recall, he had spent most of the previous day alternating between a restless sleep and a mechanical review of the various tape recordings made by … by his adoptive father, Shigeharu Akitsu, which Oki had left with him. Sadly, those recordings had corroborated pretty much all the information which had been shared with him earlier that day…

Masato's reverie was interrupted by a gurgling burble from his midsection. Cheeks flushing brightly, Masato's gaze flickered around the dimly lit surroundings until it finally alighted on a covered tray placed near his bed. He vaguely remembered the food being delivered by an orderly sometime the previous afternoon; however, given how upset he had been mentally and physically at the time, he had only picked at the meal in small bits without finishing it.

Lifting his bed linens away, Masato shifted his body and began reaching out for the tray. He then froze as a low murmur and the rustling of sheets emerged from the bed behind him. Moving in a jerky stutter, he slowly turned back around and looked down … to discover Miku sleeping soundly on the far side of the mattress.

Masato's slow awakening ground to a halt as all his mental processes immediately crashed. As his brain began attempting to reboot, all he could do was goggle at the feminine form lying on the bed with him. Unconsciously, Masato's eyes started to trace their way up and down Miku's sheet-covered form, noting all the little details of her slumbering body. The way her caramel hair splayed out in gentle waves on the pillow and sheets. The light twitches of her fingers and nose as she slowly inhaled and exhaled. The soft curves of her collarbone, neck, and shoulders. The traces of pink lace peeking out from the unbuttoned top of her blouse…

Blushing furiously, Masato quickly spun away from the sleeping girl as a wave of heat and other unfamiliar sensations coursed through his altered body. Eyes swirling, and anxiously gnawing on one of his thumbnails, Masato desperately reviewed his memory to recall how Miku and he came to be together in the same bed.

'When did she…?! Why don't I…?! Did we...?! Was it any good?'

The teen's hyperphantasia was cut short as he heard a soft yawn and felt the mattress shift beneath his folded legs. Glancing back, Masato blushed anew as he watched Miku sit up and stretch her arms above her head—the latter motion causing interesting things to happen to the girl's barely covered bosom. Whirling back around, the flustered former boy missed as Miku lazily rubbed at her eyes, blinking until her gaze settled on Masato's back.

"Ah! Good morning, Masato-kun…" Miku said cheerfully. Her tired features softened into a gentle smile as she asked: "Did you sleep well?"

"Y-yeah…" Masato murmured, kneeling with hands tucked between his legs as he faced away from the girl. His eyes anxiously flickered back-and-forth towards Miku, and he eventually inquired: "Um, Miku-chan … why … why are you in my bed?"

"Hmm…?" Miku mumbled idly, stretching as she let loose another yawn. After a beat, she seemed to become more aware of herself, and touches of red bloomed on her cheeks as she twisted away from Masato and quickly buttoned up her blouse. "Well, I … I wanted to check-in on you after … after everything that happened yesterday!" she rushed in a rapid exhale "It was … quite late by the time I finished assisting my father, so when I finally made it back to your room … you were already fast asleep!"

"O-okay…"

"And, well, you seemed to be having some kind of nightmare…" Miku continued in a mild fluster, tapping her pointer fingers together with seeming self-consciousness as she spoke. "You were tossing, turning, and letting out the most awful sounding groans! I tried to wake you, but you were sleeping too deeply, and nothing worked."

The girl's face blushed further, and her lips twitched up in a bashful smile. "Then … then I remembered that hugging seemed to calm you before. So … that's when I decided to climb into bed with you," she stated. "It took a few minutes of … of cuddling … but eventually you seemed to settle. I … I must have also fallen asleep after that."

"I see…" Masato replied evenly, though in his mind he was quietly seething: 'Why, oh, why did I have to be unconscious when I finally slept with a girl in the same bed for the first time in my life?! I really must be cursed!'

"I'm sorry."

Those two softly spoken words brought Masato's inner grumbling to a halt. Looking back, he saw that Miku's face was downcast, her gaze focused on her hands as they absently pulled and tugged at the bedsheets atop her legs. Still kneeling, Masato shifted his body around so that he was now fully facing Miku. The motion caused the girl to look up with a wan smile.

"I'm so sorry, Masato … for everything that you had to go through yesterday," Miku stated, her eyes lightly glistening. "For everything that my … that my father put you through with his blunt callousness. He … he should never have shared with you what he did, particularly in the way that he said it."

"Oh…" Masato uttered lamely. His gaze drifted down, his mouth tightening into a thin line. The teen's face darkened as memories of Professor Himuro's angry visage bubbled up to the top of his consciousness.

Noting Masato's disquieted demeanor, Miku reached out and grasped both of his hands with her own. The action caused Masato to become startled briefly before he looked up and met Miku's gaze.

"My father's conduct yesterday was … was inexcusable; particularly since it forced me to leave you alone with Deputy Commander Oki and … and that woman, after everything else you've had to endure!" Miku continued seriously. Her brows were furrowed and quivered with emotion as she added: "I should have told my father off right then and there, but … but I couldn't because…"

"Because he's your father, I get it," Masato said simply. He looked down at his hands, still clasped in Miku's own. "Even so, I noticed that … you and he … don't seem to get along all that well."

"You're … not wrong," Miku confirmed hesitantly, her eyes likewise drifting down to her hands. "Please understand, I'm truly grateful for all that my father has done for me. He took me in, gave me a home, and provided for me when no one else would…" she said. Her brow then furrowed again, and Miku looked back at Masato as she added: "But still, despite everything I owe him, we don't always see eye-to-eye on … on everything."

Masato grunted in reply. His eyes narrowed as he tried sorting through his thoughts.

"Miku-chan …?" Masato eventually ventured. "Did … did you know about the things your father spoke about? The truth about … about my parents?"

Masato was given all the answers he needed as he watched the color leave Miku's face. Releasing his hands, she drew away and once again began fidgeting with the bed sheets atop her legs.

"I wasn't privy to some of the more sordid details, but yes, I knew," Miku eventually answered. "The basic synopsis of what my father told you is contained in your dossier here at Last Guardian, though a more complete report is only accessible with a higher level of security clearance."

"I … I see," Masato said hesitantly. He likewise drew away from Miku, bunching his hands into fists beside his kneeling legs. "Were you ever planning on telling me any of it?"

Miku winced at Masato's biting tone. She then looked back up at Masato with a confused head tilt and frown of her own. "Why would I? Knowing the truth about your parents doesn't change anything…" she said with an air of defensiveness. Her features softening, Miku began reaching out at Masato's face. "What's more, having that knowledge only seems to hurt you…"

"It doesn't change anything?!" Masato exclaimed, jerking away from Miku's hand. "What do you mean, knowing the truth about my parents doesn't change anything?!

"Because Masato is Masato," Miku replied simply. Undaunted by the wariness in Masato's eyes, she again stretched out and successfully touched his cheek. "The circumstances of your birth don't change who you are—it's the choices that you make which truly matter."

Despite himself, Masato found himself snorting wryly. "Val … Valkyria-san said something similar before she left my room yesterday…" he noted, shaking his head side-to-side with incredulity.

"Oh! D-did … did s-she now…" Miku replied haltingly. One of her eyes twitched multiple times as she smiled shakily with tightly clenched teeth. "H-how very, very nice. I w-will have to th-thank Inspector Forsberg personally the n-next time that I s-see her."

An awkward silence fell between the pair, with both looking down and away from one another. Their faces flickered as they both worked to sort through their respective thoughts and feelings. Intermittently, one or both would throw a quick glance at the other, only for their faces to flare red before turning away again those few times when their gazes managed to meet.

Eventually, Miku let out a small sigh and threw a cautious glance over at Masato. She saw he had lowered eyebrows, seeming troubled as his unfocused eyes darted about in their sockets.

"Is there … something else bothering you, Masato-kun?" Miku asked hesitantly, breaking their quiet impasse.

Masato didn't answer right away, and instead seemed to withdraw further inside himself. His mouth opened and closed as he apparently tried to speak before losing his nerve. Taking note of his reticence, and putting her own shame aside, Miku shuffled across the bed until she was beside Masato. She then threw one arm over his shoulders in a light embrace.

"Miku…" Masato uttered hoarsely. His fists tightened atop his legs and lightly shook as he finally asked: "A-are you sure—completely and totally sure—that e-everybody in that village survived? That no one was killed by everything we did there?"

"You heard Deputy Commander Oki's report yesterday, right?" Miku said confidently. She pulled Masato closer to her, resting his head in the crook of her neck. "Every one of those villagers is alive and well. You saved all of them, Masato … absolutely all of them."

Masato sniffed, tears of relief dotting his eyes as he leaned into Miku. "None of them would have been in danger if I … if we weren't there to begin with…" he murmured. His frame shuddered with guilt, causing an empathic lump to rise in Miku's own throat.

"There … there's something else…" Masato said, his voice halting and raw. "When … when we set off that shockwave, and … and nearly leveled the entire town … I swear … I swear that I could hear … someone's voice say: 'MEI~OU.'

"'Mei-ou'—the 'Dark King' or 'King of the Underworld' …" Miku recited absently as she lightly stroked Masato's scalp. "Known as 'Pluto' or 'Hades' in Western mythology … the equivalent of King Enma here in Japan."

"R-right…" Masato replied. His body began shaking in Miku's grasp as fresh tears of shame welled up in his eyes. "What … what kind of a hero … invokes the 'King of the Underworld' … when trying to save people?"

Miku didn't answer Masato's question with words. Instead, she simply held him tighter as he likewise clung to her.

Given the early hour, Masato and Miku mutually decided to get some more sleep before rising for the day. At first, Masato attempted to suggest calling for another futon or rollaway bed, but Miku had adamantly opposed. After a brief back-and-forth between them, Masato eventually conceded, much to Miku's satisfaction. The pair then both lay down on Masato's hospital mattress, first facing one another, and then very quickly and embarrassedly turning away with equally flushed faces. In the end, neither one of them ended up getting much by way of shuteye.

After a few more hours passed, Miku woke and proceeded to rouse a sleepy Masato. Once she finished gathering her things and ensuring that Masato could attend to himself, Miku departed to return to her own quarters. Left alone, but having been informed that he would be expected for various medical exams later, Masato eventually sat up, pulled over the covered tray by his bed, and finished off what remained of his meal from the previous day. Once full, he slowly lowered himself to the ground, and then wobbly entered the room's attached washroom to freshen up. [1]

Taking a shower ended up presenting a new level of trauma to the transformed boy, as it was the first time that he was really forced to interact with his naked female form. Curious as he might otherwise have been about his new body, the various and unfamiliar pinpricks of sensation from even the slightest touch led Masato to race through his bathing and other hygienic tasks. He then found himself having to sacrifice yet another level of his dwindling male pride, as the only clean undergarments left in his room were the hand-me-down's he had received from Miku the day before. Masato briefly considered wearing just his hospital gown, but then reluctantly donned a set of plain cotton panties, as the thought of getting caught "going commando" was far too embarrassing to also attempted to wear one of the provided bras, but then gave up after spending several minutes trying to squeeze into it.

Eventually, there was a knocking at his door followed shortly by the entry of a nurse and a security guard. Before Masato could say a word, the guard stepped forward and placed a pneumatic gun against the side of his neck. After a quick hiss and sharp pinprick, the guard made way for the nurse, who gently applied a bandage and gauze to the lightly bleeding wound. Masato was then escorted by the two to a sterile, white examination room where a handful of scrub-wearing clinicians awaited him. He was then subjected to a gauntlet of different tests and medical examinations that seemed without end. For hours, Masato lay helpless as doctors and their various attendants poked and prodded every square inch of his changed body. The cadre of medical staff scanned him with instruments of increasing size and complexity, drew fluids from orifices he didn't even know he had, and asked multiple, deeply personal questions which he struggled to adequately answer.

It was well past noon before the battery of tests finally finished and Masato was permitted to leave. The same pair who had brought the teen earlier motioned to wheel Masato back to his room, but he begged them off saying he could find his own way. In truth, he just wanted some privacy after being so thoroughly exposed and scrutinized; acts doubly humiliating because he wasn't even in his original body. In all, he felt like he had been made into some kind of sideshow attraction being presented for people to gawk at. After consulting with a superior over a walkie talkie, the guard reluctantly agreed to let Masato loose on the conditions that he would either go straight to his room, or to some other communal area from where he could be readily retrieved.

Despite his assurances, after several minutes of wandering, Masato found himself well and thoroughly lost. Each new turn he made only seemed to lead him deeper into a maze of identical doors and hallways. Any signage he encountered was virtually indecipherable, as they all consisted of seemingly random combinations of letters, numbers, and symbols which were as good as gibberish to him. Occasionally a uniformed staff member or two would approach, but rather than speak up and ask for directions, Masato instead self-consciously shied away before rushing weakly down the hallway.

Sooner or later, Masato found himself emerging into some kind of open lounge or viewing area. Steps led down from the hall into a carpeted great room with sweeping, panoramic windows running almost from floor to ceiling. A padded bench bordered the bottom of the window, while opposite a long sectional sofa ran the length of the room against the lower wall of the adjacent hall. Walking up to the window, Masato saw that it looked out over a broad vista, with a valleyed woodland and small lake bordered by a low mountain range in the far distance.

'That looks like the Aokigahara Forest! And if that's the case … is that Lake Motosu on the other side? It sure looks like where Dad took me fishing before…' Masato mused with a small, nostalgic grin. His eyebrows furrowed as he gave the inkling more serious thought. 'If I'm right … then based on what geography I can remember, I'd have to be somewhere to the southeast. But … the view here isn't high or far enough away for me to be at Mount Fuji…'

Masato let out a frustrated grunt. Leaning forward, he rested his head on the cool glass of the window. "So then, where the heck is this place?" he muttered, absently rubbing at his chest (which was slowly starting to chafe).

"Mount Omuro."

The former boy jumped, emitting a (much to Masato's distress) high-pitched, feminine squeal. With his heart thudding like a drum and threatening to burst from his chest, Masato turned around from the window to find the source of the voice which had spoken. Ultimately, his eyes fell on a figure sitting atop a pile of cardboard boxes on the far side of the lounge.

'Did … did he say, "Mount Omuro?"' Masato wondered with befuddlement. 'As in … the inactive volcano?!' [2]

Gulping, Masato slowly began approaching the room's other occupant, who in turn was seemingly preoccupied with writing with a furious scrawl in a paper notepad. Drawing closer revealed the other person was a slightly older man dressed in green camouflage-patterned military fatigues, with a matching pair of leather combat boots, a nylon utility belt strapped around his waist, and a lit cigarette held lazily between his lips. The man's wavy brown hair was held back by a thick, dark green headband which had the kanji character for "ogre" printed on it. Curiously, a black eyepatch was sitting atop the headband, folded up above his left eye. On the uniform sleeve facing Masato, the man bore camouflaged patches of the national flags for Japan, the United States, and Canada. [3]

As Masato neared, the mildly unshaven man's brown eyes flickered briefly in the teen's direction before turning back to glance between the notepad in his hands and the view of the forest beyond the windows. Suddenly letting out a loud groan, the man tore the page on which he had been writing out of the pad. Crumpling the paper into a ball, the uniformed man tossed it over his shoulder. Masato jumped as the wad of paper bounced at his feet.

"A volcano probably wouldn't make for a filmable set-piece anyway … maybe a nuclear power plant or the Statue of Liberty instead…" the man grumbled to himself in English. Lowering his pencil and staring once more out the window, he began writing anew, seemingly paying no mind to the room's other occupant.

Reaching down, Masato picked up the crumpled piece of paper and opened it up. Squinting, he attempted to read the scribbled English words on the page, but between the hasty penmanship and Masato's limited comprehension, there was little of what was written down that he could clearly decipher. At best, he could make out that the text was structured similarly to a playscript he once had to read for one of his Japanese Literature classes.

'"Do you know what happens to a toad when it's struck by lightning?"' he read silently, one eyebrow raised incredulously. 'That can't be right … I really need to pay more attention in my language classes.'

Glancing up from the text, Masato gulped once more, and then slowly approached the uniformed figure.

"Umm …" Masato began shily, finally drawing the man's full attention to him. "You … you say … this Mount Omuro?" he asked in awkward English.

"That's right…" the other individual confirmed in Japanese. Placing his notepad and pencil down, the man turned his body to face Masato more directly. The movement revealed a tag with the name "BARKER" written in English lettering over his right breast pocket. "More exactly, this is the interior of Mount Omuro," he added, looking at Masato up and down intently. "Weren't you briefed when you arrived?"

'The interior of Mount Omuro?! That can't be true … that's insane!' Masato thought with astonishment, but then noticing the man's puzzled stare, he laughed and awkwardly scratched one cheek. "I … wasn't exactly … conscious when I was brought here," Masato said. "This is the first time I've had any chance to … take in my surroundings."

"Uh, huh…" the man uttered skeptically, before giving a quick shrug of his shoulders. Turning back to face the window, he once again began scribbling in his notepad. "Based on how you're dressed, I'm guessing you came over from the Medical Wing…" His eyes swiveled back to stare at Masato. "Pretty young girls shouldn't be wandering around this place unaccompanied. You lost or something, kid?"

Masato turned and briefly looked left and right with confusion. He then realized that he was the "pretty young girl" who the other man was referring to. Letting out a quick sigh, the transformed boy slowly nodded his head.

"Unfortunately…" Masato said sheepishly. He placed one hand atop his stomach, which cooperatively led out a soft gurgle. "I actually missed lunch, so I was trying to find a cafeteria or someplace where I could get some food…"

Now it was the older man's turn to sigh … which he did, loudly.

"I guess I'll give you the full tour then…" he said while standing up. "Can't have you stumbling into any sensitive areas by accident or something." Reaching into one of the cargo pockets on his fatigues, the man pulled out a square bar wrapped in yellow. "This should tide you over for now," he said, handing the bar to Masato. [4]

"O-oh! Th-thank you…" Masato stammered out. Taking the bar from the soldier, he unwrapped one corner and took a tentative bite. Eyes widening, he more enthusiastically took another bite. And then another.

As he watched Masato munch away at the ration, the man's gaze briefly lingered on the bandage on the side of Masato's neck before returning to the teen's eyeline. Holding out one hand, the man pronounced: "The name's 'Barker' by the way … Captain Sean Barker, US Army … but you can just call me 'Sean.'" [5]

"O-okay, Sean-san," Masato replied. He paused his eating and nervously reached up to shake the soldier's hand. "I-I'm … M-Masato. Masato Akitsu."

Sean's eyes narrowed slightly, but after a beat he just shrugged. Dropping his cigarette on the floor, he stamped out the butt, gathered his belongings, and then began walking over to the steps leading out of the lounge. Masato awkwardly rushed to catch up with the taller man's stride, and side-by-side the pair entered the corridor leading back into the interior of the facility.

"So, we're actually inside of Mount Omuro?" Masato eventually asked, still munching away on the ration bar. After he received a confirming head nod from the taller man, Masato further queried: "What kind of place is this?"

"Believe it or not, this all here was originally supposed to be a luxury hotel," Sean answered, smirking at the look of sheer bafflement he received from Masato. "From what I've been told, back during the 1980's economic boom a group of eccentric developers decided to create a secluded resort for the rich and privileged wanting to 'get away from it all,' After scouting some locations, this group settled on building their hotel here inside of Mount Omuro…" Sean paused, glancing down at Masato with a small smirk. "Apparently one of the main shareholders was a huge fan of the film adventures of a certain British secret agent."

Masato merely blinked in confusion, and after a moment Sean sighed with weary resignation.

"God, I'm getting old…" Sean muttered to himself. After letting loose another sigh, he continued: "From the start, the hotel was designed to be completely autonomous and off-grid to ensure maximum privacy for its guests. As a result, this entire facility runs on geothermal power provided by underground magma flows branching out from Mount Fuji. Given that the hotel was meant to cater to clientele with a more … adventurous persuasion, it was also built fully equipped with a working hospital unit, a range of different guest suites, multiple conference rooms, state-of-the-art recreational facilities, and fully stocked kitchens and dining areas. There's even an underground train station for private transit to and from Tokyo. Truly, no expense was spared."

Masato shook his head in disbelief at the sheer insanity being conveyed by Sean's recounting.

"Unfortunately, when the bubble economy finally burst, all of the hotel's investors pulled out, leaving the original developers penniless and the hotel unfinished," Sean elaborated. "At that point, the Japanese government reportedly swooped in and took over ownership of the place. Sometime later, the complex was converted into a sort of private retreat for government officials and visiting dignitaries, as well as a limited base of operations for JSDF brass observing field exercises being held in the Aokigahara Forest Preserve."

"Wow, that's … that's incredible," Masato breathed. "You sure know a lot about this place."

Once again, Sean just shrugged his shoulders.

"I like to do research on anywhere I'm going to be stationed," Sean stated nonchalantly. The ghost of a smile then briefly flashed across the man's lips. "It helps that this place has provided a wealth of inspiration for my little side-gig…" he said, rapping his knuckles against the notepad now contained in his breast pocket. "Which works out since that doesn't pay the bills nearly as reliably as the Army does."

''Side-gig'?' Masato wondered. His eyes then widened with realization. "Oh! You mean that writing you were doing before?"

"Right in one – not bad, kid," Sean confirmed with a nod. Pausing, the soldier briefly turned his head–looking back-and-forth–then leaned down towards Masato. "I'm actually not supposed to be doing any outside work while on the clock for Uncle Sam, even if I'm submitting all of it under an alias," he said, sotto voce. "So, I'd appreciate it if we could keep this a secret between you and me."

Amused at the disclosure, Masato grinned and raised a fist in solidarity. "Your secret's safe with me, Sean-san," he said. The teen's responseelicited another small smile from the older man, who then proceeded to bump Masato's fist with his own.

The pair continued their mostly silent trek through the various identical corridors and walkways of the building. Occasionally, Sean would point out a notable landmark or offer caution towards an area Masato should avoid, and Masato occasionally piped in with questions or comments of his own. Sean also explained the meaning behind the various written signs and iconized symbology and demonstrated the use of the various communication terminals scattered at intervals through each hallway. After some time, the two seemed more relaxed with each other as they entered another large communal space where several groups of uniformed men and women were gathered.

One of the soldiers, upon seeing the two newcomers, smiled and excitedly yelled out: "Hey, 'Snake'!"

Sean stiffened, and his body shuttered faintly, which drew a puzzled stare from the teen beside him. Wrapping an arm around a confused Masato's shoulders, Sean quickly turned his younger companion around. He then began hurriedly pacing away from the grinning soldier and his small group of companions.

"'Snake'?"

"Don't look back, just keep walking…" Sean muttered.

"'SNAKE'?!"

"Eyes forward, don't make any eye contact…"

"'SNAAAAAKKKKEEE'!"

Groaning, Sean stopped his hurried retreat, turned around, and glared daggers at the other soldier and his cohort. Masato glanced around at the approaching men from behind Sean's back.

"What is your malfunction, Sergeant?" Sean asked curtly. "Or are you intentionally trying to make everyone in this room go deaf?"

"Aww, it's nothing personal, Captain…" said the man who had called out to Sean. As the soldier and his companions approached them, Masato took note of the man's name tag, which read "SHINKAWA" in both English lettering and kanji.

"You disappear all the damn time, so what am I supposed to do on one of those rare occasions I actually see you to get your attention?" the man identified as Shinkawa added with a smirk.

"Sarge here just wants to use you as a model again, Captain…" one of the other soldiers quipped. Throwing his arms around Shinkawa, the grinning soldier added: "You're the muse for all that freelance art of his after all!"

"Yeah!" another soldier from the group chimed in with a chuckle. "After all, he made bank when he sold drawings of your ugly mug to that arcade vendor last year!"

"Shut it!" Shinkawa growled out, his face visibly red. Slipping out the hold of his companion, he grabbed both other soldiers to speak in tight headlocks between his arms. "Don't you apes know anything about subtlety?!"

As the other soldiers in Shinkawa's group laughed and provided mocking encouragement, Sean just sighed and rolled his eyes with long-suffering exasperation.

Noticing Masato still hidden behind his superior, another soldier asked: "Who's the girl, Captain? A relative of yours?" As his eyes travelled up and down Masato's barely concealed figure, the man's expression turned mildly lecherous. "Or maybe a nighttime partner you've been ditching out on the rest of us for?"

Sean scowled. "She's a VIP that I'm providing escort to – that's all you need to know about it." he replied in a dark tone. Turning away from the group, he once again wrapped an arm around Masato's shoulders and began walking away. "Now, if you all would return to your own duties…"

"Wait a second, I recognize her!" One of the soldiers being held by Shinkawa exclaimed. Pointing an accusing finger, he added: "She's the brat we lost a whole squad for during that retrieval mission in Fuji City!"

Sean paused his stride. Still holding an arm around Masato, he turned and faced the now visibly agitated group.

"And if she is? What of it?" Sean asked carefully.

Letting go of his companions, Shinkawa stepped forward, his gaze shifting between a hard-faced Sean and a downcast Masato. "You don't understand, Captain…" he said in a low tone. Looking between his equally angered and nodding compatriots, Shinkawa continued: "You're new to this detachment, but the rest of us? We've been stationed here for years. And we all lost friends on the mission that brought that girlie here. We deserve some kind of explanation."

"Explanation?" Sean asked, one eyebrow raised incredulously.

"Exactly!" one of the other soldiers chimed in. "What's so special about her?! Why were our comrades sacrificed for the sake of some random kid?! We deserve to know!"

"'Sacrificed'?" Sean parroted back. "'Deserve'?"

"Yeah, we deserve an answer!" yet another soldier shouted, and other soldiers nodding and echoing the sentiment in equal measure. He then reached an open hand out to grab Masato. "So, hand her over!"

Sean batted the hand away, glaring down at the offending soldier with narrowed eyes as he growled: "Nno."

"Our comrades have the right to some kind of retribution, Captain," Shinkawa pronounced from the group's flank. He then looked at Masato, eyes narrowed and brows quivering. "Otherwise, what did they give up their lives for?"

"For the future, the same as the rest of us, Sergeant," Sean replied coldly. He cast his steely gaze across the growing group of agitated servicemen, then turned and began pulling a sullen Masato away. After taking a few steps, he paused and glanced back over his shoulder. "I suggest that you reflect on the meaning of honorable conduct …" he said, then turned around and began guiding Masato down the nearest corridor. "As you were."

One of the soldiers made to dash after the pair but was held back by a frowning Shinkawa, who stared with a flush of emotions crossing his face. "Whatever you say, 'Captain America'…" he spat out, before likewise turning and walking away. The sergeant was followed shortly after by the rest of his group.

Further ahead down the corridor, Sean and Masato walked together silently. Neither was sure how to address what had just happened in the chamber behind them.

"So, umm…" Masato finally ventured. "'Snake'?"

Sean groaned once again. He held a hand against the tilted-up eyepatch on his forehead. "A really, really, bad inside joke …" he muttered. "I'd rather not talk about it."

"Oh…" Masato replied awkwardly. Silence settled between the pair as they continued down the passageway.

"I'm sorry…" Masato eventually said, causing Sean to look down at the dejected teen. "Because of me, you got into a fight with your fellow soldiers."

Sean chuckled slightly. "Don't fret too much about it, kid—I'm on loan assignment from US Army Japan, so I'm not part of the official chain of command here anyway," he said. "I'm likely only given any sort of deference at all due to my rank."

"Oh…" Masato uttered lamely. He clenched his fists in-and-out a few times before adding: "You … you knew who I was from the beginning, didn't you?"

"I did as soon as you said your name," Sean confirmed with a head nod. "But as I said to that group of chuckleheads back there, it makes no difference to me. If I was sent on the retrieval mission that brought you here, I would have done so without hesitating…" Looking down at Masato, he added: "That's just what this job means."

"Wow…" Masato breathed out. Tilting his head down, he looked at the floor with a weak smile. "You, and the others … you're all real heroes," he uttered wistfully.

Sean chuckled again, though this time there was a hint of bitter melancholy to it. "I'm no hero … never was, never will be," he stated. "A hero's someone willing to give up everything they have, including what's most precious to them, for the sake of others." He paused, then added: "I'm just a man who happens to be very good at one thing…"

"And what's that?"

Sean didn't answer but stopped in his stride. He looked down at Masato, who stared back up at the man with a confused tilt of his head. Sighing once more, Sean took out a fresh cigarette, lit it, took a long drag, and exhaled before dropping the cigarette on the tiled floor and rubbing it out with his boot. He then resumed walking, with Masato taking a moment before he rushed to catch up before matching the taller man's gait.

"Anyway, helping you out wasn't really born from any altruistic streak—my wife has a younger cousin about your age, so I know I'd catch hell if she somehow got word that I didn't intervene back there…" Sean noted with surprising sheepishness. "Besides, for some reason that same cousin has had it out for me ever since my wedding day. So, in a way, I guess my helping you might also be me trying to make up for that."

Masato laughed lightly at the reluctant admission. Sean, in turn, smirked wirily, shaking his head loosely at his own abasement.

"Anyway, that lot likely won't be the only ones here bearing some kind of grudge," Sean declared, drawing Masato's attentive gaze back to him. "I'd suggest coming up with some kind of consolation you can offer. Might not work, but it'd be something."

Masato looked down at his twin bangles, encircling his wrists like a pair of manacles. "I'm not sure why I'm here, really," he said softly. "A lot of people have been telling me that I've got some destiny I was born to fulfill. But I … I don't know what I'm supposed to be doing at all."

Sean glanced down at the teen beside him briefly, then likewise turned his gaze ahead. "No one quite knows who or what they are," he stated with an equal measure of solemnity. "But I believe, a strong man … or woman … doesn't need to find their destiny. They make their own."

'Make my own destiny…' Masato thought, turning the idea over in his head. 'But … what kind of destiny can someone like me create? What can I do to fight back against things that were set in motion before I was even born?'

The pair continued their slow march up the corridor, both quiet and lost in their own ruminations. Eventually, they reached a section lined on one side with windows which overlooked a brightly lit interior chamber. Glancing down into the large room, Masato's dour countenance brightened as he took in the overhead view of a large natatorium below. Pausing his step, Masato turned and placed both hands against the window as he unabashedly gazed over the extent of the pool complex and its associated facilities. Walking up alongside, Sean also looked down through the windows at the pool and many swimmers within it below.

"Can you believe that they heat that whole thing with exhaust from the building's geothermal turbines?" Sean asked with a bemused shake of his head. "I think they use the same excess heat for some saunas and communal baths in other parts of the building. The wonders of unrestricted capitalism…"

Masato barely heard Sean's statement. The gears in his own head had started turning, and a new feeling of motivation filled him—something he honestly hadn't felt since before his father's death. Turning to Sean, Masato waited until he had the older man's attention before questioning:

"Sean-san, before we get to the cafeteria, do you happen to know where I can borrow a swimsuit?

Ryozo Himuro was not in a good mood.

Over the last 72 hours, precious time needed for research and other essential tasks was stolen from him by the unwelcome addition of a certain, gender-bent, teenage brat to his life. First were the disruptions created by the sudden death of his estranged protégé, the late Shigeharu Akitsu. Then there was the unanticipated assault by Hau Dragon, the massacre of the retrieval team sent to the Akitsu homestead, and the premature awakening of Project Zeorymer. Following that were the myriad of useless meetings, debriefings, phone calls, and follow-up conferences to address the resulting fallout of those same events. Normally, he would have just had Oki or some other underling take care of such trivialities; however, government officials, military leaders, and financial backers had all wanted his personal explanation regarding the chaos of the last several days.

And on top of all of that, now he was required to play babysitter to the offspring of That Man.

"What nincompoop allowed that boy to wander off?! Of all the blinding incompetence!" Professor Himuro groused. He was currently marching at a furious pace down one of the many, identical corridors of the Last Guardian base. The scientist was flanked on either side by Miku and Oki – both trailing just a few steps behind him.

"The guard who was assigned to Masato-kun and his supervisor have both been reprimanded," Oki stated from behind Professor Himuro's right. "In their defense, you asked that Security not be made aware of Masato-kun's identity outside of his Special VIP status. They believed that a subdermal tracking unit would be a sufficient safeguard to keep tabs on him."

"Rubbish!" Professor Himuro declared. "Whoever thought it best to give that boy free reign to roam about is a colossal fool!"

"I believe that it was you who approved that security decision, Father," Miku chimed in. She then lowered her voice into a rough approximation of the Professor's own: "'What that boy does or doesn't do isn't my concern. Put a bell around his neck for all I care…' were your exact words, as I recall."

The elderly scientist shot a glare behind him, and his adopted daughter lowered her head with due deference.

"Hmph! You've gotten awfully cheeky as of late, girl … I would say ever since you and that boy got back from your little misadventure,"" Professor Himuro grumbled. Facing front again, he added irritably: "But given whose bad seed that little herbivore sprang from, I suppose it's no great surprise that your combining with him would have resulted in some negative aftereffects."

Behind her elder, Miku puffed out her cheeks and clenched her fists tightly together. She opened her mouth as if to speak, but then paused as she felt a gentle pressure on her shoulder. Looking to her side, Miku met Oki's gaze as the sunglasses-wearing man slowly shook his head. Breaking eye contact, Miku continued to glare huffily at Professor Himuro's back, but quietly let out her held breath and relaxed (much to Oki's relief).

Nothing else was spoken as the trio continued their progressive march through the hallways of the Last Guardian base until they entered the facility's recreational wing. The three wove their way around a range of men and women exercising with the aid of sophisticated workout machines, engaging in strength training with free weights of various sizes, or competing against one another in dedicated fitness rooms. After traversing the loud, hot, and sweaty common area, Professor Himuro, Oki, and Miku approached and opened a pair of thick doors along one wall.

As the three entered the new space, they paused as their senses were assaulted by the sounds of splashing water and scent of vaporized chlorine. Looking around it was revealed that the base's indoor swimming facility was just as popular as the other parts of the recreational wing. Multiple patio chairs lined the perimeter of the main pool, which itself was partitioned into a shallower, open area and a series of dedicated lanes separated by floating barriers. Each lane was occupied by one or more individuals swimming laps from one side of the pool to the other.

Professor Himuro took a deep inhale, and the wrinkles in his face deepened as he frowned with visible disgust.

"Always hated this smell…" Professor Himuro muttered gruffly, his head tilting around as he glanced around the interior of the natatorium. The scientist's visor locked in on one feminine figure performing a front crawl, and he (along with Miku and Oki) began making their way over to the end of that swimmer's lane.

'One … two … three … and breathe. One … two … three … and breathe.' Masato thought to himself as he swam forward, rolling his body as he first stretched out one arm and then the other ahead of him. 'Doesn't seem like my arms are getting as much forward pull … hips are more buoyant and stay on top of the water with less effort … legs and feet feel floppier and more flexible than before…'

Approaching the end of the lane, Masato spotted Professor Himuro looming above on the deck a few steps back from the pool's edge. The thought of performing a splashy turn on the scientist briefly crossed his mind, but he quickly dismissed the idea and instead slowed to a stop. Treading beside the edge of the pool, Masato lifted a pair of plastic goggles from his eyes, placed them on his forehead, and folded his arms atop the tiled floor. He arched one eyebrow questioningly at the elderly researcher.

"So, are you here to pull me out of the pool?" Masato asked in a blunt tone. His face then took on a darker cast. "Or just kick me to the curb for walking out on you?"

"You're a hundred years too early to be giving me that kind of sass, boy!" Profesor Himuro barked, eliciting a brief eye roll from Masato. Leaning over to glower at the partially submerged teen, he queried: "And what, pray tell, do you think you are doing, just paddling about?!"

"Calibration," Masato answered simply. He was pleased when his answer seemed to take the scientist aback.

"C-c-calibration?!" Professor Himuro stammered. His lips sputtered as he angrily shook his head. "What in the blazes do you mean?!"

Rather than answering, Masato just pushed himself out of the pool. As water dripped down the government-issue, one-piece swimsuit he was wearing, he briefly took note of Miku (who was oddly blushing) and Oki standing behind Professor Himuro, He then turned and walked over to a nearby deck chair. Picking up a large, terry cloth towel, Masato slowly began drying himself off.

"Miku-chan told me… You heard from my fat—, from Professor Akitsu … that I like to swim for exercise?" Masato finally asked.

Professor Himuro scoffed at the teenager's informal tone: "I might have. What of it?"

Letting out a loud exhale, Masato wrapped the towel around his neck and shoulders. Holding onto both ends with his hands, he turned around to face the trio.

"Well, when you practice swimming day-in and day-out, as I have, you develop a kind of heightened sense for how your body moves, twists, and bends, particularly when it's in the water." he explained with a casual handwave. Masato's eyes then narrowed at the elderly scientist. "Since you made it abundantly clear you won't be offering me any help, I don't know when I'll be able to return to my original body," Masato uttered tersely. "I haven't particularly enjoyed stumbling over myself every five seconds since yesterday, so as much as I don't want to, I thought I might as well try to get more accustomed to the body I have right now."

Masato looked back at the pool, gesturing at it with one arm. "Given that I already know how my real body should feel in the water, I had the thought that doing a little swimming might help me to get the hang of moving around in this one," he concluded.

Professor Himuro's arms folded as he mulled over this new information. The scientist's lips briefly twitched as if to smile, but then he aggressively shook his head. Glowering at Masato, he retorted: "Hmph! Just because you thought of something mildly clever, don't think you can get away with doing whatever you like, boy!"

Sighing again, Masato reached up and pulled off the vinyl cap covering his auburn locks. Shaking his head (and landing a few drops of water on a fuming Professor Himuro in the process), Masato gathered up a pile of clothes from the deck chair, turned, and then silently walked past the still irate professor. As he neared (the up-to-this-point quiet) Miku and Oki, his face relaxed a degree from its previous state of tension.

"Sorry for all the trouble, you two…" he said apologetically, smiling crookedly at the pair.

'So cute…' Miku thought to herself as her cheeks blushed pink. Placing both hands beside her face, the girl squealed and tittered lightly. Her behavior drew confused stares and eyebrow raises from the two men and one former male.

Coughing once into his hand, Oki replied: "It's fine, Masato-kun. Though in the future, I would ask that you get proper authorization before making use of any resources meant for staff here."

Masato blinked.

"Oh, I did," he stated. Pointing with his thumb at one of the occupied deck chairs behind him, he added: "Valkyria-san gave me the OK when I met her at the commissary."

The woman in question was lounging on the indicated deck chair, sipping cheerily at a multicolored drink. She wore a swimsuit that consisted of little more than a collection of string cords and a few swatches of cloth covering the naughty bits. A half-eaten sweet roll, still in its wrapper, sat on a small table beside her chair.

At the mention of her name, Valkyria looked up from her drink. Spotting the quartet across the pool deck, the strawberry-blonde Swede smiled and gave a jaunty wave above her head:

"Yoo~hoo! Hallå!" [6]

In response, Masato awkwardly waved back, Oki covered his face with one hand, and the two Himuros mutually ground their teeth together in agitation.

'Damn it all, Vacuria…'/'That shameless harlot!'

"If there isn't anything else…" Masato began, drawing the attention of the other three back to him. "I'm feeling kind of tired, so if you don't mind, I'm going to get changed and then go back to my room."

"Do you need any help, Masato-kun?" Miku asked, finally finding her voice though her face remained mildly flushed. "I can wait and walk with you, if you'd like."

"That's okay, Miku-chan, I think I can find my own way," Masato said with an easy smile, causing Miku's face to redden once more. Oblivious to the effect he was having on the other girl, Masato turned to Oki, saying: "If I get lost, Captain Barker showed me how to use the intercom system to call for help."

"Ah, good," Oki said with an understanding nod of his head. Turning to his superior, he asked: "Will that suffice, Professor?"

In response, Professor Himuro's scowl grew harder, his brows furrowed tightly, and his wrinkles deepened as his face red with anger.

"Do what you will! But you'd best not dally any further…" he finally grumbled with obvious irritation. He then aggressively shuffled his way past Masato, headed in the direction of the exit. "You two, come!"

Oki let out a long-suffering sigh, but then moved to catch up to the surprising rapid stride of his superior. Miku quickly followed suit, but not before giving a quick wave and shy smile to a still thoroughly perplexed Masato. After the three had left, he turned and headed for the entries to the pool's locker room facilities. The transformed teen briefly hesitated, looking between one door and the other, before swallowing hard, placing his towel over his head, and pushing through the door labeled: "Female."

Averting his eyes, Masato rapidly strode past rows of lockers and a handful of other occupants until he found a private shower stall not in use. Entering and quickly drawing the curtain shut, the former boy released his held breath, one hand resting atop his chest until his heart rate eventually slowed down. While his body was unquestionably female, he had still worried he might do or say something that would reveal himself as an imposter.

Putting his clothes down on an inset bench in the stall, Masato reached up and began slowly peeling off his swimsuit. The process took longer than it probably needed – less because of his unfamiliarity with the one-piece, skintight garment, and more due to his continued discomfort with any level of physical touch. Once he had finally removed the swimsuit, he stepped underneath the already running shower to rinse off any lingering chlorine.

After Masato had finished his shower and was drying himself with a towel, he suddenly heard a pair of conversing feminine voices drawing closer. The approaching chatting was soon followed by the swish of curtains to the stalls on either side of Masato's own. Seemingly paying no mind to the likely occupied shower between them, the two women continued their conversation while Masato huddled down on the bench, trying to be as quiet as possible.

"So did you hear about Watase-san?" one of the female voices asked.

"Takiko-chan? Oh, yeah…" the other female voice replied. "Losing your fiancée like that—the poor dear."

"She wasn't the only one. At least two other women in my division were either related to or dating someone who died in that operation out in Fuji City the other day."

"What a tragedy … Makes me glad my hubby's a base systems tech, instead of someone needed out in the field."

"That's not even the worst part," the first voice commented. "At the debriefing yesterday? The girl that the TACOPS team saved showed up and didn't say a single thing."

"Not a word? That's awful!" the second voice chided with a clicking tongue. "Talk about ungrateful…"

"Tell me about it…"

The two women continued their gossiping over the top of Masato's stall for some time. All the while, the teen sunk deeper and deeper into himself, curling naked into a tight ball on his seat. Eventually, the curtains of the shower stalls flanking Masato's slid open, and he listened as the still-chatting voices grew more and more distant. Once they were out of earshot, Masato uncurled, stood, and morosely continued dressing. Once finished, he again placed his towel over his head, swished open the curtain to his stall, and began making his way to the exit back to the main corridors of the Last Guardian base.

As Masato passed an open locker, he briefly paused in his stride. Stepping back, he glanced inside and saw a set of the same light blue bodysuit and armor which Miku had worn on the night she had rescued him. The same night the two women had been talking about earlier. The night that he became Zeorymer, and everything changed…

Staring at the suit hanging unattended in the open locker, the wheels in Masato's mind began spinning as a plan gradually began taking shape…

Later that evening, well past dinner and lights out, the door to Masato's hospital room slowly slid open. Tentatively, he poked his head out of the aperture, looking back-and-forth down the dimly lit hallway. Masato then slowly stepped out of the room – now clad in the armored bodysuit he had pilfered from the pool locker room several hours earlier. After taking another quick glance around, he breathed a quick sigh of relief, turned, and began tiptoeing down the hall.

"Masato-kun?"

The teen in question's stride ground to a halt in response to the familiar call, having only made it a few steps away from his room. Turning, Masato found Miku staring at him with a perplexed expression on her face.

"Ahh-h-h, Miku-chan! This is, well, I was feeling kind of restless, and…" Masato tried to explain, but a head-tilt and raised eyebrow from Miku caused him to stop short. Bowing his head and grasping one arm with his other one, he instead muttered a weak: "I'm sorry…"

Miku slowly stepped closer to the contrite teenager. "I came to check-up on you, given the bad dreams and nightmares you've been having…" she explained as she slowly came within arm's length. Reaching up, she cupped Masato's cheek with her palm and tilted his eyes up to her. "Were you planning on running away?"

Masato bit down on his lip, closed his eyes, and began lightly convulsing; however, he didn't move away or break contact from Miku's touch.

"Yes! No. Maybe…" he finally said in a rush. Opening his eyes, he met Miku's concerned look with his own watery gaze. "It … It's like I said yesterday. Since waking up here, nothing … nothing has felt real. I feel like I'm trapped in a bad dream, no matter whether I'm sleeping or awake! So … so I thought I should go home."

"'Home'? You mean, back to Professor Akitsu's house … in Fuji City?" Miku clarified. Her question was answered with a shaky head nod.

"Yes!" Masato blurted out, his voice cracking and becoming rawer with each word. "I … I wanted to go back … and confirm that ev-everything I've gone through … these last few days … really happened to me." Taking a step back, the transformed boy hugged himself as he added: "The break-in, the fighting, our escape from the lab, all of it! I need to know that this … this is really my life now."

Miku's eyes softened as Masato seemed to deflate across from her, his head bowing with defeat and resignation.

"Once I've gone back there and seen what I need to … once I know this is all real … I'll come back, I promise," Masato said with another sigh. Releasing his arms, he looked down at the two thin bracelets still encircling his wrists. "It's not like I have anywhere else that I can go. Not with my body … looking like this."

"I see…" Miku replied solemnly. "Then I'm coming with you."

"What?!" Masato exclaimed. Realizing his loudness, he then clamped one hand over his mouth. He glanced around nervously before looking again at the serious-looking girl, saying in a lower tone: "Miku-chan, that's really not—"

"That's not your choice to make," Miku cut in. Before the boy could respond, she stepped forward—closing the distance between them—and wrapped Masato in a firm but gentle hug. "It's just like I told you before … I'll never leave you, and I'll never abandon you. Trust in me, Masato."

Pulling back, Miku held Masato lightly by his upper arms. "Besides … we're partners, remember? Where you go, I go too…" she said with a warm smile.

Masato didn't say anything in response. His mouth flapped open and closed a few times, but no words managed to escape. Instead, he eventually bowed his head, nodding his assent. Smiling, Miku gently pulled Masato back into her embrace, which he eventually returned in kind.

The pair eventually separated, with Miku briefly retreating to her own room, changing, and then returning to Masato dressed in her own set of combat armor. After donning a helmet and set of eyewear provided by Miku, Masato followed the taller girl as she led him through the now dimly lit hallways of the Last Guardian base. What followed was a dizzying trek through the labyrinthian corridors, down various stairwells, and past a scattering of personnel on night shift, until the two eventually entered a large open garage bay.

The hangar-esque enclosure was filled with various military vehicles and heavy-duty equipment. After strolling past rows of parked armored transports, tanks, and supply vehicles, they came upon several motorcycles of the same make as the one Miku had driven before. After hopping on one of the machines and starting the ignition, she gestured at Masato, who quickly clambered on and wrapped his arms around Miku from behind.

Once the other teen had settled, Miku drove the two of them to the exit at the front of the garage. A security officer briefly stopped the pair to ask for identification, but after a long, unblinking stare from Miku, he let them pass on through. Once they cleared the gate and barbed-wire fencing at the facility's perimeter, Miku gunned the motorcycle's engine. The two then dashed off into the night, with only the streak of taillights to mark their passage.

From an enclosed observation deck on the side of the mountain, Professor Himuro watched the pair's departure quietly with both arms folded behind his back. His visored gaze continued to track the glow of the bike's headlight fading off into the distance even as Oki walked up and stood beside him. The taller man pulled a pack of cigarettes from his jacket pocket, lit one stick with a chrome lighter, and took a slow drag as he likewise stared out into the night, still wearing his omnipresent sunglasses.

"We're tracking their progress on satellite, Professor. I've also placed two mobile units on standby in case there's any need for armed intervention," Oki reported, which drew a brief nod from the scientist. After taking another inhale of tobacco, he queried: "Are you sure this is wise? Given your … concerns about letting Masato-kun loose earlier, this seems to present a much greater risk."

"Hmph! That boy has to learn … there's no turning back now," Professor Himuro replied gravely, accepting a lit cigarette held out by his companion. Bringing the glowing stick to his cracked lips, he looked out into the nighttime vista, illuminated only by the moon and a smattering of houses nestled among the hills. "Regardless, he has both the power of 'Heaven' and the girl there along with him," he stated, his mouth twisting into a sardonic grin. "No harm will be allowed to befall that brat so long as my 'daughter' is by his side…"

Oki glanced down at Professor Himuro, who continued to look on in silent contemplation. Holding his cigarette loosely in his hand, the scientist blew a cloud of smoke into the twinkling night sky.

"After all," Professor Himuro murmured, "Protecting Her son is that girl's 'prime directive'…"

Oblivious to the discussion of their elders, Miku and Masato continued their nighttime trek. Moving swiftly, they wove through dark, winding mountain roads, leaving behind the Last Guardian base at Mount Omuro, and heading south towards the outskirts of Fuji City. Few words were exchanged between the pair, as Miku's attention was intensely focused on navigating the shrouded curves and switchbacks along their chosen route. Masato simply held on as he sat on the seat behind her, lost in his own thoughts as the dark surroundings flew by.

Some time passed, but then Miku abruptly pulled over and stopped at an overlook on the side of the road. Masato peered up, puzzled at the sudden stop, and found his companion looking back at him with an oddly empathetic expression. Miku then pointed out past the guardrail bordering the overlook. Following the girl's outstretched finger, Masato looked out into the starlit void beyond their current hillside perch. His eyes widened as they took in the sight of a cluster of lights sitting in a valley at the bottom of another nearby mountain range. While there were fewer lights than he remembered, the lights' grid-like arrangement, and the shadowy forms of cranes looming above them, made it clear he was looking at a small, rural town undergoing reconstruction.

Whipping his head around, Masato looked back at Miku, his wide, quivering eyes asking her a silent question. Smiling gently, Miku nodded in confirmation, which elicited a brief choking sound from the former boy. He glanced once more at the mountainside village, taking time to soak in and etch its existence into his memory. Eventually, Masato turned away, burying his face into Miku's mane as his grip tightened around her in a grateful squeeze. Smiling despite the moisture gathering along her own eyes, Miku likewise turned away, gunned the throttle, and pulled the motorcycle back onto the road to resume their journey.

In a little less than an hour, the pair had entered the city limits of Fuji City—retracing their path back to the neighborhood Masato had previously thought of as "home." Given the early hour, the softly illuminated streets were deserted and bereft of any human activity. Residences lining the roadway were likewise darkened as their occupants slumbered away peacefully inside.

Inching along at a near-silent idling, Miku and Masato stopped inside an alleyway several houses down from the former Akitsu homestead. Peering around the corner, the pair could see that the gate and front door of the house were barricaded with crisscrossing streams of yellow caution tape. A black-and-white patrol car with livery from the local prefectural police sat along the curb next to the front gate, quietly keeping watch over the entrance.

Miku's eyes narrowed as she evaluated the possibility of having to deal with someone keeping watch over the house. Her thoughts were then interrupted by a quick tap on her shoulder. As Miku looked back, Masato held out one hand, palm up, with his other hand behind and two fingers raised. He then made a looping arc with both arms, his hands still joined, and making a soft "whooshing" sound as he did so.

Miku blinked once with seeming confusion, but then grinned and nodded her head. Turning back to the controls of her motorcycle, she made a few adjustments to shift the vehicle into hover mode. With the light whine of rotors, the pair rose gently into the night sky. They glided smoothly over the street and patrol car below, and then lowered down into the yard behind the Akitsu house.

As Miku shut down the motorcycle, Masato gazed up at the building he had grown up in, darkened and somehow more alien in the low light of nighttime. Dismounting their ride, the two then walked up to the building's rear door. Masato reached for the handle but was stopped by Miku grabbing onto his arm. Taking the hint, Masato stepped back while Miku stepped up and took his place. He watched as the girl pointed a small remote control at the door lock, causing the latch to click and unlock. She then moved back to stand beside Masato.

"I've disabled any monitoring equipment left behind by Last Guardian.," Miku whispered into his ear. "Hopefully, it should be some time before someone on the night security detail notices."

Masato nodded his understanding, and then once more reached out to the door's handle. Opening the entry, he gazed into the black void of the house. Gulping, Masato hesitated at the threshold, his body wavering, until he felt a gloved hand encircle his own. Turning, Masato locked eyes with Miku, who smiled and gave his hand a soft squeeze. Masato smiled back gratefully, and together the two crossed over into the house—failing to notice a small electric diode embedded inside the doorframe that began blinking as they passed on through.

"I'm home…" Masato uttered out of habit. The words sounded foreign and incongruous with his new, more high-pitched and raspy voice. Removing his helmet and eyewear, Masato blinked rapidly as he struggled to adjust his vision to the dark surroundings.

The inside of the house was pitch-black, save for the soft glow of streetlamps shining through broken, boarded-up windows. The scattered beams of illumination cast a contrasting mix of light and shadow over the interior hall—eerily reminiscent of how it had looked when Hau Dragon made their attack so many nights before.

Reaching into a concealed pouch in her hip armor, Miku produced and switched on a penlight, gesturing at Masato to do the same. Once Masato had activated his own torch, the pair began inching deeper into the house towards the front foyer. Waving their respective light beams around brought out lingering signs of the carnage that had been wrought inside the building. The dancing light beams slowly traced across numerous bullet holes, cracking dents in the floor and walls, and dark stains and splatters of dried fluid spread across various surfaces.

Looking around the ruin and disrepair of his former home, Masato felt his heart sink as the reality of his present circumstances settled over him. When his circle of light moved over a human-shaped tape outline on the floor, he blanched, let out a soft moan, and covered his mouth as bile churned in his stomach. Miku moved quickly to Masato's side, holding him up to prevent the shorter teen from keeling over.

"Miku…" Masato uttered weakly, head bowed and auburn bangs obscuring his eyes. "When we get back to … to the Last Guardian base, I'd like a list of the next of kin for the soldiers who … who died here the night you … you came to save me."

"Masato …" Miku said sympathetically. "You don't need to feel guilty about any of that. Saving your life … that was those soldiers' jobs. They were trained to put their lives on the line for the sake of the mission."

"I know that!" Masato exclaimed, causing Miku to mildly jump from surprise. "I know that…" he continued more softly. He looked up at the taller girl, his rust-colored eyes shining with an unusual amount of strength. "But their sacrifice should still be … be remembered."

Looking at the cracked door frame leading into the dining area, he added: "Oki-san's brother … and the others who came with him—it's only right that I … do something so… so that their families understand their deaths … weren't for nothing."

Unable to think of anything to say, Miku simply nodded in reply. An awkward silence settled over the pair as they both parted — Miku turning to investigate the dining area, while Masato edged forward in the foyer and front entry. Hearing the tinkering crackle of glass beneath his boots, Masato paused and cast his penlight downward. His light reflected prismatically off the cracked and broken casings of multiple framed photos scattered on the floor. The same pictures which had previously sat on a now shattered console table in the entryway.

Masato slowly swept his light over the various familiar scenes and captured memories. He then paused as the circle of his torch fell on a crumpled-up piece of paper on the ground. Tip-toeing around the splintered frames and glass shards, Masato crouched down and picked up the discarded wad. Opening it revealed the wrinkled but still recognizable photo of young Masato and Professor Akitsu from their fishing trip so long ago.

Tears welling up in the corners of his eyes, Masato hugged the wrinkled photo against his chest. 'Dad…'

"Is this your mother?"

Startled, Masato let loose a surprised squeak and briefly bounced like a frightened rabbit. He turned to find Miku crouched down beside him, holding up one of the picture frames in a gloved hand. The photo in question showed an even younger Masato, floating in a swimming pool with both arms outstretched and short, stubby legs kicking as he held onto the side of a wall. His small body was being supported from beneath by a woman wearing a one-piece swimsuit and standing up in the pool next to him. The woman, who had wavy, reddish-brown hair and burgundy eyes, was smiling down at the young Masato with obvious affection.

"Yeah, that's her…" Masato said softly as his previous tension ebbed away. As he gazed down at the photograph, his lips turned up in a light smile. "Heh … I forgot, but Mom, she's the one who taught me how to swim."

"Ah…" Miku uttered. Her gaze drifted back between Masato and the photo frame. "I can see the resemblance."

"Really?" Masato asked, eyes blinking. Looking at the photo as well, his face took on a melancholy cast. "I guess … I do look more like her now … as a girl."

"Oh! Well, that's true, but I really meant the little you," Miku clarified in a rush. Taking the photo out of the broken frame, she held it out and pointed at the younger Masato in the picture. "See, you two have the same smile."

Masato blinked, his gaze drifting between Miku's sheepish face and the outstretched picture. Taking the photo from Miku, he scrutinized the image more carefully. "Heh …" he said again as his smile softened (much to Miku's relief), "I suppose we do."

Still in a crouch, Miku shuffled over until she was shoulder-to-shoulder with Masato. Carefully, the pair began picking up the rest of the broken picture frames and removing the photos contained within them. Once finished, they sat back against the wall beneath the stairway to the second floor. Masato slowly shuffled through the various pictures, while Miku watched supportingly, one arm looped around one of his own.

"Your mother…" Miku eventually asked, causing Masato to look at her. "Do you … remember much about her?"

"Only a little bit—just images really, feelings…" Masato replied with a shrug. He looked back down to a different photo of the woman in question, dressed in an apron splotched with globs of indeterminate origin, and smiling back with seeming embarrassment. "She was kind and gentle … but also seemed sad," he added absently, thinking to himself: 'I guess I understand some of the reasons "why" now.'

"What about you, Miku-chan?" Masato asked. He looked up to match gazes with the girl. "Do you remember your birth parents at all?"

Miku didn't answer right away. Sighing, she turned away and closed her eyes. "My mother, I know both everything and nothing about…" she murmured cryptically. Opening her eyes back up, she tilted her head down to gaze at her fidgeting hands. "And Professor Himuro … he's the only father I've ever known."

Gulping, Masato nodded his head, unsure of what else he could say. Raising his free arm, he reached out, pausing briefly, but then placed his palm atop Miku's clasped hands. The girl startled briefly at his touch, but then relaxed, loosened her hands, and gripped Masato's with one of her own. A quiet moment as the pair sat beside one another, shoulder-to-shoulder, hand-in-hand.

"I said before that everything these last few days has felt like a dream…" Masato finally uttered, causing Miku to glance over at him. "Now though, I wonder if it was everything before that was actually the dream, and I've only really woken up since then."

Miku raised a curious eyebrow and turned her head to look more fully at Masato. He soon followed suit, locking his rust-colored eyes with Miku's violet, questioning gaze.

"Was anything I had growing up real?" Masato said, his voice once again hoarse and raw. "Or were the people I thought were my parents just playing the part because of some role they needed me to fulfill?"

Still holding Masato's hand, Miku reached up with her free arm and lightly touched the transformed boy's cheek.

"I may not be in the best position to say anything…" Miku said delicately, "But I'd like to believe that a relationship … a bond … is as real as the emotions you feel from it." She looked down at the pile of photos still clutched tightly in Masato's other hand. "If you believe that the love you felt for your parents was real and true, then the relationship you had with them was certainly just as much so." Miku looked up again at Masato, whose eyes were once more reddened and wet. She smiled gently and stroked his cheek, saying: "After all, that love in your heart—that compassion I felt in you when we were combined as Zeorymer—that didn't just come from nowhere, Masato…"

Masato let loose a brief whimper. Releasing Miku's hand, he covered his face with both palms as his body shook with muffled sobs. Still smiling, Miku wrapped her arm around Masato's shoulders in a firm but gentle hug.

"That love … is something that your parents both gave to you, nurtured in you …" Miku whispered, lightly rocking the weeping teen in her hold, "Because, surely they loved you just as much as you did them."

Masato sniveled for another minute, but eventually settled down, his breathing slowly returning to a normal cadence. Taking a deep inhale, he let his body relax into Miku's hug, leaning sideways so that head rested against hers in the crook of her neck.

"Thank you, Miku," Masato murmured. In response, Miku's smile deepened, and she tightened her embrace as she likewise leaned into their impromptu huddle against the wall.

A few minutes passed as the pair sat together on the floor. The silence was then interrupted by a faint beeping, causing them to stir from their repose. Miku looked at the backside of her free arm, and a digital display inset into the armor briefly glowed with the time which Miku showed to Masato. Nodding, Masato began tucking the pile of photos into the breastplate of his armor as Miku stood and dusted herself off. Reaching down, the girl extended a hand down to Masato, who accepted the assist and allowed himself to be pulled back upright.

Once Masato was standing, Miku gestured towards the back door, one eyebrow raised in a silent question. Masato shook his head, holding out his open palm and pointing up the stairwell to the second floor with his other hand. In reply, Miku briefly puffed her cheeks, closed her eyes, and folded her arms as she tapped one foot against the floor with consternation. The taller girl then let out a resigned sigh and, pointing once again at the digital display on her arm, held five fingers up to Masato. As Masato gave an enthusiastic nod and grin, Miku simply shook her head reproachingly (though couldn't quite hide the matching smile of her own).

Quickly but quietly, the pair made their way up the stairs to the second floor. They stopped at the first door along the hall—Professor Akitsu's bedroom—which was barricaded with more strips of yellow plastic tape. Shining their penlights inside the open doorway revealed that the room had been completely ransacked, with upturned furniture and multiple papers and portfolios strewn across the floor.

Masato felt his heart fall as he took in the desecration to his father's former sanctum. He turned as he felt a hand clasp his shoulder, finding Miku gazing at him sympathetically. Giving a wan smile, Masato turned back to look once more at his father's room before closing the door, knowing that their time was short. The pair then pressed on down the hall, past the washroom, to the only other door on the floor.

Masato tentatively placed his hand on the door handle, then after a pause looked back at Miku with a sheepish, lopsided smile. "This … this is actually the first time I've had anyone my age up to my room," he said with a nervous chuckle. 'Much less a girl!'

In response, Miku gave a light titter of her own. "Well then, I'm honored to be your 'first,' Masato-kun!" Miku chirped back with a playful wink. The girl's flirtatious tone caused Masato's face to redden, and he quickly looked away as Miku blinked with (seeming) innocence.

Taking a deep breath, Masato opened the door to his old bedroom, expecting the worst as he shone his light inside. To his surprise, aside from one or two numbered crime scene placards, the rest of his room seemed intact and otherwise untouched. Noting that blackout shades were already drawn across the room's window, Masato switched a ceiling lamp on low before confidently striding forward. Miku followed behind at a slower pace, eyes wide with curiosity as her gaze slowly drifted around the bedroom's interior, taking in every little detail.

While Miku explored the assorted books, models, awards, and nicknacks adorning shelves along the walls, Masato sat down at his old desk by the window. Pausing, he briefly looked down at the desk with a confused frown before sighing and ratcheting the desk chair's height up a few more centimeters. Now in a more familiar position, Masato smiled softly as he flipped through sheets of half-completed physics homework still sitting atop the desk's wooden top. He booted up his computer, but while the desktop terminal quickly flickered to life, it only displayed a blank, blue screen and IBS logo.

'Someone must have confiscated the hard drive…' Masato thought. Sighing with resignation, he turned the computer back off, stood, and shuffled over to sit on the nearby bed.

As he was absently rubbing his hands against the familiar texture of the coverlet atop the bed, Masato felt the mattress shift beneath him. Turning, he found Miku beside him, wearing a compassionate smile as she covered his hand with her own. Masato smiled back, though the expression didn't quite reach his eyes. He turned to let his gaze gradually wander around his bedroom's familiar layout, as if etching it in his memory.

While they sat together, Miku's free hand unconsciously drifted underneath one of the bed pillows, and bumped unexpectedly against something concealed beneath. Pulling the mystery object out revealed a worn, slightly tattered, trade paperback. The front cover showed a picture of a smiling girl in swimsuit-like armor, arm warmers, and a space helmet. The girl had one fist placed jauntily on her hip while her other hand brandished a ray gun. [7]

"What's this…?" Miku asked as she began leafing through the book's yellowed pages. As Miku's eyes took in the numerous illustrated scenes it depicted, they quickly grew wide as her cheeks flushed pink. "Oh, my…"

"Tha-tha-that's n-n-not …" Masato sputtered out. His face was equally tomato-like as he desperately waved his arms back and forth. "I m-m-mean, th-there's a per-perfectly-ly re-re-reasonable…!"

"Th-there's n-nothing to be as-ashamed of Masato-kun," Miku said hesitantly, though the smile on her face seemed somewhat forced. "While I personally think that d-dirty thoughts are bad, you are—at least mentally—a healthy, teenage boy after all!"

Miku resumed leafing through the volume, taking note of the many lithe, slender, nubile forms with it. "So … these are the kind of girls that you find attractive?" she asked absently.

"Not really …" Masato replied guiltily. He squirmed anxiously from his position next to Miku, eyes darting furtively between the girl beside him and the floor. Sighing with resignation, he then explained: "A classmate stuck that rag in my briefcase to avoid getting in trouble with our teacher, and I hadn't the chance to get rid of it yet."

Masato's cheeks reddened again. "I'm actually into more mature and well-rounded girls…" he added in a mumble, causing Miku to look up with interest. Noting that he had the taller girl's attention, Masato turned to look Miku in the eyes, saying softly: "You know … like you."

Now it was Miku's turn to have burning cheeks. "Oh…" she breathed out. She quickly turned away, her hands fidgeting in her lap as she struggled to suppress a goofy grin from spreading across her face. "I … I see."

The pair sat in silence for a time, their faces equally flushed and unable to look the other in the eye. Eventually, as if in response to some silent signal, the two looked up and locked gazes with one another. A beat passed with neither Miku nor Masato making a move, as they instead simply stared at one another, probingly. Then, in almost perfect unison, the pair began slowly leaning towards one another. As their faces grew nearer, both teen's eyes shut, and their lips parted slightly as the distance between them slowly evaporated…

…then stopped as a shivering shudder ran down Miku's spine. Confused, she drew back away from Masato, who was briefly left leaning in with eyes closed before he realized that nothing was happening. Opening his eyes, he spotted Miku gazing intently around the room, her eyes and head darting about with obvious agitation. A beat later, and Miku's eyes widened with sudden panic. In one fluid motion, she turned and flung herself at Masato, pressing him down against the mattress as his face once more turned beat red.

"Get down, Masato!" Miku exclaimed in a panicked shriek.

Clutching Masato against her body, Miku rolled the two of them off the mattress and onto the floor—narrowly avoiding being bisected by a translucent, blade-like wave of air that burst through the wall behind them. The translucent pulse continued forward, carving a large scar through the room and across the ceiling before bursting through the opposite wall into the house.

"COME ON OUT, 'HEAVEN'!" a thunderous voice bellowed from outside. "IT'S TIME … TO DUEL!"

Nose-to-nose on the bedroom floor, Masato and Miku stared at each other with equally wide eyes. The same thought simultaneously flashed through their minds: 'Hau Dragon!'

The Akitsu residence shook again as another roaring crash issued forth, causing the bedroom window to shatter as the sound of rushing wind poured in from the outside. The room's interior was quickly put into disarray as a maelstrom of air blasted into the space, sending papers, books, and any other objects not well secured flying and crashing about through the air.

Down on the floor, Miku continued to shield Masato with her body while he likewise clung to her. Both then looked up as a sudden, golden light appeared. Stretching his arms out before him, the pair watched as the now-glowing bracelets around Masato's wrists expanded along the length of his forearms. Eventually the light subsided, revealing that the thin bands had returned to their previous form as two bejeweled bracers.

[AUTO-DEFENSE PROTOCOL_ACTIVE. BIOMETRIC PATTERN MATCH_CONFIRMED FOR: USER_"Masato_Akitsu"] the familiar digitized voice from the bracers iterated. [LOGGING IN… "BY_HKS-01A 'ZEORYMER'"_ONLINE. SYSTEM STATUS: ALL GREEN_NORMAL OPERATION. STATE ACCESS_CODE]

Miku and Masato locked their eyes, the latter asking a silent question of the former. In response, Miku nodded her head, her face taut and resolute. Feeling more confident, Masato looked back at the bracers with determination.

"Awaken, Zeorymer!" Masato proclaimed, closing his eyes as he awaited the inevitable transformation. Both he and Miku blinked when a harsh buzzing sound issued from the metal armbands.

[VOCAL PATTERN MATCH_FAILURE. ACCESS_DENIED] the mechanical voice stated. [STATE ACCESS_CODE]

"Awaken, Zeorymer!" Masato tried again, his voice tighter and more panicked in tone. Once more, he was answered with a loud, buzzing rejection.

[VOCAL PATTERN MATCH_FAILURE. ACCESS_DENIED. STATE ACCESS_CODE]

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me!" Masato exclaimed, followed by another loud buzz from the bracers.

[ACCESS_DENIED. STATE ACCESS_CODE]

Masato began fumbling with the twin bands, desperately trying to force them to activate. Suddenly, a low moaning sound broke through the cacophony of rushing wind. Looking up, Masato's eyes widened as he spotted fissures rapidly spreading across the ceiling. It then gave way in a crackling cloud of dust, wood, and plaster.

Screaming, Masato threw his arms over his head in a futile effort at protection. Closing his eyes, Masato braced for the incoming wreckage to flatten him. When nothing happened, Masato hesitantly looked up, and his eyes widened as they took sight of a shimmering field of energy holding back chunks of wood and plaster from the ceiling above. Miku stood over him, her arms outstretched as glowing lines of light trailed across the exposed parts of her body.

The golden wave hovering above the pair flickered briefly, seemingly bowing under the weight of the debris atop it. Gasping, Miku fell to one knee, her arms still raised but quivering from the evident strain of her effort. The pair's eyes briefly met—Miku's narrowed and pained from exertion, and Masato's wide and throbbing with terror. Miku's face softened for a moment, but then hardened as she closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Increase output … seventy percent!" Miku cried out. The lines of light across her body suddenly flared with a new bright-white intensity as she let forth a primal scream. Her long chestnut hair likewise began glowing with streaks of shining gold, while her open irises radiated a luminous violet.

Gritting her teeth, Miku slowly and strenuously forced herself back upright, her arms and legs shaking from the struggle. A line of silver fluid began to dribble from Miku's nose as she finally stood up and pushed out with both arms, causing the golden wave to push all the way up to the ceiling. Any debris sitting atop the transcendent barrier slid off to the sides of the bedroom (or outside through the breached wall of the house) in a cloud of dust and rubble.

A moment passed, and then the shimmering field disappeared. The glowing lines of light similarly vanished from Miku's form. The girl's arms fell loosely to her sides before she then collapsed like a marionette whose strings had been cut. She would have hit the floor had Masato not stretched out and caught her descending body.

"Miku-chan!" Masato yelled out as he shook his partner's limp form in his arms.

[ACCESS_DENIED. STATE ACCESS_CODE]

Cradling the prone girl, Masato placed two fingers alongside Miku's neck. He let out a quick sigh of relief when he found what felt like a pulse, but then blinked when his fingertips came across something wet and sticky alongside the girl's face. Looking down, he followed the trail of viscous liquid emanating from Miku's nose and corners of her mouth, leaving metallic traces that were quickly picked up by Masato's fingers.

'What? Silver…?' Masato mused briefly as he rubbed his now coated fingertips together in front of his face. His eyes widened in a sudden burst of realization. 'This is—!'

Before Masato could complete his thought, another shuttering jolt shook the house, causing a disconcerting series of groans and cracks from the compromised structure. Realizing he had no time to spare, Masato tried to stand while holding Miku, but quickly realized that the strength of his altered body was not up to the task. After struggling through several different arrangements, Masato finally resorted to grabbing both of Miku's wrists, walking backwards, and dragging his companion's unconscious form out of the bedroom and into the hall.

As Masato labored his way down the hallway, the house around the pair continued to shake and shudder at intervals in response to the unceasing battering from the outside. Masato tried to block out all the other chaos around him—the roaring of the air and wind, the constant declarations of the Hau Dragon agent likely behind the attack, the bursts of dust and plaster falling from the ceiling—instead focused on carefully but steadily pulling Miku along. Minding the girl's head, he exited the hall and began descending the stairs, taking care as he moved down step-by-step.

["HEIGHTENED" PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSE_DETECTED] the digitized voice from his bracers unexpectedly remarked. [IS USER "IN DURESS"?]

Masato blinked in bafflement at the unexpected query, before his eyes narrowed furiously.

"Of course I am!" Masato spat out with audible frustration, continuing his labored descent down the stairs. Reaching the first floor, he began quickly rounding the staircase with Miku, heading for the back door.

'It's fine … everything's going to be okay…" Masato thought between labored breaths, "If I can … just reach … Miku's motorcycle…'

He paused as a thundering boom rattled the walls of the house. Through a small window beside the rear door, Masato could see the faint glow of flames and smoke billowing in the face instantly fell.

'Okay, Plan B then…' Masato thought with a sigh. Grunting, he resumed dragging Miku's limp form down the foyer, now heading towards the closed door to the basement. All the while, the walls around the pair continued to resound from the constant barrage coming from the outside

[DOES USER WISH TO ANSWER ALTERNATIVE SECURITY_QUESTIONS?] the mechanical voice suddenly asked, bringing Masato once more to a pause before he responded in a rush.

"Yes! Yes, I do!" Masato said frantically. He continued his slow shuffle down the hallway, his teeth gritted together and visibly perspiring from his efforts.

[COMPLIANCE] the voice from the bracers stated with artificial nonchalance. [QUESTION_ONE: "What is your name?"]

"Masato Akitsu!" Masato exclaimed as he reached the far end of the foyer. After briefly reaching behind him to open the basement door, he once again took hold of Miku's wrists. Deftly, Masato then crossed over the threshold to the stairwell and began moving down the steps to the basement with his partner in tow.

A chime sounded out in response to Masato's answer, followed by the digital voice asking: [QUESTION_TWO: "What is your favorite color?"]

"BLACK!" Masato bellowed as he continued his descent into the basement. He paused as he felt a particularly strong tremor resonate throughout the house, with cracks spreading like spider webs across the walls and ceiling as he watched. Masato gulped at the sight, but then quickly shook his head and continued his way down the unlit stairwell with his unconscious companion.

Another chime rang out, followed shortly by the mechanical voice asking: [QUESTION_THREE: "Do you want grilled fish or scrambled eggs for your breakfast?"]

"Neither!" Masato screamed as he reached the basement floor. Sitting down, he pulled a still out-cold Miku into his arms, hugging her protectively against his body. Above the pair, clouds of plaster and dust continued to fall in increasingly larger bursts in response to each new percussive impact to the house. "I want fried tofu!"

Masato's answer resulted in yet another chime from the bracers. The circuit-like inlays in their metal surfaces then began glowing with pulsing lines of golden energy.

[ALTERNATIVE SECURITY_QUESTIONS_PASSED. VOCAL PATTERN FOR USER_"Masato_Akitsu"_UPDATED] the voice from the glowing bracers intoned. [STANDBY… READY. STATE ACCESS_CODE]

"AWAKEN, ZEORYMER!" Masato managed to exclaim just before the basement ceiling finally gave way, collapsing in a cacophonous roar of debris and blowing wind.

Outside of the ruins of the Akitsu household, the formally clear night sky was blotted out by a tempest of swirling clouds and roaring air. Previously dark houses up and down the street now glowed from various forms of interior lighting. Men, women, and children in differing levels of dress leaned out of windows or tentatively glanced from open doorways, blinking and rubbing sleep from their eyes. Baffled beyond words, the neighborhood residents gazed up at the sky, taking in the inconceivable onslaught happening to the one cordoned-off house on the block.

High above the houses and streets, hidden from the views of the people below, an armored figure hovered in the eye of the storm. The form's humanoid body was masculine and muscular in build, with thick arms folded loosely before a glowing, golden orb atop his chest. Layers of thick, gunmetal-grey armor covered his shoulders, forearms, torso, thighs, and lower legs. Twin wings of folded metal rose in curved arcs from his back, with concealed thrusters on their undersides issuing forth a continuous stream of blue plasma. The being's upper face and eyes were concealed by a red, cowl-like helm, while thin horns gracefully curved up and back from the sides of each temple.

"CONTROL, ARE YOU CERTAIN THAT 'HEAVEN' IS HERE?!" the winged figure bellowed over the howling winds. His thin lips pursed tightly as he added: "I'M NO LONGER PICKING UP ANY ACTIVITY FROM INSIDE OF THE TARGET LOCATION!"

A brief crackling issued from earpieces in the person's helm, followed by the tinny sound of a man's voice.

the voice identified as "Control" responded. baguayi is your top priority.

'As if I don't already know that!' the airborne humanoid groused to himself with irritation. Tilting his head down, the winged figure's gaze drifted across the crumbling, pockmarked remains of the house below–somewhat obscured by the burning wreckage in the yard behind it. He then looked over the slowly growing mass of people emerging into the streets around the Akitsu residence, thinking: 'How impudent that those traitors or their JSDF puppets would choose to hide "Heaven" here, using the ignorant masses as their shield. What cowardice!'

The armored being's musings were interrupted by a sharp, tingling sensation at the back of his skull. Before he could utter a word or question to his handlers, what remained of the roof on the house below suddenly exploded outward. A pillar of golden light then burst out from the smoldering hole, blasting upwards into the sky and piercing through the swirling layer of clouds above. As the clouds parted and began dissipating, the nighttime tapestry of twinkling stars and the glowing moon above were revealed.

Between the light shining from the cosmos, and the blazing pillar of gold, it was as though night had become day. [8]

Shielding his eyes against the glaring light, the cowled figure pulled back away from the golden beam. Ignoring the multitude of alarms and warnings popping up in his head-up display, he instead focused his gaze on the interior of the pillar, where a shadowed, human form could vaguely be seen. Eventually, the golden light faded and flickered out, revealing Masato—now clad in his armor as Zeorymer—hovering in the air across from the winged being.

'So…' the first armored figure thought as he sized up the newcomer: 'This must be the bearer of "Heaven"…'

The cowled aggressor opened his mouth to speak but stopped as Masato suddenly raised his right arm above his head, looking up to the night sky as he did so. Opening his extended hand, Masato splayed his clawed fingers wide in front of the moon as if to grasp it, pronouncing:

"Child of the Skies Above!"

Tilting his head back down, Masato locked a determined gaze at the other armored figure, who in turn had his mouth agape in open bewilderment. Masato then slowly lowered his right hand until it rested atop his heart. He followed by extending his left arm across the length of his body until it touched his right shoulder. Then, hand flattened, fingers pressed tight together, and palm facing down, Masato swept his left arm out in a fluid, curving arc in front of his body. As his open palm waved over the astounded citizens beneath him, Masato called out:

"And Protector of All on Earth Below!"

Cocking his hips, Masato lowered his left hand to rest it akimbo at his side. Simultaneously, he swung his right arm in a half-circle at the elbow, moving his hand from his chest to his forehead. Extending his pointer and middle fingers, Masato briefly touched his brow in a jaunty salute followed by a quick wink, stating:

"The Lovely Warrior of Hope and Justice…"

Twisting his body at his waist, Masato swung his right arm back behind him while tilting his left forearm up from his hip until it was facing outward. Turning back to his left, Masato then rotated his left arm in a backwards loop until it was folded against his side — his left fist clutched tight at his hip. In the same movement, Masato's right arm swiveled around from behind Masato to point straight out from his body. With his right hand open, and fingers grasping out at the armored invader in a defiant gesture, Masato announced:

"Zeorymer of the Heavens—HAS ARRIVED!"

NEXT TIME ON MEIOU SHOJO ZEORYMER:

"NUMBER TWO OF THE HAU DRAGON HAKKESHU, AND RIGHT ARM OF THE DIVINE DRAGON EMPRESS! THE SWEET SPRING BREEZE OF YOUTH AND PASSION! LANSTER OF THE WIND!"

You can do it! You can do it! You can do it! You can do it!

'What is this pressure … this INTENSITY of feeling?!'

"Remember, Lanster … the louder the wind blows … the weaker it is."

'I mustn't run away… I mustn't run away…'

"Now then … Come to Daddy."

COMING UP IN EPISODE 5: "First Steps, Part II – The Lovely Warrior"

STORY FOOTNOTES:

BETA READING PROVIDED BY: Twisted Eternal Wolvetta (https://www.fanfiction.net/beta/2124726/Twisted-Eternal-Wolvetta).

[1]: Masato already learned that dousing himself in hot water wouldn’t restore his masculinity after trying it multiple times the day before, unlike a certain, other gender-bent, red-headed girl (https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/ranma/images/5/5b/RanmaMaleFemaleRW1.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20241103035126).

[2]: Mount Omuro (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_%C5%8Cmuro_(Mount_Fuji)) is a real extinct volcano located in Japan’s Yamanashi Prefecture, just south of the Aokigahara Forest (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aokigahara) which served as the location for Last Guardian’s underground base in the Hades Project Zeorymer OVA.

[3]: HEY KIDS! IT’S DAVID HAYTER (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dwDquO8TVf0)! [APPLAUSE]

[4]: This episode of MS Zeorymer is brought to you by CalorieMate (https://metalgear.fandom.com/wiki/CalorieMate), the energy food and ration of choice for soldiers of fortune and unsung saviors of humanity the world over (https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/metalgear/images/e/e2/Mgs3_caloriemate_promo.jpg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/300?cb=20111127112424).

[5]: Sean Barker is the protagonist of the two live-action Guyver films (https://moviemorgue.fandom.com/wiki/Sean_Barker), standing in for original series lead Sho Fukamachi for the Americanized adaptation (as officially approved by original creator Yoshiki Takaya). He was played by television actor Jack Armstrong (https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0035737/) in the first film and then in the sequel by David Hayter (https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0371684/) in his film debut.

[6]: “Hallå” is a Swedish word that can be used as an interjection, a noun, or to mean "hello" or "hey."

[7]: Here’s a picture of said cover: https://www.suruga-ya.jp/database/pics_light/game/xa4408.jpg. The book in question is another h-manga by Yoshiki Takaya (under his Moriwo Chimi pen name) called Cross Fire, published in April 1985. I would STRONGLY advise NOT looking it up, as it is VERY NSFW.

[8]: *Jeremy Clarkson (https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/4afa324/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2048x1411+0+0/resize/1200x827!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F96%2Fb3%2F7a3dade2d9a4e8b3d696b95dccfc%2Fla-et-st-clarkson-out-at-bbc-20150325-002) voice* “CUE THE MUSIC!” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDMm5j092sI)