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He’s done it.
It was over.
Even so, the blood from Lucifer’s throbbing veins is still stuck to his coat; it was a miracle, that the floor was somehow so meticulously clean, when his hands clearly weren’t.
One of Merkabah’s hands graced over the remote on the floor, where Lucifer once stood.
“With this, all this world’s Filth will be cleansed,” the herald declared, his voice echoing across the Reactor Room more majestically than even before. “It is time for the Great Abaddon to swallow Tokyo.”
Is it really worth it? Yes, it has to be. Flynn tilted his head back slightly, almost as if craning his neck to see once more the great light of Mikado. They would be at peace; no more demons, no more victims, with not a single soul falling into despair and death, like Issachar.
No one else will end the same way as Isabeau as well.
She would’ve liked it, if Tokyo didn’t have to go. It was the only way, and she stood against it. Maybe, maybe she’s watching now- he could almost hear her say do not speak for me, with her normal, consuming tone-
“…And we are no exception,” Merkabah suddenly said. Flynn’s head jerked back to look at the angel, the remote pressed tightly in pearl-white hands. “We, too, have brushed against Filth and been spattered with their blood.”
He shouldn’t pretend that he wasn’t expecting it. But, regardless…
Now, it was Merkabah who tilted his head, but downwards, to face Flynn.
“…”
A pause.
Flynn could almost feel the spring of life slip out of his eyes.
Finally, the angel spoke.
“I trust you take my meaning…?”
Merkabah pressed the remote’s button.
Even as the black hole consumes his green eyes, he said nothing.
--- > Cycle 2
“Hoy… hoy, wake up. If we’re not on our way soon, we’ll be late.”
Flynn took in a huge, aching breath of air the moment the familiar voice came to his ears.
“Are you awake? I admit, I fell asleep too…”
He felt his jaw slack, and his shoulders lock. Was this some sort of joke? Some sort of post-mortem dream? “Oh, are you alright, Flynn? It’s okay to get nervous- I am too, actually. We’ve spent so many days out here in Lake Mikado, after all…”
Flynn shook his head, faking a friendly face. Issachar stood in front of him, brotherly figure and all, one-sided smirk with his white teeth bearing.
Maybe… maybe, his entire adventure- with Jonathan, Walter, Isabeau- was a dream? No… that’s wrong. Issachar is saying the exact same thing he said before- isn’t he? Flynn played along, walking into the Luxuror Districts and asking for directions. The Luxuror was dressed in the same fancy coat as the ‘dream’; and brushed them off in the same, snooty way.
The Rite was held in Aquila State Plaza, too.
It wasn’t a dream, that was all Flynn could conclude. He’s read it in fairy-stories; the proud king gets a premonition of the future, and he shakes it off, only to have it bite him back. Maybe… that dream was a premonition of the future?
In that case… did it mean following Jonathan was wrong?
So…
The only sane option now was to follow Walter.
Flynn kept his head down, face grim, and joints stiff. He’d have to relive it; relive meeting all his friends, all who died by his hands, directly or indirectly (plus Navarre, of course). Relive Isabeau’s last decision… relive their last words?
Flynn sighed, accidentally forgetting to stick out his hand as the Monk approaches him. Could he really do that? Live through everything?
…It was his duty as a Samurai. Wasn’t it?
Well, for starters, he could drop the ‘duty’ thing.
(For some reason, his Demon Compendium kept all his previous demons. The revelation shook him to the bone, but he decided to keep it to himself, still. He probably could never accrue enough Macca to resummon them, anyway. Some new quests were seen; he’s sure that he never had to kill a demon in disguise hiding in a darkened alley before.
Isabeau screamed far louder this time. Flynn wanted to cry. Then, Lucifer called her weak.
Merkabah has fallen. Long Live the King.
Sweet, echoing words, overseeing the destruction of peace and birth of freedom.
“…Will you rise, to rule them…?”
(He blinked, and suddenly, the world faded to black.)
--- > Cycle 3
“Hoy… hoy, wake up. If we’re not on our way soon, we’ll be late.”
Flynn gasped this time, the cold air of Lake Mikado filling his lungs much more abruptly.
No. No, no, this couldn’t be it-
He suddenly stumbled forward, coughing, face leaning so close to the water he could almost drop in. It was almost like he was trying to throw up- looks like he didn't have anything in his stomach.
“Flynn! Are you alright?! Did you have a nightmare?”
He smiled to Issachar, the churning in his stomach still continuing. He brushed his long hair back, tilting his head up to see Issachar’s face- full of concern, eyes nothing near a bloodshot red.
It’s alright. It’s alright. They’re all okay now, at least.
Is he dead? Is that why he’s here?
He goes through the Rite almost mechanically. Dragging his feet, to the Barracks, and get waken up by another Casualry’s voice- it all sounded too surreal for him.
“I’m no burglar. I’m a bona fide Samurai,” Walter said, smirking.
Flynn sighed. “Walter…”
The blue Samurai’s expression changed. “Hoy, how did you know my name? Have we… met before?”
“…I believe so.”
“Nah, nah, that’s impossible… it’s just my imagination,” Walter finished, regaining his composure.
Flynn walked out with his ‘new’ friend, and as usual, Navarre brashly introduced himself; Jonathan politely cut off his monologue and said his name. Isabeau spoke quickly, her gaze avoiding everyone’s eye.
He had to stop himself from contorting his expression into a grimace. This time, he’d get them out. He’d save them all.
(He doesn’t have to avert his eyes away from her corpse, because this time, Isabeau’s breath never stills. He never expected to turn his sword against Walter and Jonathan both, though.
The East Kingdom of Mikado is gone- but peace and freedom can coexist. It’s the closest thing to utopia. Isabeau was alive, and he could fight alongside her if they came back. It was the closest thing to a perfect end.)
--- > Cycle 4
Flynn woke up, lying on a patch of grass, Issachar’s voice calling out for him.
Why was he back? Why did he return? That was… the last ending felt so finite. As if the best-case scenario had been achieved. He had finally saved someone, and now, that was all erased- all his progress was erased, and none of them will remember him, no, save for the odd dreams they received at the beginning.
He headed straight for Aquila State Plaza, not even bothering to pretend that he didn’t know the way.
Even Issachar noticed how mechanical his actions were. Stick your arm out. I’m sorry, Issachar. Introduce yourself. Save Navarre. Agree with Walter. Agree with Jonathan. My family is dead. I’m sorry, Issachar. Go to the Underground. Hello, Tokyo.
He never got particularly close to anyone, that time; it was as if he was bored of them all the time, seeing through them as though they were glass. Isabeau was more distant than usual this timeline, though Flynn could barely feel the stares of affection upon him.
But he only had one goal in mind.
If the last three timelines weren’t the ‘right thing to do’, then, there was only one choice left.
(Flynn returns the world to nothing. The White rejoice and cheer.
“The long and painful journey ends here…” Fake Isabeau says, with a smile. “Thank you…”
He is filled with finality and closure.
“…and goodbye,” she finished, before disappearing from vision.)
--- > Cycle 5
Flynn woke up in cold sweat. Issachar was still asleep.
Even the ending where he was promised a conclusion, the ending which was meant to destroy everything-
He forced himself up, and looked at Issachar.
Then, he fell over.
Flynn didn’t fight the currents of water, slowly enveloping his body like a cocoon; the cloak he and Issachar made together fluttered in the water as if it was the gentle breeze.
This time, instead of cold air, freezing water filled his lungs.
--- > Cycle 6
Now, he woke up with his hands gripping the grass and their roots slowly popping out of the soil.
Without a second thought, he jerked himself up, and looked at Issachar (“Well, you’re certainly seeming pretty excited.”). Flynn grabbed his friend’s wrist, before marching off to Aquila State Plaza (no matter how much he complained about the pain).
~
Walter broke into his room, as usual. Flynn lifelessly trotted out of the room behind him, and the familiar conversation of the four Samurai replayed before him the fifth time (four Samurai… he never made much of a conversation). He’s begun to notice little things, while enduring the repetition- Isabeau’s eyes are brown, not red, but her eyeshadow makes them look red. Navarre spat a lot when he spoke, but only when he was scared.
Jonathan had a bad habit of never tying his shoelaces if he changed into new shoes, which was perfect, because the Samurai shoes had no laces. Walter was interested in hairbands and tried one on at Tokyo once, when he thought no one was looking.
“My name is Isabeau. What’s yours?”
Flynn was quick to introduce himself.
“You seem to have a very determined crease in your forehead,” Isabeau suddenly added out of script. Flynn blinked in surprise. “I suppose you’ll do good work in being a Samurai.”
He hadn’t the heart to tell her the determination was for something else.
~
When they visited the Baker, Flynn asked further about ‘Literature’. The man enthusiastically showed him the collection of books he’s acquired. When he goes back to tending to customers, Flynn destroyed the books by throwing them in the oven’s fire, and then left while the Baker remained ignorant.
Without a second thought, he quickly caught up with the two before they reached Lake Mikado.
“Oh…” Issachar lifelessly trotted towards them, a familiar forlorn look in his eyes. (Flynn just realized, he walked the same way when he left his room. Is that the extent of despair Issachar was feeling…? If so, then what had to be done would only have more reason so.)
Issachar straightened up while Jonathan spoke, and Flynn claimed he knew him, as usual. They spoke of Kiccigiorgi, and Issachar turned his heels, toes tipped in the direction of his home.
Flynn won’t let them all die. Not this time.
Without warning, he dashed up to Issachar. “What are you showing to them all…?”
“Oh, these books!” Issachar said (his casual tone made Flynn feel even more sick). He took out a small book from his pockets, smiling at it. “They’re from a genre called ‘Literature’, and-”
Flynn tore the book from his hands, taking his sword and slicing the bindings apart.
They are all in shocked silence.
“Flynn…! For what reason did you…?” Jonathan’s body is stiff, still staring at the torn papers floating in the air.
Walter grabbed a fistful of the useless pages, squinting to read the mangled words. “Man, Flynn, I know that the Baker was annoying, but why the hell did you have to up and tear that thing to pieces?”
Issachar held one half of the empty book binding in his hand. His features showed that he was visibly shaken, staring at Flynn’s sword, before turning his head up to look at him in the eye.
“Why…?”
“They’ll destroy you,” Flynn deadpanned.
Issachar backed away, eyes wide, and looking absolutely betrayed, before turning his heel and having his back face Flynn.
He began to walk towards Kiccigiorgi.
Flynn started to think that maybe that wasn’t what he was supposed to do.
~
Walter tried to leave Flynn out of the rooftop visit, but Jonathan’s insistence on bringing him along despite ‘the day’s transgressions’ caused the white Samurai to tag along behind them.
When Isabeau revealed her manga, Walter turned his head towards Flynn with a slight glare. He doesn’t try to even hide it. Jonathan’s shoulders are visibly more nervous, and Isabeau tilted her head in confusion.
“What’s the matter with you all? It’s just a book. Is the idea of innovation so surprising to you all?”
“No,” Flynn suddenly said, eyes widening.
“Then, what’s with the looks on your faces?”
“Hoy! Behind you, over there!” Walter pointed, towards Kiccigiorgi. “Look at that!”
Flynn almost fell to his knees.
The fire is almost double the size than before; he’s only gone and made things worse.
“One of the villages are ablaze!” Jonathan declares, to no surprise.
Flynn wordlessly ran downstairs before any of the other three took their eyes off the scene.
~
He forced the horse to gallop at full speed. The Samurai behind told him to slow down, but Hope and Isabeau simply caught up with him, not saying a word.
When they reach Kiccigiorgi, it’s clear that the damage was exponential.
The old man didn’t appear; the entire village was already gone, as usual, but this time, they could hear the ravenous sounds of demons. Hope tells everyone to search the nearby area; the master Samurai and left to combat the demons.
Flynn raced off, Isabeau following, into Kiccigiorgi Forest.
He almost missed it.
The entirety of the forest- trees, paths- was a smoldering mess. He almost mistook the place as another part of the town, before the realization came that he had already passed the outskirts.
He stared.
“This is simply terrible… the entirety of Kiccigiorgi Forest is just gone,” Isabeau rubbed in deeper.
Then, a figure crawls out of the ashes.
“Good evening.”
Lilith The Black Samurai stood in front of them, and they could almost hear the smirk in her voice.
“Lilith,” Flynn suddenly said. Isabeau looked at him, confused. Lilith only laughed.
“My, my. You figured out so quickly, boy? Did you attend that Sabbath last week, then? I made it quite obvious, if I say so myself, but the people were simply so ignorant and starved of knowledge, they made no connection…”
Lilith threw a thick book on the ground. “This is the book that caused this place to go up in flames. I didn’t think it would be so effective- but apparently, the boy who brought it back had just gotten in a fight with his Samurai ‘friend’, who tore up the first volume of the book series. His anger and rage fueled the rebellion.”
Flynn jumped down and reached for the book. Isabeau remained confused, and still on horseback. “A book…? How could a book cause this?”
He forced open the pages, eyeing the tomes. They look like they should be dusty; but instead, they seem recently dog-eared, with some pages carelessly torn, as though they were left in the hands of small children.
Flynn felt sick, but started reading, anyway.
“It’s a complicated process, my dear,” Lilith said, pointing towards Flynn. “So, instead of asking me, how about you watch an example right here? I always thought hands-on was better than textbooks.”
The words are laced with venom; he could clearly see how anyone could get outraged over them. But, after seeing the entirety of Tokyo, he could barely spot out the reasons behind them.
Apparently, at one point, the Black Samurai fled, because he could hear Isabeau yelling at her in the background.
He gripped the pages, feeling boils under his arm begin to throb. This was all his fault- even after so many times, he still got it wrong, still let his friend die…
“Flynn…? Flynn- FLYNN, STOP READING!”
Isabeau’s voice escalated into a scream, but he paid no mind. He felt his eyes cloud over, fingers stretch far too long, and when he tried to speak to Isabeau all that escaped from his mouth was a low, guttural growl.
“Master Flynn, I’m detecting a demon extremely close by.”
He heard the sound of a sword unsheathing.
“…Master?”
Before he could come to terms with exactly what he’s turned into under all his despair, something is plunged into his neck.
Flynn shuddered.
The metal was cold.
There was a half-sob, one that sounded quite too much like Isabeau. He could hear her speaking into her Gauntlet, voice dropped to a deadly whisper, while she kept the sword embedded in his neck, pinning him to the ground.
A moment passes in silence, with the coldness of the blade beginning to seep around his entire body.
Then, his Gauntlet whirrs to life, though Burroughs is completely silent.
“To all Samurai within Kiccigiorgi, this is Hope speaking. We have testimony that the Black Samurai was witnessed near the burnt-down forest. The books she is carrying are said to turn readers into demons. Those who receive this message must make the capture of the Black Samurai their top priority…”
Flynn tuned out of the sound, and let his body crumble.
Turns out, when a demon explodes, it doesn’t hurt.
--- > Cycle 7
Flynn breezed through everything without a second thought.
The moment he stepped into Naraku, he let a demon slay him.
Charon was not amused at all when he turned down the ferryman’s offer.
(Unfortunately, the moment he received a number, he blacked out.)
--- > Cycle 8
“Hoy… hoy, wake up. If we’re not on our way soon, we’ll be late.”
Flynn got up.
Immediately, his eyes scoured for the source of the sound. His mind was fixed back to reality, and for once, he could feel the cold breeze irritating his skin.
He’s here. He’s here. He’s alive, yes, definitely alive. Flynn let out a held breath he didn't realize he was keeping.
“You alright, Flynn? I admit, I fell asleep too…”
“Issachar,” he suddenly said, without thinking.
He turned to look at Flynn- eyes still bright, smile still warm. “Yeah?”
“…No matter what happens, you’ll remain my friend, Issachar.”
Issachar’s mouth turned into a small ‘o’, and his eyes smiled for him instead. “Oh, come on, Flynn! Are you getting sentimental now?”
Flynn just nodded. Issachar patted him on the back, grinning for him. “It’s alright, Flynn. No one can tell what will happen at the Rite… we just gotta promise ourselves, over and over, and we’ll become Samurai. That’s the best we can do!”
“But… realistically at best, only one of us may become Samurai,” he said, trying to choose his words carefully.
Issachar shrugged, lips still curled up. (Flynn realized that Issachar had always been juggling the possibility; however, wispy fantasies hit you like cotton clouds, and cemented reality hits you like a brick.)
“Even if that happens… we can be Samurai at heart. To protect the people, and our families… so, don’t worry about it,” Issachar reassured, though Flynn felt as though it was his job to be reassuring. “So! We should start looking for the Rite. Shouldn’t we?”
~
Issachar is notably more at peace when he gets denied of becoming a Samurai. His eyes have lost their smile, though.
~
Kiccigiorgi is on fire.
~
“Flynn… it was mortifying, the way I was passed over to become a Samurai,” Issachar moaned, his face black and eyes red. Flynn keeps a grip on his sword, focusing on Issachar’s pitiable state. “But… the books the Black Samurai gave me were greatly cheering…!”
He’s failed to save Issachar. Yet again, he’s facing him down, blade in hand, comrades by his side.
“Flynn… tell me how you truly feel,” Issachar rasped, the words all too familiar. “Now that you are a Samurai, has your soul too become tainted like the Luxurors’? Or… do you still consider yourself to be a Casualry?”
This is the time. I have to live in the timelines now, as they’re happening. They’re not in the past. I need to change everything.
Flynn drops his sword.
Walter gapes at him.
“What- what are you doing?!” He yells, as Flynn suddenly walks up to Issachar, demons under his command staying in place, standing in uncertainty.
Without warning, Flynn wraps his hands around Issachar.
“I’m your friend. No matter what happens.”
Issachar twitches and screams.
Flynn feels a searing heat in his chest. Only seconds later does he realize Issachar has torn his skin open.
He backs off, blood seeping from the wound before he realizes he’s in pain, and the red liquid begins to gush at higher speeds. Flynn falls to the ground, barely registering the impact, and he can hear Isabeau begin to panic.
“But no… what… what have I done…?” Issachar’s fingers are stained with red, and he clutches his head, writhing in pain.
“YOU DEMON! I’LL CUT YOU DOWN!” Walter howls, rushing forward with his demons and attacking with full force. Jonathan suddenly leans over Flynn, honey eyes clouded with anxiety; he looks at Flynn’s chest, and his expression turns cold, and Flynn realizes Issachar has torn through much more than his skin.
Issachar… he stabbed him, didn’t he?
Oh.
He can’t breath. The air is too thin. It’s as if something is stomping on his chest.
“I’m contacting the healers,” Jonathan suddenly says, jerking up and away from Flynn’s sight. “The Kiccigiorgi Forest entrance is far, but if we both move together towards each other we can reach them-”
“Jonathan,” Isabeau interrupts.
“Flynn, stay calm, we’ll get you out- Isabeau, help me carry his legs-”
“Jonathan,” she chokes, and Flynn can barely feel her eyes on him. “It’s too late. This kind of wound is… beyond help.”
Everything begins to slip away; his demons are in panic. He wonders faintly, if this is what his friends always spiral into if a demon kills him and his party before he can react. This is the first real time he’s stayed conscious for so long.
Jonathan is still in shock, and kneels over Flynn, seemingly close to tears. Isabeau is definitely crying, but staying way from him, so he couldn’t see.
A cry. A demon’s cry.
“Flynn… I’m… sorry… I forgot… what… you said…”
--- > Cycle 9
“Issachar,” he deadpans, “if you read a book, you’ll turn into a demon. And I’ll have to kill you.”
The boy cocks an eyebrow. “Are you alright, Flynn? Surely, you don’t actually believe demons exist, do you?”
Flynn gets up, resolve clear on his face. “If you see any books of ‘literature’, don’t read them.”
“Literature? What’s that?”
He shakes his head. “You’ll know. Just… don’t read it. I come with future knowledge, it will kill you.”
Issachar lets a small laugh. “Awww, Flynn, is the stress getting to you? It’s alright, man.”
“I can prove it.”
“Yeah?”
Flynn begins to walk straight into the Castle City.
“Only I will become a Samurai.”
Issachar suddenly froze.
“Flynn… Flynn, that’s not very nice… Flynn?”
He walks on, weaving through the streets as though he knew them like the back of his hand (which he did).
~
“Walter. A girl named Hikaru is actually Lucifer in disguise. She will rip you apart as a sacrifice to bring herself to full power, and then send demons flooding into Mikado. You do this voluntarily to bring complete freedom to the people.”
Walter stands still, staring at him.
“That’s… a very unique way to greet someone,” the blue Samurai answers, obviously not making much of the statement. Flynn forces himself off the bed, and marches out of the Barracks. “Hoy, wait up-”
Flynn walks with purpose, each step on the floor causing a tapping sound that resounds in his head. Walter tries to catch his attention, but he drowns his voice out with the need to get to everyone else now.
Walking straight into Navarre’s self-contained introduction, he talks to the green Samurai, tapping him on the shoulder.
“Yes, Casualry? What do you wa-”
“You will be trapped in a Demon’s Domain and driven insane in the 3rd Stratum of Naraku. What else happens, I’m not aware of.”
Everyone goes quiet.
“Jonathan,” he suddenly turns to the yellow Samurai, the image of his panic and hopelessness still stuck in his mind. “You’re going to martyr yourself and fuse with the four Archangels, one of which is under the disguise of Sister Gabby, and turn into Merkabah. You will try to destroy Tokyo, the land beneath Mikado.”
He blinks, mouth agape. “How… did you know my name?” Jonathan asks, not being able to muster anything else.
“Isabeau, if I side with Walter or Jonathan, you die. But if instead we decide to not side with the demons and angels and achieve an equilibrium of peace and freedom, then, you will live.”
“What?” She immediately says, not bothering to hide her confusion.
Walter side-eyes everyone, as if trying to join in their mutual puzzlement.
The five Samurai are filled with silence.
“…That’s utterly preposterous,” Navarre finally spits. No one else says it, but Flynn knows the others secretly agree.
~
“This is the Domain…?” Jonathan says, standing in front of the portal. “I say, it’s… exactly like you said, Flynn.”
Flynn nods, walking straight in.
“Hoy- don’t walk in so quickly!” Walter yells, to no one’s attention, as they all end up inside the Domain as the entrance seems to suck them in.
Isabeau steps forward. “So, if I am correct, you said that we’ll see a little girl and a man on a wheelchair in here as well?” Flynn nods yet again in reply, and he can already begin to feel his neck hurt from the constant movement.
“All your predictions have been… uncannily accurate. It seems you truly do hail from the future…” Jonathan muses, bracing himself for any demons. “But, does that mean that Navarre will go mad in here…?”
“Can’t say I feel sorry for him,” Walter contributes, slicing a nearby demon into pieces.
~
“…There’s more volumes of that manga, actually,” Flynn says. “In a store in Tokyo. At Ginza.”
Isabeau turns to Flynn in shock, before remembering his knowledge of the future. “Oh… so, do you know about the story of the manga?”
“Yes,” he begins, and then slowly smirks. “In the 10th volume, she suddenly begins to have second thoughts about the journey, and the male lead decides to make a decision she hates-”
“Tralalalala!” Isabeau suddenly yelps, recoiling from his words. “I’m afraid I can’t hear yoooou!”
Flynn chuckles to himself. “Don’t worry. I was joking. I never read it.”
Isabeau blinks. “I e-expected so,” she finally says, putting her Iron Maiden mask back on. “…Do you think we should tell the higher-ups about this… ability of yours soon?”
He shakes his head, staring off into the distance. Isabeau sighs, taking in the rooftop view.
“…Something is going to happen tonight.”
“What?”
“Kiccigiorgi will go up in flames.”
Isabeau’s eyes widen, and he almost thinks she’s going to drop the manga right off the roof. “W-what? But you said… that’s your hometown, isn’t it?”
Flynn nods.
“…Oh, you must have already taken precautionary measures. In which case-”
“I haven’t.”
This time, real shock is written all over her, and she stares at Flynn incredulously. “Every time I try to save it, it only gets worse. No matter how many times I go back… some things are meant to happen.”
Isabeau suddenly slaps him.
Flynn blinks.
“How could you even think like that?!” Isabeau yells, reprimanding Flynn. The sting on his face is certainly real and- ow, it hurts. “There are human lives out there… your family, your friends- how could you simply give up on them so casually?!”
“…”
“Are you… are you even human?!”
“Whoa, whoa. We knew you were both rendezvousing on the rooftop, but we didn’t expect a lover’s quarrel.”
Isabeau and Flynn both turn their heads and see Walter, with Jonathan close behind. “But… what you said. Can you repeat that? You’re saying Kiccigiorgi is going up in flames?”
“This is something that the officers must be alerted about,” Jonathan states, eyes unconsciously drifting towards Kiccigiorgi’s general direction. “After all, if that occurs… the friend of yours we met at Lake Mikado, he’ll be in danger as well.”
“You think I don’t know that?” Flynn says calmly.
Walter suddenly gasps, along with Jonathan, who rushes towards the rooftop edge. “Hoy, that’s- that’s not lights. That’s fire. It’s already started!”
(Everyone rushes down. Isabeau is visibly shaken. Flynn is reminded far too much about the time he fought her to the point of breaking her.)
~
“Lilith.”
“Oho, so you know who I am, boy?” The Black Samurai says, voice muffled under the Demonica. “Did you attend that Sabbath last week, then? I made it quite obvious, if I say so myself, but the people were simply so ignorant and starved of knowledge, they made no connection…”
The three Samurai companions barely even show their surprise by now, instead electing to reach for their blades. “She’s going to summon a Lilim Horde. They will use a charm spell. Jonathan, Walter, stay alert,” Flynn says, straight to the point.
“That's just cheating,” Lilith says, snapping her fingers. Flynn braces himself, wondering if a Lilim Horde will surface; but instead, a bright spark emits from the Demonica, temporarily filling their vision with white. In the split second that they were blinded, where her human form once stood stands a demon, tongue ajar and hands threatening.
Jonathan backs up, gripping his sword tighter. “So, you truly are a demon… I shall cut you down, and avenge the people of Kiccigiorgi!”
“Tough luck, boy.”
Lilith suddenly races forward, and Flynn realizes something horrifying.
They weren’t strong enough to fight her. Not at this point.
She reaches for Jonathan first, as he’s the first to raise his blade; ignoring the ice spells his demons casted, she lunged straight for him, fingers coiling around his neck.
Flynn’s eyes widen. He can see the confidence and trust in Jonathan’s eyes completely diminish, as his demons are trampled under her feet, and thorny fingers are pressed around his skin.
The yellow Samurai can only say one thing.
“…Flynn-”
Lilith yanks on his neck, silencing him for good, and letting the body drop straight onto the floor. Isabeau gasps and Walter just watches in shock, both turning to see Flynn, waiting, wishing, that he’d say something.
Instead, Lilith laughs and grabs Isabeau, swatting away her demons like flies and twisting her body as though she was a toy. Her screams are cut off and turn into gurgling, every snap! of her bones turning into a grotesque symphony. Tears pour from her eyes, fingers loose, sword dropping to the ground in defeat.
Walter still fights. When Lilith breaks Isabeau’s back and she slumps over, he roars unintelligible words in his rage, sword slashing her back and fire spells recklessly thrown in her face. The demon sighs, twisting her back and grabbing Walter with one of her arms, flinging him without a care towards the trees.
“You know too much. It takes out all the work you’ll have to endure… and that means that my plan most likely won’t work, either,” Lilith says, walking towards Flynn. He stands still, feet stuck to the ground, as though the ghosts of his friends were pulling his limbs down.
She reaches for him and cups his face, tongue moving towards him and smirk on what should be her lips.
“I reached into the corners of your friend’s mind, before I twisted his head off,” Lilith casually notes. “So… you say that whenever you die, you just end up back in the beginning?”
Flynn stares into Lilith’s eyes, refusing to show fear.
“How about this, then…” she suddenly sticks her tongue down his throat, and he gags.
“I’ll erase your memories. And then, we’ll get a fresh, new start. Hm?”
Suddenly, Flynn feels void of hope.
--- > Cycle 1(0)
“Hoy… hoy, wake up. If we’re not on our way soon, we’ll be late.”
Lake Mikado. The Rite was today, wasn’t it? And Issachar was waking him up…
Flynn opens his eyes slowly, and sighs.
…
If there’s one thing Flynn has to be thankful for, it’s that memory spells don’t seem to carry on into new cycles.
~
This time, Flynn is much more careful with his words; it’s best that they don’t know about his knowledge of the future, he concludes, and decides to act as he normally should.
Navarre’s sanity comes and goes; the day of relaxation drops by, and they casually pick up bread by the Baker’s shop before walking to Lake Mikado.
“How could you even think like that?!”
This time, he was going to try to change the future. It didn’t matter if fate decided to stop him again and again. He was going to save them.
“There are human lives out there… your family, your friends- how could you simply give up on them so casually?!”
He will save his family. He will save Issachar. It doesn’t matter how many times and how many loops he’ll have to go through.
“Oh…” Issachar greets them with a half-hearted smile, as usual.
~
Flynn walks up to Issachar as he’s about to leave.
“Issachar… I’m sorry you didn't become a Samurai.”
“It’s alright, Flynn. There’s no way you could’ve known something like that…” The irony could almost send Flynn reeling, but he keeps his calm. “Besides… I have something really interesting. The Black Samurai gave it to me- it’s a book about literature.”
“…Can I read it?”
Issachar’s face lights up instantly. “Of course, Flynn! You’re having a day off today, right…? If you don’t mind, then… can you accompany me halfway on the walk back?”
Flynn agrees immediately. Issachar takes out two books, smile bright on his face. “I’m only partly through the first one- it’s more of a prologue, really. The second book is much bigger and has a huge plot twist at the end, apparently! Here, let’s start at the beginning…”
~
“How could he do that to her…?! Victoria was only trying to help him… why, if he was real, I’d give him the beating of a lifetime!” Issachar’s face shows real anger, and he grips the page so tightly Flynn won’t be surprised if he rips it off entirely. “It’s… it’s just like the Luxurors and the Casualries. They freeload off of us, and without a second care, they just toss us aside… they’re even in two social castes, too! Why, I oughtta…!”
Flynn pats Issachar on the back. “Look here,” he suddenly points out, turning the pages back. “Victoria wanted to help him. But he couldn’t accept it, because he needed to learn for himself. Reginald had to chase her away, because in their society, any relationship between them could only end in tragedy.”
Issachar blinks, before turning his head down to the pages. “That makes a lot of sense, actually… but there wasn’t any need to punch her and yell!”
“She was lost in love. If he didn’t do that, she would only return, and she might’ve gotten killed by the guards out front,” Flynn explains. “He might not return the feelings, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t care for her. We’ll never really know, though.”
His friend flips to a new page. “I still don’t like what he did, though… but that makes lots of sense. Maybe later, we’ll see why he did what he did.”
Flynn nods.
“You know, you’re pretty good at this, Flynn!” Issachar notes, smiling. “When I show this to everyone else, I’ll have to think like you, too… not everything is black and white, huh? Hey, it’s getting darker…”
Issachar looks up at the sky, before gasping. “It’s already evening, and we didn’t even notice! You better hurry back, Flynn, or you’ll only be back to Mikado Castle when it’s dawn again!”
He pushed Flynn towards the direction of the castle, closing the book. “And, by the way… if you can, stop by one day, Flynn. Today was fun. Now get going! I’ll see you later!”
Flynn returns a smile at Issachar, before sprinting off into the distance.
~
“There you are, Flynn. I was thinking you wouldn’t come back,” Isabeau muses, standing outside the Barracks. “There’s been reports of demons outside Naraku nowadays… try not to stay out so late.”
“We had to go find Walter as well, so don’t feel singled out,” Jonathan adds. “He went to visit his family after going to Lake Mikado. By the time we found him, he’s fallen asleep in his own house, and we had to drag his sleepy figure to the castle…”
Flynn silently follows them into the Barracks, Isabeau carrying a small candle to light their way. “Honestly… some men never grow up,” she sighs.
“Don’t be like that, Isabeau. Us prentices should look out for each other.”
Jonathan opened the door to their room, only to be assaulted by Walter’s loud snoring. “Well… it’s far past our usual bedtime. Are you ready for bed, Flynn?”
Flynn nodded, taking off his jacket.
“Then, I shall see you all tomorrow,” Isabeau says, closing the door to their room. Her footsteps can be heard in the corridor temporarily until she reaches her own room, and Flynn can finally let his head hit the pillow with complete peace consuming him.
“Good-night, Master Flynn,” Burroughs said, before he drifted off.
Even if he still fails… he just needed to try again. As long as he had hope, he would keep on trying.
~
When he wakes up, it’s not to Walter telling them to go to the rooftop. The morning light is shining into the Barracks.
“Yaaawn… morning, Flynn,” Walter greets, with visible eyebags. Jonathan didn’t seem a lot better, even though it’s clear he’s splashed water onto his face.
“Walter managed to convince me last night to see what Isabeau was doing on the rooftop. We decided to not wake you up, seeing you were in deep sleep,” Jonathan explains, using his fingers to brush back his hair.
Walter chuckles a bit. “Turns out, she was reading this ‘manga’ thing. Then, for trying to sneak up on her, she made us promise to help her find more volumes of it… and stay up all night to read with her too.”
“Was there anything bad that happened last night?” Flynn asks vaguely, getting up (“Good morning, Master Flynn,” Burroughs greets).
Jonathan hums, then shook his head. “Nothing particularly negative, no.”
Flynn has never felt true elation until now.
“Whoa, Flynn. Did you have a good dream? There’s a huge smile on your face,” Walter points out. Then, he smirks. “Orrrr… was yesterday a good day? Jonathan said you were out late, too… did you find a nice chick to occupy your time?”
“W-Walter! Please refrain from asking such prurient questions!”
“Uhhh… what does ‘prurient’ mean?”
Suddenly, their Gauntlets began to flash at the same time.
“This is Commander Hope speaking,” their Gauntlets broadcast, the message ringing throughout the Barracks. “All Samurai are to report to Aquila State Plaza immediately. I repeat, all Samurai are to report to Aquila State Plaza immediately.”
Jonathan opens the door, looking out. “That sounds urgent. We should get going.”
“There’s a ton of ruckus I can hear outside, too,” Walter adds, swinging his jacket on and walking out briskly. Flynn follows them, heart suddenly sinking to his feet; without Kiccigiorgi going ablaze, than, what was this meeting for…?
They meant with Isabeau at the entrance of the Barracks, looking grim. “…Morning, everyone. It’s anything but good news, if you need to know.”
“What happened, Isabeau?” Jonathan inquires, and the girl turns to face Walter.
“Walter… did you enjoy your time with your family yesterday?”
Walter tilted his head, eyes squinting. “Uhhhh… yeah, duh? Why else would I end up fallin’ asleep there?”
“Then… hang on to that memory, and try not to let emotion dictate your actions,” Isabeau says forbiddingly. Then, she points towards the end of the Plaza, and begins walking to it.
Everyone follows, dread written on their faces. Isabeau stops at a good viewpoint, shoving through the masses of Samurai pouring out into the Castle City and the many rushing towards the horse ranches.
She points towards one of the Casualry Districts, the one that was closest to Mikado Castle. “Walter… isn’t that your home?”
Walter freezes.
The entire village is on fire.
Flynn takes a deep breath, trying to register what he was seeing. He then compared the fire to the one at Kiccigiorgi; it was… around ten times as large. He no longer considered Kiccigiorgi utter carnage; the close density, the spreading fire...
“DAMNATION!” He yells, fist slamming around the wall. “How could this be- why?! They were just fine, yesterday…!”
“Walter… I can’t imagine what you’re going through right now, but please, calm down…!”
“I’m going,” he declares. “I’m going there RIGHT NOW.”
“As I will.” Isabeau’s face is determined, and her tone demanding. “They need all the help they can get. We’ll have to leave immediately.”
Flynn bites his lip, unable to find a good time to ask a vital question.
~
The four of them rush towards the ranches, mount horses and immediately begin descending the hill, heading straight towards the blazing fire.
The four prentices are travelling relatively close together; Flynn and Walter in front, Jonathan and Isabeau behind. The endless clops of horseshoes colliding against the dirt was beginning to get to Flynn, and he takes a deep breath, before turning to his right.
“Walter…” Flynn suddenly begins, as the wind rushes past him as the horse gallops at full speed. “Did your village want to hold a Sabbath?”
Walter remains mostly silent, only grunting, as though he was trying to think. “Yeah… yeah, some younger kids wanted to hold a Sabbath early morning. Said the Black Samurai would visit at the time, too. So?”
Flynn lowers his head, focusing on the destination. “Let’s talk when we get there,” he evades, and Walter doesn’t seem to protest.
He resists the urge to scream, and let his frustration be trampled by the rhythmic gallops.
At that moment, Flynn learns that fate isn’t very picky; but what it hates most is being cheated.
“TO YOUR LEFT!” Jonathan suddenly yells, snapping Flynn out of his blur. He turns to the left, only to see a demon fast approaching, and he rushes to summon his demons as well.
Before he can even access his demon stock, Walter tosses his sword right at the demon, preventing it from reaching Flynn. “Shit… looks like I’m unarmed now,” he curses, before pressing on his Gauntlet to keep his demons at ready. “Stay alert, we’re in enemy territory now.”
Flynn is slightly disturbed by how smoothly Walter can call his home ‘enemy territory’.
“THERE’S AN ENTIRE HORDE COMING!” Isabeau howls, summoning her demons. “WE NEED TO ATTACK NOW!”
They get off their horses and rush forward, confident they can beat it; until they begin to attack, and they realize the horde isn’t alone.
The Samurai are in disarray; the hordes are rushing in waves, with one coming after the other. With every hit they’re allowed to make, one of Flynn’s demons go down, and he races to summon and counter as many attacks as possible.
Even tactics and experience cannot defeat pure and utter chaos.
Tetrakan, Makarakarn, Myriad Arrows, Deadly Wind- Flynn finds himself standing alone, his friends probably off fighting another swarm. He concentrates, then raises his arm to cast-
A demon strikes the back of his neck.
(He realizes his friends must have fallen, and his back was unguarded.)
--- > Cycle 11
This time, he decides that just talking to Issachar isn’t enough.
He wakes up again on the grass, the person he’s finally been able to save talking to him with the exact same words. Flynn gets up- he’s beginning to get rather used to waking up like this, completely renewed, though he can still recall the sickening froth of Tetanus Cut slicing his neck.
This was the… eleventh time, he thinks? Yes. It’s just another chance to make sure they all get out alive.
Feeling determined, he gets up and walks with Issachar to the Castle City.
~
“It’s already evening, and we didn’t even notice! You better hurry back, Flynn, or you’ll only be back to Mikado Castle when it’s dawn again!”
This time, Flynn shakes his head.
“I need to follow you back to Kiccigiorgi,” he deadpans. Issachar raises an eyebrow, closing the book in his hands.
“But you definitely won’t make it back in time, Flynn!”
He shrugs, and continues walking towards Kiccigiorgi. “Is the Black Samurai coming tonight?”
Issachar looks even more surprised. “Well… she does appear whenever most people are planning on holding a Sabbath. People say she has magic powers, but it’s most likely that she just has lots of messengers around. Her books are pretty popular now, so…”
“I want to meet her.”
“But you can’t just skip a day like that!” Issachar reasons, looking Flynn in the face. “What will they think?”
Flynn’s expression doesn’t change.
“I need to meet her. It’s my duty as a Samurai.”
“Why does your du-”
“Please, Issachar.”
“…Alright, alright. Then let’s start walking faster, or it’ll get dark!”
~
It’s a bit surreal, to attend the thing that’s supposed to kill your entire childhood.
He’s in a trance, most of the time; Issachar shares the book with all the children, adding his one opinions every now and then, and explaining the jokes that were no longer funny once explained.
Flynn only speaks every now and then, just to clarify the meaning of a word, or to redirect Issachar’s bias; there’s not much he has to do, though, because Issachar is fully aware of the two sides of the argument right now.
It’s so odd. It was so, so easy all this time.
After a while, when the fire is their only source of light and a yawn escapes from the children’s lips every now and then, she appears.
He doesn’t notice her, at first- she is a sneaky demon, after all. But when she sets her feet on a bunch of dried leaves, Flynn’s head turns abruptly, and he takes in her uniform.
It’s her.
“Well, well! That’s a very novel interpretation of it all. I have to say, the knowledge and wisdom you all possess is quite extensive already,” she says, in that sickeningly sweet human voice. “Shall I show you more, then? I’ve been meaning to hand out these books for some time.”
“Oh, it’s the Black Samurai!” Issachar hops up to her, greeting her enthusiastically. “That’s really nice of you. A lot of us are tired, though, but I’ll make sure to read through them!”
Flynn gets up, trying to hide his glare.
“Lilith.”
Issachar turns to Flynn, a confused look on his face. “Lilith? Oh, no, this is the Black Samurai! Her name isn’t Lilith.”
Lilith begins to chuckle, brushing past Issachar. “My, my… when did you figure out?”
“The Sabbath last week,” Flynn decided to claim, recalling the memory from loops before. “I figured it out.”
“Aren’t you a smart one, then?”
“Wait… what? Um, Black Samurai, what’s the meaning of-”
“Oh, there’s no need to call me by that long winded title now,” Lilith says. “After all, we’re all well-acquainted, aren’t we?”
Without warning, Lilith lets out a flash of light, transforming into her demon form. Issachar backs off from surprise, and the children attending the Sabbath begin to scream.
“Sorry. I won’t allow you to do this,” Flynn says, gripping his sword. “And I doubt you want to kill me either.”
“Hmmm? That’s a bold claim. What’s stopping me from doing that?” Lilith says, a taunting glare in her tone.
Flynn did not falter, staring her peacefully in the eye.
“I want to visit the Unclean Ones.”
Lilith let out a roaring laughter.
“Oh, this one is good! Very well, then. But, if you go all alone, it’s going to be a hard journey. I can see your uniform; why not bring your friends along, hm?”
Flynn decides to stay silent. Lilith simply laughs, and begins to fly.
“I’ll be taking my leave. I expect to see you, boy- or, I’ll resurrect and resurrect, and bring knowledge and wisdom to this land by myself.”
She flees the scene, and Flynn lets her go, knowing how the last encounter went.
Issachar stares at Flynn in abject horror.
He shrugs.
~
“Glory be to you, blessed Samurai,” Herald Gabriel Sister Gabby says, with her usual downward-cast expression and hands clasped together in an eternal prayer. (Merkabah puts his hands the same way, Flynn thinks.)
“No, no… it’s because of Flynn that we avoided any casualties,” Jonathan says, turning to him. “Still, though… how did you know?”
Flynn elected to not stay too silent, but at the same time, evade the truth. “I actually went to Kiccigiorgi to visit my family. However, the Black Samurai raised my suspicions, and the rest is history.”
“Well, I guess sometimes breakin’ the rules end up with pretty good results, huh?” Walter comments nonchalantly.
Isabeau rolls her eyes at his new attempt to excuse most of his actions, and turns back to Sister Gabby. “So, Sister Gabby… what is this message you wanted to send us?”
“The Black Samurai, or rather, Lilith, has fled into the lower stratums of Naraku. Our suspicions are that she is affliated with the Unclean Ones,” the fake human says calmly. “You are to enter the City of the Unclean and slay her for good.”
“The City of the Unclean?! And… slay her…?” Jonathan trails off a bit.
Walter whispers, indiscreetly, to Jonathan- “Psst. What are the Unclean Ones?”
Jonathan sighs and explains what it is to the Casualry, before Isabeau walks to Sister Gabby and actually agrees to the mission.
“She is a demon- and thus, we shall treat her as such. There is no special treatment for her, especially after her attempts to turn the people into demons.” Isabeau seems to have a question still lingering on her lips, but refrains from saying anything more. (Flynn wonders how he began to read Isabeau’s expressions.)
Walter decides to ask Isabeau’s question for her. “Wait, wait, so… we’re gonna have to violate the Samurai code AND waltz in there to kill a demon. The question is, for a mission like this… why us?”
“I would like to ask that as well,” the yellow Samurai adds.
Sister Gabby simply looks to Flynn to explain.
“…I convinced Lilith to not kill my village by displaying my interest in the City of the Unclean,” Flynn says. “I had to tell her that I would bring other Samurai into the City as well so we could decide whether we were to accept her views or stick to our own.”
“Waaait- so are you saying, you basically lassoed us into doing this?” Walter barks.
“…That sums it up,” Flynn deadpans.
Jonathan quickly gets in between them, before an argument starts. “Calm down, Walter! Flynn had no other option. Going to hunt Lilith now is better than having Kiccigiorgi devastated, don’t you think? Besides, we’re all bound to protect Mikado. It is our duty as Samurai.”
“…Doesn’t mean I like it any more,” the blue Samurai grumbles.
Isabeau eyes Naraku, walking past the group of men. “So, I doubt we want to let Flynn enter the City of the Unclean himself, right? Let’s get going.”
(Sister Gabby gives them an official document first, to allow them into the Fourth Stratum. Flynn can’t remember how many loops ago that he actually lived to walk into Tokyo.)
~
“You are a monster who threatened to reduce our countrymen to base demons! And I shall have your head for it!”
Again, Jonathan is the first to raise his sword. Flynn has to remind himself that they’re strong enough to fight now to refrain from hyperventilating.
He should attack right now, actually; attack without a care, and maybe, his friends would catch on and attack as well.
Lilith rattles on about the change of humans to demons, and as usual, the lawful Samurai shuts it all out of his head.
“I shall smite you now!”
“…Hold, Jonathan.”
He doesn’t want to attack that quickly, though. He’s amazed he could have withstood the process of being threatened by Lilith back in Kiccigiorgi- if the plan goes wrong, he’ll most likely accidentally kill someone, or get killed, and he doesn’t want it to hurt-
Flynn reaches into his coat, but not for his sword. He knows that if Walter is allowed to fall to the graces of Chaos, it wouldn’t bode well.
Walter rushes forward and blocks Jonathan’s blow; Flynn immediately pulls out a gun and summons all his demons.
Kill Lilith in one blow. Kill Lilith in one blow, and make sure she can’t tell them about the Hills in Roppongi. Kill Lilith in one. BLOW!
He needs to reassure himself in his head before he can yell out a command to his demons, and in that moment of reluctance-
“Myriad arrows!”
“TETRAKARN!”
Suddenly, the torrent of arrows Flynn’s demons shot is sent reflecting back. It’s a miracle, that only his demons were completely decimated in the process.
“I said stay. Your. Hand.” Flynn backs off, trying not to glare at Walter and sending the lifeless demons back to his stock.
Walter will definitely go to the Hills now. Even Isabeau holds him back, and if he tries that again he’ll most likely accidentally murder his friends.
Still, the situation was salvageable. They just had to make sure Walter and Jonathan didn’t bite each other’s heads off…
(He wakes up to Stephen, instead of Jonathan and Walter together. ‘The Expanse doesn’t work that way.’
The ceiling rises and Burroughs the Goddess of Tokyo smiles and thanks him. When he blinks and sees the desolate landscape turn into beautiful waters and sand, he blacks out.)
--- > Cycle 12
Saving Issachar wasn’t enough, then?
As disgruntled as he is to have to wake up on the shores of Lake Mikado again… that means it’s another chance to make things right.
“Hoy… hoy, wake up. If we’re not on our way soon, we’ll be late.”
Maybe this time, he won’t hesitate. Maybe he should kill Hikaru this time? But… he’ll have to kill Sister Gabby, too. There aren’t enough hands for that- he’s not sure if he can convince the people to not lynch him after he kills the Archangels, and he’s not sure if Hikaru will go down so easily to Isabeau, either.
Flynn forces himself out, sighing. They’re short of manpower, he’ll have to keep on planning if he wants to save them.
…
Unless…
~
“Flynn, I will not repeat myself. This area is out of bounds of your training exercise. Turn. Back.”
The white Samurai paid no mind, transgressing into the Third Stratum. He was already armed with Agi, and Lady Pele was giggling with enthusiasm. The entrance to the Domain stood in front of him- now, when he enters, at least the panicked messages from all his friends would cease.
Hopping into the Domain, he walks around with ease, slicing through Birdman and seeing the little girl (or Goddess of Tokyo) rush past here and there. Stephen offers healing, and he quirks an eyebrow too, asking, “Now, where are your friends?”
Alraune is easy to kill- she whines while he battles her, saying, “Ooooh, I haven’t even KILLED anyone yet!”
The domain fades away; Flynn pops his shoulders and fingers, before turning around and heading for the exit. However, when he begins to walk, he meets face-to-face with his friends.
“Flynn! Oh, thank goodness you’re alright,” Jonathan says. “Commander Hope said you passed the area for the training exercise right after it was completed instead of leaving.”
Isabeau stares at the wall. “How odd… we were debating on entering, but it disappeared, only to leave you standing where it was. Exactly what was that thing?”
“Hey! I know you like a challenge, but that probably gave the old man a heart attack,” Walter adds on. “Anyway, let’s get headed back up.”
“Hmph! Obviously, only a Casualry would require a huge rescue operation the moment he steps into Naraku. I’m betting you didn’t even mean to come here, and wandered in completely lost.”
Oh, yeah. The person he was supposed to save.
Navarre huffs when Isabeau tells him to keep quiet, and hides behind Jonathan when Walter threatens to rip him to pieces.
“By the way… I didn’t ask in the panic of the situation, but, who did win the exercise?”
Flynn takes out a woman’s ring, expression still stoic.
Everyone just stares.
~
“All the rumors can’t be true,” Navarre spits, folding his arms. “There’s no way a mere Casualry could have stared down a demon such as Lilith without getting himself killed from foolishness!”
Flynn hates to admit it, but Navarre was half-right. (The last expressions they all gave him still breaks his heart.)
“It is most definitely true, given the testimonies of those in Kiccigiorgi, coupled with the sightings of the Black Samurai and Lilith,” Isabeau says matter-of-factly, basically telling Navarre to shut up. He yelps and does so, before Walter could properly shut him up himself.
Sister Gabby continued on about the mission. Flynn suddenly thinks about how Navarre completely disappeared from their lives, and they paid no heed; did he have simply that little of a presence?
~
“So, this is the City of the Unclean…” Walter looks up, staring at the towering buildings.
Flynn expects Navarre to scoff, but instead, he simply looks around in fear. “There are d-demons everywhere… out in the streets! It’s like this entire place is Naraku!”
“From the heights, I mistook this place for beautiful… now, it’s simply dreary.” The red Samurai frowns, looking around.
“We have a job here- to find and kill Lilith,” Jonathan reminds everyone, and their Gauntlets buzz with a quest to find the Counter-Demon Base.
~
At the Ueno Bar, after complaining about practically everything, Navarre insists on a rematch for the Challenge Quests.
Everyone ignores him.
“All of you are obviously simply too frightened to challenge me,” Navarre manages to convince himself. Walter had grown tired of trying to shut him up through physical means, and they’ve evolved to ignoring him most of the time.
Sometimes, Flynn wonders if he really did make the right choice.
(Everyone has good in them. But Navarre is thoroughly convincing him that sometimes, this good is never meant to see the light of day.)
“Whatever. I shall take a humble quest to deliver film to someone. Now, let’s see…” the white Samurai would never cease being baffled by Navarre’s need to announce to everyone exactly what he was going to do next. He takes the quest, and walks off to the Ashura-Kai shop, while the others pick up their own.
Flynn decides that he should tail Navarre (discreetly). If he dies, they’ve all endured him for naught.
~
“Great. Last picture of the day, and you COMPLETELY photobombed it.”
“Well, that’s no way you should address me! I even brought you more film, Unclean One!”
“Unclean one? That’s a weird insult. But… you brought more camera film? Huh…”
Nozomi (that was her name, right?) walks over to Navarre, close to where Flynn is hiding. He fears the possibility she might see him, but she keeps her eyes on Navarre, and her eyes squint.
“…What do you want?”
“Well, the film, for one.”
Navarre shoves the film at her.
“Oi! Don’t be so rough with it,” she barks, before stuffing it in her pants just as harshly. “Anyway… are you completely OK?”
The green Samurai cocks an eyebrow in confusion. Flynn does too.
“What are you getting at, Unclean One?”
“Firstly, name’s Nozomi. Not Unclean One,” she says, sighing. “And secondly, I know a stage face when I see one. I trained to be an actress before the whole demon pizazz made me a hunter, ya know.”
Navarre backs up, as though he was physically attacked. “S-stage face? My, I don’t know what you’re talking about…”
“All talk and no power to back it up won’t get you anywhere here.” Nozomi yawns, pinching Navarre on the nose.
“Get your hands off me, Unclean One…!”
“Nozomi.”
“Nozomi… Nozomi, get your hand off my face, it’s starting to hurt…”
The female hunter backs off, smirk on her face. “That was a real expression. Now start showing it more often. Your fake pride is really starting to piss me off.”
“Why should I listen to you?!” Navarre retorts. “I’m the victim… always have been ever since the Gauntlet chose me to become a Samurai…!”
“I have no idea what you’re yapping about, but it’s genuine, so whatever,” Nozomi shoves a device into Navarre’s hands. “This is a digital camera. I gotta give you some thanks for bringing the film to me, right? Just press the button on top, and you can take a picture.”
Navarre looks at the thing resting in his hands. He raises his head, and Flynn expects him to throw the camera at Nozomi, or something equally painful.
Instead, he simply gapes.
“Why… why are you being so kind to me?”
“Eh? Well, why not?” Nozomi laughs, opening the door of the shrine. “You act like a jerk, but I doubt you’d actually have the balls to hurt anyone. And anyway, if I’m not kind, I’m just as bad as the demons I’m supposed to kill.”
She leaves him staring, holding the camera.
Navarre brings it to his eyes, and takes a picture of the door left ajar.
~
The green Samurai begins to stop making unnecessary comments.
Isabeau seems to have noticed first, but says nothing about it. Flynn realizes what he thought was true; Navarre’s impact on everyone was little more than an inconvenient fly.
(He feels bad for him. A bit.)
Navarre takes up his time by picking out very specific Challenge Quests, for an odd reason; most likely photography, and he tries to avoid anything that seems overly arduous. Due to his other friends, Flynn doesn’t have time to babysit Navarre; though- he seems to be holding up rather well.
When Navarre suddenly takes a quest called ‘Samurai and Hunters United’, Flynn worries a bit about the fact he could very possibly die, but stalking someone once is already taxing on you.
(He actually returns alive. Navarre goes out a few more times, but stops suddenly after a quest in Shinjuku. He mutters something akin to ‘Lady Danu’ before dissolving into the background again.)
~
“Wake up… please, why won’t you wake up?”
The familiar voice of a girl.
“We can’t stay here for long. Our best bet is to bring him to Mikado immediately…”
And another of someone else.
Flynn forces his eyes open, and Isabeau smiles first. “Thank God… I have been searching far and wide for you, where have you been?”
“You, Walter and Jonathan have been missing ever since we split paths… we almost thought you were all dead,” Navarre adds, standing nearby.
Most likely because of Navarre’s added presence, Isabeau forces herself not to cry openly. “You see, the angels and demons are-”
“I know.”
Flynn’s monotone declaration shocks both Navarre and Isabeau.
“Navarre, Isabeau, you have to hurry to Camp Ichigaya. If not, Walter is going to die.”
~
Isabeau was definitely sketchy about the idea of Flynn facing the Four Archangels alone. But he knew it wasn’t completely impossible; he’s done it before, hasn’t he?
Hopping out of the Terminal, he has no time to greet his old friends as he races to Shene Deque. If he remembers correctly, Jonathan will be deliberating with himself before he accepts the closure of death.
The memory of honeycomb walls surrounding them in light- Flynn rushes into the Holy Ground with that memory.
He can clearly hear their voices as he stands outside- yes, they haven’t fused yet.
“Why art thou here?” It is a lower, more angry voice; Uriel. “I shall deal with him. Should we be ambushed during fusion, it would spell doom.”
“Who’s here?” Flynn grips his sword tighter- that’s Jonathan’s voice.
The Archangels refrain from answering, and instead, Uriel materializes in front of Flynn, sword gritted in between his teeth.
For all his bravado about peace and cleansing, he goes down after one very good hit of Deadly Wind.
Gabriel is the first to react; she gasps as Uriel falls, before Raphael steps forward to survey the damage. “Thou art a fool, to have picked a fight with us… you shall not foil our plans; Uriel shall only return, and you will fall!”
“Flynn?” Jonathan’s eyes widen, and Flynn can feel his confusion and betrayal. “What are you doing?! They are the Angels of this land…!”
“Gabriel, you must go forth and inform the people of this blasphemy. I shall keep the Chosen Son of Man safe,” Michael commands. Gabriel hesitates, before nodding and flying out of the cocoon, towards Mikado Castle.
Flynn feels anger boil in him; so, since they know they will fall to him, they are going to enrage the people who they know he will never slay?
“Jonathan, they are blindly trying to cause genocide and destroy freedom,” Flynn says, summoning new demons. “Law on its own is tyranny.”
“Pay no heed to his nonsense!” Raphael declares, striking Flynn. He backs off, casts Mediaharan, and his demons make quick work of the Archangel.
Casting the shell of a body aside, Flynn stares straight at Michael, as the leader of the Archangels stares back.
“Your eyes are that of peace… you are chosen by the Lord. Why, then, do you choose to defy us?”
“I don’t know about the Lord. But this isn’t the will of the people,” Flynn explains, and Jonathan steps forward, as if he wants to retort- before Michael pushes him back.
Flynn’s demons are itching for a fight, and he himself is gathering cold air in his palms. “You are horribly disillusioned by the demons. For the sake of the people, I shall destroy you, and bring forth the New Millennium!”
~
Jonathan watches in horror as Michael breaks into pieces.
~
“Flynn… how could you… they…”
“They told you they were going to annihilate Tokyo. And you didn’t like it,” Flynn deadpans, walking out of Shene Deque. “Their talk of the resurrection of the Demon Lord has been averted. Isabeau and Navarre have stopped Walter- Burroughs told me while I was fighting Michael.”
Jonathan blinks, as Flynn grabs his arm and forces him to run. “Wait, how did you know-”
“I’ve lived through this many times. This is my… twelfth time, if I remember correctly,” he says, rushing through the fields.
“That… that is quite a lot to take in. I find this hard to believe, but…”
“I can prove it. Later. Now, we need to save the world,” he claims, as a strange noise reaches his ears. It’s vastly different from the eerie silence of the place; almost like… fighting.
Oh. Gabriel.
“There! This is the heathen I speak of,” Gabriel declares, and Flynn can see masses of people behind her. “He is adamant on leading the Chosen Son of Man astray!”
Jonathan leans forward, wanting to yell; but again, the words fail to leave his lips, as his eyes noticed the hordes of people- infuriated people. “Flynn…”
“I’ve never been in this situation before.”
A real look of fear is planted on both their faces as Jonathan turns back.
“The heathen claims to be fighting for the people. He shall not hurt you- therefore, you may be free to capture him.”
“Herald Gabriel, you don’t understand!” Jonathan exclaims, hand on his Gauntlet. “This really is for the good of the people! Destroying the entirety of Tokyo… there must be another way!”
“You can see it now!” Gabriel chides, brushing away Jonathan’s words. “He has lost himself to the heathen’s power. If we are to bring forth a peaceful millennium, they both must be contained!”
The crowd roared unintelligible words, clashing with each other; but it’s clear enough, that they’re against them.
“Please, stop.”
A rather familiar voice reaches Flynn’s ears. It’s faint, and he can barely hear it, but-
“Issachar?”
The Kiccigiorgi boy stands in front of the crowd, Herald Gabriel right behind him. He fails to falter, staring down everyone who still continues to howl.
“Do you not remember? This ‘heathen’ is the same person who saved us from Lilith! To say that he is here only to bring chaos and make us fall under demonic influence is preposterous!”
“You have been brainwashed as well, child,” Gabriel booms, floating up to him. “Throw away the old memories of friendship. He is all but gone.”
“You all do not understand! Flynn is my best friend- and he has showed me that the temptations of demons and the forceful will of God are both two extremes!” Issachar declares, ignoring Herald Gabriel’s words. “Each extreme is terrible in its own way. Complete freedom will be lawless and overrun, but with complete peace, no one will ever be truly happy! We have to live with a balance of the two factors-”
Herald Gabriel cuts him off, with a beastly, absolutely inhuman chiming ring. “The taint of the Unclean Ones is too much on you! To ensure God’s will, I shalt smite you now!”
“NO!”
Jonathan rushes forward, casting a Makarakarn on Issachar as he screams. Flynn immediately sends a Thunder Reign right into Gabriel’s back, making sure the Hailstorm of God she cast upon Issachar would cease before the crowd was hurt.
Suddenly, everyone goes silent, ice at their feet and an enraged Archangel shuddering from her wounds.
“…She almost attacked us,” someone in the crowd begins.
“People of the East Kingdom of Mikado! Heed my words,” Issachar continues to speak, taking his chance. “We cannot blindly follow the Angels or the Demons!”
“This is profanity and sacrilege of the highest form!” Gabriel howls, and Flynn casts another Thunder Reign to keep her down.
The people begin to rouse yet once more, but not against Flynn; the cheers were directed to him. “I trust that my friend, Flynn, can bring peace and freedom to us all!”
“As do I.”
A female voice emerged from the crowd, walking right up to Issachar. “Phew… who would’ve thought, that Hikaru was Lucifer herself? I see you almost got yourself in quite the pickle too, Flynn, Jonathan.”
“Isabeau!” Jonathan’s face finally held a smile, greeting his friend. “Thank goodness you’re alright!”
“That fight was quite intense… and dirty,” Navarre whines, brushing a messy clump of hair out of the way of his face. “But, I suppose I am glad you all are safe.”
Walter follows behind him, though, he doesn’t have anything to say. He simply looks at Flynn, then Jonathan, then turns away silently.
“Oh, yes! Flynn, I told Fujiwara and Skins about your relation with Masakado,” Isabeau confirms, turning to face the crowds of people. “We shall take over from here. Meet with them in Café Florida, they have much to discuss with you!”
Flynn nods, but knows there’s something else he has to say.
He walks up to Issachar, who’s kept silent since the other Samurai arrived.
“Thank you, Issachar. For everything.”
“…Oh, come on, Flynn. Don’t get all sentimental now, you still have a job to do,” Issachar says, though the prideful smile on his face shows that he appreciated it. “Now go! Prove to the world that you’re a magnificent Samurai!”
Flynn didn’t need to be told twice.
~
“Honestly… Tokyo has a really odd smell to it,” Issachar says, looking up at the ceiling.
“That’s everyone!” Isabeau sighs with relief, wiping the sweat off her brow. “Now, we can get on with it.”
Masakado stands in front of them- while he doesn’t have any noticeable expressions, they can tell he’s obviously pleased. “Well done, my friends… now, hand the Great Spirit of Spite and the Great Spirit of Goodwill to me.”
Jonathan gingerly holds the Great Spirit of Goodwill, passing it over to Masakado carefully. “It appeared to me right after we finished evacuating everyone to Tokyo. This is what you require, yes?”
The blue Samurai, loftily holding the Great Spirit of Spite, hands it over in a more uncouth way. “This… appeared to me then, too.”
“Is that everything, then? Goodness gracious, we can finally have this grueling ordeal over with,” Navarre says, eyeing Café Florida. “I’ve been aching for a good’s night rest since… since I became a Samurai, even. I’m honestly weary of all these demons.”
“I share those sentiments, Navarre,” Isabeau says, watching as Masakado harnesses the energy from the two Great Spirits.
Issachar stands next to Flynn, looking rather nervous about starting a conversation with anyone else. “Huh… I feel pretty out of place, since you all are Samurai, and I’m just… me.”
“Now, that’s not a good way of thinking, Issachar,” the yellow Samurai reassures, patting Issachar’s back. “You have shown bravery and loyalty many cannot even dream of reaching. Without you, this could not have been possible.”
“Thanks… I never thought a Luxuror would be telling me something like that,” Issachar says, the sides of his lips twitching upwards.
Masakado suddenly shone with bright light, overwhelming everyone’s vision. They brought their arms out to their faces, blocking the glare, and barely witnessing the ferocious beam slam against the ceiling-
“I just wanted to say!” Walter suddenly yells, over the blast of power. “I’m sorry for what I caused!”
“IT’S ALRIGHT, WALTER!” Isabeau and Jonathan reply in turn, their volume even louder than the chaotic Samurai.
The light washes over Flynn, and he sees the vision of Burroughs the Goddess of Tokyo smile and turn the desolate landscape into a beach.
Flynn is very, very reluctant to blink; and dreading the moment she smiles and says ‘thanks’. He takes a deep breath, preparing to wake up at the shores of Lake Mikado again; if he’s done something wrong, he can only face it later-
“…Thanks.”
~
He blinks.
His friends are still there.
His friends are still there.
“My, I wonder how long it’s been since Tokyo has seen the light of day…” Jonathan squints, seeing the sun wash over the buildings.
Navarre lets out a deep sigh, taking off his scarf. “Just five seconds under the harsh sun and I can notice the affects… I really have overworked myself.”
“Hoy, guys. I heard that the place up front has pretty good grub! We should get a break, shouldn’t we?” Walter offers, a smirk finally returning to his face.
“I think I’ll excuse myself from that expedition. I yearn for a warm shower right now,” Isabeau says frankly, smiling warmly.
Issachar takes Flynn’s arm, much like the times when they were children. “Well, I’d be glad to try out some of Tokyo’s food. How about you, Flynn?”
He stares at everyone’s shining faces, and smiles himself.
“Let’s go, then,” Flynn replies.
“Race ya!”
“It’s on, Walter!” Issachar declares, running off into the new world with Flynn close behind.
(The shores of Lake Mikado have crumbled, and the sun doesn’t seem to be giving up on Tokyo anytime soon.)