Vol 2 Chapter 1.4 (1/2)

“Lezirth.”

Someone called for my name. A gentle breath and flowy hair brushed my face. I slowly opened my eyes.

A girl with blue hair was gazing down upon me.

Her eyes glittered with a mysterious light as she looked at me, standing beside my head. Her blue hair draped on my body as if it were a curtain.

“Hmm?”

I became curious at the unfamiliar sight to behold. Was I dreaming? Or was I completely drunk?

The girl raised her arm and pointed to our side.

“Here, Lezirth. I prepared this for you. Look.”

And suddenly, all surroundings disappeared. Gravity was gone, too, and I was floating about in empty s.p.a.ce.

“Wha-?!”

I steadied my posture and looked to my side. The girl was there, holding my hand. In the cold, vacant s.p.a.ce, I could feel nothing but the warmth from her hand.

What exactly was she?

“Look over there, Lezirth.”

Where she pointed, colourful lights flashed everywhere.There was a battle happening in open s.p.a.ce. Destroyer-cla.s.s s.h.i.+ps fired their cannons with blinding flames, and quantum energy torpedoes exploded into bright lights. Many Alter-Armours mingled together into firefights and melee combat, and both sides were similarly equipped.

“The Federation and the Alliance?” I asked myself.

Suddenly, familiar shapes emerged from the clouds of Federation fleet. Kis.h.i.+n-cla.s.s. The King of the North Star, Swan Grace, and Ladyhawk emerged. They stormed through the battlefield with speed unparalleled by the Alter-Armours, intending to quickly eradicate their opposition. Every time, however, one Alter-Armour got in their way.

One Kis.h.i.+n-cla.s.s Alter-Armour, adorned with the golden light of dawn itself, was matched evenly against three of the Federation’s Kis.h.i.+ns.

“Dawnbringer?!”

I was utterly astonished. It wasn’t possible. Dawnbringer was destroyed and its parts were handed over to the Alliance, and I had heard that they hacked it apart to transfer its pieces of the Alter Core to various Kis.h.i.+ns.

Then what was that thing?

---Stand down, or be destroyed!

Kis.h.i.+n Dawnbringer (or something that looked like it) echoed its voice of power across s.p.a.ce. Not only did the fleets become affected by it, I was able to clearly hear it from extremely afar. That voice… It was like Dawnbringer’s, yet different at the same time.

“Maybe it isn’t Dawnbringer? But they look the same!”

While I pondered on that question, the Dawnbringer-like Kis.h.i.+n armed itself with an Alter-Armour-use combat knife. Its shape was mostly that of a standard military issue knife, but its blade was adorned with a white painting of a man in the style of a Native painting. That picture, depicting a man standing at the top of a hill, was definitely familiar.

“Onondaga?!”

If Colorado was the one-in-a-billion blade for human use, Onondaga was the one-in-a-billion blade for the Alter-Armours. If it needed the blade… could it be?

And suddenly, Onondaga began changing its form.

Radiating a silver light, the blade transformed into a giant stream of pure energy. The Sacred Sword… it was Dawnbringer’s signature weapon. By resynthesizing the blade’s material into nanoscopic scales, it was possible to use the blade for many purposes. Using electron degeneracy pressure, the blade could be used to split apart any materials. It could also cut down any enemies that try to escape into the hypers.p.a.ce, as if it were doing a quantum leap. Matter itself could be turned into antimatter to cause a huge blast of energy. The weapon was a G.o.d’s tool, capable of replicating G.o.dlike powers.

--Kis.h.i.+n Arts! Lion’s Roar!

Two eyes that sat on its shoulders, much like Dawnbringer, fired a blast of EMP. The pulse swept over the Federation fleet and its Alter-Armours.

--Ascend! Anguish of the Lion King!

And again, a dense storm of electromagnetic pulse swirled over the s.p.a.ce previously swept over by Lion’s Roar. That was enough to destroy most of the fleet, and the Alter-Armours fell apart helplessly in the storm.

But wait, if he brought out the Sacred Sword and chained the Lion’s Roar into the Anguish of the Lion King…

The machine that was different from Dawnbringer, but could not be seen as anything else, lifted its left hand to reveal a black storm while readying the Sacred Sword with its right hand. When the black storm met with the dense hurricane of electromagnetic pulse, every object within it began collapsing into the center of the cloud.

--Kis.h.i.+n Arts! Dark Spiral!

Oh, no!

“No! Everyone, run!”

I screamed into the open s.p.a.ce. But no one could hear me speak. I knew that my body was not actually there. I must have been seeing a vision! But I… definitely knew the things to come next.

--Ascend! Ultimate Kis.h.i.+n Technique!

The Kis.h.i.+n that resembled Dawnbringer swung the Sacred Sword and cut the black storm. The quantised Sacred Sword slashed through the black area and transformed all particles in its way. The Kis.h.i.+n danced and repeatedly slashed.

I became afraid.

“Is he actually considering using Sole Power of Heaven and Earth on human beings?!”

That Kis.h.i.+n was just about to use Dawnbringer’s Ultimate Kis.h.i.+n Technique, ‘Sole Power of Heaven and Earth’!

It had an overwhelmingly great power, but it was difficult to use as it had to be built up using Dawnbringer’s other abilities before activation. Importantly, not only was it difficult to use, but its power was complete overkill in most situations. It was powerful enough to destroy an entire planet from five hundred light years away, so its procedure was well worth it.

I had believed that I was the only one capable of using it. Who else could be capable of using it?

The subconscious of the Alter-Armours detested the destruction of planets. One week ago, back when Tenseron was controlling Diablo in the Azoran System, Diablo refused to destroy planets despite having gone berserk from Dawnbringer’s Alter Core. Dawnbringer, and that Dawnbringer-like Kis.h.i.+n, too, could not have desired to destroy a planet.

And yet the pilot of that Kis.h.i.+n wielded that power. Aimed at humans, no less.

[Disappear, dogs of the Federation! Be grateful that your useless souls and bodies will be used to s.h.i.+ne a light in this galaxy!]

The Kis.h.i.+n’s pilot used the communication link to sentence death to the Federation fleet. And then…

Dawnbringer’s final ability, Sole Power of Heaven and Earth activated.

First, a huge blast of energy exploded outward. Objects caught within boiled up from the electromagnetic pulse. They smashed inward from the gravitational field created by the Dark Spiral, and finally the Sacred Sword reversed the spin of their elementary particles. As the spin reversed and yet their ma.s.s was preserved, they became antimatter that annihilates one another when in contact with other matter. And soon, the reaction of antimatter and matter caused violent explosions.

At the same time, the sudden increase of gravity toward the center of the fleet did not let the waves of energy escape. The extreme gravity from the black hole consumed the explosions. Not even light escaped the grasp of the collapsing void at the center.

And thus the area became pitch black.

Yet the process so far had only created a black hole. It was only the beginning of the Sole Power of Heaven and Earth.

The Sacred Sword arced forward, aimed at the black hole.

--Limits of Infinity! Detonate!

Suddenly, the sphere of complete darkness began tearing apart. Energy that was not yet pulled into the center of the black hole struggled to break free. It was such a powerful force that the central ma.s.s in the black hole became unstable. Soon, the ma.s.s broke apart and released two lines of gamma-ray burst. It was forming a supernova.

If a nova is an explosion that evenly sprays a star’s energy and ma.s.s into s.p.a.ce, a supernova is on a much greater scale that squeezes all energy out of a star. Rather than simply exploding, the constricting force of a black hole radiated forces that were several times faster and more powerful.

Consider black powder, which was used to fire old rifles such as the musket. When burnt in open s.p.a.ce, small amounts of black powder were barely enough to harm a human being. However, when used in a gun to focus its power to propel a single bullet, its force was enough to pierce and kill a human.

Dawnbringer’s Ultimate Kis.h.i.+n Technique, Sole Power of Heaven and Earth was exactly like that.

Even the initial explosion was extremely powerful, as it was a reaction between antimatter and matter. On top of that, a black hole was placed within to collapse and focus the exploding energy into an area. Next, the pressurized energy simultaneously escaped from two points, causing an effect similar to a gamma-ray burst of a supernova. Any materials caught in the explosion underwent nuclear fusion and formed elements heavier than iron or nickel. Plasma iridium, osmium, uranium, and other elements expanded outward in near-lightspeed, accompanied with a violent electromagnetic storm.

As soon as the Federation fleet touched the aftermath of the gamma-ray burst, they disappeared without a trace. Humongous cruisers, carriers, everything melted down instantaneously, and so did any Alter-Armours that could not escape in time.

The power of the gamma-ray burst was focused enough to effectively annihilate anything within five hundred light years of range. Planets were no exception, and naturally there was no human technology that could withstand its might.

The Kis.h.i.+ns of the Federation managed to avoid the blast on time, but they were nonetheless in awe of the horror that happened before them.

An Alter-Armour that can create an artificial supernova! There was only one Kis.h.i.+n that fit such a description.

[Kis.h.i.+n Dawnbringer!]

[This cannot be! Aaaaaaaargh!]

One strike, and already forty percent of the fleet melted into nothingness. The rest of the fleet couldn’t have been safe either, despite avoiding a direct hit of the gamma-ray burst.

Not even the Letix s.p.a.celoaders, which were several times hardier than the most powerful human battles.h.i.+ps-- due to their composition being a hundred percent Letix cells, as opposed to partial like human s.h.i.+ps-- could withstand the might of the Sole Power of Heaven and Earth.

[W-we must retreat!]

[Not a chance! If that really is Dawnbringer, then it has to go into a sleep state after using the Ultimate Kis.h.i.+n Technique! Now’s our chance to defeat it!] The pilot of The King of the North Star led the other Kis.h.i.+ns forward, attacking the Kis.h.i.+n that used the Sole Power of Heaven and Earth.

--*Gwooo-!*

As expected, the Kis.h.i.+n that resembled Dawnbringer went offline, having spent all of its energy. The golden light that radiated from within slowly dimmed, and the armour’s plating faded in colour. Not even Kis.h.i.+n Dawnbringer could safely wield the power of the Sole Power of Heaven and Earth; Dawn Corps had to keep a dedicated retrieval team for cases like these.

But there was no response from the Alliance. Other Kis.h.i.+ns, like Diablo and Omerta, merely watched on. Was it because they were not familiar with Dawnbringer’s operation? No… that was not it. They simply did not need to defend the Kis.h.i.+n that resembled Dawnbringer.

-*Cra-ack!*

The armour began changing colour. At the same time, chitinous plating formed on top the armour, and the Kis.h.i.+n that had resembled Dawnbringer began transforming into something else entirely. It suddenly grew a black wing. It enveloped around the Kis.h.i.+n with its grey feathers, and its transformation continued within.

Soon, the Kis.h.i.+n was replaced by the black winged, feminine Kis.h.i.+n, Tetragrammaton.

[N-no way!]

The Federation communication link was flooded with screams, sighs, and curses.

“Wh-what?! What is going on?!” I turned to the blue-haired girl.

She silently watched me as if my reaction had interested her, while combing down her overly long blue hair with her fingers. Her eyes were devoid of any emotion other than curiosity-- her eyes were that of a newborn puppy or duckling, attempting to understand what they were seeing. I briefly took refuge in them, away from the tragedy that went ahead.

But that was only temporary. How could I ignore it? At that moment, Dawnbringer--, no, that thing that had looked like Dawnbringer took away the lives of hundreds of thousands of people.

“What’s different this time? Lezirth-- you used that same ability on the Letix whenever you could. Why are you sad about this?”

“Th-that’s true, but...”

“Letix and humans are different? Is that what you’re trying to say?”

“I won’t pretend that I’m a philanthropist for all living beings. But this is…”

Before I could finish my reply, the girl raised her arms and caressed my face. The warmth from her hands spread onto my face and restored energy to my body.

“I’m sorry, Lezirth. I thought you’d like it.”

“What?”

“Sorry. It’s time, now.”

“No, w-wait!”

As I panicked, my consciousness drifted away once more.

My eyes jolted open in surprise.

I saw the ceiling of my hotel room.

W-what? It was a dream? Was it another one of those endings that go ‘It was all a dream~!’?

But that came to me as a relief. What a terrible nightmare! The Alliance had a Kis.h.i.+n that was Dawnbringer and then Tetragrammaton, and it used the Sole Power of Heaven and Earth to destroy forty percent of the Federation fleet? What a stupid nightmare! But, that was a relief; it was just a nightmare. Yep. Something like that has to be a nothing but a dream. Thinking about it in retrospect, nothing about that dream seemed realistic.

I sighed. What did I do to deserve having such a stupid dream? Did I really get that disappointed at the Federation?

‘Because they erased my history and disbanded the Dawn Corps? But whoever was responsible for all of that couldn’t still be alive… and back then, I…”

I wasn’t happy at all.

So… really, I should have forgotten all about it, and I should have focused on relaxing as much as possible for my vacation.

And with that thought I tried to get up, then felt a gentle breath blowing on my cheeks. I realized that my arms seemed to be stuck underneath something.

I turned my head to my side and saw Sergeant Aroha, asleep right on top of my arm. Well, being ‘on top of my arm’ was a bit of a misnomer. My arm was wrapped around her thin waist… So, I suppose I was hugging her in my sleep, in a way.

“Mmh…”

Someone else rustled around and wrapped her arms around my waist. I turned around to look at my other side… and Ensign Meihowa was there, hugging me and using my chest as her pillow.

“.....................................”

Okay, I take it back. It was actually a ‘dream-in-a-dream’ ending, huh? Or a beginning of a new nightmare?

I’d like to say first that I am mostly incapable of being drunk enough to fall unconscious. My body could withstand more than thirty G in a centrifuge machine, even without using any of my psionic powers. If my arms and legs were to be cut off by any means, they could grow back with enough medical attention and nutritions.

I could not have possibly lost my mind due to alcohol.

Other drugs? Just as unlikely. The reason for my psionic powers came from my body’s resistance to anaesthetic chemicals in the first place. After much effort to take away consciousness and pain from my body, I had stumbled upon my own psionic powers.

Then, the last probable reason was that blue-haired girl, but… doesn’t that mean I’m going crazy?

I got slightly afraid of that thought.

Honestly, though, the scariest part was this situation where I had found myself.

… I didn’t do anything bad to this position, I hoped.

I checked that Sergeant Aroha was sleeping once again. She was wearing nothing but her tank top and lace lingerie, breathing down on my cheeks with a heavy smell of alcohol. And even that felt nice, combined with her nice scent. Wasn’t there a study that said liking someone’s scent had to do with s.e.xual attraction to them?

“Mmh.”

Sergeant Aroha’s b.r.e.a.s.t.s rippled as she wriggled around in her sleep.

Whoa, this bed! How is it so soft? How could they let her b.r.e.a.s.t.s bounce up and down from moving around a little?!

I quickly looked away from her, putting me back in view for Ensign Meihowa. Her silver hair and black wings drooped down as she slept on my chest while embracing me tightly. I felt something push up against my body, which, uh, well..

‘What do you think it is? They’re b.r.e.a.s.t.s.’

Right. There was something that definitely couldn’t have been anything but b.r.e.a.s.t.s pus.h.i.+ng up against me. O-oh, gee. I felt as if every one of my cells became a scanner as they scanned through Ensign Meihowa’s body. Only those parts of my body, of course.

I… I had to get up. I couldn’t figure out how to get up quietly without waking the girls up. Teleport? No, the casino hotel had psionic disruptors everywhere. It could cause hypers.p.a.ce corruption in this area. I was just about ready to take that risk if needed.

What about Admiral Luise? Where was she? Did she not come back during nighttime? If she saw us, only tragedies would await me in the future.

Wait… wouldn’t it end in tragedies if the girls get up now, too?

First, I tried to pull my arm out from beneath Sergeant Aroha. Carefully, slowly, I moved my arm cautiously without waking her up.

But..

“Mmgh.”

Sergeant Aroha kicked up and placed her leg right on top of my arm. Her leg wasn’t fully extended so she hadn’t touched Ensign Meihowa at all, but… what the h.e.l.l? Thanks to her leg getting on top of my arm just as I pulled it away from below her body, my hand… my hand got right between her thighs. It’s not my fault even if my fingers are stuck touching her thighs! I-it’s not like I’m perverted or anything!

--Swish.

I heard the sound of skin sliding against silk. I felt my arm come in contact with something silky.

Hmm… There was a poem in ancient times on Earth that went…

‘Tonight, too, the stars skimmed along the wind.’

I would fix that to read it this way instead:

‘Today, too, lace panties skimmed along my arm.’

Wah! This isn’t the time to plagiarize some old poem! I have to get up before things get worse!

With that thought, I continued to cautiously pull my arm away. The process of pulling my arm out from between Sergeant Aroha’s legs made my heart beat faster than it would if I sprinted as quickly as I could. I began to sweat. My intent was only to move my arms out, but from another point of view I was feeling around her thighs by putting my hand in between them. If I were to turn my wrist around a little, I would have been able to make this into a case of hara.s.sment.

And sadly, at times like these, I was but a normal man. I would be lying to say that I felt nothing from finding myself in bed with two beautiful ladies. At the same time, however, looking at Sergeant Aroha’s sleeping face did not make me feel like using her to fulfill my desires in any way.

Spirit away from the material realm! I silenced my inner desires and managed to pull out my arm!

Phew. Alright.

“Mmh.”

As soon as I pulled my arm away, Sergeant Aroha moved her legs back in their original position. After all that trouble, she moved away on her own?!

...What did I waste all my time for…?

‘Tsk. If I knew this would happen, I would have stayed still. Then I would have been able to enjoy them for a bit longe-...’

No, no, no way, no way! That thought wasn’t my own, but of some evil child resting in my head.

My next problem was Meihowa.

Though my problem with Sergeant Aroha stopped at an arm, Ensign Meihowa’s case was that her head was resting on my body. If she moved away slightly, then she was in the right position to use my arm as her pillow. Then if she continued to sleep that way… hmm, it’s almost as if we were lovers. To think that this icy cold Ensign could be using my arm as her pillow… I-I don’t care about that! My head was being a.s.saulted with strange thoughts from all around.

The more critical problem was that she was hugging be from beside, locking my leg down with her own leg. I knew that the situation was only going to get worse over time. I immediately grabbed the edge of the bed and lifted my upper body. Ensign Meihowa’s head slid down from my chest, but that likely wasn’t enough to wake her up.

...But then, by sliding down from my chest, her head landed directly on top of my femoral arteries, right above the quadriceps femoris muscles.

Pop quiz: what’s between the quadriceps femoris muscles? It’s exactly what you think it is.

Ensign Meihowa’s gentle breaths were brus.h.i.+ng over… exactly what you think it is!

No, no one’s usually sensitive enough to feel anything from gentle breaths, but I, in that moment, I had become the most sensitive thing in existence. Every time Ensign Meihowa breathed in and out, her breaths slid over exactly what you think it is, and…

The story ends here.

I immediately got up and showered and changed into a new set of clothes.

By the time I finished changing, Sergeant Aroha and Ensign Meihowa woke up.

“Ugh… wah, my head. What happened yesterday?”

“No clue. Hangover?”

Sergeant Aroha looked perfectly fine, but Ensign Meihowa was frowning as hard as she could. She realized that she was in her underwear and attempted to hide behind her own hands, but she soon gave up. “Ah, whatever!” She rolled her body up in the bedsheet and lied down on the bed. It seemed like her hangover was a bigger problem than her pride or embarra.s.sment as a lady.

“Are you okay like that? Should I fix you up?”