51 Chapter Fifty-One: One Last Time (1/2)

Don's men all over the country of Omnia charge into battle. All over, screams and war cries could be heard but they didn't sound like screams of terror. Instead, they sounded more like cheers and claims of freedom, justice and victory. Time seemed to slow down as the crew waited for their moment to move in. Hours passed like weeks, minutes like days. After several hours, Wolf Pack had pressed hard into Ly'Lum bases everywhere and The Ly'Lum was pressing them back. The enemy was advancing on them, and now it was time for Japan's forces to jump in. As Wolf Pack was forced out of The Ly'Lum's territory, Japan's forces rolled up and pushed The Ly'Lum right back. They opened fire on the enemy, and as they pressed them back, they would set up barricades. As Wolf Pack was getting pushed back, they were able to take cover behind the barricades until they had the opportunity to push against The Ly'Lum forces again. This way, Wolf Pack didn't have to retreat and could stay in the fight, but at the same time made it even harder to push the JSDF and SAT back. Not long after, all of The Ly'Lum's reinforcement routes were occupied and supplies were cut off. The Six Guns now have their chance.

”You want to say it one last time?” Alex asks, ”for old time's sake?”.

”Say what?” Siran asks.

”You know” Alex says, ”that stupid cheer you came up with. You haven't said it in a long time, and it's likely going to be our last battle. Go ahead and give it one more cheer”.

”Oh, you mean...” Siran says.

”Come on” Zia says, ”one last time”.

Siran looks up and smiles. As he raises his fist in the air, he cheers ”GUNS! GO!” and everyone drove off to Omnium Guild.

As they ride through the country, they noticed a mixed atmosphere throughout the entire land. Some civilians were hiding, some were out and willing to fight. Some soldiers ran into battle, some could not bear the thought of it. Some civilians that fought against The Ly'Lum were former Ly'Lum soldiers themselves. As the crew continues on their way to Omnium Guild, Siran asks over the headset ”Hey Blake, I've been meaning to asks. Aren't you a little young to be leading a group of Hunters?”.

”That's rich, coming from a guy who's nearly 200 years old, but looks 20” Blake says.

”How old are you exactly?” Vivi asks.

”I'm 32” Blake says.

”My question is, when did Blake get a headset? We didn't buy him one” Rose asks.

”I've had one” Blake says, ”I've been in the business for this kind of stuff for a while now”.

”I gave him our frequency we use to chat” Vivi says.

”Who else is going to jump in on us over the headset?” Rose asks.

”I'm here too” Ying says.

”Wait, when did you-” Rose begins to asks, ”oh wait. That's right, you're a cop. You've had equipment like this for years too”.

”Trying to pass the time, guys?” Alex asks. ”I didn't know you all were that eager to charge into our last battle”.

”... Our last battle, huh?” Rose asks.

”Don't worry” Finn says, ”this just means the fighting is stopping! We don't have to stop hanging out together!”.

”As much of an idiot Finn is” Vivi says, ”he's right. We don't HAVE to go our separate ways after this”.

”After all, The Six Guns don't take orders from anybody” Ying says.

”Can you stop saying that?” Alex asks. ”It's begun to lose its novelty”.

”I'm going to miss chats like this” Zia says.

”We can still talk after the war, you know?” Satomi says.

”Yeah, but” Zia says, ”nothing really takes the edge off of life quite like these talks before a fight, you know?”.

”You've got me there” Finn says. ”Being homeless was... interesting, but they way our crew connected was something else entirely. I'm gonna miss this”.

”Hey” Alex says, ”for now, we're brothers in arms and nothing more. But when we finish this, we'll be like a real family”.

”You guys would be the worst family that I can imagine” Tanya says as she laughs, ”but I wouldn't have it any other way”.

”I don't know about you guys” Blake says, ”but I'm definitely looking forward to a normal life when this is done. However, I do feel honored to fight alongside the hero from The Naris Catastrophe”.

”I'm no hero” Siran says, ”I'm just a guy that doesn't know when to quit. You don't have to be powerful to be strong, and that's what I'm trying to prove to the world. You're all good examples of that”.

”Some of us aren't that strong” Finn says, ”some of us were just trapped in a corner in life. Then there's Alex, he's just a hardass that acts tough”. Finn begins laughing really hard over the mic.

”I'll make you eat those words when this is all done” Alex says.

”I'll see you in the aftermath then, hardass!” Finn laughs.

”I know this isn't the best time” Rose says softly, ”but with this being the last battle together, I have a lot on my mind. Like, if we'll all make it through okay, and if we can have normal lives when this is over”.

”There's no garuntee” Finn says, ”but we can always try our best. That's all we can do, really... just like Siran taught us”.

”Hey, Finn” Rose asks, ”remember when we first met Mikoto and Satomi, and you said you'd take me out on a date?”.

”Oh yeah, I remember that” Mikoto says. ”You rejected him, didn't you?”.

”Yeah?” Finn replies.

”Well, if I'm going to give my best shot at living a normal life after this...” Rose begins to says, ”ah- well... what I mean is, if we make it through this alive, I'll take you up on that offer for a date”.

”This really is not the best time for this” Alex says.

”Really?” Finn asks. ”Then you've got a deal!”.

”Aw, that's adorable” Tanya says.

”That's not very romantic, if you ask me” Vivi says.

”Is that jealousy that I hear?” Alex asks.

”Oh, what? Don't tell me” Vivi replies as she laughs, ”you want a shot with me, don't you?”.