Nidaime?

Outside; the next day

I was outside of Tsutsujidai, checking on Soundras and Goldburn to make sure they were alright. I was relieved that nothing happened while I was gone, but Goldburn was still injured and exhausted from his battle.

"Goldburn, how are you feeling?"

"Raagh..." he groaned.

I inserted a new capsule into my Live Baton and placed it near Goldburn's wounds; sparks flew out of the Live Baton, and its injuries slowly healed.

"Raagh..."

I frowned and patted him. "I know it hurts...but...you'll be fine."

"Raagh!!"

I heard a noise and looked up to see the other Goldburn, flying down from the sky.

"Nidaime~!"

Chise...? And...Koyomi-san...Yume-san...Yomogi-kun...

They landed on the ground and Chise rushed towards us. She looks at Goldburn and frowns at the sight of it.

"Hey...what happened...?"

"It got injured from a battle."

Chise frowned even more and looked at its wings, then she went closer to Goldburn and tried to pat it, but it backed away.

"It's alright, Goldburn."

Goldburn stared at her for a moment, then it immediately touched her and let out a painful cry.

"Raagh..."

Chise hugs it and pats it gently on the head. "Everything's okay now...Goldburn..."

"Raagh..." The other Goldburn lays next to it and they both stare at each other.

Chise chuckled. "Feels kind of weird seeing two of you."

I gave a weak smile, but then immediately frowned as I stared at them, reminding me of my friends.

"It's just you and Goldburn..."

"Yeah..."

Yume frowned. "Gomen...hontou ni gomen..."

"If you need anything, Nidaime..." said Koyomi.

"Arigatou, but...we're fine."

I looked back and saw Chise hugging both of them tightly and smiling.

"Seems like Chise's happy."

"Yeah, and the two Goldburns."

"..."

I suddenly have a flashback of Gridman fighting Knight and the others in Tsutsujidai. I remember how each one of them fell to the ground, how each of them died, and how each of their deaths broke me.

"Nidaime?"

"...!" I turned to them. "Nanda, Yomogi-kun?"

Yomogi frowned. "Gomen, if we upsetted you in any way..."

I shook my head. "No, it's alright. You didn't do anything wrong." I stared back at the two Goldburns and Chise. "It's just that...a lot of bad things happened, and yet...Goldburn is here, being so happy..."

"..."

"It's been a long time since I've seen it happy...since I've seen anyone truly happy..."

There was a long pause and they frowned even more as they were staring at me.

"Anyways...I should probably go. I need to pick some flowers and some gifts."

"For what?"

"..." I grabbed Knight's sword from my back and held it tightly in my hands. "In my universe...everything's twisted and ruined, so I haven't found a place for Knight-kun and the others." I looked at Tsutsujidai and the sunrise. "This place...is good enough..."

"We can come with you."

I shook my head. "You don't have to."

"No. We want to."

I stared at Yomogi and the others. "Really, you don't have to. Besides...this is my task...and my task alone..."

"That's not true, Nidaime," said Yume. "You can't do it alone, especially when we're here in front of you. The least we can do is help you."

"Yume..."

"Onegai, we want to help you, Nidaime." Yomogi insisted.

I stared at him, then stared at the others and they nodded.

I smiled and grabbed onto Knight's sword even tighter. "Everyone...arigatou..."

Yuta

Tsutsujidai High School

I sat outside on a bench under a tree, covering me from the heat of the sun. I continued to think about what happened yesterday; it bothered me so much and I couldn't get it out of my head.

"They're a far worse version than you two." I clenched my fists and grunted. Are they really that bad...?

"Oi, Yuta!"

I turned. "Utsumi? What're you doing here?"

"I was about to ask you the same thing." He frowned. " What're you doing out here all alone? You alright?"

"Yeah...I'm fine..."

"If you're alright...then I suppose that's good." He sits next to me. "But...ever since you came back to the shop yesterday, we felt something was wrong. We were worried something must've happened to you while you were gone."

"'We'?"

"Rikka and the others." He chuckled. "She was quite worried; she didn't say much, but I could tell from her face that she still cares a lot about you."

I was surprised by what he said and felt a tingle in my chest. "I see. Well...I'm fine, really. You guys don't have to worry about me so much."

"You sure? We're your friends, you know? You can tell us anything."

I nodded and smiled. "Yeah, I know." Suddenly, I sneezed.

"Did you get sick or something?"

"I don't know...maybe...? I mean...I was out in the rain yesterday..." I sniffled. "Ugh..."

Nidaime

Junk Shop Aya

While Hibiki and the others were at school, and Yomogi and them were with Nidaime, Knight and I stayed in the Junk Shop along with the Neon Genesis Junior High and Ms. Takarada.

"Here you go."

Ms. Takarada places some treats and some coffee in front of me.

"Arigatou, Ms. Takarada." I took my mug of coffee and gently blew it. "Knight-kun, you sure you don't want anything?"

"I'm fine."

"The drinks here are pretty good, you know~?"

"Hm."

I sipped my mug of coffee, then looked at Junk. "How's Gridman?"

"Beats me. He hasn't appeared or talked at all since yesterday."

"W-We thought something might've been wrong with Junk, but there weren't any problems we could find."

"So...Gridman is..."

"He's probably fine, but...I guess he's thinking about the other Gridman and Yuta."

"I see..."

There was a brief pause and it was silent.

"Well, if that's all, then I'll be leaving now." Ms. Takarada took off her apron. "If you guys need anything, just call me~" She waved goodbye and left through the curtain.

I stared at Junk and frowned. Gridman will have to eventually fight him, but...will he be strong enough? This other Gridman won't hold back, and...he'll kill him when he gets the chance. I clenched my fists. I hope that the power he gained from the battle months ago will be enough to stop him...enough to end this...

Knight placed his hand on my shoulder. "Don't worry about it, Nidaime."

"Knight-kun..." I nodded and smiled. "Arigatou..." If he can't stop Gridman, then that means Knight-kun... I stopped myself from thinking about that. No, Gridman will win. And everyone will be safe. Knight-kun will be safe...

Nidaime?

After getting enough flowers and enough gifts, we went around looking for an open area where we can offer them and pray for them.

"Hmm...oh, how about over there, Nidaime?"

I looked to where Yume pointed and nodded. "That's perfect."

We went over to the area and looked around to make sure no one else was here, then we placed all the flowers and gifts down.

"Is this good?"

"Yeah, it's fine."

I grabbed the sword from my back and gave it one last look, then placed it on the ground with them. I grabbed a few incense sticks and lit a few, then stuck them in a pot of ash in front of the flowers and gifts.

I sat down on my knees and folded my hands together. Six months...and now finally...

Yomogi and the others sat next to me and they too folded their hands.

Everyone... I smiled, then took a breath and closed my eyes.

There was a brief pause and a moment of silence. A warm breeze came by and birds chirped in the distance; the trees and the grass rustled quietly; and for the first time in a long while, I felt at peace.

I turned back to look at them. "Arigatou...for helping me with this. It really means a lot to me..."

They smiled. "No problem. It's the least we can do."

As I stared at them, I felt a tingle in my heart. I felt a familiar feeling, something that was lost to me for a long time.

This feeling...I'm...happy. Yume-san...Yomogi-kun...Koyomi...and Chise...they're making me...happy...

A tear dropped from the corner of my eye.

"Nidaime?"

"Everyone...gomen..." Suddenly, tears came flooding out of my eyes and I looked down. "Gomen...hontou ni gomen..."

"N-Nidaime, what're you talking about? You don't have to apologize for anything!"

"If I was strong enough...if I helped you...if I was there for all of you...maybe...maybe you've would been here with me..."

"Nidaime..."

"Maybe...Knight-kun...would've still been with me..."

As I cried my heart out, my tears came down my face and dropped to the ground. Yomogi and the others stared at me, grieving for my friends, and apologizing to them multiple times.

"It was my fault...gomen...hontou ni gomen..."

"Raagh..." Goldburn came close to me and nuzzled me, comforting me. "Raagh..."

"Goldburn..."

"It wasn't your fault, Nidaime."

"Chise..."

"Sure, we died and we lost, but..." She smiled. "I'm sure their last wishes were to see you alive and well. That's all that matters."

"..." I sniffled and wiped my tears. "But..."

"Chise's right. You're here, Goldburn is here; that's what matters most." Yume smiled. "The kaijus killed us, and there was nothing you could've done about it. So don't blame yourself for it, Nidaime."

"Kaijus...right..." I stared at them. "That's not really true..."

"Eh?"

"Gomen. I didn't really tell you the true story, or rather...I didn't tell all of it."

"You...what?"

"You weren't killed by kaijus..."

"Then...what we were killed by?"

"..." I looked back at the offerings. "Before I tell you, it's best if everyone was here to hear it. But...don't tell Yuta, Rikka, or Utsumi about this."

"Why the three of them?"

"Onegai. Just don't."

They all looked at each other and nodded.

"Arigatou..."

Rikka

Tsutsujidai High School

The bell rang and all of us grabbed our bags and rushed out of our classrooms, leaving school for the day. As I was heading out with Hass and Namiko, I realized that Yuta was gone and nowhere to be seen.

"Hey Hass, Namiko."

"Doshita?"

"Have you seen Yuta? I feel like I haven't seen him since morning..."

"Hibiki-kun? Hmm...I think I heard Utsumi saying something about him leaving school because he was sick."

"I heard that from everyone else too."

That's right. He was out in the rain the other day; he must've gotten sick from that...

They came close to my face and grinned. "Rikka-san...you're really, really worried about him, aren't you~?"

"Eh?! No! I just..." I sighed. "Just because we broke up, doesn't mean I stopped caring about him..."

"Oohh~! Hehehehe..."

Junk Shop Aya

"Tadaima..."

"Oh, you're back, Rikka."

I nodded, then I looked around the shop. "Where's the others?"

"They left to go talk to...Nidaime's 'twin'..."

"I see..."

"You alright? You seem a little stressed out."

"I was just talking to my friends, that's all..." I placed my bag on a chair and went towards Junk. "Hey Okaa-san, has Gridman shown himself?"

"Hmm...no, he hasn't. Junk hasn't turned on at all today actually."

"Ehhhh...." I tapped Junk's screen, but nothing happened. "Gridman."

There was a brief pause and it was silent.

I sighed. "I guess he just doesn't want to talk right now..."

"Give him some time." My mother took off her apron and hung it. "Well, I'm going to make some dinner before everyone comes back." She went through the curtains and left.

I stared at Junk for a few more minutes, then after a while, I gave up and walked away.

Suddenly, Junk turns on. "Rikka."

I turned around. "Gridman?" I went towards him. "Are you feeling alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. How's everyone?"

"Good...I guess. Oh, do you know if Yuta is alright?"

He nodded. "He's fine; he just has a cold."

"That's good to know..."

There was a brief pause and it was silent.

"Hey Gridman...if I may ask...why were you gone...?"

"..." He looked down. "After everything I've heard...after everything I've seen...especially this other Gridman...I needed time to think about it."

"I see..." I sat down on a chair and stared at him. "Does it really bother you that much?"

"It does. Does it not bother you?"

"Hmm...not really. I mean, they're just copies of you and Yuta. Sure they did some bad things, but...there must've been a good reason, right?"

"..."

"And even if they did bad things...I can't really believe that they're bad."

There was a brief pause and it was silent.

"Hm."

"Doshita?"

"Nothing. It's just that Yuta said the exact same thing."

"O-Oh...I didn't know..."

"Speaking of Yuta, I think it's best if someone could check on him. Someone who can actually be there for him."

He stared at me for a moment and I blushed. "M-Me? N-No, I..."

"Rikka, I believe he needs you now more than ever."

I stared at him and blushed even more. "I..."

There was another pause and it was silent.

I sighed. "Alright...I'll check on him."

"Arigatou, Rikka."

Sayoko

I stood on the rooftop of a building, staring at Rikka from afar, watching her leave her shop.

Rikka...

I grabbed one of my kaiju figures out and held it tightly in my hand. It was a larvae worm kaiju; it had a large and long body, with sharp hairs and lines around it; it had a hideous mouth and large eyes, as well as ugly-looking teeth.

With this one, I'll kill you and everyone else...

Nidaime

Yume had called us to meet at the specified area so that we could talk. Something they else they told us was to not tell Yuta and the other two to come, which was quite strange.

Once we got there, we saw Nidaime and the others, sitting in front of many offerings with incense sticks lit up in pots of ashes.

I frowned. She was doing something for them...

"Oh, Nidaime, Knight-san, Gauma, you all came."

"Yeah." Rex looked at the offerings. "They're for your friends, aren't they?"

Nidaime nodded. "Yes."

Rex sat down, folded his hands and closed his eyes; Max and the others sat down as well, and did the same.

Everyone... I smiled, then Knight and I sat down as well.

After a while of praying silently, we stood back up.

"Gomen, Nidaime."

"You don't have to apologize. Arigatou, for doing it, and for coming."

We nodded. "Is this the reason why you brought us here?"

"No, I told you all to come here because I've been wanting to tell you something."

"Tell us what?"

"To tell you what really happened in my timeline..."

"...!" Nidaime...

The wind blew much colder now, and the skies turned gray; the sun began to come down and everything turned a little darker.

"What do you mean? Didn't you tell us already?"

"No, she didn't," said Yume. "She only said parts of it, and for the rest...she didn't want to tell us."

"Nani...?"

"..." She looked at all of us in the eyes. "In my timeline...you all did die, but...it wasn't by kaijus...it was by Gridman."

There was a long pause and everything was silent. They were all frozen still, shocked and speechless by what she said.

"W-What did you just say...?"

"Gridman...killed us...?"

Everyone...

"That's right."

There was a brief pause and everything became silent again.

"Nande...?" asked Yomogi. "Weren't we friends...? Why would they want to kill us...?"

"With Alexis' powers, they wanted to reshape the entire universe in their image, creating a perfect and peaceful place for all of you. However...you all rejected it, and they killed you."

"Uso..."

Rex grunted and clenched his fists. "Those two...! Unforgivable...!"

"That's...stupid..."

"Chise..."

"That's really stupid! Seriously?! We didn't want to be evil with them and they killed us?! They hurt Goldburn?!"

"Chise, calm down," said Koyomi.

"..." Chise sat down and covered her face with her arms and legs. "Goldburn didn't deserve that..."

"Raagh..."

"..." I looked at Nidaime. "That's not all, is it?"

The others looked back at her and waited for her to speak.

"After they killed all of you...they brought you back to life. Not as their friends, but as their minions."

"...!"

"First they kill us, then make us slaves?!" said Borr.

Yomogi and the others frowned. "..."

"We fought you...even though we were once friends..."

Nidaime frowned and nodded. "Yeah..."

"Raagh..." Goldburn sadly screeched.

"I didn't want to tell you all of this, knowing this would be your reaction. But...I was also scared that they might hurt you, or worse...kill you too."

There was a brief pause and it was silent.

I stared at all of them and frowned. "Everyone..."

Suddenly, the fire from the incense sticks blew out and the ground shook. A red light appeared in the city and we could hear the people's screams.

"RAAGH!!!"

"AHHH!!!"

"Another hideous kaiju...!"

"No...why now...?"

Rex clenched his fists. "We'll deal with this later! Everyone, let's go!"

"..."

"Oi!" said Borr.

"...!"

"Get yourselves together! We have a city to save!"

"R-Right!" They all left, and now it was only me, Knight, the two Goldburns, and Nidaime.

"Nidaime..."

She stared at the kaiju and clenched her fists, then turned to look at the offerings. She stared at Knight's sword and reached for it, but hesitated to grab it.

"Nidaime." Knight called her name.

"...!" She grabs it and looks at it with a frown on her face. "I wanted you to rest in peace, but..." She clenched the sword tightly in her hands. "Gomen, Knight-kun. Lend me your strength one more time..."

"Let's go."

"Right." The three of us rode on Goldburn's back and we flew towards Tsutsujidai.

Goldburn?

"Raagh..."