Chapter Text
It’s a scream like no one has ever heard before or since that haunts Yuuya’s dreams.
It had echoed on the cosmic winds and turned the blood to ice.
The grief and pain and agony in that ungodly scream had been enough to distort the signals and cause static to flicker across the screen where even explosions and the chaos of war hadn’t.
It was a scream of such utter despair that pierced Yuuya’s head like an icy wind and had him doubled over, clutching his hands over his ears and watching Dennis’ figure on the screen through his tears.
The Wind Singer’s loss resonated across the stars and reverberated in their chests.
Yuuya starts awake in a cold sweat. His heart is pounding and echoes of that scream still make his head spin.
There’s a clang above his head. The cargo box is being opened. Shoot! Yuuya jerks back into the shadows as best he can as the roof is pulled open. A pink haired woman is there, glaring down into the crate.
“No sign of a stow away in here,” she calls.
Yuuya didn’t mean to end up as a stow away. He just… lost the ticket that his mother spent so much time saving up for. He’s so cursed with bad luck. He’d almost think maybe his dad took it to stop him going. He doesn’t know why he’s so against this anyway. He got to go and travel the galaxy when he was Yuuya’s age. He trained the group Yuuya wants to join. Why is he so against Yuuya going?
Whatever the case, this is the situation he’s in and he’s got to get a move on.
“Next crate!” the woman yells and turns away. “Seal it up!”
Yuuya grabs his bag and makes a run for it before the lid can close. He springs out of the crate and to the ground below, dropping into a low crouch. It occurs to him how dramatic he must look right now, cape billowing and hood over his head. He must cut a mysterious, striking figure. Anyone aiming to step onto stage should always be aware of their angles and appearance. Too bad there aren’t any cameras or an audience beyond the port authorities. He thinks Dennis and his father would be proud if they could see him though.
“Halt!” the woman yells.
Ah, right. Less posing, more running.
He swings his bag onto his back as he breaks into a sprint. His audition is waiting for him. No way is he stopping here!
“Stop!” the woman calls. There’s a gunshot and Yuuya yelps, jerking aside behind a metal crate. There are footsteps hurrying after him. “In the name of-”
“I don’t care!” Yuuya declares. “It can be in the name of whatever you like, I’m not stopping. Sorry!”
“Hey!”
“Wait for me, Dennis,” he says, eyes narrowed in determination. “I’m gonna show you what I’ve got no matter what laws I’ve gotta break to get there.”
The chain link fence looms ahead and Yuuya grins. He’s a performer until the end and he’s the son of the great Sakaki Yuushou. A little fence isn’t getting in his way. He jumps up and pushes off the side of a crate for height. His hand snags the top of the fence and he vaults over easily, landing on the other side with only a slight stumble.
Landings were never his forte.
There’s a metal clang and he turns. The woman in uniform is at the fence, glaring at him. Her pink hair billows in the wind and Yuuya grins, waving sheepishly. Her blue eyes narrow in return and she reaches for her pistol.
“You’re under arrest,” she says.
“I’d rather not be,” he replies.
“It’s not something you get a choice about,” she declares. “You’re under arrest and I’m taking you in, stow away.”
“Ah, by the way, I’m looking for someone,” Yuuya says. “Hiiragi Shuzo?”
“What do you want with my dad?” she snaps.
Yuuya frowns and tilts his head. “That can’t be right. My dad said according to Hiiragi Shuzo, Yuzu is cute, super cute, adorable and unbelievably precious.”
“Are you saying I’m not?!”
“Ah, well…”
Yuzu grabs the fence and starts climb as sirens close in around him. Yuuya steps back slowly. He really should get going and find somewhere to stay until his audition. This isn’t the start to his career in the spotlight he’d hoped for. Having a criminal record probably excludes him from auditioning too! He has to get out of this somehow and he has to lose Yuzu. Daughter of his dad’s old friend or not, he’s not hanging around.
“I just meant you’re more beautiful than cute,” he says quickly. Yuzu pauses at the top of the fence and Yuuya grins. He’s got her. All that time studying Dennis' manner is paying off. An entertainer must be charming to appease his fans, after all. “All that super cute stuff made me imagine a girl. You’re quite definitely a woman. And a beautiful one at that.”
In Yuzu’s distraction, stammering and blushing, Yuuya makes a break for it. He turns and runs. The sirens are closing in fast. He sprints down a side alley just as boots land behind him. Yuzu has recovered from her shock then. Once he’s passed his audition, he’ll pay the company for the price of his travel and everything will be worked out just fine. He’s sure they’ll understand the importance of him getting here.
Ragna is a lot more like a desert than the watery blue world in all his dad’s pictures. And where are all the mercats and jellyfish?
“Stop!” Yuzu demands.
“If I do, you’ll arrest me!” Yuuya calls over his shoulder.
“I’m going to arrest you anyway! Running just makes it worse!”
“I’m not sure how much worse it could be than being arrested,” Yuuya laughs.
He jumps up to grab a wooden beam between the houses. He swings up and lands on the beam then up onto the roof above.
“You’ll find out how much worse it can be when I get my hands on you!”
“That’s not much incentive to stop.”
High above the planet Al Shahal, an LDS carrier ship watches and waits. On the bridge, Sawatari Shingo watches his team’s locations on the projected map below. Shahal City and the military base nearby spread out before him and his partner and staff monitoring everything down below.
“Are we really sure there’s going to be an outbreak here?” Shingo says.
“That’s what Lady R says,” Crow replies. “There have been ten outbreaks in a month, three of them with unusual bio pendulum patterns. Fifteen hours ago, we detect a similar anomaly near Shahal City-”
“Yeah, I was here for all that,” he says. Crow grins. “I meant, how do we know there’s gonna be an outbreak for sure?”
“Because that’s what Lady R says,” he says with a shrug. Shingo is tempted to ask how she can be sure, or even how they can trust her, but decides that'd be more hassle than it's worth. “And isn’t it better we’re here and not needed than having to scramble to reach people who need us because we weren’t ready?”
Shingo sighs and nods. The life of a hero dedicated to serving others and bringing peace and joy to the universe is a tough, thankless job somedays. There's no time off and no stopping. Evil and chaos never sleeps, so neither to they it seems.
“Not like we’re the ones down there is the heat anyway.”
“Speaking of which,” Shingo says, turning to the screen and turning up the comms. “How’s Hiiragi doing, Dennis?”
“Who knows?” replies Dennis’ voice. “I can’t go undercover with her around. She’s even stiffer than Kurosaki. I’m sure she’s amusing herself. I hear there’s a stow away at the airport. She might have fun chasing them. Seems just up her street.”
“I understand why they both get so frustrated with you,” Crow sighs.
“Kaito really was the only one who could handle him,” Shingo mutters.
“I never had these problems with Kaito,” Dennis says.
“Well, I’m not Kaito, I’m afraid,” Kurosaki snaps over the comms.
“Believe me, I’m well aware of that,” he replies.
“Status report, Delta 2,” Crow orders before they can start bickering.
Shingo sighs. Dennis might be their star on stage, but he really is a pain in the ass to work with. Not even in a diva kind of way - if any one’s guilty of that, it’s probably Shingo himself - but just awkward. He respects Shingo and Crow’s authority well enough, they’re his superiors and he’ll follow orders like the good soldier he is. But Kaito and Sakaki Yuushou were the only ones who’d ever managed to really handle him properly.
It’s been three years since Sakaki’s retirement and Kurosaki still struggles to fill Kaito’s shoes. He and Dennis just can't’ seem to get in sync and neither seems all that willing to try.
It’s rather a blessing Shingo and Crow work together so well. Shingo’s sure Crow doesn’t envy Kurosaki and he’d hate to have to give Crow up to Dennis.
“No sign on any of the sensors,” Kurosaki grumbles.
“Tylers?” Shingo says.
“Looking adorable,” Grace replies. “Try this one, Gloria.”
“Are you two shopping?” he sighs.
“One of us is,” Gloria says. “There’s nothing strange to report in the city. At least in the shopping district.”
“Delta 3 and 4?” Crow says.
“Nothing to report at the base,” Rin says.
“Some super impressive Chaos 104s though,” Yuugo says. “I wanna get into their engines and have a dig around. Right, Rin?”
“As long as you remember to put everything back,” she scolds.
“Unlike last time,” Crow sighs. “Dennis?”
“Situation normal,” Dennis says, “and oh-so boring at the port. Lovely sunset though.” There’s laughter and cheering and a clap of Dennis’ hands. “Right, right! For my next trick…”
Crow and Shingo exchange exasperated smiles. Everything is just as it should be; Rin and Yuugo drooling over the latest tech on bases, the Tylers slacking off and spending, no doubt on expenses, Dennis slipping from any handler trying watch him to do street magic and Kurosaki soaring just above the atmosphere surveying the situation like the bird of prey he seems to think he is.
And Hiiragi wandering off doing her own thing like she doesn’t have to listen to orders.
Like she thinks she’s Dennis.
“Can anyone else hear singing?” Dennis says quietly.
“We can feel something on the wind,” Grace says.
“There’s something feels like it’s vibrating in my chest,” Yuugo says.
“Kurosaki?” Crow calls
“Nothing yet,” Kurosai replies. “Wait- what the-”
The screen in front of them lights up with anomalies. Crow curses under his breath and Shingo takes a breath as someone from lower on the bridge calls up what they can already see in front of them.
“Detecting multiple biological pendulum wave anomalies!”
“So many at once,” Shingo hisses. “And at the base too.”
“Like it couldn’t get any worse,” Crow says. “Put out a Z-Arc alert. Get down there, Kurosaki, meet up with Yuugo and Rin. Tylers, Dennis, don’t do anything stupid.”
“Yes sir.”
“And someone get in contact with Hiiragi!” Crow turns and grins a Shingo. “Get suited up, babe. I’m taking you for a ride.”
Shingo laughs loudly but follows Crow from the bridge. “Who are you calling babe, you dirty old man? I’m way too young for you.”
“Ah, right in my heart, Shingo,” Crow laughs. “Kids these days are so cruel.”
“Kid? I’m nineteen.”
“Dirty old man? I’m twenty-two.”
“Just don’t go thinking you’re cool,” Shingo says as they lift heads down to the flight deck. “Remember there’s a reason I’m on stage and you’re not.”
“Sure sure,” Crow laughs. “I just can’t hold a note.”
“I guess crows aren’t known for their tunes,” he says.
“Just our brains,” he laughs. “You just go out there and sing a pretty tune, songbird. Leave the thinking to us with a dull tune.”
“Aren’t you getting a little too familiar, Captain?”
He’s already taking off his uniform jacket and Shingo is pointedly looking dead head rather than at Crow’s strong, tattoo covered arms. He undoes his tie and collar of his own uniform, ready to suit up for flight down to the surface.
“Hey, Shingo,” Crow says softly as the doors open to their locker room. “Don’t die.”
“I won’t,” Shingo replies. It’s routine by now. “I trust you to protect me. But, you’re not allowed to die either, you know.”
“As if. I'm not going anywhere, Shingo. Promise.”
Shingo frowns. He’s sure Kaito promised Dennis the same.