Work Text:
An eerie, yet heavy silence filled the area. In front of Saki and the others stood a man who wore a grayish suit and a strange helmet with a wire at the back of it connected to an arm cannon. He has his back turned towards the group, focusing entirely on the final needle that rested in front of him. He didn’t move an inch, let alone say a word.
If you were to tell Saki that this strange masked man was Tsukasa, she wouldn’t believe you..
And yet, that was true. Ichika confirmed that much to her mere moments before the scene ahead of them began to play out.
Holding onto her crutches, Saki took a step towards the masked man, opening her mouth and preparing to call out to him- but the words would never get the chance to take verbal form. Just by the footstep alone, the masked man turned his head around slowly, a dull eye peeking from beneath the shadows of the helmet to meet Saki’s bright ones, before—
BZZT!
The arm cannon fired out a large bolt of electricity, enveloping the dark purple sky in a bright flash as it hit the others. Within mere moments, Ichika, Shizuku, and Toya found themselves unconscious on the ground— all except Saki.
The lightning-bolt badge she now wore had the power to deflect the attack. Just mere moments before it struck her too, the badge deflected the electricity, causing it to fire right back at the masked man and knocking him down onto one of his knees. He was using a glowing sword he held in his free hand to keep himself upright.
No matter what the reason could have been, Saki couldn’t attack him. She couldn’t find it inside herself to try and battle the masked man, or attack him.
“Saki..”
Saki’s head looked off to the side. From somewhere, she heard someone call her name..
“Tsukasa..”
That voice.. that was their mother’s voice. It failed to reach the masked man..
Saki turned her attention back to the situation at hand, but was immediately taken aback by a PSI beam from the masked man. It hit, causing her to fall back and onto the ground. Dust scattered in the wind that rushed through their ears. Ichika, Shizuku, and Toya were barely able to lift their heads up from the ground just to be able to see what was going on.
Arms and legs shaking, Saki struggled to pick herself back up from the ground.
The masked man, however, did not say a word or showed any semblance of emotion, and only kept his arm cannon pointed at her and the others, his sword pointed downwards and its tip just barely grazing the surface of the ground beneath him.
“Tsukasa..”
“You aren’t his robot..”
“You’re our son.”
The masked man looked around, as if trying to pinpoint where the voice could be coming from. However, it seemed to make little to no difference whatsoever once he turned his attention back to Saki. A beam of light began to charge from his arm cannon, just about ready to fire again—
“Saki, look out!”
That was Toya’s voice.
From whatever miracle, Toya had managed to push himself up onto his feet and dashed in front of Saki in hopes of being able to intervene.
However, this didn’t faze the masked man whatsoever.
Quickly switching to his sword, he fires a PSI attack that hits Toya, causing him to fall back down. “Toya-!!”
Despite his body shaking from pain, the split-haired boy shakily, but just barely pulled himself off of the ground and turned his attention to the masked man.
“Tsukasa-senpai, please..”
“Try to remember..”
For a brief moment, both of them could’ve sworn they saw the masked man’s expression turn into one of surprise- however, just as soon as it came, it was gone. The sword’s blade began to glow, and with another PSI attack, Toya was knocked down once more.
“TOYA!!” Saki’s voice echoed through the barren field, but was given no response in return- he was out cold. Shaking, Saki manages to pull herself back up to her feet, desperately trying to keep herself upright as she grips onto her crutches with all her strength. Gritting her teeth, she looked over at the masked man, hoping to get something, anything- perhaps even a sliver of emotion to show that the Tsukasa she knew and grew up with was there-
But she was given no such hope from him. The masked man only kept his arm cannon pointed right at her, his expression lifeless and stoic as it’s been the entire time.
The voice of their mother returned, urging Tsukasa to end the battle.
“Tsukasa..”
“You and Saki are siblings..”
The masked man shakes his head and fires off another blast, to which Saki manages to null with a defense of her own. As if on instinct, she raises her hand to launch a PSI attack at him—
But she couldn’t do it. She couldn’t attack him- she couldn’t hurt Tsukasa.
Her hand slowly dropped down, falling at her side. She wasn’t sure what to do anymore.
Unfortunately, the masked man didn’t hesitate whatsoever in response. He steadied himself, preparing another relentless attack..
“Can you hear me? You’re Tsukasa!”
“Your name is Tsukasa!”
“You’re our son!”
The masked man shakes his head, trying to fire off an attack. Saki immediately prepares herself, just about ready to null it again- but the masked man hesitates. He falters, for just one single moment. His gaze turns to the ground beneath him.
“Please, remember..!”
“Saki.. Tsukasa..”
The masked man stops entirely, his hands dropping to his sides as he stares at the ground.
Within his mechanical brain, within the robotic pieces he’s been rebuilt with- the memories that were forcefully shoved down there began to surface after all of this time…
“Don’t worry, Saki! I’ll be the best big brother ever for you!” A young boy spoke with a voice full of determination and excitement. Two parents smile at one another at the sight of their two children getting along this well rather quickly.
“I bet they’ll accomplish things together that they couldn't do alone.” The boy’s father remarked. “I can definitely see them both helping one another when they need it most, too.”
The sibling’s laughter filled the room with a warm feeling, a bright smile on both of their faces. “Saki and Tsukasa, huh.. Make us proud, you two.”
In the blink of an eye, the masked man found himself standing in a sunflower field, a gentle breeze blowing across the field and through his hair. Looking around, a sense of calm had washed over the boy. He felt.. Peaceful, here.
Buried emotions and memories overcame the boy, and at last..
His true identity is uncovered to himself.
Slowly, he lifts his head up to look at Saki. That same, stoic expression from before met one filled with conflict and hints of desperation mixed in between. Saki wasn’t sure what to do. She wanted to call out to him, to try and tell him something, anything- but her voice wouldn’t surface.
She looked behind her, now seeing Ichika and the others slowly regaining their strength to fully stand up after the whole ordeal- however, it was a slow process.
At the sight of it all.. Saki almost wanted to cry.
The sound of strained breathing brought her attention back towards the masked man, who was now holding onto his helmet tightly and kept his eyes squeezed shut, as if trying to suppress something from going on. Saki reached out her hand towards him, but it only froze midair. He stumbled backwards, a few inches closer to the needle behind him, but his attention was elsewhere.
The masked man was looking around, as if he was searching for something. Silence follows for a few more moments.
Then, the masked man drops his sword and unplugs his cannon arm, letting it all to the ground next to where he stood. Finally, his hands reached up and held onto the side of his helmet, lifting it upwards before he dropped it to the ground in front of him.
He lifts his head up once again, slowly opening his eyes and looking right at Saki. Bright, pink eyes met dull, exhausted orange ones. Disheveled blond hair fading to pink at the ends was revealed beneath the helmet.
In front of Saki stood her older brother.
He looked.. exhausted .
The other three behind Saki bore expressions of surprise, similarly to her. Almost immediately, Saki felt hot tears spring to her eyes after seeing her older brother back, and was just about ready to run over to him-
But she stopped once he pointed at her. Specifically, at the lightning-bolt badge she wore on her jacket. Saki didn’t catch on right away, but Tsukasa knew very well what he was about to do.
Even if Tsukasa had managed to regain his memories and humanity, he knew that the remaining parts of his mechanical mind were still in use, and that they would push him to do the only thing he could- which was attack Saki.
However, with all of his buried memories rushing back to him, with him now knowing who he truly was..
Tsukasa poured all his energy into this decision.
“I don’t want to do this anymore.”
Sparks of lightning formed at his fingertips, just about ready to fire right at the badge Saki wore. It was at this very moment where it finally clicked for her.
Tsukasa knew the badge would cause the lightning bolt to be fired back at him. That bolt could kill him.
And yet, he fired it anyway.
The bolt headed straight for Saki, but despite that, she reached out towards him, calling out his name as the badge deflected the lightning bolt, making it head straight for him. Just over the sound of sparks crackling, Tsukasa could faintly hear everybody else calling out his name.
BOOM!!
Smoke clouds and dust swirled around the area, clouding everybody’s view for a brief moment and prompting them all to close their eyes once the attack made contact with Tsukasa.
Once the dust settled, Ichika attempted to fan away some of the remaining smoke as she turned her attention, alongside Toya and Shizuku’s, to the sight ahead of them all. Slowly rising to her feet, Ichika went over to where Saki stood and patted her back lightly as she was coughing. When Saki stopped, she slowly opened her eyes as well and looked at the sight that awaited her.
In front of her stood a weakened Tsukasa clutching at his stomach while blood slowly began to drip to the ground. His clothes were torn slightly, his teeth gritted in hopes of trying to dull the pain that plagued his body. He felt his legs give out beneath him as he fell to the ground with a thud.
“Tsukasa..!!”
Immediately, Saki attempted to run over to him while the other three trailed behind. Once she reached Tsukasa’s side, she quickly sat beside him and placed her hand on the back of his head, raising it up slightly before embracing her older brother in a tight hug.
She could feel burning tears running down her face.
Ichika knelt beside Saki, while Shizuku and Toya sat across from them on the other side. Turning her head to face her distraught ally, Ichika speaks up. “Saki.”
“He's gonna-”
“Saki, you need to look at me.”
“You're gonna be fi-”
“Saki.” Ichika placed a hand on Saki's shoulder, turning her face towards her friend's tearful one.
“He's not going to make it.” Ichika shook her head slightly, letting out a heavy sigh she didn’t know she was holding onto. Saki felt her breath hitch in her throat once those words reached her. She weakly shook her head, not wanting to believe the reality of the situation in front of her.
The sound of Tsukasa coughing brought the two’s attention back towards him. His body was shaking lightly, most likely from pain. In a strained, yet regretful voice, he spoke up. “I’m.. very sorry it turned out like this.” Tsukasa turned his head slightly to face Saki, a wounded face meeting a tearstained one. With a weak smile, he continued, “I’m really-” Tsukasa paused, coughing. “-Really happy you could be with me until the end. Thank you.”
“Please, Tsukasa- save your strength.” Toya requested, his voice laced with the tiniest hints of desperation. He was checking his pockets, trying to see if he had something, anything to try and remedy the mortal injuries Tsukasa had sustained. “There has to be something, anything that can heal lightning strikes, or..”
Toya trailed off, still trying to search for something that could help heal Tsukasa. But alas, he found nothing. Shizuku was sitting to Toya’s right, attempting to try and convince Tsukasa to save his strength if there was even a slim chance that they could save him. “It’s okay, Tsukasa- just keep breathing, you’re doing alright.” Shizuku continued to monitor the wounded performer.
Ichika’s attention was constantly shifting between Tsukasa and Saki as she attempted to try and help her accept the terms of the situation. However, it was doing anything but working at this moment. Saki continued to hold onto Tsukasa, tears still falling.
“Onii-chan- what, what's happening- you're going to be fine you're going to be fine-”
“Saki, please .” It felt as if Ichika’s voice couldn’t reach her-
But Tsukasa’s did.
“Everyone, PLEASE!” His usually loud voice tore through everybody’s statements, causing them all to fall silent almost immediately. However, such an exclamation cost Tsukasa greatly, throwing him into a coughing fit. His chest was heaving, fighting for air to hang onto the thread of life for just a little longer.
“My apologies.. Ergh..” Tsukasa slowly lowered himself back down onto the ground, turning his head left and right to see the others seated around him.
He could feel his eyes slowly beginning to close. Exhaustion was washing over his wounded body, asking him to finally rest his body after everything he’s been through..
But the performer didn’t wish to rest just yet. There was so much he wanted to say, yet so little time.
Tsukasa turned his head towards Saki, mustering a weak smile as his eyes began to close little by little.
“Saki.. I hope we meet again someday.” Tsukasa’s voice was strained, laced with an edge of regret. Saki shook her head, not wanting to believe the situation in front of her at all-
“Goodbye, and.. Thank you, Saki. I’m.. sorry. I’m sure we’ll meet again..”
At last, Tsukasa’s eyes slowly fluttered shut, his arms falling slack as his head turned to the left.
Tsukasa gave his final breath.
And just like that.. He was gone.
Silence fell over the group once Tsukasa had passed. Nobody said a word for a while, and either avoided the gazes of the others or gave one another conflicted glances. Although the glow of the needle shone brightly in front of Ichika and the others, they had all lost the brightest light here. The silence lingered on for a few more moments, strained and agonizing.
Suddenly, the silence was soon broken by the sound of weak laughter.
“haha.. hahaha!”
Saki’s laughter. Ichika turned her head to face her friend, confused and concerned.
“Saki? What-”
"Bravo! Good show, onii-chan! How'd you do that, anyway? Your acting's always amazing. And the special effects? The lightning looked so real. " The young girl's breath hitched. "It almost felt real too." She paused for an agonizingly long moment, her breathing heavy.
"But it's over now! The show ended on a sad note - I'm a bit mad at you for that. You know I love happy endings. You'll have to buy me ice cream to make it up. So, come on! Get up now - if we don't hurry the parlor will close.”
“Come on, Onii-chan. Won't you get up?”
The denial and disbelief in Saki’s voice was strained, raw with emotion and guilt. Ichika felt as if her heart was constricted just by seeing the sight of her friend in such a state. It hurt to see. Saki attempted to speak through the sobs that were choked up in her throat, her voice coming out shaky and broken. “Come on.. Get up..” No response came from her older brother.
“Saki..” Ichika swallowed the sobs forming in her own throat, shuffling closer to Saki and wrapping her arms around her tightly. Wiping away tears of their own, Toya and Shizuku both headed over to Saki as well, wrapping their arms around Saki as well and creating a group hug.
Through her pleas for her brother to awaken, Saki’s voice slowly broke more and more, tears falling down heavier despite her wishes for them to stop.
“Please… wake up..”
The desperate pleas that left her choked up throat slowly became more unintelligible, and eventually, the reality of the situation finally sank in for Saki. The sobs she’s tried to suppress finally tore through, and the younger sibling finally broke at last.
She buried her head into Ichika’s shoulder, trembling immensely and sobbing harshly. Her tears were running down her face like a river, falling one after another and splashing against the fabric of her shirt.
Ichika could feel tears welling up in her own eyes at the sight of her friend’s breakdown. Toya and Shizuku only tightened the hug around Saki as her cries echoed out into the purple sky above. She felt as if she could barely breathe through the cries, her body jolting with every sob that ripped through her sore throat.
All the others could do was hold onto Saki as she cried, letting everything sink in. With a sniffle, Ichika whispered to her friend. “I’m.. sorry, Saki.” Saki had only hugged her tighter at that, burying her face further.
The group hug would last for a little bit longer between the four of them, and eventually, Saki’s sobs had eventually quieted, slowly dying down to small sniffles and cries. Slowly separating from the hug, Ichika held Saki at arm’s length while the other two backed up a bit to give them a little bit of space.
Standing up, Toya and Shizuku turned their attention to the glowing needle that awaited in front of them, glowing brightly still and shooting up into the dark purple sky. Taking a deep breath and wiping away any remaining tears on his face, Toya spoke up.
“This final needle.. It’ll fix everything once it’s removed. And Tsukasa-senpai- he sacrificed himself to help us restore the world back to normal this way.. Regardless of the cost.” Shizuku nodded, turning back to face Ichika and Saki. “Shouldn’t we honor his final wish, then..?” She added onto Toya’s statement.
Ichika nods in response. “You’re right, but..” She trails off, looking back at Saki. Her face was stained with tears, eyes red and puffy as she kept her gaze down at the ground beneath her. With a light squeeze, Ichika attempted to get the attention of her friend. “Can you do it, Saki?” She questioned.
They all knew that Saki was the only one who possessed the ability to pull out the strange pins, alongside Tsukasa. So ultimately, it was up to her to remove it for good. Saki hesitated for a moment, looking at the ground and taking slow, yet shallow breaths.
In the midst of her hesitation, however, her mind recalls a memory from long ago, back from when she was in the hospital. Tsukasa used to visit her a lot during those days, and he often made up a play or show for the two of them to take part in. Saki recalled that it was during this specific day, in which Tsukasa taught her something.
“No matter what happens, no matter what anyone says- the doctors, mom and dad, even me- you can't give up, Saki. Don't give up on what you believe in, and certainly don't give up on yourself.”
Saki looked over at her older brother as he continued, a look of sincerity and determination in his eyes.
“You've been knocked down more times in your 16 years than most people have in their entire lives, but you're still here. As long as you're willing to fight, someone will help you. If you have trouble fighting for yourself, then.. please, for the people who care about you.. don't give up, Saki.”
Don’t give up, Saki.
Taking a deep breath, Saki lifted her head up and faced the dark-haired girl before giving her a small nod. “Yeah. I can do this, Icchan.” She answered. Ichika’s eyes widened a bit in surprise, but it soon shifted to a fond expression, followed by another nod. “I understand.”
With that, Ichika helped Saki up to her feet and let go of her, letting her take hold of her crutches once more as Saki made her way to where the needle stood. Standing in front of it, she looked behind her to where the other three stood, all of them giving her a smile or a determined nod, as if to say “You can do this.”
Saki’s hands settled onto the handle of the glowing needle, illuminating her face. Her life, along with the lives of all of her family and friends.. It was all being put on the line here.
However, Saki had faith in her friends and herself. She promised Tsukasa that she’d keep going- for the sake of those friends, and herself.
“Thank you, Onii-chan,” Saki thought, holding onto the needle with all of her strength. “For you, for our friends, for the people that care about me- I'll try to keep breathing.”
So, with all of her strength, she pulled the final needle from the ground.