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Full Circle (Razgriz x Candira)

Yoko worked with Ron to ready the weapons they would be using, letting him calibrate her rifle, which was a rare thing indeed. When he made the comment the redhead shrugged. "I don't want any mistakes, and you'll have it perfect for me," she said with a wink. Later on into the night, Yoko went to sleep in her own little tent, her belly full and her body tired. She was going to be ready for tomorrow. She had to be, because she wasn't entirely sure that Simon would.

When morning came, Yoko was one of the first up, eating a lean breakfast and drinking down hot coffee to help wake her up. When she was finished, she picked up her rifle and an extra cup of coffee with lots of sweetener for Simon. He was sleeping in Lagann, Boota cuddled in one of his pockets. The redhead smiled at him and said his name at a reasonable volume. He jumped up, all kind of awkward. She smiled at him and handed him the coffee.

Once the bumbling greetings stopped she leaned against the side of the little gunman. "Sleep well? Make sure you drink up; you'll need to be alert today," she said with a smile. She gave him some company and a little advice, kept it light so that he wouldn't feel too much pressure. "We're all with you, Simon. Don't forget it, okay?" And with that, she left him.

Unfortunately, all that niceness and all of her beauty and strength being so near to him brought back his feelings for her. The image of her kissing Kamina like she loved him...images of them together were burned into his memory. He shook his head and tried to get himself back to normal, but no matter what he did, he just wasn't himself and he couldn't get his head in the game, much less his heart.

Unknowingly, the heart-breaker went for another cup for Kamina, and one for Exodus. Then she was left with the dilemma of who to go to first.
 
Exodus shot up abruptly n the middle of the night, his body covered in a cold sweat and his eyes and cheeks were moist with his tears, his chest rising and falling a tad dramatically. It was the same problem too: Memories from the past, the most traumatic experiences of his life. Sovereign's sacrifice and him being blasted backwards as Cytomander was annihilated, Harbinger's mech exploding as he was literally thrown out of harm's way. "Damn it all" he grumbled as he laid back down, staring up at the night sky before exhaustion claimed him back into the realm of nightmares.

When morning came around, Exodus was a tad slow to get up; however, he was soon on the far reaches of the campsite, using a large stone as target practice for low-strength combat warm-up. He didn't want to wake anyone up, yet; they deserved all the rest they needed. Over and over again, Adiane's face appeared on the boulder as he exercised; it took all his restraint to not level a full-force blow into it. If he couldn't control his temper, he risked making himself vulnerable and becoming a liability to the team. He could not - and would not - allow that to happen.

Kamina, on the other hand, lay sprawled out on a roll-out mat throughout the night; it was like he didn't have a care in the world. It was just like him; however stressful the situation was, he gladly accepted the challenges of the day with a confident smile and a will of iron. His mouth was agape, a rather pronounced snoring emanating from his mouth as he snoozed. It wasn't long though, before his eyes twitched, parting to reveal the fiery determination of his soul; this day was going to be an exciting one. The sun shone brightly, the sky clearer than it ever could be, as if giving a testament to the resistance fighters for their efforts.

The Team Gurren leader slowly sat up and stretched rather loudly, his toned arms coming up over his head as he readied himself. It wasn't long before a good portion of the camp was up and about; some of the Supers were busy going over repairs to their Gunman and sparring with each other. Kamina stood up and wandered the camp, grinning lightly as he saw everyone's efforts to prepare for the upcoming battle.

He then noticed Yoko and unknowingly made up her mind for her about the coffee issue, walking up behind her and saying, "Morning, Yoko. Sleep well?"
 
The redhead smiled at Kamina as he ambled over. She handed him one of the cups and nodded. "Yeah. Hard work will do that," she said, looking up at him. "How about you? Any dreams?" she asked, stretching a little.



While Yoko caught Kamina, Simon worked his way over to Exodus' side of things. It was awhile before he noticed him, though. When he did, he could see the warrior's muscular frame, training, burning off what appeared to be pure aggression. For awhile, he watched, transfixed and in awe of the older man. How he wished he could have just half of the strength Exodus did...maybe then Yoko would want him....Damn it, there it was again.

Rather than wander down that path, he called out, "Exodus? What are you doing?"
 
Kamina smiled as he took a swig of the coffee; this would help keep him awake. "Yeah, no kidding" he then replied to her comment. When she asked about any dreams he smiled and said back, in a slightly comical tone, "What else? For this war to be over". He then chuckled, taking another sip of the refreshing yet bitter black liquid before adding , "Nah, but I did relive our little meeting last night. Gotta say, Yoko, you know how to use your lips real good"

Exodus continued his little session as Simon watched, his mind so focused on the stone he didn't even notice the child's presence; small cracks had already started to form on the boulder's surface, flowering out from the central impact point of his fists and feet. Anyone else doing this would probably bruise their bones or, even worse, break them doing this for too long; however, the genetic modifications granted the warrior - like the other Supers - a hardened skeleton, though his was to a far greater degree than theirs. That wasn't to say his bones were indestructible, they just required greater amounts of force to injure or break.

He's paused for a moment, surveying his damage; extensive compared to what others might be able to do, but for his scale, relatively minimal. A thin vernier of sweat coated him, a slight yet welcome breeze helping to cool him off. He only glared at the boulder, as if it were his mortal enemy; he started a bit when he heard Simon call his name. He turned to see the boy gazing at him, the child's gaze somewhat....intense, as if examining him.

Simon was uneasy about something; Exodus could see it plain as day. One thing he learned while leading the Trio and fighting on his own was how to be observant; in fact, his situation made it a requirement. But as they say, old habits die hard. "Just finishing a little warm-up" he replied, making his way over to Simon. Exodus then went to a knee to look Simon right in the eye, "Something's troubling you, Simon. What's wrong?"
 
Yoko laughed, simultaneously reaching out to slap his shoulder. She blushed and looked away. "Jeez, Kamina!" She took a moment to get herself back together and looked up at him again. "Get your head in the game." Still, knowing that he thought of her like that...it was pretty appealing. "You really need to focus today, okay?" she said, softening a bit.



Simon sighed as Exodus got right to the heart of the matter. Figures. "I...well, I'm having a hard time focusing," he said. "I'm really worried...I don't think I can do it..." he looked away, not bearing to look into the warrior's eyes. So much had gone down in Exodus' life. He'd live through so much. His concerns seemed so small in comparison...but they didn't disappear.
 
Kamina only smiled as Yoko told him that he had to focus; he knew that. But that didn't mean he couldn't be a little loose; if he got too wound-up, then he would be in REAL trouble. Some people may do things that way, but that just wasn't his style. Plus, it was pretty amusing to see her all flustered like this; all he did was pay her a simple compliment and he got this kind of reaction. But he let it go, taking another draw from the cup before replying with his usual tone of confidence, "Yoko, didn't I tell you? Everything's gonna be a hundred times better when this is over" He then added rather slyly, "Besides, if I got you watching my back, I know we can win this"

Exodus only listened as Simon explained his troubled appearance; his looking away meant that this was a very deep-rooted problem. One that was outside his area of expertise, more in Harbinger's domain. He couldn't solve the problem, but he could give him some advice. The warrior laid a hand on Simon's shoulder, "Simon.....I want you to listen close. Take it from someone who's been through the grinder more times than he cares to admit". He then paused, letting those words sink in before continuing, "Each warrior - whether it be me, Kamina, Yoko or you - has a reason to fight, a reason to push forward against insurmountable odds. To some, it's as plain as day. Others, need a little push to figure out what it is. You need to discover why it is you fight, then grasp it and hold it true; that will become your strength."
 
Yoko blushed softly, surprised as he reminded her of his promise. She stared at him for a moment, her expression softening as she leaned into him and kissed his lips softly. "Just be careful. I can only do so much," she said in a half-whisper. She looked up at him, memorizing every line of his face, wanting his expressions stuck in her head for as long as she could get them. If she ever had to leave him, she would use them to keep her going. In the big scheme of things, she was fighting for freedom. In this battle, she was fighting to keep him safe, and she would do it no matter the cost.



Simon frowned, confused as he stood there with Exodus. Hearing the older man refer to him as a warrior was a bit of an ego boost. But hearing Yoko and Kamina's names had brought up all those confusing thoughts again. He was perfectly jealous and betrayed, and at the same time happy for his bro, and sad at his loss of Yoko's attentions and affections. His chance was gone. Frowning, the little digger looked up at Exodus. "But...but what if I can't? What if I can't figure out my reason to fight, Exodus? I'm just a little guy. I'm only a kid. I'm not like my bro...I'm not brave," he said, distressed.
 
Now it was Kamina's turn to be surprised; feeling her lips on his felt nice, but he would be lying if he said he was expecting her to do that. He just smiled gently, listening to her soft-spoken plea of caution. His hands came to rest on her shoulders as he replied, "I'll do what I can, Yoko. I promise" He then leaned his forehead against hers, adding "You better do the same, though. No matter what happens, keep yourself safe, alright?"

Just then, a loud "Ahem" was heard; Kamina looked over to see Kittan standing nearby. "Pardon the intrusion, but we're all set over here" Kamina just grinned, "Alright then, let's do this!" He then paused to look around, saying "Has anyone seen Simon or Exodus?"

Meanwhile, Exodus was trying to convince Simon that he could do this; it was not an easy task. It was only natural that Exodus had been as patient as he was; Simon had not seen what he'd seen, done what he'd done. In truth, it ate him alive to force a child to fight, but he knew Simon was the only one that could do this.

"Simon, look at me......The fact that you are here, standing alongside Kamina, 'your bro' as you say, shows that you are brave. If you were a true coward, you would have ran by now. You would have ran a long time ago." He then looked up as he heard commotion; seemed like everything was set and they were ready to mobilize. He then stood up, towering over the little digger as he slipped on his gauntlets which were previously strapped to his waist. He then uttered, in a very powerful tone, "Now, no more of this self-doubt. You are strong, Simon; Kamina and everyone believes in you. I believe in you, so let us go and show the Beastmen how strong you really are." Without giving Simon a real chance to respond, he lumbered off to find Kamina.
 
Yoko smiled as he promised her he'd be careful. She took his hand and nodded. "Of course. I'm gonna live. Otherwise who's gonna keep you in line?" She teased, resting her head against his. She pulled away from Kamina as Kittan appeared, keeping hold of his hand. After a moment she let go, looking around as Kamina asked about their other friends. "Hmm... I dunno...I haven't seen them..." Since neither of them were really around, she handed her cup of coffee to Kittan and told him to drink up. With a smile, she made her way out toward all the others, looking for Simon and Exodus on the way.



Simon stared at Exodus as he told him he was brave. At this point in time, he didn't feel brave, but if Exodus said he was, then surely it was true. No one was braver than him. "No more of this self-doubt. He snapped to attention as Exodus used that no-nonsense tone of his and told Simon to show them what he had. Yeah... he could do it, right? He had to believe so, but that didn't stop him from worrying. He was still so uneasy. And what if it didn't work? Still, with all his uncertainty, he hurried to join the others.
 
Kittan quickly downed the cup of liquid after giving the busty redhead his thanks, crumpling the cup and tossing it away casually when he finished; he then followed the affectionate pair towards the meeting area, where an overview of the plan was to be presented. Kamina's eyes roamed the area with Yoko, trying to locate the two others. "Huh, wonder where they could've gone...." he said to no one in particular; soon enough, the small army they'd managed to gather was all in one spot. The Supers seemed to keep to themselves for the most part; no surprise given their nomadic lifestyle and mentality. However, those who did talk to them were met with hearty greetings and rambunctious laughter; the thrill of the upcoming battle was infectious amongst their ranks.

"Guess everything's getting set. Good; the sooner we strike Thymilph" a familiar voice then proclaimed; Kamina turned his head to see Exodus approaching them. And right behind him followed Simon; he seemed a little better than last night. Kamina could imagine Exodus had something to do with that. "Ah, there you two are! Where have you two been hiding?" Kamina commented jokingly, to which Exodus replied bluntly "Preparing". That was the best way he put it; he would leave it up to Simon to reveal the talk they had or leave it alone. That killed the humor on the spot and Kamina couldn't help but think "Well, at least we don't have to worry about him giving it his all".

But regardless it was time for the briefing; the plan was then discussed after the finalizations were made and soon enough it was set. It was a simple plan, but an extremely risky one as well. Yoko and a few of the other long-range Gunmen would provide sniper support from a high ridge, high enough to give them complete coverage of the battlefield. Everyone else besides Simon would assault Thymilph from multiple directions; the little digger would basically drop right down on top of Thymilph's ship and hijack it. It seemed so easy in theory; little did they know what they would really be getting into.
 
Yoko held her gun in her hands, confident of her abilities to do what needed to be done. The supers she worked with told her already that she was like one of them, though, most of the snipers that were supers didn't need to use their scopes. It was still a high form of praise for her. She could hold her own. And she would do it. She would keep everyone she loved safe. At least, as safe as she could. She took a deep breath and smiled encouragingly at Simon, who seemed a little more at ease, but still nervous. And who could blame the kid? This whole operation rested on his shoulders. It was a lot of pressure.

Simon was still not fully in the game, but he was willing to do what needed to be done. One last speech from Kamina would get him fired up enough to start off on the right foot. He would get into position... it was the waiting that would get to him, but people believed in him--Exodus included. He had things to do, and he couldn't deal with his problems until this big one was fixed.
 
After the final preparations were made, everyone was position; the three strike teams on the ground would wait until the snipers were in position, then advance and strike. There was an elevated cliff well within the range of Yoko and the Supers' sniping range, but far enough to where it was unlikely they would be found. It was also ideal because it would give them a complete overview of the battleground; all they had to worry about was hitting the enemy and avoiding friendly fire.

Kamina approached Simon, who sat in Lagann; he could see that Simon was nervous, but that was understandable. Hell, he was nervous too; they were fighting a head honcho of the Beastman Army. This wasn't a walk in the park by any stretch of the imagination, but Kamina could only imagine the morale boost by bringing the mutant bastard down. "Hey, Simon....You can do it, buddy. Just remember, believe in yourself. You're a lot stronger than you give yourself credit for." the blue-haired leader said, somewhat mirroring what Exodus said to him not moments ago. And then it was time to begin the operation.

Exodus would ride on top of Gurren at the head of First Assault; the bronzed metal of his gauntlets gleamed in the overhead sun, as did his well-sunned skin albeit to a lesser degree. All of the Gunmen gleamed as well, Ron and his crew having worked overtime to get them all fixed and 'prettied up', as the flamboyant man put it. They didn't have a lot of bodies to mobilize, so it was stressed even more noticeably that everyone be careful and watch their sectors. Once everything was set, everyone set out to get into position.

As First Assault approached the combat zone, they could see that Thymilph still had not fully extricated himself from the small sinkhole; Exodus then saw something strange: black smoke trailing from several locations. Upon having Kamina call up to one of the snipers to look and see what it was, Exodus was horrified to hear the result: They were bodies. His soldier's bodies who'd died trying to liberate the Dai-Gunzan from its earthen prison. "That sick, depraved......" Exodus grit his teeth; even if they were enemies, he felt the soldiers under that bastard's command deserved better. But at least they wouldn't have as much to deal with, if that was the silver lining.

But still, something was wrong; there were too few enemies. Less than what he faced when he led his team to kill Cytomander; he had Kamina send a message, telling everyone to be extra-vigilant as there could be an ambush waiting for them. "Well, it's now or never, Exodus...." Kamina said, feeling his heart pound in his chest; Exodus felt the same way. "Huh, never thought I'd live to face down another General. Can't say I'm disappointed.....Do it" Kamina nodded, then ordered the strike; Gunmen poured out to Thymilph from multiple directions.

"Now!" Thymilph's voice barked; from behind them, enemy Gunmen and soldiers seemed to crawl and materialize out of every nook and cranny imagineable; the battleground became an instant scene of chaos. "Damn it!" Exodus shouted; he KNEW this would happen. Thymilph seemed to be one step ahead of him, nothing less could be expected from a General. Pockets of intense combat broke out everywhere, explosions from destroyed Gunmen and the massive artillery cannons on Thymilph's Dai-Gun blasted huge divets in the sun-baked earth. Soon enough, it would seem that Thymilph was focused on them, as he shouted out "Stupid apes! You really think I didn't expect you to surround me? I'm General Thymilph the Crasher! You're nothing compared to me!"
 
Simon smiled up at Kamina and nodded, running off in Lagann to get into position. He vanished almost immediately before the ambush began. Yoko and the others got themselves into position, taking out as many mechs and soldiers as they could with well-placed shots. They focused on conserving their ammo, but it was pretty clear that the battle head was going to be all out, and since they were outgunned, it would be difficult to do. As soon as the first rush died down a bit, Yoko switched focus to Kamina, taking care to watch his back, helping him whenever she could.
 
The battle raged on, both sides - under skilled leadership and through sheer force of will - inflicted massive amounts of damage on each other. The Supers on the side of Team Gurren were putting up one hell of a fight; many of their Gunman had far-reaching polearms and given the fact that they possessed a modicum of Spiral Power, they speared through enemy Gunman like fish in a pond. Kamina and Exodus were busy tag-teaming, fighting off their own waves of attackers. Exodus, being one of those who was on foot, used his gauntlets to literally smash through his foes, whilst Kamina was making very good use of his mech's sunglasses as both a blade and a boomerang style weapon.

Thymilph was growing ever-more agitated that these apes weren't dying as fast as he liked; he shouted at his troops, letting his voice be heard by everyone present, "You idiots! They're weaker than you! Crush them!" It was at this point Kamina and Exodus realized Thymilph wouldn't be expecting Simon to hijack his Dai-Gunman from him. So Kamina radioed to Simon, "Showtime, Simon! We got him distracted!"
 
It was then that Simon burst out of the side of a cliff above The Dai Gunzan. The tiny gunman worked with its drill, slamming into the behemoth of a gunman the little digger starting to take over. Just as Yoko and the other snipers were cheering a huge shell slammed into their cliff, causing the rocky outcropping to crumble. A few snipers were hit, but most got away. Yoko, however was caught in the blast and was catapulted off the cliff. "Shit!"

Simon couldn't see her at the moment, he was just focusing on taking control, and he was winning!
 
Thymilph fell back as a giant drill nearly pierced him, his eyes wide with shock. "What the hell?!" the Beastman General growled as he tried to get back to his console. He found that he was losing control of his fortress! "Come on, come on!" he shouted, jerking at the controls to make the giant Gunman respond to him. He found that it wasn't working and glaring at the drill bit that nearly killed him, he growled and said, "I have to do everything myself!" He then exited the control tower, grabbing his giant hammer and slinging it over his back as he went into the small hangar at the rear of the Dai-Gunzan. He climbed into his personal Gunman, Byakou. "Those apes will regret making me come out on the battlefield" he uttered one last time as his mech powered on, the eyes on its 'face' glowing an eerie shade of red

Kamina and Exodus had since used a series of explosions as launch platforms to land themselves on the now-hijacked Dai-Gunzan's bridge. "Yeah, way to go, Simon!" Kamina shouted, Exodus smirking in an approving fashion. Now that they had control of Thymilph's fortress, they could wreak havoc on the forces below. Their eyes wandered upward towards the control tower; they had to deal with Thymilph himself. "You haven't won yet, hairless ape!" a familiar voice cried out; Kamina and Exodus looked back down to see Viral's Gunman, Enkidu, blocking their progress. "Damn it all" Kamina grumbled; Exodus just slammed his fists together, forcing the gauntlets into overdrive and encasing his hands in blue fire, adding as his eyes developed that characteristic, murderous golden hue "You're tough, Viral, but today you've lost!"

Just then, a huge blast of energy landed right in front of Gurren, forcing Kamina and Exodus back. Another Gunman landed next to Viral's, its right hand clutching a long polearm that glowed a fierce shade of blue at the tip. It shouted in a clearly enraged and very familiar tone, "As long as I'm breathing, I, General Thymilph, Commander of the Eastern Human Eradication Army, will not sit idly by and let you filthy apes steal my Dai-Gunzan!" Kamina grimaced, realizing that Thymilph had joined the battle himself. "Looks like we really poked a hornet's nest on this one, Exodus!" All Exodus could reply was, "Thymilph is mine" And then it was on; both sides charged each other, the intent to kill riding higher than anyone could have imagined at this point.

A flurry of combat raged on the bridge; Kamina and Viral duking it out, Enkidu's scythe blade colliding with Gurren's sunglasses, Thymilph's Alkaid Glave trying its damnedest to smash Exodus into the deck. He was under strict orders not to kill the Goldeneye, which made things that much tougher for him since Exodus had no such limitation. But still, Thymilph was proving what Exodus already knew: he was a tough bastard and hard to hit. Exodus was also limited in that despite his strength and the gauntlets he wore, the Gunmen were larger and faster than he was, especially when piloted by someone like Thymilph. After a particularly fast-paced bout of battle, Exodus was back on top of Gurren, seeing an opportunity to slam Thymilph with everything he had. Viral, however, suddenly appeared in front of him, aiming the head-mounted artillery cannon right at him. "FUCK!" Exodus shouted as he jumped off right as Viral fired, the shell missing him completely.

However, as soon as he landed on the top of the Dai-Gunzan's deck with him skidding to a halt just as the deck ended, he heard a large explosion behind him and felt the wind at his back; he turned to see the cliff where the snipers were blown to rubble. He also saw a familiar shape flying through the air; it was Yoko! "SHIT! he shouted mentally, unknowingly at the same time as the redhead herself; he then turned his head to see that Kamina was going to get attacked from both the front and back. Time seemed to slow down around Exodus, his heart pounding in his ears as he looked at his options. Yoko was dead if he didn't do something, but so was Kamina. His head looked back and forth, Viral and Thymilph closing in for a most-certain fatal strike and Yoko slowly (in his eyes, anyway) falling to her death. The sounds of battle echoed in his ears, his mind trying to determine what he should do.

His decision was not an easy one, but one he felt was the right one; his chest rose as he inhaled deeply, fully prepared to reap the potential consequences of his actions. "Forgive me" was all he said as he seemed to make his way back to Kamina to stop the strike; however, he summoned his Savage state and turned around, his bulked form charging full speed as he turned around and ran straight for the deck's edge. His feet right against the edge as he crouched, he then sprang forward, his hyper-enhanced strength making him jump at inhuman speed towards the plummeting sniper. He felt the wind rush past his face as he drew closer and closer to Yoko; he was eventually able to grab her and turn himself over in the air. This was going to hurt and he knew it; he held Yoko very tightly to himself so she wouldn't jar as much, before long feeling his heavy, bulked-up form collide with the ground. Shards of earth and dust flew everywhere as he cratered the hard ground, cushioning Yoko from a very large majority of the damage and taking it all himself. He lay unconscious beneath the curvy redhead, the force of the impact making distinct trickles of dark red flow out from the back of his head and body, his massive arms unwrapping themselves of Yoko's form and falling limply to his sides. He would survive, but even with him in Savage form, the impact rendered him unconscious and he would stay that for a good while yet.

Unfortunately, this meant Kamina would suffer a very brutal strike; an energy blast pierced the Gurren's cockpit from behind, slicing open Kamina's side while Enkidu's scythe blade slammed it from the front, its point burying itself in in Kamina's gut. The leader of Team Gurren yelled out in agony, choking as blood started to trickle from the corners of his mouth. Viral and Thymilph just smiled, knowing this human was done for. "You lose, hairless ape" the Beastmen lieutenant said gleefully, their weapons held in place as they reveled in knowing that they just killed a very important figurehead in the human resistance movement.

(Sorry for the tl;dr post, but I couldn't help myself, lol)
 
Simon let out a little cheer, thrilled that he was actually doing it. And then he saw it. He saw Kamina get double teamed. Eyes bugged out in shock, things immediately went wrong, his desire to win the day with the dai gunzan faltering a great deal as his bro was, in his eyes, killed brutally in battle. "BRO!" The agonized cry rang out in the cock pit and through the com systems, filling everyone's ears.

Yoko fell at what she was sure was a very lethal speed, but it felt like she was moving through water. Helpless to do anything but just fall, she let her life flash before her eyes and wondered how useful she'd been to her friends and if they would fare well without her. And then, of course, she wondered if she would be missed--if she would be remembered.

In an instant, she felt an impact coming up hard against her body. A strong arm wrapped around her and she turned to see Exodus there, her golden eyes widening in realization. He was going to try and break her fall. She turned to him and shook her head, trying to yell for him to save himself, but it was too late. They were falling and he was using himself as the cushioning. He held her so tight she thought she might break before the both of them made a crater in the earth. Instantly, the breath was knocked out of her and she felt a certain amount of jarring pain, but not as much as Exodus. She struggled to get air back into her lungs as his limp arms fell off of her. She scrambled to sit up to see that he was now unconscious and bleeding.

Tears came to her eyes and she shook her head, gently touching the sides of his face. What had he done? And just then she heard Kamina's agony and Simon's distress through the com. Her head snapped up to see the most horrific sight imaginable. "KAMINA!" Tears spilled from her eyes, sparkling in the sunlight of the battle that raged on before them. First Exodus was seriously injured, if not killed because of her, and now Kamina was down because no one could help him. "No!"

She reached for her gun, found it not far away and immediately started firing at any and all enemy targets. "You bastards!"
 
Well, needless to say, Kamina's apparent demise had more implications than one might have expected; Simon's frenzy at the perceived loss of Kamina - his bro, the guy he always looked up to, the one he was sure wouldn't die to the likes of the Beastmen - caused the Dai-Gunzan to flail uncontrollably; Viral was thrown off the deck and slammed hard into a nearby gulch, groaning as he tried to recover. Enemies and allies alike tried to move out of the way as the mech gigantic 'feet' swung around crazily, knocking into small cliffs and making earthen debris rain down on the ground. Thymilph was struggling to hold on for dear life, his polearm having embedded itself into the top of the deck. "S...stupid ape! Cut it out!" he yelled; then out of nowhere, a giant pair of sunglasses slammed into Byakou, pinning him to the wall of the control tower.

What everyone see would definitely make them do a double take: The Gurren was still up and running! "Simon! SIMON! Calm down!" Kamina then yelled, sounding fine over the coms; the picture in the cockpit, on the other hand, was quite different. Kamina's right hand clutched the severe wound in his gut, blood leaking profusely from between his fingers. He breathed a bit heavily; not surprising given the extent of his injury. "Simon! Come on, buddy! We're so close! Let's finish this!"
 
Yoko's heart did a little flip as she saw Kamina pin the general to the wall. "Kamina!" She looked up at him worry and a small measure of relief in her face. She saw Viral coming at him, loaded the proper artillery and blew his ass away. So long as she could help it, she would make sure Kamina didn't take any more hits.

Simon didn't believe what he was seeing at first, his meek voice squeaking a hesitant, "Bro?" He shook a bit in his cockpit, struggling to get himself under control, but his nerves were nearly shot. He simply couldn't get himself together like this. Not now...Kamina...his bro was in trouble. Shouldn't he help? Why wasn't the take over working like they'd planned!?
 
After pinning Thymilph to the wall of the control tower, Kamina jumped Gurren so that he could be right next to Simon for his next move: Kamina's hand latched on to the edge of Lagann's open cockpit. As the little digger would look upon his bro, the man's face half-saturated in blood, a bloodied hand came and struck Simon.....Hard. Enough to make some sense get drilled into that little skull of his.

"What the hell, Simon?" he managed to shout over the gunfire and sounds of battle. His expression wasn't one of anger or hate, but one of agonized disbelief. Disbelief that Simon had faltered in his resolve; even if he was injured, that was no excuse to not keep pushing forward "Get it together, Simon! Be strong and push forward, Simon!"

Thymilph continued to struggle against the brace that Kamina had placed him under; if he was feeling murderous before, now he was truly out for blood. Kamina saw this and said "Come on, let's finish this! You and me, buddy!"
 
Simon's eyes widened as he saw the blow coming and stayed open in pure shock as the force of his injured bro's punch nearly knocked him over. "W-why?" he croaked, turning back as Kamina yelled at him to get it together. After a moment of recovery and seeing his bro looking at him like that, he nodded and smiled, a determined glint back in his eye. "Yeah. Let's do it bro!" And then all systems were go, Lagann was gaining control of the ship again, and Kamina was alive. Injured, but alive.

Yoko did her best to give Kamina cover while she covered her own ass. It was a few minutes before the snipers realized she was alive and began to cover her as well. If she was injured, she couldn't feel it. The adrenaline rush was too strong to let her feel anything but mastery of her rifle. If she'd had Harbringer's reaction time and vision on top of her own skill, the woman would be damn near unstoppable. She glanced down at Exodus now and again. "Don't you dare die on me!" she muttered, firing shot after shot. "Don't any of you dare die!"
 
(Sorry for the late reply, was really frickin' busy this week)
Kamina jumped back into Gurren, going down to engage Thymilph in combat, who broke free of his imprisonment and almost immediately set to attack the injured soldier. Simon soon disengaged his Lagann from the Dai-Gunzan and aided his bro in battle; the extent of Kamina's injury, however, made fighting difficult. Kamina was coming in for a strike with his Gurren's sunglasses when Thymilph aimed the glowing end of his polearm at him, shouting "Condemn Blaze!". The resulting beam of energy shot at Gurren; Kamina had a burst of adrenaline rush through and he shoved his glasses in front of him, blocking the would-be fatal strike. Simon suddenly then found a burst of courage and catapulted Lagann straight at Thymilph's Byakou, knocking the General from the deck of the Dai-Gunzan.

"Simon, let's finish this!" Simon nodded determinedly "Right, Bro!" After engaging the proper controls, both Gunmen flew into the air, Lagann impaling Gurren and forming the head Gunman of the resistance movement, Gurren Lagann. Both Simon and Kamina let out a collective cry of war, one of the volcanoes behind them erupting seemingly in time as if to make their union that much more intimidating. Thymilph had since managed to rise, shouting angrily "You apes are weak! Nothing you do can change the fact that you'll lose here!" Kamina replied, "You may say that, but you underestimate the will of humanity, the will to survive and fight....." and Simon added, "As long as we can stand, we'll fight. And we'll win" Thymilph just bellowed again, "That's the problem with apes.....You're too stupid to see that you're an inferior race! One worthy only of extermination!"

Kamina and Simon then just shouted back, "Who the hell do you think we are?!" Kamina then said in a low tone, feeling that his time was short, "Simon.....Remember....Don't believe in me that believes in you.....Believe in the Simon that believes in yourself" Before Simon could get clarification on what Kamina meant, Kamina picked up the sunglasses from the ground and hurled them at Thymilph, the one seeming to split into two; the Beastman General was so off-guard that the twin projectiles pierced his Gunman's arms and legs, holding them in such a way that he seemed to be crucified.

Drills then popped up all over Gurren Lagann, slowly condensing into one giant drill on Gurren Lagann's right hand, Kamina shouting all the while "GIGA.....DRILL....BREAKEEEER!!" The combined Gunman's form seemed to become encased in white light, the giant drill spinning rapidly before flying at Thymilph full-speed. As the attack landed, Thymilph could only shout in pain and agony as he was defeated, Gurren Lagann appearing on the other side of Byakou, the latter of which having a giant hole in its center where Kamina's only use of the technique had landed. Electricity arced from the General's Gunman before it exploded in a brilliant flash of fire and energy, erasing all traces of Thymilph, General of the Eastern Branch of the Human Eradication Army, from existence.

Kamina could only chuckle; he felt relieved, knowing that he'd been able to do his part. As his heart rate slowed, the battle around them was wrapping itself up as allied forces cleaned up the rest of the opposition. Kamina saw his vision darken; he knew he was not long for this world. "Well, at least I took one of them with me....Sorry, Yoko....Simon...Everyone" the leader thought to himself as his life ebbed away before him. Kamina's head bowed, his body somehow remaining relatively upright as he uttered his last words to Simon, "Later....buddy" And then his heart gave its last beat before ceasing to function. And with that, Kamina, former leader of Team Gurren passed from this life to the next
 
Simon's eyes bugged out, tears in them as he immediately started calling out for Kamina. But it was no use. His big bro, the invincible and indomitable leader of team Gurren was gone. Forever. Though the battle was won, and the enemy was either dying or retreating, it felt like the cost of victory wasn't justified. It was just too much! "Bro....why?" he whimpered. "BROOOOOOO!!!!!" And the canyon echoed with it.

Yoko's eyes were wide in shock, her eyes tearing up. Her whole body felt numb and she nearly dropped her rifle. All of a sudden it was like the world stopped meaning anything. The faces around her became blurs, and the colors around her seemed to drain away. Kamina, the man who'd just finished telling her things would get better, who'd just returned from the dead to defeat one of the four generals, who'd just told her he loved her...was dead. She sat back on her knees, her whole person just shutting down. For the rest of the day she would function on autopilot.

Kamina was gone--she hadn't been able to protect him after all. And there was no bringing him back. Had she let her emotions take over, she would have drowned in despair. As it was, she kept her wits about her and managed to get herself and Exodus to safety so he could receive treatment for his wounds. When the battle was over, Dai Gunzan was theirs for the taking, but she still felt hollow inside, much the same way the overwrought Simon did. Nothing would ever be the same.
 
The mood was indeed sad; Exodus throughout it all lay unconscious still, in the crater where he'd used his own body to save Yoko from certain death. Kamina was dead and those he cared about were feeling the effects of his loss. Both of the brave heroes' bodies were removed from the battlefield; a quick check by Ron revealed that Exodus was still alive, well within earshot of Yoko if she were listening - probably because he felt she could do with some good news. The veteran of war was then carried by several Supers into the newly-acquired Dai-Gurren to rest, as he would be out cold for quite some time, leaving the rest to hold a small funeral service for Kamina.

Then, as if to signify the bittersweet nature of the victory, the sky grew overcast and before long, it began to rain. Thankfully, it wasn't windy but the rain was cold and heavy; it was as if the sky itself were crying for the loss of Kamina. The Supers gathered around, singing an oddly appropriate but nonetheless haunting chant; Kamina's body was buried at the site where he fell, where any great warrior should be buried. The sword that he carried would serve as his tombstone, the cape he wore tied tightly around its sheath. In the short time they worked together, the Supers had come to respect Kamina as a warrior like Exodus, one deserving of every honor that could be given to them, even in the embrace of Death itself.
 
Yoko took in the news that Exodus was alive without surprise, but she did feel a small measure of relief to know that not everybody she'd set out to protect was dead. Simon was still alive, too. She supposed she should be grateful, but it was hard when the man who'd held her heart was being buried. She didn't cry. Not a single tear made it past her. Mostly she was angry. Angry at herself, angry at him, and angry at the whole damn situation. She stared in a numb sort of way, standing in the wind and rain as Kamina was buried and the others headed for the shelter inside of the Dai Gunzan. She stayed with Simon near the grave for the longest time, until someone came and got her, her skin cold as ice. She didn't even realize she was cold until her teeth were chattering in the cold.

She left Simon and found a room of her own before letting her wet hair down and mechanically removing her wet clothes. She found a shower attached to her room and was grateful for the hot spray that rained down on her, soaking her and warming her again. It was there that she broke down and cried. She cried for what felt like hours, cleaned herself up, dried off, and noted that she looked like hell before she curled up into bed, naked and so vulnerable. Her swollen, puffy eyes made sleep come easier, and she left the waking world only to dream of the one she'd lost.
 
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