4.5

A prayer for the fallen

Eikichi opened his eyes wearily.

He found himself back in the guest room of the youth centre he once called home. Oh right, he was visiting before falling asleep.

Before Eikichi was admitted to this place, it was threatened to be closed down. There wasn't enough funding they said. Then came a strange old foreign woman with seemingly bottomless purse. Soon, the city council sure changed their tune after presented with a suitcase full of cash.

The place was renovated and expanded into an orphanage as well. And Eikichi was the first orphan to be admitted here.

The man opened the door to find one of the youth waiting out for him, in the middle of the night no less. It was Toru, who was acting mighty suspicious.

"What are you doing scuttling around like that" Eikichi asked.

"Well" The boy looked around "I wonder if, you know…"

"Oh right, how can I forget" The bald man reached inside his suit and pulled out the softcore porn mag "Here you go"

On Toru face was a look of genuine surprise "I… didn't expect you to keep your words"

"A true man never breaks his promise" And besides, that thing would be found out and confiscated soon anyway.

Eikichi left as the boy snuck the good away. He made his way to the old lady's office and knocked at the door.

"Come on in"

He made his way inside a room that was so familiar. During his youth at this place, how many times had he been into this room. Inside was the same old lady as always, now probably approaching her 90s and yet she was still no less dull.

"So you didn't lie to me at all" Eikichi said, sitting down on the sofa "Your cooking sure was horrible back then"

"Now that is a strange hello, Eikichi" Said Mara Singer.

"Talk about strange, I just had the most surreal dream" The man looked at his arm, still with skin and flesh.

Mara continued with her paperwork, ignoring him. On her lips were a slight smile, however. The two continued to sit in silence, not for long though as Eikichi didn't intend to spend all day here. The man looked around, this room hadn't changed at all.

The children dreaded being sent here. Not surprising, no one liked to be reprimanded.

But Eikichi was different, he spent an awful lot of his childhood here. The lady was always cold and foreign, but maybe that was why he didn't mind spending time with her.

Like her, Eikichi was something so foreign as well. The fact that he murdered his own father didn't help either. And so Eikichi spent his time here. Over time, the old lady took notice of him… She sure had taught him well.

"So I was wondering, if I were to continue that dream, what should I do. Do you have any idea, you always know everything right?"

"Hm, I have this trick" Mara said without looking up "Say Rosebud before going to sleep and think of the dream, it always works for me"

Wait, wasn't that a word in the movie Mara always watched and occasionally made him sat through it as well. Eikichi tried to dispose of the disc so many times but it kept on returning. Even now, it was still on the bookcase, tauntingly.

Eikichi stood up but sat down again, then stood up and sat down again. Being here made him felt like a kid again.

"What is it now" Mara sighed and asked, a faint smile still on her face.

"No, I am wondering about something, but don't know whether to ask it or not"

"Just fire away"

"Everything you did… picking me up and all the trainings. Was it because of the dream"

"Yes" Mara answered with no hesitation, the woman removed her reading glasses "Do you regret them now?"

"Nope, not at all" Eikichi stood up, a smile on his face "Thank you, for everything you have done for me"

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He looked at Mara to see her already back with her paper work again. It was time for him to leave, but before he closed the door, Eikichi had one last question.

"Hey, do you still dream now"

The old lady looked up "What did you say?"

"Nah, it's nothing" He had known her enough to recognise that cue.

It seemed like he didn't sleep at all, no time passed between him lying down and waking up again either. So he would have to actually fall sleep again, what a pain.

Eikichi lied down on the bed, trying to sleep… or not.

"Rosebud" He whispered.

Eikichi opened his eyes wearily.

There he was in his room back in Saragarhi, so they didn't leave the town after all. He sat up and raised his arms groggily, too groggily. They still looked normal but what was this foreign feeling.

"That doctor guys cut it off, your original arms" Doraemon said as she slowly decloaked, the girl was sitting in the corner.

"How long has you been sitting here?" Eikichi asked.

"I just said your arms were replaced and that was the first thing you ask…"

"Well, I can kind of guess as much"

The man held up has new limbs, their movement rigid, for now.

Suddenly, the door opened, and Jim poked his head in.

"Oh so you are awake, I thought I heard something" The teenager looked at Doraemon "So this is where you are, Alva is looking for you all day now"

The girl grumbled and left reluctantly. Jim came in "How are you feeling now"

"Fine"

"That's… descriptive, come one, put on your clothes, there is something I need to show you"

On a nearby drawer, Eikichi attire was all fixed up and cleaned. The sunglasses lied neatly on the folded clothing. The man put them on again in a blink of an eye, an useless routine he had mastered.

He went downstairs and met with Jim, the place was devoid of people. The doctor predicted that Eikichi would wake up today so everyone had gone on first to set up for a long journey up ahead. Haruka and Fleur wanted to stay behind but Johann declared that only one could remain and wait for Eikichi, that person was Jim… not Doraemon.

"So, are you ready to set out" Said Jim.

There was something different about the boy, Eikichi thought. The man couldn't seem to say what though. Maybe he was just imagining it.

"Always" Eikichi replied before spotting something in his peripheral vision, a fly.

The bald man immediately snapped and grabbed at the creature with his fist. As he opened his hand, the fly had been crushed.

"What a shame" He muttered, it may take more time than he had expected to get use to the new limbs. Oh well, nothing he couldn't handle. Eikichi departed with the waiting Jim.

The teenager was supposed to take him to where they were meeting, but there was a detour. They were heading back into the town. Jim walked on in silence. The street was also devoid of people, they were all at the farm, working.

As soon as the festival was over, the people of Saragarhi went back to their daily routine like clockwork.

The two arrived at the memorial, dedicated to the hero that laid here so long ago. Eikichi did drop by here during the festival once, but there was something different.

In front of the monument was a sword of considerable size, a zweihander. It was no doubt belonged to that mercenary who paid his life to buy time for them. Rather unnecessary, Eikichi thought, too bad that man was competent. The bald man wondered what had happened to the summoned in chains. Apparently, he was nowhere to be found.

Talking about the summoned, there was one Eikichi is rather curious about.

"That guy with the helmet, what happened to him?"

"What did you think" Jim said.

"Hmm, seeing that we are still alive I guessed that he was overwhelmed by the reinforcement" Eikichi concluded "There were quite a number of people back there"

"You think so" Jim smirked, there was something bitter about the teenager expression though "No, that guy was beaten, by one person"

Eikichi was then told what happened. After he fell unconscious, the biker attacked the knight with his monstrous strength and speed. Jim couldn't see what happened next at all, it all went by in a flash. The biker staggered, a milky white liquid streamed out of the ghastly cut through his body. Sensing his imminent doom, the Killer Queen took off, even injured his speed was still frightening and impossible to catch up to.

One slash, it took the knight one slash to end it. And that knight was also a summoned but from that other group. You know, the one without powers like them

"One damn attack" Jim muttered bitterly.

Eikichi didn't know what to make of that. The bald man felt like he could understand where Jim's bitterness came from.

But why, Eikichi wondered.

Soon enough, the answer came to him. There are two more names added to the monument itself. Martin Kobyla and Sebastian Martel – Six.

… Eikichi approached the monument and got on his knees. Clapping his shaking hands together, the man prayed in silence, in gratitude.

Behind him, Jim retreated away to give Eikichi a moment to himself. The teenager spotted a fly buzzing around. He snapped and tried to grab it, only to miss completely.

"You still a long way to go" Said Doraemon sarcastically as she decloaked next to him.

"Why are you still hanging around here for. I thought I told you to go to Alva"

The girl ignored his words completely.

Of course, Jim knew why the girl was here. He wasn't stupid or ignorant. The teenager just wanted to leave her to it, and yet he couldn't. His mind casted back to the Killer Queen. In a moment, Jim had a flash of brilliance, but it would soon be nothing.

There he lied, broken literally. His power flared up only to be extinguished. That thing was a flood, snubbing everything out. Only to be defeated by a stranger, a knight from ancient time.

Jim was bitter, yes, but there was nothing he could do about it.

"You did good, now rest" Eikichi said those words to the teenager. But Jim knew, the man wasn't looking at him at all. Those weren't words of kindness, no, they were simply a routine. It was easy to be fooled by the illusion. But Eikichi wasn't a kind man, no, he was simply a man of routine.

"You know he doesn't care for us at all, right" Jim said.

"… I know"

Doraemon reply didn't surprise Jim at all. The girl had realised this way before him. The teenager remembered that rainy day when she came to him, it must be then.

Jim returned to Eikichi's side, it was time for them to leave.

The man stood up and walk away, seemingly unfazed. The two made their way to the others. Jim turned back one last time, however, to the monument, to Saragarhi. There was a long journey ahead of him. Maybe one day he could be as courageous as those remembered there. From this distance, the teenager could only make out a line on that monument.

Bole So Nihal, Sat Sri Akal!