2023-07-12: Recovered Courage ~BELIEVE~

• Log: 2023-07-12- Recovered Courage ~BELIEVE~
• Cast: Rikka Takarada, Guy Shishioh
• Where: Tsutsujidai - Wadatsumi
• OOC - IC Date: 0097-07-12
• Summary: During a trip to the Wadatsumi, Rikka and Guy talk about the crueler sides of the world they've faced, and how despite everything, both of them are still here.

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<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.

Rikka's sessions have become less frequent, but she still has plenty of reason to make trips up to the Wadatsumi. She's finished up her business... but, she needs to wait for some things to process before she can head back home. It doesn't require any effort on her part, but it does mean a lot of waiting around.

...Which, is fine, honestly. The Wadatsumi's become pretty comfortable to her, and by this point she's familiar with pretty much everyone. It's nice, in a way. It's become an important part of Tsutsujidai to her.

She's found a place to relax - a lounge of some variety - and, at presents, sits back. She's acquired a yogurt drink and sips at it idly, her thoughts beginning to wander...

Maybe she could use someone to talk to?

<Pose Tracker> Guy Shishioh has posed.

Tsutsujidai is no longer foremost on Guy Shishioh's mind, but he does visit often, to check on the Pliers, to check on the people, and to remind himself how far that project still has to go, no matter how proud he is of how far Akane's come on her own. The Galeoria Pliers are a permanently active statement that caring for people in peril and harm is a long-term, difficult, sometimes painful project...and from a less poetic view, they are a stark reminder that the problem of Tsutsujidai and its Chaos Bringer singularity are not, yet, resolved. That is not, however, what Guy's here for today.

It is why he's in full uniform, though, other than just the fact that Guy barely wears anything else these days. What was the wreck of Wadatsumi is well on its way to being converted into a stationary base, with stray meeting rooms turned into lounges, and even some demolition occurring so the angle of the floors work right. So, yes, there's a lounge area with a few sofas, a monitor in the wall, and a couple vending machines tucked into a corner. Just somewhere for staff to relax for a while and think. Guy enters likewise, hands in his pockets, that auburn mane of his trailing down his back. "Ah, Swan said you'd be around here somewhere," the Superhuman Evoluder says, with a smile. He raps on the payment display of one of the vending machines and after a keen of wireless interface from his G-Stone, it drops out a canned coffee, which he scoops up before stepping over to settle in on one of the plush chairs. "Something on your mind?"

<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.

Distracted by her thoughts, Rikka doesn't notice Guy right away as he enters the lounge. It's only when he speaks up that she realises she's no longer alone in the room, looking his way.

"Hey, Guy. Were you looking for me?" Rikka asks. She offers him a small smile, and goes quiet for a moment as he asks his question. Something on her mind... She thinks it over.

"...I guess so." Rikka replies consideringly. She sips at her drink thoughtfully as she thinks about how to put her words in order. "I was just thinking back on everything that's happened lately."

It says a lot about how far she's come that she can say it so calmly - that she can think about it without being overwhelmed by it, or losing herself to it. She has a lot of people to thank for that.

<Pose Tracker> Guy Shishioh has posed.

"Yep," Guy says gamely enough. "It's been a bit since we were able to talk, and considering everything..."

Rikka hasn't been as personal a project as Akane for him, but those two are friends, and - however much Akane's idea of a Vessel of Light was a poisoned one - she was right about one thing: He does find himself drawn to help those in need. Even if Rikka's mostly over the hump, pain like this isn't simply healed once you can't see it.

He knows that much personally. "I thought it'd be nice to catch up," he decides to frame it as.

She drinks an considers, and he watches her with keen, curious eyes. When she does speak, he nods. He does indeed see how far she's come, that she can stand to think about it in private at all. "It's a lot," he says. "Hana was looking forward to the pictures from your vacation." Crooked smile. "Action report photos didn't have quite the same effect, it turns out. Want to talk about it?"

<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.

"Yeah, it has been a while..." Rikka agrees with a nod. Not like this, at the very least - getting to just sit down and talk. But, he says it'd be nice to catch up, and she nods.

"That'd be great." She agrees. She works through her thoughts, and when he comments on Hana looking forward to the pictures... she cracks a wry grin of her own. "...Yeah. They really don't."

She was looking forward to them, too.

She nods, though, and thinks how best to put her thoughts in order.

"...My mind was pretty fuzzy at the start because of everything they did to me, but I still remember everything that happened. Everything I did, and everything I felt." Rikka says. "...That was still me. Everyone I've talked to about it says they don't blame me for it, but it still isn't... a great feeling. Knowing I've got that potential in me."

She shrugs.

"Everything's out of my head now so I won't be slipping back, but sometimes I think about it, you know? It's the kind of thing that... sticks with you." She concludes.

<Pose Tracker> Guy Shishioh has posed.

Hm. Guy nods, slowly - just listens, as Rikka sorts through thoughts. "People...have a lot of sides to them," Guy muses, slowly. "Really, that's what the Zonders were all about. That's what GGG was fighting about ten years ago, alien machines that pulled the negative emotions out of you to create and power a mechanical giant. The things that frustrate you or get you down...things you're afraid of, or just don't know how to admit are part of you. That's all in there, and it's real enough to make titans. That's just being human." He gives a wan little smile.

"I know what you mean, though." He huffs a breath. "That memory of...who they were able to make you become. It'll never quite go away."

He contemplates his hands for a moment. "I wasn't sure if I should even mention this, but Hinoki suggested it might be good for both of us. I know recent history was a bit divergent in Tsutsujidai - did you ever read Mamoru's report on GGG's mission to the Trinary Solar System?"

<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.

"That's... what they did to Hass, wasn't it?" Rikka asks. Zonders... She wasn't around, back then. That was before her time - literally. But she's read about them. Machines that pulled the negative emotions out of you... Rikka gives a weak smile, herself.

"...Yeah. Human feelings are pretty strong like that..." She says. Sometimes, all too literally. She pauses, though, when he continues. The way he says it... it sounds personal to him, too.

"...Yeah." She murmurs. She considers asking him - but her suspicions are confirmed when he says Hinoki suggested he mention something, and he's the one who approaches it first.

"She did?" Rikka asks, then hesitates for a second.

"Well... not...all of it." She admits. "I've mostly been catching up on local history, still."

<Pose Tracker> Guy Shishioh has posed.

"It is," Guy affirms of what happened to Hass. "BioNet copied the basic architecture, somehow. There's not...*much* threat of them advancing to the spore stage, as original Z-Metal Zonders could, and so far they seem to be limited to forms derived from original Zonderian-originated Zonders, but the basic principles are still the same."

As for what he's bringing up, he nods at her confirmation. "I wouldn't expect you to. For much of the world, it seems like ancient history." He smiles, though it's a bit wan. "It was...a lot, I guess. Only lasted a few days, but it felt like ages...I'll cut to the chase. When we got to the Trinary Solar System, it was defended by the Eleven Planetary Masters of Sol. They were..." ...He tips his head. "Creations? Programs? A bit like Compoids, actually, if I had to put a name on it you'd know. They were tasked with defending and regenerating the Trinary Solar System, but they were going to sacrifice our world to do it. They were all incredibly powerful, and one of their tools was a replication device called the Pas-Q Machine. And one of their number was a man named Palparepa."

Guy...actually has to stop for a moment after mentioning him. Is he really doing this? To Rikka, of all people? Does she need to know any of this?

...he thinks of the golden light again, and huffs a breath, reaching to pop his can, finally. "He fashioned himself as a doctor, and had an incredible mastery of biotechnology. He used his Paras Particles to do something a lot like Akane's Bujack did, lulling our team into complacency. And while they were disabled, he assumed his massive Plus form and tore GaoFighGar apart with me in it."

He chuckles, with slightly dark humor. "So you can imagine why I was a bit on edge back then. But that's not quite what I wanted to bring up, either."

<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.

"...That's good." Rikka replies. It's bad that they can do it at all, but good that it isn't as bad as it could be. That's something to take some solace in.

"Oh, good..." She exhales. She does feel a bit of relief that the mission to the Trinary Solar System isn't something she's expected to be familiar with. She nods - though that smile of his... It may be ancient history to everyone else, but it seems like to him it's still a fresh wound. If he's willing to bring it up despite that... then she'll listen to everything he has to tell her.

Defending and regeneration, at the cost of another world... She frowns a little, at that. It's a difficult situation. But he mentions a replication device, and a specific man. He stops - to catch his breath...? But he continues. And te story he tells...

"...A doctor..." Rikka repeats. Already, she has a bad feeling about where this is going. And, a similarity to Bujack...

"...So that's why." She murmurs. She nods. "It must have felt like... all too familiar of a situation."

She goes quiet, then, and lets him continue.

<Pose Tracker> Guy Shishioh has posed.

"She laughed in my face when I said it," Guy chuckles. "I had her all wrong...fortunately. That let me get my head on straight. I guess that's the first thing to take away from it. Sometimes when something does remind you of something painful...it's important to step back and try to get some distance. Well, maybe you've already covered that one, huh?"

He laughs again...and then lets his face grow serious. "He captured me." He meets her gaze now, nodding. His hand comes up and scratches at his neck. He's done that before - mostly, when stressed about situations like Bujack. "Fitted me with something he called Chemical Bolts. 'As long as you have a physical body,' he said, 'you cannot escape me.' I remember that."

He leans back in his seat. "Then they used their Pas-Q machine to create an army of replicas of the Strongest Brave Robo Corps., and a Repli-GaoFighGar for me to pilot, and sent me against J, Mikoto, and Mamoru with a Repli-Goldion Hammer."

... "I don't remember much," he admits. "Not...clearly. Everything was...rage, and hate, and their command pulsing through my nerves like code. Destroy, destroy, destroy."

He lets it sit, for a second, before concluding: "At the end, the Repli-Braves managed to override the Sol Masters' programming with their courage, and threw themselves in the way of the Goldion Hammer to stop it. Repli-Goldymarg came to himself and self-destructed, and turned every repli-jin there into light. ...in other words, they made me kill my friends a dozen times over."

He looks for Rikka's eyes again. "I'm...over it, mostly." ...mostly. That look in his eyes says this isn't something he talks about much. "Mamoru and Mikoto talked me through the guilt while they were Purifying the Bolts. But...I don't think I'll ever forget the knowledge of what I did. And I'll definitely never forget that feeling of every cell in my body pulsing with anger."

"I know that's...some of what you went through, Rikka, at least. So I guess I just mean to say, I know what it's like, to have that thorn in your heart. And I also know you can still be Brave even if it's there."

<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.

"...Yeah, she would." Rikka replies. She chuckles too, just a bit. She nods, then. "I had a little help, but... yeah."

His face goes serious - and so too does hers as Guy explains what he went through. As he was captured, fitted with Chemical Bolts, and then sent to fight his friends alongside replicas.

...It's not hard to notice the way her expression changes when he describes what it's like. It's a look of recognition. What he describes... it's a very familiar sensation to her. He continues - and she clasps her hands over her mouth, suppressing a gasp as he comes to a conclusion.

"Oh, god... Guy, I'm so sorry." Rikka murmurs. She meets his eyes, though, when he looks for them - she doesn't want to look away, now when he's talking about something so important.

He'll never forget - the knowledge of what he did, or that intense anger. She nods quietly. ...He understands what it's like.

"...That's my biggest fear." Rikka admits. "Things could've gone so differently. It would've been easy. Even with Akane trying to keep me pointed in the right direction... a noncombatant, a close friend, even, still wound up on the battlefield, and I attacked her without a second thought. I still tried to kill Knight when he appeared to us, even when Akane tried to get me to stop. If things had gone just a little differently..."

She trails off, her gaze focusing on her empty drink before looking back at him. You can still be Brave even with that thorn in your heart...

"...You think so?" She asks, then pauses. "...I guess you would. You're still here, after all..."

<Pose Tracker> Guy Shishioh has posed.

There's that recognition. It's a bit gratifying, perhaps. To see someone else understand, even if it's a horrible thing for both. He favors her with a smile. "It was awful," he concedes. "One of the lowest moments of my life. But the people I care about pulled me through it." ... "Also I got to sock Palparepa right in his smug face, later, so that helped take the edge off. I guess I shouldn't be encouraging that."

He listens, to her own fear. "Yeah," he says. "It's scary. Fortunately it didn't. I guess the only advice I can give you is...to believe in your courage, and in your friends'. Courage isn't never being weak, and it's certainly not never being angry or afraid. It's finding the strength in you to put your next foot forward anyway. You, and Akane, and Alouette, and Leina, you're all being incredibly brave."

"...fortunately," he laughs, then. "For what it's worth, stick around GGG for long and we'll cure you real fast of thinking about the could've-beens. We're always pulling it out by the skin of our teeth." It's a good-natured grin he gives her there. "I think I'd be bald from stress by now if I let that get to me. ...and I regenerate!"

Does he think so? Could she still be a Brave? "Yeah," he says. "I'm sorry too, Rikka, that you understand something this painful so keenly. When I met you, I was hoping you'd never have to see this side of the world. I can barely handle it, sometimes. But even having been through some of the worst things this world can do, Rikka Takarada is only becoming even more incredible. That's the heart of a Brave."

<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.

The lowest moments of his life... but the people he cared about pulled him through it. She can't help but smile just a little, too, at that.

"...It's been the same for me. Everyone's come together to support me, to put me right back on my feet so I can walk again." She replies - and then, she laughs, as he says he got to sock Palparepa. She shakes her head. "No, it's okay. It sounds like he really deserved it."

He continues. Believe in her courage, and her friends', huh. The meaning of courage... She rolls it over in her head, and nods.

"...I won't forget that." She replies. She has every bit of faith in them, too, and their bravery.

...And then he continues, and she laughs.

"Sounds like it keeps you busy enough so you don't even have the time." Rikka replies, with a good-natured smirk of her own. "You could maybe pull the look off, I think, but I think it's better we don't find out."

Her expression softens as he continues, as she nods as he apologizes. That side of the world... And she finds herself surprised - she smiles, and finds herself tearing up just a little.

"...Thanks. It means a lot to hear that from you, especially." She replies. She hesitates a bit before adding, "...And... thanks. For telling me all of that. I know it couldn't be easy, but... I appreciate it. It's nice to know that... someone else knows what it's like."

She goes quiet for a moment.

"Maybe it would've been better if I never saw it... but now that I have, I don't want to look away. It's still a part of the world... I don't want to pick and choose only the parts that I like." She says. "It's something I need to be aware of, too."

<Pose Tracker> Guy Shishioh has posed.

They're both wading through the moment; serious thoughts, painful thoughts. But, despite the pain, they were able to come through. In the end...that's the lesson. He nods at her confirmation.

"Oh, Mikoto'd kill me," he laughs, running a hand through his auburn hair, running far down his back. "We'd get her back and she'd turn right around!"

Despite the pain Mikoto's absence puts him in, having shared something painful already seems to let him smile at it. "I can't wait for her to meet you all. I think she'll be just as amazed as I am at everything you've done."

And then he smiles at her resolve. "You're welcome, Rikka. The Trinary Solar System was a brutal fight, and for me, right after that was Orange Site and coming home. It's been...tough. But I'm glad it helped. And I'm glad you can see the whole picture that well. Even I struggle with that." He laughs, lightly.

"Let me know if you ever need to talk, OK? You've got a whole lineup of people ready for that by now, I'm sure, including a few people with whole doctorates behind them, but still."

<Pose Tracker> Rikka Takarada has posed.

"Well, I can't say I'd blame her." Rikka replies with a laugh of her own. She smiles, too. "...Yeah. I can't wait to meet her, either. She must be amazing."

She seems a little surprised when he explains that Orange Site was right after such a difficult fight. It sounds like he's barely had a moment to rest, putting it like that... She nods, when he says she's welcome.

"It isn't easy sometimes. But... it's something I want to work at." She replies, and then smiles. "I will. Don't worry, I can tell you have a lot to offer, too."

It's at this moment that her phone's notification sound goes off.

"Sorry about this." She apologizes, pulling out her phone and flipping open the purple flamingo cover. "...Looks like everything's ready. I should probably get going so I can be back home in time for dinner. I don't want to worry Mama."

She closes her phone again and stands up.

"Thanks again for the conversation. Doctor Sai was right... I think we both needed this." She says. She makes to leave, though just before she rounds the corner, she pops her head back in. "Oh - and thanks again for looking out for Akane, too. I'm really proud of how far she's come."

And with that, she's off.