Part Three: Echo

"You okay, Suisei?" Anemachi asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine, Anemachi," Suisei responded, "But to be honest, I'm much more worried about you than myself."

"Don't underestimate me!" Anemachi retorted, smiling, "I'm your big sis! I can carry my own weight."

"If you say so," Suisei agreed, looking out the window with unease, "God, I'd kill for some of your cooking right about now."

"I promise I'll make you some okonomiyaki when we get home," Anemachi said, "For now, let's get going. We should take a look around."

"Alright," Suisei said, rising to her feet and walking out of the cave they were taking refuge in.

...

"What were those things?" a worried Lamy expressed, lowering her hands after using ice magic.

"Dunno," Botan said, getting up and retracting her claws, "But I'll make sure they don't fuck with us."

"Botan, you can lean on me whenever you need to, you know?" Lamy replied, "You don't have to shoulder this all by yourself."

"I might have to take you up on that," Botan said, yawning and stretching her arms. Before long, she noticed a strange building. "Hey, what's that place?"

"I'm… not sure," Lamy said, thinking for a moment, "Do you want to look inside?"

"Why not," Botan said indifferently, walking towards it, "Never know what you'll find if you don't look."

"That's true, I suppose," Lamy said, following Botan's lead. The two found themselves at a metal door with no doorknob.

"What the-" Botan said, looking around and finding a keycard lock, "Oh, I see."

She then backed up a considerable distance, shaking her head and hopping in place for a little while. Then, at breakneck speed, she rammed into the door, blowing through it and leaving a dent. Lamy ran into the now empty door frame to help the lion girl up.

"Are you okay, Botan?" Lamy said, concerned.

"Yeah, don't worry about me," Botan stumbled to her feet, "More importantly, what is this place?"

The two girls looked around, finding conveyor belts, scrap metal, and power tools. To their left was a small table.

"A workshop?" Lamy speculated, "Or a factory?"

"Not sure," Botan shrugged, taking a gander at the table. It had a small drawer attached to it, and opening it revealed a lone blueprint. Upon closer inspection, it seemed to be the directions to building what was called a KEY.

"KEY?" Botan said, confused.

"How odd," Lamy pointed out, "It might be important though. We should put it back."

"I agree that it might be important," Botan said with a mischievous smirk, "Which is why we're taking it with us."

"You never change, Botan," Lamy said, giggling, "Come on, let's get going."

...

"Morning, partner," Tamashi said in a cheery tune, "Up and at 'em."

'What's got you so upbeat?' Nozomi wondered.

"That oni girl should be okay by now, right?" Tamashi said, "She's so cute!"

'Jeez man,' Nozomi laughed, 'It's only been a day.'

"True, but a man can dream," Tamashi laughed as well, as Nozomi made his way to walk towards the Cover Corporation building. Luckily for him, it was only a short subway ride away.

Nozomi arrived at the building, going to the meeting room where he met Enma, Daidou, and J-chad. In it was YAGOO, Enma, and Daidou, but also the brown-haired girl, the oni girl, and the tailed girl that they rescued yesterday. Much to Nozomi's shock, they seemed to be fully healed.

"Hellobo!" the brown-haired girl smiled.

"Haha, hello," Nozomi greeted, bowing, "I'm glad to see you three are well."

"Of course," the oni girl said, "Remember your promise?"

"Oh! That's right," Nozomi remembered, "I'm Ito Nozomi. Please call me Nozomi."

"Alright, Nozomi," the oni girl smiled, "I'm Nakiri Ayame."

"Oh, me next!" the tailed girl exclaimed, "I'm Ayunda Risu! Thank you for helping me!"

"Yes, I should thank you as well," the brown-haired girl nodded, "My name is Roboco. We may have died if it weren't for your assistance."

"It's nice to meet all of you," Nozomi bowed, "And thank you for your praise. I really appreciate it."

"Of course," Roboco bowed back, "We will serve you to the best of our ability."

"What do you mean by that?" Nozomi tilted his head slightly.

"What else?" Ayame piped in, "We're joining you in your investigation!"

"Really?" Nozomi looked at the three of them, taken aback, "Are you sure?"

"Definitely!" Risu looked at Nozomi with a determined expression, "Our friends are in there! We have to help them!"

"I…" Nozomi said speechlessly, "Alright. I'm looking forward to working with you all."

"Yeah, so are we," Ayame smiled, "Now, let's go!"

"This is good," Tamashi noted, "The more manpower on these missions, the better."

'You're right,' Nozomi agreed.

"YAGOO, may we head into the other world now?" Roboco inquired. With his signature smile, he shook his head yes. Nozomi grinned, unsheathing his sword and directing his energy to the tip. He sliced in the air, opening a wormhole for him and the three girls to jump into.

"Any news from J-chad?" Daidou asked the middle-aged man.

"She hasn't come back since she went to speak with Death yesterday," YAGOO informed, looking up, "Good luck, Thanatos."

...

The four exited the wormhole and found themselves in the settlement they fought the tiger-like Malice in.

"This place brings back some," Ayame said, "...less than favorable memories."

"I understand. Let me know if you want to leave, it'd be no issue at all," Nozomi told her.

"I can't do that," Ayame smiled, "I have to set a good example for Risu-chan here. I'm her senpai, after all."

"Haha, thank you, Ayame-senpai!" Risu smiled warmly, hugging the oni girl.

"What a girl…" Tamashi said.

'God, you're hopeless, man,' Nozomi shook his head, 'Where to go from here?'

"I'd like to check out the mountains," Tamashi told, "It's a little ways from here, but we'll make it in time."

'Thanks, partner,' Nozomi thanked.

"Tamashi says there's a mountain range up ahead. We might find something out there," Nozomi retailed. The three girls nodded and they began their trek upwards.

After some intense climbing up the snowy peaks, they notice the silhouette of a girl. They went for a closer look. Not facing the group, she had black, ruffled hair with red streaks in them, and was wearing a black two-piece, also with red streaks in them. She also had twin wolf ears atop her head.

"Mio-chan!" Roboco shouted at the girl, running towards her, "I'm glad to see you okay!"

The wolf girl turned to face the cheerful robot. In contrast to Roboco's smiles, she had a straight face, with her cold eyes looking down upon her.

"Hatotaurus."

Suddenly, a massive creature with the head of a hawk, the horns of a ram, the tail of a fox, and the body of a well-built man appeared behind her.

"Mio-chan, wh-" Roboco didn't have time to speak before the creature pinned her to the ground, punching her in the face.

Nozomi then unsheathed his sword, swinging it at the creature. He managed to pry it away from Roboco, taking the battle elsewhere on the mountain.

"Roboco-senpai!" Risu ran over. She picked up her body, lying down in the snow.

"Haha," Roboco laughed, "I should be more cautious. You never know what you'll find in a world like this…"

"Ack, you aren't looking so good," Risu said, placing her hand on Roboco's forehead as a mysterious green light began to emanate from it, "How does this feel?"

"You know healing magic, Risu-chan?" Roboco asked, surprised, "I'm surprised…"

Ayame looked at the wolf girl, absolutely mystified.

"Mio, what the hell are you doing?!" she said, filled with feelings of shock and confusion, "You're on our side, are you not?!"

Not saying a word, a large mouth-like blaster appeared around Mio's arm. Scoffing, Ayame drew her twin blades in response.

"I won't let everyone down!" she said, rushing towards the wolf. Avoiding the lasers shot out by Mio's blaster, she ran towards her and began swinging her blades violently. Each strike was deflected by the laser blaster, as Mio used it as a shield of sorts to protect her from any harm. This dance continued, as Nozomi's battle versus the chimera-like creature waged on. Nozomi's swordplay was rivalled by the creature's strength and speed, with each successful strike resulting in a punch from it. Eventually, Nozomi became tired, unable to swing his blade anymore. Just then, a missile coming from his right hit the creature, creating a large wound and causing it to writhe in pain.

"Hah…" Roboco chuckled, rising to her feet, "First shot."

Once the creature got hit by the missile, Mio howled in pain, with a similarly large wound appearing on the same wrist. Angry, she pushed Ayame's onslaught away and fired a laser. Luckily, Ayame was able to block these lasers with her swords in an X formation. Slowly walking towards the wolf girl, the laser eventually got too close, resulting in the explosion of the blaster. Mio screamed, with what looked like red energy leaving her, eventually making her pass out unconscious. This led to the disappearance of the Hatotaurus creature, allowing Nozomi to take a breather.

"Mio-senpai!" Risu rushed over, using her healing magic.

"Nghh…" Mio squirmed, slowly regaining consciousness, "Wh-what's going on…?"

"Don't worry, it'll all be over soon," Risu said, before looking towards Nozomi, "Let's get out of here."

'Wasn't there something you wanted to see?' Nozomi questioned.

"No, this is much more important," Nozomi assured.

If you say so, Nozomi shrugged, taking his sword. After concentrating his energy onto the tip, he created a wormhole to the real world. Risu and Mio went in first, with Mio putting her arm over the squirrel girl's shoulder. Roboco and Ayame followed, with Nozomi leaving last.

...

The five entered the meeting room, with YAGOO greeting them.

"Ookami-san! Are you alright?" he ran over worriedly.

"I'm fine, thank you," Mio said, smiling as to hide a pained expression, "Risu's magic worked wonders."

"I see…" YAGOO pondered, "Tell me everything."

...

"Mio attacked you on sight?" YAGOO asked, "Why do you think that could be?"

"I'm really not sure," Nozomi said. Just then, a jolt could be felt in his head, as his world began to fade.

...

He woke up in the chair he found himself in when he first introduced himself to Tamashi.

"Really dude, now?" Nozomi asked him, disappointed.

"I haven't been completely honest with you, Nozomi," Tamashi looked down sadly.

"Is this about that wolf girl?" Nozomi asked, simultaneously intrigued and angry.

"Yes, it is," Tamashi said, regaining his composure as he poured a cup of tea, "You see, your world and my world are what's called 'Mirrors',"

"Mirrors?" Nozomi questioned, also pouring a cup of tea, "What's that mean?"

"It means your world and my world are very similar," he said, picking up his newly poured cup of tea and sipping from it, "So similar, in fact, that we share versions of ourselves in them."

"Versions of ourselves? You mean like alternative world versions of us?" Nozomi asked, sipping from his teacup.

"That's right," Tamashi said, "We call them 'Echoes',"

"What does this have to do with the wolf girl, though?" Nozomi asked.

"Before we get to that, I need to explain something," Tamashi said, "Do you know what Malice are made of?"

"How could I?" Nozomi shrugged, taking another sip from his teacup.

"They're born from a substance called Niku," Tamashi explained, drinking his tea, "It can come from anywhere. The trees, the ocean, the air, et cetera. When a large amount of Niku amasses, a Malice is created.

"But when large amounts of Niku are inhaled," Tamashi said, his expression turning slightly more grim, "A person can become a Dark Echo."

"What's a Dark Echo?" Nozomi asked.

"Someone who wishes only for destruction," Tamashi informed, "It's rare, but it seems to have been happening a lot more frequently recently."

"Again, what does this have to do with the wolf girl?" Nozomi reiterated.

"A person can merge with their Echo to create greater power," Tamashi explained, sipping his tea, "But when a person merges with their Dark Echo, the Dark Echo's evil intent will only multiply along with the host."

"So you're saying the wolf girl merged with her Dark Echo?" Nozomi asked.

"That's right," Tamashi nodded, "It's the only explanation for her odd behavior."

"I see," Nozomi said, rising to his feet, "I'll relay this to the others."

"Please do," Tamashi said, smiling.

"Oh, wait," Nozomi stopped, as if remembering something suddenly, "If you merged with me, does that mean you're my Echo?"

Tamashi smiled, eventually breaking out into laughter. "That's right," he nodded, cackling maniacally, "I'm you and you're me. We are Echoes, no longer separated by the glass Mirror that kept us apart."

A sudden jolt could be felt in Nozomi's head, as his vision got blurry.

...

"Nozomi-san!" Roboco's voice could be heard, "Stay with us, Nozomi-san!"

Nozomi groaned, putting his hand to his head.

"Sorry for the scare," Nozomi chuckled, "But Tamashi just told me something pretty interesting."

"And that would be…?" YAGOO questioned curiously.

Nozomi turned to look at the wolf girl. "Do you remember meeting someone that looked kind of like you when you were in that alternate world?"

She looked down for a moment, deep in thought, then raised her head with an awed expression. "Yes," she nodded, "A girl that looked kind of like me came up to me and shook my hand. Then I remember passing out for a while, and then you came and found me."

"I expected something like that." Nozomi explained, looking towards YAGOO now, "Here's what Tamashi told me."

...

"Fascinating," YAGOO said, folding his hands, "Echoes, Niku, Mirrors, this will help us a lot on our investigation of this world."

"Wait," Ayame stopped, "Don't you think it's a little weird Mio's Dark Echo just so happened to stumble across her?"

"You present a good point," Nozomi said, "It's very possible that the Dark Echoes are trying to find their counterparts deliberately."

"Either way, we should stop today's investigation," YAGOO said, "We not only retrieved someone from the Mirror, but we also uncovered out some very important information. I'd say today was quite successful."

"I agree," Nozomi said, looking to the four girls, "Let's get some sleep. We can resume the operation tomorrow."

They nodded, as they began to make their way out of the offices.

...

'So, Mr. Echo, what do you think?' Nozomi asked Tamashi.

"About what?" Tamashi questioned.

'About Ayame's theory,' Nozomi explained, 'Do you think they're deliberately trying to merge with their counterparts?'

"It's certainly possible," Tamashi told him, "Dark Echoes might only desire destruction, but that's what makes them so powerful. They'd do anything it takes to attain higher power, even trick their counterparts."

'You tricked me into merging with you, didn't you?' Nozomi realized, 'Are you a Dark Echo, maybe?'

"Definitely not," Tamashi said, "Dark Echoes can be crafty, but they can never resist taking full control of the body."

"Hey, Nozomi-san!" a familiar voice could be heard behind him, "Mind if I walk home with you?"

"Oh, Roboco-san," Nozomi greeted her, "Yeah, that's okay with me."

"To be honest, I've really wanted to thank you," Roboco explained, smiling, "You've saved me twice now, haven't you?"

"That's true, but now you've saved me too. If you didn't shoot that missile when you did, I would've been dead meat," Nozomi informed, "Don't sell yourself short."

"I suppose you're right," she agreed, "Even so, I never expected to be saving anyone…"

"You're telling me," Nozomi chuckled, "I've barely talked to anyone in the past few years, let alone saved anyone."

"What do you mean?" Roboco questioned.

"Oh, I've just been the disappointment of the Ito family, that's all," Nozomi smiled wryly, "I turned down a job in the family business. I've been what you'd call a NEET ever since."

"I see…" Roboco said.

"Oh, but that's enough about me," Nozomi shook his head, "What have you been up to the past few years."

"I, um…" Roboco shifted uncomfortably, "I've been inactive. I was only recently found and reactivated in a weird wasteland-like place by YAGOO."

"Oh," Nozomi stammered, realizing maybe it wasn't the best question to ask her, "I'm sorry."

"No, you're okay," Roboco smiled sadly, "It just kind of sucks, knowing I missed out on so much."

"Hey, don't worry about that," Nozomi smiled gently, "I promise, I'll make those years up to you."

"You will?" Roboco questioned, taken aback, "How will you do that?"

"I can't offer much," Nozomi explained, "But would my friendship do?"

"Friendship…" Roboco thought before looking back at Nozomi, "Yes, I think I'd like that a lot."

...

J-chad ran through the twisted forest, jumping through dead trees and scurrying across the red grass. Before long, she encountered a horse-like Malice. She scoffed, readying her hands and revealing fisticuffs. She charged at the creature, punching it repeatedly until it decided to stay down. She looked up at the sky, her sunglasses stained with blood.

"Shit," she muttered, "Where are you, damn reaper?"

...

"Hey, what's wrong, Ame?" a worried Gura asked.

"Oh," a sad-faced Amelia regained her composure, "It's nothing, I just thought this place was a little creepy, is all."

"Don't worry about that!" Gura exclaimed proudly, "You've got an Apex Predator on your side! Nothing can hurt you now!"

"Haha, thank you," Amelia chuckled, "I love you, Gura."

"I love you too, Ame," Gura told her, pulling her into a hug.