User blog:Seieireppa/God Eater ∑: The Maxim of Possibility, chapter 10

''“Where… when…? What’s going on…?”''

All was silent as Nanako descended to the bed of Loch Lomond, first through water and then through something that wasn’t entirely water as the space around her began to twist and warp. It was a feeling wholly alien to Nanako, and indeed to everyone involved, as the God Eaters that comprised Rhizome Duos’ joint task force moved to travel to the past using the temporal displacement at the bottom of the loch.

No one, not even Sigma, knew quite what would happen, or where they’d come out on the other side, but one thing they all knew was that what awaited them on the other end of the warp would be a moment where the past, present, and future all hung in the balance…


 * DECEMBER 2067::

The air was heavy with quaking and rumbling as Nanako and company emerged from the surface of Loch Lomond. It did not take long to figure out the reason for this, for the sun was blotted out by the immense, incomprehensibly massive form of the Gehenna, casting all before it in shadow and rendering an artificial night at its feet.

Far above the heads of the joint task force, clouds blanketed the sky, pierced by the Gehenna’s enormous form. Lightning struck with alarming regularity near its head, drawn by its imposing jagged horn, which itself was the size of a small city. With what seemed like an impossibly slow gait but was in actuality impossibly fast, the Gehenna marched ever onwards, towards–

–the Glasgow Branch.

“We’ve arrived in the year 2067 at the moment of the Gehenna’s awakening,” came the voice of Sigma echoing from Nanako’s God Arc. “As we speak, it marches onwards towards its first destination, the Glasgow Branch. If we do nothing, history will refuse to change, and the Gehenna will exact the same fate upon the planet as it did twelve years ago from our present time.”

Nanako swallowed. Right now, she and Sigma would be standing there, on the roof of the Glasgow Branch, preparing the Gehenna for firing. She turned to look down at her God Arc, but…

“And one other thing, Nanako,” Sigma continued. “Under no circumstances are you to make yourself known to your past self,” he spoke, a tone of utmost caution in his voice. “If your past self knows you’re here, it will create a temporal contradiction and our existence in this timeline could be jeopardized. Do you understand?”

Nanako merely nodded. That wasn’t what she came here for; her mission, as well as the mission of everyone who came with her, was nothing more than to slay the Gehenna once and for all.

And so she steeled herself and turned to face her soldiers.

“Men and women of Rhizome Duos and elsewhere!” she shouted. “Before us stands our mortal enemy, our most hated foe! On this day, at this moment, we will enter the Gehenna, crush its core, and change history once and for all! No more will those in our timeline be forced to suffer every waking moment not knowing if the next would come, for on this day we will change the future!”

Nanako’s proclamation was met with riotous cheering.

“The plan is as follows,” continued Nanako. “We will blast a hole in the Gehenna’s leg and continue upwards. Never attempt to take a natural route – we’ll all have to pool our power and blast away at its insides making a beeline for the core, which has been theorized to be located just behind the bottom of its head. If we make haste, it should take us only an hour or two to reach our destination, but the real trouble will come when we get there. Neo Aragami are very likely spawned from the core, and it will likely try and mobilize previously unheard of Neo Aragami against us. This is where a second team, remaining outside, will come in. Sasha, Lyrr, can I count on you to lead the sniper team?”

The two of them nodded. The future’s strongest snipers would do their part to lead humanity towards its promised tomorrow.

“In that case, a sniper team led by Sasha and Lyrr will remain outside the Gehenna, firing upon one of its eyes at a time to distract it for as long as possible and restrain its movements. The less it moves, the more time we’ll have, and the more easily we’ll be able to ascend inside the Gehenna. No matter what, don’t let it get to the Glasgow Branch! Understood?”

“Yes, ma’am!”  The snipers of the joint task force all shouted out in unison. They would do their part to halt the Gehenna, no matter what.

“Alright then,” proclaimed Nanako. Rhizome Duos Joint Task Force… move out!”

And as the entire force simultaneously took aim at the Gehenna’s nearest leg, a palpable sense of tension could be felt over the joint task force. This was the decisive moment that would decide the final fate of all the humans from the future whence they came.

“Fire!!!”