VALKYRIE SMASH

n0velUSb.c0m

While tending to the injured Valkyries the day ended before he knew it. By the time Sam came out of the plane the humans who had lost consciousness were starting to wake up. Fortunately, the whispers of madness didn't seem to be affecting them anymore, but just in case he had the Nephilim Cleansers take turns using their ability to avoid any more Fallen from appearing.

Speaking of the Fallen, all of them were restrained, drugged and put to sleep. The Nephilim were surprised to learn that there were humans who survived the war from two decades ago, but thankfully none of them seemed to react negatively to their presence, even offering to help keep an eye on them to allow the Valkyries to rest.

After all the horror they had to go through the survivors didn't have the energy to think too much about the Angels being there. Most of them went back to sleep, still exhausted after everything that happened. When they woke up the next time they immediately began tending to their deceased comrades. All of them unanimously agreed to keep the mourning for a later time. The crisis has yet to end so there was no point in crying over anyone's death just yet.

Despite it being nighttime the sky still glowed red. The crimson tower was visible in the distance, looking like a thin line reaching into the depths of space with no end in sight. As everyone else prepared food and spoke of the day's battle, Nino was on her own, sitting away from the others as she gazed at the stars above.

In her hand she held her Yari, having transformed it into its Needle form. Hearing the sound of footsteps she turned to look behind her. She had recognized who it was even before that, however it didn't stop her from hurrying to meet his gaze happy that he left everything to come and check on her.

"How are you doing?" Sam asked, stopping right beside her.

"Better than ever, I guess." She said with a shrug.

"You... your memories have returned, right?"

There was a moment of silence, but then a long sigh escaped Nino, a bit of disappointment making its way into her voice as she spoke the truth.
"Sadly, turns out I'm recalling less than I initially expected. I can't even remember how I died."

"... I see..."

"It's a bit frustrating, you know?" She went on. "I remember being a brilliant scientist, but none of that knowledge made it to this life."

"Seriously?" Sam couldn't help but grimace.

"Yeah. I was probably on a much higher level than even you."

"Such a waste..." letting out a sigh, he slowly shook his head. "Let's just hope you remember more over time."

"About that... I doubt it

will happen..." Nino let her gaze fall, searching her mind for something. "It's already a miracle that I was able to remember so much. Reincarnation is supposed to wipe one's Soul clean. It's the reason why resurrecting the dead is a pointless endeavor."

"You sure? I mean, your very existence proves that wrong."

"Yeah, that's why I said I probably won't remember much more." She said with a sigh. "Odin's clone, the one calling herself Loki. She was the one behind my appearance, right? Extracting that much from what's supposed to be the soul of a newborn, that alone is a feat unheard of even in the higher realms. As far as I remember, of course. Maybe there is something special about everyone born from Freyja?"

Right now, Sam didn't want to think too much about the possibility of other Valkyries regaining memories from their past lives. A total change of personality is to be expected, and their goals might not align. It would be idiotic to expect them to turn out the same as Nino, and he couldn't guarantee that they would remain loyal to him once that happens.

Most Nephilim and Valkyries were created using the designs Wolf came up with during his weeb days. He could have the old man check each and every one of them to figure out who had an appearance he didn't design, but that didn't necessarily mean they were the only ones who were messed with.

Sam began to understand that Shizuru was most likely a much bigger threat than he previously thought. If she's capable of things that boggled higher realm scientists then there is no telling what else she could do.

'Could it be...' he thought to himself. 'Did she regain her memories as well? Is that why she decided to rebel?'

"Say..." Nino spoke after a while, cutting his line of thought. "I didn't tell you anything about the future I saw. How did you know that I would fail at the very end?" She paused for a moment then added. "I don't even know how you guessed I was able to do it in all that chaos."

"Haha, anyone could tell just by looking at the situation." Sam heaved a sigh, still smiling. He then turned his gaze to the red sky above before speaking again. "I realized the future you predicted might not be the one we end up with. I mean, this isn't the first time things turn out differently from what we were promised, remember?"

Sam had already given up on the idea of messing with Fate to obtain the outcome he desired. Being informed about things before they happen was bound to be useful, but Fate had already proven its readiness to weave a different Path soon after someone took a peek at its Tapestry. Relying on future sight blinded them to other possibilities, and because of that they almost ended up dead. If they were still going to make use of it, they would have to be prepared for sudden changes like the last time.

The two continued to discuss other things for a while, but at some point Sam decided it was time for them to get some rest since they had a long day ahead of them. He was about to walk away, but then he was stopped by something pulling on his sleeve. When he turned around, he saw that it was Nino, her blushing face making her intentions clear from the get go.

"Um... Doctor, you see..." she paused for a moment, fidgeting in her place as she tried to gather the courage to say what was on her mind. "I... when I was Lachesis, I never got to experience... love..." her face became redder with each word that came out of her mouth, however she didn't stop, doing her best to convey what she desired. "We're going to be really busy from now and... the worst might still happen, you know..."

Even though he already understood what she was trying to say, Sam still kept his silence, enjoying the young maiden's struggle to make her request.

"I... I want to be with you at least once... before we head out..."

Nino thought that all of it was weird. In such a situation, the one thing she should be feeling is the fast beating of her heart, however due to her body lacking the organ all she felt was a strong sense of warmth in her chest. She didn't hate it at all, even though she wished she could experience a more normal romance. But nothing was normal about her current situation, and the faster she accepts that fact the sooner she manages to obtain happiness.

Sam remained silent for a moment then looked around them, checking if they were being watched. It was obvious that some of the other Valkyries were keeping an eye on them, but thankfully they seemed to have read the mood and kept their distance. Nevertheless, there was no way to tell how they would react if they knew what he was about to do so he wanted to be a little more discreet while granting the Japanese doll's wish.

"The... the trucks we rode in on the way here... they had some pretty good beds, right?"

A few seconds later, Sam and Nino disappeared from the abandoned airport.