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On the top floor of the July Tower.
In a hall filled with heroic piano music, flying worms landed from a skylight.
'You found him.Take me there, I'll get him.'
The man's piano tone became brighter, as if to express his jubilation.
---
"You're protecting this guy?"
"That doesn't mean you shouldn't take revenge ......!"
Vash, who had been arguing with the Nebraska family over EZ Mine, was startled by the sound of a piano echoing from the diner upstairs, making him pale.
"Run. ...... run, guys! Quick, get out of town!"
After frantically calling out, Vash followed EZ Mine to the diner. But by the time Vash reached the entrance, red blood was pouring out of the back of the restaurant.
Vash exhaled once in a big breath and opened the door with determination. He entered the dark store from the sunlight, and for a moment, all he could see was darkness. Still, Vash stepped into the store, wary.
In front of the piano in the back of the store, there was his old brother Knives, who had not shown up in a long time.
"Are you here to take the plant? Please, if you take that away, the people of the city will ..."
"Which side on you?"
Vash gulped at his brother's words. But he could not back down.
"Certainly, human beings cannot live without sacrifice. But I want to believe in human beings."
"Poor you, you're sick."
Knives rose from his piano chair and walked toward him.
Vash didn't hesitate to pull his gun from its holder on his leg and strike a fighting pose. He doesn't know how far he can go against his brother, but he has to at least make time to let the townspeople escape.
Knives came up to Vash with a seemingly seamless and natural look and said with his finger on the gun that Vash held up.
"I see you still have that gun."
At that moment, the view in Vash's eyes changed to a blanket of gray clouds.
"......!"
Perhaps Vash was only unconscious for a moment. But when he came to, his entire body was bound by several tentacle-shaped knives extending from Knives' back. The gun had also slipped from Vash's hands and lay at his feet.
"You should have a little more of a plant's mindset."
"Nai! Stop!"
The blade that was placed against Vash's chest slashed his entire body with great force.
Vash closed his eyes and heard a cracking sound.
"Oh ......"
Vash's body was still bound, and his beloved coat had been ripped off and scattered on the floor in a cruel manner.
The crew of the third ship had prepared this coat with the few resources they had. It was the culmination of technology from the space frontier era, and boasted not only bulletproof but also a high degree of blade resistance.
"Why ......"
"You don't think I don't know that? This kind of material may have good general blade resistance, but it can easily be cut through if used in combination with high heat."
Only Knives could pull off such a trick. In other words, it is easy for him. Vash regretted why he had not thought of that. As a result of his own shallow thinking, the coat that had been his treasure had apparently been torn into irreparable pieces.
"No......!"
As Vash stared at his coat in dismay, Knives put a finger on his chin and made him look up.
Before long, a tentacle had been placed against Vash's neck. The tip of the occupation was a long, thin needle.
"I don't understand why you wear and care for clothes made by human beings. I'm going to make you realize that you are a plant."
"What are you going to do to me?"
Vash desperately tries to escape Knives' restraints, but the steel bindings do not budge an inch. The sharp tip of the needle approached the vein in Vash's neck.
"Don't fret, it will only strengthen your natural characteristics a little bit. No harm will come to your body."
"Ah......"
The needle pierced Vash's skin and a cool liquid poured into his veins.
Vash's heart thumps once, as if to signal that something is wrong with his body. The restraints by Knives' tentacles were released, but Vash was unable to move as he kneeled on the floor. Soon, the skin of Vash's entire body became hot as if it had been subjected to cold burns, and he felt intense pain.
"......!"
Vash couldn't take it anymore and removed the gloves from both hands and threw them away. The skin on the part covered by the gloves had turned red and was slightly sore.
"......! Aaah!"
Not only his hands, but also his whole body was hit by more heat and pain, and Vash felt faint from the irritation.
“I'll save you now."
Knives' quiet voice descended from above Vash's head as he curled his body and endured.
Vash found himself once again bound by Knives' tentacles. His feet had lifted off the floor, and beneath them fell the remnants of the black undershirt, bottoms, and boots he had been wearing.
“Oh ......“
“You're not in pain anymore, are you?"
After being gently stroked on the cheek by a smiling Knives, Vash's spirits reached their limit and his vision went black. Just before he lost consciousness, he felt a chilly, pleasant sensation on his heat-damaged skin.
After confirming that Vash had lost consciousness, Knives turned the tentacles that had restrained his brother into a robe and wrapped his body in it. When Knives removed the sunglasses that Vash was wearing, Vash's face looked very much like his brother's in the matching robe. Seeing his brother's face that looked so much like his own for the first time in a long time brought an involuntary smile to Knives' face.
"You've finished retrieving the plant, right? Join me, we'll go back to Jurai."
Knives instructed Worms as he landed on the roof of the diner, and walked away with Vash in his arms. He gently pulled the hood over his brother's face with one hand. This was to prevent Vash's face, his figure, from being exposed to anyone but himself.
---
"Nai, I'm sorry."
"You're a real pain in the ass, you know that?"
'Ugh ...... there's no excuse for that."
"And why are you so lightweight? You're such a glutton for food."
"I don't know either......"
...... Where am I? Oh, yeah. That time.
When I was playing in the recreation area of ship #5 and sprained my foot. Knives carried me on his back to the medical office. Vash remembered that Knives' back was so warm that he dozed off before he knew it, and his brother got mad at him again for it.
At that moment, Vash regained some consciousness.
What Vash felt was a dim vision similar to that time, a warm enveloping sensation, and the regular sound of footsteps. Vash understood that this was why he remembered that time.
"What!"
With that much in mind, Vash finally regained full consciousness.
"Oh, you're awake."
"Nai!"
Vash looked up and saw Nieves' face. He seemed to be carrying Vash in his arms on foot. Vash's prosthetic left arm and legs had been removed, and he was dressed in a robe matching that of Knives.
"We've just arrived at our destination."
With that, Knives turned his gaze to a hole in the floor in the center of a large hall-like room.
"What is this?"
"I'm going to rebuild you now."
"No, Nai!"
Vash impatiently grabbed Knives' arm, but he smiled and jumped into the hole with Vash in his arms.
---
A large amount of water was stored in that hole. Vash was dropped into the water without time to catch his breath beforehand and struggled desperately to rise to the surface. But the upper part of the robe Vash was wearing reverted to tentacles and bound him by the arm. Without his prosthetic legs, Vash had no way to escape.
"Don't panic, Vash."
Vash looked up with a start as he heard Knives' voice very close by. He was wary of what he was going to do, but Knives only restrained him with his tentacles and did nothing.
".....?"
Vash looked around in wonder. There seemed to be lights at the bottom of the water and the water was quite bright. The sides of the hole were made of glass, making this place look like an aquarium. The interior of the tank was quite large, and there were several bud-shaped plants floating a short distance away. Given this information, Vash thought that the water in the tank was not ordinary water, but a solution for plants.
Vash gradually felt suffocated and tried once again to surface. However, the restraints on Knives did not loosen. Knives did not need to eat or sleep, and furthermore, it seemed that he could survive without breathing underwater. As evidence of this, from a moment ago, Vash did not see any pretense of him exhaling underwater. Vash, on the other hand, could hold his breath underwater somewhat longer than a normal human being, but he was certain to suffocate if he stayed underwater for too long.
(...Knives is trying to suffocate me...?)
Vash finally couldn't hold his breath, and finally the remaining air in k his lungs turned into gurgling bubbles that escaped his mouth. Vash felt he was going to die. His vision was blacking out from the edges.
Just as Vash's consciousness broke, he felt something touch his lips.
---
(......?)
(............ Am I still alive?)
(............What happened?)
Vash gently opened his eyes and saw Knives' face right in front of him.
Vash was so startled that he involuntarily pulled his upper body back and turned his face away. A gulp of air escaped from his mouth.
“I told you not to panic.”
Knives said, and stole Vash's lips.
---
Air spilled from the edge of Vash's mouth and rose to the surface in bubbles. Vash watched the scene sideways, vaguely aware of what was going on.
At that time, Vash felt Knives laugh through his lips, and he turned his gaze back to the front of the room. Knives narrowed his eyes in a very loving manner and gently pulled Vash's hips toward him.
Perhaps an hour had passed since I was dropped into the tank. Vash was able to continue breathing with the oxygen given to him by Knives. At first, Vash was resisting Knives by turning his face away from him, but when it became difficult for him to breathe, he gave him oxygen from his mouth, and after repeating this several times, he gave up his resistance.
It was thought that perhaps Knives was using his plant abilities to generate oxygen. Vash was at this point clinging to Knives' chest at some point, seeking the oxygen that was pouring directly from Knives' mouth.
Vash wondered why Knives would go to all this trouble. Considering that Knives had said he was going to " rebuild" Vash before he jumped into the tank, Vash felt certain that he was in danger. However, the warm water filling the surroundings and Knives' body heat warmed Vash's body, gradually reducing his ability to think and preventing him from thinking clearly.
(Injection solution......)
It was thought that perhaps that drug was causing an abnormality in Vash's body. But despite the thoughts swirling in Vash's head that the situation was alarming, his eyelids were getting heavier and heavier, and it was getting harder and harder to stay conscious.
“It will be a while yet, rest well.“
Those were the last words Vash heard from Knives, and he lost consciousness completely in the warm water.
Finally, Vash closed his eyes and relaxed, and Knives took Vash in his arms and kissed him more deeply, changing the angle of his mouth.
"Good night, Vash," he said, "I'm going to rebuild your body to be as beautiful as before.'
---
Vash was in a series of shallow sleeps and vague awakenings.
Each time Vash regained consciousness, he saw Knives' face in his eyes. Oxygen was sent directly from Knives' mouth to Vash's mouth, and in return for that oxygen, a little bit of froth overflowed from the edge of Vash's mouth. Vash felt something precious spilling out of his body along with the bubbles as they made their way to the surface of the water. But when Knives stroked Vash's head, Vash relaxed and slowly lost consciousness again.
---
Vash woke up again and wondered how many times this had happened. His head was less foggy than before, and he could think clearly. Vash involuntarily shuddered and pulled away slightly from Knives holding him.
(......?)
Vash felt discomfort when he moved his limbs and looked down at his body.
"......!"
Both legs, which would have been missing from the thighs and knees down, were regenerating nicely. The left arm had also regenerated up to the wrist. Furthermore, the scars that should have been carved all over Vash's body were nowhere to be found, and instead a white plant pattern similar to that of Knives was covering his skin.
(I have to get out of here fast!)
Vash felt a sense of urgency in his obviously changing body, and his consciousness was fully aroused. He attempted to surface with a burst of momentum, only to be pulled back to where he had been by the entangling tentacles.
Vash was hugged from behind by Knives and had his eyes covered with his hands.
“We're almost done, go back to sleep.“
“Oh......."
As if in obedience to Kinives' voice, Vash's strength ebbed away and he began to fade in and out of consciousness. Knives spun Vash around to face him again, and kissed him deeply. The breath given by Knives made Vash's fading consciousness disappear completely.
“Forget about the humans, Vash.“
Knives' last words fizzled out before reaching Vash's ears.
---
The blanket is smooth and slightly cool to the touch. Vash loved the strange feeling of the blanket, and repeatedly stroked it with his hand to see how it felt.
This was the second day Vash spent in this room, and he spent the rest of the day lounging in bed after waking up, enjoying the feel of the blanket.
"Are you awake?"
"Nai!"
Not long after Vash woke up, the door to the room opened and Knives entered.
"How are you feeling?"
"Not at all! I'm fine."
Vash rubbed his face against Knives' hand on his cheek.
---
Vash's body was completely regenerated and his memory processing was complete. Knives pulled him out of the water tank and carried him into the bedroom on the top floor.
There was no trace of the wounds inflicted by humans, and Vash, clad in a beautiful plant skin, had returned to a body that looked a lot like Knives'. Vash is slightly more slender than Knives, but this difference can be filled in from now on.
Knives laid Vash's body on the bed and gently pulled the robe over him, turning it into a blanket. When Knives stroked his hair and kissed him again, Vash finally woke up.
"......? ...... Nai?"
"So you know who I am."
Knives couldn't help but smile at Vash, who properly recognized him as his brother, even though he had lost his memory.
---
When I woke up yesterday, I was very surprised to see a grown-up Nye suddenly in front of me. But somehow I soon realized that he was my older brother Nai.
Nai told me that he saved me from myself after I was seriously injured in an accident. He also said that my lack of memory was also due to the accident.
I remember that I had my first birthday party with Nai. He said that after that, the pioneer fleet had an accident and we crash-landed on a planet we were sailing to.
There were more than 400,000 people and various types of cargo aboard the fleet, but all but the plant ship burned up upon entering the atmosphere and were annihilated. Nai and I were on the plant ship when the accident occurred, and thanks to my brother's hasty rewriting of the ship's program, we were the only ones who made it through the atmosphere and were able to crash land on this planet.
However, the impact of the landing scattered the plant all over the planet, and I was apparently separated from Nai with my escape pod. When he finally found me after searching all over the planet, more than a hundred years had already passed since the crash. He said I was badly injured and in a forced sleep. I was told that if Nai had found me a few years later, my backup battery would have run out of power and I would not have survived.
To be honest, I had no sense of reality, either in the stories Nye told me or in my growing body. But I knew that Nai was indeed Nai, even though he had grown up, and I was relieved to see that I had grown to look a lot like my older brother. Perhaps due to the accident, my memories of the crew members with whom I would have interacted have become hazy. So the presence of my older brother Nai, my only connection to him, was very reassuring.
"You should move your body a little bit. Can you walk?"
"Yes, I think so."
I took Nai's offered hand and slowly got up from the bed. I wobbled for a moment, but Nai quickly helped me up. Then he put a blanket on me like a coat. Before I knew it, the blanket had turned into a matching robe with him.
"I love this cloth. I love the feel of it."
"...... I see."
Nai smiled when he heard my words. He took me by the hand and we headed for the exit of the room.
"Where are you going?"
"To the room right around the corner."
As Nai had said, we were headed for a large room just at the end of the hallway. When we entered the room, we found a magnificent piano at the end of the large hall. The piano had many pipes that seemed to be an acoustic device, and on top of the pipes was a beautiful white statue of a plant.
"Wow, this is a great piano. It's got lots of pipes."
"The pipes make the sound reverberate so well.. I wanted to play the piano with you again. Can you move your hands?"
"......, I think I can."
I squeezed and opened my hands a few times before answering. I remember the song that Nye and I had played before, and my fingers felt fine. I figured I could play the piano if I started playing slowly.
The piano chairs, like the ones on the immigrant ship, were so wide that even the two of us, now adults, were able to sit in them.
- tinkle, tinkle -
First Nai played the piano notes. He turned his head to the left and looked at me, so I smiled at him and then began to play a melody myself, slowly. It was a melody I had sung to Nai sometime ago, and I felt like I had known it for a long time. The piano piece we play is our own original piece using that melody.
Eventually, when the timing was right, we started playing in earnest at once. It has now been more than a hundred years since the last time Nai and I played the piano together. But just as back then, we continued to play our own melodies, occasionally turning to face each other and laughing.
---
On this morning, piano music echoed from the central tower throughout July city. The heroic piano sound was then the tone that signaled the beginning of the apocalypse, the plant robbery in July city and the decline of humanity that would follow.
However, no one in the city, which had just awakened from the bustle of the night, was aware of this fact at this time.
(END)