Archive of Our Own ^beta

This isn't what he wanted.

This isn't what any of them wanted.

The red surrounding Shibuya, buildings turning into dust and decay, Soul Pulvis surrounds him, engulfing everything and anything in its path, both breathing and non-breathing, a fellow noise or inanimate objects, the Phoenix Cantus ahead of him, eyeing him almost as destruction continues.

A witness to Shibuya's destruction.

He watched as his team fell, one by one, swept up by the Noise around him. But they bypass him, keeping him alive, keeping him in this cruel reality.

Rindo fell to his knees, eyes looking up at the red skies, glancing over to the Phoenix Cantus, watching the debris from the buildings he knew crumble and vanish into nothing.

Why? Why did this have to happen?

They did their best, they tried so hard to win but in the end… they all still failed. He still failed.

Rindo replayed, went back to get them more prepared than last time. He thought they could do it this time, with Hazuki weakening the Noise for them. But it still wasn’t enough.

It. Still . Wasn't . Enough .

Tears started to flow from his eyes, clutching the broken pin in his hands, the backing piercing but the pain not felt. The pain he feels right now is greater than that pinch. He can never get back what he lost now, his only way of returning destroyed. There’s no way for him to rewind, to replay.

If he could replay he can stop this, again. And again. And again. Until they succeed.

Replay.

Replay.

Replay.

B̷̟̅r̷̮͛ë̸́͜a̸̗̒k̴̻̓ ̵̩͝t̶̰̋h̷̢͝e̷̺̎ ̴̝̈́b̸̽͜ò̴͓ṷ̶͗n̴̬̓ḏ̷̓ä̷̝r̸̢̆y̶͔̅ ̷̡͆o̵̩͋f̷̺̽ ̴͕͋t̸̲̎ḯ̶͈m̷̜̕e̵͍͒ḻ̴̈́ḯ̵̖n̷̖̓e̶͎͆š̶͙.̷̤͌

Rindo screamed, voice crackling with static as he felt change happening to him, feeling something surge into him, possessing him. The destroyed pin in his hand glowed, growing in intensity as it merged together once more and attaching itself to his hand . Rindo could feel the marks burn into his arms, going up and over his other arm, the timestream filling his head.

The opportunities, the results, the what-could’ve . The entry-ways, the exits. Replay.

To cleanse. To purify . To right the timestream .

His scream slowly becomes muffled, less human, a mask forming around his mouth and making his screams more distorted. He felt more than heard his clothes rip behind him, something attaching behind him then forming wings behind him, multicolored and shifting. He could feel his clothes shift, merging into one and getting modified. It was scratchy, it was uncomfortable.

The Noise in his head is, for the lack of a better word, noisy. Screaming at him, urging him to cleanse Shibuya, erase the inconsistencies of the timeframes.

Clean. Clean. Purify Shibuya.

I̴t̵’̵s̵ ̵f̴o̴r̸ ̷t̷h̴e̴ ̷g̷r̷e̷a̷t̴e̴r̸ ̷g̵o̸o̸d̸.̵ ̶T̶o̴ ̸p̶u̵r̶i̸f̶y̴ ̷t̵h̶i̸s̷ ̶t̷a̷i̵n̸t̵e̸d̸ ̶c̴i̵t̶y̵.̶

No… this city is okay the way it is! It doesn’t need to be c̷l̶e̶a̵n̵s̷e̴d̷!

An inhuman scream resonated from the destruction, rage and pain filled. The pain of losing his friends, his city, of everything he has. He needs to Replay, the need to start over.

The Noise let out a screech, the sound wrecking the remaining standing buildings around him, blown away by the force of their screams. Chaos everywhere, debris fading into dust, souls devoured into apathy.

What’s happening? Why is this happening? Why? Why? Why?!

He couldn’t tell if he’s crying, or screaming. Everything feels overwhelming, everything feels too much, he just… he just wants it to stop.

A soft tune snapped him out of his rage- grief -filled rampage, looking back he saw a yellow Soul Pulvis, smaller than the normal kind. Once it knew it had Rindo’s attention it flew towards him, twirling around playing its little tune. It eases Rindo’s heart, calming him down.

All rage, anxieties, just gone with the small tune.

Rindo sagged, as if there were some strings holding him up and was cut off, falling down to his knees once more (when did he stand? When did he move?), watching the small Noise flutter to his outstretched hands, landing gently and tweeting at him.

It was then he noticed the pin that’s embedded in his right hand, the marks flowing out of it and around his arms, pulsing softly with a burn that matches its color. Rindo couldn't help but let out a sob, the situation sinking in as the Noise buzzed in his head, solidifying what had happened to him.

A Noise, the Noise that took away everything is now in him, possessing him.

He didn’t notice the swarm of Soul Pulvis inching away from him, a flock missing one bird. Rindo held the small Swallow Pulvis close, shielding it from the chaos around them.

His head still buzzes with the need to cleanse, to cleanse Shibuya, e̴v̷e̶r̸y̷ ̵S̸h̷i̶b̷u̴y̴a̸ , but for now even the chaos around them, Rindo can have his peace, even if brief.

Later… he’ll go back to c̸l̵e̷a̴n̷s̵i̴n̷g̸ ̵S̸h̵i̴b̵u̴y̶a̸ stop himself.