Darling in the Franxx: Homecoming

Chapter 3- Mock Battle

The next day after lunch you make your way down to the docking bay. Walking in you see Squad 13's Franxx as well as Strelitzia. At the far end of the room you are greeted by a familiar sight, Terraria.

Terraria stands tall and proud as you approach. Taking a moment, you stop to admire her. She possesses heavy armor plating setting her apart from the mostly more agile Franxx of Squad 13. As a result, she isn't lithe or athletic like the other Franxx. She reminds you of what Genista would look like without her dress, strong and broad. Terraria's armor is a mix of verdant green and white with subtle accents of indigo. Her weapon, a greataxe, rests beside her, standing nearly two-thirds her height.

Beautiful, you say to yourself. Terraria surely was designed to be a brawler. During your time at Plantation 39, she was often the first to engage and the last to leave the fight. The additional armor made her slower than most Franxx but, it also offered much greater protection. As a result, Terraria often acted as the center of your formation, drawing the attention of the Klaxosaurs so the other Franxx could deal with them unimpeded.

"I figured you would be here." A soft voice says. You turn to see Kyu at your side. "Sorry," You reply, "I just wanted to make sure everything with Terraria was still ok." Kyu smiles, "You've always worried about the two of us."

"It's my job." You say with a smile. "Ready for tonight?" "Yeah," she responds, "It's been almost a month since we've ridden. I was kind of starting to miss it." "I know, me too," you reply. "Think Argentea will pose a challenge?"

"Against us? Not now, maybe if they were more experienced." Kyu states, "Anyway, I came to get you. We should get ready." You nod and follow Kyu out of the docking bay wondering what this evening has in store.

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You enter the boy's locker room to prepare for the mock battle. As you do you notice Mitsuru, Zorome, and Hiro already changing. "Well, look who decided to show up." Zorome jabs. You ignore him, proceeding to your locker and opening the door. As you change you hear a conversation behind you. "He's awful quiet." Zorome states. "Probably just focusing, you should try it some time." Mitsuru mocks. "Hey! I know what I'm doing! Miku and I are always first to sync up." Zorome responds nearly yelling. "You are also the first to make a mistake." Mitsuru replies walking out. Zorome grumbles following him.

As you finish dressing you notice Hiro is sitting on the bench staring at the floor. "Something on your mind?" you ask. He flinches before looking up at you, "It's nothing." "Don't worry about tonight." You say reassuringly, "I watched you pilot Strelitzia, any other Franxx shouldn't be a problem." "Really?" He asks, his eyes searching for a reason to have hope. "Trust me." You say placing a hand on his shoulder, "Riding with Zero Two is no small feat. Now, come on. Time for you to become a real parasite." Glancing over your shoulder as you exit, you see a slight smile forming on Hiro's face.

Entering the docking bay, you find Kyu standing before Terraria. She smiles as you approach, "Took you long enough." She kids, "Hatchi said to connect, grab a training baton, and head outside." "Well, let's get to it. Don't want to keep them waiting after all." You reply following Kyu into the Franxx.

Taking a seat in the pilot's chair you glance at Kyu. "You ready?" "Yep!" she responds giving you a thumbs up. She really is happy to be back. "Here we go." You say aloud grabbing the controls. You press the trigger activating the connection.

Your mind is suddenly filled with a soft green light spiraling into darkness. You begin moving towards the darkness, as you do images pass by. A scene from two days ago where you and Kyu were introduced to Squad 13, another of the two of you walking with Squad 39 through the bird cage, and finally a plantation surrounded by Klaxosaurs. There's a bright flash and you are once again in Terraria's cockpit.