Sword Dance Part 2
「The main topic?」
「We have something in common: our interest in bricolage and combat techniques.」
「That’s true.」
Honestly, Kou was relieved to move away from the mentally exhausting wordplay to a discussion about bricolage and combat, which were more in his comfort zone. Personally, there were also many things he wanted to ask Vasa.
Asia’s Aimer felt a sense of relief internally. If the order had been reversed, Kou would have been much more shaken. The fact that Vasa didn’t start with this meant that his genuine interest really was in bricolage and combat techniques.
「Your martial art—Systema, wasn’t it? I’ve heard it’s a military combat art. What kind of martial art is it?」
「In terms of principles, it might be closest to Aikido from your country. Of course, it also includes the use of various weapons, so it’s not completely similar.」
「Aikido!」
It was an unexpected answer. Kou had actually experienced being thrown by Aikido techniques before.
「I don’t think I could win in a fair fight, but I’ll give it my best shot.」
The swordsmanship Kou had learned involved many practitioners from police and self-defense forces. Not just kendo, but also black belts in karate and judo were numerous among them. He didn’t think for a moment that he could beat them in a hand-to-hand fight.
「In hand-to-hand combat, I think I could kill you instantly, but battles in Silhouettes are different. You have to know how to pilot them, knowledge of martial arts helps a lot but isn’t everything. And you excel at piloting a Silhouette, isn’t it?」
「Yeah.」
Kou admitted it, being strong in hand-to-hand combat didn’t necessarily translate to being equally strong when piloting a Silhouette. Piloting a Silhouette required a completely different skill set.
「The armored muscle you introduced and TAKABA’s Accipiter have brought me closer to creating the kind of Silhouette I want.」
「So that’s why you’re so fixated on the Lanius.」
Kou replied, steering the conversation toward a topic Vasa was eager to discuss.
「I also wanted to talk about bricolage. There’s one thing I want to ask first though. Why are you so attached to that early model Lanius? It must hold some sentimental value for you. You’ve grown alongside that Lanius, so much that it has affected the development of the Silhouettes in this world.」
Growing alongside Lanius.
With Vasa’s observation, Kou felt a sense of understanding—a connection, perhaps. It seemed likely that Vasa felt the same way.
「When I was transported to this world, I was nearly killed by a human. It was thanks to a Familia, Asia, and this Unit 5 that I survived.」
「Why did you side with the humans then?」
This was unexpected information for Vasa, but it wasn’t really crucial. The fact that Kou was nearly killed by his own people was no small matter, but Vasa wasn’t really surprised, Vasa had lived in a country with poor security, so it wasn’t rare that people ended up killing each other over disagreements or just not getting along. For Vasa that was one facet of human nature, and it likely wasn’t a significant issue for Kou anymore.
「Like you said earlier, I’m not fighting for humanity. I fight to protect Asia, the Familia, and the people who have been by my side until now.」
「Perhaps you and I are two sides of the same coin.」
The essence of their motives was the same: for Asia, for those who stood by them. Both started with the same driving force.
But their methods differed.
Kou built an organization and rescued Asia. Vasa established his position by aligning with the most powerful force. These differences in approach were what highlighted the disparity in their stances.
「I won’t deny it. I want to keep fighting alongside this Lanius, which has always been with me since I arrived on this planet. Bricolage allows us to continue fighting together.」
「I get it. I really do, that’s why you didn’t build a new Silhouette and replaced the MCS. I’m the same way. To hell with efficiency. I want to grow up alongside my beloved machine.」
「You too?」
Kou couldn’t help but smile. He had found a kindred spirit. Replacing the MCS would have been quicker and more efficient, but Kou had rejected that idea. And so had the man standing before him.
「Kou and Vasa really do get along well. Too well, actually. I expected it, but…」
This was true for Vasa as well, which made things all the more precarious.
「The adoption of armored muscle is a perfect example, it allows for movements like this.」
Vasa’s Bogatyri hung its gun at its waist and took up a dual-blade stance.
「Pardon the show.」
Kou could tell that Vasa wasn’t adopting an attack stance. He was demonstrating the movements of his Bogatyri, and Kou was eager to see.
With a flourish, Vasa twirled the dual blades elegantly, finishing with a precise stance. The fluid, human-like motion would have been impossible without the use of armored muscle.
The movement, which expressed flexibility, was not meant for combat.
「This is a sword dance using these sabers, the Shashkas.」
「A sword dance! Indeed, those moves would be impossible without the armored muscle.」
「It’s a performance I registered as an extra, but it’s necessary to demonstrate the utility of the armored muscle.」
Kou understood. The moves registered for combat were different. He had also programmed various techniques into Unit Five, so he could relate.
「That was amazing. So that is a sword dance.」
Kou heard a whispered voice of admiration from Asia’s Aimer behind him. That single comment stirred a sense of rivalry within Kou.
「Aimer, didn’t you know? I can do it too.」
「What?」
「Japanese style, though.」
The Iai dojo where Kou trained also practiced sword dancing. A desire to show Vasa welled up inside him.
「That was impressive. Allow me to showcase a Japanese-style sword dance as well.」
「Oh? A Japanese sword dance! By all means, perform it!」
Vasa’s voice pitched higher in surprise at Kou’s unexpected response. He had thought he was the only eccentric pilot who would register the movements for a sword dance in his Silhouette. Now, he was eager to see it—another sword dance, different from his own, yet within the same realm. Vasa had an insatiable curiosity for such things.
「Ah… Asia’s Aimer, sorry for taking your time with something so trivial.」
「It’s fine.」
Asia’s Aimer didn’t mind. She didn’t want to ruin the moment.
Kou searched through his registered sword dances. What should he perform? The Soga Brothers, Honnoji Temple, or perhaps… Several options flashed through his mind.
Though called a sword dance, it often involved more than just a sword—fans, spears, and other weapons were used too. Kou recalled a shorter dance he had previously registered and decided to go with that. It was a sword dance he had learned from his Iai master, something Kou had also registered as a kata.
「Shiroyama.」
Kou whispered the name of the dance, and Unit 5 slowly drew its sword and assumed a stance. The name of the dance reflected a scene from a decisive battle. It depicted the desperate last stand of a defeated general in the late Edo period, surrounded, fighting alone, with his sword broken, his beloved horse gone, and ultimately succumbing to exhaustion. Kou’s performance recreated part of this story, a dance lasting just under a minute.
Unit 5 repeated movements based on Iai katas several times. Vasa watched these movements intently. When the sequence ended, Kou spoke up.
「That’s what my sword dance looks like.」
「A series of katas, huh? It’s more like drills than a dance. Quite practical for actual combat.」
Vasa was filled with admiration. Each movement was a kata, the movements appeared designed with real combat scenarios in mind.
「It doesn’t stop there, though. It ends with an act of seppuku—a ritual suicide.」
「Why seppuku?!」
Vasa exclaimed in surprise, then couldn’t help but laugh. The way Kou said it was amusing to him. The mindset of the Japanese was often hard to understand.
「The general, fighting alone and having lost even his beloved horse, realizes his fate and takes his own life.」
「I see. Very specific. It’s a dance that reenacts an actual battle. Fascinating. You and your Silhouette are truly interesting.」
「You’re pretty interesting too. How did you manage to incorporate armored muscle into a transformable Silhouette?」
Kou threw this question, half-expecting no answer, knowing it was probably a closely guarded secret.
「There’s always a backdoor configuration for everything. In other words, you only need to do bricolage while thinking of uses not anticipated by the original designer.
Is he really going to tell me? Kou thought to himself, surprised. It seemed that discussing bricolage was genuinely the main topic for Vasa.
「What do you mean by that?」
「The transformation mechanism of this Bogatyri wasn’t designed using the blueprints made by the AI. I designed it from scratch.」
「That must have been a very time-consuming task…」
「It was quite a challenge, but that’s how I found the loophole in the specifications. The key was not to design it as a fighter aircraft.」
Only a C-class Development Engineer with a passion for their craft would understand how arduous that task was. For B-class and above, the initial design was often delegated to AI. In Metal Iris, that would be someone like Abel or Matt.
「This Silhouette base is not a fighter aircraft?」
「Correct. It has no pylons or weapon bays. The processing power that would have been spent on those control mechanisms was instead redirected to manage the armored muscles.」
「So, it flies like a fighter aircraft but doesn’t function as one. The OS resources that would normally operate as a fighter are diverted to control the armored muscles. That’s insightful… I’m surprised you shared such a secret. I mean, I appreciate it, but still…」
「Consider it a thank you for entertaining me. Conversations between Development Engineers are always worthwhile, even if we’re enemies.」
Vasa replied with a grin, raising his Shashka.
「Next, let’s try them in a real fight.」
「Understood.」
Unit 5’s hand moved to its hilt. They had talked enough. Now, it was time to fight.
「I can’t wait to see what you’ll show me next.」
「That’s my line.」
The two of them looked at each other, both filled with a mutual curiosity about one another’s skills and techniques. They were eager to see what the other would unleash, to determine whose techniques were superior and whose bricolage was more advanced.
That was all they wanted to know.
Unit 5’s hand gripped its hilt, its stance lowered, readying for combat.
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