Your Lie In April: Across The Multiverse

YLIA x Multiverse Episode 3: Into Battle

Episode 3: Into Battle

Kousei's brow dripped with sweat that stained his shirt and shorts as his fingers danced along the keys of the Bosendorfer grand piano. He squinted his eyes behind the lens of his glasses and frowned in concentration. So far, so good. He'd made it through about five pages without a mistake. A time signature change was coming up...

His fingers slipped and botched the progression of arpeggiated chords.

Kousei cursed himself. "All these years of playing and I still mess up every time a composer throws one of those in there!"

The Watcher, however, was less critical of the young pianist, and just smiled.

"You play most wonderfully, Arima," the celestial being praised. "It's no mystery how you won Kaori's heart at only five years old, even if by accident."

Kousei chuckled, gazing at the precious photo he'd perched by the sheet music of five-year-old him photobombing Kaori at the piano competition all those years ago. "Yeah. Thanks."

"So, what piece did you select?" The Watcher inquired.

"Piano Sonata H.160 by Frank Bridge," Kousei answered. "Apparently he was a British pacifist composer that wrote this piece in response to his country entering World War I."

"I'm sure Captain Carter will approve," The Watcher joked.

"I've never played a piece from this composer before, believe it or not," Kousei recalled. "My mother mostly had Classical and Romantic repertoire. Rachmaninoff, Schumann, Handel, Pachelbel, and more. But not many Modern era pieces."

Though The Watcher had been a witness to this very history Arima enthusiastically described—across multiple timelines at that—he did not chide nor interrupt Kousei as he happily recounted details of what he loved most.

"He's been through enough pain and sorrow," The Watcher thought to himself. "It's good to see him in high spirits before the next phase of the mission begins."

"I hope you don't mind having to listen to this multiple times...it's going to end up being about thirty minutes long!" Kousei told The Watcher sheepishly.

The Watcher laughed. "Don't worry my friend. I've heard this song played across multiple universes sure, but no one plays it nearly as authentically as you."

Kousei smiled shyly. This alien had come out of nowhere, enlisted his help in a mission to foil the plans of a would-be inter-dimensional conqueror, and now The Watcher claimed no one across the entire multiverse played the piano like him?

Yeesh. If only his mother could be here now to see the fruits of what she'd taught him during their time together...

"Is everyone else doing okay?" Kousei asked, changing the subject.

"They'll do their part just fine," The Watcher assured him. "In the meantime, you'd best keep practicing."

..............................

Although Strange Supreme's spells had healed Captain Levi's broken body and regenerated his hands, the hasty alliance's problems were far from over.

"Enough bickering already!" Commander Hange snapped. "An army of Colossal Titans and mechanical soldiers is about to commit the bloodiest genocide our world has ever seen! There won't be any materials left to make more bullets if we can't even unite against this attack in the first place!"