Kinda lacking Author's note here... enjoy the chapter. ^^
"No time to play around huh?" Dynamo asked, cheery as ever. His received response was Mikoto magnetizing the car she just destroyed and to draw it toward her, causing it to smash right into Dynamo's back. The Plasma Caster formed an explosive plasma blast that destroyed the car's remains, and used the propulsion to try and punch Mikoto, who dodged, causing Dynamo's fist to pierce right through the side of a truck. "So violent today… you make it sound like someone just died~"
"Shut up." Mikoto fired off a large stream of electricity, and Dynamo responded with a wave of plasma. The clash subsided; and Dynamo removed his arm from the truck's side.
"You might want to give up now… I know you feel compelled by your own tough words… but you can't retire me no matter how much you try." Dynamo grinned. Mikoto discharged electricity again, and Dynamo blocked it with another blast of plasma. But this time when the clash subsided, Mikoto was out of sight. Dynamo was about to walk away when a railgun blast tore through the truck next to him, just barely missing him. "…Too close… way too close."
"If you're getting scared just because of this, it's going to get a whole lot worse from here," Mikoto ran electricity through the ground up into Dynamo's body, electrocuting him.
However, this was just a distraction, as a large swirl of iron sand burst form the ground and started to gather itself around the Railgun. She formed it into a thick blade and launched it toward Dynamo, who could only block by making a sword of Plasma to cut through it. This, however, didn't put an end to the attack, as the iron sand reformed behind the Plasma Caster, smashing right into his back, slicing up the non-armored pieces. Dynamo rolled to the side after the impact, noticing the iron sand was chasing him, and forced it to disperse with a plasma blast, kicking up a cloud of iron sand and dust, covering the area.
"You are dangerous when you're pissed off, little girl…" Dynamo commented.
A bolt of lightning struck him and lunched him into another car. After the impact, Dynamo smashed his fist into the car's side, and used his mecha-suit's strength to lift it up and hurled it at Mikoto, who quickly blasted it with electricity, forcing it to explode; lowering visibility even further. The Plasma Caster took his chances and tried to retreat, but shortly after he started to move, a hand grasping his stopped him.
"Where are you going…? We are just getting started…!" Mikoto ran her full electric current through Dynamo's body, refusing to let go as Dynamo could only cry out in pain.
Mikoto just kept railing up the voltage and current, increasing it every second. Her rage was boiling, and it wasn't long before she snapped; a large bolt of lightning fell from the sky and struck the parking lot with a loud boom, causing the remaining vehicles to explode due to the impact.
-Touma's Location-
"What was that!?" Touma shouted. "It sounded like… thunder. But there's not a cloud in the sky…"
"…There is one over there. It's just a single one though, but its big and dark looking..." Gilgamesh pointed. Touma saw it, and saw it sparking as well; it didn't take long for Touma to figure out who caused that thunderclap.
"Misaka…" Touma said quietly. "Gilgamesh, wait for me; I'm going to go see if Misaka is ok! If I'm not back within 20 minutes, come and find me, ok?"
"Gotcha… just take care; I don't want anything to happen to my newest comrade!" Gilgamesh pounded his chest. "You are in with the Big Bridge now, so you are under my protection as well! If anyone ever messes with you, just let me know!"
"R-right. I'll keep that in mind…" Touma replied. He was about to take off when his phone started to ring. "Hello?"
"Savior; Misaka says as a greeting." It was one of the Misaka sisters; probably 10032. "Is Onee-sama alright? Her phone refuses to connect; Misaka says worriedly."
"…I think I know why her phone isn't working." Touma replied. "Whatever you need to tell her, you can say to me; I'll be sure to deliver the message. I'm on my way to see her anyway."
"It's about the predicament she is in; Misaka explains. We believe we have located the one orchestrating it all; Misaka finished promptly"
"Really? But… how? It's only been a few days…" Touma replied.
"It's the head of Academy City; Aleister Crowley; Misaka answers."
-Mikoto's location-
"Your lightning… really hurts…" Dynamo replied, climbing to his feet. Or at least he tried to; a sudden electrical shock stopped him as he was on one knee.
"You should stay down…" Mikoto replied. "If you be nice and comply, Mikoto-sensei might not hurt you as bad."
"Does that mean if little Dynamo is really good, he can go out and play extra long~?" Dynamo replied.
"…Why are you doing this?" Mikoto asked. "Helping this plan to change reality, attacking Touma, trying to kill that Gilgamesh… just why are you doing all of this?"
"Who knows… maybe I want a little pay back for something done… maybe I really like this girl and I wanna impress her… maybe I want to see if I can transcend into god-hood… or maybe I just wanna destroy everything for shits and giggles!" This response earned Dynamo an electrically-charged kicking right in the jaw, knocking him onto his back.
"Stop trying to give me the run around!" Mikoto shouted. "Trying to kill people… just to avenge that friend of yours who died!" Dynamo didn't try to stand, choosing to lay on the ground.
"…Ah, Gate." Dynamo replied. "That's right… that is something I can never forgive..."
"What happened…?" Mikoto asked.
"We were approached by one of the directors… offering us huge sums of money to re-design our mech-suits into unmanned attack drones; saying that they'd be funding us enough to be able to work on both projects at once." Dynamo started. "But, Gate upfront refused. He's never been fond of the directors' board you see; project IMPULSE was independently funded. But the guy didn't like that kind of response… he had gotten someone to hack the code of a new suit design we were working on without us knowing… and Gate went to test it, like usual. The thing went berserk; completely outside of the operator's control… and the ejection button wasn't working. EMP's wouldn't work; we designed all of our suits against such counter measures… so the only option was to damage the suit to the point where it would automatically shut down but… doing such a thing would kill the pilot..."
"So… in order to stop the suit from possibly getting out into the public…"
"Yup; I volunteered to take him down, donning this very suit." Dynamo answered. "That was so long ago… it's why I don't like being here, ya know."
"Isn't that also why you're doing all of this, for revenge?" Mikoto asked. Dynamo laughed.
"I got that a looooong time go!" Dynamo replied. "The nameless hacker… well; let's just say as far as public is concerned, he will remain nameless…" He let that settle for a moment, making it rather easy to figure out what became of the aforementioned man. "…And the director whose name escapes me got caught when a bunch of money randomly went missing~ it was almost like he was set up!"
"…You stole the money and framed him, knowing that he'd be charged and sent to prison… more than likely for the rest of his life." Mikoto summed up. The Plasma Caster nodded.
"So; that's that! The bad guys got punished, and Gate's dream of project IMPLUSE was completed. After that, I took this suit and skipped town. And a few years later, I wind up coming back. That's my story arc~" Dynamo finished. "Before you ask, IMPULSE is a code word, but it's just a bunch of nonsensical words so Gate could call it IMPLUSE; he was rather weird like that."
"But then why… why are you doing all of this!? If it's not for revenge, then what is driving you!?" Mikoto shouted.
"…You're not the only girl who has faced the cruelty of this world, you know." Dynamo replied. Mikoto was about to reply but a blast of plasma shout out at her; forcing her to use her electricity to block. Dynamo used the opportunity to jump back to his feet and leapt out at Mikoto with a blade of plasma. The Railgun dodged the attack, the blade slicing right through the metal remains of a vehicle. Mikoto rolled to the side to make distance away from the Plasma Caster. "If you thought this was all done juuuust because we had a little chat; you're dead wrong, Misaka-san."
"Tell me why you're trying to change this world!" Mikoto shouted.
"This world is wrong… so much darkness!" Dynamo replied. "This world has so much suffering, so much evil… so much death. She wants to change that, and I will be her instrument of change."
"Her…?" Mikoto asked, confused. She realized who he was referring to after a moment. "You're not the one who wants all this to happen… it's the magician! And you're just along for the ride!"
"Along for the ride? Close… I want to see that woman's dream become a reality… a world without evil… were innocent people won't have to die anymore."
"But if you change everything, some innocent people will be killed too!"
"Acceptable losses," Dynamo simply replied with a shrug.
"What kind of response is that!? Innocent people will die!" Mikoto shouted.
"But more evil will be killed than good; with all evil gone, no one will be manipulated… no control through money, power, ability, or social status! People won't be forced to kill each other just to avoid being killed themselves! The human race will finally become something of value, not just a bunch of apes that live to kill!" Dynamo replied with a cheery smile; it was like all of this was easy for him to do.
"An outcome like that… would be nice." Mikoto replied. "But… for it to cost even a single innocent life is unacceptable!"
"The ends don't justify the means argument? Don't give me that~" Dynamo replied.
"Lives are special… and you don't have the right to decide who lives and who dies! Until you can give me a solution where death isn't necessary, I'll stake everything on the world we have now."
"Ah… but why? You know from personal experience how this world could be fixed by removing certain factors~"
"Because this brutal world gave birth to the kindest, most caring person I have ever met! The kind of guy who will step and save you, even if you don't ask! Who will jump head first into the darkness to pull you out of it! Who will fight tooth and nail just so you can have a happy ending, even if he himself doesn't get one! A world where such a person can't be allowed to exist isn't worth living in!" Mikoto shouted to the world. Silence followed as her words sank in. Moment after moment, silence. Dynamo frowned, looking down.
"…I'm sorry."
"Sorry for what?" Mikoto asked. Dynamo looked genuinely depressed.
"I'm sorry that I can't join you on that path." Dynamo looked up; appearing serious for the first time during the entire time they've known each other, not even the slightest hint of a ruse. "I'm sorry that you got dragged into this… you deserve better; a better fate than this fight."
"What are you going on about?" Mikoto looked confused.
"This path I'm on… this path with her; it isn't something I can abandon… I cannot afford to see her cry like that again. Someone like that who always ended up being betrayed… I refuse to be another link in that chain for her. So I will stand my ground here, and fight for what she desires until the bitter end." Dynamo replied, raising his right hand up in the air. Mikoto was going to say something, but a bright energy formed around it. "I am sorry for what I must do… Earth Gaizer." Dynamo slammed his hand into the ground and the energy vanished. Just like his previous use, the sky started to rain a seemingly endless barrage of plasma blasts. They bombarded the parking lot, each one violently exploding on impact. Over and over they struck, it seemed like an eternity. However, the endless explosions did cease after a time. In the smoke, Dynamo stood, letting out a heavy sigh.
He really did not want to do any of this. All this senseless violence, but if the world will improve, he would be more than willing to cause it. Endless Fiction would slay him too; this was certain. But in his mind, he preferred it like this. To go down as the villain, while the hero does what needs to be done. Dynamo turned to leave when he heard a spark, followed by a large blast of electricity, knocking him backward.
"If you thought such a weak attack could kill me… then you're wrong!" Mikoto stood in the smoke a sit cleared. She was obviously hurt, but no open wounds, sparks flying from her bangs. Dynamo clicked his teeth in disappointment; he had hoped that this was over. "You know a thing or two about me… but did you know that I can fire off other things besides coins!?"
"Shit..!" Dynamo quickly put up his right hand and fired off a wave of plasma, but it was too late. Using magnetism, she brought a large chunk of steel on the ground in front of her up and hit it; launching the massive piece of steel in a much larger version of her Railgun. The attacks clashed, and the railgun quickly started to gain ground, prompting the Plasma Caster to add his second hand into the clash, the twin blast of plasma holding off the Railgun blast rather evenly. "What's wrong? Your upgraded Railgun is only able to match my plasma~"
"I'm not weak." The Railgun pushed forward a little. "I'm not some sad little girl who needs to be coddled… but he stands up for me anyway, jumping into trouble. So I will stand tall, and transform from a person protected by him into someone who can help him protect others! So that I can make his dreams come true! And Dynamo… you are NOT going to stand in the way of that!" Slowly but surely, the Railgun began to pierce the plasma blast, until the blast completely dispelled the plasma retraining it. Dynamo's only response was to cover himself in a shell of plasma and put up his arms to block; the shell only served to slow down the impact slightly as the Railgun blast slammed right into him, blasting him right through a wall of a building, that collapsed shortly after. Mikoto stood there for a time, just looking. Dynamo let out no cry of pain, no grunt, nothing. He was completely silent when the blast hit him. Mikoto sighed lightly as she heard footsteps coming closer. When she looked, she saw Touma approaching; he slowed down, panting, when he got close.
"S-sorry I'm late…" Touma said. "What… exactly happened?" Mikoto looked off toward the rubble.
"I fought Dynamo." Mikoto simply replied, turning her head back toward Touma.
"And… you won?" Touma asked, receiving a nod. He let out a relieved sigh. "Thank god… I was worried about you…"
"You don't need to, idiot." Mikoto replied.
"Doesn't matter; I care about you, so how could I not worry at least a little?" Touma replied. Mikoto smiled in response.
"Touma…" Mikoto was about to speak, but Touma looked up, appearing serious. She wanted to ask, but a hard blow came to the side of her neck, and consciousness quickly left her as she fell over.
"Misaka!" Touma shouted as she fell over. "You-" He received a powerful knee to his stomach, knocking him backward.
"That last attack… almost… did me in…" Dynamo said. His armor was damaged, his hair was messy, and blood seemed to be trickling down from his mouth and nose. Before Touma could react, Dynamo lunged with a sword of plasma. But he wasn't going for the kill… he was targeting Touma's right arm. The blade sliced right through Touma's shoulder, whose body suddenly went limp after the attack. The Plasma Caster grabbed Touma by the head and threw him aside; panting as he did so. The Imagine Breaker's body rolled lifelessly along the ground before slowing down. "Well… shit. No turning back now…" Dynamo scratched the back of his head, and turned his attention back to Mikoto.
"You technically won that little scrap… I went down hard…" Dynamo slowly started to walk to the unconscious girl. "…I meant it, ya know. Not wanting to do this; to cause you this much pain… but if the world can be changed for the better… I'm sorry."
Dynamo stood over the Railgun's unconscious form. "I don't expect forgiveness… but the least I can do is make sure it's painless. It's the only kind of mercy I can give right now." He raised up his right arm; wielding a blade of plasma. "This… is the end. Just like you said it was." He swung quickly, sure that the quick strike would do the deed.
But he was wrong.
Suddenly, a hand came from behind and grabbed his wrist, holding him in place. Dynamo wasn't surprised by this, oh no; it was obviously Kamijou Touma. What surprised him that there was a shattering sound, and his plasma sword vanished… despite Dynamo being sure that he cut off Touma's right arm. Dynamo slowly turned his head… and his face suddenly turned to horror. It was Kamijou Touma alright, his spiky hair covering his eyes but he also saw… what looked like a bloody dragon's head now in the place of the arm he had just severed.
"Hey… Plasma Caster!" Touma called out, his mouth quickly turning to a wide grin. "You didn't think that you could get rid of my Imagine Breaker that easily, did you…?" A loud dragon's roar filled the sky… along with a blood curdling scream.
Chapter 10 is one of my personal favorites... as is chapter 11, which you all will see next... and then understand. Till then, bye bye! Leave a review and tell me how I'm doing! ^^