After Ryuko's confrontation with Satsuki, Lewis approached Iori.
"Ah, Lewis. It's been a while if I recall." Iori said.
"Yeah." Lewis nodded. "So what's this I hear about you having Kamu's other half?"
"That's right." Iori said, taking a cylindrical capsule out from his coat pocket. Inside the capsule was Kamu's other half, stretched from either side of the capsule, its single eye still blank and glazed over. "Here. Will you need any help reattaching it?"
"Probably not, but thanks for the offer." Lewis said, trying to twist open the capsule. "Er, how d'you open this thing?"
Iori gave an exasperated sigh. "Give it back here."
As Iori opened the capsule, he also whipped out the largest pocket sewing kit Lewis had ever seen. Scissors, needles, pins, measuring tapes and spools of life fibre thread, it even included a small table which he could work on. Kamu's coat parted to reveal his singular eye covering the hole where Lewis's heart should have been and stuck out the frayed edge where Ragyo had torn him in half. Iori set to work, carefully suturing and reconnecting the material.
"Feeling better Kamu?" Lewis asked.
'Better than I was.' Kamu responded.
"Lewis!" Ryuko gasped, immediately running over to them.
Lewis gave a wave as Ryuko arrived. "Hey Ryuko! You really owe me one."
"Huh?!" She gasped. "What makes you say that?"
"Well during our last fight you broke my jaw, shattered my ribs multiple times, pulverised my spine," Lewis counted off. "And then you said some really hurtful things to me."
"I haven't seen you for a month. I thought you were dead. And that's the first thing you say to me?" she asked indignantly.
Lewis gave a laugh. "Heh, sorry. Lemme try that again." He said. "It's good to see you again, Ryuko."
"Better." She smiled, leaning on the table. "So what happened to you? And why are you wearing that COVERS?"
"I guess I'd better start from the beginning." Lewis said. "After Honnouji exploded, I got thrown down into the One Star district. Ragyo had popped my heart like it was nothing and so Kamu, in a burst of genius might I add, turned himself into an artificial life fibre heart to keep me going."
Ryuko's eyes widened. "So he… he turned you into a hybrid?"
"I guess so. I can heal freakishly fast now, so that's probably a good indicator that Kamu and I have become a fused entity. But it wasn't perfect. I was still basically dead and Kamu was too weak to do anything but pump blood, so we lay there in a coma until I was found by COVERS and put into some kind of dream state by Nui. Apparently she wanted to go through my thoughts. Well, that and torture me."
"So they know we're coming." Satsuki said as she walked over.
"Yeah, but they probably already knew that. Nui says she didn't get to read everything in my mind so the final outcome is still up in the air. But they do know how we're going to come in, so they're likely to bolster their defences in those places. But realistically, it probably won't be enough to keep us from getting in." Lewis explained. "Once I got woken up Satsuki broke me free. Thanks to her, Kamu and I cannibalised enough torn up life fibres to make this snazzy outfit."
"Yeah, I was wondering about that." Ryuko said.
"So your outfit is 100% life fibres? How are you still alive?" Iori asked incredulously.
Lewis opened his mouth to answer, but couldn't find any reason. "That's a good point." He concluded.
'I have been deliberately limiting my power output.' Kamu answered. 'I know that I now cover almost all of your body you would likely disintegrate if I gave you full power, so I have been spreading a fraction of my power throughout your body. But it is still more power than I have ever given you. Perhaps a result of our fusion was an improved ability to absorb my strength.'
"I hope that's the case." Lewis nodded.
"Wait, was that Kamu?" Ryuko asked.
It was Lewis's turn to be surprised. "You heard him just now?"
'I suppose since Ryuko has fed me her blood when she was manipulated by Ragyo, she can hear me now.' Kamu theorised. 'It's so good to finally have someone else to talk to!'
There was a brief lull in the conversation as Ryuko looked from Senketsu to Lewis.
"Did you hear that?" Ryuko asked.
"Hear what? Did Senketsu say something to me?"
Ryuko sighed. "Looks like he still can't hear you bud." she said, causing Senketsu to look a bit depressed.
"Figures." Lewis snorted.
Iori snipped off the last bit of life fibre thread and nodded. "Alright, it's finished. Feeling any different?"
Lewis stood up and took a deep breath. "Not sure. I'm probably a lot stronger than I'm used to being, so I might have to be careful with doorknobs in the future."
'I feel far better.' Kamu said. 'I finally feel like I am whole again!'
The sound of food being laid out caught the attention of everyone on deck. "Now that everything's been sorted out, let's have dinner!" Sukuyo said brightly, a huge plate of croquettes in front of her.
"Your croquettes, ma'am?" Ryuko gasped happily.
"That's right," Sukuyo smiled. "Croquettes filled with minced, unidentifiable things! Dig in, dig in!"
Everyone started gravitating towards the blanket to have some of Suyuko's croquettes. Lewis had sat next to Iori, who had sat next to Satsuki. Through the meal, Iori and Lewis were also discussing Lewis's outfit.
"Really I think those life fibres would better be suited for other things." He said. "After all, you did say that in that from Kamu could only give you a fraction of his power."
"That is true." Lewis nodded. "But what about the meantime? Kamu can't do any of his transformations without a decent amount of life fibres."
"Actually the plan is to begin producing more Goku Uniforms for the attack, so I think I could make something special for you." He suggested.
Lewis gave a relieved smile. "Thanks."
"No problem. I'll also resist the urge to sew the arms shut." He said, taking a mouthful of another croquette.
Lewis looked sheepish as he realised what he meant. "Ah, you heard that? Yeah, sorry. That was kind of a dickish thing to say." He said. "But what'll I wear for the time being?"
"The Nudist Beach uniform of course!" Aikuro said, throwing a spare set to Lewis. "But put it on later, we're eating at the moment."
*v*v*v*
*v*v*v*
When night had fallen the group was still eating, however Lewis had shed the COVERS suit and gotten into the Nudist Beach uniform, which consisted mostly of belts and pouches. Needless to say he was feeling very cold. The life fibres he could spare were bundled up and sent below decks to the Sewing Club, where they would be prepared for what was to come. Kamu now had both eyes poking out from the hole in Lewis's chest, the hole in his chest filled entirely with red life fibres.
"Oh man, I don't think I can eat any more of those croquettes." Lewis said, stretching out again.
'It is probably for the best. You don't exercise anyway so there aren't many ways for you to burn off all that fat and oil.' Kamu said.
"Hey, since when were you my dietician?" Lewis asked.
'Ever since I started being one of your vital organs.'
"Yeah, that's a fair cop." He nodded before catching sight of Ryuko eating a plate full of croquettes alone and chatting with Senketsu. Wandering over he took a seat, legs dangling over the edge of the ship. "Hey Ryuko. Doing alright?"
"Yeah." She said, turning to him and looking mildly surprised. "Whoa! Where'd the suit go?"
"Iori thought it would be better to use all those life fibres for other stuff." he shrugged. "Though I've gotta say I'm not a fan of the belts."
Ryuko gave a small laugh. "Yeah. Think you're ready for the fight with Ragyo?"
"If I wasn't I probably would have dived overboard by now." Lewis said. "But then again, as long as I'm not actually fighting Ragyo I should be fine no matter what happens."
Ryuko nodded as her thoughts drifted back to her mother, and what happened when she'd first seen her. "I guess now that you're part life fibres I should start calling you my brother or something."
"Don't you start. It's already weird enough with Nui calling me her cousin." Lewis said. "Besides, I have no idea how to even spell 'Kiryuin'."
Ryuko gave a questioning look. "Didn't Ragyo say you were her kid too?"
"Ragyo says a lot of things, I doubt most of them are true." Lewis sighed. "She says people live for clothing. She says she's going to turn the world into life fibres. She says there's no way we can beat her. Bullshit, I say."
"Well said." Ryuko agreed. "Still though, I kinda like the idea of having you as a brother."
Lewis blinked for a second before giving Ryuko a light thump on the arm. "Come on, don't go getting all sappy and sentimental on me!" he chuckled. "Besides, when you look at it all I've done is get in your way, even since the beginning. Not telling you anything you really deserved to know, our 'fight' in the Naturals Election, hell even when I tried to stop you mopping the floor with Satsuki when you were mind-controlled you tossed me around like a ragdoll! Really I wasn't anything more than a distraction."
"Don't you think you're being a little hard on yourself?" Ryuko asked.
"Not really. I just get the feeling like I haven't really made a difference. But I guess that's kind of a good thing. The world's not gonna end because of me, so that's a plus." He chuckled.
"But you keep trying though. N-not trying to end the world, but helping." Ryuko said. "Any of the 'friends' I made in the past probably woulda run away or shit themselves when faced with the stuff me, Mako and you've seen. You've stuck with me almost since the beginning too! And despite that entire 'protecting the timeline' whack you went on about, you've never really lied to me."
"Well, I probably wouldn't go so far as 'never'." Lewis said. "But… thanks for saying that."
"Sure thing little bro!" she chuckled, leaning over and putting Lewis in a headlock and tousling his hair.
"H-hey! What the hell?! Last time I checked I was sixteen, cut it out!"
"Ha! Seventeen!" Ryuko laughed, renewing her noogieing with vigour.
"Oh wow, you guys are really getting along!" Mako said brightly as she appeared next to them.
"Save me Mako!" Lewis squawked.
"Not a chance!" Ryuko continued to laugh. "I've gotta give you all the birthday noogies you missed out on!"
"Ooh, can I help?" Mako asked.
"Sure, go ahead!" Ryuko said.
Lewis was nothing if not distraught. "Mako you traitoooooor!"
*v*v*v*
*v*v*v*
A little while later Ryuko, Mako and Lewis were summoned to the control tower. Once everyone had assembled, Satsuki began to speak.
"Ragyo Kiryuin's ultimate objective is to transform the entire human race into life fibres and cover this world. This is the Starseed Cocoon Sphere." She explained. "All of REVOCS' products have life fibres incorporated into them. Upon receiving a powerful signal, those fibres will awaken. Humans with no resistance to it will be converted into energy sources, and all clothing will transform into COVERS. Seven billion COVERS will rise into the stratosphere and enshroud the planet."
"You're telling me that she's trying to make the Earth wear clothing?" Tsumugu asked. "That's messed up."
"I had heard that she was trying to turn humanity into life fibres, but I had no idea her plan was this epic in scope." Aikuro agreed. "To what end though?"
"Life fibres are an organism that drifts through space." Satsuki continued. "If they reach a planet that harbours intelligent life, they cause them to evolve into a state more suitable as an energy source for themselves. They then cover the planet with the beings that have been converted into life fibres and then, using the planet itself as an energy source, cause it to explode, and that force scatters new seeds through space. That is how they continue to reproduce across the universe."
Lewis put a hand to his chin. "So it's like a virus, only spacefaring and made from string."
"Good grief, talk about making things up out of whole cloth…" Sanageyama sighed.
Nonon could only groan. "There you go again. Why do you keep blurting out dumb puns that we've been restraining ourselves from saying? I've had just about enough of your lack of tact, you stupid Northern Kanto monkey!"
"Wait, I don't get it." Lewis said.
Sanageyama got up and towered over Nonon. "Mock Northern Kanto once more, I'll mix you up with limewater and boil you!"
"So, wait, is it a regional joke?" Lewis asked, still completely lost.
"Now, now, what's with all the 'yakking' about 'konnyaku'?" Inumuta chuckled.
Lewis's face turned sour. "Well I understood that one."
"That's enough, you two!" Gamagoori thundered. "Behave yourselves in front of Lady Satsuki!"
Satsuki chuckled at the antics of her subordinates. "Don't worry about it, Gamagoori." She said. "Hearing you two bicker makes me feel like I have truly come home."
'Aw, that's really sweet.' Lewis thought as the Elite Four bowed.
A loud beep emanated from Inumuta's console as he turned his attention back to it. "Okay, I've managed to hack into REVOCS' communications satellites." He said. "I'll put up a feed of the Original Life Fibre."
"Wait, explain to me a genuine reason why a clothing corporation would need their own communications satellites." Lewis said as they all crowded around the console.
"Gee, I dunno. How about to secretly initiate a plot to turn all of humanity into life fibres?" Nonon said, voice dripping with sarcasm.
"I would be offended if you weren't so right about that." Lewis grumbled.
"They've beefed up their security, so their cameras are all I can get a peek at." He continued, tapping away at the keyboard.
"Ragyo…" Ryuko grumbled as the camera zoomed in on the psychotic mother.
"Original Life Fibre's destination: Honnouji Academy." Inumuta reported. "Exactly as expected."
"Lewis." Satsuki said suddenly, surprising him. "Anything unexpected that may occur in our near future?"
"Oh… Well, the Original Life Fibre might launch an assault on the Naked Sol, but because Nui looked through my memories she might have told Ragyo about that, instead choosing to head straight to Honnouji unimpeded." Lewis surmised. "Really I can't be sure of anything past this point, so it's all up in the air."
Satsuki gave a curt nod. "Very well."
"Wait, Honnouji Academy?" Ryuko asked.
"That's right." Satsuki said. "By attaching the Original Life Fibre to the massive transmitter installed at Honnouji Academy, she can send out the signal to transform all humanity into life fibres."
"So to stop her plan, we just need to smash that transmitter." Tsumugu guessed.
"Not going to be that easy I'm afraid." Lewis said with a shake of his head.
"He's right. There is one unexpected item." Inumuta pointed out.
"What is it?" Nonon asked.
The screen changed again, showing several shapes coming off the Original Life Fibre.
"These missiles are about to strike the ship." He said calmly.
Lewis's head snapped up just in time to see the red and orange streaks in the sky, hurtling towards the Naked Sol. The missiles smashed into the ship, tearing up the steel deck even more and rocking the ship, knocking almost everyone off their balance.
"Report stuff like that right away, darn it!" Nonon shouted about the noise.
"Mr Mikisugi." Satsuki said, getting up from her chair.
"'Mister'?!" Aikuro gasped, surprised that she still referred to him as if he was a teacher.
"I'd like to put you in command of the operation." She continued.
"M-Me?" he asked.
"I will go with Ryuko to stop Ragyo." She declared. "It is inappropriate for someone on the frontlines to be in command."
"Ah, I follow you." Aikuro said with understanding.
"Elite Four, is that clear?" she barked to be met with a resounding 'Yes ma'am'.
Aikuro took his place at the captain's chair, thrusting his hand out. "Alright, we'll see to the destruction of the Honnouji Academy transmitter, and Satsuki and Ryuko will keep Ragyo Kiryuin and the Original Life Fibre occupied!" he ordered. "All hands to your posts!"
Ryuko gave a small groan as Satsuki walked past. "There you go again, telling people what to do."
"Aren't you going?" she replied.
Ryuko turned to her. "Can you go?"
"I have no choice."
"Hurry up and get changed then." Ryuko said before turning to Lewis. "Hey, little bro. Don't got dying on me again, you hear?"
"No promises. And don't call me bro." Lewis said as Ryuko marched off. When Lewis turned back, he saw Satsuki looking at him with a rather bemused expression. "What?"
"Nothing. Little brother." She chuckled as she too walked away.
Lewis stared after her for a while in disbelief.
"Well… That felt weird." he muttered to himself before turning and seeing Nonon looking absolutely livid, staring daggers at Lewis with unmatched ferocity. He suddenly remembered that he was desperately needed on the other side of the ship, far away from Nonon and so scrambled to his post.
*v*v*v*
*v*v*v*
Having eluded Nonon's accusing stare, Lewis found himself wandering around the bowels of the ship. He was pondering about the battle coming ahead, scratching his chin as he wondered and worried.
'Why are you so tense my friend?' Kamu asked.
"It's about this fight we're about to get ourselves into." Lewis muttered. "Everything has been leading up to this and I'm honestly I'm surprised we made it this far. But this is a different story. We're up against an army of soulless, mindless drones with a megalomaniac bent on enslaving humanity."
'Has that not always been the case?' Kamu retorted.
Lewis gave a chuckle. "I think that's being a bit harsh to Satsuki. Besides, Satsuki never wanted to use people as food no, matter how many times she called them pigs."
'So what should we do to prepare?' Kamu asked.
"I've been thinking about trying that Mental Refitting thing Nui and Ragyo used to try and turn some of their COVERS against them, but it might only work with humans." Lewis mused. "Besides, I don't think you have enough life fibres in you to refit an entire wardrobe of suits."
'We could always use their life fibres.' Kamu put in.
"True. And then I could try that life fibre goliath we made back in the dream state." Lewis nodded.
Lewis's ears perked up as he heard several muted explosions come from the outside of the ship.
'It appears we are under attack once more.' Kamu observed.
"Yeah, and we're still powered down." Lewis grumbled. "We've gotta find Iori."
Lewis began running through the depths of the ship, trying to find the room Iori was working in. Eventually he began to hear the rattle of a sewing machine and headed to the source of the noise. Eventually he came across an open door. Inside was Iori in his transformed scarlet Tailor's Regalia, a torrent of black and gold Goku uniforms flying from his giant sewing machine. Sitting in another corner with his ever-present laptop was Inumuta, most likely going over intelligence or attempting to hack into more of REVOCS' systems.
"Whoa." Lewis remarked when he entered.
Iori turned to glance at Lewis, his work not slowing in the slightest. "Ah, Lewis. I was wondering when you'd arrive. Now that both of you are here it's time to begin."
"Both of us?" Lewis asked.
From under a pile of clothing Mako emerged, looking no worse for wear. "Yeppers!"
"Mankanshoku, you and your friend must help defend this ship. There is a possibility that the Elite Four will not be enough on their own." Inumuta explained.
"Eeeeh?!" Mako gasped. "B-b-bu-but I'm a No Star!"
"And Kamu and I aren't nearly as powerful as we once were." Lewis agreed.
"That is why I've made both of you Goku uniforms." Iori said, one of his extra arms quickly pressing a button on a console revealing two wardrobes. The doors on both opened and inside were Mako's Fight Club President Uniform and another Two Star Goku Uniform, this one looking decidedly plain. In fact, it resembled the One Star Goku Uniform more than anything else, with gold studded epaulettes, two gold stars on the high black collar and two more gold stars emblazoned proudly on the chest.
Mako's eyes widened to biblical proportions at the sight of her old Goku Uniform, tearful memories from her fight with Ryuko no doubt entering her mind.
"Mako, are you okay?" Lewis asked.
Mako shook her head. "I can't! I can't I can't I can't I can't I can't!" she cried, fat tears flying from her eyes. "I don't want to put that back on after I hurt Ryuko like that!"
Lewis grimaced. If Mako wasn't going to put on her Goku Uniform, then everyone on the ship would be in a lot of trouble! Lewis was about to raise this point, but Inumuta said something first.
"I understand your issue Mankanshoku. But I feel you should look at this." He said, turning his laptop around so Mako and Lewis could see.
When Inumuta pushed a button on the keyboard, a video file opened up and began playing. The speakers blared a chorus of 'hallelujah' and the video showed spliced footage of Mako's pep talks. The video went on for a good few minutes with its almost incomprehensible visual accompaniment, its spliced nature showing as there were weird emphasis and punctuation throughout. By the time it was over, Lewis was left scratching his head.
Before Lewis could open his mouth there was the sound of something slamming into the deck of the ship as the Naked Sol began to tilt. Lewis stumbled, landing on a pile of recently sewn One Star Goku Uniforms, the others managing to stay on their feet while Mako stood absolutely still as if nothing had happened. Mako rose her hand up in front of her and closed it so hard it made an audible sound, determination burning in her eyes. Without another word, she bodily dived into the cupboard. Spinning his laptop around, Inumuta pressed another key and launched the cupboard upwards, disappearing through a hole in the ceiling.
Lewis got up and dusted himself off. "Very impressive."
"Thank you." Inumuta nodded. "I had noticed there was a pattern to Mako's strange pep talks, almost like a form of hypnosis or subliminal messaging. I was eager to test out my hypothesis."
Lewis turned back to see his new Goku Uniform. "This is my new uniform? Why does it look so normal? I mean, compared to most Two Star Uniforms."
"Two Star Goku Uniforms are given almost exclusively to Club Presidents, as you might have guessed. As such modifications are given to better enhance their role." Iori explained, not looking up from his work. "Seeing as you do not belong to a club and require a stronger form of Goku Uniform, I have created this. A Blank-Spec Two Star Goku Uniform. This should be more than enough of a power booster for what you will be fighting. It has also been designed to accommodate for Kamu's transformations, however it will require more life fibres than have been used in the uniform to do so. Did that explain everything?"
"Yep. Got it." Lewis nodded. "So… do I just climb into the cupboard and put it on?"
"Yes. Then you will be launched onto the deck." Inumuta said.
"C-can't I just take the stairs?" Lewis asked.
Another deafening crash came from above deck and Lewis clambered into the cupboard without another word. The doors shut behind him with a snap and the cupboard launched skywards. The next thing Lewis knew he'd slammed into the deck of the ship.
"Another one?!" Sanageyama shouted.
"Who is it this time?" Nonon asked.
The doors burst off and Lewis climbed out dressed in his new Goku Uniform, Kamu's eyes shifting to the coat and opening just below Lewis's collarbones.
"You feeling okay Kamu?" Lewis asked.
'Indeed. In fact with this new uniform I believe I can release my full power once more!' he said.
"Great." Lewis nodded, looking up to the titanic Combat-Oriented COVERS halting the ship's progress. "Because we're going to need all the strength we can get."
"The other slacker gets a Goku Uniform too? Oh come on!" Nonon seethed. "When do we get ours back?!"
"In due time I imagine." Gamagoori said. "Iori and Inumuta were right. As of now we should focus on evening out the combat disparity within our ranks."
The giant COVERS reached for the Elite Four and Lewis prepared to strike, only for Mako to fly in from the other side of the ship and slam a huge number of recovery devices into its side.
"999-Mount Emergency Rescue Suction Device!" Mako shouted. "Vroom, vroom, vroom!"
Mako activated the devices all at once, blowing a huge hole into the Combat COVERS and sending people falling from the sky. Lewis dashed around the deck of the ship, catching people and setting them down as they fell before racing to the next person. He was impressed at the supreme speed he felt with this two star uniform, it was faster than he'd ever been, even with his COVERS suit. It wasn't long until Gamagoori, Nonon and Sanageyama got into the fight too, wailing on the giant COVERS as it began to split up into smaller Empowered COVERS. Several of these Empowered COVERS dropped down around Lewis, surrounding him again. Fortunately he was close to a recovery device that had been dropped from Mako's massive strike against the Combat COVERS.
Lewis leapt forwards and picked up the recovery device before slamming it into the midsection of an Empowered COVERS. As the machine whirred and span up, two more COVERS closed in from the sides. Lewis leapt up, kicking one of them and was spun by the motion of the recovery device, slamming his outstretched legs into the other COVERS. The COVERS he'd hit with the recovery device began to wilt before a red string of life fibres from Kamu whipped forth and stuck to the deflating COVERS, turning it back into a spool of glowing red string.
"Alright, something we can work with!" Lewis grinned as he whirled the recovery device around to the remaining COVERS. "Alright, who's next?!"
This caused all the COVERS around Lewis to charge forward. Lewis skirted around each of their blows, trying to get a decent hit in. Kamu on the other hand had been letting the string of life fibres lay across each other COVERS. By the time Lewis had dodged all their attacks, the COVERS were starting to warp. Every single one of them began unravelling and turned into a great sphere of red string easily as big as Gamagoori, the people trapped inside dropping to the steel deck.
"Uh… Did you do that Kamu?" Lewis asked.
'It may not be Mental Refitting, but it is certainly useful.' Kamu said. 'Now what was that about a goliath?'
Lewis gave a sly grin. "Yeah. Let's see what we can do with this."
Running around, Lewis picked up seven other recovery devices before tossing them to the giant bundle of life fibres. Lewis ran to the accumulated resources and leapt into it, disappearing into the inert life fibres. As Kamu connected to the bundle it began to change. Its form began to change, becoming a bulbous top-heavy body. Thick knobbly arms began to form, four recovery devices forming at the end of each arm and large spikes forming atop the shoulders. The entire thing was lifted up by sturdy flat legs, similar to an elephant. A vertical split opened at the top, showing Lewis connected to each of the limbs by a long length of life fibres around his hands. As a finishing touch, the entire body changed from vibrant red to black and gold. Striking a pose, Lewis gave a shout of triumph.
"Alright, it's ready! Life Fibre Goliath!"
By the time Lewis had finished creating the goliath however, there weren't many COVERS left to use it on.
"Eh? What happened?" Lewis asked, looking around the deck of the ship. It was Nonon, standing atop a vertically placed recovery device who delivered his answer.
"While you were busy making your stupid thing we'd taken out most of the COVERS. You just really wanted to show off with that dumb useless transformation, didn't you ya stupid moron?" she said snidely.
Lewis frowned and responded by kicking the recovery device out from under Nonon. Landing on her feet, she looked even more annoyed and offended than usual. She was about to verbally lay into him again when more glowing spiked spheres slammed into the deck of the ship from the Original Life Fibre. They unravelled, revealing yet more Empowered COVERS!
"Ha! Not so useless now is it?" Lewis smirked before another impact rocked the Naked Sol's deck.
Looking over, it was some kind of long thin tongue that stretched back to the Original Life Fibre, which was now heading directly for the ship, the spike at its front opening up and turning into a four-pronged mouth.
"That's not good." Lewis gulped.
"King of understatement, this one." Nonon snorted.
Lewis didn't have time for a witty retort as a barrage of missiles from the Original Life Fibre shot from it towards the ship. Lewis threw himself over Nonon, letting the missiles explode on his back as the rest of the ship became a cacophony of destruction and fire. Once the explosions had passed, Lewis got back up, thankful that Kamu had covered his ears before the blast hit.
"Nudist Cannons, fire!" Aikuro shouted as the cannons on deck fired upon the Original Life Fibre.
The attack was blocked completely by a giant shield of life fibres, stray shells blasting away the infrastructure of the artificial island Honnouji Academy was built upon. Not only that, but more COVERS from Empowered levels upwards were landing on the deck to bring the fight to them. As the Elite Four, Mako and Tsumugu leapt back into the fray, Lewis and Kamu readied themselves.
The final fight had begun.