Minute Man To The Rescue!

January 14th, 6:00 PM

Josiah's ears perked up as he heard someone rapidly knocking at his front door, prompting him to put down his cellphone to go and answer it. "Coming, coming! Why would you even come out here, there's a blizzard going on outside!"

As the door creaked open, he couldn't help but sigh when he saw it was his mother, Irene. "I'm here to talk about the interrogation with Shiro, do you have time to sit and listen to me?"

"Uh, sure. Want a cup of coffee?" Josiah asked as he walked towards his kitchen, only to see that she shook her head, "Well, I'll make some for myself, then."

"I learned more than I expected to," Irene said as she sank into her son's sofa, "While he was knocked out, I noticed he had some strange screws in his head.. I had Stone Free pluck them out and then I had some of our doctors perform surgery so he wouldn't bleed out."

"Screws? You mean the screws those Stand users had when they would attack us?" Josiah asked as he walked back into the main room, putting the ridge of the coffee cup up to his mouth, sitting on the left arm of the sofa.

"Yeah," Irene nodded, "We managed to question him after he woke up around two days later. He didn't fight back, so we got some valuable information if it's true, aside from a mishap."

"Mishap?" Josiah asked curiously before slipping down into his sofa, taking a sip from his coffee cup, "What do you mean?"

"In the middle of questioning, all the electronics in the room started to freak out," Irene began, putting a hand on her chin, "And a voice that seemed genderless, which you told me about, started to talk with us."

"Wait, what? Tell me more!" Josiah's eyes went wide as he scooted closer to his mother, his coffee cup shaking erratically.

[Five days ago…]

Irene crossed one leg over the other as she took a seat in her leather chair, her thumbs pressed together as she leaned over the table slightly. "So, Shiro Kansuke, tell me everything. First of all, how did you find out about Josiah's last name?"

"I was told that they were found online after extensive searching," Shiro replied with barely any life inside his voice, his head hung low before looking straight at his captor, "All I did was send out the invites."

"And who told you?" Irene asked, resting her chin on her hand. She tapped her fingers along the opened laptop in front of her, as it was brought up on what seemed to be a social media account belonging to Shiro.

"His name," Shiro's voice shook for a moment, his hands suddenly gripping at the arm opposite of them, "Himuro, I think? I think.. I only remember that, darkness.. and that voice. It's stuck in my head..."

"Himuro? Does the name Firestart ring any bells?" Irene asked as her eyes looked down towards her laptop; but something was odd, she was sure her operating system was Windows, not Linux.

"Himuro.. Firestart." Shiro murmured, attempting to jump back; though it was too bad for him, as his hands were handcuffed to the leg of the table he had been sitting at.

"Eh?" Irene sat up, confused; though she soon became utterly bewildered as the screen of her laptop turned to total darkness.

Out from the darkness came a few electrical sparks, followed by a strange figure floating out of it. It had to have been taller than Irene, as it towered above her without revealing its entire body; it appeared to wear a space suit with dozens of stars painted across it, though in the helmet was a black skull with bright lights shining out from the eye sockets.

"Oh, hello! I'm sure you didn't expect to see me here, Irene Joestar!" The black skull's mouth didn't even move as it spoke, the voice completely jarring Irene as she stepped back, clenching her fists.

"The hell.. so you must be the one behind all of this, am I right? This proves my theory that he or she has a Stand that can somehow cause widespread panic through electronics!" Irene declared, her own Stand standing by her.

"You are correct," It said, raising one of its gloved fists, "But it doesn't matter, does it? You know my name, so you have done enough. I've heard of your past battles, so I won't waste any time on you."

"So that's your name? Doesn't sound too human, besides, this is just you talking through your Stand!" Irene smirked, quickly ducking out of the way as the hulking Stand jutted a bolt of electricity towards her.

"I'm not dying today!" Irene yelled confidently, Stone Free's knuckles cracking the laptop into pieces within mere moments, forcing the Stand to dissipate.

[Back in the present…]

"So you saw what his Stand looked like? Himuro Firestart.. yeah, that definitely isn't a name any human would have.." Josiah nearly wandered off as he stared up at his ceiling, giving off an irritated sigh. "Fuck, if only we knew where he was!"

"He killed a lot of hardworking men and women that day," Irene shook with anger, her teeth grinding against one another, "But.. I have two theories. One, Himuro Firestart is either a codename or, somehow, he's a computer that has a Stand."

"A computer with a Stand? But that's impossible! Stands are the manifestation of your soul, and well, we all know computers don't have those!" Josiah argued, baffled that she would come up with such a theory.

"Yeah, I think it's insane too," Irene nodded in agreement, though smirked slightly, "But, we have a Stand user coming to Osaka who can try and find him by hacking into Himuro's system, as his Stand works through electronics."

"That's the best shot we really have," Josiah said as he jumped off from his sofa, quickly picking up his cellphone, "I'm gonna call Warut and tell him everything, I'll hope that my call will get through this blizzard."

[At Dororesu's Apartment…]

Dororesu tossed her water bottle into the air, her eyes focusing on it as a sharp spike suddenly jutted out from it, tearing the bottle in two before she grabbed the spike.

"Wow," Warut leaned against the wall, looking through the dim light to see the liquified spike, "That's pretty useful in a fight, I bet! Is that all you can do?"

"Nope! I can make spikes out of fire too, but I don't have an example; they aren't very durable unless the content is thick, which is kinda lame." Dororesu shrugged, running her hand along the drywall as she stepped towards her father, the liquid spike dissipating in her hand.

"Oh, I see." Warut responded, sighing as he looked around the beaten down apartment, "Are you sure you're fine with staying here?"

"I don't got much of a choice," Dororesu answered almost immediately, "You're an escaped convict, so I can't risk living with you, as cold as that probably seems.. besides isn't it dangerous for you to go out and about in public in the first place?"

"No one's stopped me yet!" Warut argued playfully, smiling warmly towards his daughter, "I don't plan on being arrested, not until I've fulfilled my debt to Josiah for helping me! Even then, I don't think I'd like prison, even though I do deserve it."

"Don't lie to yourself," Dororesu gave him a look of pity, resting a hand on her right hip, "You don't deserve it, you've proved it already. Besides, isn't Josiah pretty dull?"

"I mean…" Warut intended to reply, though he was interrupted by his cell phone vibrating his pocket, quickly answering it. "Hey, this is Mizushima! Who is this?"

"I'm glad I could finally get a hold of you; I have some important news," Josiah said, his voice shaken somewhat, "My mother found out that the name of the guy that called us is Himuro Firestart. All we know is his name and what his Stand looks like, he also uses electronics to get around the city. I'm guessing his Stand's range is insane."

"Himuro Firestart? That's a freakin' weird name," Warut spoke, moving to walk into his daughter's messy kitchen, "So how are we supposed to find him if he could be anywhere?"

"Mom's calling in a Stand user that can try to locate him through a computer," Josiah said with an irritated sigh, "I guess we have to fight fire with fire.. speaking of his name, she also thinks Himuro could be a computer, but I'm pretty sure that it's impossible."

"Yeah, I doubt it.. probably just a guy with a weird name. Anyway, was that all? I can still talk if ya want," Warut said, shivering slightly as the cold air clung to his skin, "How's everyone been?"

"They're fine," Josiah answered, his voice brightening up, "I haven't seen Sophia in a few days, so I'm kinda worried, but I'm sure she can handle herself. How's Dororesu been?"

"She's doing pretty good," Warut said, smiling brightly as he roamed around the kitchen, "She's here right now, but we're fine here. Uh.. let me know if you need me, alright? If Himuro shows up again, I'll run over to help."

"Noted, Warut! Thanks a lot, buddy, talk to ya later." Josiah said warmly, hanging up after a few more seconds, prompting Warut to slide his cell phone back into his pocket.

"Y'know, even if he is a little dull, he's still a really nice guy." Warut told his daughter, chuckling as he sank into her sofa, his eyes lazily looking up at her.

"Hm, guess you're right," Dororesu smirked, briefly yawning before heading towards her front door, "I'm gonna go get some food, you better not leave!"

"Will do."

[At Shinnosuke's Office…]

Shinnosuke groaned, setting his pencil next to his sketchbook which he began to close. "Augh, my hand hurts. I guess that's what I get for trying to draw so much in a day."

Sliding out from his chair, Shinnosuke took his sketchbook and set it underneath his bed for safekeeping. "I really can't help it! I've been really motivated to work and I can't stop! But I gotta conserve that, so I don't burn out."

Shinnosuke rolled onto his bed, stretching out as he sighed, his eyes staring up at his ceiling fan; though, before he could do much else, his cell phone started to ring.

He rummaged in his pockets for a moment before pulling it out, answering it and then pressing it against his ear. "Hello, uh, is this Shinnosuke?"

Shinnosuke easily recognized the voice as Sophia's. "Oh? Hi there! Yeah, it's me, what do you need Sophia? I'm surprised you got a hold of me, mainly because of the blizzard going on outside."

"Mhm! But, uh.. I couldn't reach Josiah, so I was wondering if you could ask him something for me, if that's okay?" Sophia asked hesitantly.

"Uh, sure, what would that be?" Shinnosuke asked, admittedly incredibly curious as to what would make her sound so nervous.

"Can you ask him why he hasn't been showing up to work? I understand if it's something important, but.. everyone's worried about him, and I just wanna know if he's okay." Sophia said sincerely with a hint of wonder in her voice.

"He hasn't been showing up to work?" Shinnosuke said aloud, putting a finger on his chin as he began to ponder. "I wonder what it could be.. I haven't seen him in a few days, but I'll be sure to tell him, Sophia."

"Alright, thank you!" Before Shinnosuke could say another word, she had hung up on him rather quickly. This was odd to him, as Sophia never seemed to come off as the nervous type of person.

"Huh," Shinnosuke shrugged before placing his cellphone on the table next to him, his eyes slowly shutting, "I'll tell him tomorrow.."

[Back at Josiah's apartment…]

"Well, it's been fun and all, but I'm gonna go head out!" Taiga declared, making her way towards Josiah's front door, though he immediately stood up from his sofa.

"You're not going anywhere! You told me yourself, you don't have a place to live or sleep! So until we find something like that, you're staying with me!" Josiah protested, marching towards the door to block her off from it.

"Come on, I'll be fine! I have been for years!" She argued, though her host didn't show a sign of giving in, as he only shook his head in defiance. "Fine, whatever! Have fun sleeping through my snoring for another week!"

"Will do!" Josiah stuck his tongue out at her as if he were a child, giggling as he went to look out the window, "Man, I hope this passes soon..."

[The next day, At Sophia's home…]

January 15th, 12:00 PM

Sophia awoke to the sound of rapid knocking on her door, her eyes bloodshot as she weakly pulled herself out of her bed, still completely dressed in her work clothes.

The knocking never ceased, despite how long it took her to wobble over to her door, slowly opening it as her hand ran through her messy black locks. "Who is it?" She asked lazily.

It took her eyes a minute to adjust to this strange sight, as it was a bit odd. A man standing at five feet and eleven inches was standing at her doorway, wearing a silver costume that covered all but his eyes, nose, and mouth. A black beard was visible, connecting with his bushy mustache. His eyes were a bright green, and on his chest was a golden, uppercase M.

"Uh.. um.. who are you?" Sophia asked, stepping away a bit as the man only grinned, giving her a thumbs up.

"Hello! I am Osaka's crime fighter, Minute Man! I fight evil of all kinds with my ability, Sixty Minute Man!" He cried out, pointing his index finger towards the sky as he spread his legs out, a triumphant smile plastered on his face.

"R-right.. so what are you doing here?" Sophia questioned, yawning briefly as she looked up at him with a bit of an annoyed look, her eyes staring down at her feet, "And can you please tell me your real name?"

"First things first, I am Gustavo Alcide! You are Sophia Milena, correct? I came to see you because of all the wonderful things I've seen you do, with that uh, knight thing that follows you and makes portals..." Gustavo trailed off awkwardly, scratching the back of his neck in embarassment.

"Wait, you can see Saint Peter? Then that means your ability Sixty Minute Man is a Stand, right?" Sophia stepped out from the doorway, allowing Gustavo entry. "But, uh.. I mean, yeah, I've done a few nice things…"

"You've been helping children most of the time! You liked to try and run their bullies off, which is admirable! But, I am here because I need your help!" Gustavo claimed, shutting the door behind him as he shivered slightly.

"You need my help? With what?" Sophia tilted her head curiously, crossing her arms as she walked around her living room.

Gustavo twirled around twice before pointing at her. "There is a man in the slums stealing food from poor families! His name is Ryouta, and I'm sure he has a Stand just like us! I saw it with my own eyes!"

"Stealing?" Sophia blinked, yawning loudly before speaking up once more, "Well, I don't have any reason to not believe you, but.. I'm curious about two things. Why do you need my help and what does your Stand do? That might help me trust you a little more if you tell me!"

"I see, I see," Gustavo nodded, shrugging as he smiled brightly, "Well, I want your help because you are one of the most kind souls I have seen! No one else cares about helping each other! Secondly, Sixty Minute Man allows me to do anything twice in one minute! It might sound useless, but it's really useful at the right time!"

"Ah..." Sophia murmured before turning her back to him, "Alright, I'm coming! Just give me a few minutes to get ready!"

Gustavo bowed. "Thank you so much!"

[Ten minutes later...]

Sophia had slipped into a white jacket and a gray sweater, her lower half covered by a thick pair of fleece-lined leggings; on top of that, her hair had been brushed neatly, which could be seen as she danced back into her living room.

"Alright, I'm good to go!" Sophia smiled confidently, walking towards the front door with Gustavo following behind, "Just lead the way and I'll follow!"

"Will do, ma'am!" Gustavo saluted her for a moment before opening the door, running straight into the outside world.

[Fifteen minutes pass…]

It didn't take the two of them too long to reach the slums of Osaka. Vines were growing inside the cracks of homes and abandoned shops, their windows shattered. The rotten stench of smog and cigarettes ashes filled their nostrils, nearly causing Sophia to choke up.

"Ugh.. so where are we supposed to go to find this Ryouta guy, Gustavo? Do you think he'd stick around for long?" Sophia asked nasally, pinching her nose shut as she looked from left to right.

"Of course I do, the criminal always returns to the scene of the crime!" Gustavo stopped for a moment, extending his arm in front of his partner. "I will use Sixty Minute Man's precise smelling to try and find out where he is!"

Out from Gustavo came a being that was at least a foot taller than he was. It had no facial features, though it seemed to be rather muscular; Sixty Minute Man was predominantly white in color, having small bits of gray easing up on its sides. Lastly, it had a clock on its abdomen with each of the hands pointing at the number two.

Sixty Minute Man began to cling to the ground, the sound of a deep inhale coming from where would be a nose. After a few moments, it stood up and pointed to an abandoned grocery store several feet ahead of them.

"Wait.. how can your Stand smell if it doesn't have a nose? That's kinda weird." Sophia shrugged, walking side by side with Gustavo as Sixty Minute Man returned to him.

"I really don't know," Gustavo said calmly, "Before I decided to use my powers to help people, I just used it for normal chores; like getting milk. I don't know everything about it yet, but it's there."

"Huh.. well, let's go find this guy then!" Sophia stepped forward a bit more quickly than Gustavo, her Stand appearing next to her as she came closer to the front door of the shop.

As Sophia opened the door, a whole new stench flooded her nostrils; it was rotten food this time around. Nearly gagging, she pulled a bit of her shirt over her nose as she looked left and then right in an attempt to spot him.

"He's here," Gustavo gagged, "I think if he's desperate enough he'll either be on the roof or in the back. You.. ugh.. you should take the roof! I can handle this awful smell."

"Thank you!" Sophia nearly ran off to find stairs within a moment, leaving Gustavo in her dust as he sighed heavily.

"The things I do for justice…"

[Two minutes pass…]

Sophia ran up several flights of stairs, the horrible smell of the rotting food drifting away as she got closer and closer to the roof. With Saint Peter ready, she slammed the door to the outside open, revealing the top of the building, which gave her a view of the rest of the buildings.

In the middle of the roof was a middle aged man, looking right up at Sophia. He had short, messy brown hair, and wore a blue t-shirt that had a tear on the side matched with a pair of dirty, black gym shorts.

"What are you doing here?" He asked weakly, his gaze somewhat shaky. Sophia was almost sure she could see his ribs on the side where his shirt had been torn. "Are you a cop?"

"No," Sophia stepped forward, her Stand retreating, "I was told someone had been stealing food, but… you seem like you've needed it."

"What an understatement," Ryouta scoffed, standing up as he dusted his shorts off, "I barely eat as it is. I can't hold a job, either.. so what do you want? Are you going to beat me up and try to get me to apologize?"

"I'm not going to fight you," Sophia stated, no hesitation in her polite tone whatsoever, "But, I do want you to apologize. I can share some food with you if you come back with me, and maybe the other families here will share with you if you just ask."

Ryouta smiled a bit sadly, sighing before chuckling lowly. "You're still a kid.. so kind and so simple minded. Alright, if nothing else, I'll try that."

"Thank you!" Sophia smiled brightly and widely, turning around as she heard a set of footsteps coming up the stairwell. "Is that you, Gustavo?"

There was no response except for a low giggle. A shadow made itself known, standing to be about five feet and nine inches tall. As it became visible, it was obvious that it was very feminine; her short black hair bounced on her neck as she swayed from left to right, a nurse's mask tied around her mouth. She had also been wearing a white button up blouse that went with a black pair of jeans.

"Ah, it's been so long," Akiko hummed, cracking her knuckles before taking a pair of bloodstained scissors out from her pocket, "Mm.. so, are you two next? You don't want to keep me waiting, do you?"

"Wait..." Sophia murmured, her eyes widening in horror as she backed up towards Ryouta, "You were on the news.. Akiko Mikami! Why are you here?!"

"Had to find a place to find a few fresh kills," Akiko hissed, licking her lips as she continued to walk forward, "It's been a bit too easy, so I hope you two will provide me with some excitement."

Before Sophia could respond appropriately, she gasped as a fleshy crimson figure slipped out from Akiko's body. As she reacted to this, Akiko grinned, showing her teeth as she stopped in her tracks, her Stand wielding two pairs of scissors as well.

"So, you can see The Plot In You? That makes this a bit more exciting.. now, bring out your Stands!" Akiko chuckled, laughing louder and louder as Ryouta suddenly pushed Sophia out of the way, scowling.

"That fresh blood.. I may be a petty thief, but you're nothing but a gutless killer! I'll make you pay!" Ryouta shouted as a small, four foot tall figure shot out of him, being primarily hot pink in color with dark green eyes.

Akiko grinned as the small figure fired what seemed to be a thin string at her, though she ducked out of the way, allowing her Stand to cut the string in half nonchalantly; however, as she went to dash towards the Stand, it suddenly broke into thousands of tiny pieces.

"Eh?" Akiko turned around to see that the Stand had formed behind her, which then proceeded to give her a firm punch in the mouth.

Before the Stand could break up into tiny pieces again, The Plot In You's fists buried themselves into its abdomen, sending it skidding across the rooftop. Ryouta vomited blood as it stopped, groaning as he stared up at Akiko.

"You're too slow," Akiko's lips curved into a smile, her Stand picking up Ryouta by his neck, "And now you're dead."

"No!" Sophia screamed, forming a portal on the ground beneath her and one on Akiko's left cheek as she threw what seemed to be a pocket knife into the former entry way.

Before Akiko knew what to do, the pocket knife sliced open her cheek, allowing blood to flow out as she dropped Ryouta. "You're quite the fighter, too.. but you've made a mistake!"

Akiko's Stand kicked Ryouta in the gut before rocketing towards Sophia, The Plot In You's hand clutching her neck tightly as it held her up into the air, her feet kicking as Saint Peter scratched at its own neck, trying to pry itself free from the invisible force.

"Get the fuck off of her!" Ryouta growled as he picked himself up weakly, his fists clenched as he aimed towards Akiko, his hands shaking and sweating.

"Stop! Don't.. get any closer," Sophia gulped, gasping for air as her eyes looked over to Ryouta, "I'm doing this so I can buy you time to escape.. so don't let this be for nothing! I have a plan, don't worry about me..."

"So noble," Akiko shook her head, reeling back her fist; she licked her lips in ecstasy before ramming The Plot In You's crimson fist through Sophia's gut, "But it's too late, now."

"GUH!" Sophia nearly screamed as blood seeped out from her fatal wound, her eyesight fading as a strange light overcame her, "All.. according to plan.."

"Huh?" Akiko stared down at her before she realized it; a portal had formed underneath her feet, dragging her down and supposedly sending her somewhere else entirely.

"You.. you're an idiot!" Ryouta ran up to Sophia, his hands shaking as he watched her smirk, a low chuckle emitting from her lips, despite the blood flowing out.

"Yeah, I guess.. but it was me or you.." Sophia groaned, her ears slowly perking up as she heard a set of footsteps rapidly heading upstairs.

"SOPHIA!" Gustavo screamed as he made it, his hand holding up her head, "Sophia, who did this to you?"

"It wasn't Ryouta, I promise," Sophia coughed up bits of blood, her hands shaking as she stared up at the sky as snow began to fall all around her, "It was Akiko Mikami.. please.. grant me something..."

"What is it?" Gustavo asked, moving his hands to clasp her hands together, "I'll do whatever it is. It's my fault this happened!"

"No, it's not, don't blame yourself," Sophia took a deep breath, her gaze growing weaker and weaker, "Find Josiah Joestar and tell him what happened… tell him everything, okay? He's a really good friend of mine..."

"I will! I promise!" Gustavo's voice began to shake as tears ran down his mask, watching as Sophia stared up at the sky as bits of snow fell onto her body.

"Ah… it's so beautiful..." Sophia trailed off as her eyes slowly shut, not minding the pool of blood she had been laying in for so long as her body finally fell limp.

Sophia Milena… has died.

[Six hours later…]

Josiah walked over to his door as a rapid knocking made itself known, prompting him to sigh in annoyance as he opened it. "Yeah, what is it?"

In front of him was Gustavo, without his costume. He had been wearing a gray t-shirt and gray sweatpants, his eyes noticeably red. "Are you Josiah Joestar?"

"Uh, yeah," Josiah stepped out from his doorway, raising his eyebrows quizzically, "What's wrong? Or, rather, what are you here for?"

"I hate having to be the man to tell you this," Gustavo's lower lip quivered, a small tear running down the left side of his face, "But.. your friend, Sophia Milena, has been killed while protecting a man she barely knew; her killer is Akiko Mikami. She wanted me to tell you this."

"What.. you're lying, right?" Josiah's eyes widened with disbelief as he backed up, his back hitting his window as he shook his head, "This is a joke!"

"No, I'm sorry to say that it isn't," Gustavo stayed in the doorway, bowing his head towards him respectfully, "The body has been secured by the local police, you can see for yourself if you need proof from me."

"No..." Josiah's entire body began to shake as he stared out his window, a peaceful snow falling from the gray sky, "Sophia! You fucking idiot!"

As wet tears streamed down Josiah's face, he noticed something strange in the distance; miles into the city was a strange cloud, forming into something else, and before he knew it took the shape of Sophia, with a bright smile.

"Josiah," she spoke, her voice echoing in her head, "I did what I had to do, so don't beat yourself up, okay? This happened because it had to happen. It was me or someone else, and I don't think I could live with myself if I let someone die in my place."

"The hell.. am I hallucinating?" Josiah ran his wrist across his eyes, attempting to dry his tears as he looked towards his dear friend. "What's going on?"

"I don't know what Akiko's Stand does, but I know if anyone can stop her from continuing her killing spree, it's you; please, promise me that you won't give up." Sophia extended her hand towards him, a warm smile emitting from her ghostly face.

"Of course," Josiah nodded, rubbing his eyes quickly as he was afraid he would lose sight of her, "I'll do everything I can to stop her!"

"I thought so," Sophia nodded before turning her back to him, "I don't regret a thing, Josiah. Life is such a wild ride, and it's only natural that ends. I guess what I'm saying is… 'til we meet again."

With that, he watched as her apparition fell apart, completely dissipating in the air. With his fists clenched, Josiah turned around, his eyes a brand new red as he looked straight ahead at Gustavo.

"I don't know who you are, but we're going to find Akiko Mikami, no matter what it takes," Josiah nodded, determined to do what he could for his fallen friend, "You'll help me, right? For Sophia's sake?"

"Of course." Gustavo nodded, smiling as he extended his hand; Josiah reciprocated, giving him a firm handshake.

Josiah let go and pulled out his cellphone, turning around for a moment. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a few calls to make."

TO BE CONTINUED…

CHARACTER BIO
Name: Gustavo Alcide
Age: 32
Stand: Sixty Minute Man
Stand Statistics
Power - C
Speed - A
Durability - E
Range - A
Precision – A
Development Potential - E