Enjoy.
Akihabara, Tokyo
Everyone had been outright confused when Yuu had suddenly taken off sprinting, yelling back for the others to follow her. Halfway through, Yuki had snatched Yomi up and carried the girl on her back, noticing that she had been tiring out a lot faster than anyone else present. Of course, Yomi was the least physically adept in the group, so it was pretty comprehensible as for why she was panting like heck.
All around them, the corpses of demons and humans alike littered the streets, along with more chunks of rock and debris. In the distance, the sounds of battle rang with blasts of gunfire and explosions. Whatever or whoever had done this was still around.
None of her companions had probably noticed, but Yuu had definitely seen and recognized what had saved her friends from being crushed under tons of flying steel. If it was who she thought it was, then this certain person was going to have their comrades around; Yuu inwardly laughed, wondering if a few introductions were going to be underway.
Yuu dashed through the streets with ease, her knowledge as Strength aiding in weaving through large pieces of debris—the real world was starting to look like the mangled state of the Otherworld, and she hoped that this earth wouldn't end up like it. She made sure that she was going slowly enough for her friends to catch up, and fast enough to make sure that she would still find who she was looking for nearby.
Fortunately, she wouldn't have to go very far. Just when Yuu was about to go around a corner, something crashed right into her, earning a painful yelp from her and- whatever it was. Both of them lost their footing, falling onto the floor painfully. The sound of something really heavy dropping onto the ground was heard, noticeably metallic in nature. For a moment, Yuu wondered what could have happened if she still had her Ogre Arms activated.
Yuu rubbed her chest and winced; something real hard had slammed into her ribs. "Watch where you're going you clumsy fu—" Her eyes widened when she saw who it was.
"I-I'm sorry! I was just—" The one who ran into Yuu also fell silent upon seeing her. It was a girl who was noticeably taller despite both of them being on the ground. Her choppy black hair was cut short, and her eyes glowed a deep emerald-green. Oddly, she was dressed in a maid outfit, along with a maid headdress and fake cat ears on her head.
Oh, right. This was frickin' Akihabara.
That was not what snapped into Yuu's head, however. Both of them instantly stood, the girl diving to the side to snatch up what had been dropped a few seconds earlier, jumping backwards to point it straight at Yuu—a large black rifle, which was even longer than the girl was tall.
Yuu pounced forward just in time to slap the rifle's barrel in a different direction with the back of her hand; the girl accidentally pulled the trigger, the rifle's shot blasting into a nearby building, bringing its supports down. The structure fortunately tilted in the opposite direction, crashing into a different building.
Yuu grabbed the rifle's barrel and yanked it from the girl's hold. When she moved forwards to grab it, Yuu clenched her other fist and whacked the girl on the head, bringing her down on the ground again. The girl slowly brought herself to a sitting position, clutching her head in pain.
"ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL ME?-!" Yuu yelled, earning the girl another wince.
"Shorty, what'd you do?"
Yuu turned around to see that Yuki and the others had finally caught up with her, all of them breathing heavily; Yomi was an exception, who was being carried by Yuki on her back.
"T-That hurt…" The girl whimpered.
Yuu ignored Yuki's question and the girl's chagrin. She nudged the girl with her foot and said, "What's with you, huh? You could have blasted my head off with that thing! Seriously, it's been thousands of years but you're still too much of a ditz!"
"I'm sorry!" The girl cried, "I wasn't going to shoot! I was just afraid you might hurt me and all…"
"It's too late for that," Yuu said, "And what are you doing here?"
"Hold on," Mato said, grabbing their attention, "Yuu, do you know her?"
Mato's question made Yuu bring a palm to her face. Right. How the heck did she forget the introductions?
"As Strength, yes," Yuu answered, then gestured to the girl on the ground, "This kid is known as Demon Cannon." She then gestured towards her friends, facing the girl on the ground, "These are my friends. The jarhead with a ponytail is Yuki, the pretty one that she's carrying is Yomi, the only guy in the group is Yusuke, and the only one whose name doesn't start with 'Y' is Mato."
The girl instinctively backed away, dragging herself on the ground backwards when she saw Mato. "Y-You!"
"Chill, kiddo," Yuu said, "Black Rock Shooter isn't gonna jump out of Mato or anything."
"Is she…?"
"Yes, she's Black Rock Shooter's host," Yuu said, "Now get up. You look stupid on the ground, kid."
Shakily, the girl slowly raised herself from the ground, and Yuu tossed the large rifle in her direction. She caught the weapon clumsily and the butt of the weapon hit the ground, making a loud clang which indicated just how heavy it was.
"Um…" she began, lifting the rifle to wield it properly, "I think 'Demon Cannon' sounds kind of weird. My former host's name is Mayuri Shiina. Would it be alright if you call me by that name?"
"Noted." Yuu replied.
"Is she just like you, Koutari?" Yusuke asked.
"Dude, I thought the bigass gun was already enough of an indication." Yuu answered, then turned her attention back towards the girl, "Anyway, could you tell us what you were doing here?"
Mayuri nodded. "I was in a battle against another one like us along with my friends. We all sensed something strong approaching, and he tossed a lot of vehicles in its direction…" She faced Yuu and she scratched her head sheepishly, "But when it turned out to be you, I just thought I'd tell my friends to get out of the area…"
Yuki snickered, "I dunno how you were able to sense her, but I take it you were afraid she'd beat your asses into next year, am I right?"
Mayuri gave an uneasy chuckle," Err… pretty much."
"The feeling's mutual. Sometimes I find it hard to believe that this little midget can mash me like a potato if she felt like it."
"I'll take that as a compliment, Snowball," Yuu said, "Anyway, who's 'he?'"
"Uh…" Mayuri scratched her cheek with her free hand, "Um, was it a he? Or a she? I'm sorry, I'm not quite sure…"
Yuu groaned again, "Just tell me who's responsible already. I wanna give whoever it was a piece of hell."
"So you're going to help us? Thank goodness!" Mayuri said, relief evident in her tone, "Her… His…? Um, what was… oh, its name is Geshumaru."
Yuu was silent for a few seconds, earning herself a few odd looks from everyone. Her lips then shifted into a sinister grin, and she cracked her knuckles threateningly. "Oh yeah. I had a feeling this day was gonna be great."
It took a lot of their willpower just make sure they wouldn't disobey their mother's word.
When they were instructed not to interfere, Dragon Slayer's children had all stepped aside, observing their mother's battle with the man named 'Isaki Tanaka' from a safe distance. They all knew their mother was strong, but unexpectedly, her human opponent had proved far more skillful in the area of combat than what was initially thought.
Halfway through the battle, the odds were suddenly placed against Dragon Slayer. She was put on the defensive, each blow from Isaki's gauntlets dealing much greater force than the last. Dragon Slayer had tried intercepting one of Isaki's punches with her own gauntlet, and that slight moment of underestimation gave her a few broken fingers and a nasty burn.
"Oh, come on," Isaki said through his teeth, giving Dragon Slayer a strike that sent her skidding several feet away. He dashed forwards, unleashing another punch that had her knees buckling. "I thought you were a lot better than this!"
Dragon Slayer pushed him back with the flat of her blade, putting a lot of her strength into her left arm. Her right hand was severely injured because of her earlier error, and she knew it would get even worse if she still relied on it to hold her weapon. "How dare you speak to me like this, human pest!"
"It's pretty obvious, isn't it?" Isaki said, putting a comfortable distance between himself and Dragon Slayer, "You're already on the edge of a cliff. It wouldn't be bad to throw a little comment here and there, right?"
"You son of a—"
"Whoa, time out," Isaki said, "I thought you weren't one for swearing, lady. And hey, if you call me whatever it was you were intending to, wouldn't be just as bad as cursing yourself? Mazuma's your kid and everything."
Snap. "I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU!" Dragon Slayer charged with her blade raised above her head, intending to destroy her opponent where he stood. "JUST DIE!"
"MOTHER, WATCH OUT!" Kagari screamed.
At the speed that she set herself, Dragon Slayer couldn't put herself into a halt immediately. A great blue beam shot down from the sky, and in an explosion of bright blue light, she was sent flying into a large piece of concrete, effectively crushing the cement. Weakly, she brought herself to a standing position and opened her eyes through her now blood-clouded vision.
There, crouching with a great golden lance impaled in the center of a large crater was a man with massive white wings that burned with bright blue flames. He yanked his lance from the ground, and he raised his head to glare at Dragon Slayer with eyes that glowed a bright blue.
"You… bastards…" Dragon Slayer wheezed, "You… angels… never learn… how to fight fair!" She raised her sword to point it at Mephistopheles with both hands, ignoring the pain in her limbs, "This fight… is between… myself… and this human! I will take back my son!"
"The one named Torment has already ceased being in your clutches, Dragon Slayer," Mephistopheles said, "The life he seeks is one without you in it. Let us leave peacefully, and I will leave you as you are."
Dragon Slayer's children instantly brought themselves before Mephistopheles, ready to defend their mother despite knowing the consequences it held. They had disobeyed their mother, but hadn't the human cheated in an indirect manner, too? This battle was meant to be only between her and the human, but the odds were now two to one. There was no way they'd just stand back and let their mother be defeated like this!
"No, stay out of this, all of you!" Dragon Slayer gasped, "He'll kill you all!"
"NO!" She heard Misery yell, "We can't let them do this!"
Mephistopheles didn't seem deterred in the slightest by their sheer numbers. In any case, it made their fear of him even more evident. He leveled his lance straight at the crowd, causing them to cower away a few steps backward despite the distance between them.
His lance was noticeably different from the ones carried by the angels in golden armor; it was modified to be also be used as a weapon for long-range, medium-range and melee combat, but the weapon consisted of two barrels—a smaller one for artillery and a larger one for explosive fire. The blade was larger and more streamlined, making it more efficient in terms of speed and slicing power. The handle was longer and thicker, and its tip held a smaller blade on a block-shaped base, etched with a rectangular fist mark in the center.
To the crowd's dread, the larger barrel of the lance began to glow, humming with power—Mephistopheles was going to blast them away. The girls up front just stood still, most of them already cringing in preparation for the imminent blast.
The lance discharged a blast of blue flames several feet from where the girls stood, which nonetheless created a shockwave that forced them back. It fired one shot after another, each one closer than the last. From the rate it was going, it wouldn't be long until one or more of them would combust into a bloody mush.
"NO!" Dragon Slayer cried.
The next shot blasted into the ground a few feet away. Taking the chance within the single second it would take to charge another shot, Kagari rushed forward to take the hit. The blast struck the ground in front of her, effectively sending her flying. She was fortunately caught by Grief before she could hit anything hard, but the agony was clearly pasted on her face; Kagari's mouth hung open in a wordless scream, the pain too much for her to even utter a single grunt.
It was an excruciatingly ironic display: Anguish herself suffering in the face of her own power.
Several of her sisters screamed her name in horror; Kagari's legs were badly charred by the cerulean fire, the white bone of her legs already revealed from how badly the single shot scorched her flesh. Kagari clutched Grief so tightly that her nails dug into her sister's flesh, but the other girl's thoughts weren't on her own pain. Grief just realized that she had just placed herself in the face of her death, the large barrel of Mephistopheles' weapon now aimed straight at her and Kagari.
Before the angel could pull the trigger, Isaki immediately put himself in the line of fire and backhanded the lance, causing a sharp clang; the shot was blown off target, instead blasting into an adjacent apartment that literally blew the place to pieces.
For a moment Isaki refused to think what could have happened if he had been a split second too late.
Apparently Mephistopheles wasn't even dissuaded by Isaki's actions. He aimed at the crowd once again, but this time a certain someone wouldn't let him get the chance to shoot; Isaki grabbed the weapon by its blade, letting it tilt in another direction. When Mephistopheles tried to tug it away, the flames on Isaki's gauntlets burned even brighter, its fiery red blaze a stark contrast to the angel's own.
"What are you doing?" Mephistopheles asked, his voice firm.
"I should be the one asking you that," Isaki roared, "What's with you? These kids don't have anything to do with this, and neither do you!"
"Hesitation won't help you on the battlefield, Isaki," Mephistopheles said, yanking his lance from Isaki's grip, "As a soldier, you should know that. And besides, you and your Other self already cut off all ties with the Dragon Slayer. What would it matter if these little ones die? They stand in your way, so you should just simply dispose of them."
Isaki gave Mephistopheles a hard shove, making the angel stagger backwards a few steps, "I'll have you know that I'm not like you, Meph," Isaki said, "Just because you're an angel doesn't mean you've got the right to stick your nose in anyone else's business! This is my fight, you got that? I was doing okay before you screwed everything up!"
Dragon Slayer had managed to make her way in front of the crowd. In her state, however, it didn't take long until she stumbled, landing in the arms of one of her children. "Don't ignore me! We're not done here!" she yelled in a raspy voice, "I'll make you pay for this!"
Isaki and Mephistopheles both noticed, turning their attention back to her. Mephistopheles regarded her with distaste, "You are in no condition to fight. It would be best if you just let us leave, Dragon Slayer."
Dragon Slayer growled, "You don't make the decisions, angel! You dare insult me by harming my children, and now you just waltz away as if you never—"
"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Isaki barked, interrupting her. He dispelled his large gauntlets with a small burst of flames, a couple of embers still running along his arms, "One uninvolved casualty's more than enough, Dragon Slayer. I don't care if you end up killing yourself, but if I have to risk dragging more bystanders into this mess, then I'm not sticking with this scrap."
He carefully approached Kagari and Grief, making the purple-haired girl hold onto her sister tighter. She shut her eyes tight and shrieked, "Don't hurt us!"
Isaki didn't answer; he held out his palm, summoning a wisp of red flame. He set himself down on one knee, then speaking in a soft voice that still held an indication of his frustration, "I'll be honest: I just hate Mother so much that I literally want to tear her to pieces," his voice shifted into a sympathetic whisper that slowly lost the tension in Grief's state, "…but I don't hold anything against you just because you're with her."
He lowered his hand, and the flames moved from his palm to engulf Kagari's legs; her sisters gasped in alarm when she wailed in pain, but that changed into confusion when Dragon Slayer wasn't doing anything to stop him. To their amazement, Kagari's charred flesh was recovering bit by bit from the thighs down, the flames doing the opposite of what they expected.
"Not good…" Isaki grunted.
"What's wrong?" Grief asked.
The flames dispersed, leaving Kagari's legs still scorched from the knees down. "That's the best I can do," Isaki said, "I'm afraid her legs are beyond recovery."
"B-But didn't you get to heal the other burns?" Grief said fearfully, "Big brother, please! Can't you do anything else?"
"You'll be surprised how much punishment an angel's flames can inflict," Isaki answered grudgingly, "I only made sure the pain in her legs wouldn't sting any longer; I'm sorry, but she won't be using those legs of hers anymore."
He stood up and turned away, slowly walking towards Mephistopheles; the angel regarded him with a nod, folding his massive wings behind him and walking away.
Before Isaki could get out of hearing distance, a small voice behind him weakly croaked, "…thank you."
He turned his head to see Kagari feebly smiling at him. He gave no response, turning his attention back forwards and walking away.
Dragon Slayer hung her head in defeat; she had underestimated her opponent earlier simply because he was human, and she had paid the price of defeat and humiliation—something she felt would also have happened even if the angel hadn't arrived.
As the humans would say: Worst. Day. Ever.
USS John F. Kennedy
A council of war was being held within a large room, contained safely within the vast ship. Several men—military officers, to be specific, were seated around a large circular table, with a large image of the earth's map placed before them. Each of these men represented the military force of a major country, but the most noticeable of the all were seated right beside each other: the United States President himself, Barack Obama, and the Secretary of Defense, Leon Panetta.
The map before them contained several spots which were marked with red, and even fewer ones marked with blue.
"Our satellites have detected large numbers of demons and angels alike entering our atmosphere, numbering in the millions." Said one of the men standing up, "the demons have already overrun major cities and settlements worldwide, their numbers extending even along the Poles. Despite their primitive nature, there's no denying the fact that their attacks appear to be carefully planned."
He pointed at a spot in the sea near San Francisco which was encircled with red, "At approximately 1330 hours, our troops in this area encountered a demonic species that we have never faced before. Several of our aircrafts carrying reinforcements were ambushed by aerial demons, wiping out the entire squadron."
"Have our dispatched units been informed of this new threat?" Asked one of the officers, a small hint of urgency evident in his tone despite his calm composure.
"Admiral, with all due respect—let me finish," The man continued, "Only an hour ago, we received information that we had found unsurprising, though rather odd: despite the large number of survivors still present, no demonic activity has been reported to occur in the city of Tokyo, Japan. A recent report from one of our troops currently in the city tells us the hostiles were wiped out by a third party."
Small murmurs of surprise were heard among the ones listening. The man approached a large screen facing the far end of the wall, producing a small tablet that doubled as remote. His tone grew steelier than before, making it sure what he was going to say next was going to be crucial information.
"As for who these unknowns are, we can be sure that they are definitely not simple mercenaries, vigilantes, or mere weapon enthusiasts." He entered a few commands into the tablet, and a recorded clip appeared on the large screen's display.
From what they could see, it appeared to be a video of a vast marble-white room. On one end of the room, two automated doors slid open, and two figures stepped out and into the area, walking away from each other and taking positions on opposite ends of the vast room.
Both of them wore skin-tight white plugsuits, small wires and contraptions covering their bodies on certain spots; only their complexion and shadows against the room's lights made them visible. One of them was a young, muscular Asian man, his hair tied in a small ponytail; the other occupant of the chamber, surprisingly, was a short, slim Black American girl, and her hair was tied into a bun.
"This footage was taken from one of our laboratories during a study," The man holding the tablet gestured at the man on the screen, saying, "This is Master Sergeant Isaki Tanaka, one of our top soldiers among the Ground units of the JASDF," he then pointed to the girl, "and this is Amaya Allison Heller, daughter of Sergeant James Heller, a soldier currently dispatched in Iraq."
"Excuse me, Major," One of the officers interrupted him and raised his hand, "Just what significance does this report hold in relation with our current predicament, exactly?"
The man turned his firm gaze toward him, replying, "What, you ask? These people," He said, pointing a finger at the screen behind him, "might be our only hope in tipping the balance of this war with the demons in our favor."
He moved away from the screen, allowing the gathered officers a full view of the record. A voice which clearly came from a loudspeaker filled the room in the video, announcing, "Begin the analysis. Master Sergeant Tanaka, Miss Heller, proceed as instructed."
Amaya sprinted towards Isaki at a speed that should never have been possible even for a human of her size and stature, drawing her right fist to strike. Isaki stood his ground and swatted her to the side with his right arm, ducking to avoid a kick aimed for his head. He delivered a strong punch that was immediately blocked, but the power exerted in his attack sent Amaya skidding away.
Amaya halted her wild slip when she punched right into the solid floor, eliciting gasps of surprise from the audience of officers. She launched herself towards Isaki again, drawing her right arm back for another punch, but when she threw her fist forwards, the arm was was already encased in a large mechanical appendage, the large limb of black metal appearing in a flash of gold light.
At this point some of the officers appeared to have misunderstood the situation. One of them stood, a large bald man with an evident Russian accent, "What are you even showing us? We gathered here to obtain reports of recent events and come to a consensus of action—not to watch some childish science-fiction footage!"
"This is not a mere hoax, Sir," the Major answered, glaring at the officer, "Please settle down and remain in your seat."
"Settle down?" he answered with acid in his voice, "Countless lands are being destroyed and captured as we speak, and even Moscow has already fallen to the demons' forces! You expect me to settle down when the rest of the world's survival is at stake?-!"
Before the Major could answer, another voice filled the room, its simple presence enough to quiet down the unnecessary squabble.
"I'll take it from here, Major," President Obama stood from his seat; when he concluded that everyone's attention was directed at him, he broke the tense silence. "I understand that this information has been disturbing and outright nonsensical; however, I can assure you: these beings are real, and the footage you have just witnessed is not the work of a professional animator."
"It was Master Sergeant Tanaka himself who revealed the existence of beings like himself on our world, and is the one who provided the information that has proven itself imperative to all of our previous operations against the demons," The President continued, "They call themselves the 'Other Selves' of man: they are real, they are powerful, and they have been living among us for countless generations."
President Obama paused before continuing, "However, Master Sergeant Tanaka has given a particular piece of intel about this race: they are a neutral party, and may decide to help with two options—whether they should conquer our world with the demons, or fight with us to save it."
"My decision is this," he began, "we must make sure that each and every evacuation center is safely secured. We will search for these Other Selves among military and civilians alike, and we must find a way to convince these beings to aid us in our cause." President Obama's voice was strong as he spoke, "These beings that walk among us may really be our best chance of tipping the scales in our favor."
A silent wave of agreement passed among the gathered officers. Much later, their silent contemplations were broken when a soldier with a panic-stricken face slammed the door open and burst into the room, carrying a few pieces of paper in his hands.
"Private Benjamin!" The Major barked, "You were all given orders not to disturb this meeting until further notice!"
"I-I apologize, sir!" the soldier stuttered, "But we just received an important piece of information from one of our officers in Tokyo!" He held up the papers in his hand, almost screaming, "This report states that there are nine actual Other Selves present in the city!"
The sounds of battle grew louder as Yuu and company jogged closer cautiously towards the source. Mato and Yomi were flanked by Yuu, Mayuri, Yuki and Yusuke, being the only ones incapable of battle at the moment. When they got closer, the corpses of humans seemed to grow larger than the number of demons', and another sound grew louder as they approached: the terror-filled screams of humans, and loud, sinister laughter that was disturbingly feminine.
Survivors were still around.
"Mayuri," Yuu said, grabbing her attention, "Can you communicate with your friends at this distance? We need to come up with something if we're going to be taking this thing down."
"Hello? Shorty, just what are we even up against? Seriously, you've been grinning like an idiot since we got into Akiba!" Yuki said crossly, sending a glare in Yuu's direction.
"Well, I'm just making sure you don't piss your pants once we meet this thing. C'mon Snowball, just keep your cool." Yuu replied, not bothering to look at Yuki, "After what happened at the mall in Kawasaki, I was thinking—"
Yuki's face flushed red, and she instantly sprang forward to clamp a hand over Yuu's mouth, cutting her off. Despite being behind her, Yuki could swear that Yuu had a big smirk on her face right now. She whispered threateningly in Yuu's ear, "I swear on my life, if you make a big deal out of this-you're dead."
"What's this about?" Yusuke asked.
"None of your business, private." Yuki replied, pointing her gun threateningly in his direction.
"Excuse me…"
All eyes turned to Mayuri, and Yuki inwardly sighed in relief. Mayuri momentarily fidgeted under the attention, but she kept her composure and said, "They're here."
"Who's here?" Mato asked.
As if in response, two figures dropped from the roof of a building across the street, cracking the concrete road when they landed. When the dust cleared, both turned out to be girls—most likely Mayuri's aforementioned comrades.
True, when they had seen the size and power of Mayuri's rifle, everyone else aside from Yuu had found the weapon to be utterly amazing in its own right. But aside from Mayuri and Yuu, everyone else fell stunned upon seeing the weapons that the two newcomers carried: one of them carried a massive sniper rifle, its scope large and blocky. Its barrel was long and shaped in an odd, blocky T-shape, but a single glimpse down its length revealed a spiraling interior—truly, this rifle was built to destroy at a distance.
The other girl wielded a colossal mini-gun, and under its revolving barrels was an enormous bayonet. Astonishingly, the girl only wielded the gigantic weapon with a single hand; the mini-gun had some sort of plated tube that connected to a large keg-shaped compartment(presumably where the weapon housed its ammunition) which she carried with her other hand, secured by a strap that hung from her shoulder.
Yuu was the first to step forward, making the two girls take a step back; it was clear that they were wary of her. Tense silence hung in the air despite the uproar of fighting, which included the suspicion directed at Yuu; she still hadn't explained how she knew Mayuri in the first place, neither did she explain her relations with the three gun-toting avatars of destruction.
"State your names," Yuu commanded, her voice carrying an air of authority.
The two seemed to flinch nervously, but the one carrying the immense sniper rifle composed herself first, stepping forward and standing rimrod-straight. She was a fairly tall girl with long dark hair that reached down to her waist, and her eyes possessed a strange unearthly color: an odd shade of pink tinged with metallic blue.
"Maid Gunner, Kurisu Makise," she said steadily.
The other girl had a peculiar shade of cherry-pink hair, styled into pigtails that twirled down to her waist. Her eyes bore the same color as her hair, and the way they gently glowed made it even clear how nervous she was in Yuu's presence.
She stepped forward edgily and gave a polite bow, "Underworld Vulcan, Rumiho Akiha."
Both were dressed in the same maid outfit as Mayuri: a white blouse fitted with a black vest secured with a corset, along with the usual apron and puffy black skirt, and a black frilly choker adorned with a small ribbon. Both were also wearing frilly headdresses and fake cat ears on their heads, obviously adding to the 'moe' look that the rampant otaku of this city loved so much.
"It's um… It's an honor to be in your presence once more, Black Hammer," Kurisu halfheartedly muttered.
Yuu groaned, and it almost seemed like the cause was from hearing that last statement. Mayuri gave off uneasy twitches that indicated that she really wanted to just be with her friends on the spot, but it was obvious that something was keeping her back; both Kurisu and Rumiho seemed to share the same sentiments.
Just what happened to these three that clearly involved Yuu—or, to be more specific, Strength?
Wait a sec, did that Kurisu just call Yuu 'Black Hammer?'
"You can breathe now," Yuu said, breaking the tension, "Anyway, Gunner and Vulcan: just what happened out there that had your asses handed to you?"
Kurisu, or Gunner, seemingly the most level-headed of the three, responded, "We were observing a group of evacuating survivors several minutes ago. We wanted to make sure that no stray demons would be able to go in for a kill. However, it turned out that two people among them, which I presume to be siblings, had been chosen as hosts."
"Let me guess: they're still in the middle of merging with their hosts, and there's no way you could have harmed it?" Yuu suggested.
"Yes."
"Well, I guess this'll be easy," Yuu said, turning her attention back to everyone else, "All we'll have to do is buy ourselves some time until they're finished."
"Explanations, please," Yusuke said, raising his free hand.
"Depending on how compatible an Other self is with his or her host, he or she will be granted a short time of total invulnerability," Kurisu answered, pausing for a while, "But the problem is…"
"The problem is that Geshumaru is using that time to annihilate any human it sees. We couldn't do a thing to stop it," Mayuri uttered.
"And since it was around survivors at the time…"
Yuki yelled, "Then there's no time to waste!"
Yusuke nodded, "I don't care how powerful this thing is, but we've got to take it down! What could possibly happen if it reaches an evac center?-!"
Yuu had been the only one who stayed calm throughout the entire exchange. Mayuri, Rumiho, and Kurisu directed their attention to her, Kurisu saying, "What are your orders?"
Yuu silently mulled over for a few seconds, with everyone's attention directed at her expectantly. Finally, she spoke, "Gunner, find yourself a spot distant and elevated enough for you to get precise shots without getting Geshumaru's attention." she said, then turning her attention to the two soldiers, "Yusuke and Snowball, stay on the sidelines. We need you to provide support and cover fire. Vulcan, you're coming with me. You're going to make it rain bullets on this big fucker, and I'll handle anything it tosses at us."
"Um…" Mayuri stepped forward, "What about me? What do I have to do?"
Yuu turned her head in her direction, making her shy away from her firm gaze. She walked over towards Mayuri, looking straight into her glowing green eyes, "Oh, nothing much." Yuu said sarcastically, "I'm just going to give the most important assignment to you."
"W-What is it?" Mayuri asked, knowing that denying Yuu would be futile.
"You're going to be protecting Mato and Yomi. Let anything happen to them, and you're dead."
Mayuri flinched before responding uneasily, "I'll d-do my best!"
"Okay then," Yuu said, turning towards everyone, "Let's get going, guys. Time to take one less threat from the world of the living."
*sigh* Summer school is totally slowing me down with everythin'. Q^Q
Just when I thought things were going to be better….. *rage mode*
I guess I should explain a few things; mainly the involvement and introduction of three characters from the sci-fi anime Steins;Gate into the story.
When this story was still in the process of being outlined, one of the topics me and my friends often talked about regarding this fanfiction were the identities I would give to certain Other Selves.
For example, when we first planned this, the BRS anime had not been released yet, so I had planned an OC to take the role of being Black Gold Saw's human counterpart; that is, until the anime revealed a certain teacher who I'm somewhat fanboying over(I've got a thing for older women… _;) to be the one for the job.
When I was working on concepts on the scenes for the events in Tokyo, the idea of letting three of my fave characters from Huke's artworks—Maid Gunner, Underworld Vulcan, and Demon Cannon User-participate in a battle came to mind. However, there was also the issue of what human-counterpart names to give each of them.
I discussed this subject with a few friends, and at first all we did was suggest names here and there, looking for ones that would fit those three. A few days later, an idea came to mind: the answer for a setback regarding Huke's original characters was also among Huke's works!
I had concluded that Kurisu Makise, Rumiho Akiha, and Mayuri Shiina would be perfect for this. Just think about it: those girls from Steins;Gate matched the girls from the BRS universe almost perfectly! Mayuri has Demon Cannon's eyes and hair, the same goes for Rumiho, though her hair is longer than Vulcan's, and aside from the eye and hair color, Kurisu and Gunner look too similar. Not only that, Huke had already depicted his characters from Steins;Gate in maid costumes. It kinda makes me wonder if Huke just based those three from his previous designs.
Oh, and I'm almost finished with a sketch I made of Isaki fighting Dragon Slayer. I'll put it up on my DA as soon as it's scanned~
I sincerely hope you guys found this chapter enjoyable. :3
Later, people. 'till next time~!
