So this is gonna be another short one, but the reasoning is at the hope you enjoy it.
Disclaimer: I don't own World Trigger and any Ocs are owned by their respective author.
Chapter 35: Kotowari Squad: Part 5
"I am so sorry... That's all my fault..."
Hoshi laid on the ground with a defeated aura around her as she spoke. She got an odd look from her opponent, who for one reason or another wasn't attacking, but didn't notice it.
"It's fine, really!" Toby said from the other side. "I was just shocked, is all!"
"Don't blame yourself. You did say they were just prototypes," Takeshi reassured.
"Now may not be the time for this, but that helped me figure out a name for this Trigger!"
Finally getting back up, Hoshi looked at Wakamura and got ready to attack as she placed a hand on her sword and pulled out her gun.
"It was sparkling so much when I used it that it has to be called... Starlight!"
'Starlight...'
Getting a smile on her face, Hoshi ran forward as she dodged the attacks from the Gunner. She used Teleport to get behind him and got ready to fire, but had to use Teleport again to dodge the slash to her neck from behind.
"Damn. I missed."
[So... What was that about?]
[Miura's attack didn't seem to reach Awdry, but... Shield doesn't have any effect that can make someone Bail Out...]
[That was probably Hoshi's prototype Trigger.]
[Really?]
[She's been working on three new Triggers. That must have been one of them. While it was hard to see, it's pretty obvious what has happened.]
[... It deflected the shots and sent them back to the unsuspecting Miura...]
[Bingo.]
[Well... Kotowari Squad gains a point for taking out Miura-tai while no one seems to get a point for Awdry-tai's Bail Out.]
[That would count more as a voluntary Bail Out, seeing as he took no hits and the Bail Out was because of something he himself used.]
[Hm. This is interesting. If they are using never-before-seen Triggers that are just prototypes then they may have the advantage.]
[Not necessarily. Remember, something can go wrong since they aren't complete. We just saw something like that happen with Awdry.]
ZOOM!
BOOM!
"Sorry, Nasu-senpai, but I'm gonna need to win now," Takeshi said as he blocked the girl's Viper with his beam.
"How...confident of you to say something like that," Nasu said as she fired more shots.
"Sorry if that sounded arrogant, but our princess is in a bind. With our 'knight' out of he fight now, the 'Mage' needs to go out and protect her."
With nothing more being said, the two continued to dodge each other's attacks while firing twice as many as the last attack.
Every now and then a shot from one of the Snipers would come by, but they easily got ignored and blocked without the two Shooters even knowing that they were coming.
Moving his arms in more large and fluid motions, Takeshi controlled the beams so that they seemed to just be attacking randomly. In reality they were trying to find opponents. When one hit a spot it could show him that neither Akane or Kumagai were there, so he moved to the next part.
He continued to do this while still fending off Nasu's onslaught of Viper. He moved in and out of the gaps between houses and used other things as cover while orbs firing laser-like beams were above the houses and firing all around.
Nasu tried to find exactly where he was, but he continued to use Teleport to confuse her. He switched the distances from long to short, making the intervals between teleports different and ever changing.
Seeing that his opponent still hadn't gotten a good grasp as to where he would be, Takeshi used Teleport to get behind Nasu and held his finger out towards her head. He was about to fire Asteroid, but a shot came from the side and got him in the head.
[Hiura-tai as finally fired and landed a shot to the head no less! That's one point for-]
[Wrong. Take a look again.]
[Huh?... Is that...]
Nasu went wide eyed when, instead of Takeshi bailing out, she saw a strap fall to the ground with a hole in it. She quickly turned around just in time to get an arm blasted off by a laser-like beam.
Takeshi landed on the ground and looked to see that one of the straps on his arm was missing. He figured out what had happened and smirked.
'So this is what Zanzō does, huh? That's a nice Trigger to use.'
Seeing some movement not to far off, Takeshi fired in the direction, but was blocked when a Viper hit the beam and changed it's direction.
"Suzume-senpai, Kumagai-senpai just passed by. See if you can get her to Bail Out. She's heading towards the overpass. We can't let our princess go up against that many opponents."
"Sure thing! Just leave her to me!"
Focusing on his opponent again, Takeshi made a new orb appear behind his back as he tried to be careful with Sniper shots. He fired three beams at Nasu and moved one of the orbs into the air, above the two of them.
Nasu used Viper to deflect the beams enough to where she could dodge them. This was another weakness she found out about Takeshi's beams. While they were powerful and relentless, they were able to be deflected and redirected if someone focused enough and used their own Trion to move the beams.
That's not to say that they were completely stoppable.
Nasu clicked her tongue when one of the beams managed to get part of her leg. She didn't falter though and returned the attack, taking part of his arm. She saw a small sparkle off to the side and before she could tell Akane not to fire the Sniper let out her shot.
Takeshi saw this sparkle as well and used the orb he made behind himself to fire off the laser-like beam in the direction the shot was made. It exploded only a second after it connected. He saw Nasu start to move and took his change to use the orb in the air.
"Laser Circus."
One beam came down from the orb. Two branch beams came out of the first one. Four more came from each one. Eight more came from each branched one. This continued until a whole shower of beams were above Nasu and barely out of reach to get Takeshi.
Not wanting to be taken out with taking Takeshi with her, Nasu fired a final attack of multiple Vipers going in every direction. She was quickly blasted full of holes after.
Trion limit exceeded. Bail Out.
Trion limit exceeded. Bail Out.
Having had to focus of taking out the two female agents, Takeshi couldn't do anything about the last attack and simply clicked his tongue as he himself was quickly filled with holes.
Trion limit exceeded. Bail Out.
[That's one point for Nasu Squad and two points for Kotowari Squad!]
[I wouldn't expect any less from Nasu. Even while being in a tight spot, she manages to score a point.]
[Now that just leave Kumagai to get some points.]
[If you wouldn't mind, I would like to ask about that move Kotowari-taicho did.]
[Ah. Right. That was probably another prototype Trigger.]
[This one seemed to mix Teleport with something else.]
[The strap took the hit instead to Kotowari, so I can assume that it does a fast Teleport to a set spot and leaves a sort of afterimage with a real object to take the actual hit.]
[These kinds of Triggers could be very useful if they were perfected.]
[Yeah, but these are also support-types for other Triggers.]
[I see... The first one we saw was worked by using Shield. The second one used Teleport... ]
[Exactly. Meaning the while the first one we saw can be used by anyone, apparently with a large amount of Trion, the second one can be used by agents who are well adept in using Teleport, such as myself or Arashiyama.]
[Interesting...]
"I'm sorry! If I didn't take that short then you could have focused on taking Kotowari out!"
"It's fine. You didn't slip up at all. Kotowari-kun is just really observant of his surroundings, so he probably would have found you anyways." Walking up behind their Operator, Nasu looked at the screen. "Kuma-chan, sorry, but you're going to have to score the points from here."
"Alright. Just leave it to me. This time for sure, I'll get us some points."
"She's the weakest one at long-range fights, so she'll have to be extra careful. Especially since Misaki is still out."
"Yeah, but the best opposing long-range fighter is out, so she won't have to worry about that!"
"I hope you're right..."
"Man... Sorry guys. Even with Hoshi's new Trigger, I couldn't get many points," Takeshi said with a sigh.
"You kidding!? That was great! You took out both Rei and Akane!" Toby said with a pat on the back.
"He's right. Although now Katori Squad doesn't have to worry too much about long-range fights, neither does Hoshi," Mei said as he continued to look at the screen. "And Toby's right. Taking out both their Shooter and Sniper was the best outcome you could make before having to Bail Out."
"Heh... Thanks... I guess." Walking up to the computer, Takeshi looked at the screen and sighed. "Hoshi, I'm giving you full permission now. Beat both of them and score us some points."
"Y-yes, sir!"
"Senpai, please back her up, but still keep an eye and take out Kumagai-senpai."
"Sure thing!"
"At least these fights don't seem to be going on for long..."
After getting the order from her captain, Hoshi felt excited at the idea of fighting Katori head-on. But that would have to wait until after she had taken out her new friend, and current opponent.
She was able to easily dodge their shots, but getting in close for the hits was the hard part. While she herself had a gun, she knew that it wasn't the best option against two of them. She jumped back and noticed she was at the edge of the multi-layer overpass.
She had gotten an idea.
Seeing the two closing in on her and still firing, she let out a small sigh and started to fall back.
The two from the same squad were shocked at this and quickly went over to start their firing again. When they got to the edge they were shocked to see that she wasn't there or on any of the lower levels.
'Now's my chance...'
Hoshi started down at the two from the air as they slowly realized what was going on. She grabbed her sword and in one quick motion she drew her blade, cutting up the ground and managing to take Wakamura's arm, along with his weapon.
Without warning, Kumagai was under the two falling agents with her Kōgetsu in both hands.
A shot was fire and got her foot.
This didn't stop her though as she slashes at the two.
Wakamura saw this and grabbed his captain's arm and tossing her to the side before getting cut in two.
"Damn!"
Trion limit exceeded. Bail Out.
[That's another point for Nasu Squad!]
[Even whole being targeted, and taking a hit, Kumagai was able to take that point from Taiyōko. Not too bad.]
[Hm. Now it's a battle of girls. The only thing is that Hoshi has some backup, while the other two are alone here.]
[I can't wait to see how this turns out! Both Taiyōko-tai and Kumagai-tai have sturdy blades while Katori-taicho has multiple weak ones!]
[At this point it would be best for either Kumagai or Katori to go search for Misaki. With her using Lightning the distance is far, so even if those two find out where she is, they would still have a distance to cross.]
'I know how strong Katori is, but I still don't have a good grasp as to how strong Taiyōko is.' Kumagai tightened her grip on her Kōgetsu as she got ready for an attack. 'Regardless, she doesn't seem to be as strong as Murakami-senpai, so if we both go after her-'
Kumagai's thoughts were cut off when Hoshi was suddenly in front of her with her blade ready to strike and her gun pointing at the other girl.
"Wha-!?"
Thinking quickly, Kumagai blocked the strike and pushed her back. She went in for her own hit, but noticed that the younger girl was gone again. She turned around and switched her target.
Katori saw the switch from Kumagai and got ready to fire at her, but a shot came out of nowhere and took part of her hand, making her lose the gun.
Another shot was fired, making Kumagai jump back.
She noticed where the shot came from and fired some Meteora in the direction. Once they hit the building it exploded, but there wasn't a Bail Out.
While at the bottom of the layer the two girls were on, Hoshi cut the support beam under them, making that kart start to fall.
She saw the two were shocked by this and started jumping from one piece of falling bridge to another. She got her sword ready and went for Katori, only to be blocked by a Scorpion blade.
Kumagai came down from above and tried the same thing, but also got blocked. The difference was that Kumagai let out a Meteora after the block, making smoke go into the air as the shots collided with the rubble around them and the targets.
BOOM!
As the smoke cleared, three figures could be seen.
The captain of Katori Squad. Katori Yōko.
The ace of Nasu Squad. Kumagai Yūko.
The new member of Kotowari Squad. Taiyōko Hoshi.
The three stood facing each other. One girl was unharmed since she had used a prototype Trigger, another one was missing part if foot and the last one was missing an arm and leaking Trion.
'Damn! I'm really pissed now!'
"Yōko, keep your cool! You can't go against them without some kind of plan!"
'You shut up! You're the one who had to Bail Out before me!'
"To save your ass!"
Ignoring her teammate, Katori brought out a Scorpion and got ready to attack again. She had planned to go after Hoshi, but decided it was an easier point to go after Kumagai.
'She's better than I would have though.'
"Don't let them get to you, Kuma-chan. Just focus. Katori is the most injured, so try and get her to Bail Out."
'Yeah. Not to mention her agro is crazy. Alright. I'll score a point here and now!'
Kumagai got ready to attack Katori with her blade while she had Meteora ready for if Suzume decided to shoot. Determination filled her eyes as she remembered what had happened during her last match.
'Takeshi-kun... Can I ask you for permission to use the third Trigger?'
"Hm? Permission?"
'Yes... Since it's still new, it might-'
"It might end up like what happened to Toby... Right?... Sigh. Alright. Go ahead and use it. It's your trump card to use."
'R-right!'
Hoshi put her Kōgetsu on her opposite side at her waist and looked like she was going for a slash.
Clack
As soon as the sound was heard, they got to action.
Both Kumagai and Katori went after each other, making them realize they had left Hoshi alone and able to strike either one. They both turned to see an amazing and beautiful sight.
"Fujin... Kōgetsu..."
As soon as those words left her mouth, seven green ribbons burst from Hoshi's Kōgetsu and moved behind her. To everyone it looked exactly like the Black Trigger it was modeled after.
Knowing at least the basics of how the original worked, the two girls got ready to dodge. What they didn't expect was for Hoshi to run straight at them.
With a solid push, Hoshi rushed forward. She had moved quicker than before, but that may have just been an reaction to her using Teleport and appear before the two in an instant.
Instead of directly attacking the two, she ran passed them while moving her sword just a bit. The first ribbon touched Kumagai's leg, cutting it off. The second one touched Katori's arm, cutting it off. The third one touched Katori's side, cutting that side. The fourth one touch Kumagai's arm, cutting it off. The fifth one touched Kumagai's arm, cutting it off. The sixth one touched Katori's leg, cutting it off. The seventh one touched Kumagai's side, cutting through it.
The two girls were shocked that it was used like this as their bodies started cracking up. Even with this damage though, they were still up long enough for their last attacks.
Having her back turned, Hoshi didn't see the Scorpion that was thrown at her and was quickly taken out from the blade going through her head.
Trion limit exceeded. Bail Out.
Katori clicked her tongue as she fell to the ground and her body started breaking up.
Trion limit exceeded. Bail Out.
Kumagai tried to stay up as he own face was breaking, but knew she was done for when she saw a shot fired at her.
She didn't want to go out without one last bang, and so fired Meteora at the direction the shot came from.
Trion limit exceeded. Bail Out.
Trion limit exceeded. Bail Out.
Two lights flashed threw the sky as they flew off, signaling the end of the match. With both lights flying away, that meant not a single agent had remained on the field to get any survival points. That also meant one team had made it through to the end.
The match was completely over.
QOTC: What do you think of the prototype Triggers?
QOTC2: Got any questions?
Alright! There ya all go! I've got a few things to say, so I'd appreciate it if you stayed.
I'll start off with this chapter. If the match as a whole, or the separate fights, felt rushed then that's because they were. This match was more for Hoshi to shine. I hope she did. Anyways. Let's move on.
Next is this story and some other ones. So Sick Snow's updates will be slowing down a little. Before you say anything about it, I just want to say that it's because I'm going to be working on two other large side story...stories... One will be a sort of canon-filler and the other will just be a fun one. They will both be on hm other account (StingerShip) for anyone wanting to read them. Like I said, the first one will still be canon, but also filler, meaning that it does happen in the canon of Sick Snow, but is still technically filler.
Now to the last thing. Small tidbit, but you'll probably be seeing my writing style change at times. It happened here.
Sigh! That's all! I hope you all enjoyed! I hope you look forward to that other story! I hope you just continue reading! Until next time... BYE! *slithers back under covers* I'm sorry if it sucked!